GUATEMALA TO BAY ISLANDS OF HONDURAS
GUATEMALA TO BAY ISLANDS OF HONDURASThe main islands are Utila, Roatan and Guanaja. These are the inhabited islands about thirty miles off the coast of Honduras and are lined up west to east, coming from Guatemala. They are mostly mangrove islands and so there are almost no beaches. The islands themselves rise up to low mountains then sweep down to the water in dense vegetation, ending at the mangroves rimming the islands.Utila is the first island, about 120miles from Livingston. It is my favorite of the three, with more of a community feel.Roatan is next, 18miles from Utila, the most touristy, has the most dive places and rental developments.Guanaja, 45 miles east of Roatan, has almost no tourists at all. There are few protected boat anchorages, no dive reefs, no cruise ship docks. What it does have is a small island just off the coast, where almost all the longtime residents live, so chockablock that you can barely walk through the alleyways. Most of the residents on this island are related to the original settlers.The newer residents live scattered around the big island of Guanaja, tucked along the coast and up into the hills. Most commerce is situated on the town island so that you must have a boat to get from Guanaja to “town.”Guanaja also has a reputation for bugs and it is deserved. We’ve experienced noseeums (biting gnats) in a lot of places. Most of the time they bite, we hurt, and then the pain goes away. The Guanaja noseeums are toxic. They bite, we hurt, and then the itchy pain lasts for three solid days, impossible to ignore. Everyone we met who had been there agreed that they've got something going on there that hasn't travelled (thank goodness) to the other islands. But our anchorage was great, we got enough wind to keep them away most of the time. But going onshore was nearly impossible. The restaurants have no AC or even walls and the bugs eat you alive before your food comes out. These bugs are believed to be the reason the residents decided to live on the tiny island rather than the big one. But it is very beautiful, and a truly serene place. We met a couple who have lived there for fifteen years and they say you don't notice the bites after awhile. Not sure I believe them!From Guanaja we headed due east into the Caribbean with the plan to round the point of the Honduras coast and head south. However, 21hours into a passage that quickly turned from favorable wind to bashing headwind, we started losing both engines, at different times. One would go out, but the other would keep us going. Ron changed a filter on the worst one, it didn’t help. The waves and wind got worse, the motors were kicking out more often for longer periods of time.This area is known as one of the most difficult passages in Central America, and became a decision maker for us. Even if we managed to keep the engines going for the next eight hours and didn’t end up bashing into the Honduras coast, we faced hundreds of tough miles to Panama, and then the trip along the South American east coast is reputed to be just as challenging.We decided that this particular area just did not currently intrigue us enough to face all that dangerous water. The weather forecasts are good but not great. Almost always the wind changes mid-passage. Just living on a boat can be challenging enough. We decided to turn around and explore Belize and Mexico instead.We returned to Guanaja to repair the engines, which luckily turned out to only be gunky fuel, then spent more time in the Bay Islands, about two months total in Honduras. These photos are a result of this visit in a truly amazing world of water, hills, mangroves, and the people clinging to this incredible existence on one of the edges of the world.
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PARROTS BEAK HELICONIA
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:25 AM
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PARROTS BEAK HELICONIA Camera:Canon PowerShot S95ISO Speed:640Exposure:1/250 secAperture:f / 4.9Focal Length:22.5 mmFlash:Did not Fire Tags: 14
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RON PUTS HAPPY FEETS AT UTILA LAGOON DOCK THRU THE STORM
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RON PUTS HF'S AT UTILA LAGOON DOCK THRU THE STORM
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:25 AM
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UTILA WATERFRONT
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UTILA WATERFRONT
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:25 AM
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GLASS MOSAIC IGUANA ON WALL, UTILA
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GLASS MOSAIC IGUANA ON WALL, UTILA
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:26 AM
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AT THE JADE SEAHORSE, UTILA
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JADE SEAHORSE, UTILA
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:26 AM
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JADE SEAHORSE RAILING
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JADE SEAHORSE RAILING
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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JADE SEAHORSE RAILING Camera:Canon PowerShot S95ISO Speed:125Exposure:1/80 secAperture:f / 4.0Focal Length:7.5 mmFlash:Did not Fire Tags: 14
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JADE SEAHORSE STEPS
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JADE SEAHORSE STEPS
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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JADE SEAHORSE ENTRY
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JADE SEAHORSE ENTRY
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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JADE SEAHORSE WALL
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JADE SEAHORSE WALL
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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JADE SEAHORSE WATERFALL
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JADE SEAHORSE WATERFALL
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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THREE SISTERS, UTILA
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THREE SISTERS, UTILA
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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FENCE, UTILA
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FENCE, UTILA
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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BIRDWATCH, UTILA
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BIRDWATCH, UTILA
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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ROATAN SUNRISE
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ROATAN SUNRISE
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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ROATAN HARBOR
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ROATAN HARBOR
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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HAPPY FEETS ANCHORED AT CALABASH BAY (far right)
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HAPPY FEETS ANCHORED AT CALABASH BAY
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:27 AM
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ED & JULIE LEADING US TO TOWN
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ED & JULIE LEADING US TO TOWN
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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ROATAN COAST
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ROATAN COAST
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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HOUSE ON ROATAN
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HOUSE ON ROATAN
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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HOMES ON ROATAN
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HOMES ON ROATAN
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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LATE FOR CHURCH, ROATAN
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LATE FOR CHURCH, ROATAN
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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LUIS WALKING ZELDABELLE
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LUIS WALKING ZELDA
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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ONE GORGEOUS SEA, FRENCH HARBOR, ROATAN
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ONE GORGEOUS SEA, FRENCH HARBOR, ROATAN
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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ZELDA LEADS US TO SILENT SPRINGS, ROATAN
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ZELDA LEADS US TO SILENT SPRINGS, ROATAN
Capture Date: Sep 25, 2014 07:28 AM
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Jim RemsburgOct 28, 2014 05:56 AM
Thanks again.
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