05/18/2003 - 5/21/2003

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Around 10:00 am, Robin turned the key to start the engine in preparation for departing Bahía Ballandra. "Vvvthh. Silence. Turn it again. Vvtthhh... silence" Where is the always comforting, sometimes annoying "Rrrrrrr" sound of the engine purring? Duncan quickly diagnosed the start battery was drained. Fortunately, Shea Weston from Offshore Outfitters recommended and installed a jump switch tocombine the house battery bank (735 Amp hours) and the start battery. Duncan jumped the battery and we were back in business. The puzzling question is why did the start battery drain? Theoretically, the genset should keep the start battery charged through the Echo-Charger. Never a dull moment in the boat systems department.

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Do you?

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Onward Ho! Today's destination is San Juanico which is reportedly a great anchorage and bay. With no wind, we motored toward San Juanico. Just as we approached the bay, the wind picked up to 15 knots. Of course, now that we are at the destination, the wind picks up. Unfortunately, what appears to happen is that wind funnels through San Juanico creating swell and uncomfy conditions. Plan B. The anchorage around the corner, La Ramada, is much more protected from southeast winds. So, we decided to check in to the Ramada Inn.

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The cruising guides indicated La Ramada is a relatively small anchorage. When we arrived, there were already five boats in the anchorage. Yet, there was plenty of room for us. We received lots of recommendations on where not to anchor as well as where to anchor. Apparently, there was some stress in the anchorage about boats anchoring too close to other boats. We chose a spot on the outer edge of the anchorage well away from all the boats. The last thing we wanted to do was create more stress.

The wind continued to pick up, but this anchorage was very comfortable. Friends on boats in San Juanico indicated that anchorage was not so comfy. There is a hiking trail over to San Juanico from La Ramada. Tomorrow, we will hike over and check out the bay.

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From La Ramada, a short hike over the hill deposits you at the north end of San Juanico Bay. San Juanico is gorgeous. Several spots looked like good locations for snorkeling. As we hiked, Kevin from Citation told us about a cruiser shrine at the end of the hike. Every boat is supposed to put something from their boat at the shrine. We left nothing since we were unaware of the tradition.

One of Duncan's projects while in La Ramada, was to fix (at least one) of the head (toilet) pumps. After a year or so, the manual pumps wear out, and after three years, the hoses need to be cleaned. This dirty job took almost 2 days, but in the end, the forward head worked like new. One down, one to go.

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The water temperature cooled off to around 72 degrees. The air temperature still remained in the high eighties. This combination resulted in morning fog. Being from the San Francisco area, we equate fog with cold temperatures and the need for fleece jackets. Not here. The eerie fog with warm temperatures created beautiful mornings. However, the cold water temperatures did not motivate us to do much snorkeling. Via dinghy, we made a few failed attempts at catching fish. We did notice a panga fisherman on the point every night. Lobster? Nope, we decided it was time to check out of La Ramada and move on toward Bahía Concepción.

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