March 17, 2008 - Chaudiere Pool

Since Sunday, March 16, was Palm Sunday, there was not much going on in Portsmouth. We strolled the town. Things were quiet. Our trip was postponed to Monday, so we were going to catch a bus or hitch a ride to see some of the countryside. However, our plans were foiled--no one seemed to be out and about except for those sitting on their porches or walking to and from church.

Although our day was quiet, we met a lovely storekeeper who sold us some eggs and the three limes she had. A local fellow, brother of the shopkeeper, was very insistent that we buy the six mangoes he had for sale. They were far from ready to eat, but he told us they would be ready in about three days--or, we could eat them in a salad as they were.

Sunday evening we invited our neighbors, Fran and Chris from s/v Changes, over for cocktails. They are from Toronto and have a beautiful Hylas 49. Fran taught 2nd grade in the 70s when they were sailing in George Town, Bahamas. They had wanted to enroll their home-schooled daughter in the school for socialization skills, but were told because of the shortage of teachers, they couldn't take her. So Fran became a teacher there for a season. Now that daughter, a marine biologist, is teaching on the Concordia traveling from the Cape Horn to Capetown, South Africa.

On Monday, we went to Chaudiere pool with several cruisers. The pool is located several miles east of Portsmouth. We hired a local driver, Cornel, to take us there and pick us up. The hike down the mountain was only about 30 minutes, but was quite steep and a little slick with mud.

The entire trail was covered with a spectacular canopy of palm trees and other lush rainforest growth providing shade for the trek. Upon reaching the bottom, we were treated a beautiful waterfall with a refreshing pool of fresh water. Of course, we all jumped in for a swim. The hike out proved surprisingly to be quite a challenge for me. I am truly and shamefully out of shape after over a year on our boat with little opportunities for exercise and workouts. After hiking back up to the road, we walked about 2 1/2 miles to a small town where we were to meet Cornell for the ride back to town. We were very anxious for a cold drink, but the first "snackette" we came to only sold beer, and some of our group wanted a rum punch. So, the shopkeeper hollered down the street to April to open up as there were people who needed a drink. With that the second shopkeeper hopped next door to her snackette and proceeded to serve us all--although the beer was warm!

Today we 've hired Anderson, a local fellow who paddles around on a surface drumming up business, to clean the sides of our boat. He gave us a reasonable price and seems to be a friendly, goodhearted young man and our boat sure needs the attention. He cleans the hulls by kneeling on his surfboard scrubbing with a vinegar solution. Looks like a hard way to do it, but we've seen the results of his efforts. So we're pleased.

March 16, 2008 - Portsmouth, Dominica

We left the Saints a little before we were ready because we were anxious to catch up with some friends we had met in St. Thomas, S/V Yolo ( Karen and Jason Trautz). We have a great time with them and knew they were in our next port for only a short time, so we hustled on to Dominica. Yes, we enjoyed a nice visit with Karen and Jason before they took off for the next town, Roseau. We, however, are staying a little because we like Dominica and haven't had much of a chance to explore what looks like a beautiful, interesting island.

Dominica is British and uses the EC dollar, so it's a bit more value than what we get on the French islands where the exchange rate has jumped from $1.50 per euro to $1.63 per euro. There are lush green mountains all around with beautiful trees and flowers. We were going to take a bus ride to the countryside today, but because it was Palm Sunday, we learned things were very quiet. Tomorrow we hope to go to the Chaudiere pool several miles away.

We are finding the Dominicans friendly and have run into boat boys for the first time while on Jus' Now. These men wait in colorfully painted dinghies to greet arriving boats with the idea that they will be your contact when you anchor. They will do things like take you to customs, arrange for tours, pick up fruit or vegetables or collect your laundry--all for a fee, of course. They are usually very nice and polite-- if persistent. Once you name one as your "man", the others don't come around.

One of the things we have also noticed is that since Montserrat, there is no more fresh milk available. All milk is sold as boxed with a shelf life. Even the large stores in large cities don't carry fresh milk. The box milk is not too satisfying to us, unfortunately. However, we have found some delicious locally produced juices, like guava or mango.

