Caribbean - Seabound

Waking up at a respectable time the morning of the big trip, we repacked our things and loaded up the bikes.  In typical South American style the boat was delayed by a couple of hours, so we sat back with another cup of the Columbian tinto (coffee) and soaked in the last moments of South America.

Heading into the docks of Boca Grande we were again stunned by the wealth in this part of town.  Designer outlets and luxury highrises, all surrounded by the white sand beaches.  After waiting on the docks for an hour or so, we were greeted by the Fritz the Cat along with the crew.  Rolly, the Austrian giant at about 6'10", is our Captain.  Jose, at about 5' is our First Mate.  The crew consisted of a couple of Kiwis, an America, two Brazilians, four Brits, an Aussie, a Swiss, a Fin, and us three.  There were two other motorcyclist along for the ride, the Aussie, Rossy, a bang up guy with a DR650.  He took a similar route than us through South America and is now embarking on North America.  Blog here: http://www.followtheakubra.com/.  Might ride with him in the coming weeks, if we can manage to meet up again.  The other riders, Heinz and Beth were two up on a BMW 1200GS from Brazil.  Two very kind people with a great trip planned.

Rolly the giant Captain man-handled the bikes aboard and then efficiently strapped the bikes down.  We wrapped them up with whatever we could to prevent sea spray and settled in for the 40 hour journey to San Blas. With the 5 bikes, 16 people and 2 crew on, we set course and Jose cooked up the first of the many great Austrain meals we ate.

Boarding and Loading

Rolly and I

Rolly and Derrick

Our room

After they fed us, the sunset made an impression which displayed the beauty of the open ocean we would be enjoying.  

They then signed us all up for the night watches.  This consisted of making sure the nav was still under control of the boat, looking for other boats, and monitoring the boat itself.  These 40 hours went by surprisingly fast as we occupied ourselves with books, magazines, uno, cards, chess, and of course some basking in the sun.  The water was unusually smooth for this trip, allowing for minimal salt spray on the bikes and a steady boat.  This meant no sea sickness and operable bikes!

We then arrived in San Blas for the sunrise on the 17th.  This was an incredible display of what we would be enjoying for the next few days.