Is Cruising Still Safe

It is with great sadness that we read of the murder of New Zealand cruiser Alan Culverwell, and the attack on his family, by criminals who boarded their boat in Panama’s Guna Yala/San Blas Islands early in May. The San Blas were known as a “safe” area to cruise. Aside from petty theft, there had never been reason to believe the region was unsafe, especially when compared to some of the area’s cities.

Many cruisers feel that living aboard, even in exotic locations, is safer than living on land, but is it really? As cruisers, we generally anchor where nature gives us the best protection from wind and waves, not from humans. The human