Dan has wanted to see Cartagena for years; maybe because of reading wonderful things in “The Log of Ithaka” by Bernadette and Doug Bernan, or our cruising friends on Pizazz, who really loved that city and all it had to offer. Now that Dan and I have visited some great places in the Northwest Caribbean arriving in the San Blas again, it seemed like a great time to continue on to Columbia. Dan really wanted to go, but I took some convincing. The choice was easy, really. As we travelled we met many cruisers who were returning from or planning their return to Cartagena. There was not one negative report. Cartagena, it is said,”is lovely, safe and has lots of wonderful things to see and do. Christmas time is magical !”
November is a moving month in the Caribbean because as the rainy season ends, the weather can change to windy with storms and thus higher seas at any time. Colombia already generally has forecasts for seas at least 6 feet and the usual conditions seem to be 7 to 8 foot seas. Most cruisers want to be in Colombia by mid November. We visited Massachusetts and returned to Panama on November 16th, so we felt we needed to move on quickly!
As I mentioned in other entries we left our long time traveling companions and friends on Tregoning in the San Blas two weeks previous. It was difficult to say our good-byes and sail away from them as we realized that we share many interests and had been daily companions since George Town in the Bahamas! At Shelter Bay we met a friendly couple on an IPY 37, Jay and Barb on Jupiter’s Smile, who wanted to leave, as we did, for the San Blas. Our two IPY’s headed out of the marina on November 20th at a break in the constant rain that had been beating down on our roofs and canvas for days.
It rained all through our first traveling day and at night but we spent one moderately comfortable night at anchor in Playa Blanca, scraping the renewed barnacles off our boats, and where we met a resident named Angel, before moving on toward the San Blas-again in the rain.
Our progress was inhibited by wind on the nose so we had to motor sail, and the constant rain had washed HUGE trees, logs, thatches of entwined branches and various debris into our path. Well, perhaps because the weather was s000 good and our trip wonderful- by the time Jupiter’s Smile had checked into Porvenir, they had also checked out again and decided also to travel on to Cartagena. Hooray! We had a buddy boat to increase the safety factor for both of us. The importance of which became very clear later in the trip. We spent a night in the West Lemmon Cays, a night in Nargana, where we revisited Nali’s Restaurant and introduced Sammy to Barb and Jay.
Our next night was spent only 20 nm from Nargana, at Snug Harbor, further to the east. We found the anchorage to be lovely and inviting. This protected harbor is near the Panama mainland. There is a group of four or five small reef protected islands with the names Yuala, Apaidup and Ogumnaga where friendly Kuna Indians paddle their ulus selling vegetables grown on the mainland, Kuna bread and other offerings. There were other boats at Snug Harbor and some were waiting for a weather window to Cartagena. Dan and Jay agreed that the next day, Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, seemed to look good for a passage, although not perfect. The next chance to leave was then somewhere off in the distance and so on Thursday we left at 6:30AM. We were not to be alone. There were six other boats from that anchorage who made the same decision.
In preparation for our passage I had made some chili, beef stew and a few other goodies to avoid the need to stand in the galley during possible rough seas.
Dan had changed our fuel filters checked the engine and steering and we felt we were as ready as possible for our 170 nm passage, figuring 5knots per hour we were looking at 34 hours on the sea. We had already determined from the forecast that sailing would not be possible. The best we could hope for was motor sailing and low windspeed so the boat could make progress against the wind more comfortably.
We moved along fine for two thirds of the trip at about 5 knots experiencing 4 to 5 foot seas, then 6 to 7 foot seas as we approached closer to the Columbian coast. By that time our group had formed our night formation where we could see each other’s lights. Jumby was far ahead and out of sight, Sea Star flanked by Jupiter’s Smile, then Tempest and Pelican’s Flight. Mariposa was slightly behind our group. The group had maintained chatty radio contact as much for entertainment and to keep the watch person awake as for safety. Infinity, a fast J boat, we had enjoyed seeing coming up behind our group earlier in the afternoon showing her lovely spinnaker which she changed when night fell, as the seas were building a bit more and the wind was "on the nose".
The seas were becoming more uncomfortable; the trip required motor and it was very late into the midnight to three watch when the call was heard; a Pan Pan call on VHF radio that says a boat is in serious trouble. Jupiter’s Smile was the only boat to hear the distress call on the radio. Jay responded by contacting the boat by VHF radio to find out a cruising couple had been bailing their sailboat, Kersti, for quite some time and they felt she might be in serious danger of sinking!
What to do? Any mariner is bound by law and the law of the sea to respond when a call for help has been received. No one else, such as a larger ship, had apparently heard the distress call. Soon Jay had turned Jupiter’s Smile to return the 9 nm upwind- back- to offer assistance. When the other boats were alerted to what was occurring, Maraposa and Pelican’s flight started to the scene with the powerful pumps they carry on board for emergencies. Infinity tried to contact the people who were expecting them on shore to get an idea of what might be a good solution if the issue was not life threatening. Sea Star contacted Tempest who had some emergency phone numbers for the US Coast Guard in Miami and Key West, and used emergency SAT phone to make contact with the US Coast Guard and eventually the Columbian Coast Guard.
