One of the animal acts at Ocean World



















I don't know what the traffic rules are for horses on main street!







Us at the Brugal Rum factory. ( We even got free samples!)













The oldest fortification in the new world overlooking Puerto Plata harbor







General Luperon's statue












A view of Puerto Plata harbor
















Town Square in Puerto Plata










You can see the REALLY narrow streets ( especially with cars parked on both sides of the road)










View looking up the cable to the top of the mountain













View from the top














Christ the Redeemer statue










Another view from the summit










Fri Feb 12

We arrived today at Sapadilla bay on Provodinciales in the Turks and Caicos. The entry to the bay was through a channel in the reef called the Sandbore channel and after picking our way for a few miles through coral heads and rocks it was a relief to finally drop the hook.

Check in was fairly straight forward as I took the dingy over to government dock and went in to see customs and immigration. The Turks allow you to be there for up to a week without having to purchase a cruising permit so we will probably be here just a short while.

Sunday Feb 14

Today we moved to Southside Marina and it was nice to be hooked to the power grid and have a really high speed wifi connection. Simon, and the crew at the marina were very friendly and helpful and even drove us into town for a provisioning trip. The local IGA supermarket was the best we've been at on our travels outside the US. We took on 85 gallons of water and are now set in that department for a while.

Tue Feb 16

I took the autopilot linear actuator out and was preparing to send it to Raymarine for repair when I noticed that the actuator cylinder was loose and the outside housing was also loose. After tightening them the autopilot arm no longer rattled and moved smoothly in and out. I then re-installed the arm and IT WORKS!!! You cannot believe what a thrill it is to have the autopilot back in operation. After hand steering for 24 hour you can really appreciate the advantage of having the autopilot on the job.

Thursday Feb 18

At the end of our 7 days we started out for the Dominican Republic. The first stop was a day trip across the Caicos Banks to Ambergris Cays. The trip was kind of nerve wracking as there were coral heads and rocks every so often and as the sky was overcast the heads were hard to see until you were almost on top of them.

The anchorage was very rolling and bouncy as it was open to the north and there was a north wind blowing so we were out of there the next morning as soon as we could see to navigate around the coral heads and reef. The next stop was Sand Cay, a remote uninhabited animal sanctuary. We anchored in 15 feet of water over deep sand ( hence the name) and were firmly tucked in for the night, planning to leave the next morning for the Dominican Republic.

Saturday Feb 20

Legacy departed Sand Cay at 12:20 PM today bound for the DR. The advice we had was to expect a 20% reduction in speed due to adverse current. WRONG!!!. For the first 40 miles we averaged 6.0 knots and if we continued we would have arrived at 4:00 AM. Instead I had to reduce speed to 3 knots to insure we arrived after daylight. The last half of the trip was somewhat uncomfortable as we had a 3 to 4 foot swell from the NNE while the wind was blowing 15 knots out of the SSE. This caused the boat to roll severely as well as a significant pitch.

Sun Feb 21

The coast of the Dominican Republic is a lot different from the Bahamas or the Turks and Caicos. The Island rises out of the ocean in a steep hillside that is covered with subtropical vegetation. As we approached the island peaks were covered in clouds and the fog was thick in the valleys. The radar picked up a line of rain shower cells that were marching along about a mile off the coast. It seemed like a scene out of Jurraisic Park and that was not too far off the mark as some of the film was shot here.

We arrived at about 6:30AM and discovered that the marina did not open until 8:00 so we had to motor around and kill an hour and a half. When were able to raise the marina on the radio we were quickly assigned a slip and assisted in rigging our dock lines. The Navy visited us to sign us into the country then it was to immigrations. After checking our passports and such I was given a bill for 14000 ( fortunately it was in pesos which was about 42 us dollars.) Next was customs and all went smoothly. The marina is part of the Ocean World complex which includes a casino, a dolphin experience, and a sea show. The amenities are first rate and the dockage fee is moderate especially if you stay a week.

Monday Feb 22

Today we went to market in town ( free transport to and from). The ride reminded me of driving in Saigon in Viet Nam. The motor bikes outnumbered the cars 4 to 1 and the rules of the road were not rules but mere guidelines, There were several times I thought we were going to be involved in a maiming accident but somehow at the last minute a massive dose of braking was applied by some of the parties and disaster was averted.

There was a lot of poverty as well as affluence here and the contrasts are stark. The people are very friendly and tend to overlook the fact that we cannot speak their language.

After the grocery expedition we went to the Ocean World park and partook of their buffet lunch and watched the animal show. The first show was a series of bird tricks performed by macaws, parrots and cockatoos. The second show was a group of seals performing.

Tomorrow we have booked a tour of Puerto Plata and look forward to seeing the sights.

Tue Feb 23

We booked a tour of Puerto Plata for today and It includes the transportation as well as an interpreter. Eduardo was very friendly and gaves us an in depth tour of the town. We went for a tour of the the Brugal bottling plant and following the tour were given free samples of the product. I could definately tell the difference between the 6 year old and two year old rums, they also manufacture a type of clear rum that is more like a vodka.

We then proceded to a jewelery and cigar emporium. The Dominican Republic is one of the worlds greatest suppliers of amber and Kathleen was in her element. In addition to yellow amber there was also latimar and red amber and the prices were fairly reasonable.

The next stop was on old Spanish fort , Fort San Felipe,which overlooked the harbor of Puerto Plata and is the oldest such structure in the new world. .

After stopping for something cold to drink we then went to the cable car that takes you to the top of the mountain Loma Isabel de Torres 2600 ft up overlooking the city. At the top was a statue of "Christ the Redeemer" which was very similar to the statue at Buenos Aires. The view was spectacular and the altitude caused my ears to plug up. From the top the entire city of Puerto Plata could be seen.

