Panama - Pacific Crossing Notes: A Sailor's Guide to the Coconut Milk Run - page 187

Safety and Transportation
The Kuna are generally a gentle and kind people, and security issues are rare. However, in-
stances of petty theft and even armed robbery have been reported off larger villages such as
Nargana, where it pays to take sensible precautions. In the outer islands, we felt very safe
and didn't take our usual precaution of hoisting the dinghy on deck at night. Navigational
challenges of this reef-strewn archipelago are considerable: don't trust your GPS blindly
and stick to principal reef approaches, which are well-described in the Bauhaus book. Re-
ports of rough groundings are a weekly news item on the morning net. Occasionally, boats
even sustain enough damage to be declared a total loss. Don't let this island paradise lure
you into letting your guard down!
It is possible to receive visitors or pick up crew once you're in the region. The easiest way
is for incoming friends to book a puddle-jump flight from Panama City to El Porvenir.
However, the “airport” there is really just an air strip; don't expect any staff to sell you a
ticket on the spot. It is also possible to reach the airport in Panama City via local lancha (a
local power boat to Carti) and jeep in roughly five hours for about $50 per person. Some
cruisers sail fifty miles west to Portobelo, where there are frequent, easy-to-use buses to
Panama City (two to three hours). This is also a good place to make a major provisioning
run: Portobelo has a well-sheltered anchorage, an ATM, a few small food stores, and buses
that will bring you directly to the large El Rey supermarket in Sabanitas in one hour (de-
parting roughly every half hour; $1.30 one way). If you need tips on how to arrange such
things, just ask on the cruiser's net and you will get excellent, specific advice (long-term
cruisers seem to keep giant rolodexes of helpful local contacts).
Sabanitas is also the closest place to buy a Panamanian SIM card for your phone, though
top-up cards (for credit on your phone) may be found in the small Kuna Yala shops. Some
San Blas islands even have public phones, which are listed in the cruising guide. The
nearest marina to the San Blas area is Green Turtle Cay, thirty-five miles east of El Por-
venir, with water and power but poor road connections. For an extended cruise in the San
Blas islands, it goes without saying that your boat must be entirely self-sufficient in terms
of power and water.
No matter where you point your bow, it's important to plan ahead and be prepared. This is
especially true in a remote, fragile region such as the Kuna Yala. So stock up, head out, and
cruise responsibly in one of the most rewarding cruising grounds of the Caribbean.