Friday 1st February 2008
After a lazy start to the day, I cooked a sort of omelette for breakfast. It tasted ok, but maybe a bit less garlic next time!! We chilled out, some more reading and a swim towards shore, then about 11:00 decided to go into the marina. I phoned the machine shop and they had been unable to get material to make my rudder bearing, but would keep trying. We visited Island Water World and picked up some cord to fit my solar panels and then went off to the superamarket for some shopping.
Back onboard and I managed to avoid work for a while, as the drill battery needed charging! So a bit more reading, then eventually I started work!! We fitted the panels onto the new canvas and raised them onto the bimini. I tied out the corners and all went generally well, except now the bimini was sagging slightly inside with the extra weight. A few lengths of cord inside pulled the structure back to its normal shape and took some load off the canvas.
The panels were fitted, the only remaining work was to finish the wiring, so I just taped it up for now and had a beer instead!!
Lesley had arrived with a bit of a cold, but now was coming down with a dose of flu! She was curled up in the saloon, so I stayed outside reading, trying to let her sleep. Hopefully she will be feeling better tomorrow?.
Saturday 2nd February 2008
I woke up at the normal time (about 6.30 - 7) nothing much to do, so i started the laptop to catch up on the website. Helps pass an hour or more!!
The rest of the day must have passed, but I can't remember what happened!
Sunday 3rd February 2008
Another Day which passed, but I can't remember what happened!
Monday 4th February 2008
Another Day which passed, but I can't remember what happened!
Tuesday 5th February 2008
Another Day which passed, but I can't remember what happened!
Wednesday 6th February 2008
Lesley was getting over her dose of flu, so we hired a car for the day and went touring the island. We stayed North to start with, vaguely following a map, but generally just following roads wherever they went!
As we passed Castries on the way South, the view included a typical cruise liner, bigger than most of the city of Castries!
We spotted a sign to Turtle Watching, so followed it down a road, whcih became a track, which became a dirt path, then eventually river crossing and sand! At the end we found the Tourist huts and Grand Anse Beach.
Reading the booklet, we discovered that we should have arrived a month later and stayed overnight if we actually wanted to see turtles, but after walking the beach, we did actually see some sign from turtles the night before.
After the long drive out of Grand Anse, we refuelled at the first petrol station, then headed South and West towards Marigot Bay, then on to the River Rock Waterfalls at Anse Le Raye. This was one of Lesleys favourite spots so far, but she hadn't been to the sulphur springs yet!
Finishing the day with Sunset over the Barrel of Beef (a rock on the outer edge of Rodney Bay)
Thursday 7th February 2008
I visited Ian at Water World and we collected the material for my rudder bearings from Customs. I took it round to Ryte Weld, who had no problem making them for me and suggested I collect them about 4pm. At last I would have everything I needed to refit the rudders!
We spent the rest of the day in the marina, just sunbathing on the grass and reading, then returned to Ryte Weld who were just finishing off our rudder bearings. All sorted, cash paid and I left with 2 new bearings and some spare material.
Friday 8th February 2008
After far too long, we finally refitted the rudders. I prepared as much as I could, using underwater putty on the bearings to hold them against the hull and fitted them to the rudder. I got my scuba gear on and dropped into the water, with Lesley ready to pull the rudders up into the boat and line them up as I inserted them from below.
The biggest problem was getting the rudders to sink enough! They float so easily, I struggled to get them down under the water and insert them up into the rudder holes! Even with the trouble sinking them, we managed to get them both fitted in less than an hour, now I just had to connect the steering cables back up!
We celebrated the insertion of the rudders with a beer, then read for a bit, far too much work in one session is bad for you! Later on, I got up my energy and started again on the rudders, connecting the steering quadrants and steering cables. After an hour or so, all cables were connected and the boat was finally fit to sail again!! Time for another beer and a rest, far too much work for one day!!!
Saturday 9th February 2008
Today we had a quiet day on the beach. No work to be done, just a little boat tidying, then wait for it to get lively when we collect Mick and Deb tomorrow.
