Cruisers Forum
 


Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on Cruisers Forums. Advertise Here
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 12-03-2015, 08:38   #31
Registered User

Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: W Carib
Boat: Wildcat 35, Hobie 33
Posts: 13,480
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

Re Internet access. TIGO has good coverage for voice & data all over the area (and most of Guatemala), but performance varies on the Rio depending upon exact location. For example, my place is on high land near the village of Cayo Quemado and I get decent service there, but just a short distance away in the bays near Burnt Key Marina (AKA Texan Bay) it stinks. Gap in the antenna coverage there. Tall antenna and booster helps. Best performance is in the Fronteras area (population center). But, this is still cell based service so not blistering fast in the best case, but adequate for typical cruiser use.

Re travel. This is one negative to the Rio. Unless you have access to a private or chartered plane and permission to use the private air strip on the Rio, travel to the Rio is inconvenient. Most get to/from the Rio via Guatemala City because the City has the most options for international flights, but its about a 5 hour bus ride to the Rio (versus a 45' flight in a private plane!). Alternative 1, you can fly into San Pedro Sula, Honduras which is a bit closer, but has more limited flight options. Alternative 2, Belize City then land and water travel to the Rio, but airfare tends to be higher. Alternative 3, Flores Guatemala and then bus to Fronteras, but very limited flight schedules.

Good news is that most folks only make this trek once or twice a year so in the big scheme of things its not so bad. Break it up by visiting some of the sights along the way over a few days. We usually spend a few days in Guatemala City as a treat and/or to run errands before continuing onward.
belizesailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-03-2015, 08:39   #32
Registered User

Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: St Augustine, FL
Boat: 1995 Privilege 51
Posts: 286
Images: 3
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

Don't mean to hijack this thread, but it is kinda more info on the subject.

What is the travel time and difficulty wind-wise in sailing down to Roatan from Rio Dulce?

Thanks,

~ Following Cs ~
FollowingCs is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-03-2015, 08:46   #33
Registered User

Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: W Carib
Boat: Wildcat 35, Hobie 33
Posts: 13,480
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

Quote:
Originally Posted by FollowingCs View Post
Don't mean to hijack this thread, but it is kinda more info on the subject.

What is the travel time and difficulty wind-wise in sailing down to Roatan from Rio Dulce?

Thanks,

~ Following Cs ~
Relevant I think...another option for getting to the Rio. Its an easy run, but there is a dramatic land effect from the mountainous coast of Honduras. So the winds typically go light long before reaching Cabo Tres Puntas (just across the Honduran boarder). The further N you run the more wind you will have. On the latitude N of Roatan the trades howl...the further S & W you get of Roatan the lighter they become and the more they back (shift W in this case).

This behavior can be useful going the other way (Rio to Bay Islands) because you can run close to the coast to avoid bashing into the trades (careful about security issues along the Honduran mainland coast though)

GRIB image below shows this effect...aargh...next message.
belizesailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-03-2015, 09:15   #34
Registered User

Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: W Carib
Boat: Wildcat 35, Hobie 33
Posts: 13,480
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

cont...

GRIB image below shows this effect.

The area defined by the points of Puerto Cortez, Honduras; Ranguana Caye, Belize; and Cabo Tres Puntas, Guatemala normally has light winds in prevailing conditions.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	1426177009155.jpg
Views:	164
Size:	112.1 KB
ID:	98766  
belizesailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-03-2015, 09:32   #35
Registered User

Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: W Carib
Boat: Wildcat 35, Hobie 33
Posts: 13,480
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

Quote:
Originally Posted by FollowingCs View Post
Don't mean to hijack this thread, but it is kinda more info on the subject.

What is the travel time and difficulty wind-wise in sailing down to Roatan from Rio Dulce?

Thanks,

~ Following Cs ~




Quote:
Originally Posted by belizesailor View Post
Relevant I think...another option for getting to the Rio. Its an easy run, but there is a dramatic land effect from the mountainous coast of Honduras. So the winds typically go light long before reaching Cabo Tres Puntas (just across the Honduran boarder). The further N you run the more wind you will have. On the latitude N of Roatan the trades howl...the further S & W you get of Roatan the lighter they become and the more they back (shift W in this case).

This behavior can be useful going the other way (Rio to Bay Islands) because you can run close to the coast to avoid bashing into the trades (careful about security issues along the Honduran mainland coast though)

GRIB image below shows this effect...aargh...next message.

