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Passage from Aruba, NA to Cartagena, Colombia People have been "pounding spears" wanting an update NOW on our passage from Aruba to Colombia. So, here's a quick and dirty run down on how we faired jumping from Aruba to the coast of Colombia and then making hops down the Colombian coast to Cartagena where we are now in a marina. For safety and security purposes, we travelled in a fleet of four. The other three boats in the fleet were Maker's Match, Sapphire and Argo. The passage from Aruba to points west, like Colombia and Panama, requires a couple of hundred miles of rounding the waters off of the Peninsula De Gaujira, the northern-most point of the South American continent. The total distance between Aruba and Cartagena is 385 miles. This area is notoriously rough with fast currents and routinely fierce trades blowing against the currents. High, snow-capped mountains on the coast send cold air down to meet 100 percent humidity and equator-like heat in the 90’s. It is a supercharged convectional engine that produces monster size thunderstorms. Basically, it is a very dynamic area weather wise, so picking a relatively calm weather window is crucial. Jimmy Cornell, author of World Cruising Routes, designates this area as the fifth roughest patch of ocean in the world, thus requiring our respect and full attention. So, against that backdrop, here we go! From Aruba to Cabo de la Vela, Colombia: We departed Aruba mid-afternoon so as to make landfall midday in Colombia. We motorsailed initially in light winds, then the wind died and sails were stowed. The wind came back, and all sails were up again. We had an aggravating wind angle dead astern. A jibe preventer was rigged on the main, and the jib would not fly consistently. To top it off, the autopilot was having trouble learning the seas - two foot seas sporadically interrupted by six foot swells that catch the autopilot by surprise. Fishing is HOT. We had several hits and then a 15 pound blackfin tuna. Gorgeous fish!
At nightfall the winds and seas picked up to 20-25 and six footers on the stern. The autopilot was really fighting. Squalls were all around us and a visible (almost full) moon highlights a dark line of cloud that overtake us. Monster lighting strikes could be seen on the mainland. As dark clouds neared, we were tired of fighting the sails and decided to drop all sail for the rest of the night and motor on Melissa's watch. Winds went to 25 on the stern and seas kept building but they were on the stern, so it was not uncomfortable. We arrived at Cabo De La Vela, Colombia, just after dawn and anchored up nicely in a protected bay. We saw lots of wooden fishing boats with little putt-putt inboards. Through binoculars, we see troops in camo with machine guns escorting ladies in street clothes as they beachcomb. Curious. Also, a dozen tourists are seen hiking up to a light house. A panga full of tourist snorkelers (armed with pole spears) head out to swarm a small rock island. The beach structures are primitive. A young fisherman came by. Not much talking -- but we gave him Famous Amos cookies. Very poor and obviously living a very simple life.
From Cabo de la Vela to Bahia Guayraca of Five Bays: Another overnighter of over 100 miles. Fishing is hot! Little Tunny, several more Blackfin Tuna and a shark attack on the second fish reeled in on a double hookup. BIG bite radius! Chuck on Maker's Match calls in to say a 6 foot billfish has broken off at the transom and stolen Chuck's all time favorite lure (and demolished a spin casting reel and rod). Boats Sapphire and Argo catch fish too. For lures, pink and white is THE combination, along with lots of line out.
Seas get bigger and bigger and winds cycle from mid-teens to mid-twenties. Magic hour before sunset: wing-to-wing with main reefed with preventer and the jib reefed too. We motored to help the autopilot on downwind surfing in the swells now building to solid 8 foot with a few 10's. We hit speeds of 10 to 12 knots while surfing, then get knocked down to 6 to 7 knots when climbing the backs of swells. Dark clouds and extremely heavy lightning could be seen ahead. We had a brilliant red-sky sunset to starboard and black clouds and lightning to port. Before dark we stowed the jib and double reefed the main and began motorsailing. We had numerous bursts of speed to 12 knots and a BIG sets of swells. Adverse currents were up to 1 knot running dead into the wind. In the twilight, I saw a big fin out of the corner of my eye just aft to starboard. Dolphins! About six to eight pink-bellied and spotted, about 6 to 7 feet long. Dolphin show! Melissa learns their routine -- a game of swim, bow nestle at 12 knots, then jump when a swell is just ahead of the bows. Crazy: we sit on each bow seat, autopilot steering, sails trimmed and locked in, speeds to 12 and 13 knots with bow spray sometimes wetting our feet, and dolphins going wild only inches away in the twilight! Looking further ahead on the horizon, there is every indication of a violently stormy night. It's an exhilarating and scary moment, with maximum joy in our hearts and every seaman's knot bound tight in our stomachs.
