Elsie's Cuba diary - week 4

Week 4 and our journey to USA

at last

Friday 20^th March

After our huge disappointment of no shrimps we decided to head for a more picturesque anchorage in the National Park. Hopefully there would be no shouting officials and stuck up diving tourists this time. Yes, you have guessed it, the wind was a north easterly 4 and we were going to be almost directly downwind for the 18nm to the chosen anchorage so the genoa was deployed and we set sail earlyish for a somewhat slow but rocky sail. The swell was at least two metres in some areas. Cayo Alcatracito was our destination, part of a group of Cayos named Cinos Balas, Five Bullets. It was reported there was huge sandy beaches and reefs to explore. Both of us liked the sound of that. The passage took us through a shallow area between cayos where I spotted a mast hidden behind some land. On closer inspection it was a catamaran whose occupants were obviously into serious water sports – one was kite surfing and the other was paddle boarding in swells of about two metres. We left them to it and continued around the reef that protects the anchorage we were heading for.

colours of the shadows

There were three boats already there, two together, (sailing buddies) and one well apart. As we were readying to put the genoa away the two buddies upped anchor and motor sailed away towards the west. Well it wasn’t me I had a shower the night before and put on clean knickers. It must have been the Captain they smelt.  Dropped the sail and motored into a depth we could anchor in, dropped the anchor and congratulated ourselves for another safe ocean passage done.

lunch

Lunch was eaten. I had now run out of salad ingredients and have resorted to tuna mayo with sweetcorn on USA’s equivalent of water biscuits. Lionel is still munching through his part baked bread and salami but I have to say we are both getting a little fed up with our lunch time menu. Dinner has not been such a problem as we keep coming up with new ways to prepare a meal with tinned and dried goods. Tonight’s may be pizza. A large tortilla, covered in salsa with the topping of your choice. On offer is cheese and onion, tuna and sweetcorn, sardines or pepperoni and the ever-favourite ham but no pineapple, I forgot to buy some tinned fruit thinking that fruit would not be scarce in this part of the world. Wrong. You can get bananas, and bananas then of course there are bananas and of course there is those long yellow bent fruits which I’ve forgotten their names, ah yes bananas.

Sorry, I have digressed. Enough of our food stores and meal planning. After lunch we launched the dingy and made for one of the two sandy beaches this cay has to offer. Wonderful, a choice. The beach had a narrow sandy strip between the mangroves and the sea but it was good to walk apart for the ferocious sand flies. I was glad I had the foresight to spray on insect repellent. At each end of the beach there was a forest of dead trees washed up on the beach. Some of them would make spectacular outdoor sculptures. The shallows were full of crabs and what looked like sea anemones. As they were turned upside down a huge mouth like structure became visible. Lots of little chattering birds who waddled along the beach in front of you, looking back to make sure you weren’t coming too close and graceful white stork like birds who seemed content in just standing in the water watching you. I think it may be nesting season because they seemed to be guarding their territory. And of course, pelicans, huge squadrons of funny stupid pelicans who haven’t learnt the art of graceful water landings yet and just drop feet first into the water – well it seems like that but their technique still works, never seen a skinny pelican.

lurking in the shallows

 On our way back to Ruby we dropped in to say hello to the other anchored boat, “Freedom”, captained by a mad Aussie, Peter I think, and his lovely girlfriend Margareta was his crew. They were going west to east, the opposite way to us, and we were hoping to get some information about what was happening in Cienfuegos. Everything was fine, no restrictions on your movements and food was plentiful. They had checked out of Cuba but were taking their time leaving. Like us they were enjoying drifting through these islands.

firewood anyone?

