With Mike at the helm, we took off in mid-morning south to San Pedro to pick up Marco, who would be our boat captain and guide for the day. Since we'd have to go outside the reef to get to the cut between Belize and Mexico, having a captain with local knowledge of this area was a must, and Marco had made the trip many times.
Since the reef gets closer and closer to land as you head north, and eventually touches land at Rocky Point, it is necessary to go through a small cut in the reef to continue to the channel between Belize and Mexico. The reef then goes farther back out to sea if you were to continue north towards Mexico. Marco expertly guided the boat through a narrow gap in the reef. When we were outside the reef, we were really rocking and rolling in five-foot waves during the storm. Despite Jerry's suggestion that we turn around and head back to town (he had not brought a rain jacket), we forged onward. Before long, as is very typical in Belize, the rain had stopped, the sun came out, and everyone warmed up again. From this point on, we had perfect weather for the rest of the day.