worries, we were completely alone. Or so we thought....Vivarillo Cay
Our next stop on the way to Roatan, Honduras
was Vivarillo Cay. Finally we had reached our deserted island...no one
around, no
worries, we were completely alone. Or so we thought....
Boat anchored, dingy launched and dogs loaded we head to shore. We head to what looks to be a perfect place to let the dogs run loose, stick an umbrella in the sand and kick back. Picture perfect in everyway, right up until we see...are those...dogs...on shore? No, can't be...but yes, it is. Any oh, is that a guy standing behind them? What the hell...who would live out here in the middle of nowhere? How would you survive? Well, apparently Jorge does. Jorge and his dogs. Once again proving that this planet is alot smaller than we all think and land is the only real investment. There's just no new frontiers left!
We
detour and land on another very small spit and both dogs jump ship before even
making it to land. For the first time, Zeus is able to run loose, off
leash and play in the water. It was a good day for Monster.
Jorge and his dogs start to head over to us, but Fred heads them off. We don't want the dogs getting into any entanglements way out here. Fred speaks no Spanish and Jorge doesn't speak English, but Fred gets enough that Jorge needs supplies...food and water. No problem. We head back to the boat to grab some supplies. We load up some dry goods, fresh meats, the last of our vegies and fruits, sodas, dog biscuits (doesn't everyone deserve something special today?), lots of water and it wouldn't be a party without some booze, so we toss in a bottle of vodka. Jorge is very appreciative and asks for a few personal items (soap, toothpaste, new toothbrush), which we gladly take to him the following day along with filling his 18 gallon water drum. Since we were unable to communicate (where's that "Spanish for Dummies" book when you need it?), we are uncertain what the heck he was doing out there. We had read on another Nordhavn site who had stopped here about a year ago, that if this is the same guy, he's out here watching some generators or something. And you thought flipping burgers for a living was a bad deal. The next time your kid complains about their part time job, offer to let them trade places with Jorge for awhile. Minimum wage never looked so good.
We stay for two days to rest up and get ready for the leg to Roatan. Of course, even in Paradise, the boat work never ends. The dingy prop gives out and it's McGyver to the rescue again. There just doesn't seem to be anything this guy can't fix. It's another proud spousal unit moment!
This is a really pretty anchorage and taking the boys to shore each day was a piece of cake, particularly compared to the last anchorage. Everyone is getting lots of exercise, fresh air and discovering all sorts of new things which you are NOT suppose to play fetch with.
On top of all the fun, half the crew are getting LOTS of showers to get the sand off and out of the fur. Guilt sets in as we think about the amount of water we're using each day just to keep the dogs clean. It's probably more than Jorge goes through in a week or longer.
A note to anyone passing this way, please be sure to stop in on Jorge. If you have any extra supplies you can part with be sure to offer them. My guess is that his survival is, for the most part, dependent upon the kindness of strangers.