Our trip on Tropicbird.
We had backpacked through South America and needed to get from Cartagena Colombia to Panama and onward to the States. Although we could have flown we decided to check on yachts sailing the route via the San Blas Islands. We talked to people at our hostel and found advertisements for ‘Tropicbird’ and even looked at photos and details on the internet at liveaboardsailing.com, this included a ‘Captains Profile’ which we read before meeting captain Julian in person who showed us over his boat and explained how the whole trip worked.
We paid our deposit and since the departure date was in a few days time we explored the wonderful town of Cartagena whilst also getting excited about our forthcoming adventure. We had not been on a sailing boat before but had every confidence that captain Julian and ‘Tropicbird’ would look after us.
Our captain had taken care of the immigration formalities and with our passports stamped we set sail for the San Blas islands and Panama. ‘Tropicbird’ is like a small ship and there was enough room to allow each of us to have our own bed and our own ’space’. There was a cooking area called the galley, a large lounging area downstairs and a large comunial area the ‘cockpit’ where the boat was steered from and where we could all sit safetly whilst the boat was at sea thoroughly protected from any wind or rain, this was also where Julian comanded the yacht and where he slept during the trip.
Cartagena is about seven miles from the sea along a winding path between marker bouys so we had plenty of time to get comfortable and stow our backpacks, Once at the entrance to the port we had our first experience of the open sea. There was a little trepidation amongst us all but our captain and ‘Tropicbird’ inspired confidence.
We knew the first part of the trip was two days at sea and we started getting used to the motion and the hum of the engine. There was very little wind so sailing would only happen if we got enough and it had to be in the right direction. For those interested Julian explain the workings of the yacht we all had our chance to give the automatic steering a rest and steer by hand. It was fun and we all felt involved. We were not pushed to steer since Julian has a good automatic steering system and stays at the helm at all times. He has a trick during the night of winding up an egg-timer and dozing for half an hour at a time and then checking we were on course and we were all safe and sound. During the night we took turns helping with looking out for other ships.
Before the trip Julian had talked over the subject of seasickness and some of us had taken precautions and suffered less or even not at all and some of us just suffered. We all made the best of it and moaned to ourselves. With the prospect of seeing the San Blas islands and tranquil waters ahead there was enough anticipation to dampen the discomfort. We all helped to cook meals along the way and overall the passage at sea was a great experience.
Finally we sighted land and Julian took us to our first anchorage in the San Blas Islands, Coco Bandero Cays. it seemed a litle tight to get into this anchorage but Tropicbird squeezed through the small opening to the little lagoon and there we anchored. What a delight; surrounded by coconut palms and white sandy beaches we settled on the tranquil tuquise water.
Kuna Indians came out to us in thier dugouts and we negotiated good prices on Molas, crab and lobster. The island is quite small but has a bar and some dwellings for rent which together is called a ‘Resort’. the Kuna indians are well mannered and polite even returning with change when we didn’t have the correct amount. That evening we cooked up the lobster and crab and had a feast. Julian showed us how to prepare the food and with a hammer at hand we gorged ourselves. All of this seafood costing a fraction of what it would cost in any restaurant in the States and all freshly cooked that same day.
Next day we motored over to East Lemons and did more of the same. Snorkeling, eating and generally indulging in the paradise.
Unfortunately it was time to leave Tropicbird and check in at Porviner for Panama. We sailed over to Carti and took a four wheel drive to Panama City. We had thoroughly enjoyed our time aboard and captain Julian was an excellent host. There are other boats doing the trip but our recommendation will always be for Tropicbird and captain Julian.
John and Annette Smith.
In his position as Captain, Julian was employed by me aboard my yacht in Sardinia, Italy from 2001 – 2002. Julian did an excellent job in this position and was an asset to me, my family and friends. He is highly skilled in his job with many years of experience. An excellent ‘all rounder’, when it came to safety, engineering and general on board maintenance. He has excellent written and verbal communication skills, is extremely organised, can work independently and is able to follow through to ensure that the job gets done.During his tenure with me, Julian was responsible for supervising five crew members. The crew, under Julian’s management, were responsible for general on board maintenance. Julian effectively scheduled and managed several crew members to maintain efficient operations.Julian was always willing to offer his assistance and had an excellent rapport with the many people who came sailing aboard my yacht including clients, friends, and other professionals. I have always kept in touch with Julian and visited him in the Dominican Republic two years ago. He took me sailing of course, and he has never changed from the day I met him. He is still very charming, intelligent and an excellent Captain. He would be an asset to any employer and I highly recommend him for any endeavor he chooses to pursue.
Susan Robinson