This settled our minds more and we tentatively started making plans for some more land travel when we got there. Two places we had earmarked for visits were Santa Clara and Trinidad. Trinidad had a marina but it was far from the town so it was easier to travel from Cienfuegos. It is reputed to be the oldest city in the new world but how many times have we heard that claim? We were concerned about using public transport so it was decided that we would use private cars with drivers to get from one town to the other. There were always drivers willing to take tourists somewhere at a price and as long as they could get fuel for the car. Santa Clara was all about Cuba’s other favourite son Che. Although he was not Cuban, he was adopted by the people and was a huge hero during and after the revolution. So big a hero, it is rumoured that Fidel had a hand in his assassination.  He feared for Che taking over the Government. His grave is at Santa Clara along with other important sites of the revolution.

During our nightly sundowners we were interrupted by a dingy approaching. It contained two wet and bedraggled occupants Peter and Margareta. They had been exploring on the north side of the Cay, filming and spear fishing. Margareta had speared a huge snapper and as they had already enough fish aboard, they gifted it to us. This was very welcome as fresh provisions were low. We had been trailing a line this morning but only caught a large barracuda which had to be thrown back as they are usually infected and when eaten humans can develop ciguatera, a disease which poisons the body. Not nice. Lionel cleaned, beheaded and unscaled the snapper and we had delicious fish steaks for dinner with enough left over for a curry tomorrow night. The pizza can wait.

walk at last

Saturday 21^st March

We were enjoying this anchorage so much we decided to stay another day. There was another beach to explore and reefs to swim or dinghy over and mangroves to go and look at so after a lazy morning we set off for the other cay. Lionel went off for a stomp and I took a leisurely stroll. The sand flies were worse over on this beach and we had to keep moving to deter them. Even then the backs of my legs and upper arms were covered in red lumps. This beach was somehow more rugged but with less mangroves encroaching on the water’s edge. I soon lost sight of Lionel whose mission seemed to be to walk around the Cay. I was fascinated with the small rays basking in the warm shallow water. They seemed to have no fear and only darted away when I was mere feet away from them. The birds were noisier here as well. Little waders prancing about the beach lecturing you and probably each other about where to get the best food. Very few pelicans but lots of the white stately stork like birds fishing. The water was shallow for a good one hundred yards from the beach but the sand was more like gooey mud and sucked my feet under when I attempted to paddle. I walked to a distant mangrove clump then turned around and walked back to the dinghy where I got in and pushed it of the beach to get away from the ever-present flies. Eventually Lionel turned up and waded out to the dinghy carefully avoiding the small ray which had parked itself in the shade of the dinghy.

it's a mouth and nothing much else

The rest of the day was spent being lazy, catching up with some blog writing, reading and discussing our hoped-for land travel next week. We had a brief visit from the captain of a French yacht which had arrived when we were exploring. He had no good news. It looked as if land travel was not viable anymore and the Cubans were becoming rather worried about tourists bringing in more cases of Coronus.  Who can blame them?  I think we are as safe as we can be just bobbing about these Cays but water is becoming dangerously low and, in a day, or two, we will have to seriously think about returning to civilisation…. unless it rains then all bets are off.

sea sculpture

Sunday 22^nd March

Lionel was up early unleashing the sails and preparing for our next little jaunt. When I got up, he was contemplating his coffee mug. “Fancy staying here for another day? We deserve a weekend off.” He didn’t need to ask twice. The sails were put back into their bag and another lazy day started.  I had a book to finish reading and he wanted to go on another stomp round the Cay we were on yesterday, so off he went and I settled down to some reading.

After lunch Lionel wanted to go swim the nearby reef and see if he could prise any unsuspecting lobsters from under their rock. It sounded like too much hard work to me so he loaded the dinghy with an anchor, his snorkelling gear and a vicious looking metal rod with a hook on one end. Alas, he came back empty handed and we went back to the original beach for one last walk before the sun went down. It will be sad to leave this little bit of paradise but we need to keep moving towards Cienfuegos and water.

