July 12, 2013-In Search of Juan Valdez

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Motorbike ride in the Sierra Nevada


On the outskirts of the city of Santa Marta begin the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, the snow covered range which rises abruptly from the sea to 18,000 feet here in the north of Colombia and which is said to be the highest coastal range in the world. The Sierra Nevada provides a scenic backdrop to Santa Marta.

On the moist mountainsides of the Sierra Nevada coffee is grown. Colombian coffee.

For this reason Judy and I set off to the Sierra Nevada on a quest: we wanted to visit a coffee plantation and buy Colombian coffee directly from the source. In this we were successful but getting there and back proved to be an adventure in itself.

First we had to get to Minca, a little town 2000ft up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. The tourist map shows Minca Station near the central market, but if we thought we'd get a bus at the Minca Station we were wrong. It is taxis only, and they are the most disgusting and decrepit taxis we've ever seen. But of course, who would waste a good car on the world's worst roads? The road to Minca, while only 17km from the Minca cut-off, is so bad that it quickly destroys any car. We were lucky to get a Jeep Waggoner, for which we paid extra, that was tough enough not to have been shaken to bits on this road.

Off we went into the hills in the Waggoner.

At Minca, a delightful little town of mostly backpackers and restaurants, we had lunch overlooking the Rio Mina. After lunch we hired motorbikes to take us farther up into the mountains to Finca la Victoria, a coffee farm, at 3000ft. Cars won't even try to go to La Victoria because the road is worse than the 17km bit to Minca, although some trucks and 4x4's make it. That ride was pretty fun; up the hills and into the mists we rode, going around the curves, through the bamboo forests, and bouncing over the bumps. Half of it was in the rain and we had no raincoats but the driver's bodies mostly sheltered us from the rain. The two drivers took turns leading, or was it a race? If so, Judy won; she and her rider arrived first.

We even saw Juan Valdez, or maybe it was his father, coming down the mountain on his horse as we charged our way up on the motorbikes.

Finca La Victoria, laid out on a hillside 120 years ago and in operation ever since then, was quiet. The coffee harvest is in the winter and is finished by this time of the year, but a few employees were present and one, a charming young woman named Jaime, whose family has lived on this farm and worked it for three generations, gave us a tour and sold us a kilo of beans. We walked through the factory and looked at the old equipment, still in perfect order. The operation is completely powered by water ducted down the mountain from above, and a 120 year-old Pelton water turbine provides electrical power for some of the equipment and for the homes of the 20 families which live there. This is one of the oldest hydroelectric power plants in Colombia and Minca was one of the first locales to be electrified.

Coffee in our backpack and the tour over, we saddled up and headed back down the mountain to Minca and then back to the humid heat of Santa Marta, where we finished the day with happy-hour Margaritas at the Blue Agave bar and and roasted corn from a vendor on the malecon.


Street Food

A good day.

Click here for more photos.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Santa Marta, Colombia

July 6, 2013-We Think We're Going to Love Columbia

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Waitress at the San Lorenzo

We strolled Santa Marta's beach front with, it seems, about half of Santa Marta's inhabitants; all of them out with their families or lovers for a pleasant evening in the cool ocean breezes near the sea, looking for a nice restaurant. The one we found was in an alley in the old town nearby, one of many restaurants there. We chose one which had ceviche on the menu.

While we ate and drank our wine the hauntingly soft slow wail of a saxophone and pan drum echoed down the alley; two street musicians were playing jazz for coins. We were enchanted by the music, the food, and the magical night in Santa Marta.

Old Town

Jazz Musicians

We think we're going to love Columbia.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Santa Marta

July 5, Sleighride to Columbia

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Easy Sailing

There was a huge bang which woke me and Wings lurched wildly. Items flew around the cabin and a torrent of salt water hit me in the face.

I knew we'd hit something: rocks, a reef, a ship, whatever, it was terrible; the end.

"What was that?" I yelled as my hand gripped the ladder, heading for deck.

"A wave." replied Judy, "I'm soaked."

"Oh, just a wave. God that scared me." I sank back to my bunk. Wings recovered and sailed on.

It was a sleigh ride to Columbia which we were on and this was just one more part of it.

It had started out easy on Wednesday: a little wind, some mediocre waves, and we'd set a jib and main. It was the conservative call. The wind-vane handled it nicely. West bound, heading of 280.

But the wind built and so did the waves. By Thursday we had wind in the high twenties and huge waves, 20-30 feet, breakers.

Wings flew to the West in it and Judy and I just hung on. The vane kept steering, the waves broke around us but didn't board, and the boat kept on surfing, and we made miles toward Columbia.

We reduced sail but it didn't slow us much. I saw 34 knots of wind speed and the boat hit 10.89, almost eleven . Judy saw less on her watches, but still, quite a lot for a couple of oldsters like us.

We were down to no jib and a double reefed mainsail when the wave hit but there was little else we could do to reduce, so we just kept sailing.

By Friday morning, four hours ahead of our plan, we arrived in Santa Marta, Columbia, and found a berth in the marina, five hours after Sooliman, who left 12 hours ahead of us.

A job well done, and now: a new country.

Click here for more sailing shots.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Santa Marta, Columbia.