World Tour - Europe, Asia, North and South America - Entries for: Panama
32° | sunny / rainy | km 620
Chillin' in Panama
on 2017-10-09 in Panama
We headed from the border to a town called David, where we found a nice little hostel called Bambu Hostel where we had a great night with the barkeeper and some backpackers. We decided to spend another night here to get some laundry done and relax in the pool.
After David we headed once more to the Pacific ocean where we spent one night in the Taca Tucan Hostel. The owner a friendly Austrian woman named Trixi arrived later that night from her travels and we were immediately invited to a small "hippie" welcome back party. After a fun night and a great breakfast we headed towards Panama City.
We wanted to get a shot with our drone of the Panama Canal but sadly it was very hard to get a good view from it. Even from the sky. After we had finally found a little spot we were advised to go back to the main road by local security personal.
Changing our oil in Panama City had to wait for another day, because Panama had successfully made it through the soccer World Cup Qualification and had therefore announced a public holiday for one day. We decided to wait in our little hotel room until heading onwards to our sailboat and the long awaited journey across the Darién Gap. We had decided to go with the well known Stahlratte one of the only reliable ways to cross the jungle between Panama and Columbia. In the meantime we updated blog and videos and Basti went for a short unspectacular stroll through Panama City.
Fabi decided one night before our departure to send a quick email to our captain asking at what time we should be at the Stahlratte and if everything was in order. When we got his message the next morning that he thought we were not going to make it because he had not received the necessary documents from us we suddenly found ourselves struggling to make the necessary arrangements. Luckily we were able to reach our captain Ludwig by telephone and after a short talk he was able to calm us down and tell us that if we headed out right now he would wait for us and we would still be able to make it. We packed our things in record time and sped the 100 kilometers to the small harbor town called Carti.
After David we headed once more to the Pacific ocean where we spent one night in the Taca Tucan Hostel. The owner a friendly Austrian woman named Trixi arrived later that night from her travels and we were immediately invited to a small "hippie" welcome back party. After a fun night and a great breakfast we headed towards Panama City.
We wanted to get a shot with our drone of the Panama Canal but sadly it was very hard to get a good view from it. Even from the sky. After we had finally found a little spot we were advised to go back to the main road by local security personal.
Changing our oil in Panama City had to wait for another day, because Panama had successfully made it through the soccer World Cup Qualification and had therefore announced a public holiday for one day. We decided to wait in our little hotel room until heading onwards to our sailboat and the long awaited journey across the Darién Gap. We had decided to go with the well known Stahlratte one of the only reliable ways to cross the jungle between Panama and Columbia. In the meantime we updated blog and videos and Basti went for a short unspectacular stroll through Panama City.
Fabi decided one night before our departure to send a quick email to our captain asking at what time we should be at the Stahlratte and if everything was in order. When we got his message the next morning that he thought we were not going to make it because he had not received the necessary documents from us we suddenly found ourselves struggling to make the necessary arrangements. Luckily we were able to reach our captain Ludwig by telephone and after a short talk he was able to calm us down and tell us that if we headed out right now he would wait for us and we would still be able to make it. We packed our things in record time and sped the 100 kilometers to the small harbor town called Carti.
32° | sunny | km 0
Up on the boat
on 2017-10-15 in Panama
We arrived as planned at about one o'clock at the harbor. Shortly thereafter we saw the Stahlratte cruise our way to scoop up our bikes. We had loaded all three bikes in a matter of minutes thanks to the crane on board. The first thing we got on the boat was a little breakfast and we quickly got to know the other bikers on the ship. One Finnish couple on a Yamaha 1200 Super Ténére, two American siblings on a 250 and a 450 Honda XL, one British Colombian on a KLR and the Crew, Captain Ludwig and two sailors Anna and Qua Qua, a local from the autonomous region Guna Yala. The remainder of the day was very relaxing. After a short tour on the Stahlratte we got on a small speedboat and headed towards a remote island. We settled into our rooms and spent the rest of the day getting to know the others and relaxing on the island. It was a tiny island but it still had a small landing strip for small airplanes.
The next morning we were brought back to the ship. A couple of backpackers had boarded the Stahlratte in the morning and were already waiting on board for us. Eight new travelers in total, which is according to Ludwig quite uncommon but made our group a good mix of characters. After three hours of slowly cruising we anchored near a couple of tiny islands. The scenery was incredibly and we all had true Caribbean feelings. The best part was that all we had to do this day was jump in the water and enjoy the moment. We snorkeled near riffs, used a rope as a swing to jump into the water and simply had the best time. Our cabin was in the back of the boat and it was the only room with an air conditioner. Lucky for us.
Later that night we decided to drink some Rum, just like real pirates would do it. Ludwig treated us to two bottles of his finest but we soon realized that he had used these bottles as bait. At sundown we took a small boat with Qua Qua to a nearby island where we had a nice bonfire with some locals and enjoyed the night. The small boat had to go back to the Stahlratte a couple of times to get some replenishments... At this moment we obviously did not think one minute about the fact that we would be spending 30 hours on the open sea tomorrow.
We started the next morning with another great breakfast and enjoyed another full day of rope swinging and snorkeling. So far so good. At sunset we enjoyed another big meal with rice, salad and craw fish. Right after clearing the dinner table we set sail. Just as a figure of speech because we did not have enough wind so we used the motor once again. The calm ocean quickly turned into a rough sea once we left the protection of the islands. And we started to quickly regret our previous night as pirates. Denis was the first to feed the fishes and he soon cowered next to Fabi in the middle of the ship on deck. Fabi had managed to keep his food thanks to some medicine but he also did not feel all to well. Basti also fell ill, but he luckily made it to bed just in time. After a while outside Fabi and Denis decided to use a small window of opportunity to head in as well. We were all incredibly tired and so we managed to sleep through the night without any further "accidents".
The next morning we were brought back to the ship. A couple of backpackers had boarded the Stahlratte in the morning and were already waiting on board for us. Eight new travelers in total, which is according to Ludwig quite uncommon but made our group a good mix of characters. After three hours of slowly cruising we anchored near a couple of tiny islands. The scenery was incredibly and we all had true Caribbean feelings. The best part was that all we had to do this day was jump in the water and enjoy the moment. We snorkeled near riffs, used a rope as a swing to jump into the water and simply had the best time. Our cabin was in the back of the boat and it was the only room with an air conditioner. Lucky for us.
Later that night we decided to drink some Rum, just like real pirates would do it. Ludwig treated us to two bottles of his finest but we soon realized that he had used these bottles as bait. At sundown we took a small boat with Qua Qua to a nearby island where we had a nice bonfire with some locals and enjoyed the night. The small boat had to go back to the Stahlratte a couple of times to get some replenishments... At this moment we obviously did not think one minute about the fact that we would be spending 30 hours on the open sea tomorrow.
We started the next morning with another great breakfast and enjoyed another full day of rope swinging and snorkeling. So far so good. At sunset we enjoyed another big meal with rice, salad and craw fish. Right after clearing the dinner table we set sail. Just as a figure of speech because we did not have enough wind so we used the motor once again. The calm ocean quickly turned into a rough sea once we left the protection of the islands. And we started to quickly regret our previous night as pirates. Denis was the first to feed the fishes and he soon cowered next to Fabi in the middle of the ship on deck. Fabi had managed to keep his food thanks to some medicine but he also did not feel all to well. Basti also fell ill, but he luckily made it to bed just in time. After a while outside Fabi and Denis decided to use a small window of opportunity to head in as well. We were all incredibly tired and so we managed to sleep through the night without any further "accidents".