a shady spot, just right for a read

Monday 23^rd March

No delay today and we set sail for tonight’s destination, Cayo Zaza de Fuerd, a mere 35 nm away at just before 0800. With two reefs in the main sail and a brisk easterly force 4 wind we made good progress. As usual there was some narrow shallow passages between sand banks and reefs but with the captain’s navigational skills, they were a doddle. We have been using two cruising guides in Cuba. The Waterway Guide by Addison Chan and Nigel Calder and another lesser known one which I traded for a couple of slabs of beer with another boat in The Bahamas last winter. This one is by Amaia  Agrirre and Frank Virgintino. It is geared more to the USA boaters and is considerably older than Addison’s guide. I had also been taking advice from the Cuban Cruisers Facebook group before we got to Cuba so I felt we were well prepared for our two-month adventure here in Cuba. Because of the water situation we were missing out an anchorage at Cayo Breton but reading the cruising reports I don’t think we were missing much. Just another Cayo covered in mangroves and that was confirmed by our neighbours in tonight’s Cayo, Patrick and Leslie, two Canadian friends who sailed on The Little Blue Pearl. Well that’s the boat’s name translated into English. We had already met them in Santiago de Cuba but never really socialised so we spent a few happy hours having a drink and swopping sailing stories. Patrick was usually singlehanded but Leslie had volunteered to come along and help him visit Cuba, smart girl. She was becoming increasingly worried about the Corona news as she needed to be back in Quebec for 16^th April and she already knew flights were becoming fewer and fewer.

little blue Pearl

As we had been dropping the anchor a fishing boat had been the entering the anchorage and we had hailed them and asked them if they had any lobster we could trade with. Looking at their blank expressions I began to wonder if they were actually a fishing crew or just a work crew looking for a quiet anchorage for the night. We showed them a jacket, a snorkel mask and some coffee and they seemed more interested in lobster fishing and took off in the general direction of the reef where lobsters allegedly lived. No luck there they disappeared around the corner and we thought that was that and it might be the infamous pizza tonight after all.

large fishing boat

After our social hour with Patrick and Leslie we were quietly contemplating the sunset and who should return but our fishing boat laden with lobsters. We traded a snorkel mask and some lip salve for six of these creatures – a huge granddaddy, two Canadian sized ones and three smaller nondescript ones. We did say we didn’t want so many and to give some to the other boat but they held up another six and told us, by sign language that they were for the other boat. So, six lobsters, three days dinner and it cost us 15CUC and a snorkel mask. We were ruthless with our bargaining but they wanted money as well as the other things so cash was handed over.

catch of the day

Lionel did a little butchering on deck while I stayed out of the way then he cooked the granddaddy lobster and served it with noodles in a Hollandaise sauce. There was far too much meat for just the two of us but we either ate it or it was wasted so we ate. Yum Yum. He then decided to cook the rest of the lobsters and pick of the meat so it would be easier to deal with for the next two nights. Good idea. After his murder spree on deck I scrubbed and washed the evidence away and he stripped the lobsters of their flesh and threw the empty shells overboard. I think $15 was a fair price for three nights of lobster dinners.

Tuesday 24^th March

Tonight, is our last anchorage before we hit the big city. Water was at crisis point and we might have to break out the 50 litres of water we have had on board since we crossed the Atlantic 4 years ago. Today’s sail was a 30nm to an anchorage beside a tourist hotel where we allegedly could pick up internet. The wind had subsided and we had a good journey with full sail and the cruising chute. The passage was one of our less complicated sails with only a very short stretch with shallow water as we entered the anchorage area. I went up onto the bow to watch for random coral heads and rocks. Sailing in the Bahamas had helped me learn very quickly how to read the water using colours. The darker the water the deeper it was usually but it all depends on what the bottom has on it. It was light patches with dark rocks and coral heads in them that I was looking for but this time I saw none.

