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Wednesday 4th November 2009
Arrived in the French side of St Martin’s to a French speaking population and had to dig out our school girl French. I am sure it is good for us, Deb has been concentrating on Spanish. We met a lovely French waiter who was very excited about our being English and just 2 of us on the boat, Unfortunately someone else left worrying about us as we set off!
St Kitts was a real find as we arrived to see Liverpool playing football on the TV in the Rum Barrel, closely followed by Chelsea the next day. Mr Eustace Payne, a taxi driver and local historian, took us for a tour of the Island. Not only was it beautiful but full of history and the old Fort was a sight to see..
Education is very important to the people and big adverts tell you how their children are individuals and need our attention.
Come Saturday Stoke were live on the TV and we beat Spurs! The whole of the cafe were rooting for us and it was great fun, Deb had not seen Stoke play for over 3 years.
On to the South Side of St Kitts, where we anchored up under the mountains which were volcanic. Goats climbing over them in the mornings, babies calling for their mothers as they perched on the edge.
The beach was lovely though a little touristy. There was a goat in a cage with a monkey, we have yet to see wild monkeys though they are reported to be everywhere in the wild.
Just across the way is Nevis our next stop but probably the last before Antigua as we need some work doing on Scot-Free. In Nevis, where we saw wild monkeys for the first time, awesome! We saw Wilber the pig who was a sight to behold, mountain goats are inland too.
The picture side of the web is having problems since we had to change emails but hope to get it up and running to show you all the beautiful animals, people and scenery. The photos are amazing.
We will do more of the Islands on our trip down to the Panama Canal in January.
Wednesday 11th November 2009 Nevis was wetter than St Kitts and having planned to tour the Island the heavens opened and we had a great time filling our water tanks and containers with great enthusiasm at no cost at all.
We toured the island a day late with Sam the taxi driver, another historian. He took us to Sea food paradise, an aptly named place when we were too tired to cook the night before.
We saw hot springs as the island is volcanic, wild goats and monkeys. The history of Lord Nelson and of course the slave trade and learnt of the first plantation owner to build a free church and start the process of freeing slaves on Nevis The first churches are well preserved and the people remain avid church goers.
The restaurants lived up to their names, Cafe de Arętes where chickens kept an eye on us as well as their chicks.
Double Deuce and Sunshine were on the beach, very beautiful and restful. We had "killer bees" at sunshine’s, rum cocktail, one was plenty!
Deb managed to go diving on our last day so was very happy as we set off for Antigua.
Not an easy journey with Easterly winds but we arrived intact, boat and crew, and dropped the anchor in English Harbour.
Despite careful map reading we still managed to hit old anchor chain and rope and had problems moving it from the anchor.
We then moved and dropped the anchor in a sandy area which took a few efforts to get it to hold but at last we were safe and anchored.
Tuesday 1st December
Dropped anchor with some difficulty in English harbour in Antigua, a lovely Island with one main town St John’s, everything is supplied from here.
We hired a car and went round the Island seeing some lovely sites including Half Moon Bay with a little bar run by Smiling Harry, his words.
The airport has a cricket pitch in the grounds with status and plaques of cricketers, most who have played in England.
Eric Clapton has a rehab centre here.
Overlooking English and Falmouth Harbour is Shirley Heights where they have a live steel band and a barbeque every Sunday night.
We can Island hop here in a short time and north of Antigua is Barbuda where the snorkelling is beautiful off the reef.
Christmas has just began to be thought of here and to be honest it would be easy to forget in a place like this
December 31st 2009
Meeting up with the people from the Blue Water Rally was great. So many people from different countries with different sized boats with many more people on. It was lovely to see Richard and Boot who were really helpful in different ways, having nights out and catching up. David visited Deb for her birthday 13th November and stayed over Christmas and New Year life is just one long party here ! Eileen went home for Christmas to visit family and witness snow for Christmas. Which was a little different to Debs time in Antigua, Montserrat and Dominica at 38c. Happy New Year everyone. |
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6th January 2010
Whilst having spent 5 weeks in the beautiful island of Antigua we experienced the whole gambit of human emotions, pain and sorrow, joy and happiness. Whilst Deb was sweltering in the heat of the Caribbean, Eileen travelled the 10,000 miles to the U.K. and back to experience the cold and snow of the English Christmas. That which does not kill you makes you stronger they say, and we will always look back on our time here in Antigua with great affection. We therefore said a reluctant farewell to English Harbour and set sail join up with the rest of the people from the Blue Water Rally.
Strange to think that we have now become a part of a group of like minded people with the same objectives and from now on will be in touch with each other at least twice a day. However, the fact that advice and support is constantly at hand offers ourselves, family and friends a great deal of solace, We are no longer a lone ship sailing our own course, but have schedules to keep, places to go and people to meet. A new stage of the adventure begins.
We had intended to go to Montserrat but the volcano was erupting making it impossible to berth as the overflow was affecting everything on land and around the coast. Their problems continue to cause world concerns yet the people here get on with their lives, having a happy, cheerful and accepting attitude to it.
