Panama

23
Mar
2025
The sinking island of Gardi Sugdub

The sinking island of Gardi Sugdub

Last summer, a story went through the world press: «Klimawandel: Bewohner verlassen Insel in Panama», was the headline on ARD and «Gardi Sugdub: The Americas’ disappearing island» was the headline on the BBC. A sinking island is forcing its inhabitants to look for a new home on land. The island is called Gardi Sugdub and is located in San Blas, the autonomous territory of the Gunas, in Panama. An island paradise of more than 350 islands. Is Gardi Sugdub, the crab island, now deserted? Perhaps it has already sunk, we ask ourselves and set course for the island.

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17
Feb
2025

South America’s first climate refugees: the real story behind

The small island of Gardi Sugdub in Panama is in danger of sinking due to rising sea levels. As a result, almost all the inhabitants have been forced to leave their homes. This was reported by international media last summer. But reality is different.
Published in “Echo der Zeit” from 17.02.2025.

https://www.srf.ch/audio/echo-der-zeit/erste-klimafluechtlinge-suedamerikas-die-wahre-geschichte-dahinter

27
Dec
2024
A rearranged triangle relationship

A rearranged triangle relationship

Back on Mabul! Time for a brief review.

2024 is the year when everything changes again. It is also the year of a boat timeout. When we arrive in San Blas in Panama in January, we think we’ll be sailing through the canal and across the Pacific with our friends from SV My Motu shortly afterwards – but we don’t. Alex has nightmares for nights on end and constantly dreams of our rig failing. We listened to his gut feeling and stayed on the Caribbean side – as it turned out later: with good reason. Here is our review of 2024.

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13
Oct
2024
Jungle Boatjobs

Jungle Boatjobs

Boat projects hurricane season 2024 part 1

Our 2024 sailing season ends earlier than expected because Mabul breaks down every time we try to leave Panama. Well, I had put the Panama Canal on ice, but when trying to sail to the Bahamas, Mabul just soaked up the water in the anchor locker until it sloshed into the cabin. After I had repaired the damage in Cayos Albuquerque, I went straight back to the dry dock in Panama because of another problem, only to discover after four weeks of intensive work that the rudder bearing had significant play. Colombia? Nice try… Mabul wants to go back to dry dock. So she stays in Panama and I get to work on the boat projects for the hurricane season 2024.

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30
Aug
2024
Gallery – Hurricane season in Panama

Gallery – Hurricane season in Panama

Refreshed and energized, we return from Jamaica to the Turtle Cay Marina, where Mabul is patiently waiting for us. We actually want to replace the rudder bearing as quickly as possible and then sail to Cartagena in Colombia to spend the hurricane season there. After some back and forth, we decide not to sail to Colombia but to spend the hurricane season in Panama. Mabul will therefore remain in the Turtle Cay Marina for most of the time, so the rudder bearing can wait for the time being and its repair can be planned properly. This immediately takes off all the pressure and stress, and we can relax and enjoy the untouched nature here.
It’s already time for Karin to fly to Switzerland to work for the SRF for five months. Alex stays on board for another eight weeks and deals with lots of little things and some larger projects. Then it’s off to Germany and Switzerland for him too, for the first time in two years…

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26
Jul
2024
Gallery – Bocas del Toro

Gallery – Bocas del Toro

Finally, a weather window opens up that allows us to safely leave the atoll of Cayos Albuquerque without an engine, and we set sail. On the way, we are accompanied by a few birds that are still asleep when we drop anchor at eleven at night. There are lots of boat jobs to do here in Bocas del Toro. The priority is clearly to replace the cutlass bearing and find the cause of the rapid wear and tear. Before we haul out in Almirante, we spend a week close to Bocas and get all the provisions on board Mabul. The long-awaited and well-traveled gennaker has also finally arrived. Many thanks again to Stephan from our sponsor VM Sails! We tow Mabul the last ten miles to the shipyard with our dinghy moored alongside. Once there, the true extent of the damage becomes apparent after a few days. Once again, Alex works like mad for a whole three weeks before Mabul is floating in the water again.

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12
Jul
2024
Guna Yala

Guna Yala

San Blas – The Mystical Paradise of the Guna

From Providencia, we’re cruising 270 nautical miles to San Blas, Panama. The archipelago consists of over 350 islands and islets and is governed by the indigenous Guna people, who call it Guna Yala. We clear into Panama on the main island, El Porvenir, and pay our contribution to the autonomous Guna authority. Porvenir is tiny, with little more than an airstrip and a few houses. While clearing in, one officer is mowing the grass while the other stamps our passports. Here, everyone does a bit of everything.

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06
Jun
2024

Traffic jam at the Panama Canal

The Panama Canal is one of the most important bottlenecks for international shipping. Approximately five percent of world trade is now handled through the canal, and two thirds of all ships that pass through the canal come from or go to the USA. Thanks to the Panama Canal, international shipping routes have been shortened by weeks or even months. Merchant ships, cruise ships, sailing ships and warships no longer have to sail around Cape Horn, which is feared as a ship graveyard with its wild storms and untameable waves, but can cross the continent in a day. The canal is fed with fresh water from two reservoirs: Lake Gatún and Lake Alajuela. These also supply the two million Panamanians who live in the center of the country. The population and the ships compete for the water. For a long time, this was no cause for concern, as tropical Panama is one of the rainiest countries in the world and the reservoirs were always well filled. However, everything changed last year with the El Niño climate phenomenon.

Published in the magazine “Reportagen”, issue #77.

https://reportagen.com/reportage/stau-am-panamakanal