beach party anyone

We anchored as close to the hotel as possible. Hotel Ancon is a tourist hotel with a glorious beach running for a couple of miles in front of it. All the touristy things were laid out on the golden sand – thatched sun shades, canoes, paddle boards but there were no tourists around. We saw a couple having a walk along the beach at sunset but that was it. As usual in Cuba we were not allowed to land here as there was no Gaurda present so we just looked longingly. The Little Blue Pearl joined us. They managed to get a half mile nearer the hotel than us and got internet. No good news. Cuba was closing their borders. The last flight to Canada was in a few days and Leslie was desperate to get on it so they struck out after dinner to do a night passage to Cienfuegos. There was no wind forecast so it was going to be a long 35nm motor no matter when they went. We had resigned ourselves to the situation and stayed put for one last night of freedom. Little did we know what was to come.

russian designed Cuban lighthouse

Wednesday 25^th March

Up early and out of the anchorage by 0800. We raised the sails but with not much hope of sailing but thought we might get a little push from them in the about easterly wind. At midday we surprised ourselves and sailed the rest of the way with full sail up. This bit of the coast is not very interesting apart from the designer lighthouses. The Russians designed and built the lighthouses along this part of the coast. Foreigners are allowed to walk around them but are not allowed in them. They are supposed to be as sumptuous inside as they are on the outside. I could well imagine the “lid” popping open and a rocket emerging from the inside of the one nearest to Hotel Ancon. A beautiful bit of shoreline art.

more tradiotional

As the day developed the wind got stronger and we managed to sail with full sail from midday into the entrance of Cienfuegos harbour where we had a 7-mile motor to the marina passing some interesting buildings. The path was somewhat zig zag round shallow patches but we did get there eventually and safely. We had already discussed our strategy and Lionel radioed the marina and asked permission to tie up on the fuel dock which was denied. We were asked to go to anchor and wait for further instructions which we did. There were about another 6 boats at anchor including our Canadian friends on Little Blue Pearl.

marina

About an hour later the marina launch approached and hovered feet away from our stern. The two people in it introduced themselves as the doctor and harbour master (who talked excellent English and turned out to be a Godsend). We were asked the usual questions and the doctor took our temperature. Everything was good. Again, Lionel asked to go alongside to fill up with diesel and water and the harbourmaster explained water was not a problem but the diesel would not be delivered till the next morning. She then asked our intentions and we explained that once we got fuel, water and food we would leave and head for USA. She wanted to know where in the USA and seemed satisfied with all our answers and went away with a smile on her face.

During the evening and night there was some talk over the radio amongst the half dozen or so boats in the anchorage. We were very careful about what we said over the airwaves, “walls have ears” Most of the boats had be at anchor for over a week but we and a Canadian boat had come in that day. No one was allowed off their boat. The marina staff would get food for the anchored boats if asked and there was no visiting between boats. Fair enough. Good policies to stop the spread of Corona even though most of us had been self-isolated for over two weeks. We were watched all night by the coast guard who were anchored on the edge of the designated anchorage.

coast guard

Thursday 26^th March

In the morning there was another visit from the doctor and today’s harbour master who when asked said he would call us on channel 16 when the fuel arrived and was ready to be pumped. There was more chitchat amongst the boats, some of it in French as it was thought that the authorities would not understand that language. A single-handed Australian sailor was very concerned about rumours about new policies, either leave or dock the boat and go to a Government run hotel full of other stranded tourists. He thought, and quite rightly I think, that it was a recipe for disaster and at his age (70) there was no way he was going to comply. He was safe and healthy there on his boat and that was the way it was going to stay. The marina eventually called him on channel 16 and requested him to come to the dock, with his boat not his dinghy, they had some new important information. He said no and a conversation started trying to persuade him to do as requested. He stuck to his guns. They did eventually admit that if the anchored boats were not going to leave, they were to be brought into the marina and the crew taken to a hotel. Some of the anchored boats had nowhere else to go and frantically started to make inquiries about emergency visas and permission to go to other countries which they had not planned to go to. We both have a B1/B2 visa for the USA and the cruising permit had been renewed in Puerta Rico so we could legally enter the USA, if they would have us.

