We had a nice few days resting in Ensenada Honda Culebra. The harbour was very calm and not super busy – although boats did come and go every day. Mark did some jobs on Dec. 15th and I finished a crochet project. My goal for the day was to let my back settled down and I can report that I was successful (back is fine now)! On Tuesday (Dec. 16th) we went to shore to visit Culebra. We’d spent a bit of time here last April with Caroline but it was nice to get out and walk (stretch those back muscles). We had lunch at this bakery that makes really good (and large) sandwiches and wraps. We stopped at the little grocery store for our last few items that should do until we fly home.
We were up nice and early on Wednesday (Dec. 17th) to have breakfast before we had a lovely birthday video chat with Evelyn (Caroline joined too!). The rain had started overnight and really poured down around 6am. We managed to get the anchor up and the sails ready before the rain came down again (this was around 9:30am). The whole morning was a drizzle fest – actually way more rain than just a drizzle!!
Once we were away from Culebra and in deeper water, we put the main sail up and pulled out the jib. The wind, waves, and rain were coming from behind us so it was a slow, rolly passage. We could watch the squalls creep up behind us so were well prepared when they hit. We opened and closed our enclosure many times that morning – zippers got a workout!! A few times the squalls hit with some crazy wind (we saw 25 knots with one) but once the main part of the storm blew over, the wind would die down. We eventually pulled in the jib and started the engine. We motor sailed about half of the 22 nm to the marina. We still made it into our slip at the marina by 3:30pm (after a stop at the fuel dock) and immediately started the air conditioning!! Oh boy what a treat!
On Thursday we had a late start (enjoying the cool interior) before getting to work. We took all our garbage up to the garbage bins and headed to the office. We had to check in, get our security passes and mostly importantly, pick up our new plotter!!! Talk about quick delivery – Mark ordered the new plotter on Dec. 12 and it arrived end of day Dec. 17th and it came from New Jersey plus there was a weekend in there! We returned to the boat with our package and I unpacked it while Mark washed the deck. After lunch I did laundry and Mark went in search of an atm and a few other things. Our last job of the day was to connect the plotter and play with it!! The connecting was a bit of a challenge but once that was done, the rest was great! The charts easily loaded onto the new device and it looked amazing! It will take a bit of time to learn the operation of this plotter but that’s part of the fun!
We only have today and tomorrow here at the marina (Dec. 19 – 20). We’re taking the red-eye flight home on Sunday – 2 am departure and arriving in Toronto at 9:30 am (and it’s not a direct flight – yikes!). We will leave the boat secured at the dock, power off, fridge and freezer emptied. We have a bit of work to do (besides packing) to be ready but have enough time.
This will be my last post until we return after Christmas. I wish you all a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year! See you back on the water in 2026!
Crimson Kathryn and her crew 