Caribbean – Diary III – High and Dry
Page 28 – After the sailing season is before the sailing season…
15.05. – 22.05.2026
“Joline” is now on land and for us, preparations begin for leaving the boat for the next few months and for the next sailing season, which will take us to the Pacific.
Before we set off to cross the Pacific and sail through the South Pacific to New Zealand, we want to get the boat ready for the long voyage ahead – around 7000 nautical miles. Shelter Bay Marina in Panama is a good starting point for this – at least it has a reputation for it. We have a week here before we fly to Quito for our subsequent overland journey.
As soon as the marina workers had unloaded and propped up "Joline" ashore, we got straight to work. Bernd first contacted the necessary tradespeople: a stainless steel welder, a rigger, and an engineer. This went surprisingly well and quickly, and within minutes we had the first specialists on board to assess the work and send cost estimates. Spending money here seems easy.
Everything went smoothly until just before 3:00 a.m., when a maintenance worker informed us that it was too late for any further work – our boat was in the security zone, which would be locked at 3:00 p.m. Alarmed, Bernd tried to get a key for us from the office, but was told that we weren't allowed to stay overnight at our current location and that it was now too late to move the boat. As an alternative, he offered us a room in the office building for the night. We weren't willing to be relegated to a cubicle, especially since we had stated everywhere that we would be sleeping on the boat. The manager made a flustered phone call, trying to persuade us to move into the room for one night. We preferred to be locked in the security area. The manager relented to our determination and allowed us to stay, with the caveat that "Joline" would be the first boat moved tomorrow. So be it.
The next morning we started with a big laundry day, sorting through everything – deciding what to take on our trip, what to get rid of for good – and taking a whole load to the marina laundry. It was incredibly fast there – the American machines only ran for 30 minutes… and before lunchtime we had all the laundry washed, dried, and folded, back on board.
Before we could even set off, the crew was already at the boat, ready to move us – this seemed very important to them. So, after breakfast in the marina, we were no longer behind the fence but now in front of it… the view was better before – but at least the path to the pool and the toilet block is closer now…
Life on board a boat on land has its disadvantages – for one thing, the toilets can't be used – which is sometimes quite annoying – and for another, the climate on land is significantly warmer than on the water; you miss the fresh breeze and the hull cooling effect of the sea. Furthermore, mosquitoes find it easier to get to the boat.
So we sweat our way towards the end of the sailing season. The only truly pleasant place is the marina pool. It's not only very popular with marina guests but also with the local birdlife. While you splash around in the water, the local birds come to visit and refresh themselves with the fresh water. The swallows are particularly interesting; they glide like little seaplanes over the surface of the water and scoop up a beakful of water in mid-air.
We still have a few days of work ahead of us before we leave for Panama City. Hatches need to be resealed and the boat needs to be prepared for our long absence. As always, it's a close call at the end, and we're just finishing up the last few tasks right before we leave the boat – hopefully, we've thought of everything…
Bernd got into a fight with a group of sand fleas and is covered in bites, looks like he's had chickenpox.
Amidst all the work, I also celebrated my 64th birthday, and we met Jan and Natascha from the SY Auryn, who have also been traveling for two years and are now stopping here at Shelter Bay Marina for a few days. As is so often the case – they come from Wuppertal…
We spend two enjoyable evenings with them and then travel together by bus to Panama City. We spend a relaxing afternoon enjoying an authentic Panamanian meal in a former bank building in the beautiful old town – then our paths diverge – we head to our hotel at the airport – from there, we continue our overland journey the next day – we will visit Quito, the Galapagos Islands, and Colombia before finally returning to Germany for a sailing summer break.
This concludes my Caribbean Diary III.