Sunday 10th February 2008
Mick and Deb arrive today at 13:45 so we have hired a car again and are going sightseeing before collecting them from the airport. We headed off early and drove straight for Souffriere, to visit the sulphur Springs and Mineral Baths. The road is one of the twistiest mountain roads anywhere, the whole island is only 24 miles long, but the road from Castries to Souffriere must be nearly 50 miles, to just travel 10 miles in a straight line!
At the Sulphur Springs we had the guided tour explaining how the sulphur springs were formed and are the natural vents for the volcano which is still active below. We then parked up and visited the Mineral Baths, which are about a hundred metres from the springs and fed from the volcanic heated waters and were almost impossible to enter, they were so hot! A local lad was getting mud from further upstream to apply a facepack, so Lesley did the same, which deserved a photo!
We spent a bit longer than planned in the mineral baths, so had to race South to the airport to collect Mick and Deb. We knew we were late when we saw the Virgin plane coming in to land as we were still a few miles away! Luckily, the road from Souffriere to Vieux Fort is much faster than the road from Castries to Souffriere, so we did get to the airport and park up as people were still disembarking the plane. Mick and Deb weren't too long clearing customs, then we set off to the nearest pub for their first sample of Piton lager!
We took the East coast road back towards Castries, which takes about an hour, as opposed to 3 hours on the West coast! Stopping at the bars overlooking Dennery for another beer, then back to Rodney Bay to park the hire car and have some local food before returning to Blue Dolphin.
One thing we learnt was that the dinghy is fast with 2 people, but considerably slower with 4 people and luggage! 15hp is not enough to get the dinghy planing!
Monday 11th February 2008
It was Mick and Deb's first day back onboard, so we just planned to chill out and not do too much! We packed our snorkelling and beach kit and headed off in the dinghy for Pigeon Island. It was a mistake as the dinghy was struggling again 4 up, we should have moved Blue Dolphin closer, then used the dinghy just to get ashore! Eventually we did get there and tied up on the new jetty near the Jambe de Bois restaurant. We paid our park entrance fee as it is a national heritage site and did some sightseeing! Pigeon Island was a natural island, but has had a man made causeway built, which joins it to St Lucia. The causeway blocks the Atlantic sea from entering Rodney Bay and you can stand there watching big waves hit from the East, whilst Rodney Bay is flat on the West.
We climbed Pigeon Island up to Fort Rodney, took a few photos, rested, then returned to the bar at the bottom for a beer and something to eat!
More sunbathing on the beach and some snorkelling along the rocks for Mick and myself. The snorkelling was ok, with clear water and some huge brain coral, one piece was about 8-10ft long and maybe 6ft high! Mick also spotted some larger than normal Tube fish, so he was certainly happy with the trip!
Tuesday 12th February 2008
Dave is due to arrive today and Lesley is due to fly home. Same plane as Dave arrives on, so we have the hire car booked again and are back sightseeing again and off to Vieux Fort. I took Mick and Deb across to a jetty, then returned for Lesley and her luggage and raced into the marina much faster than when we had 4 aboard! we tied up to my usual spot with the locals on the jetty at the village green, then collected the hire car.
We followed the rush hour traffic into Castries, then carried on South to Souffriere. First stop was the Sulphur Springs and yet again we paid local price (as I do live here now!) which was 5EC, or £1 instead of 12EC each. We had the tour of the sulphur springs, then visited the visitor centre, which is not clearly advertised, but was worth the visit. Then we headed down to the Mineral baths to enjoy the refreshing water.
It wasn't as hot as it had been on Sunday, but was still a great experience! I would guess it was about 10'c less hot than Sunday, but still hotter than a Jacuzzi back home! We all did the mud pack thing, then rinsed off in the mineral baths, and tried to get as clean as possible without getting totally black towels!
Deb had said maybe later to a necklace sailsman, so he was waiting for us when we left the baths, she had to buy one, but we managed to avoid buying more!
Next stop was the Jaloussie falls, which are only a couple of miles from the Sulphur Springs, but clear mineral water, not black! Sounds perfect for a wash after the sulphur springs :-)
We found the falls and had a guide tell us about the plants as we headed down to the falls. There are 2 main baths here, both man made baths, but filled with natural water. One of them is direct from a very tall waterfall and the water is warm as it splashes down, the pool is lukewarm but nice. The other pool is filled from a pipe which is fed directly from a warmer pool above and this one was much warmer and closer to a jacuzzi temperature at home!
