Fuck yeah, hitchhiking

reiversmusic asked: Have any advice for telling your family you plan to drop out of school, quit your job, and spend a couple of years hitch hiking?

The Darien Hitch. Chapter 1

melomakarona:

Finding The Boat

February 2012

From the beginning of my Central & South American Odyssey I knew this would be the trickiest part: To cross the Darien Freaking Gap (For those of you who are not familiar with this Gap - there is no road that connects Central and South America. This doesn’t mean there is no path, but since I don’t really fancy being kidnapped by the FARC - there is no way I’m doing this journey overland).

I didn’t want to think about this minor issue. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it, was all that went through my mind during my travels in the other Central American countries. But now that I had arrived in Panama - especifically in Panama City - it seemed I was about to cross that bridge. But how?

I had some contacts from my time in Rio Dulce Guatemala and Bocas del Toro whom I wrote and called. One of the contacts replied to me with the message below (Hey you aspiring Darien Gap Hitcher: Print this stuff out! This shit is really useful. And by the way the spelling mistakes are not mine, but of kourse you already knewed that):

If you want to get to Colombia by helping on board you’ll need to follow my instruction carefully.

Firstly don’t tell anyone that you want to go there or they will see you as a customer and want to charge you $400 USD. Just say you are waiting for some friends to arrive from there.

Then go to Provenire Island in the San Blas islands. Its a short ride there from Panama City to the Caribbean coast, check the map. Proverier is the place that all the sail boats have to go to clear out. Many boats other than the backpacker boats go there too. Hang around the dock in the morning and talk to the captains as they come ashore. Many backpacker boats are returning to Colombia with short passenger numbers and are happy to add one more for cheap or work. Other boats coming out of the Panama channel also like to take on crew.

While there try and get a ride to a group of islands 18kl down the island chain called “The Swimming Pool” that’s not the local name but everyone calls it that, and spend the day there talking to the many sail boat captains that are moored there, usually fifteen to twenty boats. These people there are not backpacker boats, just travelers. There is always one boat going back and forth to Colombia for shopping and usually ask the other captains if they want to join them for shopping, it’s a one week return trip. They are great people and welcome the company and help with cooking and night watch etc. There are many small skiffs going back and forth to the Swimming Pool from Provenier so it shouldn’t be hard to catch a free lift there. I’d try and spend a few days there, there be lots of offers for a free berth overnight. They are mostly sailors that have been sailing around the world and would love the company of a fellow traveler.

Don’t worry if you don’t find a ride because you can return to Provenier and hook-up with one of the boats from there. Either way you’ll have a good time.

One other idea is to go to Portobelo and go to the Bar called “The Drake Bar” at happy hour and all the captains waiting for passengers hang out there. Stay cool and not to anxious to get to Colombia, Once again tell them you are waiting for friend to arrive, get friendly with them and let them ask you if you want to go there.

(Thank you John Connor for the info above!)

As greatful I was for this info, I wasn’t really planning on using it. No, I wanted to find a straight ride to Cartagena.

My second contact told me he might find me a backpackers boat that could take me for a reduced fee, if I showed him my culinary skills. Well, that’s gonna be a piece of cake, since I am the next Masterchef. I was getting ready to whizz up one of my specialties (scrambled eggs & toast) when I received a rather strange email in my inbox. I did not recognize the name - Greg - and the message did not have a subject. Normally I’d delete those messages rightaway, but for some reason I decided to open this one. It read:

Still looking for passage to Columbia. I’m heading to Cartagena in about a week. I have a 56’ Ketch park in Red Frog, Wayward Sun.

Hell yes I am still looking for a passage to Colombia!!

But fuck, I had just left Bocas a few days before.

“Are you by any chance planning to make a stop in Colon before you head off to Cartagena?” I responded.

It turned out he actually was planning to make a stop there.

This sounded too good to be true. How did it happen that a sailor was actually contacting me?

Well, my time in Bocas del Toro wasn’t all spent swimming and working on my tan, I actually put up some notes in the two marinas (Bocas Marina & Carinero) not thinking it would actually work, since I was told it was going to be ‘highly unlikely’ I’d find a boat going the way I wanted to go. Most (if not all) boats docked at these two marinas where either stationary or headed for the Caribbean. But getting that email just proves to show that you shouldn’t listen to those pricks and do what you have to do, because heck I THINK I JUST FOUND MY STRAIGHT RIDE TO COLOMBIA!!

I had just arrived in Panama City a few days ago and hadn’t even started going around the marinas there yet. And by the looks of it, I didn’t even have to…

But who is this Greg dude? Is he sailing solo? Looking for special female companion? Or just a deck hand? Can I trust him? Would I be able to spend X amount of days with a stranger on a boat in the middle of nowhere? 

*While I was hanging in Panama City, I worked at Posada Agua Miel (great place by the way, if you’re looking for a simple and beautifully decorated place to stay. Yummy elaborate breakfast buffet included!)

kerosenebarbie asked: Hey! Do you know any fearless friends I can find? I want to go explore more, make music and beauty, and find wonderful secrets... but I am yet to find my companions. I am all over the place, mostly on the coasts (East and West). Stay lifted beautiful people :]

I’d recommend checking out the group message boards on CouchSurfing.org (here and here are good places to start, as well as local group boards for wherever you are at the moment). You can find a number of like-minded people who are looking for hitchhiking partners/adventurous spirits/alternative friends and communities. You may also be interested in participating in an intentional community, which is worth looking into. I hope this helps!