The ITCZ ...

for most this would be an insignificant acronym, but for a sailor it means inter tropical convergence zone. When going from the Gulf of Panama into the vast open Pacific towards the Galapagos Islands this is the first hurdle to take.

A brief definition would be: a zone between the belts of easterly trade winds in both hemispheres, located on either side of the equator and depending on season continuously varying in shape and size. It is characteristically a low-pressure area and often completely becalmed. The temperatures and humidity are generally high and often interrupted by localized thunderstorms with heavy rain and strong winds. This may create uncomfortable conditions and delay a sailing yacht’s progress.

In reality this means little to no wind for days, followed possibly by unpredictable wind and rain. Add to this mix a 3-5m tide difference and all sorts of currents and mysterious counter currents then you might understand it a bit more.

We studied the pilot charts and they indicated that we missed the more favorable weather conditions by about a month. We collected weather forecasts from various sources, read reports on the net from previous crossings and the clear messages were– fill up your tanks to the max!! and get ready to motor.

Rather than waiting in a marina we used the Archipelago de Las Perlas in the Gulf of Panama as a jumping board for the next opportune weather window. Wind and tide against us made for a slow progress though and we arrived just after dark in a pitch-black night with flashes of lightning guiding us to our anchorage, announcing rain. Isla Contadora is the most developed island of the archipelago with an airstrip and sealed roads crisscrossing the small island. It is also the home of Günther, a [guess what] German and resident on the island for 29 years who runs the ‘Pacific Island Net’ HF radio station. Part of the [guess what] German Trans Ocean network he is the focal point of a west-bound sailing community and ‘shepherds’ them right across the Pacific to Australia and NZ. We visited him and his 3 dogs and 13 cats in the rambling house perched on the edged of a cliff overlooking the sea and listened for a few hours to the many stories he had to tell. We were initiated into his ‘Pacific family’ and allocated number 1327, promising to report daily on 14135Mhz at 00 hours UTC. We left behind a few bottles of French red wine, the least we could do to tie him over the long hours he spends in the middle of the night on the radio. G… bless all these radio freaks as this is all run on a volunteer basis.

Afterwards we strolled across the islands and dined at [guess what] Gerald’s – Bratwurst with Sauerkraut and Bratkartoffeln and cold Bier, while the heavens opened around us to the most amazing tropical deluge. This forced us to have homemade Apfelstrudel with vanilla ice cream. Afterwards we searched our way back to the beach, drained the lake out of our dinghy and made our way back to the boat.

We upped anchor the next morning for Isla Pedro Gonzalez in the southern part of the archipelago. We found a deserted and protected bay with a sandy and palm-studded beach, a great launch pad for the Galapagos. After another day at anchor we decided that the good weather window was never to come and on May 21 we left for the Galapagos. The watch plan was worked out with 2 hours on / 4 hours off and the experienced Atlantic transit crew of three was settling into the motion of what was to come for the next 4000 miles or about 6 weeks …

Surprisingly we found some wind while weaving our way out of the Las Perlas islands. After a few hours though the wind died down and we started to motor. The general plan was to head directly south until 07 degree north, then change course towards the Galapagos.

It started off well, but then all turned out different – the current for no apparent reason changed against us, the wind kept coming exactly out of the direction we wanted to go and motoring into wind and waves and current for 900 miles was simply no option. For the following 9 days our track looked like a zigzag trying to adjust to all the wind changes we experienced. The current stayed persistently against us with 2-3 knots and progress was tediously slow, interrupted by squalls, bumpy sea and then … completely becalmed again and no choice but to motor. In the midst of all that, some 350 miles from any coast a small fishing boat appeared from nowhere alerting us to some fishing lines they laid out. I checked the depth and it was about 3000m ?? Thank you very much we said and handed over 2 cold beers !!!!

Originally we allocated 10 days for the passage and in the end this was exactly what it took. We arrived May 30 during a wonderful sunset at Academy Bay, Port Ayora on the island of Santa Cruz.  Like with child birth – the pain was immediately forgotten ….

While struggling with the weather we still had time to do a few loads of washing, have a swim hanging on a line off the back of the boat, make [shitty] friends on the fore deck, check out where exactly we were and collect the suicidal squids we found on deck in the mornings and cook it up into a delicious meal.

On May 30 at 0440h we crossed the equator at right angle and an apparition of Neptune appeared out of the depth of the ocean and insisted on baptizing the uninitiated sailors crossing latitude 0 for the first time with a bucket of cold sea water !!!

Also called the Archipelago de Colon, the Galapagos Islands derived their name from the buccaneers and whalers who wrote on the backs of the giant land tortoises referring to their massive shells as ‘saddleback’, meaning Galapagos. Due to the geographic location the cluster of volcanic islands remained isolated for millions of years and many species developed in a unique way. Stopping here during the voyage with HMS Beagle heavily influenced Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. Since humans have arrived on the scene, the environment has changed dramatically and several species are already extinct or are threatened with extinction. What is left however is still a unique place and the Ecuadorian government is doing its best to maintain a status quo. The fauna and flora is simply extraordinary. Puerto Ayora is the hub of the Galapagos and a breath of fresh air compared to the cities we visited previously like Santo Domingo, Cartagena in Colombia or Colon in Panama. The Ecuadorian people are open and friendly, there is no crime [no one wants to get into your pockets]  and the atmosphere is very convivial.

