Luperon

Well a rather relaxed couple of weeks thus far in Luperon. We had a small window to exit for points east this past week, but the DR Navy had closed the ports due to swell, though seemingly unevenly applied as boats in harbors further east were allowed to depart. There were several boats that wanted to leave and were very upset they were prevented. However the following day everyone was allowed to leave.. but then the window was to short so only about half left. Long story and much drama for a cruising community. We had already decided not to go anyway so we took on an amused observer roll.

We went out to La Isabella and Castillo, where the original Spanish settlement was located. Though obviously not much left there, the effort to preserve what remains was impressive. The drive out along the north coast was breath taking. The northern DR is very rural, rugged and green.

From a cruising perspective Luperon has much to offer, save for clean water to swim in, which we miss and sorely need to keep the kids entertained. Otherwise the community of boats is nice, provisioning cheap, beer extremely cheap and plenty of nice people to help with any needs. There is also a big shoal area right in the middle of the anchorage. So nearly every morning, including today, we retire to the cockpit about 7:00 am with a steaming cup of coffee, sun slowly rising, temperature perfect and watch the boats coming in.... and .... running on to the shoal. I guess we could warn them, but that is much less fun, and the shoal is just soft mud so everyone gets off with out much problem.

We did have one exciting moment as a boat in front of us began to drag the other day. The owner was away, so it was up to the cruisers to get the boat re-anchored. The windlass had been left on, but there was not key for the ignition. So about 8 dinghies were pulling and pushing and I and another cruiser ran the windlass, chain and anchors up onto deck and then reset two anchors. The boat seems to sit fine now, either that or we put it to close to the mangroves and it is actually now aground... We plan to leave next week.

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