We are very late going to the southern Caribbean to avoid the hurricane season (it’s a long story). We only met a few cruisers in the Bahamas still heading south however, we gradually met up with several boats in Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico that are still southbound. We all have a common trajectory…sailing South into the wind; a sailboat cannot make headway by sailing directly into the wind so, we also have in common determination and purpose which = instant bonds of friendship
We arrived in Salina’s behind 2 of our fellow “buddy boats” and in front of one and just in time for a Full Moon Mountain Party. Ricardo is a Veterinarian and accomplished yachtsman in the area and is well known and extremely helpful in the local community as well as the cruising community. He was gracious enough to invite us sailors and even organized us all rides to his Mountain Villa. The 45-minute drive into the Mountains rewarded us with an interior look into Puerto Rico’s picturesque countryside. Arriving at Ricardo’s villa we stumbled into a hidden mountain retreat cleverly designed to provide water, electricity and hurricane withstanding architecture while living seemingly off the grid.

The kitchen is a separate open air building just below the main house…COOL!

Main house and bathroom facilities

Livingroom with a mountain view and central heating

Mike and Marjolaine from SV Basta, CJ and Eric from SV Ragnarok, Kathleen and Adrien from SV Shenemere enjoying the good company, view and delicious rabbit stew

Everyone has a “Boating Birth” Story…

Mike and Marjolaine from SV Basta had visited St. Martin on a cruise ship and had met some people on a sailing boat on their trip. The idea of sailing was sprouted then and eventually grew. They bought their sailboat SV Basta in Canada with very little sailing experience and over the years have managed to sail from Canada to the Caribbean while surviving Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico along the way. They attribute their sailing success to their “lake sailing” in Canada’s most challenging weather conditions; basically, they put themselves on the water whenever the weather got bad. So, it makes sense that Caribbean sailing was a breeze for them and cruising with other boats provided them the confidence to venture into blue water adventures. It is so interesting to hear everyone’s story on their “boating birth” story is so different.