After a day of walking up stairs both Kathleen and I were tired so after a small dinner we retired to the boat to rest. Tomorrow will be a laundry day and boat cleanup and hopefully today my navigation lights will arrive. I ordered them shipped FED EX international direct and it looks as though the transit time will be much less than it was in the Bahamas

Sorry for tne long post but it hs been awhile since we have been near an internet connection





Views from Sapadilla Bay, Provodinciales















Friday February 6
With a calm day predicted for today we left Thompson Bay. Long Island, heading for Rum Cay. For the first twenty miles we were in the lee of Long Island and the weather was clear with the wind 10 knot out of the east. We were about 10 mile out when our autopilot decided to give up the ghost. It appears the linear actuator no longer actuates.
As we rounded Cape Santa Maria we were treated to a water show as the Atlantic rollers were breaking on the reef that extends about two miles out. The wind was now in our face at full force and the seas were 6 to 8 feet on our nose. After one particularly nasty set of waves we lost our nav light cover again, I had figured to arrive at Rum Cay around 3:00 PM but due to the headwinds and seas our speed over ground was only about 2.5 knots. We arrived at the Rum Cay anchorage at 8:30 PM and had to navigate out way into the anchorage in the dark. The anchorage was rolling severely and in the morning we decided to take a dock at the marina.

Saturday February 7
On calling the marina they agreed to send a pilot boat out to help us navigate in through the many coral heads and rocks. As we navigated the channel I felt like we were going through a mine field and the coral and rock were quite thick. Rasta ( the marina dock master) guided us in and helped us back in to our slip/ The marina is well protected and we got a good nights sleep. The island is beautiful but there are very few amenities available . Once at the dock I was able to trouble shoot the autopilot and the linear actuator is broken. There are no repair facilities nearby and it would take about 4 weeks to get one from the states as well as the huge cost to airfreight in such a part so we are condemned to hand steering until we get to the Dominican Republic were we will probably have better luck with parts and repairs.

Sunday February 8
Jacques and Ria of Ladyhawke invited us, along with Connie and Jim on Plane to Sea, and Betty and Dick on Blue Bay. It was nice sitting in the cockpit of the catamaran Ladyhawke, I can see the appeal of a catamaran as there is a tremendous amount of space available. It was nice relaxing, watching the sun set and swapping sea stories as we solved the worlds problems. It is truly amazing all the nice folks you meet a that are out cruising. Later that evening we went searching for a bar that might be playing the Superbowl but we were out of luck and made it and early evening.

Monday February 9
We listened to Chris Parker this morning and the forecast was favorable for the 130 mile run to Mayaguana, the last island we will be visiting in the Bahamas. The seas were calm for the first 6 hours and we were able to move at 6+ knots for much of the way. The Atlantic rollers were about 6 feet but were about 30 seconds apart and the Legacy was in here element as we rode over them. As darkness fell the wind increased to about 15 knots and the waves increased slightly. The sky was breathtakingly clear as the stars were shining bright with barely a twinkle.
Mayaguana is an island with almost no inhabitants and the anchorage at Abraham Bay appears to be wide open to the south. The south side is protected by a reef so the chop inside is minimal and the only trick is to avoid the coral heads that pepper the bay. We arrived at 10:00 and the the sun was shining so it was fairly easy to work our way into the anchorage in Abraham Bay. The bay looks wide open to anything with a southerly component but the bay is surrounded on that side by a coral reef. Inside the bay is peppered with coral heads but there is plenty of room to anchor in clear sand among the heads. We are anchored in 15 feet of water and our hook is firmly set in sand. We will probably be waiting here for a weather window for the Turks and Caicos.

Tuesday February 10
Today we lowered the dingy and went to see the settlement on Mayaguana. The approach to the dock w2as marked by two poles which denoted a channel through some fairly shallow water. In fact the water was so shallow that on a couple of occasions we almost grounded in the dingy. There was a ketch anchored a ways off and appeared grounded as it was listing to starboard. The dock was a concrete wall and rather than tie up against it we continued on to a small sandy beach and beached the dingy. The walk to the settlement was about a ¼ mile and there were about 4 single story buildings, a government office, a very small grocery store, a bar, and tow houses. We bought two loaves of bread and two six packs of diet Coke and returned to the dingy.

Wednesday February 11
Connie and Jim on Plane to Sea left today en route to Puerto Rico. We wished them fair winds as we decided to wait another day for a weather window to the Turks and Caicos. We lifted the outboard motor and secured the dingy to the davits and prepared to leave the next day if the weather was favorable.

Thursday February 12
Chris Parker gave us a good forecast today so we threaded our way out of Abraham's Bay and motored over to Southeast point ( about 10 miles) to anchor just off the beach and wait for the evening to proceed to Provodinciales. At 10 PM the anchor we departed and had a very nice trip over the 39 miles to Provo. There must have been a following current as we were moving at an average of 7.5 knots, occasionally reaching 8 knots. As we were about ½ way there I had to throttle way back so we would not arrive before daybreak. The Sandbore channel through the reef around Provo requires visual piloting in order to avoid the many coral heads that lie between the entrance to the channel and Sapadilla Bay. Finally at 9:30 am we dropped anchor and I was able to rest for a couple of hours. After dropping the dingy and motor I rode over to a small beach near government dock and cleared in through customs and immigration. The Turks and Caicos give you 7 days clearance and if you decided to stay longer you need to purchase a cruising permit. Our plan is to stay through next Wednesday and clear out for Thursday morning headed for the Dominican Republic.