Had some trouble with the water maker just before leaving El Salvador so ordered water which was delivered in open 50 gallon barrels by panga. Dany gets them filled upriver at the desalination plant. $33 for 150 gallons. Of course, I got the water maker working the next day.
Went out to dinner the night before we left El Salvador and then took a long sunset dinghy trip up river several miles. Beautiful, wide river with jungle on both sides and a handful of nice homes with docks. Rather abruptly, and in the middle of the river, we ran aground on mud so turned around and went back. Shortly before reaching the main anchorage area we nearly got entangled in a net being strung the entire width of the river by a panga that was completely blacked out! So much for a peaceful cruise.
The passage from El Salvador to Nicaragua was 99 miles. Coming out over the bar the waves were roughly 1/3 of what we had coming in – thank God! Had two waves break over the bow on the way out, but not too dramatic. Thanks again to Bill for piloting us out.
Around midnight we had to slow down in order to avoid arriving in the dark. Passage was uneventful except for heavy rain that convinced us we will have to put up the side windows, in lieu of the screens, in order to keep our beds dry in the future.
The entrance here to Puesta del Sol, Nicaragua is another river-bar crossing and although you cannot see the river entrance until you are well committed, it does not require a pilot nor are there breaking waves pushing you along. Probably would not have attempted it without the experience of El Salvador but all good. Check in was again very easy with the officials having to drive an hour and a half each way ($60 travel fee). First place that has required a Covid card and actually had a health inspector come out. Several hours later the navy, port captain and immigration showed up and each dutifully sat at their own desk and did their own paperwork in silence. Less than $90 plus the travel fee. Apparently customs never bothers to check in yachts here.
The marina/resort at Puesta del Sol is a very attractive facility but unfortunately Nicaragua gets virtually no foreign tourism and so the hotel is open only on weekends and it did not appear there were any guests while we were there. As a result the bar and restaurant are closed but they do keep up the grounds and pool very nicely. There are so many mango trees there’s a slight smell of fermenting fruit as you walk around. Watched one of the workers hunting birds with a slingshot.
Rented a car again and spent four days touring León, Grenada and Managua. Toured the Flor de Caña rum distillery and of course lots of churches! Nicaragua is definitely the poorest country we have been to and yet its roads are FAR superior to any others in Central America or Mexico. All but the main highways seem to be built with well laid paving stones. Of course, the typical road hazards still apply. (Most of the 3-wheeled contraptions are pedal powered but a few are motorized and many use horses or oxen. Note the kids sitting on the back of the one stacked with chairs-on a highway-and holding them in place!)
Flor de Caña was very different from any other rum distillery we’ve been to. Similar in scale to the Bacardi facility in Puerto Rico but unlike any other rum distillery they distill five times which converts 100% of the sugar and it is therefore certified sugar free. They have no additives/preservatives and when you buy a bottle of aged rum you are actually getting an entire bottle of rum that old. Many distilleries (of all spirits) are allowed to label something a certain age even if only a small portion of the bottle is actually that old. Over 1 million barrels aging. And I know my Dad will love the fact that 70% of their barrels come from Jack Daniels! All barrels have their heads removed and plantain fibers inserted between the wood in order to reduce evaporation (cuts the Angels share in half). 65,000 acres of sugar cane in the immediate area and they produce 100% of their own power by burning the leftover cane biomass. Very interesting to see that they have charred the trunks of every single tree on the property to prevent a kind of fungus that is contaminating liquor barrels worldwide.
We toured the original city of León which was destroyed by earthquakes and then buried by volcanic ash in the 1580s. It was only rediscovered in 1967 and they have done a very nice job of excavation and preservation of the ruins. Interesting monument to the indigenous resistance. (The Spanish were not very nice…)
The old Spanish city of Granada was founded in 1524 and full of beautiful buildings and churches. We took a great horse drawn carriage tour and went up in the tower of Iglesia La Merced, constructed in 1534. The Spanish Fort in the pictures is one of three built to defend against pirates but they didn’t help. Henry Morgan, among others, sacked the town three different times. Mom, you will be interested to know that the town of Bluefields was founded by and named for a Dutch pirate.
When the socialist Sandinistas came to power five years ago there were mass protests/violence throughout the country and their policies have driven the economy into the ground. No one is willing to speak directly against Daniel Ortega but they will say he is “very controversial“. As there is essentially no tourism, all of the nicer hotels and restaurants have closed throughout the country. Every place we stayed in had zero or one other guest. Breakfast is always included and served in the invariably beautiful inner courtyard. Yet Nic is very clean and houses are relatively well-kept compared to the last couple places we’ve been. Never felt unsafe anywhere. And, again, the roads are outstanding.
Managua, where my grandfather was born, is by far the best looking and cleanest capital city in Central America. Probably due to the fact that 90% of the city was destroyed by an earthquake in 1972. Lots of memorials and monuments to the guerrilla fighters and socialist leaders and every other street is named Bolivar. Beautiful ruins of the cathedral that was abandonded after the earthquake and at night they light up all the monuments and the waterfront (Lake Cocibolca, aka Lake Managua). We passed on the lake tour as it is considered one of the most polluted bodies of water on earth. Not a single boat visible and not a soul on the beach. Lake Nicaragua (Lago Xolotlán), over by Granada, is almost as polluted. It is a little smaller than Lake Erie but it has bull sharks that swim up river from the Caribbean and can actually jump the rapids like salmon!
We went to see Volcán Masaya, just outside Managua city limits. Incredible to see the lava pooling in the bottom of the caldera after dark. The sulfur dioxide smoke is so bad that they tell you not to remain on the summit more than 10 minutes at a time.