RESCUE AT SEA
I wish I could report a happy ending to the story. The owners of the sailboat, Jeff and his wife Ruth worked valiantly to keep Kersti afloat and sent out a radio distress call; bailing constantly while trying to motor toward Cartagena where the Colombian Coast Guard, we thought, was going to attempt to meet them. Meanwhile, an attempt to pass a pump to them failed as Pelican’s Flight’s pump jumped from the dinghy in the high seas, now 10 to 12 feet and seriously rolling all the boats, and the dinghy flew by and was lost.
The US Coast Guard set out from 175nm away. They said they could not be on scene for at least 2 ½ hours and they could not deploy their helicopter off the ship until they were 75 nm away. The Colombian Coast Guard was called again. With sinking hearts we found they had not deployed their boat. They felt the seas were too high for the boat they had on hand and had sent a reconnaissance plane to check the scene first.
Meanwhile it was becoming apparent among our five boats that any rescue would be up to the sailboats on scene. The authorities kept asking for information updates; which meant that Jay who was having all he could do to drive into the crashing waves needed to talk on the radio to Dan so he could convey the information, to Tempest who was relaying information and suggestions to the crew of Kersti, who also were very busy. What were the new coordinates?, What color was the sail boat? Were the people wearing life vests? How do you spell Kersti? What is the radio’s MMSI number? Do they have a cell phone?
After the problem with receiving Pelican’s Flight’s pump Jeff was concerned that other boaters should not put their lives or boats at risk and gave up on trying to receive another pump that Maraposa offered. He then felt he would do all he could to move towards land while waiting for the possible help to arrive. Within an hour Kersti had taken on so much water and was so bow-heavy the couple decided to get into their life raft and abandon their home of six years. There was just nothing else to be done.
With great difficulty the couple placed a few belongings in their life raft and climbed in themselves while Jay, made a pass by the life raft and Barb, who had become quite sea sick, received it -being out on the deck in those huge seas. Jeff and Ruth and their few belongings were taken aboard Jupiter’s Smile; they were now safe themselves but they did not know the fate of their beloved Kersti. Dan, Sea Star had by now arrived on scene also, notified the coast guards, US and Colombian, that a pick-up had been made and called off the rescue. The distress call continued every 5 minutes until 10:15AM.
All of the boats now steamed toward the closest port grateful to have not required the skills of the Doctor aboard Tempest; the Bay of Cholon still eight hours away where we were guided into the shallow channel by Richard from Tisha Baby and all were treated to food prepared by other cruisers anchored in the Bay who had been listening to the radio transmissions and were anxiously waiting our group’s arrival. Arrangements were made on another sailboat, Glide, to get Ruth and Jeff to Cartagena where they could begin to decide what was to happen next.
It was the end of a very long day. We had set out at 6:30 AM from Panama. Jay and Barb turned around somewhere around 2:30 AM and with the sailboats Mariposa, Tempest, and Pelican’s Flight stayed with Jeff and Ruth until the conclusion at 8:30AM. Sea Star arrived around 6:30AM and while anxiously waiting and informing the Coast Guard of events on scene, took some pictures. We put anchor down at about 4:30 PM.
It is possible that the outcome would have been the same even if Jeff and Ruth had waited in the life raft for Coast Guard rescue. It is not certain. Apparently the US Coast Guard arrived on the scene sometime after we all headed to land and checked for the sinking sailboat, but saw no evidence of her. Here in Cartagena Harbor where huge cargo ships have been arriving and departing almost constantly, you have to wonder where they were that night. In the harbor we anchored quite near the impressive US Coast Guard cutter and saw the bright red rescue deck helicopter. It’s nice to know that in the states we have such resources. The Columbian Coast Guard apparently did not have a ship to send to the scene. Dan had great difficulty in communicating with them (language) and they didn’t appear to grasp the severity of Kersti’s situation or they just couldn’t help which was frustrating to us.
Jeff and Ruth still don’t know what sunk their sailboat. They have taken an apartment in Cartagena and may be waiting for some word of salvage of their boat; although it went down in very deep water there are some shoals near. They appreciate all the assistance given by the cruising community.
Jupiter's Smile, Pelican's Flight, Tempest, Infinity, Jumby, and Sea Star among others enjoyed our stop at the Bay of Cholon where the local boaters introduced us to the small town of Barru. A few days later Sea Star moved on to Cartagena.
click to see photos of Snug Harbor, Cholon Bay, Columbia and Barru
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| Cholon Bay-OL |
Click here to see the rescue of the crew of sailboat Kersti
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| Rescue of Kersti |
Now for some pictures of Cartagena anchorage and the Port of Cartagena.
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| Port of Cartagena OL |
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