Nicaragua ~ A Hidden Paradise

We are usually anxious to relax after a trip on the water, but this time there was no rest. On top of the water in bilges, two of the three pumps were not working, so that required bailing and hand pumping LOTS of water. Bill also discovered a drain hole that was clogged... and later the cause of the pump failures- burned out wires! Electricity and water REALLY do not go together. After two days of hard, hard work on Bill's part and Alice doing wet bedding and clothes from a porthole leak and helping Bill as she could, we finally began to have time to relax and enjoy our beautfiul surroundings! The marina is adjacent to a lovely hotel (above) and has a spectacular view of Volcan Viejo, still active (top). We visited some with the boaters we had followed in and wound up making a day trip together to Chinandega, the nearest city 20 miles away, half on dirt road that is full of detours as the road will soon be paved. The marina has a once a week van trip, not free, to help boaters get provisions. Of course, Bill was looking for repair items for his list of problems! Although the countryside seems a bit greener and the animals a bit fatter, some of the homes are the poorest we have seen, including a cardboard 'city' just off the main road. We are told some workers only earn a dollar or two a day.
Alice had envisioned us being able to go on an inland road trip, but the repair situation and upcoming windy weather shelved that idea for this time. February is one of the windiest months, so we will have to plan our transit to Costa Rica around the upcoming weather window.

Tough Transit: El Salvador to Nicaragua

We left Bahia del Sol with high hopes for a safe trip to Puesta del Sol, Nicaragua. Our friends Bill and Jean crossed the bar just ahead of us (above) and then headed north toward Mexico. We turned southeast, planning to anchor in Golfo de Fonseca the first night out. The early part of the day was nice, but then the seas picked up. It was 4 PM when Bill noticed that the engine had overheated... it took seven gallons of water to fill up the heat exchanger! At that point we could not travel on to the islands in the gulf, so headed straight for shore. The sun set shortly before we reached the shallow water we were seeking, but we could sure see the surf on the beach as we finally anchored in 30 ft. of water. The night passed uneventfully even though we were in open roadstead (no protection). The next morning Bill was up early to patch the heat exchanger hole with epoxy and good old duct tape! The wind was really blowing, so we headed on to Isla Meanguera where we anchored in Guerrero Cove and found three sailboats and an El Salvadoran Navy boat already there! We wound up staying three nights, meeting the other boaters, and even taking a hike on the island. (You can just see Grey Wolf in the center of the top photo) Once the winds had calmed down we all decided to beat it to Nicaragua. The sailboats left before we did but we figured we would catch up with them... wrong. When Bill went to pull the anchor he found that the bridle had gotten wrapped around our bow thruster and nearly pulled it off. He had to dive into the water to secure lines around the broken thruster and then we took off, listening to the thing bang the front of the boat incessantly. We almost caught up with the sailboats, as they were hanging out waiting for the pilot to guide them in. About that time Bill noticed the engine overheating AGAIN, so we added eight gallons of water and then found that the entire bilge was awash in water that had poured in through the bolt holes of the thruster... later we were able to move into the estuary and finally reach Marina Puesta del Sol!!! We are so grateful for Heavenly Father's watchful care over us~