MANGROVE Forests - Simply the Best Sailboat HURRICANE Shelter 2020

Following our adventurous sailing trip from Dominica to Carriacou, we learned that we only had 2 days left until we were supposed to get hit by a Hurricane. Since we had to go into the mangrove forests with our old sailboat anyway because of pandemic quarantine regulations, it was a good idea to do a real hurricane vlog and create a storm documentary about how we secured the boat in the mangroves properly for this tropical cyclone. Mangrove forests are the best protection for coastal regions, villages and also for sailboats when dealing with gale force winds and tropical cyclones. Sailboats need a reliable hurricane shelter as well and there is no better choice than mangrove forests. Their wild roots offer a terrific hold and tame the rolling waves. There is no better defense than mangrove roots from the incoming storm surge. The dense foliage calms the murderous winds and leaves hardly any area of attack as long as the boat is parked deep enough in the mangrove forest. The shallow draught of Bamba Maru was a big advantage to get into the shallow bay to avoid the massive storm surges.

Because of the heavy winds, it is important that all sails and attachments are removed. Enough supplies must be on board and one must expect that after a direct hit the supply chain often breaks down for several weeks. Good preparation is the key to be safe in those weather conditions. We were lucky that with our shallow draught we could make it into the inner bay. There it is very shallow and only a few boats can get there. Mostly catamarans, power- and fishing boats or some swing keel sailboat. There is a certain time to prepare and when it hits, you have to take what is coming. So the hurricane preparedness is essential and most important because there is nothing that can be done during the impact of the storm surge. Some tried to sail south, away from the cyclone in hope they would get shelter in Trinidad, but apparently they decided to send sailors back out at sea as long as the storm was not declared a major hurricane. As the track moved south way more than expected, it surprised many cruisers out at sea. Fortunately, not as bad as it was a few years earlier with hurricane Fay and Emma. For cyclone Gonzalo we had a safe spot to hide and survived the storm without any damage. After 10 days in the mangroves, we had to undergo a COVID-19 test and were allowed to join the other yachts in the Tyrell Bay after a confirmed negative result. We didn't try to create an instructional video, but we did focus on what is important when preparing the boat for a potential hurricane.

There are pretty good videos around from @Sailing SV Sarean or @The Sailing Frenchman where you can can learn more about being in the mangroves for a storm. @Distant Shores TV actually made a very good documentary about it too, called "Tying Sailboat in Mangrove for a Hurricane".

Things can turn out bad like with hurricane Laura, which hit a couple weeks later on the US coast in the Gulf of Mexico. A catastrophic category 4 hurricane that devastated parts of Texas and Louisiana. If there is a chance to survive a storm like major hurricane Laura 2020, it will be in the mangrove forests which are the best natural hurricane shelter for sailboats. However, there is apparently a discussion going on whether mangrove forests are good or not for the coastline of Texas and Louisiana. The aftermath of major hurricane Laura will certainly help to figure that out.

We hope you enjoyed our video and would appreciate your like and subscription.

Big up and thanks a lot to our Patrons and Supporters on
http://www.patreon.com/BambaMaru

Cheers

Joanna & Andy

Sailing the Caribbean ⛵ The treacherous Tropics 2020

Captain Andy Bamba

The Caribbean has its corners and tropical squalls can tear sails to shreds. Especially in moonless nights these gusts are hard to spot. Here is a little insight how it feels to lose one sail after the other.

Boatlife while Corona Virus outbreak - Sailing couple under lockdown.

Boarders are closed here in Dominica due to the worldwide covid-19 pandemic and travelling is almost impossible now as the world is in lockdown. Boatlife became quiet different while the dreaded Corona Virus infected also the Caribbean Islands. Have a look how we get along with the lockdown of the world on our 45ft old catamaran, how we organize and make sure we stay healthy and what we still can do to support one-another while this global crisis. This new coronavirus makes us wear masks, keep physical distance and remember the good old times before this change of the world. Acyually the best time to remember how to can veggies and fruits. Fortunately we got this from a befriended farmer and with his help we organised within a blink of an eye a fruit and veggie market for the cruisers to keep them out of town and have fresh produce available even if we live with some restrictions. The lockdown and following curfew suddenly made Joanna become a dentist and pulling fadoms in Captain Bamba's mouth. We develop new skills during the crisis and use the time to self-improvement. Some say we are stuck in the Caribbean but we feel this sounds way to scary for what it actualy really is. We are doing well and don't wanna be anywhere else in the world. Living off-grid get more and more important as none of us knows, when borders will reopen, when travelling and sailing to new adventures will get an option again. What do you think? Will we be able to sail south for hurricane season?