Misread your post in the context of getting TO the Rio. My response was TO the Rio from Roatan first and then the other way round.
belizesailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 13-03-2015, 14:06   #36
Eternal Member
 
monte's Avatar

Cruisers Forum Supporter

Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Australia
Boat: Lagoon 400
Posts: 3,650
Images: 1
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

How practical and safe is it to rent or buy a car in rio dulce and travel around Central America and up through Mexico to the USA? I had a friend travelling there a couple of months ago and the bus was stopped due to some local protests up ahead. After some gunfire the bus got moving and they saw some dead locals in the gutter. Sounds a bit scary but is it ok for traveling solo by car or van?
monte is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 13-03-2015, 16:35   #37
Registered User

Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: W Carib
Boat: Wildcat 35, Hobie 33
Posts: 13,480
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

Quote:
Originally Posted by monte View Post
How practical and safe is it to rent or buy a car in rio dulce and travel around Central America and up through Mexico to the USA? I had a friend travelling there a couple of months ago and the bus was stopped due to some local protests up ahead. After some gunfire the bus got moving and they saw some dead locals in the gutter. Sounds a bit scary but is it ok for traveling solo by car or van?
I've driven all over Guatemala & Central America and never had anything but great experiences, but bad stuff happens sometimes. Guatemala does still have a bit of a Wild West character to it.

Can't rent a car and drive it back to the States. You could buy one and drive it back. Not sure what the import issues would be when you got to the USA. My experience is that while these kinds of roads trips can be great fun, flying is radically cheaper.

You can drive a rented or purchased car within the CA4 countries (Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua) with no importation issues.
belizesailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 26-04-2015, 22:15   #38
Registered User

Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: LA
Boat: Farrier F9ax, Edel 35
Posts: 104
Images: 1
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

Hi folks, looking for advice on a trip concept...I am thinking of trailering my Farrier F9ax (think corsair 31) down to Chetumal from Los Angeles, put in and sail Belize and Rio Dulce for about a month in August. Looks like I could shuttle back up to Chetumal and drive down to Rio Dulce to pick up the boat. First question is do you think I would have border issues doing this?

Second is, I will have a 6 yo child in tow...has there been any recent safety issues in the Rio Dulce area?

Appreciate all input-
windhorze is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 27-04-2015, 05:06   #39
Registered User

Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: W Carib
Boat: Wildcat 35, Hobie 33
Posts: 13,480
Re: Rio Dulce for hurricane season?

Quote:
Originally Posted by windhorze View Post
Hi folks, looking for advice on a trip concept...I am thinking of trailering my Farrier F9ax (think corsair 31) down to Chetumal from Los Angeles, put in and sail Belize and Rio Dulce for about a month in August. Looks like I could shuttle back up to Chetumal and drive down to Rio Dulce to pick up the boat. First question is do you think I would have border issues doing this?

Second is, I will have a 6 yo child in tow...has there been any recent safety issues in the Rio Dulce area?

Appreciate all input-
I expect borders will be a hassle, but I have a friend who trailered his boat to the Rio. Post on the forum at www.riodulcechisme.com and lookup user "elpolvo" there.

August is of course getting well into hurricane season, so keep a close watch on the weather. The weather in Belize is normally nice during the day, but often squally at night during hurricane season. Strong squalls in the wee hours are common then.

No hurricane worries on the Rio, but August is in rainy season so biblical amounts of rain can fall (usually at night) and big lightening.

Ive been away from the Rio since January, but haven't heard of any significant security issues recently. They tend to be cyclical. Again, check the Rio Dulce Chisme site for the latest. IIRC, there is a forum section on security events.
belizesailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
hurricane

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Rio Dulce tauras General Sailing Forum 58 16-10-2020 10:08
Rio Dulce Information rjbwahsoune Other 13 10-11-2017 12:38
Surveyor in Rio Dulce? sailorgal Multihull Sailboats 4 27-03-2007 16:48
Miami to Rio Dulce - Which route? wdkester Atlantic & the Caribbean 1 16-02-2007 08:30
Cruisers can help in the Rio Dulce AnchorageGuy Cruising News & Events 0 12-01-2007 20:39

Advertise Here


All times are GMT -7. The time now is 06:49.


Google+
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Social Knowledge Networks
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.

ShowCase vBulletin Plugins by Drive Thru Online, Inc.