CHANGES there didn't seem to be a statistical advantage in doing this. Besides, we weren't too keen at having to limp along at 5 to 5.5 knots for six days. So we went it alone, avoiding weekend days, which is when most, if not all, of the confirmed attacks have occurred. We also crossed the most dangerous parts in darkness with no lights showing. By keeping our speed of advance at seven knots or better, we cut our exposure time to four days. If anyone is curious, we don't carry guns. Merima and I did the trip from Salalah in Oman up through the Red Sea to Suez doublehanded. We didn't start particularly early in the season, but did have favorable winds much of the way to Sudan. We also picked our times from then on to avoid the strong northerlies. When the wind was contrary, we took advantage of the fabulous diving in the Red Sea. Weather forecasting in the Red Sea is hopeless. GRIB files were so inaccurate that they were virtually useless. We started moving at first light when winds were light, and would make as many miles as we could before stopping. When the winds were aft of the beam, we kept moving north. The level of difficulty with officialdom along the way was probably about average compared to other areas we've visited — with the exception of Eritrea. Officials in the port of Massawa were probably as difficult as we've encountered anywhere. We needed special permission from the Department of Tourism to visit the beautiful capital city of Asmara, but they were ill-prepared to deal with the public and nearly impossible to reason with. After much diplomacy, extreme patience, and the threat of a fleet pullout from the country, we did get our permits in the end. Nonetheless, we dubbed them the "Department of Anti-Tourism." Reflecting back on our Red Sea expe-
rience, it wasn't too bad. It's definitely not a trip for the weak of heart or illprepared. Fuel, provisions, repairs and health care are all nearly impossible to come by along much of the Red Sea. That said, it is a place where you can have some amazing experiences and see incredible sights that few other cruisers will ever see. Would we do it again? I don't think so! The photos I've sent to accompany this short piece were taken during our recent cruise through the Greek Isles. Greece is beautiful, the food and wine are great, and the people are friendly — but when it comes to facilities for yachties, they 'missed the boat'. We're now at Bodrum, Turkey, in a five-star marina. — george 08/15/07
STUDS TURKEL
The coastal Turks are as friendly as the Greeks, and surprisingly, they have much better facilities for yachties.
Bruadair — Hans Christian 33T Damon & David Boarded By Intruders, Panama (N/A) On a Friday night on the hook at Bocas del Toro, Panama, we were down below, reading books, our cabin lights on. At 8 p.m. the chime for the wireless motion sensor in our dinghy went off. I gave David a look of surprise and went up into the cockpit of our boat to investigate. When I got there, I found myself face-to-face with another person! My heart skipped a beat, and I called down for David to get "the gun" — which in our case is a flare gun. The intruder backed away, so I ran below and issued a Mayday on 16, stating that we were in the anchorage, had been boarded, and needed help. After I flicked on the DSC, I returned to the cockpit to see the intruder getting into our dinghy, while a friend paddled off into the darkness in his cayuco. Within minutes help arrived, Paul from Angel Heart being the first. He made sure that our uninvited guest stayed in the dinghy. I started taking photos of the intruder — a kid — who didn't like having his photo taken. As more boaters arrived in their dinghies, I went below to cancel the automated distress call on the radio. We later found out that when Sonny on Valentina heard our call, he jumped into his dinghy and got help from the crowded yacht club bar. Kay, Sonny's wife, called the police. Our radio calls to the port captain went unanswered all night. So there we were, David and I in the cockpit, the intruder in the dinghy, three our four cruisers in dinghies making sure the intruder didn't swim away, and another three or four cruisers in dinghies searching for the other guy in the cayuco.
By this time we had the floodlights on as well as a strobe on top of the solar panel, our goal being to attract as much attention as possible. When the police arrived 10 minutes later, the kid told them that he was returning something that we'd lost. He couldn't produce anything, of course, so the police believed him as little as we did. When they asked if I wanted to file a report, I told them that I certainly did, so we all went to the police station. Because the intruder was a minor, I was told he would be released to his mother, but that he'd have to appear before a judge on the mainland. We learned that our Reporter Wireless Alert System, $79.99 from Radio Shack, paid for itself in one night. Without that, we would never have known that we had an intruder. Because of our high gunnels, our cabin lights are not visible from down low on the water, so it might have looked as though our boat was empty. The two kids who came out to our boat had been in the yacht club's bar area earlier in the evening, drinking sodas. Since the bar was packed, I suspect they