To help the stuedents of Dominica, please kindly follow the announcements on
https://www.facebook.com/SchoolSuppliesForDominicanyouth/

Kick off boat restoration project - Off the grid Chainplate inspection

Today's boat restoration project was to change the wooden shims under the backstays chainplate and a general chainplate inspection on our 50-year-old floating home. We are doing the restoration off the grid and work with what's given on board of our sailboat. The prout ocean ranger catamarans from the 60s are great old boats and this one is our tiny liveaboard home and the boat restauration just started. There will be further boat repair projects coming up. Boat life is a good life, as it means also to fix a boat in paradise the diy way. When taking off the rigging chainplate, we also talk about what to look for and how to do the chainplate inspection. Living on a boat includes a lot of boat maintenance as well and crawling into the crash bulkhead to mount the new wooden parts, felt like being caught in a tiny sweaty locker.  The restoration of the hatches of our sailboat will come soon. We kinda have to do this restoration work off the grid because a sail to any developed country would be a high risk to to get there. Nevertheless, that way, we exploring alternatives, are having fun and living our alternative lifestyle. Make sure to watch until the end to see the captain's man overboard - unintentionally

Stung by a venomous LIONFISH: 24h PAIN report - How Scorpionfish toxin a...

Despite all precautions, it happened that Joanna got stung by a venomous lionfish in the index finger of her right hand. We went on a quick snorkel trip with friends to shoot some lionfish in the face. This beautiful but aggressive invasive scorpionfish species Pterois volitans and Pterois Miles are rappidly increasing in the Carribbean and have no native preditors yet. An adult lionfish can eat up to 50 fish babies from other species every single day. Uncontrolled, the lionfish is capable to empty out whole reefs in short time. Diver and snorkler lately started to join local fishing teams to shoot as much lionfish as possible in order to keep the population low. As the lionfish is known a very good eaten fish, also we contribute to this activitys whenever we can. Unfortunately this time it went wrong and Joanna got stung by one of the backspines of the venomous lion fish. The toxin is known as extremely painfull and as it was happening anyway - the best we could do out of the situation was, to put a video for you together to make this disaster educational and show you how the toxiticy affects a human body. The symptoms could be extreme pain, nausea, vomiting, vefer, breathing difficulties, convulsions, dizziness, redness on the affected area, headache, numbness, paresthesia, heartburn, diarrhea and sweating. Rarely, such stings can cause temporary paralyses of the limbs, heart failure and even death. Joanna survived with only few of the possible symptoms and here is how she made it trough this unjoyfull experience. However we hope you can enjoy with this video a painless peek into this toxic torture because... we will certainly not do it again ;-)

Black Lab grandpa Basco about to retire from Boatlife.

If I ever had a little brother, it's Basco. He's been part of my life since he was a baby. That is almost twelve years ago now. Basco has been sailing the oceans with me for more than 6 years and 12'000 nautical miles. He has visited 27 countries on three different continents. Basco went with me from the glacier into the desert. He followed me from the mountains to the sea. For quiet some time, I realize that Basco is willing to Go ahead, but his body gets weak. He hears nothing anymore, is almost blind and is getting more and more senile. I think he would love to continue sailing with us. But I also believe that it will be too much for him. He loves the water and being on a boat, but he also deserves to retire and needs to have a break from sailing. We have time and no priority plans, so I will give him that rest. We will dive deeper into the jungle and explore the nature together, but no larger sailing trips for him anymore. I love him and it's time to slow down a bit for him. Life is good in Dominica for my boy and a Vet is nearby. Basco spent his whole life for me - I got to give him some time back now. Respect the elderly - even if it is "just" a loyal dog. Basco is a great dog and like my little brother.

Hunting with a Suckerfish - When I walk my pet Remora!

Quick midweek video to cheer you up. This little guy didn't figure it out, that a snorkeling, diving or swimming human is maybe not the best host to live with. Their front dorsal fins have evolved to enable them to adhere by suction to smooth surfaces and they spend their lives clinging to a host animal such as a whale, turtle, shark or ray. They don't really know what a human is and are curious to find out more about that potential host. It is probably a mutualistic arrangement as the remora can move around on the host, removing ectoparasites and loose flakes of skin, while benefiting from the protection provided by the host and the constant flow of water across its gills. Although it was initially believed that remoras fed off particulate matter from the host's meals, this has been shown to be false; in reality, their diets are composed primarily of host feces. That was not happening and the Remora remained hungry. This little guy didn't give up hope for quit a while and he joined us everyday for a hunt ;-)