We were supposed to be in Rio Lagartos for only 3 days. Fatigue coupled with the slowness of of sorting out Ceol Mor and unadvantageous weather stretched those 3 days into a full week. As we had only added a few groceries ( remember, currency and access to funds was a huge issue) and had not added drinking water, we found ourselves needing to return to Rio Lagartos for supplies. We also needed internet to download weather and routing. We messaged Angel as his willingness to assist was crucial to secure water and internet access. We let him know via Zoleo we would be heading into town and planned on meeting up with him later.
The last time we had gone cruising, we had the use of a friends hard dinghy and little 2 stroke engine. The daily requirement of removing a cleaning the carburetor before we could go anywhere inspired us to purchase a brand new dinghy and outboard. We didn’t want to go crazy expensive with the dinghy until we knew a bit more about what size we wanted and whether or not an aluminum folding floor would be adequate. Then there is the inescapable fact that dinghies and outboards are the most often stolen items, so we went with a cheap and cheerful Aleko for the time being and spent the extra pennies on a new Suzuki outboard.
Our dinghy had been stored on our foredeck. We launch using a whisker pole so it takes a bit of time to get it all sorted and launched. Once its launched, we have davits to lift it each night at anchor. After about 30 minutes, we had Ceol Beag launched and brought her around the back to mount our shiny new Suzuki and head up the rio into town.
As we motored up the rio, Mark noticed the outboard was getting hot. Not 10 minutes into our inaugural dinghy ride, the engine died. Completely. Yes, the engine had been prepped properly, been run as a test in water at the dock, etc. Does not matter. This was our fault. Why on earth we would we expect a brand new, brand name Japanese engine to work? How very silly of us. We drifted into a tangle of mangroves. The mosquitos swarmed immediately and began to feast. Perfect.
We were incredibly fortunate that Angel was nearby and checking his messages. He kindly agreed to come to our rescue, once again with his trusty panga. Angel arrived, we tied the dinghy to the panga, climbed aboard the panga and began the short run back to Ceol Mor. This is when the adhesive holding the tow point on decided to fail. Of course it did. We managed to resecure the dinghy and made it back to Ceol Mor where we tied up the dinghy, then went back into town with Angel.
We went to the home of Angel and Ishmael’s dear Canadian Snowbird friends Mike and Cheryl. They welcomed us into their home with coffee, biscuits, use of their internet and pleasant conversation. Angel also helped us exchanging currency once again and ordering water delivery. The world is full of truly kind people.
After running to the market for provisions and obtaining water from the water delivery guy, we went back to the home of Cheryl and Mike and had such a lovely time talking with them, we lost track of time. Angel appeared and let us know he needed to run as back to the boat soon as he had a regular job in addition to his nature guide duties that began at six. When we realized his other job was playing hand drums and percussion at a hotel with a local band, Mark had the brilliant idea to go to the Rio Lagartos Hotel and watch Angel perform. It turns out that Angel is not only a fabulous tour guide, a genuinely kind and giving person, but also a talented musician.
We had a lovely evening with Mike and Cheryl enjoying beer and bar snacks while we were able to enjoy Angel’s band. After a very enjoyable performance, Angel ferried us back to Ceol Mor where we slept soundly before beginning the passage to Isla Mujeres.
The passage to Isla Mujeres is a story in its own right. More on that, next time…
