Crocodile Dundee

Gaviota
Wed 1 Jan 2014 19:15
 
08:17.767N  78:53.396W
 
We left Contadora on Boxing Day and headed South anchoring in the channel between the islands of Chapera and Mogo Mogo where the TV series Survivor is filmed (neither of us have ever seen it!!!), the anchorage was exposed and rolly so next day we motored (no wind!) further South to a more sheltered bay - not very inspiring with increasingly murky water.  We had been told by a local that the islands in the Southernmost Pearl Islands contained the largest polpulation of salt water crocodiles outside of Australia - yikes I know Syd has been compared facially to Mick Dundee but crocodile wrestling was not on my agenda so the murky waters were not very enticing to swim in! 
We managed a good spinnaker sail the next day down to the largest island Isla del Rey which has some of the most beautiful, though totally inaccesible by land, beaches but an even murkier sea!  Although we swam we both swam extremely quickly and neither of us enjoyed the water but the beach made a perfect gym with an excellent sand running track.
We saw the New Year in (celebrated it UK time - 7.00pm Panamanian time) with our only visitors being 2 locals + dogs who were on their way to hunt iguanas (apparently the local delicacy) - Syd was intrigued to know a) how you cook them and b) what they taste like.  With our minimal Spanish these 2 questions were a bit tricky but after having to hand over some biscuits our two visitors revealed that the iguana was split down the middle and grilled, uhm can't wait to try one - not!!!! 
New Years Day today and we have just left Punta Cocas the Southernmost point of Isla del Rey and we are motoring (Syd is not happy!!!), wind on the nose and very little of it so it looks like a long hot slow journey to Ecuador!  PS The fishing line is out . . . . . . .