After 66 days in Curacao, we decided to leave and head back to Bonaire. We rented a car and did a huge provision run stopping at Best Buy, Cost U Less, Van Den Tweel, Vruegdenhil, Scuba Shop, Luna Market, Kooyman, Building Depot, electrical shop, and a few other places. Somehow, I managed to get over 28k steps!!! Needless to say, our little picante car and our dinghy were full to capacity on the way back.
Yes, we use a lot of flour (new 20lb), found some Sprite Zero, Special K bars and lots more!
The shopping and transporting seem easy compared to the storage prep on some occasions. Once we unpack the food we use a sharpie to write the contents and expiration date on the top of every can and bottle. We then rip the label and glue off and out blue tape on the bottom rim for storage. The removal of the label and glue prevent weebles and roaches from coming onto the boat and thriving and the blue tape prevents the cans from rusting and leaving a ring on our cabinet shelves. Then all cardboard is removed from the boat so anything in cardboard is put in zip locks or Tupperware (avoiding weebles). I know plastic—eek! But you can’t have glass on a boat and we do reuse as much as possible.
We make a lot of pizza from scratch. Soon we will start making our own sauce too.
It took us several hours to prepare to depart, as Matt wanted to clean, for the 3rd time, the 2nd anchor line, the bridle, and the main anchor chain before bringing them onto the boat – at least try to get another layer of hair, grime, and growth off before stowing everything in the lockers. As you know from previous blogs, we experienced a lot of growth on everything that was underwater.
Once we were free, several hours later, we swung by the Curacao Yacht Club with the big boat which is next to a small reef and rocks. Luckily, it was a low wind day and Matt was able to expertly “cat walk” the boat into the dock which is well protected with large A3 fenders. We needed to get diesel ($0.61/liter) for the big boat, gas ($0.91/liter) for the dinghy, and water ($0.15/liter) for the humans. We got about 390 liters of diesel, 50 liters of gas, and 388 liters of water all for under $400! Excellent prices and a super nice attendant too boot!
Curacao Yacht Club before we arrived.
We then had to make a choice, where do we want to stay – Fuik Bay (1 mile away) or Klein Curacao (13 miles away)? The decision was made to head to Klein Curacao to knock miles off toward Bonaire. It was only about 13 miles away, but it was a bit into the wind and seas. We made it with no issues and enjoyed one of the 6 moorings available for visiting yachts. Luckily, we came at the end of the day so the day charter boats had already left or were in the process of leaving.
Arriving at Klein Curacao with the lighthouse and ship wreck in view.
Klein Curacao is a 1.2 square mile uninhabited island with a lighthouse, several ship wrecks, and some thatch roofed complexes that the day charter boats use to entertain and feed their guests. This little island used to be very fertile until mainland farmers decided to use it as goat grazing land which turned it barren. Then from 1871 to 1886 the island was mined for phosphate until it was mined out which caused the level of the island and seabird population to plummet. The island then played its part in the slave trade as a quarantine location for sick slaves and resting place for those who died. Then in 1888, the German Navy descended on the island intent on building a naval shipyard until the tropical storms washed it away. They ran out of money to fund its reconstruction and abandoned the entire idea. Now, it is a great day stop for avid swimmers, snorkelers, and divers to enjoy pristine, white beaches and beautiful sea life.
Arriving at Klein Curacao. The tall thatch hut is a day stop for the Mermaid Tours.
With a quiet beach, nice calm seas, and a beautiful sunset, we settled into our evening with a pork chop dinner and a cocktail on the lido deck in our bean bag chairs.