.jpg)
We could have stayed longer at the baths, but Lesley needed to check in for her flight, so we headed South again toward the airport. We Stopped at the local kite surfing hotspot and had lunch at Da Reef, then I took Lesley to the airport to check in. Bags dumped and boarding card in hand, we returned to Da Reef for another hour at the beach before departure!
At 16:00 we had to return to the airport, Lesley went through departures and we had maybe half an hour to wait for Dave! He arrived and caught me doing a gnome impression on a bollard, but luckily no cameras were available at the time!
We took the East coast road back North again, stopping at the bar overlooking Dennery for another beer! This was Dave's first Piton and a chance to chat about life and welcome him here! 2 stops at this bar in 3 days, Mick, Deb and myself are becoming locals!!
We got back to Rodney Bay at teatime, so visited the Barbecue hut for some food, then emptied the luggage from the car and returned to the jetty for the tender! This is where things got confusing, as the jetty we had tied up to wasn't there??? It was dark and we could see a few posts and a dinghy at the end of them, but no actual jetty! I looked left and right, then realised that I was in the right place, but the jetty had been removed????? Judah came over and explained that the marina people had removed it even though it had been there 2 years, we were tied and padlocked to it and it was part of the village green! Apparently they will be building a new better jetty, but they could have put a sign up maybe a day before not just take it whilst we were tied up??? I waded out to the dinghy, untied it and motored round to another spot to pick up Dave and his luggage, then we headed out to Blue Dolphin. I returned to collect Mick and Deb from a different jetty and explained why we had been delayed!
We finished the evening on the boat, chatting and downing the odd Piton, then headed for bed at some point!
Wednesday 13th February 2008
We are planning to head to Martinique tomorrow, so we took Blue Dolphin in for fuel and water, anchored in the inner lagoon, then went ashore to shop for provisions. This included a stop at Burger King for some breakfast, which was my first visit since arriving here.
During one rain shower, we discovered gold onboard another boat and considered raiding and demanding it as pirates. Evidence of the gold is below, plus an example of larger deposits on a cargo ship!
After ferrying the provisions back onboard, we motored out of the lagoon into the bay and headed for Pigeon island. It is the nicest part of Rodney Bay and we anchored just off the Sandals resort, so I could meet up with Pete and Lisa, who I have met a couple of times in Mallorca. They had been trying to visit me for a few days, but I was never aboard when they had come out! That included them canoeing for an hour across Rodney Bay only to discover that I wasn't there and they had to do another hour to get back!
We had a few beers with them and chatted about life, catching up on news, then dropped them back ashore, less a couple of fresh towels courtesy of Sandals :-)
Dinner was at the Jambe de Bois, then back to Blue Dolphin for some Smoothies based around whatever we could find and blend!
Thursday 14th February 2008
The visit from Pete and Lisa had caused me to miss customs yesterday, so I had to go ashore and clear out this morning. About 8.30 the weather turned really grey and looked miserable, with heavy winds past the tip of Pigeon. We were seeing 25 knots at the top of the mast and we were behind the trees and sheltered from the open wind. After a brief chat, we decided to change plan and stay on St Lucia but head South to Marigot Bay and Anse Cochon. It was a shame as I had planned to visit Martinique to meet up with Floris and Natalie who crossed the Atlantic with me and were enjoying their honeymoon there, but the weather had persuaded us it was just not to be!
We stopped in Marigot to see the sights and visit customs, then visited Chateau Mygo for4 Chicken Roti's and 4 Pitons! A leisurely stroll around the marina, then bought another crate of Piton to stock up the boat.
Back onboard and sails up for the few miles down to Anse Cochon (Ti Kaye Resort) which is one of my favourite sites for snorkelling. When we arrived they were pretty full, but Johnny B Good looked after us and particularly Mick, then by the time the sun set, we were alone and all other boats had left.
Later in the evening, we saw some lights and also strange lights in the water! It was people diving on the reefs with torches, which was certainly an unusual sight!
Friday 15th February 2008
We woke up to rain?????? What was all that about?????