As darkness set in, Melissa cooked chicken Quesadillas that were awesome and we enjoyed a hot meal in big seas. I had to wolf mine down, though, because swells were getting too big and the winds were picking up and I needed to head on deck. The wind angle was bad and we jibed now and then (with the preventer holding the boom fast). I gave up and bought in all sails so as not to have to fight them in the squalls or damage the boom. We had plenty of fuel so motoring was the easiest and safest option in these conditions. Soon after dark, the moon peeked through clouds. Ahead there were MONSTER lightning strikes. Argo's new 64 mile Furuno was our source for precise info on what was far ahead. A HUGE storm was ahead and to starboard, heading ever so slowly out to sea. Meanwhile smaller squalls formed up on top of us and directly ahead. I tried to go around a small cell and leave it to port. Then it formed with a whole new line that ran me far off course to starboard; I had to turn to port and punch back through. No problem. Thankfully, we had no lightning near us. And I had friends! The Dolphins were STILL with us after four hours. And they were going crazy! Flipping, tail-walking and belly-flopping in the moonlight filtered by high clouds. We finally gained distance on the line of dark clouds moving with us and I relaxed just long enough to be absolutely overwhelmed by the beauty of the cloud formations as lit by the moon. The lightning ahead was truly terrifying still, sometimes brilliantly illuminating the entire horizon of the sea surface ahead so as to be able to see other boats very clearly. Luckily the BIG storm continued to move offshore and we left it to starboard: a powerful convectional engine that will run all night. I passed within 300 yards of a fishing boat. Also, another good-sized power vessel came right at us for two miles while I tracked it on radar, and then turned away within a mile. Lots of ship traffic coming from the Panama Canal. Reaching Five Bays at dawn is the most breathtaking experience we've had "out here" so far: mountain ranges that make the US Virgin Islands look like ant hills; snow capped peaks that look like the Alps, and all while sailing in 86 degree water and tropical surface temps -- confusing and confounding as one does not equate snow with nearing the equator.
We stayed in the middle bay of Five Bays ,Bahia Guayraca - a very deep bay. We snorkeled in bad viability to see the most healthy Elkhorn coral ever. We also kayaked and enjoyed so many beautiful vistas.
We spent three nights at Five bays and then set out for Punta Hermosa early so as to pass the mouth of the Rio Magdalena river at the City of Baranquilla in good light. Notorious for dreadful garbage, even dead livestock being washed out to sea, there was no trash to speak of, just brown water like Lake Pontchartrain. We passed two miles offshore from the city of Baranquilla which looks like Miami with a huge skyline on the coast. I deployed fishing baits within 50 yards of the perfect interface where we would leave mud and return to indigo water. Soon after leaving the muddy water behind, another REAL NICE blackfin tuna Then a barracuda and line in the prop diminished the excitement. An hour before sunset we limped in last in the fleet on one engine and made Punta Hermosa to anchor in bouncy dirty water. Immediately after setting anchor, I donned snorkel gear and dove under the boat to pull the prop. I removed a serious amount of line that had spooled inside between the prop and the lower unit! The oil seal area appeared unblemished and no parts were lost while pulling and re-installing the prop. Miraculous!
We had a meeting with Maker's Match, Argo and Sapphire at Punta Hermosa on whether to head to Cartagena the next morning. Melissa and I wanted to go for it and take the most conservative weather window and so did Argo. Sapphire was tired and Maker's Match wanted to rest up too, voting for spending another night. In the end, we all agreed it was fine to split up for the last leg of the trip and that we would all still have a dancing partner. Also, it put the two slow boats and the two fast boats together and that made sense. So, Argo and Indigo Moon bugged out of Punta Hermosa at dawn, delayed a little by having to clean mud like sticky Jello chocolate pudding off the chain and anchor, YUK! It was a perfect day, except the last 8 miles were at 5 knots into current, tougher seas, squalls, and then there was the excitement of crossing the underwater barrier WALL into the Harbor.
It's very exciting to be in Cartagena and we are installed in a very nice marina named Club de Pesca. As fate would have it, a squall hit just as we were docking and put 25 knots on the beam. A half-dozen wild Colombian Captains from various boats in the marina came out in the rain and we managed to back in using lines to allow us to rotate while tethered to an outer piling. The guys on the dock were great and I am always heartbroken that I don't speak fluent Spanish! They were really animated and friendly and laughing and it was fun. After helping us dock in heavy rain, they were all drenched and started jumping into the Bay and laughing, just for the Hell of it. Cool!
Final notes: For you folks headed this way, get your fishing rods ready!!!! It was "Blackfin Tuna Madness" and I caught at least five "20 pounders" and we have gorged on sushi, pan seared and grilled tuna.
Oddly, we saw no sign of the Colombian Coast Guard even though we all filed float plans with them via e-mail. Despite all prior Cruisers’ reports of being boarded constantly by the Colombian Coast Guard on this passage, we never saw them at all and are now sitting in Cartagena, unmolested by the authorities. Just one more example of how our independent experiences as Cruisers are often merely "sampling errors" which do not at all reflect the true state of things in general. As we were warned, winds and seas were much higher than forecasted when we rounded the northern capes of South America. Peace, love and TUNA,
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Blackfin Tuna 15 to 18 lbs. 
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