What a piece of work is a man! how noble in reason!
how infinite in faculty! in form and moving how
express and admirable! in action how like an angel!
in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the
world! the paragon of animals! And yet, to me,
what is this quintessence of dust?
- William Shakespeare

A couple days off the water allows you a new view of the land. You view solid ground rising from a sea that carries you upwards, slides you into deep troughs, and pushes you aside with little thought. You sometimes look to the land and wish to be there. If only to buy a really juicy hamburger. Yet back on solid ground you quickly find yourself again sinking the the human condition; Checking the news, reading the latest atrocities, noticing the bars on every window. Suddenly you feel the need to go back to sea.

Today we got up early and went down to the sea to watch the waves roll in. It was like a local holiday for the people of the area. Crowds gathered, food vendors were doing rapid business. Surfers tried the waves but soon learned these were not great for long rides. I spent much of my day filming and taking photos. You can see a few here.

Hurricane Dean passed us by with little damage. Power outages, branches down but nothing to severe. The sea will still be a bit wild for a day or so and the plan is to head back out on Tuesday, weather permitting. Until then I will be soaking in the mountains, the town, the people, and the traffic lights. . all the while with one eye to the sea. . .

I’m sitting with my feet up in the town of Guyama. Hurricane Dean is still quite some distance off but is already showing some signs of affecting the weather. A cool breeze rolls in the window along with the sounds of roosters crowing in all directions. Dogs and Chickens run free everywhere her in Puerto Rico. But, the dogs are NOT all rabid as some would suggest. Most are just roaming the streets looking for a hand out and a short friendly interaction before the roam off, sometimes alone and sometimes with a motley pack. I’ve come to love the many small dogs that seem to find us on every beach. They more often provide a comforting welcome than the “fear” I expected. Sure you have to watch them at first to be sure they are healthy, yet we’ve come this far and not yet had a bad experience with animals. Now on to my notes;

Gun Fire – The un-told story

We were tired we had been paddling hard through thick heat to get across the shipping channel in the bay of Mayaguez. Our goal was to land on the far southern side of the bay. During the crossing we were hearing gun fire. Taino, being in the Marines in the 80’s has a more than intimate knowledge of gunfire. We figured there must be a firing range somewhere. In time the gun fire stopped and we found in the distance a green building to aim for. Often here on public beaches you will find colorful green, yellow or red structures. However as we paddled closer just outside of a mile or so we recognized the red flags marking off a range. Still well away, we turned east and paddled out around the target area at a right angle and then turned south again to the east of the range and no where near the marked firing zone. In fact our minds had now moved on to other things, mainly taking a break. We saw a small fishing boat just ahead and more in shore we would pass on the outside, then turn around the head to land on the opposite. The first thing I thought was that flair had been fired. It sounded like a bottle rocket had flown past Tiano. Then another, then another. Taino recognized easily the sound of M16 fire and yelled something like, “Oh Sh*t!!”. My brain could not comprehend, things went into slow motion for me. Another “rocket” came behind my head with sort of a pressurized “snap!” in my ear that told it it went by very close. Too close. I sensed another crossed over my bow with a “hiss-pop” that later I realized was the bullet coming low and hitting the water. Later Taino shared similar close calls. In that “slow motion” mind set, we turned our boats away and paddled with everything we had, our heads down to our decks. There was a moment of quiet then a second round came in and again, right on our position in the water. We dug and pulled for every inch. We just raced out. The sounds I’m sure stopped sometime back but we did not stop until we are almost to the fishing boat we saw before.

So in the end we could only guess as to why we came under fire where we were at. Being at a right angle to the flagged firing zone, Taino guessed that they had another range and were shooting into and over a wooden or earthen target area that was not stopping the shots. We doubt they even saw us there. However we later learned that they should not have been using M16s or shooting in our direction. We also learned there were problems there in the past. 2 boaters had been shot a couple years back in the same area. You can call it sensationalizing or whatever, but the truth was we came under some dangerous gunfire and only dumb luck let us live to tell the tale. So there you have it from the horse’s mouth.