 At 1100 we were radioed to come into the fuel dock. Some of the anchored boats advised us not to go in as it was a ploy. We went in and were met with various friendly officials.

our saviuor in a mask

Yesterday’s dockmaster (who had already worked a 24-hour shift) came back in to help with interpreting and ended up running the whole of the visible operation. The water tanks were filled and I handed the ‘interpreter’ my shopping list with bags and empty egg boxes. She zoomed away and came back half hour later with the list of things she could get locally and their prices. We OK’d them then she explained someone would have to go into the city to get the fruit and vegetables on our list. I was flabbergasted. This was above and beyond the service I had expected but the Captain pointed out that they were desperate for us to leave and would do almost anything to achieve that aim. The diesel was still settling and still not ready to fill our tanks.veg net beginning to fill up

veg net beginning to fill up

Meanwhile we watched a large tourist boat leave the marina and approach one of the anchored boats and tow it into a dock. I thought this was the start of the Cubans becoming heavy handed but it turned out the boat had engine problems and the captain had requested that the boat to be towed in (I cannot verify this as fact but that is how it sounded to me as the radio messages flew around the anchorage). The Canadian boat came alongside the fuel dock behind us. They had requested fuel and then they were leaving as well.

During the next couple of hours various food items were delivered and paid for. We had a finite amount of Cuban cash and we knew we would need copious amounts of fuel so we had been quite canny about our shopping list. The marina staff quite happily took our rubbish away, glass bottles, aluminium cans and general garbage. They smiled and nodded at all our requests and complied with everything they could. We were not allowed on the dock. At last we were fuelled, watered and food was loaded. It turned out a young woman had gone into the city to buy all the fruit and veg for us and the Canadian boat. Unbelievable service. I was showing Leslie some of the things they had brought us and she was lamenting about not asking for them as well. Lo and behold the staff produced more of the same stuff. We found that after all the bills were paid, we had extra Cuban cash so we asked if someone could go and buy more rum for us, along came three bottles of high-quality golden rum. You’ve got to love them. Two boats left Cienfuegos very happy.

typical waterside property

The weather was OK but not perfect for our journey to USA. We were heading for either Dry Tortugas or Key West, whatever one we could go into in daylight. We had left around 1430 on 27^th March. The idea was to sail when we could and anchor in secluded spots along the South coast when the wind didn’t blow to conserve fuel. As we got to the harbour entrance, we raised full sail and set off for tonight’s potential anchorage. Lionel had two in mind depending on the conditions we encountered in the first hour. Predict wind was showing we may (or may not) have a strong head wind but it didn’t materialise so we kept on going, cutting the corner of a military exclusion zone at the Bahia de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs). The wind started to die around 2200 and we motor sailed into our tiny anchorage just after midnight. As we dropped anchor lights came on ahead and we feared the worst, Cuban coastguard but it turned out to be a sleepy fisherman. Cayo Guano del Este is a tiny rocky Cayo with a lighthouse and some ruined houses on it so not much to look at but the shelter it gave us was welcome as we needed a good night’s sleep and some time to reflect on what had happened in the last 24 hours. Personally, adrenalin had kept me going but as a sipped a very strong rum I realised how stressed I had been. No matter how nice and accommodating people are there is always a very small doubt in your mind, “Is this going to work?” But it had and we were set for our passage to USA.

bye bye Cuba

Friday 27^th March

Lionel had been keeping in touch with Wild Iris and Zwailer via email. We thought they were in a Cayo about 60nm miles away so that’s where we decided to head today so it was up with the sun, full main sail and the cruising chute deployed and away we went. The wind was a nice easterly force 3, perfect for the cruising chute and we bowled along at between 6 and 7knotts. The wind strengthened and when it started hitting over 16knotts the cruising chute came down and the jib went out which slowed us down slightly so Lionel elected to motor sail as the sun got lower in the sky and we got slower and slower. We heard various boats radioing each other during the day but our ears pricked up when we heard Wild Iris talking to Zwailer. Zwailer was on their way home. They had elected to leave Cuba, head for Bimini, Bermuda and homewards. Brave brave sailors, sailing into the unknown, no one knew or could predict where they would be welcome or get more food and fuel. After that conversation was finished Lionel called them up and wished them well and asked them to keep in touch.

