After one week of sailing in the Pacific we arrived in Santa Cruz. With our agent Ronnie we had arranged a stay without autografico which means that we were not allowed to move to another island with Mirabella. Shortly after Ronnie had stepped on board the authorities showed up. André had to answer a whole bunch of questions and a female officer checked our pantry. Normally you are not allowed to bring fruits, vegetables or cheese. Our fruit reserve was down to a handful of limes and some coconuts. She did not really investigate thoroughly though. Otherwise she would have discovered my well treasured box with parmesan cheese at the bottom of the fridge… she left us the limes but took the coconuts and seemed to be pleased with that catch of the day.
Santa Cruz turned out to be an excellent choice. On the watertaxi dock we could watch reef sharks, pelicans, seals and beautiful red crabs from very close and right after the watertaxi dock, there was a large playground for the kids. A stop at the small fishmarket was always a highlight, as you could watch there seals, pelicans and fregat birds from very close, lining up for getting some left overs.
The beautiful walk to Las Grietas we even did twice because we really liked this magic place. On the way we passed a beach where iguanas where nesting. The refreshing swim in this crystal clear turquoise sweet water was fantastic.
Near to the village there was also an interesting tortoise breeding station and the Darwin Center to visit. Paddling with the kayak in the bay to watch the Blue footed boobies or dive into the peaceful atmosphere of Laguna de las Ninfas was wonderful. So time passed very fast and we extended our stay. Our friends from INFINITY (from the Atlantic crossing) arrived and it was nice to catch up with them and spend time together as we have had different routes since Barbados.
Although INFINITY wanted to convince us to leave a week later together with them and some other boats we found that after two weeks it was time to move towards the Marquesas. Jeremy organised a kind of Pacific fleet to track the boats crossing to the Marquesas and to have some kind of network, if anyone get’s in trouble. This Tiki fleet turned out to be a fantastic thing as it was always good to hear from the other boats with what they were up to during the passage.
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