One of the things we're not keen on in this anchorage is the music that blares through the anchorage sometimes all night. Although we like the West Indies music, when it repeats over and over at very high volume all night long, it gets old.

We are struck by the fact that there are a lot of rusted old vehicles--boats, trucks, etc.-- on this island. In the French islands, one does not see this. Those islands for the most part are modern, up-to-date, and well-cared for. In the second picture above, you see the truck just abandoned in the center of town. On the top of the truck's windshield is its nickname--Best in Fleet. Almost all vehicles have a name painted across the top of the windshield and are amusing. For example, while trying to hitch a ride this morning, a pickup named, Time Served, passed us. We weren't sure that had he stopped, we would have wanted to ride with him.

More pictures: Next are two of at least four rusted out ships no doubt destroyed in a hurricane, but left to decay right at the water's edge. The fourth picture is of a most unusual house we found on one of the back streets. And lastly, just a scene in the town of Portsmouth.

March 12, 2008 The Saints (Les Saintes)

We sailed into the Saints at about 2 p.m. finding a large anchorage full of boats. It took several tries for us to get the boat anchored--most unusual. Of course, our windlass is not working properly; Mike has to let the anchor down by hand. (Fortunately, it works well when pulling up the anchor.)
The Bourg de les Saintes is a charming little village with shop-lined streets but also many residences. It seems to be a tourist haven despite many residents. After strolling the main street, we stopped in a lovely modern French hotel called Le Hotel Bleu for a glass of wine. Chatting with the waiter, we learned that he had left Montpelier in the south of France to raise his three small children in Les Saintes. Of course, he has found the island to be very small and may not stay here forever. He was very nice and spoke very good English. Most people we have run across since Guadaloupe only speak French and maybe a smattering of English. Of course, that makes me happy as I’m really getting a workout on my French, something I’ve longed to do since minoring in it college many eons ago.
This morning we went into town at 9 a.m. for some croissants, which we’ve been enjoying since Guadaloupe. However, we were too late for the bakery. They were gone. However, there were still some chocolate doughnuts--pain de chocolat--which of course we bought. Delicious! Tomorrow we’ll have to get into town early to get some croissants.

March 5 - Deshaies, Guadaloupe

Finally, we made it. After a wild sail, we were happy to find a delightful fishing village of Deshaies (day-hay). It is a picturesque village with around 25 sailboats in its harbor. It feels very European as opposed to the other islands. Of course, French food abounds. We plan to stay here a few days enjoying the town.

In the first picture, you see tourists standing in line to buy a hunk of fresh fish on the main street in Deshaies. The next picture is a scene at the dock where we tied up our dinghy along with local fishermen. Third is Mike enjoying a glass of wine at one of the beachside bars on a very hot afternoon. And last is a shot of S/V Jus' Now through the trees at Deshaies.

February 19-March 3 - Montserrat

We left Nevis early on Friday morning heading for Guadaloupe. However, it turned out that the wind and waves were from the east, not the northeast, making a sail onto Guadaloupe more difficult. Instead we opted to stop halfway at the island of Montserrat. We headed first for a small bay at the base of the volcano, Soufriere. However, as we neared the bay, great whorls of dust were blowing off the mud flows left by the eruption in 1995. We had read that this sometimes happens and can leave your boat very dirty. So we changed direction and headed north to Little Bay.

On Saturday, we had planned to leave bright and early only to find that the weather was going to be worse than Friday--lots of hard sailing into the waves and wind. In fact, we went out for a quick look, but decided not to go further and returned.

Instead, we hiked into the town. What a hike! Montserrat is a very small, mountainous island. The roads are very steep; the climbing was tough going. We met some sailors on the way who were parked near us--Dan and Jean Osborne, from Punta Gorda. They told us about a little restaurant up the hill so we proceeded there since we were is search of a bite to eat. Ingrid, the owner, introduced herself and served us what she had: curried mutton. It was delicious. Ingrid, as it turned out, is also an Osborne--not related, of course, to Dan and Jean, but very friendly.

