S/V WAHOO: Harbournating in Jamaica

Port Antonio

Jamaica is so beautiful! It's also a similar culture to Belize. Must be the British influence, more than in other islands the British seem to have left their stamp. There's so much paperwork!!! We even had to fill out forms to have laundry done.

Get me some Jerk Chicken and a Red Stripe Beer

It seems this year's cruise is about repairs to Wahoo. After the issues in the DR we left Haiti for Jamaica in a hurry because of the freezer; got that fixed and moved on to replacing the macerator pump (you don't want to know). We're continuing to work on steering issues and more freezer problems have surfaced, which means we had to once again order a part from the States and depend on John Edward and Fed Ex to get it to us (yes its here, we go to customs to pick it up tomorrow). We replaced the 24" iMac for a LED 32" Samsung TV and donated the (2007) iMac to Ile a Vache. Now we can watch the movies & TV shows we bring on hard drives in Hi Definition, which is nice, but the connection leaves much to be desired. We are hoping to get an HDMI to USB cable in Mexico as there are none in Jamaica.

Christmas Eve

Our travels have been along the North coast of Jamaica which means a close watch on the weather as it's winter and cold fronts are making their way South. In general the Trade Winds blow from the ENE during the winter months and the ESE during the summer. A cold front in the Caribbean means high winds and clouds, maybe even some rain. The lowest we've seen the temperature is 77F at night. During the passage of a cold front the ENE winds will roar as they back to N then NNE before settling back down. Often as the front passes the winds clock to ESE and produce a period of light and variable wind. The other possibility is a cold front that stalls North of the Caribbean causing the trades to nearly collapse for a few days. We are using one such stalled front to make our 150NM passage to Cuba.

The view from Firefly, Noel Coward's house. All those movie stars lived nearby.

As we traveled from the first Jamaican landfall, Port Antonia, in the NE corner of Jamaica, along the North coast to Montego Bay we had to be careful as all the harbors on this coast naturally face North and only a few offer protection from the North winds and seas. After re-acquainting ourselves with all the things we loved about Port Antonio we moved on to spend Christmas in Oracasessa Bay. Goldeneye, overlooking the Bay, was home to Ian Fleming. He wrote nearly all of the James Bond books from here. It is now a superb resort. Condi Nast names it among the top 10 in the world!

got a new scarf for Christmas

Golden Cove off of Oracabessa Bay is a very well protected harbor and you can see how calm it was on Christmas Eve from the photo. The rest of the coast was receiving punishing winds and seas from a strong cold front but we hardly felt a roll. It was fun to be able to use this very high end resort. Once we made reservations for Christmas Eve dinner and got "vetted" we were able to bring the dinghy in for drinks and to explore all 52 acres of this lovely spot. We stayed a week but once the front passed our destination was 40 miles West to Discovery Bay for a very different experience. Our one overnight in this safe harbor found us ashore at a locals' beach bar filled with lots of fun and laughter. We found common ground with a Jamaican family on their last day together as half of the family lives in New York. Lots of fun and we ate jerked Conch, a first for us. The next morning was the last good day to travel so we headed West another 40 miles to reach Montego Bay, or MoBay as its more commonly called. We followed the channel in and anchored near the Yacht Club. New Year's Eve found us aboard eating our own lobster and drinking our own wine as we watched the fireworks from the All Inclusive Resorts which surround this town. Not much exploring in Montego Bay as even the taxi drivers want to herd you and keep you "safe". Definitely a cruise ship mentality here - no one can even imagine that you feel comfortable walking on your own. Roy and I raised lots of eyebrows when we walked the mile or so to check out getting that new TV.

So different from seeing the iMac there

We find the the Eastern areas around Port Antonio and on to Discovery Bay a better fit for us. MoBay and Negril to the West are the tourist part of the island. The All Inclusive Resorts have convinced everyone that the local Jamaicans are a danger. Personally I preferred being hustled by a street Rastafarian than a taxicab driver. In Port Antonio no one blinks if you go to the market, or get jerk chicken at one of the street vendors. Here just stepping out of the yacht club into a very posh neighborhood takes everyone by surprise.

"mango, banana, coconut, ganja" he calls
I refuse to find Clive intimidating!

Wednesday, Jan 4 we head to Cuba. Our first landfall is Cayo Anclitas in the Jardins de la Reina (Gardens of the Queen). Basically a reef strewn archipelago that is totally uninhabited. We will sail through this area without clearing in as no Guarda Frontera patrol this area. Cuba has very few ports of entry so we plan to clear in at Cayo Largo, the only spot that is not on the main island. It will be a little over 569 NM at 6 knots before we reach the Western port of Los Morros and can cross the Yucatan Channel once again to find landfall in Isla Mujeres. We figure about a month. So until then friends, Hasta La Vista!