At around 1900 we lowered the sails and entered the channel that lead to the anchorage. As I was tidying up the sails and Lionel was navigating a particularly narrow bit a coast guard boat approached and asked to see our papers and passports. We handed them over and they were scrutinised carefully. We were then asked our intentions and they seemed happy enough we were coming in to rest for the night and leaving first thing in the morning for a nonstop sail to Key West. There were four other boats in the anchorage, one of them Wild Iris who we got on the radio and got some good advice about where to anchor. They were on sand and weed but the French boats had dropped their anchors on coral and had poor holding so we maneuverer our way to the stern of Wild Iris and dropped our anchor on the sand and weed and gave it a good tug. Success.

Mark from Wild Iris radioed us again and said we had been invited to a pot luck supper on one of the French boats but as we were exhausted and had already started cooking, we declined. He came over to visit and we exchanged news and views. They were heading for Tampa where they had some friends who were willing to help them if they got put into quarantine. We agreed it would be prudent to have shore help if the authorities refused to let us land. Strategies were discussed and he left with some ham, half a melon and half dozen eggs. They had not seen meat for a very long time but I was not willing to give up one of the two chickens which the girls had got for us. We would need it. He did return with several green peppers. I had forgotten to add them to my shopping list. After he left, we had a brainstorming session and still thought that Key West or Dry Tortugas were where we should be heading but realised our plan of anchoring every night until the wind improved was not going to happen. We were on the coast guard’s radar now and although they obviously didn’t have the state of art technology other countries coastguard had they could still find us so from tomorrow morning it was Key West or bust. I made sure I got a very good sleep – rum and earplugs are the best way.

our last anchorage

Our passage North

This is when our passage started in earnest. The preventors were put out on both sides of the boat, a spare jib line was attached and by 0820 we had lifted the anchor and were motoring out into the wild blue yonder closely followed by three other boats and a large catamaran in front with the coast guard escorting us from a distance. The sail went up with one reef in it and off we went. With a good easterly behind us we made good progress that morning but not as good as the large catamaran and Wild Iris. They were hitting heady speeds of 7 or 8 knots regularly whereas our average was about 6.5. They were soon just specks in the distance. We elected to sail further offshore so we did not turn to goosewing until about 1400 which slowed us down considerably.

By 0200 on Sunday a had to start the motor as the wind had died and we were making very little headway. We knew there was going to be a lot of motor sailing in the next four days but we would have to try and keep it to a minimum to conserve fuel. The next two days was a combination of reaching, goose winging and motor sailing as the fickle wind tried to make up it’s mind what it really wanted to do. For once I was eating well and sleeping most of the time I was off watch. Lionel does not sleep during the day; he naps and dozes but usually sleeps soundly the six hours during the night which makes me very aware of flapping sails and banging booms. But in light winds and a roly sea it is very hard to stop it so I just plug in my earphones, listen to some music and hope for the best.

Lionel always keeps a close eye on the weather forecast using the Iridium Go and the news was not good. We were still 18 hours too early for the good sailing winds so we came up with a new plan. We would slow down and effectively delay our passage by 18 hours so a boring evening and night on Monday was spent doing about 25nm in a six-hour watch. The next weather forecast was more variable but there was a chance of lightning storms ahead. We felt we were between a rock and a hard place, slow down so we could get the more favourable winds over the Gulf Stream or motor sail to avoid the incoming storms. We sped up and eventually hit the stream on 31^st where we got a good 2.5knott push. The wind was out of the south east quarter so there was no wind against current effect so we had a smooth ride for the day. We had elected to do a big sweeping curve until the heading of the offshore buoy at Key West was 40 then we would turn directly towards it. By doing this we would stay in the Gulf Stream longer and thus get a longer push. Good theory. Even with all our clever planning we were going to arrive in Key West sometime after midnight on 1^st. Dry Tortugas was 60nm nearer and we had discussed the pros and cons of landing there. Two of the negatives was there was no fresh water and no internet and I am sorry to say we were both getting rather jumpy about having no contact with the outside world other than the Iridium so we had voted a night entry into Key West.

