Green Island

After our lackluster stay at the infamous swimming pool anchorage, we decided the noted popularity was just as most popular things are, over rated. We, as most people would, enjoyed anchoring in 15 ft of clear water with a sand bottom. However the water was frequently clouded by massive drifts of seaweed and garbage. There was really no place to take Dexter for a run and so our stay was short lived.

Under overcast skies we motored in no wind 7 miles across the Mayflower Channel to Green Island. The trip across was very rolly as the swells were up above our heads and there was no wind to keep a sail up and the boat steady. This was ok as we have still got, clean up cabin, on our to do list from when we left last February. I’m not sure if it will ever be removed.

 

 

We pulled into the Lee of Green Island and tried to change positions for anchoring. Now Jennie was on the bow and I at the helm. Somewhere in our communication of windlass control I forgot to make it  clear how to control the rate at which the chain is released. So we botched the first attempt and feeling a bit amateur as the anchorage looked on with nervousness at the young cruisers who obviously were as green as can be, we switched spots and set the hook in front of everyone. I’m pretty sure they thought us to be very green as a Frenchman close by yelled that we were too close. Ok, no point getting everyone’s panties in a bunch, we moved over 50 ft. I think the fact that we did not set the hook with the strange westerly we had for that hour, and set it against the direction of the prevailing North Easterly winds should have been a sign that we were not totally incompetent. I’m sure they all slept well when the wind picked up and the reckless Canadian youth were amateurly anchored in front of them.

The anchorage was wonderful, there were islands where Dexter could run without terrorizing locals Kuna’s out of their hammocks, and a few pelicans to keep him entertained on the boat. We also started working on Dexter’s swimming endurance. He would jump out of the dinghy a good 200 ft from shore. We let him swim. It makes of a pretty tired puppy which is a real treat.

 

The only put off for us about the anchorage, other than the poor visibility because of the close proximity to the rivers and the rain we’ve been having, was the naked or mostly naked Europeans everywhere. There was one guy who would rip around in a string with a sock attached in his dinghy everywhere. His ass cheeks were more tanned than my face. That isn’t really saying much, even more tanned than Jennie’s face… Seriously. We found this funny as the Kuna are very respectful people and they all wear lots of clothes no matter how hot. The guide book (bible) even says that they get really bent out of shape about public nudity.  What else could Jennie and I do but throw on our skimpiest rags and work on tanning the places we’ve missed under our inhibited dressing style.

So the only real garbage we saw in this anchorage was the Euro-trash, but there was one awesome thing we noticed. Jennie and I went to burn our garbage on the beach, and while doing so we picked up some plastic debris off the shoreline and burned it too. Next thing we noticed were the Europeans starting to do the same, they even made days of it where they would get together for a clean-up and burn. This was awesome to see, and I think all cruisers should make a habit of cleaning up a bit of garbage while they are out enjoying nature, especially if you have to burn your garbage. It is so simple and it makes a huge difference. The man made garbage floating in the ocean is insane, and no one can blame it on one place or culture, it floats around from everywhere. So everyone should do a little next time they stop at anchor for an evening and do a bit of a garbage clean-up.