Isla del Coco (Costa Rica)

Our position:  05°33 N, 87°02 W

Friday December 6th

Arrived here after a long and tiring 1450 mile trip from Clipperton.  Starting out in 25 to 30 knot easterlies, we are beating south toward the equatorial doldrums.  According to the pilot charts, Clipperton, at 10ºN, should have been at the beginning of it.  Not so, we sail hard on the wind, port tack until around 4 ½ ºN before it frees up. Finally, we are reaching down the course.  It seemed to rain incessantly, and we were always tired.  For much of the earlier part of the trip the seas were rough, but eventually the wind went southerly at last and we could bear off.  We were surrounded by rain clouds, and at night these became lightning storms which we could not dodge.  The wind was light, but the engine's fuel system was sucking air and needed constant nursing to keep it going.  Since this is the only means now of charging the batteries, it is a constant worry.  The only thing the generator seems to do efficiently is make water!  It is very hot.

  
Chatham Bay

Our approach to Cocos Island was really dramatic.  We had the island in sight for some hours, but I was so tired I could not keep my eyes open and had to collapse down below!  Awoken by Dave calling me to look at the dramatic scenery of the island as we drew near.  The photos do not do it justice.  An emerald jewel, small, with sheer cliffs clad with tropical plants and trees, plunging waterfalls cascading over the cliffs.  What a sight!

We do not have a chart, and were directed by the Park Rangers via Channel 16 to Chatham Bay where we picked up a mooring.  We could only see three, one was occupied by a dive boat.  There are sea birds everywhere, frigates and boobies, the latter seem to roost on the outcrops of islands, and the frigates are all in the trees on the main island.  We have reef sharks and big manta rays under the boat!!  We were visited by the Park Rangers who checked us in at a rather steep $75 a day!!  

We hooked up the air conditioner today and have started drying out the cabins.  There is a waterfall falling directly into the sea not far from us, and the rangers have hooked up a  hose pipe, connected to a buoy.  We can pick up the hose and rinse off after a swim, or fill water tanks if necessary!  What a marvel of science!

Having launched the dinghy, and after a trip round to the eastern side of the island, we then went ashore in Chatham Bay to the ranger station.  Incredibly, there are some engineers visiting the island and staying in Wafer Bay, working on a hydro-electric scheme to bring fresh water across to Chatham Bay, and they have computers and an internet connection!!  

Wafer Bay

The following day we hiked up and over the big hill behind the ranger station, to Wafer Bay.  We made the trip with one of the engineers, Bernado, who spoke very little English, but kindly offered us the use of his internet connection.  The hike was long and slow, being straight up and straight down the other side!  The track was also extremely muddy in places, and wild pigs had dug around for worms churning it up even more.  It was, however, a picturesque trail through real rain forest.

One rather remarkable find was a big rock on the shore by the ranger station in Chatham Bay:

It seems that over the years sailors have carved their boat names and dates of the visits into the big rocks and boulders strewn around the beach.  Wonder if this is Marmo?  The date is 1987; it would be hilarious if it was!!  Being a National Park now, this defacing is no longer allowed.  

We left Cocos Island on December 11th, five days after our arrival.  It was time to make tracks for Panama.  The night before we left another yacht turned up, and as we left the anchorage we went by them to say hello and goodbye!   They were from Sweden, and had come through the canal on their way to Tahiti.

After sailing through a big rain cloud off Cocos, the weather cleared and the sun came out, and we settled down for the next leg.  A couple of hours out we heard the sound of engines, and out of the blue came an unmarked but serious looking navy helicopter.  They circled us, and Dave got on the VHF - they were friendly and polite, and after a bit of chat disappeared as mysteriously as they had appeared!