Wednesday, December 9, 2015

We're heading NORTH to resurrect good times.

It's often said that a sailors plans are written in the sand at low tide. To the outside world, sailors must appear to be a group primarily made up of disorganized people with serve cases of ADD, as we often say one thing and do another.  Last week a huge wave came crashing ashore and completely wiped out our plans for the next year or so. We are no longer sailing south towards Panama.

For about the past month, we've all been feeling a little strange. I can't quite put my finger on it, but for numerous reasons all of us have had doubts about our sailing plans. Getting within 5 miles of the Huatulco marina and having to turn around and run with it was our final straw. The trip trying to get to Huatulco was indicative of what we'd be facing for most of our Central America sailing. We had planned to slow down our trip which would have left us looking for a place near Panama to spend hurricane season (aka dodging lightening bolts) before beating into the trade winds trying to cross up to Cuba. At the end of the day, this isn't what we want to do.

Our promise to our girls was that we'd venture as long as we were all having fun and had money to do so. With no one really having fun lately, we had a few family meetings that led us to decide to head back up and hang in Mexico. All but Emma was relieved at our decision. Emma had herself a good cry as she's disappointed we won't be discovering new countries and transiting the Panama Canal, which is on her bucket list.

This adventure is to be all about spending quality time with our daughters, making memories to cherish and opening our daughters eyes to a life most people only dream about. The fact that Emma has a bucket list of impressive adventures most kids her age don't even know exist is proof at one point of this trip we were "doing it right" and that we need to keep "doing it right".  For now, we're excited to get back with our cruising friends and spend more time relaxing and enjoying each others company. We have a reservation at the marina in Barra Navidad for Christmas and a trip to Guatemala (by plane) in January we're looking forward to.

So what's next, after sailing season? Your guess is as good as our....just 5 days ago we were headed to Panama and now we're not.


Let's be honest....Captain Fluff insisted we stay in Mexico.

5 comments:

  1. Too bad about Emma's bucket list item, but who knows what lies ahead. Sometimes you get to where you want to get - at another time and in another way. Enjoy where you are and make the most of today.
    P.S. After this season why not ship the boat to Texas gulf and start another adventure from there Or trade boats with somebody on the east coast. The possibilities are endless and new adventures await. There is great hope, Emma.

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  2. We are a family boat with two girls waiting in Chiapas for you! It gets better, hang in there!! Panama is full of wonderful cruising opportunities, as well as, Central America...Our final port is the keys in Florida.

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  3. We crossed Panama the last week of February and Tehuantepec mid March. Other than a bit of heavy weather for just a few hours with Papagayos it was smooth sailing. We motored in completely flat calm water from Chiapas to Z-town. Try again in March.

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  4. Plans are made to be changed. Good on all of you. We're still boring and tied up on harbor island.

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  5. Ahoy s/v Terrapin!

    I commend you for taking time to talk to each other and allow conversations along the way to influence your decisions. In my opinion, that is far more mindful than going full speed ahead just because you said you would. Then again, I thought we would be in Australia right now, and I happen to be in Seattle. Life has twists and turns...being able to be flexible is a good thing. I also think there is a very good lesson for your girls in this. You can make plans and have experiences and then change you mind and choose to do something else. That is an empowering message for two young women. Good on you, crew of Terrapin. Wherever you go, I hope you find experiences that suit the unique needs of your family right now.

    With encouragement,
    Jessie

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