Therefore we sailed directly to Dominica which has been nicknamed the "Nature Isle of the Caribbean" for its seemingly unspoiled natural beauty. It is the youngest island in the Lesser Antilles, still being formed by geothermal-volcanic activity, as evidenced by the world's second-largest boiling lake. The island features lush mountainous rainforests, home of many very rare plant, animal, and bird species. There are xeric areas in some of the western coastal regions, but heavy rainfall can be expected inland. The Sisserou Parrot (also known as the Imperial Amazon), the island's national bird, is featured on the national flag. Dominica's economy is heavily dependent on both tourism and agriculture. Christopher Columbus named the island after the day of the week on which he spotted it - a Sunday (dominica in Latin). In 1978 Dominica became an independent nation.
Having reached Dominica and met up with people from the Blue Water Rally. We spent a lovely evening at Big Pappas catching up on news and having a reggae style BBQ. Beautiful weather, fantastic scenery, nice people, good food and alcohol can life get better? Next day we took a trip up the Indian River with Andrew our guide, who rowed to be ecologically sound. What an amazing sight, what an experience really getting close to nature and feeling part of the environment. Beautiful and peaceful it would be so easy to sightsee forever.
The negative side to a rally such as this is that there are schedules to keep and essential work needed to be done on the boat, dingy and radio before we head for Panama so reluctantly, we drag ourselves back to reality and to the task in hand.
9 January
Left Dominica early to get to Martinique. A difficult crossing with winds gusting to 30MPH
However, a Sperm whale came beside us to express his sympathies and blow into the air which made it all worthwhile. Unfortunately Eileen had put the cameras away for safety!
We arrived early evening and were met by others on the Blue Water Rally
Our dingy outboard was not working despite hours of work by Deb and others, so we were then taken ashore in a friends dingy. We anchored up and checked throughout the night as usual.
Next morning we went ashore with others on the rally to the internet cafe to pick up emails etc. Internet communications were poor.
Blue Water Rally participants were all helping each another, a boat in the next port had their anchor caught up in a lobster pot and needed a diver who was readily found from a nearby boat..... another needed a weight belt ........Deb to the rescue !!!!,
A man came into the cafe to say that Scot Free had broken free and was heading out to sea, a BWR participant who had been in the cafe with us, knew we were not on her and went after her, and towed her back with his dingy, pheeew!
Within 24 hours 2more boats had moved including the one that had rescued us. Life don’t get any easier do it !!!!!!!
So off we go to St Lucia for help with the outboard I can tell you are sympathetic !!!!!
Next stop Bequia ........ Pressure .....Pressure ....Pressure lol
Monday 25th January 2010
St Lucia nearly passed us by.
We had to row places as yet again outboard had packed up, eventually we had to buy a new, second hand one.
We now have got through 2 dinghies and 3 out boards!!
Sails to sew, provisions to get and boat to prepare for next trip busy busy busy. Not all beer and skittles this sailing lark !!!!!
Off to Bequia to catch up with the rally, Upon arrival and after getting some help with the radio from a BWR participant we went out to see the local people.
A taxi driver took us to see the turtle sanctuary. These beautiful creatures are quickly becoming an endangered species. The owner was so enthusiastic, he showed us turtles from 1 week old to 4 years, amazingly he now has turtles coming back to breed. He also had healthy goats, chickens and dogs.
We then went on to see the whale museum, a family tradition of hunting whales in 20 foot boats for whales twice their size. They used spears and were allowed to catch 4 whales a year, last year they caught 1.
We had mixed feelings about this but the people were friendly but not "pushy"
The hotels they have built are environmentally friendly, they do not block views but are blended into the hill sides The next trip will take us out of the Caribbean to Bonaire. Into a new world of phone providers, internet providers and currency
The journey was a little fraught to say the least !!!!!
The autopilot decided it did not want to work in the squally, gusty weather, 30 mph gusts with winds from the east as we travelled down wind.
We could no longer be on deck alone doing anything but steering!!!!!
One hour on and one hour off in the day time and two hours on two hours off at night.
Very tiring but again Eileen had support and sympathy from the sea life.
A shoal of flying fish came over the boat, onto the deck just to be friendly. Eileen tried very hard to push, pull and kick them back whilst steering but Deb still found 9 dead fish when she came up later. Shame!
We arrived at Bonaire after 5 days and 4 nights we were shattered!
But hey, the sun is still shining and the place is a haven for divers, Debs is in heaven
She actually did 3 dives including the hooker wreck, they were the best dives she has done since leaving provo. She saw her first sea snake and dived with dolphins on the wreck awesome place.
We arrived in Bonaire with no auto helm, 30 knt winds and we are leaving for San Blas today not knowing if it is working and 30knt winds predicted for 6 days. We love sailing !!!!!!!!
Stop Press Tuesday 26th January 2010 Despite all our efforts and those of the people who tried to help us the auto helm still isn't working and the weather has deteriorated with forecasts of winds up to force 7. So we have decided to order a new auto helm and have it fitted prior to taking off. Probably not be able to sail until 1st Feb now which means we will miss the rally at San Blas. So we will be going down the Panama Canal alone rather than in the Blue water convoy probably catch up with them a fortnight later. So we are forced to enjoy the beauty of Bonaire for a few more days …..Life's hard aint it !!!!! Thursday 4th February 2010 Left for Panama new Auto Helm fitted and weather conditions improved it will take us 8 to 10 days photos to follow.
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