Oh well, We have a plan for a change, we are going to Souffriere to clear out, then heading for Walilabou Bay in St Vincent. Customs took a while, whilst waiting for the sailing cruise liner "Sea Cloud II" to be cleared in, then we set off, sails up, but under motor with no wind and lots of drizzle! Next stop St Vincent!
I'm uploading this from the Jaloussie Resort wifi as we sail 1 mile offshore passing the Pitons!!!!
Ok, we arrived safely in St Vincent, not exactly the smoothest crossing, but one of the fastest! We set off with no wind and using the engines. Mainsail up but doing nothing. Once we passed the Pitons, the wind gradually climbed until we were cruising in a nice 15-20 knots, then as we crossed the 40 miles from Souffriere to Walilabou, it just kept increasing! at times we had 35 knots of wind and managed to set a record speed for Blue Dolphin, surfing waves at 17.3 knots according to the GPS! We held a steady 8-10 knots for most of the crossing and then 10-12 knots for the last 20 miles, including a long period in the 12-15 knot region! We had full sail up and were broad reaching in 25-30 knots and she felt pretty comfortable, but I would have preferred slightly smaller waves! Had the weather forecast been known, we probably would have put a reef in before setting off, but it never felt bad enough to need it, the return journey into the wind would be a different story!
Dave had only been onboard for a couple of days, but he has only once been seasick, even though he has done many miles in the marines. Today was Daves second time! He fed the fish, which even then still didn't want to bite our lures and join us onboard for dinner!
As we arrived at St Vincent, visibility was poor due to the rain clouds, but we were still able to see all the huts on the volcano. They were in really strange locations, which I eventually discovered was because they were the local Marijuana farmers!
In Walilabou, we had the usual boat boys trying to sell fruit, veg, ice, bread and jewellery, but declined all except the rope to shore!
The police arrived to check we were all ok, which we were, thankfully as they had M16 rifles in case they found any problems!
Then we went ashore and took all the usual photos again!
Saturday 16th February 2008
Our plans for today were to sail to Bequia, but we woke to bright sunshine and the desire to stay and sightsee!
We did some snorkelling around the entrance to the bay, under Hangmans Arch on the North side, then did some jobs on the boat!
Mick Helped me to seal the escape hatches with Sikaflex, hopefully to stop water coming in on future crossings! We had taken in a fair few litres on the way over from St Lucia!
Next we looked at the Starboard engine, which had failed to turn over on the starter as we came into Walilabou last night. After a quick check and turning the crank by hand, I diagnosed water in the engine. Out with the manual and checking the oil level, we confirmed definitely water in the engine!!! This was a new one on me, it had been caused by the engine being locked in reverse whilst we sailed, to stop the props turning and make them folt flat for less resistance. This was correct practise as advised with the props, but i won't be doing it again ever!!
To get rid of the water, we removed the glow plugs and turned over the crank by hand, squirting the water out under pressure. Then drained out the engine oil, which was also full of water, flushed the filter and topped it all up with 4 litres of fresh oil. Engine started happily and ran sweetly afterwards. Celebration time with a quick beer :-)
We also replaced a wire in the ignition circuit, which fixed some of the guages on the dashboard, then called it a day and went to visit the local Walilabou falls.
Mick and Dave did the honours diving from the falls, even though it was only waist deep below!! Dave Demonstrated the correct technique first!
Then Mick showed us what not to do!!!!
In the evening, and part of the afternoon, we spent it with Tony the mad DJ at the Pirates retreat! Well worth a visit, cheap beer and good food from the chef!
Back onboard and tonights film was Pirates of the Caribbean 2, which we watched trying to spot Randalf our friendly jewellery dealer, who claimed to have been in Pirates 2 and 3! We did spot the house we had toured as part of Pirates Retreat though! We also agreed that the bay was correct, but they have superimposed the top of the Pitons onto the corner of the bay, to hide an aerial!
Sunday 17th February 2008
Up early, 6ish and we set sail (Motored initially) back towards St Lucia. There were a few boats setting off at the same time, so we should have some company for the crossing. The wind arrived as we cleared the Northern tip of the island and we had 15-20 knots and could just make the planned course towards the Pitons.
