Today we were at sea, sailing between Key West and Belize through the Yucatan channel. The weather was a bit wobbly, even with the stabelizers going at full speed. This was caused by winds from the North East blowing against the North going current. It creates a sort of washing machine effect, albeit on slow…   read more of “30 October 2007, at…”

The bunker barge delayed our departure by an hour in Tampa as for some unknown reason they pumped slower then normal. We loaded a 1000 tons of fuel and in the end we sailed 1 hour late. When we rounded the Dry Tortugas the wind picked up, blowing straight against us and for awhile I…   read more of “29 October 2007,…”

We docked nicely on schedule with a bit of a breezy arrival. It blew over 30 knots when going under the Sunshine Skyway bridge but as it was a North Easterly wind, the turning basin near the dock was sufficiently in the lee for the wind not to be an issue. The lights of the…   read more of “28 October 2007,…”

After a very speedy departure we spent the night sailing through the Yucatan channel, heading for the Gulf of Mexico. The strong wind suddenly fell away during the night as the cold front decided to tip even deeper into the Caribbean and we entered the rainy sector. During the day the wind shifted and rose…   read more of “27 October 2007, At…”

Things worked out quite well in the end. The wind and adverse current pushed us behind schedule during the night but in the morning the current turned around and started to flow with us. By the time we passed the South point of Cozumel Island we were flying with nearly five knots of current with…   read more of “26 October 2007,…”

This was a very early arrival. We run a full day tour from Santo Tomas by airplane to Copan and Tikal for the Mayan ruins. The local airport has no runway lights and that means that the plane has to take off directly at sunrise so that the full length tour can be done and…   read more of “25 October 2007,…”

And then the Weather changed. Predictions until late last night were given a light SE breeze with a chance of showers. On arrival at the pilot station it was blowing 35 knots from the North West. During the night a cold front has come down from the Gulf of Campeche, that is in the South…   read more of “24 October 2007,…”

Today was a peaceful day at sea. The Veendam is moving along with a sedate speed of 15 knots for a scheduled arrival tomorrow morning at Belize pilot station of 5 am. If we would go full out then we would be there around midnight. However there is not much too see in Belize around…   read more of “23 October 2007, At…”