Not just a dinghy raft up...
Trip Start
Nov 06, 2010
1
75
108
Trip End
Ongoing
Where I stayed
Sweeter Anchorage
Los Haitises National Park, Samaná, Dominican Republic
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Once we were settled in and had enjoyed a quick swim, Pete went exploring in the dinghy to check out the area. Of course, as with the rest of the park, there continued to be coves up the coast from us so there was plenty of room for exploring. It is lush and beautiful and secluded - we love it. Eventide did a bit of fishing and gave us some time to get the boat cleaned up before moving over to raft up to our port side. They had never done it before, but after Pete's extensive experience rafting up throughout the summer in Woods Hole, he was able to instruct them without any problems.
Yolo had been planning to go for an afternoon sail for some fishing with the catamaran Eclipse (a family from Wisconsin, parents Michelle and Geoff with sons Jerome, 14, and Miles, 11 - Michelle's voice actually sounds like home to me), but they were going to come track us down around sunset. As the cliffs inhibit our VHF use, as it neared sunset, Pete and Aaron went out in the dinghy with the handheld radio to try to hail them. Yolo, however, got back late from their sail, so they would join us tomorrow. So we had a really relaxing evening hanging out with Aaron, Jared, and Sally on Hejira. We made a joint dinner and went to bed early. It was refreshing.
This morning was a rainy one - refreshing, but man do the mosquitoes go crazy! It's a bit buggy being anchored in the jungle. Luckily, some citronella candles and bug spray help out. After we had breakfast on our respective boats, we brewed up some delicious, strong Dominican coffee, and we settled onto Hejira once again for a rainy day card game. It was fun and relaxing and felt like a very "homey" activity for a rainy day.
Around about noon, the VHF piped up with Andy's voice from Yolo - they were on their way. We played a couple more hands of cards, and then, with the rain cleared, Pete and Jared jumped in the dinghy to go flag them down - we knew if they just went until they were able to see us, they would either miss us for how hidden we were or, once they spotted us, they would be well beyond where they needed to turn in to join us. Aaron, Sally, and I got the fenders and the dock lines ready for Yolo's arrival, and we were all set by the time Pete and Jared were back, leading Yolo to our starboard side. They had no problems rafting up, and we were soon all celebrating the fact that we had successfully found a spot protected enough for a tri-hulled rafting party.
We swam and relaxed, enjoying the opportunity of moving from one boat to another with ease. Everyone provided snacks and beverages, and we had a really enjoyable afternoon. Aaron tried his hand at fishing out of their dinghy for a while (didn't catch us dinner), and the rest of us went for some exploration in the other two dinghies. It was really fun to have mixed crews and some silly socializing.
Around sunset we returned to our boats, and settled into the cockpit of Hejira for some hanging out. As some members of the crews had started having a few adult beverages, I decided to throw together some bean dip so things didn't get too silly with the empty stomachs. It was a really fun night, and we couldn't be in a more beautiful location.
