HOME - sailorgirl adventures - Cuba 2001 - our route, update Feb 16
Never made it to the Dry Tortugas or Key West. Oh well. While we were hanging out in Marathon getting ready, we found a few other boats heading this way. So we set off in a convoy of 5 boats straight out of Marathon heading to Varadero, 70 miles east of Havana. It was a little rough at times. You really know when you hit the Gulf Stream, it's a bit like getting slammed into a brick wall. But after a few hours the seas calmed down to 6 - 8 feet and we had a steady breeze of 20 knots. Unfortunately it was a following sea, waves coming from behind. This creates a roller coaster effect, fine for a couple of minutes at an amusement park, not so fine for 21 hours. That's life, we made it. After 5 days of hanging out in Varadero doing the beach scene, we jumped the 67 nautical miles to La Habana. And guess what? It was 8 - 10 feet, direct downwind, and a following sea!!!! Another 14 hours on the roller coaster! From here on in, we have short little hops. That makes a happy Sailorgirl.