3 more days here enjoying the wild life and then we will head off on the longest uninterrupted passage of the trip – 3000 miles towards the Marquesas islands, hopefully again downwind following the easterly trade winds. At least the pilot charts promise this ……

Panama Canal … the symbolic gateway into the vast Pacific Ocean

Before going into our transit experience a short and factual discourse on the history of the Canal might be a good idea.

·      1534 – the Spanish first conceived the idea of creating a passage to transport the spoils of their depredation of South America from the west coast of Pacific to the Atlantic on the way to Spain

·      1855 – Panama Railway Company established first connection by rail

·      1879 – Ferdinand de Lesseps [also constructed Suez Canal]. His plan of constructing a canal across the Isthmus with 25 locks was too complicated and after the loss of millions of francs and 25.000 lives the company went bankrupt

·      1894 - second French attempt using the same idea failed

·      1903 – Panama separated from Greater Colombia to become a Republic and engaged with Roosevelt to realize the novel idea of flooding the Chagras river to create an artificial waterway with 3 locks leading up from the Atlantic to Lake Gatun and 3 locks down to the Pacific.

·      1914 – the first ships crossed the Isthmus

·      1999 – the American lease for the canal territory expired and after a 20 year transition period the Panamanian people took over complete ownership and management of the Panama canal

3012275 – that was our Panama Canal Ship Identification Number for the transit. After having transited twice before as hired line hands for other yachts our transit date was set for May 14/15. On the day we were all set with wrapped car tires as additional fenders and 125ft long lines. Apart from ourselves the 2 extra line hands for our crossing were father/daughter team Mark and Marissa from NZ. We weaved our way through the waiting ships and at 1530h picked up Freddy, our advisor in the ‘flats’ outside Cristobal harbor.

 

Almost 100 years after the inauguration of the canal the locks are still operating more or less in their original size and condition and are testimony to an incredible technical achievement at the time and reflect an unprecedented foresight into what the future merchant shipping might require.

We had the [fortunate and unfortunate] opportunity to testify this prescience by being allocated a spot in the locks going up to Lake Gatun behind what is referred to worldwide as a Panamax. With a total width of 106ft these monster bulk carriers are purpose built to maximize the load carried through the 110ft wide lock chambers.

 

The little space left between the stern of ‘Demeter Leader’ and the lock gates was filled with our ‘nest’ of 3 yachts. First we were allocated to raft up with the small mono hull ‘Magic’ only, but minutes before the locks closed a 72ft steel schooner suddenly appeared and joined our nest. Because of the rush the constellation of the 3 yachts was wrong and when entering the chamber the 60 tons of the steel schooner pushed us hard against the lock wall and only with some firm manual interference and thanks to our tires we avoided getting hull damage. The spectacle [and all the women on the three yachts of course] were closed watched by the crew on the bulk carrier …. they apparently enjoyed themselves.

Going through these first three consecutive Gatun Locks was no less than ‘very interesting’ and we were all surprised to come out unscathed. 50 billion gallons of water are flooding the chamber in about 8-12 minutes. This creates enormous water turbulences and the additional prop wash by the bulk carrier when assisting the ‘mules’ [locomotives] moving it into the next lock stretched our lines to the limits We feared that the lines would snap sending our ‘nest’ into a spin or the tension would rip out our cleats. It took some serious wrestling with the lines to stabiles the nest and our gloves came in handy.

2 hours later we looked over our shoulders to say good-bye to the Atlantic and left the last chamber to go into the Lake Gatun. Although we were all glad it was over it was nevertheless a great experience.

We anchored for the night on Lake Gatun and at 0630h the next morning we were joined by our new advisor Moises and motored the 28 miles across Lake Gatun.

Halfway across the lake Moises received notice that an advisor’s instructor and 2 trainees, the first 2 female advisors-to-be would replace him. After the exchange and the third lot of advisors taking charge we continued on our merry way through the Gaillard cut, the narrowest part of the canal towards Piedro Miguel Lock and finally the Miraflores Locks. On the way we saw Titan, a massive crane given to the Canal as a present by Germany. An old coalmining crane it was extensively adapted and is now used to exchange the lock gates. We then passed under the new [guess what] German built Centennial Bridge. One of the conditions to be allowed to go through the Canal is to be able to motor at a continuous speed of 6 knots. Magic, our nesting companion from the day before was pushing too hard and got stuck with some motor problems. We offered our assistance but they already frantically worked on replacing their water pump.

The bulk carrier we shared the chambers of the Gatun Locks with was luckily not scheduled to continue with us on the other side and the water turbulences going down the locks are also much less intense - hence the experience of the first day was not repeated.

We had an easy ride down the Piedro Miquel Lock being nested to a tourist boat. The steel schooner from the day before was tied up further down the chamber alone, on the lock wall. We crossed the small Miraflores Lake and then were joined again by our companions on Magic, who managed to solve their problems just in time to catch their allocated time slot with us and avoid very expensive towing charges should they have required assistance.

At 1350h on May 15 the large gates of the Miraflores Locks opened. Like millions of others before ‘we made it’ and looked down the last part of the shipping lanes towards the legendary Bridge of the Americas … and in the distance the Pacific was beckoning with new adventures.

We called into the marina at Flamenco Island and filled our diesel tanks and all other jerry cans we had on board and dropped anchor in Panama bay. The view of the skyline of Panama City seemed unreal and the next time we will see anything like this again will be on the other side of the Pacific – may be the Gold Coast in Australia.