Sail Further

This is Jorge Martinez the proprietor of Tour In El Salvador (www.tourinelsavador.com) with my new long board. He leads excellent tours and caters to cruisers (post-tour shopping trips, etc.). Jorge took me to a surf shop in San Salvador after I struck out in the surf towns of La Libertad and Playa El Tunco. He even negotiated a reduced price for me. Whatta guy.

S/V Further crossing the bar. Bahia del Sol is the hotel and resort that hosts the Annual Cruiser's Rally to El Salvador. I signed up for the rally 'cuz: 1). It's free 2). There are only two marinas to choose from in El Salvador and it's on the way North from Panama 3). I thought I'd probably at least get a t-shirt out of the deal. The downside is the notorious sand bar that has to be crossed at the entrance. The bar shifts so often one of the hotel's pilot boats has to guide you across. Also, you can only cross at slack high tide to safely draw enough water. Surfing the waves into the estuary turned out to be pretty tame (although watching the depth sounder tick down to 3-feet of water under the keel is pretty stressful). Breaking the waves leaving was a pretty wild ride. You have to try and time the waves to balance possibly getting swamped versus launching off the back of the wave. Also, I suppose if you got turned sideways and you got hit with a big wave you...

Sailor's artwork from the upstairs lounge at Tierra Mar. A great hangout. Thanks to Ron, the resident marine engine expert, for helping me get my Yanmar engine running smoothly again. An honest mechanic is a great thing to find, I highly recommend his services. The fickle winds of Central America are hard to get used to after sailing the steady trade winds of the Caribbean. It's a lot like the Med: either too much (the Papagayo, Tehuantepec) or too little wind.