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Puerto Rico to the Dominican Republic February 17, 2005 in Ponce, Puerto Rico Viewers might be interested in our GPS Chart Plotter. It can pinpoint our position to within about ten feet! This photo of the display shows the Salinas anchorage (just over one mile top to bottom). The dotted line shows our route from the ocean in the south to the spot we dropped anchor, and our departure 14 days later. The depths noted are in feet. Pioneer draws 5 feet 6 inches of water. We always carry paper charts and printed guides for navigation, but rely heavily on satellite positioning. We sailed on a stiff NE wind from Salinas to “Coffin Island” off the coast, and the next day from there to the harbor at Ponce. The wind changed direction dramatically and we were forced to use the motor for an hour.
This is a shot of the extreme southern tip of the island. There is a dock and small beach, and facilities for the caretakers. In Ponce, we found the harbor water polluted with spilled fuel and there is limited room to anchor. February 18, 2005 in Ponce, Puerto Rico February 24, 2005 in La Parguera One drawback of full-time, long-distance travel is almost never seeing old friends. So you can imagine how thrilled we were when we learned that Karen and Troy were flying in -- the next day! We took them sailing and had a great time. When they flew back to winter, we sailed west to La Parguera in SW, PR. This place is going down as a favorite! Anyone else want to visit? In a few days the wind should allow us to venture into the Mona Passage, which separates Puerto Rico from the Dominican Republic. Crossing the Mona is not to be taken lightly, so we’ll wait for excellent weather. March 1, 2005 in La Parguera It gave us a start when we looked up in the night and saw its stationary strobe lights against the black sky. Still not enough wind to sail west. Update 3-4-05: Still no wind! The ocean was like a mirror last night. When the wind does return, we will sail across the infamous Mona Passage, a challenging stretch of water. It’s near the Puerto Rico Trench, the second deepest ocean water in the world. Currents flowing over shallows and into the trench can cause great turbulence.
For longer term planning, we tentatively plan on arriving in North Carolina in late April or early May. From where we are today, the nearly 2,000 miles via the DR, Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas will take about 375-400 hours of sailing. March 6, 2005 in Boqueron Because there was almost no wind, the trip was very slow. This gave Don time to tend to a few jobs on deck as we sailed along at less than 3 kts. In Boqueron we sailed into the anchorage and dropped the hook without starting the engine While waiting for wind the cross the Mona Passage to the Dominican Republic, we were treated to a beautiful Sunday sunrise. The anchorage is huge, the beach beautiful. And while the sunrise was terrific, we’re hoping for wind to sail on to the Dominican Republic. The anchorage has become uncomfortable with swells rolling Pioneer day and night. March 10, 2005 STILL in Boqueron Example: Winds have been too light to sail to Luperon before the next in a series of cold fronts gets there. This unusual weather condition should change soon, and we’re hoping for a March 14 departure. We can run the motor if we have to, especially across the dangerous Mona Passage and north coast of the DR -- but after all, Pioneer is an ocean-going sailboat and we always prefer sailing over motoring. March 12, 2005 STILL in Boqueron March 19, 2005 in Luperon, Dominican Republic Please continue to the Next Log |
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Coffin island (so named because of its shape) is beautiful, but there are no protected anchorages, and holding is poor to fair.
If the weather turns against us, we’ll tuck in somewhere along the Dominican Republic coast.
-- good practice for the day you run out of fuel!