EL PORVENIR TO LINTON ISLAND AND PORTOBELLO

 February 7, 2012

I made the official check out yesterday and received our "zarpe" (clearance paper) to Colon via Linton island and Portobello.  We heaved up anchor at at 0630 and set sail for Linton Island which is about 45 nm to the West.  The wind is out of the NE at 15 kts and the seas are around 8' in big swells.  We are running to the North of the Escribano Banks which are about 7 nm offshore.  It is a good sailing day.

We arrived in Linton Island at 1730 hrs and dropped anchor (9-36.7' N  x 79-35.2' W) in 40 ft water with 180 ft chain out.  Linton island is surrounded by high mountains and we could here the cries of Macaws and other wildlife.  There is a band of monkeys on the island which are the only inhabitants.  It is reported that they are friendly and will approach and sit in you lap but once they determine that you are leaving, they become upset and may bite.  After our experiences with monkeys in Nepal at the Monkey Temple, we want nothing to do with them.  One can view them from a distance without physical contact.  In Nepal, it was necessary to carry stones with you to keep them away.

Linton was just an overnight night stop for rest and we didn't go ashore.  The following morning we heaved up anchor and proceeded to Portobello which is only 8 nm to the West.  Portobello (beautiful port) was once the depository of all the gold that the Spaniards were looting from as far away as Peru.  It was brought here and loaded on the galleons enroute to Seville, Spain.  The city was fortified with walled fortresses and cannon but that didn't stop the famous pirate Capt. Morgan from breaking through the barriers and looting the city.  With 460+ men he was able to overcome the Spaniards and decimate the city.  It was rebuilt and fortified with more cannon and wall but, once again, an English privateer named Vernon was able to burst through the defenses.  At this point, the Spanish lost faith in Portobello and moved their ill-gotten gain to Nombre de Dios which was easier to defend.

Today Portobello is a very small town stretched along the water's edge with very little to recommend it other than history and  magnificent walled fortresses with cannon.  These walled fortresses are formidable and it's hard to see how they were breached by ships entering the harbor.

We took a very colorful bus to Las Sabanitas, which is about 35 miles away, to do some shopping.  It's easier to do it here rather than in Colon.  Foreigners refer to these buses as "Chicken Buses".

Tomorrow we leave for Colon.