The Tentative Itinerary of the Third Voyage of the S/V Raven a.k.a. Aruba or Bust

If you’ve been following our exploits, you may remember that the original plan for the Third Voyage was to sail to the South Pacific. You may also remember that this was prefaced with, “While we’re still somewhat young, dumb and naïve…” Well, somewhere off the Washington coast—probably in that first gale rounding Cape Flattery—we lost a little of our naiveté. And the subsequent rough passage down the coast of Oregon where we were getting tossed around, bumped and bruised in what we’ve come to call the “rock tumbler effect” really made us question the “somewhat young” angle. (When it takes six months for a bruise to go away, you know you’re in the early autumn of your chicken days.) Specifically, we wondered how sensible it would be to go that far offshore—three weeks across the ocean with no land in sight—with only a little big water experience and only one truly skilled sailor among us. More specifically, is it fair to do that with an 81 year-old lady in tow?

So with young and naïve off the table, we’re going with “While we’re still dumb, we’re going to sail to Aruba!” Why Aruba? Because it’s as close to heaven as you can get if your pearly gates open on to powdery white sand beaches, crystal blue water, good wind for sailing, and a multitude of those open-air bars that serve local beer and the “best rum in the Caribbean” (which seems to be the unofficial slogan of every island in the West Indies). That and the insurance company demanded I give them a “final destination” when preparing a policy that includes transiting the Panama Canal. But if one must choose a new homeport, what better gateway to the Caribbean is there? And if we can endure those last 480 nautical miles from the South American mainland to Aruba, then I think we will have earned our stripes as seasoned cruisers as well as call ourselves official expats.

So without further ado, here is the tentative itinerary…

Mexico with landfall in Ensenada, Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, Barra de Navidad, Manzanillo, Ixtapa, Acapulco, Huatulco, and Puerto Chiapas

 

El Salvador with landfall in Bahia Jaltepeque and Bahia de Jiquilisco

 

Nicaragua with landfall at Puesto del Sol in Estero Aserradores

 

Costa Rica with landfall in Playa del Coco and Golfito

 

Panama with landfall in Balboa/Panama City on the Pacific side; transit through the canal; then Shelter Bay on the Atlantic side

 

Colombia with landfall in Cartagena and Santa Marta

 

Aruba!

Total distance from San Diego to Aruba: 3900 nautical miles (give or take)

Departure Date: April 2^nd, 2016

Spoiler Alert: We've already been delayed (as per frigging usual)

Pictured: The Deck Boss toasting our decision to head south with a shot of Jagermeister, peach schnapps and cranberry juice (aka a Red-Headed Slut) courtesy of The Tipsy Crow.

Not pictured: The next three shots. Couldn't figure out how the camera worked after that but got plenty of pictures of the floor.