Todays disaster was checking the aft locker and discovering it was full from the crossing over on Friday! I opened the hose to drain it into the bilges and Dave and myself spent the next hour pumping out the bilge (holding a switch on!) As soon as we gave up on the pumping, water drained out, Dave came back up from the oven down below, sat there for 5 minutes, then promptly fed the fishes again!
I lasted another half hour, then joined Dave briefly in the prayer ritual! Only my 3rd time at sea, but caused by the heat below, not the weather! Luckily I was between the crew and the cameras!
The rest of the journey was uneventful, other than leaving all the other yachts behind and getting to Souffriere well in the lead, but just too late for the Supermarket (No beers onboard tonight!!) We joined the locals for lunch, which meant knocking on a house door and buying lunch, then getting beers from a man with a fridge in his porch next door! 4 turkey salads with 8 bottles of beer cost us a grand total of £18 and to cap it all, none of us could finish the meal! Our plan was to clear in at customs, then return to Jalousie (between the Pitons) to moor, as we get free internet there, but the moorings were full, so we had to stay in a diferent bay with crystal clear water just north of the Pitons instead!
Monday 18th February 2008
After breakfast and a trip to shore to visit the supermarket, we moved round into the bay between the Pitons and took a mooring which looked good, near the shore. What we didn't plan on was the huge tall ship "Tenacious" which was on the mooring further out, but pointing well away from us, swinging and nearly wiping us out!!!!! We reversed towards shore, pulling our mooring with us and Mick took a line ashore and tied it around the biggest rock he could find! We spent a lot of time watching Tenacious swing and wondering if it would hit us, but the closest they came was about 6 feet, also known as way too close!!!!
In the evening, Mick lit the BBQ with maybe more lighter fluid than was really needed, but it cooked the steaks perfectly, except for Deb's as she nearly choked on hers! We asked Mick if he had taken out extra insurance on her and was trying to claim, but he denied everything!
Tuesday 19th February 2008
It's Dave's last day, so we have hired a car for the day to take him to the airport. The morning started with so much rain, we couldn't even leave the boat to get the hire car! Eventually the rain stopped, so we set off with Daves bags to the Jalousie and were just ashore when the heavens opened again! We were suitably drenched by the time we walked into the hotel reception and stood out slightly from the other hotel guests!
I took Dave to the Sulphur Springs first, visited the information centre, then the springs themselves, which were inundated with guests from a Carnival cruise liner. Then we did the Mineral baths where we were alone and enjoying the hot spring water, until another british couple also decided to have a rinse. Next stop was the Jalousie Falls, where I was recognised by the girl at the entrance from last week! We walked alone down to the spring, only to find they had just emptied the pools and were refilling them! We still had a shower under the water and loitered a while, then set off towards the airport.
Approaching Vieux Fort, we stopped at a supermarket for a bottle of rum and took advantage of the cafe above, where we had a chicken roti for 8EC, or £1.60 Excellent value! We were at the airport for 2.30 and Dave walked straight to the front and checked in his luggage, then we went to the beach for an hour and a half leaving enough time for departures and meeting Tom and Vicky. The queue at departures was bigger than I've ever seen and Dave was just at the front of the queue handing over his passport, when i spotted Tom and Vicky walking through Arrivals! A quick shout and Tom managed to shake Dave's hand and say hi, then Dave had to go through the gate and leave! At least they had seen each other, even if briefly!
Wednesday 20th February 2008
We were up early and had some morning tea, then I took Tom and Vicky ashore, so we could return the hire car and have a look through the hotel as we walked back down. Great setting, but expensive and no better than our mooring off the beach which cost £4 a night!
We left the moorings between the Pitons and headed North for Rodney Bay. Sails up and we part sailed, part motored along the close until we reached Rodney Bay and returned to my home anchorage just off the beach. After a cup of tea, we headed ashore for chicken rotis and shopping!
In the evening, I was struck down with Man Flu and decided to stay onboard, whilst the others went ashore and ate at the Live Lobster, where they had great food and met two very gay black waiters!
Thursday 21st February 2008
We started the day with Tom, Vicky and Deb going for breakfast at the Live lobster, whilst Mick and myself finished off fitting the new switches for the bilge pumps.
