Our last few days in Guatemala
AJAYA'S CRUISE
Phil & Nikki Hoskins
Sat 10 Dec 2011 16:17
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Having waved goodbye, fuelled up & headed off down the Rio
we realised that we had left some vital water hose fittings attached to two of
the marinas water supply pipes........ too long on the dock! Now several miles
away we were not inclined to turn round & resigned ourselves to doing
without & probably having to 'jury' rig something at the next watering
hole. What a resourceful lot the Monkey Bay 6 are! After a few VHF
calls asking that the errant fittings be retrieved & held on to in case
we crossed paths at a later date we heard that they'd found a launcha due to
come down river the next day. On Sunday morning the launcha
full of bemused tourists enroute to Livingstone detoured into Texan Bay where we
were anchored. The driver manoeuvred alongside & duly handed over the
package.
The Bay has many small creeks to explore. Watching the
launcha disappear down one we decided to do a bit of gunk holing ourselves &
spent an enjoyable afternoon buzzing in & out of the nearby bays &
mangroves......
   Lilypads
Cheeky lad selling tortoise
shells
Waterside property!
Before the rains returned with a vengeance......
  There were several of us in the anchorage waiting to clear out
& take advantage of the weather window. The marina offers a fast
launcha service down the gorge to Livingstone. This beats taking your
own boat, anchoring off the mouth of the river, launching your dinghy &
running the gauntlet of the "boat minders". We'd already set the wheels in
motion the previous week when we contacted the customs agent to let him know our
intended date of departure. It was a great ride down the river with a few
pick-ups along the way. The customs agent dealt with the paperwork whilst
we had a wander around this mainly Garifuna town. The Garifunas are of
black African decent & live mainly on the Central American Caribbean coast
line.
   High
Street
Laundrette
On the way to church
   Street
cleaner
Skip in the "car" parking
lot Excellent
smells from this place!
The ride back was fast with a few stop offs - one was to a
newly open Eco-lodge called The Roundhouse. The young managers had
renovated an old Rancho, only accessible by water providing a retreat for
backpackers & the like. The were a few double rooms & a large
dormitory & even a swimming pool. No internet (yet) & hardly a
phone signal. We all agreed to stop for a welcome beer & have a look
round at their handy work. Then followed a stop at a 'shop' in the middle
of a deserted swamp to pick up some ice!
We spent a pleasant couple of days also frequenting the marina
bar & restaurant in the evenings with our fellow escapees! Skip by now
had had a good look at the engines following our run down to the Bay. It
was looking more & more likely that the head gasket had gone on the port
engine. Once more we called the Monkey Bay 6 on the VHF to see if anyone
knew if there was a Yanmar agent in the Bay Islands. Unbelievably, news
came back that there was a spare parts dealer on Utila the first small
island in the chain. You could also check in there. Free to
leave Guatemala guess where we were now
headed..................................
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