We had a pleasant evening with the Osbornes and German neighbors, Willie and Uta, on another boat.

On Sunday, Mike worked on our battery charger which has a habit of acting up quite regularly despite its being brand new. No sooner had he finished, when the alternator on our generator failed. He thought it would be a quick fix, but not so! It was going to need some parts. Big question: could we find these parts on this tiny island??? Mike hailed a local on a passing jet ski who said that he and his seven brothers all worked on cars and mght be able to help.

So on Monday morning, Mike pulled the alternator and went to meet Ol' Jack at the appointed time of 10 am. Around noon, when Ol' Jack still hadn't turned up, a fellow named Tom offered to call him. When Ol' Jack showed up, he took Mike to his brother's auto repair shop where they took apart the alternator and after much searching around found the parts for repair. Mike returned about 3 p.m. a happy man with some new friends to boot.

On Tuesday morning, we were able to leave for Guadaloupe. We were really happy to have had such a great time in Montserrat.

February 25, 2008 - St. Kitts

After a couple of days in Nevis, we had a gorgeous sail to St. Kitts, a few miles north of Nevis. We anchored just outside the town of Basse Terre, its capital, in what turned out to be a miserable anchorage. It was very rolly and unpleasant. However, we decided just to stay there overnight so that we could enjoy the town for a day and then move on.

The people in St. Kitts were very friendly. The town is modeled after London in some respects with a center square called Picadilly Circus(pictured above). It is much larger than Charlestown and to us lacked the charm of Charlestown. The town has a new area where cruise ships arrive under construction to appeal to the masses. There are lots of new shops being built. The area reminds me of the open-air malls now common in the US. I guess this shopping mode is designed to appeal to the cruise ship clientele.

After roaming the town for awhile, we returned to our boat to spend a very unpleasant rolly night. In the morning, after obtaining fuel and water, we moved to a lovely anchorage a mile or so south called Whitehouse Bay. We spent a day there hiking the main road in search of monkeys that we heard are very prevalent there. We did see one, finally. We saw lots of goats and cows, though. Apparently, the island is preparing for some development in this area. Workmen were checking the water pipes; there were dump trucks moving loads of dirt. Things will be changing this pretty countryside soon. Pictured above is the salt pond area where we hiked.

We left for Nevis to clear out, another necessity, before moving south.

February 23,2008

We set out to sail to Nevis and St. Kitts on Tuesday, Feb. 19, but somehow didn't realize how long a trip it was--7 hours--and realized we needed to get an earlier start. So instead we sailed up to Jolly Harbour, a pleasant sail but with big, 7-10 foot waves and plenty of wind. When we arrived, our starboard motor failed to go into gear. Uh-oh! So, Mike decided we'd spend Wednesday figuring out that problem before we could go on to Nevis.

Luck was with us, though. Mike soon discovered that the cotter pin had broken and with a new one on board, we were in business in no time. However, we still needed a full day of sailing, so opted to spend another night in Jolly Harbor.

Thursday morning, we took off at 6:30 a.m.--quite early for us. There was a little wind and the seas were calm. Unfortunately, that meant we had to motor a good way before the wind built. Plus there were squalls all around us meaning we couldn't use our spinnaker. However, we enjoyed our day arriving in Nevis about 2:45. We located our friend Clark, who was parked just south of Pinney Beach, without difficulty and enjoyed a pleasant evening with him. We had met Clark in George Town, Bahamas, last February. He has since been down to Grenada where he spent hurricane season and is on his way back now.

Friday we went in to Charlestown (pictured above), the birthplace of Alexander Hamilton and the capital of Nevis. It's a charming little town with colorful buildings on the waterfront and friendly townspeople. We did the obligatory check-in--one can't anchor a boat without ensuring they've let the customs/immigration officials know they're there. Usually there's a fee involved as well. This was no exception. In fact, once again, there was a lot of paperwork to fill out followed by a four-block trek to the police building to have our passports stamped. Oh, well. It was worth it. We are very impressed with Nevis. We lunched at a place called Unella's (pictured above) with a beautiful view of the coast with sandy white beaches and palm trees. Then had dinner with Clark aboard our boat.

