At last we got to our favorite island, Mayreau. Salt Whistle Bay is a beautiful stretch of white sand with a few palm trees overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. A charming little town lies overa steep hill. We fell in love with this island several years ago chartering with friends and have been anxiously looking forward to our return. After leaving Bequia with an overnight stop in Canouan, we pulled into Mayreau at 9:15 a.m., hoping to be able to pick a great spot to anchor which we did. True to form, boats started pouring in to the anchorage. At noon, seven large catamarans with French flags bore down upon the anchorage at their usual high speed screeching to a halt just short of the beach. This entry was dramatic with their great speed and apparent disregard for us and others in the anchorage. However, no damage done. They rafted up in front of us resulting in a large barricade between us and the beach. No harm.
In the morning, a small jazz combo with bongos, etc., began playing on one of the French boats near us. Great music! We were quite excited as they played all morning. However, around 3 p.m. the raft began to break up with each boat peeling away. Now this would have been okay, but they had been partying hard starting early in the a.m. And in typical French charterer fashion, they started leaving the anchorage at high speed, narrowly missing us and others. In fact, many boaters including us quickly hung fenders over the sides as the French were out of control. Fortunately, we all survived--we hope they did!
We stopped at the Island Paradise Restaurant where the cook grilled fresh fish for a great lunch. Anita, our waitress, was so friendly, and we learned that she is hoping to start a grocery store in town with much more than is currently available. This seems like an ambitious endeavor for an island of 300, but she might well pull it off as the island does not have much in the way of provisions. We also stopped in at Righteous and De Youths, a Bob Marley style restaurant, where we had a pricey beer.
That night we were invited for cocktails on Dulcineau, a chartering couple from San Francisco. Bill, a semi-retired dentist, and his wife were spending their last night in Mayreau. They too had enjoyed the French antics as well as the mini-concert of the day.
In the morning, a small jazz combo with bongos, etc., began playing on one of the French boats near us. Great music! We were quite excited as they played all morning. However, around 3 p.m. the raft began to break up with each boat peeling away. Now this would have been okay, but they had been partying hard starting early in the a.m. And in typical French charterer fashion, they started leaving the anchorage at high speed, narrowly missing us and others. In fact, many boaters including us quickly hung fenders over the sides as the French were out of control. Fortunately, we all survived--we hope they did!
We stopped at the Island Paradise Restaurant where the cook grilled fresh fish for a great lunch. Anita, our waitress, was so friendly, and we learned that she is hoping to start a grocery store in town with much more than is currently available. This seems like an ambitious endeavor for an island of 300, but she might well pull it off as the island does not have much in the way of provisions. We also stopped in at Righteous and De Youths, a Bob Marley style restaurant, where we had a pricey beer.
That night we were invited for cocktails on Dulcineau, a chartering couple from San Francisco. Bill, a semi-retired dentist, and his wife were spending their last night in Mayreau. They too had enjoyed the French antics as well as the mini-concert of the day.
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