The nice, smooth ride lasted until around noon yesterday. Then we turned a corner, so the wind and waves were coming from our starboard (right) side rather than the rear. The comfort level was only modestly affected and it was still an overall pleasant ride. Throughout the afternoon, the wind speed climbed quite a bit. The wind was coming from the shore, and since we were paralleling the shoreline, there wasn’t enough fetch for the waves to pick up too much, but it did get lumpier. The dual stabilization probably helped. The day was sunny, bright and clear, which was a nice change of pace. Pretty much the whole time we have been in Panama, it has been gray, overcast and gloomy, so we were appreciating the sunshine. We enjoyed looking at Panama’s scenic mountain coastline while we motored along. As the day wore on, we saw less and less traffic.

We ran our generator almost all day, making water, doing laundry, and enjoying the AC. It is really hot out today, probably because it is so sunny. Eric checked the fan and shaft temperature several times, concerned that they had been running hot in Gatun Lake. The fan seems to be working great. The shaft temperature is actually lower than normal, and we assume it is because the water temperature is about 15 degrees cooler than it was in the Atlantic.

At about sunset, a big school of dolphins came to play with the boat. Usually they only play on the bow, but this set also played with the paravanes. They are a different species to what we are used to seeing. According to a flier we had picked up somewhere, they are called Continue reading →