Cabo Roho – The “South Stack” of Puerto Rico

In order to come round the south west corner of the island you cave to pass the rocky point at Cabo Roho. We had heard some scary stories. The south winds come in consistent around 10am. Fisherman had warned us that even with their twin engines they had been stopped dead trying to round the corner. You could not go in they said, due to the high waves, big reflection and jagged rocks. You cannot go outside because of the confused seas and high winds. We were told we had to make it through before 10am. The day before I road out to the lighthouse to examine the corner from atop the cliffs. Looking down I could see a bubbling cauldron of waves. Jagged rocks indeed were being exposed in the troughs of big 6-8foot waves that would come slamming into the cliffs. On the outside was a distinct line marking where the fast current threatened to carry unwary boaters all the way to Honduras. However looking into the cauldron again I could compare what I was seeing to what I saw in Wales. Yeah, it was rockin’ and rollin’ but still there was a cliff blocking the wind and with a bit of paddling prowess we could certainly come in behind it and cross the big waves while avoiding the wind. Still, early was better. I did not like either option I saw from the cliffs.

The next morning we took off at first light. We could begin the turn at 7 if we pushed. As we closed in on the lighthouse the swell began to build. I could feel a bit of nerves building as well, but as we rounded the corner we were met with calm winds. We worked our way over the 3-5 foot waves that bounced around the cliffs and moved past the final wall into a glass sea reflecting like mercury under the hot morning sun. We paddled back into shore to hug the coast. Suddenly, unbelievably I noticed on the top of a stone’ A Cactus! We were in cattle country.

Thank You!

In addition to our group of silly helpers we have had so much help from the people in the many little towns that we have passed. Fisherman have of course been a wealth of information and are the first to take us in even when they think we are “loco” Americans. The Coast Guard has been keeping watch over us. A chopper a day I think, along with police boats that have also noted our positions. A wonderful street cleaner who did everything he could to help me coffee. Not to mention the hotels, yacht clubs, marinas & campgrounds that offered us a place for our tent.

The Weatherman!!

Oh, and let me think Karel (from Terra Santa Kayak Adventures) again for keeping on the weater. He’s been our “final word” on the weather each day.

More Pictures

I try to get photos posted often as I can. I added more today at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/derrickam/

Carrie Checking in again.

Thanks to Karel Visel we have an update on the storm, the forecast has changes slightly and we may not take a direct hit, but be side swiped by a category 2. Doesn’t look good for Cuba though, who could get a category 3 direct hit. Tropical Storm Dean could get pretty mean!

Our boys will be off the water officially Thursday. Thanks to our ground crew José Quiñonez of http://www.kayakscuba.com/ and Yvonne LeGuillou who have been monitoring the south side, assiting and transporting the men. The next few days will be spent resting and planning.

I’m looking forward to having an update from Derrick. 

The sea is the sea. It is not always calm or serene or tranquil azure blue. Nothing in real life is like the post card, not even the 5 star resorts. Paddling a sea kayak around the island of Puerto Rico is not all calm seas, cold beer and bikinis. In fact it’s just like paddling anywhere else on the sea, except occasionally a coconut floats by on the surface of a big wind swept wave.

It feels as if we’ve been paddling for days. (Mainly because we have. . .) We are tired and slipping a bit physically. We realized today we were eating almost no protein, a major mistake. We would rise to beat the wind and hit the water on granola. Yet, it’s felt a bit like a race recently. Each day there is no choice to get up with the sun and rush to beat the wind only to have it find us in just a couple hours. Then the rest of the day it’s a hard slog for every mile. Over the next couple days I will share more details. But for the moment let’s just say we are glad for a few days off the water while we wait to see what “Dean” decides to do.

