top of page
Writer's pictureTom Johnson, PopieTom

Bella Donna - April 28, 2007 (16)



Dusty and Victor arrived about 8:50 PM, just as it began to rain, and we were locking up and heading to dinner. We donned our rain gear and headed to Bennigan's. The older crew returned to Bella Donna around midnight, while the younger crew stayed to help close the bar at??


Our day started at 3:30 AM. Anthony wakes Captain John to report that Victor is nowhere to be found. He returns with everybody, but Ant searches everywhere for Victor without success. John dresses quickly and begins the search. Quickly, Victor is seen sleeping on the trampoline on the bow. The last place we always think to look. Everyone goes back to bed.

We are waiting for some parts to arrive by FedEx before noon. We will secure the package, fuel up, and we will be off. It is 10 AM, and we are just now having breakfast. We have all been up since 7 AM, visiting and listening to John's plan for the passage. This consists of the usual Captain John speech about watch assignments, when going out on the deck is safe, what to do in case of fire, how to flush the heads, what to put in our grab bag if we have to abandon ship, and many other valuable things to know.


We pick up the parts and fuel right on time, 11 AM. We get our final passport stamps and papers allowing us to leave. At about 12:30, we say our goodbyes to Panama. Our agent, Tina, who helped us with all the planning and paperwork, comes by to say goodbye and leaves us some of her business cards in case we meet someone in Galapagos who needs an agent in Panama. 




We are finally on our way; Willie Nelson is singing "On the Road Again." The ocean is flat, with no wind, and a cloud of humidity rises above us. We have been hotter, so it is not too bad. The ocean is gently rolling with light swells about 15 seconds apart. Overall, the weather is better than predicted, with no wind to sail; we are in the doldrums, latitude 8. We have a fishing line out because we see birds and sea life. Several hundred yards away, we spot a killer whale gently coming up for air and diving again for more food. So far, there has been no fish; there has not even been a hit on our lines.


God Bless Bella Donna

44 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Comments


bottom of page