Today we moved from Pinney's Beach to Cades Point, three miles north, with plans to snorkel. Because the ocean was a bit choppy, we put off our snorkeling till tomorrow.

February 17

On Saturday, February 16, we enjoyed an unusual event at The Catamaran Club, outside of whose marina we are anchored. They sponsored a Build Your Own Boat (BYOB) event where different teams from the Wobbly Club competed. All had about two hours to build a small boat of particle board, duct tape, glue, etc.--spartan equipment, you can tell. There were about 10 teams. At 4:30, time was called and the boats were divided into two categories: those that would sail their crafts and those who powered their crafts other ways such as rowing or motoring, etc. There were numerous spectators sharing opinions and watching avidly as the participants hustled to finish their boats. There was even a kids' entry. All had a great time, even the two boats that got dumped in the drink after taking off on the brief path to the finish line.

Above are some pictures of the event as well as one of The Catamaran Club.

Antigua, Feb. 17, 2008

Sticking to the busses is not without risk. Bus drivers seem to compete with each other on speed, how close they can come to each other without missing a beat, and how close they can come to individuals walking in the street. That said, I'd rather take the bus than a car. The bus system works very well. One just needs to hail a bus which come every few minutes. The price into St. John's is $3, Easter Caribbean, which they state as "3 dollars." One must always make sure that the price quoted is US dollars or EC dollars, as 1 US dollar equals about 2.70 EC dollars. The bus goes to a central bus station across from the market although people get on and off all the way there.

Yesterday we made our second trip into St. John's primarily to go to the market for fresh vegetables. Our trip was fun. There are tons of vendors inside an old concrete hall-like building with a myriad of tomatoes, cucumbers, bora beans (not unlike green beans, but longer) and other assorted known and unknown vegetables. We bought a few things, not much because things don't keep well in this climate and we don't like to throw away food. There were also many vendors set up outside around the market and up and down the streets. Many street vendors are selling CDs which blare on outdoor speakers on each and every corner. St. John's is a busy, busy place with lots of locals and tourists milling about in the streets, vying for space on the limited sidewalks or trying to stay out of the paths of cars, trucks and busses.

After buying a few veggies, we hopped a bus to a large shopping center a little north of town called Woods Center. There is a large, well-stocked grocery store there called Epicurean. We were very glad we'd gone. We were able to get some pork chops, chicken, bacon and other foodstuffs that we hadn't seen in Falmouth Harbor, where we are anchored. There was also a Radio Shack where we searched for a battery charger without luck. After shopping, we hopped the bus back to the main station in St. John's to change to the bus back to Falmouth Harbor. A successful, enjoyable day.

Pictured above are the marketplace and a statue there of the famous Antiguan founder, Sir Vere Cornwall Bird.

Feb. 12,2008

Since our Christmas and New Year's holidays spent in St. Maarten/St. Martin and Anguilla, we parked in St. Martin to await the arrival of Colorado friends, Larry and Dana Darien. Sue went to Maryland to help her mother move to a retirement home then returned in time for a sail to St. Barth's and on to Antigua.

The Dariens arrived on Jan. 24th. Unfortunately, we had to stay put in the St. Martin area because of weather and waves which prohibited safe travel onward. However,we spent a couple of days in a favorite spot, Grand Case, sampling Germaine's fried chicken and ribs and lounging at the Calmos Cafe, a great beach bar. Finally on Feb. 3 we were able to move. On St. Barth's we visited a couple of favorite haunts from a trip five years ago with the Dariens--a boulangerie with great pastries and a restaurant that promised the Superbowl for Larry and Dana, but in the end couldn't deliver.

A night sail to Antigua proved challenging with higher than expected waves and wind, but we made it. We rented a car which Mike agreed to drive to see the island. Poor Mike! Driving Antigua's twisty, pothole-filled roads fighting the speed -crazed Antiguan drivers took its toll. Mike and I couldn't wait to get rid of the car. We'll stick to busses from now on.