Exploring Samana Bay and finally at anchor again for a while!
We hadn’t initially been planning to head to Samana Bay whilst in the Dominican Republic (DR) but decided that it was a good way to split up the journey to Puerto Rico a little, and we were so glad we did! It is the location of the humpback whale breeding grounds, but sadly they knew that they had to do their thing by the end of March and this was mid April when we got there ;) We initially spent a week in a Marina in Salinas, the DR Navy is quite strict about knowing where you are so anchoring out is hard for the most part, as you have to check in and out of each marina you go to. However we were able to get a ‘dispacho’ to leave the marina and head to the Haitises National Park across the bay after a week, and spend 3 nights there.
On the first weekend we joined the rest of our buddy boats in a tour to a local ranch and the famous Limon Waterfalls. We saw a cacao tree with the pod, which our guide broke open so that we could try the fruit inside. He then described how the locals take these seeds to dry out and turn into pure cocoa for hot chocolate, chocolate bars etc. From the ranch, Oscar and Bethan took their first pony rides, whilst Annabelle and I hiked, about 3km to the waterfalls. It was a very rocky, steep path (a 4x4 would’t have been able to drive it!) to get there, and the ponies were incredible sure footed in their approach and the kids had a ball. We swam in the falls afterwards, then hiked/rode back to the ranch. Along the way we saw pineapples, bananas, mangos and papaya growing in small-holdings. When we returned to the ranch they had prepared a locely local meal of mofungo (a preparation of mashed plantains), vegetable side dishes, beef and chicken dishes and salad.
The marina was a fun place to hang out, it was beautiful, thankfully not as bouncy/ doing damage to our boat like the previous one was with the swell coming in and had a glorious infinity pool. We spent Bethan’s birthday by the pool, with a cake made by the local bakery and brought in courtesy of the local ‘fixer’ who could get you anything. We also made new friends and the kids spent hours and hours skateboarding/ scooting and being independent at the expense of school for a bit. It is always the hardest part being transient when you then have to say goodbye to new kid friends……..
We then headed to the National Park which was where some scenes of Jurassic Park were filmed and with our buddy boat, were totally alone in this amazing landscape. The only sad part was that as the tide came in each day it brought with it a stream of trash. How in such a seemingly deserted part of the world is that acceptable?!?! The following day we moved round the corner in the Park to another deserted anchorage where I paddle-boarded in still calm waters, we visited an Eco Hotel for the day, ate local food and swam in the waterfalls that cascaded through the hotel.
We returned for 2 more nights to the marina to re-provision at the local market which was a cool experience; Annabelle needed to see a doctor for an infection so we went and experienced the local hospital for some very efficient, free healthcare which was great! We then checked out of the country and prepared for the last big part of our easterly journey, crossing the infamous Mona Passage. 5 buddy boats went in total which is great comfort as we watched the weather and set off. We headed overnight for Boqueron in Puerto Rico, our 4th country!!!! Very sad to leave the DR though, we hadn’t even meant to go there as a stop but are SO glad we did! Highly recommended!!