My “body count” keeps growing. I am taking meds for an ear infection as well others as for my raw and swollen legs. My ribs were feeling better until the last two days through oncoming winds and riled waves. Now again I am in pain with every movement. Yet I had been feeling signs of getting better and I hope the next couple days off the water will help set things right. My poor legs are raw. 1000 mosquito bites, 100 ant bites, sunburn, and a general infection soaked in constant salt water all come together to make for an exciting mix. Up until today, the only time I felt good was on the water, but the winds have taken their toll and even today’s paddle from St. Isabel to here in Guayama was a struggling “heads down” push. We could only keep reminding ourselves that tomorrow we wouldn’t paddle! Taino is in generally good condition but is worn down as well. Yet to cheer us up we can look at the chart and see we have made real progress and are on schedule even with this temporary break.

The last couple times on the south coast we have been met by our other Kayak Angel Yvonne R. Le Guillou, who has met us with more food than we can eat, water, and treats. Between Carrie, Jose, and Yvonne we are so very well taken care of. Yvonne has been working hard to get my various cards back to her home and uploaded to my flickr account. I just handed her another 2 gig card to sort through. (Poor girl!) She met us today (after a time) and with the help of a friend hauled all our gear to her home which now looks like the “Chasing The Ana” warehouse and public grill. I will be hang out here, watching the storm and touring the area, while Taino runs up into the mountains to visit family. Over the next couple days I will have some time to post some thoughts on the “show so far”. Right now, I’m enjoying a glass of wine with ice and can’t wait to experience a real bed again. As for Taino. . . he went to bed hours ago!

Hmmm, all day long I kept hearing Ringo Starr singing in my head. . “It don’t come easy, you know it don’t come easy. . . .”

foto: Derrick and Taino, State Reserved Park, Near Native Burial Grounds

Carrie Medina from http://www.kayakscuba.com/ checking in here. I have been communicating with Taino & Derrick via the blackberry and Karel in Isreal for weather forecast updates.

I email Mary and Gryphon, Derricks family, to give her the updates before I post here, in an attempt to try and beat the press to the punch. Quick as they can be, I’m trying to be quicker. Guess I better not apply for any press jobs. LOL

Here is the update I have for you so far.
Our boys would like to take one more day on the water despite the wind and waves.

Derrick writes in response to my offer to send a truck to pick them up Tuesday afternoon;

”We are in St. Isabel. And will stay tonight and go for Guayama in the morning. José does not need to come tonight. Thanks though. Hard day fighting wind and waves. We are both zapped of energy and looking forward to some recovery time off the water”

Taino and Derrick have paddled the south side of the island much faster than I had anticipated so… all the bad weather days are still in the bank, and I believe we are actually one or one and a half days ahead of the expedition planning.
This is good news, as Derrick would like to get video footage of local cultural events happening around our island in addition to his footage of the Chasing the Ana Expedition.

Karel sent me a nice link to track the wave height as the tropical depression gets closer.http://www.stormsurfing.com/cgi/display.cgi?a=natla_heightNow lets all hope this extinguishes itself before Derrick gets footage of our beautiful island all wind blown!

The best news is that with the few planned days off the water, Derrick will be back here writing to you all about the expedition from his own eyes. His cultural interactions, experiences and wonderings of land and sea.

Check back here Wednesday night for his update!

We are keeping an eye on this baby and preparing to pull our boys off the water for a couple days as needed. Thanks to Karel for the update! Say your prayers to the god Hurican that this remains a tropical depression and does not become a Tropical Storm or Hurricane. This is still the season for it and the temps have been too high the past few days.

