Saturday, August 30, 2014

Leaving Trinidad



Its hard to believe that we are leaving Trinidad after being here for just over 2 weeks.  That seems like a relatively short time.  I wish I could say that we explored the island extensively but our focus has really been more on boat repairs and provisioning in preparation for our next leg in the journey.

While here, we had the pleasure of the company of good friends for a birthday celebration (Kay's and Tony's) at a fabulous Italian restaurant in Port of Spain.  We hiked in the Chagaruamas National Park and swam at the Crews Inn Pool almost daily.  Repairs were extensive with our engine having the rear main seal replaced, injector pump rebuilt, and generator put in working order again.  We worked on the hull, fueled up, and provisioned.

Now its time to move on and consider the most remote part of our journey,  Heading to Suriname is an adventure that few boats take.  It is a country that has only limited infrastructure for tourism.  The same could be said for Guyana, a country we will visit after Suriname.  Our route to Suriname will be to about 500 miles, passing north of Trinidad, east into the open Atlantic, and then down the coast of Venezuela.  It is important to stay well off the Venezuelan coast for a number of reasons.  First is security.  Venezuela presents significant security concerns and yachts need to be well off shore to be beyond the range of potential problems.  Second is wind and current.  There is an optimum place to sail relative to the continental shelf for maximum wind and minimum current.  All in all, we anticipate a five day trip, hoping to average 5 knots or about 120 miles per 24 hour period. 

Once in Suriname, we will once again have internet connections.  Communication will be difficult until we arrive as our SAT phone has not worked as advertised in this part of the Caribbean.  Because we will be out of communication for close to a week (and for other reasons as well) we will be traveling with our friends Ann and Tony who are on Argosea, their 47 foot Moody. 

Below are a few links to sights that may be of interest relative to Suriname.  Hope you enjoy them and again, thanks for following our adventures.

Best always

Richard and Kay



Stock Images of Suriname












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