Panama --> Galapagos

Twelve years ago today DHARMA BUM II arrived in Hiva Oa in the Marquesas Islands.  It truly is one of the most marvelous places on this planet and we had a most excellent time there.  Now we are back on our way to Polynesia, although we might go to slightly different places this time.  Also, today is Valentines Day, but flowers are a bit hard to come by out here.  Right now we are at N 1°30', W 84°58'  --  on our way to the Galapagos Archipelago. 

 

We left Panama eight days ago with 8 Beaufort blowing from the North.  The very first night the $2000 linear drive of our autopilot broke and we tried to head back under both engines.  No go against all that wind and the waves.  So we turned around again, although I didn't relish the prospect of hand-steering all the way and more than a little bit apprehensive, whether we will be able to obtain another drive in San Cristobal.  Hand-steering all the way to Papeete on Tahiti is something I'd rather not try for myself.  Too bad also, that we probably won't be able to visit Isla Isabela this way, which is supposedly the most interesting.  But a functioning autopilot is more important than all other considerations. 

 

Another piece of hardware, which is going the way of all systems on a boat, is the solenoid for the port engine.  I can still get the engine started by banging with a rubber hammer onto the solenoid, but sooner or later that won't help any more.  Probably sooner. 

 

Apart from these technical issues, the trip is a delight.  At around N 5° the wind died completely and the swell disappeared as well.  We really enjoyed watching four turtles floating on the surface, got visits from seagulls, boobies and other birds, saw numerous schools of dolphins jumping and hunting in the distance and were amazed by the microscopic life in the sea, which isn't visible when there is any kind of wind at all. 

 

There were a kind of blue fluorescent shining little balls in the water, perhaps a meter or more down, which I had never seen before.  They are very distinct from the usual phosphorescence, which reminds one somehow of fireworks.  These steel-blue Neon-balls were floating very quietly, not pulsing,but simply emitting this amazing blue light. 

 

Apparently my little experiment with the Styrofoam in the freezer was successful, because we now have to run the engine only once every 18 hours to keep everything inside deep-frozen.  Before I had to run it every 12 hours and barely managed to keep the ice from melting.  So, our food situation is once more up to DHARMA BUM standards.  The cuisine is mostly Chinese, accompanied by delicious wine from Chile, but at the moment my favorite meal is lunch.  This consists mostly of black bread from Germany served with an ice-cold beer from the 12 volt fridge.  It constantly amazes me, how the four big solar panels have changed our energy situation which impinges directly on the quality of life on board. 

 

Our dozen solar lights are also amongst those items which I wouldn't want to miss on a future trip.  They are so versatile, that we use them almost exclusively. 

 

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After two weeks of hand-steering we arrived in the Galapagos yesterday.  Now we better hurry up and get the boat fixed.  Autopilot, starter motors and the wind-direction indicator are at the top of the list.  Sea lion like to climb onto our boat, but they don't much like it when they see me looking at them.  I don't know how they do it, but they even manage to get to the top of some power boats here.  On DHARMA BUM III they seem to be content to rest on the steps at the transom.