Discovery Transits the Panama Canal

Bocas SurfingAfter saying sad goodbyes to the whole crew in Bocas we took two days trying to get some sleep, then departed for Colon. It was a fast, easy sail. With building winds out of the north Discovery took flight as she hadn’t in weeks, covering the 140 miles in no time. We arrived the Shelter Bay Marina by late Wednesday afternoon and quickly began arranging our transit of the Panama Canal. We’d already lined up an agent, a giant of a guy named Stanley who doesn’t waste time. We’d no sooner tied up the boat when he arrived, cell phone ringing incessantly, favors being called in, dollar signs adding up. But he got it done. Some boats wait for weeks to get through the canal. He arranged a slot for us Friday evening, 48 hours and closing.

Heaven on earth

Remoteness Friday morning I was scrambling around fixing things, buying parts and spares, always with the dark cloud of provisioning for another 10 days hanging over my head when I got a call from Jody that Nicolas (Nico) had arrived on the docks with gear in hand. We’d posted all over the net and through…