We sailed to Anse Cochon (Ti Kaye resort) and took a mooring, did some snorkelling and generally chilled out. Mick helped me clear the blockage in the starboard toilet and we also rerouted the shower drains to make them work more efficiently!
Friday 22nd February 2008
Mick and Deb leave today, so we are heading for Souffriere to let them get a taxi to the airport later. I will miss them, but they are only going home to rent their house out, then coming back here to look after Blue Dolphin for me! I wonder if they have told their son Kev yet???
Snorkelling on the northern edge of Souffriere bay was awesome. So many Tiger fish, there must have been literally thousands! I have it on video, thanks to Mick and Deb's gift waterproof video, just need to sort the films out and add them here soon!
We went ashore at 12:00 for me to deal with customs and Mick and Deb to get a bus to Vieux Fort, only to discover that it's independence day today and there are no buses, plus customs are shut and have gone to lunch! Mick and Deb decide to get a taxi instead (only option really) and we decide to go for a walk and get some food.
After some fried fish, with background music from the wall of speakers being tested for the independence party, we set off on the trek to Diamond Falls and Botanical Gardens. Both Tom and Vicky agreed it was a really nice location, we strolled around, leaving as the cafe closed behind us, then headed for the exit, only to find that it had already been locked and we were inside the locked gates! We cut across the garden and found the entrance gate which was still open and made our way out! Everything was shutting early for independence day!
Customs were still open, so I cleared us out and changed the crew from Dave, Mick and Deb to Tom and Vicky! We were all set to leave for St Vincent tomorrow.
Back onboard Blue Dolphin, we sat up chatting for a while, then went to bed fairly early as usual! I had just gone downstairs when I heard a loud thud and then I thought someone whistling! I ran upstairs and looked out, to find we were adrift and heading for rocks! I pushed into Tom and Vickys room, started the engine and started reversing quickly away from the rocks! We were moored only 60 feet or so from the rocks and when the rope had snapped, the 15-20 knots of wind was blowing us straight at the rocks! If I had been 2 minutes later we would have been aground no doubt!!!
Once clear and safe, I started the second engine and we inspected the rope, only to find that it was the Marine Park mooring line that had snapped and not our rope! It was dark and we had few options, so we motored to a different buouy and picked it up, checked the rope carefully then tied off for the night! As a precaution we used 2 ropes on ours, but still could only use the one rope from the buouy!
Saturday 23rd February 2008
We woke up after all of us had stayed awake at some point through the night, all was ok we were still tied on, so we started the engines and untied the mooring, then set sail for Walilabou.
It was an easy crossing, not as exciting as the one with Mick Deb and Dave, but Easy is good in my book and it helped Tom and Vicky get used to the boat. Tom helmed most of the way over, whilst I sat reading and let him get on with it!
We arrived early, so did the standard photos (third time in 6 weeks for me!) then headed off to the waterfall for a swim! On the way back, we stopped off in the art and craft shop, then popped into the Pirates Retreat to see Tony aka Black Shadow.
Something went wrong after meeting Tony, as he kept serving us his rum punch, we kept drinking it and eating the good food from the chef, then when we paid the bill, he declared it happy hour and insisted we keep drinking his rum punch but from now on it was free! It would have been rude to refuse, so now we were dancing to his favourite tunes, which when we watched the video next day, turned out to be the same tune for at least an hour!!!! Eventually we escaped, but none of us remembered how and we returned to the boat!
We only had to get 20 metres, but we managed to get a rope round the prop on the outboard, plus Tom chose to dive in for a swim, whilst he still had his camera in his pocket!!!! In the morning I had to be reminded of a few things as my head didn't seem to know about them!!!.
Sunday 24th February 2008
I think it's fair to say, we all had bad hangovers, I know I certainly did! Just looking out at the Pirates Retreat was giving me bad memories of the night before!!
We decided to stay away from Tony today, but I wanted to give him a flag I had, with a big beer mug on it. We went ashore to give him the flag and say goodbye, but Tony had other plans!!! He made breakfast for us, whilst we helped to move a train axle! Yes that's right, this was the axle of a train, old steam one I would guess and at least 2 tons in weight with both wheels still attached!