During the evening we slowly turned to point to Key West. The wind veered round with us and eventually settled to a WNW. We still had a push from the Gulf Stream 12nm from Key West so our curve had not been necessary. It just proves sailors of all abilities are always learning. We dropped sails around about midnight and motored into one of the many anchorages in Key West, Wisteria Island was the one we chose. There are no anchorages around this Key which are sheltered from the North wind so we knew we would probably move early in the morning. It felt good to be here but we still didn’t know what our reception would be when we tried to book in. The best bit was we had only used a third of a tank of fuel, about 50 litres, considering we were concerned about having enough fuel we did well. We reconnected with concerned family and friends then copious amounts of rum were consumed and off to bed with the alarm set for 0700.

We were flying the yellow quarantine flag which vessels fly when they are in a country but not booked in. This would attract attention so the quicker we got booked in the better. Knowing that the anchorage and mooring field round the other side at Garrison Bight would be a little more sheltered we upped anchor early and motored round. Lionel contacted the City Marina where we were told the marina and dingy dock were closed which meant the mooring field was as well which made no sense to us so we went ahead and picked up a mooring ball. The last edict we had heard was boats must be 50 feet apart with no more than ten people aboard. We were complying. Lionel activated the ROAM app to book into USA officially and I ran around tidying up the fridge in particular but the boat in general. We had had long hot showers washing hair that morning so we looked almost respectable. We ready for the video call which would probably come. The App flashed application pending which seemed to go on for hours then it changed to application being reviewed so waited in excited anticipation for the call. It never came. The application was partially approved but we had to contact the local CBP. From experience we knew this meant Ruby’s application had been granted but they wanted to see us in person to approve ours. Lionel called the CBP who informed us there was no problem and to come and see us at their office. Oh yes, there was a problem, we were not allowed onshore. Ahh. We eventually made a plan to meet them at or near the City Marina’s dingy dock. Lionel took the officer’s telephone number just in case and we busied ourselves unleashing the dingy and outboard watching the sky carefully as huge black rain clouds formed. Our lightweight rain gear was dug out and we sweated in it as we lifted the outboard onto the dingy and I emptied the spare water jugs into the aft tank so we could collect some water after we were booked in.

Two officers were waiting near the dingy dock at the sea wall as we approached. We knew it worse than we had anticipated when officials were not even allowed on the dock. It took about 15 minutes for the formalities and our passports were stamped. We were in. As they were packing up, I asked how we would get food and water if we could not get onto dry land. They more or less shrugged and walked away. I compared that with the Cubans running around to accommodate us less than a week ago. USA did not come out good in the comparison. More disappointment was to come. We approached the dingy dock and asked if we could fill our water jugs. The answer was an emphatic no. I was feet away from the water tap but they would not budge. Ah well, their country, their rules. We returned to Ruby knowing we were in for a long wait. Noonsite, a world wide news boating site that most cruisers use was full of doom and gloom and we knew things were going to get worse before they would get better.

After having time to reflect I must say that this has been in part one of our most stressful parts of our sailing adventure so far but it has also been one of the happiest and interesting. I definitely want to go back to Cuba to continue the incredible journey we started and we may do next winter. As I have already said all bets are off. We may go to Canada and Newfoundland this summer. Lionel and crew may still cross back to the UK in August. It all depends on what happens in the next few months. We do know that this autumn will not be a good time to try to sell a boat so do we really want to go back to the UK at this time or have another winter maybe partly in the Bahamas but mostly in Cuba? Time and Corona virus will tell. Watch this space.