Cabo Cruz, Cuba

 

Dear Friends,

Staying rather close to the mainland of Cuba, we sailed/motorsailed overnight from Cayo Anclitas to Cabo Cruz… calm seas and just a little head wind, we arrived in the early afternoon.

Anchorage was great… nice breeze, but no swell as we had protection from the reef that extends out from the mainland. Over the VHF radio somebody summoned us to check in with the Guarda Frontera.. so, after lunch we tried to locate the officials. Cabo Cruz is just one main road, some scattered houses, fishermen, a school and that is basically it. When we found the official looking person, it turned out they just wanted to chat, and asked if we had seen small fisher boats on the way in.. (actualy did, but said no..as i am not a spy…)

Back to the boat, a guy came swimming out offering lobster and fish.. we got rid of our last CUC money and took the lobster… Clear waters, did some snorkeling and had a nice and quiet evening…Sometimes things are just that nice and easy…sunset on the boat, great company, some lobster…all great ..(little did we know about our adventures ahead)…

 

Progress in Cuba                                                   Protection behind the reef, Cabo Cruz

Cabo Cruz from the anchorage                           Busy mainstreet Cabo Cruz

 

Not much else to do…                                       Fidel, Fidel..

Modern and well designed dinghy dock                               Hello…

 

          Gracias Cuba.. Hope the future will be good to you and your people…

 

Sail on…

 

Pieter

Cayo das Anclitas, Jardines de La Reina, Cuba

Dear friends,

Against the wind (ofcourse) we reached Cayo das Anclitas, in the island archipel of Jardines de la Reina. In this location there is a floating Hotel/resort catering for Scuba divers and sport fishing, http://www.cubandivingcenters.com/avalon-gardens-queen. A great setting, great staff and… wifi internet connection…. Life is good. We joined a group of 6 scuba divers for two dives on the reefs… Awesome… Caribbean reef sharks all around, massive Mero`s, Tarpon`s etc etc.. Check the YouTube video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BezZoG3nZ1c&lc=z13pjv2p4wm4evjzb04cj35y5wzdchg4a1c

We had to leave this diving paradise after two days, it was a great experience, and a special thanks to Antonio, who not only managed to get us joining the Resort scuba diving group, but also was so kind to supply us with a bag full of fresh produce (fruits, tomatoes, unions etc etc).

Hotel Tortuga Dive Resort                           Hello…Just smile and wave..smile and wave

 

Gracious, calm almost serene (just like the divers…)

Good vibes…..                                             Not so good vibes.. green murray eel…

 

Never gets stale……                                     A new Cuban friend.. Mero…

 

Next stop.. Cabo Cruz.. that little SE point of Cuba…

Enjoy what you do…

Pieter

Charter in Cuba

 

We now had to prepare ourselves for a charter we had sold. Casper from Holland decided to sail for a week with us in Cuba. To get all the ingredients and try to stock up for this charter was not an easy task, and involved numerous trips to the farmers market, a visit to a clandestine shrimp and lobster outlet and roaming the streets looking for items in different sized shops/(super)markets. We managed and were able to welcome Casper on board with our signature Onda Boa style reception.

The next days we sailed (not a lot of wind) to various towns and locations. Including Trinidad, one of Cubas oldest cities. The marina in Cacilda was great… brand new piers and slips. The entrance is very shallow so for boats with 2 m draft or more, I guess it wont be possible to reach. Some fantastic little islands were explored, some great snorkeling on the reefs as well. Fresh fish and lobster were bartered on the open seas by a fisher boat… Tshirt from Brazil, a bottle of rum, some toothpaste (!!!!), soap and laundry detergent. Wonderful. The week flew by and we got Casper back on time in Cacilda for his taxi ride back to the Varadeiro Airport.

And we…. on our way back east… to Cayo Anclitas…Jardines de La Reina, Cuba.

And a big thanks to Casper, who was a wonderful guest and… chef de cuisine as it turned out….

Take care

Pieter