Derrick and Taino are doing well and in Ponce at this time. Click here to see the updated map of where they are at! www.kayakscuba.com/blog

UPDATE: CARRIE WILL BE TALKING TO THE MEN TUESDAY AFTERNOON ABOUT GETTING OFF THE WATER THURSDAY OR FRIDAY. WE ALL NEED TIME TO PREPARE FOR THE FORCASTED CATAGORY 2 HURRICANE THAT IS EXPECTED TO MAKE A DIRECT HIT ON PUERTO RICO. UPDATES WILL BE POSTED AS WEATHER PERMITS. The government will shut off our water and electricity BEFORE the storm, so I will use my cell to communicate with people in the USA who will post here. Be safe! -Carrie and the crew

Clarification on Bullets, Katabatic Winds & Ground Crew Support

Carrie of www.kayakscuba.com checking in here.

I spent the afternoon with Derrick and Taino. Derrick asked me to clarify a few things. First, on the automatic weapons fire, the men were paddling in an area near a firing range, which is how the bullets seem to have found them. Second, both Derrick and Taino saw the warning flags and were smart enough to paddle well clear of the warning area. However, it is likely that the protection intended to keep bullets from entering the water area is no longer effective. Also, the bullets were flying far outside the designated areas, so it is possible that someone was using land next to the firing range as a practice area. For this reason the US Coast Guard would like to have me report the incident to the local police so that someone can check up on this. Taino informed me that a local resident told him that 2 boaters were accidentally shot and killed in this same area 2 years ago, so certainly measures must be taken to protect those who use the seas.

Now back to our regularly scheduled program!

Anyone who imagines for just a moment that Derrick and Taino are paddling in calm seas, in a gentle breeze, near a small tropical paradise are welcome to experience the catabatic winds encountered by these two experienced paddlers after they crossed the bay at Mayagüez. Taino and Derrick both said they rounded a corner and force 5 katabatic winds hit them so quickly they had time only to react individually. Derrick chose to take a right, while Taino paddled left. Derrick checked to make sure Taino was making way while Taino did the same for Derrick. Outcome? Both paddlers arrived safe and sound at the same destination. Imagine, Derrick paddled these katabatic winds with bruised ribs, while Taino struggled with a stuck rudder. What a superior set of paddlers!

After that dramatic landing, Derrick encountered a small girl walking her pet goats along a shoreline. Goats, called cabra, are a popular livestock on the island and are most commonly served near the Christmas season, called Navidad, in a fricassee of local vegetables and sauce. The goats are also milked for delicious cheese, queso, and there are also competitions for goat milking held in certain areas of the island. If you ever get the chance to try cabra, or queso de cabra, served Puerto Rican style, I am sure you will love it.

Finally, I would like to give a special thank you to Nydia Kein of our CTA Ground Support Team. Nydia has returned home to Wisconsin USA. When you are out on the water there are many people who are working to make things happen for your great adventure. One of those people in Chasing The Ana has been Nydia, who did research, made contacts, transported kayaks and gear, and flew to Puerto Rico ahead of the team to prepare for the arrival of Derrick and Taino. One of the goals originally set for Chasing The Ana has been to bridge cultural gaps, so I would like to share a parting note from Nydia.

Nydia writes: Back from Puerto Rico – I was reflecting on the trip and want you to understand how fortunate I feel having been able to have the opportunity to share moments with all of you.

Carrie, you, your family and friends made me feel at home, sharing a cultural bond/island that retains a special place in my heart. Your trust and unconditional support of all of us was an exceptional gift. Thank you for everything, my best to you and your family.

Tiano, it was a pleasure. It was great to meet someone that clearly shares my love of kayaking and would go to this extreme to finish a dream. It was great to see the children in Puerto Rico looking up to you. Seems like your greatest accomplishment on this adventure may be the understanding that you have left an “I can do it” in the hearts of the children, that’s a wonderful tribute to the memory of Carrie’s son.

I hope we have an opportunity to spend some time on the water in the future, stay well and keep in touch.

Nydia

Thank you Nydia, the feeling is mutual. I look forward to seeing you on your next trip to Puerto Rico when we can have our own adventure, paddling the waters of the land we love!

KEEP PADDLING!

Carrie Medina