Anchored outside of La Playita marina in Panama City we’re putting in long days to get Wanderlust ready to cross the Pacific Ocean. A project that should have taken a few hours turned into days because of one small mistake.

Today we’re sailing 90nm east to Rio Chagres, a tropical river meandering through pristine jungle. The weather is not in our favor and the entrance to Rio Chagres is shallow and flanked by reef on both sides. We’ve been warned not to enter unless the conditions are ideal and with daylight.

Out here things can become dangerous in the blink of an eye. One moment you’re cruising along and the next your world is flipped upside down. Literally.

This week we are truly settling into boat life in the Central Holandes Cays of the San Blas Islands/Guna Yala. Upon first glance mere spits of land dot the water’s face but in reality there is an entire world waiting to be explored just below the surface. And so we spend our days exploring the protected lagoon and its reefs searching for conch, lobster, octopus, and fish and admiring its beauty.

This week the boat work continues at Linton Bay Marina in Panama. We have a few projects to wrap up, most importantly the work on our rudders and their cases. As usual we encounter a couple hurdles. Join us as we put our boat back together and try to get her floating again!

Join us this week in Linton Bay, Panama as Wanderlust is hauled out of the water for some much needed TLC. If you’re curious what kind of maintenance a 2 yo performance sailing catamaran needs, this one is for you! This period has also given us time to reflect a bit and we shared a bit of our introspection in this episode.