Update #12 – August, 2003

Hi everybody,

It’s the beginning of August, and many of you have heard about our recent adventures, but thought we should send an update into the website to let everyone know what’s been happening.

This winter, was a very busy one for us. First Bill and Barb, very good friends of ours, showed up on “Cathedral” in January. Bless their hearts, we had sent them several lists of things to buy for us, to re-stock our supplies, everything from soup to nuts, and their boat was really loaded down with all our stuff. We were so excited to see them, and we had a good time during their stay of three weeks or so. We were sorry to see them go when it was time for them to leave, but maybe they will “pop back here” this coming winter.

Another couple slipped into the marina one morning – Al and Sharon from Fort McMurray (last year they were in the Bahamas on “Northern Drifter”). Danny had worked with Al many years ago at Suncor, and we both know their daughter Sonia, also from working at Suncor.

The six of us spent many terrific hours together, and most nights were potluck suppers, games of dice and lots of laughter.



This was the busiest winter the marina has had, and many other boats came bringing new friends and acquaintances. With the Sept. 11^th tragedy starting to fade, more people seem to be venturing a little farther from home. Also we had many Canadian visitors, (friends of family, and friends of friends), coming down on charter flights and visiting with us, often bringing gifts from family, (Debbie’s sister sent canned asparagus – a treasure, although they were eating fresh in Alberta), and news from the north. A couple of times we took groups out for a day of sailing/snorkelling/ swimming/beachcombing. We set up a couple of fishing expeditions with Canadians and marina charter boats, and we also did a couple of inland trips, sharing the cost of a vehicle, so the “real” Cuba could be experienced, instead of this tourist town. It was always a pleasure to get an e-mail from someone saying they were coming to Varadero and asking if we needed anything (Yes! Hellman’s Mayo!)

We had planned on leaving here at the beginning of May, headed for Marathon. There, we had access to a friend’s private dock for $100.00/month, including power and water. The plan was for Danny to leave Debbie, Lobita and the boat there and make his way back to Sault Ste. Marie. He figures after a few years he should play catch up with income tax. Once he returned to Marathon, we would return to Varadero for a short period, then head to the Rio Dulce in Guatemala. We wanted to be there for the hurricane season – the cost of living there is about _ of what it is here, and we felt it was time to move on.

We had had a slight delay in leaving Cuba – we actually started out for Marathon the evening of May 05^th, and three miles out, after pulling out the jib, there was a bit of creaking, then a whole lot of crashing and banging. There was a whole bag of English swears, then Spanish swears uttered when we realized the mast had come down. Surprisingly, there was no panic – just a bit of disbelief, but more of a feeling of “Okay – do what you have to do to get things under control”. We were very thankful nobody was hurt. We had a friend “hitching” a ride back to Marathon, so Bob and Debbie went on deck to start hauling the sail out of the water, and tying the shrouds and stays up and away from the prop (lucky break #1 – nothing got tangled in the prop). Danny kept the boat pointed to weather until we were ready to turn around and head back (we had pretty heavy seas at the time). On reflection, Bob and I were out on slippery decks with no life jackets or means of being attached to the boat – VERY STUPID! However, we managed to get things tidied up and headed back to port.

The mast had fallen back across the windshield (which crushed, so Danny had no forward visibility), laid across the enclosure, bending one of the frame pieces (but has since been straightened in Havana). Thankfully there was no other damage to the canvas or frame – lucky break #2). The mast then hit the upright support of the wind generator, broke, and the top 9’ of the mast bent down and was being dragged in the water (however, the generator was not damaged – lucky break #3).

After repeatedly calling the marina, we realized the VHF antenna was at the top of the mast, under the water, so grabbed the handheld and explained the situation. We were gone for a total of 1.25 hours, and upon our return, asked Immigration if they believed we had been out 12 miles. The rule is when it is time to renew visas, we travel 12 miles into international waters, then return for renewals. For Canadians this can happen every 6 months (2 months for everyone else). Immigration declared they did not believe us, but re-issued our visas for another three ninety days.

We had three couples from visiting boats, plus about 6 marina workers on the dock to help out when we limped back into port. In less than an hour, the mast pieces and boom were removed, the jib folded, the shrouds and stays coiled and tied, and the windshield propped up with pieces of wood to hold it in place.

We have always enjoyed the slow pace of life in Cuba, but are now seeing the downside of such a pace. It takes soooo long to get things accomplished, but little by little, every day, things are happening.

