Provenir to Holandes Cays

Yesterday (Monday) we left Provenir and headed across to the Holandes Cays passing through Lemon and East lemon Cays. Each of the cays has several small islands all inter connected by lagoons and Reefs. These reefs are generally very shallow and there are not many passages entering the lagoons. Each island has lots of palm trees on them and little Kuna settlements on them. Some only have a few huts on them. These huts are made from natural materials. The framework is all tied together by vines that are collected from the forest on the mainland. The roofs are made from special palm leaves, also from the forest, and have a life expectancy of around 15 years. Even in the heaviest of tropical storms they do not leak. The floors are compressed sand and they have very few furnishings. Life here is spent in the hammock.
The Holandes Cays are made up of 21 islands that are mostly uninhabited due to its distance from the mainland. The Cays are protected by a 7-mile barrier reef. Been so far from the mainland the water here is beautifully clear and is not affected by the run off during the rainy season. Our anchorage we came into is tucked between two small islands and a reef of coral around the back creating a small lagoon. We almost did not come in here as the entrance is small and the sun was playing behind the clouds. As we approached we got some sun and could clearly see the entrance and shot in. We took the dinghy up to the main anchorage called the "Swimming Pool" where there were about 20-30 boats to see if there were any that we knew. After visiting and chatting we got back to the lagoon entrance and had to motor up and down to find the correct spot. The reef around the entrance is less than 0.5m so no short cuts. Once back in the lagoon we went into a small bay for a quick last throw before dark and bingo.... we caught a 3-4 kg trevally/yellow tail Jack which went into the pan within twenty minutes of us catching him. Fish again for lunch and supper today. We will do some snorkeling around here for a day or so and walk around some of the islands.... yes it is "around" the islands are very small.
One could spend ages here as there are some beautiful anchorages that are well protected is some very beautiful surroundings. The circuit that we will try do takes us to a few Cays and plenty of islands and yet we will only scratch the surface. As we go, we will let you know... till then

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