Chapter 92: Welcome to Country #3!

We left Big Sand Cay on Saturday, 4/6 to journey to Samana in the Dominican Republic.  We knew we needed about a 32 hour weather window to make the trip. For every trip, it is a balance of wind and weather when deciding on our departure.  For this trip, we knew if we left on Saturday morning we would likely need to motor all or most of the trip but if we waited and left on Saturday night we might have some wind but would have the possibility of squalls and would arrive just ahead of the predicted front. We would also need to do two overnights instead of one.  As is typical,  I over researched and made myself nervous after reading numerous blog posts where other boats shared this was their worst passage.  The coast of the Dominican Republic can be challenging and it is not unusual for the navy to shut entry ports due to the conditions.  So… Bob graciously agreed to take the easier path and leave on Saturday morning.  We definitely had a calm and quiet passage to Samana (except for the engine running of course).   With sunrise brought the beauty of the mountainous coastline of the Dominican Republic.  We had been told that you would even smell the difference as you approached – more earthy smells coming off the mountains, and it was absolutely true. We traveled through Samana Bay arrived at the entrance to the marina and stopped to fuel up before moving to our slip.  Once fueled we radioed the harbormaster so they could meet us at the slip.  Of course in true Meraviglia fashion, there was no wind all night but of course the wind was now picking up. The slips were of course quite narrow without a lot of room for error.  On the first attempt to go in bow first, Bob had to abort as the wind kept taking the bow.  He went back out and the harbormaster sent out a dinghy to help guide us in and work as a bow thruster of sorts.  The second attempt was stern in with the dinghy helping to guide us and many hands helping us get the lines and fenders moved to where they were needed.  Bob kept his cool way better than I would have but we were both very glad to be in and secured!  Bob went and got us checked into country #3 and we were able to raise our Dominican Republic courtesy flag!

On Monday, we decided to do some cleaning and projects since the day was overcast and rainy off and on. We had not been to a marina since Palm Beach so it was great to have water access to truly give everything inside and out a fresh water clean. We also had some projects arise that Bob can share more about in another post. We also explored the marina a bit. It has a hotel attached so it has some lovely amenities including a few different restaurants, an infinity pool overlooking the ocean, a fitness room, laundry, and absolutely gorgeous grounds. Plus everyone is so friendly and helpful. They had a reception on Monday night for all the cruisers with a potent rum punch and some lovely appetizers. Finally, we Facetimed with Nick and Kat which was a great end to the day!

Bob arranged for a rental car on Tuesday so we could head into Samana to explore and to Las Terranas to get provisions. They drive on the right here so that was a nice change and the roads are in better condition than they were in the Bahamas for sure. But there are MANY, MANY, MANY motorbikes, with drivers of all ages, families, small children, women in dresses riding sidesaddle – truly amazing. That seems to be the primary means of transportation and the closer we got to Samana the more chaotic it felt! You definitely need to be a very alert driver and pedestrian as they go fast and sometimes come out of nowhere. We parked in Samana and walked around a bit down by the waterfront. There were many tour guides offering their services but we explored a bit on our own. We found a local spot to get some lunch and had some good tacos and burritos. After lunch we took the drive to Las Terranas to the supermarcado to get provisions as was recommended by the harbormaster. Las Terranas was also a busy town but not as big as Samana. The supermarcado was definitely a larger scale market, more like you would imagine of a grocery store in the US. While the produce wasn’t as nice as some of the smaller markets we have been to, they definitely had a wide selection of most things and the prices were definitely less expensive than we saw in the Bahamas or Turks and Caicos.

We kept the car for a second day so we could go and explore one of the national parks and do some hiking. We traveled to Parque Nacional Cabo Cabron. It was about an hour drive from the hotel and the prettiest drive yet. We went through Samana and then the road took us along the coast through many small villages along the way. The further we went the more green and lush it seemed with beautiful colorful houses and flowers all along the route. The entrance to the park was at Playa Rincon which is listed by Conde Nast as one of the top ten most beautiful beaches in the world. The area is definitely beautiful but due to the winds and the heavy surf yesterday there was a fair amount of trash washed ashore. We parked the car, got our hiking gear on, and set off for the hiking trail. To get to the trailhead you first must cross a set of logs over the Cano Frio! The trail was listed as difficult with some significant elevation gain and approximately 11 miles roundtrip. The beginning of the hike was definitely the toughest due to the elevation – hiking straight up!! The soil was red and rocky but fortunately dry in that area. The first couple of miles had some beautiful ocean vistas and the trail was easy to see. There are no trail markers so you basically need to just follow the path visible on the ground and Bob had downloaded a GPS navigation app called Wikiloc. As we got to the middle section, I had a better understanding of why a lot of locals carry machetes! This section took us through a part that felt more like a jungle and in spots was very overgrown with ferns and other plants. We passed two locals on donkeys heading down to Playa Rincon but no other hikers on the trail. As we climbed higher we got to some beautiful areas with palm trees and other pretty flowers and vegetation. Around mile 10, we noticed the path was now in between a barbed wire fence on each side and what clearly looked like a plantain plantation. As we got further along, we came upon a farmer working outside saddling up his donkey. He advised us to be careful not to try and lift up the fence and waved us on our way. Then, the trail suddenly disappeared less than a mile from where it should have finished. We searched around a bit but could not find any more trail so we began the journey back down to Playa Rincon. We were definitely very tired by the time we arrived back at the log crossing and over to Playa Rincon! The ocean views at the beginning of the trail and the plantain plantation at the end of the trial were definitely the highlights! Plus the drive along the coast was gorgeous.

After checking the weather forecasts, it looks like we will still have a week to enjoy this lovely marina and the Dominican Republic. Our next stop is Puerto Rico and it is not looking like we have a weather window for at least a week. As places go to be stuck waiting for the weather, we feel very fortunate that we are here. The place and the people are lovely so we will continue to explore and enjoy our time here!