There is an abandoned sailboat here at the marina – the mast and boom were the perfect size for a replacement for us. However, nobody could claim ownership to the boat, so we were not allowed to buy it. The marina, Customs, and Coast Guard all said they did not have the power to authorize the sale of the mast. However, Danny made a trip to Cardenas to see the Captain of Ports in this province, and Debbie wrote a letter to the same man and to the head of Customs. After a few weeks, we were finally given the mast and boom – because nobody could claim the mast as theirs, we were not allowed to pay anybody for it. Bonus for us.

Bob found another ride back to Florida, so left with a list of all of our rigging requirements. However, when he returned a couple of weeks later, he didn’t bring anything with him. Apparently, the rigging shop was closed for the first two weeks and June, and it didn’t have our stuff together before closing. But, he planned on another round trip in early July, and said he could bring everything then.

We found two carpenters in nearby Cardenas to replace the windshield. After delays because of their own job commitments, and red tape involved in allowing them to enter the docks, they finally came at the beginning of July and removed the damaged windshield. Two weeks later they returned with a beautiful teak-framed windshield, and installed it with all the professionalism of any carpenter using state-of –the-art equipment (they only had screwdrivers, epoxy, a sander and a drill). The price we paid would not even buy the teak if we were in the U.S. or Canada. We then made a deal for a new teak hatch cover, which they installed at the end of July. Now they are trying to make a deal for painting the decks and varnishing the cockpit. However, we do have to get to Florida before any more deals can be made.



Danny is currently re-wiring the new mast, and we have sent out a model of the mast base we need to have made. Bob is expected back any day. He made one trip here in mid-July with all our new rigging, but the new forestay was not ready. So he has returned to Marathon and will be bringing it on this trip across.

It has been a very long, frustrating experience, but we can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel.

The Conch Republic Regatta arrived on the 25^th of May. The marina goes all out for them – they rebuilt the showers and will be installing new hot water tanks. They planted two truckloads of trees, shrubs and flowers, and installed computers for Internet access. We hadn’t planned on sticking around for it this year, but ended up joining in the festivities once again.

Hurricane season officially started June 01^st (happy birthday Danny). The weather here has been so abnormal since last November, and Debbie is predicting the hurricane season will present itself with a fury this year. But, we will always have people to help us out if and when it is required.

It gets hotter every day, but a constant breeze certainly helps us tolerate the heat. It is much hotter than this time last year, but, as mentioned, the whole weather pattern has been unusual since November. We had planned on purchasing an air conditioner (only for Lobita) when we got to Florida, but may have to rethink the expense at this time. Debbie and Lobita spend a lot of time in the cool lobby. Lobita loves the lobby and all the attention she gets while Debbie reads.

The captains of the Cuban charter boats are taking an advanced captain’s course here at the marina, Monday to Friday, 4:30 p.m. – 5:45 p.m. Danny decided to attend classes so he could brush up on his Spanish in a nautical sense – he’s really enjoying it.

Cubanacan, a national tourism company, has bought out Puertosol, the company that owned the marina in Varadero, and will be running the show from now on. There have been a lot of changes happening, and the marina employees feel things will be much better. Their reasoning is that Cubanacan has more money to invest in marina upkeep and promotion. Time will tell.

We got word recently we lost a very dear friend of ours. You may remember reading our update last year when Hugh and Lois Third were here on their boat “Third Base”. We had spent some time together in the Dry Tortugas in December, 2001, then went our separate ways. We came across to Varadero, and they crossed to Havana, to begin their circumnavigation of the island of Cuba. They went full circle, and joined us in Varadero for about six weeks before heading back to Canada.

Hugh lost a long and hard-fought battle with cancer at the beginning of July. Although we are relieved his pain and suffering has finally ended, we are sorry to lose such a warm and wonderful friend. It breaks our hearts not to be able to be with Lois right now, but we know her family and many, many friends are there to give her support.

We hope everyone is enjoying their summer activities. We would like to thank everyone for keeping in touch with us, and informed on life in the north. One last note – AOL is not always available at the Internet Café here at the marina. For us to access AOL, we have to go into Varadero to a different provider. So, until further notice, please use our Yahoo address: dannydebbiea@yahoo.com

Take care!

Danny, Debbie y Lobita sailing on La Vida Dulce