Guanaja

Guanaja

The final island of our Bay Island trilogy was Guanaja. Guanaja is only 8nm from the end of Roatan, but it lies to the East. As the prevailing winds are pretty much always from the East at this time of year, sailing is nigh on impossible, so the best bet is to wait for a lull in the winds and prepare to motor.

We followed our saved track out of French Cay which worked out well as we had an early start, and it would have made for difficult eyeball navigation through the shallow patches without a track to follow.

It was also the first test for the new Autopilot Control head and for the first hour or so, all went well. Then it happened again. Drive Stopped was the message on the display. Not much we could do on passage other than to hand steer, using the wheel brake from time to time to lock the helm off. Very frustrating.

Guanaja appeared on the horizon and as we got closer we could see that it appeared hilly and verdant, for the most part, covered in Pine Trees. 

The navigation was reasonably straightforward as we had been given some waypoints to the anchorage behind Dumbar Rock.

We followed the waypoints with the only really shallow patch as we made our approach to Dumbar Rock. It is always disconcerting to watch the depth gauge when moving from deep water to shallow and this was no exception, especially when the water is so clear it looks as though you can reach over the side and touch the bottom.

We dropped the anchor in 5 metres and settled back to take in our surroundings.

Autopilot Woes

Once we had settled in, it was time to look at the Autopilot. Raymarine advised it could be one of three things. The Motor, The Rudder Reference Unit or the Course Computer. As the control head showed the rudder movement, we discounted the reference unit and as for a while it had held a course we ruled out the course computer. A build up of carbon dust from the sacrificial brushes was the most likely culprit, that and/or worn brushes so we decided to remove the motor and take it apart.
A large amount of carbon dust fell out and indeed the brushes looked well worn. More worryingly was the fact that the housing magnets had become unstuck, and the armature showed worn spots where the protective varnish had come into contact with the displaced magnets. All in all we felt the best thing to do was to replace the motor for peace of mind. We contacted Hudson Marine in the UK and they kindly had one shipped direct from Raymarine to Lynne's parents, who would be flying out to meet us in Mexico in a weeks time.
Oh well, as our saying goes, "At least this didn't happen in the Pacific!"

Bonacca

Each of the Bay Islands has a very distinctive character and Guanaja is no exception. Thought to have been discovered in the early 1500's by Columbus, the island is relatively small measuring just 11m by 3 and covered in pine trees. Unlike the other Bay Islands however, Guanaja mainland remained uninhabited for many years due to the blight of flies. Those that did move ashore often died of Malaria or Yellow Fever, and so a settlement was formed about half a mile off-island and is still present today. Some dwellings have since been built ashore and resorts have opened up, plus a small airport so presumably the fly population is under control these days. Saying that, we got bitten even in the anchorage by pesky no-see-ums. They itch like crazy and can leave a scar for a few weeks.

The main settlement of Bonacca is also known as the Venice of the Caribbean as it straddles two small islands. It is certainly very built up and easy to get lost in.
The main industry is fishing, mostly shrimp and lobster, but recreational diving is also making a contribution.

Almost all of the outlying islands have properties on them, below are just two.

And some of the dwellings on land.

One of the unique features of the islands is the canal that goes all the way from one side to another. Next to the canal is a small airport, the only one we have ever seen with a dinghy dock! 

There is one road on the island, about 2 miles long and perhaps that is part of the attraction. No over-development and hideous looking hotels to blight the landscape, well not yet anyway.

For peace and tranquillity, our anchorage in Guanaja was hard to beat and it would have been easy to stay for a little longer and visit one of the waterfalls however, we had to be in Mexico to meet the family. 
We had a good weather window to leave, but the prospect of hand steering for the 300nm passage did not fill us with joy. 

Below is a short video on Guanaja with some great aerial footage. Every time we think we have some money put by to purchase a drone, something else breaks!

Scarlet Lady For Sale

Whilst in Guanaja, we had a lovely email from Janet and Kelvin Wellington, the owners of our previous yacht Scarlet Lady. They had dropped us a line to let us know that the time had come to sell her. They only intended to keep her in the Mediterranean for 2 or 3 years and ended up for 4. Scarlet Lady is a fabulous Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 42 Deck Saloon, perfectly kitted out for long periods at anchor and cruising in supreme comfort. One of her main features was the huge owners aft cabin, bigger than found on some 50 foot yachts. Scarlet Lady is now looking for new custodians and is very competitively priced, and located in the Mediterranean. More details can be found by clicking on the Scarlet Lady in the blue tab section just underneath the main header picture.