Sunday, February 26, 2012

Placentia,Belize


After the rigors of my surgery and the time in a mari na it felt great to have the boat underway again. Sailing in the trades behind a reef is a s good as it can get. Great boat speed and calm waters.

Placencia was a town we had heard a lot of positive reports so decided to go south about 70 miles and hang there for awhile. It exceeded my expectations. The anchorage was quite good and protected from all points except south so the stay was comfortable. The water under the boat was clear and clean and we easily made 20 gallons per hour with the watermaker.

The village was touristy but not in an oppressive sense. Most of the local businesses welcomed yatistas with happy hour and food specials. Needless to stay there were quite a few boats making this village their base to explore Southern Belize. The islands in this area are arguably some of the nicest in Belize.

 The anchorage at Placentia Cay
 Anchorage
 The Beach. Check out the Trades
 View the other way
De  Thatch Restaurant
 Cruisers Pot Luck
 Le Chat Beaute

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Recovering at Cucumber Beach

One of the Cays we escaped to between office visits
Pam in the beach
 My lounge chairs



The hernia operation went well but the recovery has been slow and with a few complications. Excess fluid building between the muscle fascia and skin has caused clotted blood to be a problem. Have weathered the storm and am now doing well. The last three weeks have been in a marina, mostly. Spent more time in the marina than all others combined! Other than the flies and mozzies it has been easy getting around on and off the boat.The marina staff is first rate and there is an artificial beach I can sit at during recovery.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Stuck in Belize City

While in Cuba I noticed a nagging ache in my left side. Even went to a doctor in Mexico to get checked out and was determined to be a muscle strain/tear. Well, it continued to deteriorate. I went to the Belizean Health Partners and they determined I had a hernia. I opted for surgery as it was appearing to get worse daily. Had the operation a week ago Friday and am just moving about. So we have been stuck at the Cucumber Beach Marina in Belize City waiting for me to convalesce.

Spent yesterday at the Great House Inn in downtown and toured the old city. The bright spot in this country is to be found out on the reefs. While Belize City is ok, it is   not what I would call a destination. It is a great jumping off point to the reefs and the Mayan Temples.


I did amble about town and they have an interesting bridge spanning the Haulover Creek that dissects the downtown.It is an old swing bridge dating from early 1900s. They open it twice a day by hand! They undo the pins from the roadway then put handles in the center and four men walk around a capstan bar and open then close the bridge.

 Haulover Creek with the fishing fleet at anchor
 THe swing bridge over the creek
 Different view of the fishing fleet
 The Bridge