We thought he wanted it just moved a couple of feet onto the concrete, but no he wanted it in the sea, 40 metres out and set with a mooring tied to it!
We had help from a coastguard who had volunteered to help, but none of us realised how heavy that thing was!!!! With about 6 guys pushing and all my fenders tied to it once we got it in the water, plus 4 heavy lifting airbags, we managed to move it out maybe half way. I had been diving with the coastguard and we agreed it was far enough without more heavy lifting bags, so we untied my fenders, which had shrunk somewhat under the pressure and let them inflate as they shot for the surface.
We certainly felt we had earnt our breakfast and now have a mooring with my name on it which I was promised will be ready for when I return!
We motored all the way to Bequia as we couldn't be bothered to hoist the sails and were glad to be tied up to a mooring when we got there! No drinking for us tonight!!!
Monday 25th February 2008
When the shops opened, we went ashore and I visited the sailmakers to collect my new trampolines. They looked really good, so I handed over the cash and took them back to the boat. We toured the shops and visited customs, as we had forgotten to see them in Walilabou! Then we set off for Tobago Cays some time after lunch!
Bequia to Tobago Cays was relatively uneventful, until it started getting dark and we hadn't crossed through the reef yet!!
As we approached the Baline Rocks, we reeled in the lines and Tom managed to cause a birds nest in the big reel! I sorted that out with no pressure on the line at all, then started reeling in the lure and it suddenly got heavy! We had a fair sized baracuda on the hook and managed to land it for the first time this year! We would be eating fresh fish for dinner tonight!
Tuesday 26th February 2008
At the Cays, we woke up to a nice sunrise (at least I did!) then took some photos of the sites at this amazing place!
The wildlife was spectacular, we spent some time following the Rays under the boat!
The Lizards were found on two of the islands
And finished off with everyones favourite the Turtles
If you have a fast connection, here's a video of the turtle swimming! Warning, it is 37Mb so may take a while to download!
We finished the afternoon with a short motor from Tobago Cays to Canouan, where we had a meal ashore in a very pleasant (but not cheap) hotel.
Wednesday 27th February 2008
We set off early from Canouan and headed back to Bequia, civilisation, restaurants and the internet!! only a short run, but a chance to show Tom the cat sailing into the wind (not it's best feature!).
After taking one mooring, we moved to another to get better wifi signal for free internet.
Thursday 28th February 2008
Shopping, customs and imigration, then off to Walilabou!
We went to see Tony from Pirates Retreat and ended up joining him on a shopping trip to Kingstown! Tom and Vicky experienced their first St Vincent bus! 18 people in a Toyota minibus designed for 12, then mountain roads with broken tarmac taken flat out! It is hard to explain the experience of a bus skidding on all four wheels towards a bend, just surviving, then accelerating faster towards the next one! We did survive, and only saw one car which had just crashed off the edge during our run!
Dinner at the Pirates Retreat consisted of Pumpkin Soup followed by Creole Tuna for all of us, with only Vicky daring to have a single rum punch! Both Tom and myself stayed on the beers for safety!
Friday 29th February 2008
The big crossing from St Vincent to St Lucia. We started early and set off just ahead of 4 other boats, 3 yachts and 1 cat. Motoring up the coast with the mainsail hoisted and a single reef in, then breaking out of the lee of the island just after the Marijuana farms on the volcano!
It was an interesting crossing and we were certainly glad of the reef, with winds hitting 30 knots true and mostly at 60' to our course. We unfurled the jib and it only lasted about ten minutes before a fitting on the traveller broke under the load, so the sail was furled again. The Lagoon 380 cat which was following us was clearly catching up after we lost the jib, but then their mainsail suffered some damage and they had to sort it out then sail on heavily reefed.
All in, we arrived in St Lucia after 5.5 hours and 38 miles, but were glad of the calm waters and safe moorings in Soufriere bay! We had planned on lunch at Benny's, but he was closed so we went to another restaurant which was just about to open, had a beer and waited for the cook to arrive!
Next stop was a trip to customs to clear into St Lucia, then back to Blue Dolphin and we cast off and headed for Anse Cochon (also known as Ti Kaye Bay) where we took a free mooring and chilled for the night!