Sunday, January 13, 2019

January 2019

In which we wander round some of the Leeward Islands we passed by in haste in 2017.


We started the New Year in Falmouth Harbour, Antigua. Having completed the essential maintenance tasks, though with cooling pump on board rather than fitted, it was time to move on. We had been in close company with many other yachts for too long and craved a little isolation. So ashore to check out and buy bread then up anchor and sail back along the south coast to Johnson Point to anchor for the evening. On the second, we were up early and were under way at 0810 for the 45 mile sail to Deshais on Guadeloupe. The wind was a little stronger than forecast, at 20 knots but, with 2 reef in and the wind just ahead of the beam we had a fine sail across, albeit with occasional showers, dropping anchor 6 hours later, in time to dinghy ashore and use the self service check in located in a tourist shop. Guadeloupe has 2 main islands: The one with the mountains, where we were, is call Basse Terre, or Low Island; Grande Terre, which is flat, is the smaller of the two. Deshais is a touristy town with plenty of cafes and boutiques but not well served for provisions. We decided to do a little inland exploration and on Thursday, 3rd, we hired a car for 48 hours, taking a small circular route that afternoon through the mountains. On Friday, we did a full day, driving across to Basse Terre and following its coast round. Our first stop, at Anse Babin, had a muddy beach ands many people smearing themselves in the mud, no doubt considering it to be theraputic.

From there up to Anse Bertrand, a pleasant enough tourist resort, then on to the northerly Pointe de la Grande Vigie to peer out into the Atlantic. Down the East coast to Pointe de Chateaux, the last few miles along a small road lined with ‘Galeries Artisanal’ with more or less revolting local art and craft works. There was a stop at the end with more craft stalls and a view out to La Desirade, the easternmost island of the archipelago.
Pointe de Chateaux

We managed to view this in a break to the increasingly frequent showers then headed back along the south coast with a deliberate stop in Saint-Francois and unintentional ones in traffic at Sainte-Anne and Le Gosier. Back across the bridge to La Basse Terre and a stop at a supermarket to stock up. This was a disappointment as there was no fresh meat so it turned into a minor shop instead. On Saturday, we returned; Elsie dropping off to do laundry while I continued on to Sainte-Rose to find another supermarket and get enough food for a week. We had the car until 1400 but had run out of enthusiasm so dropped it off, returned to Ruby, picked up the anchor and sailed, close-hauled, down to Riviere Sens near the southern tip. This is where we had topped up on duty-free fuel 2 years before so, in the morning, we motored into the marina only to find that regulations had changed and we would have to pay the taxable rate. We had also banked on topping up on water but found that we had to move to a (stern-to) marina berth to get this and pay 15 Euros for the privilege. An exchange of camping gaz cylinder cost 30 Euros, [Edit.  I don't know what gas was inside, but it didn't burn properly, sooted up the cooker and gave us headaches. The remains of the bottle were vented on a windy day]  But at least we got good, cheap, bread for lunch. We then had a 10 mile beat with 2 reefs across to Iles des Saintes into a F4-5. We picked up a mooring buoy at Ilet a Cabrit, as anchoring is prohibited. The buoy had a large steel ring on top, which made it easy to pick up but, with fluky winds and currents, knocked against us marking not only the hull but also out new SS bow protector. Ashore in the morning for a walk round the, deserted, island then a short motor across to Anse de Bourge, the only town on this group of islands. This is, again, very touristy with frequent ferries across from the mainland. We made a quick trip ashore for the essential lunch time bread and a longer one in the afternoon for a walk across to the Atlantic beach and a full exploration of the town. Although the mooring buoy was similar design to the previous day’s one, this time there was a steady wind keeping us off it so obviating any further damage.

Our ‘new’ genoa is now 4 years old and has sailed over 20,000 miles. I suppose we shouldn’t be too disappointed that it has stretched a little and does not allow us to point so close to wind as when new. The next 2 legs were going to be into wind, so I rigged the inner forestay so we could experiment with the blade jib that I bought second hand over 3 years ago and we have hardly used. A final trip ashore on Tuesday morning, for bread, then let go at 0830 to sail up to Marie-Galante. Only 16 miles in a straight line but, into wind and dodging (some) showers we had nearly 30 miles on the clock when we dropped anchor at 1350. It took us a while to get the sheeting for our 2 headsails sorted out but, once we did, there was a definite improvement in both angle and speed to windward. Ashore after lunch to explore Saint-Louis, the big town of the island. This was very tatty and didn’t inspire us to linger so the following morning, after an even earlier bread run, we picked up at 0800 and headed up to Iles de la Petit Terre. These are a pair of tiny low islands that are Guadeloupe’s answer to Tobago Cays. The sail across was ‘interesting’ with frequent squalls, causing us to heave-to a couple of times and have the genoa in and out like a fiddler’s elbow but we managed better at tacking to the wind shifts and, for a direct distance of 18 miles, managed to only do 26 across the ground and arrived at 1315, taking one of the obligatory buoys.
Ruby at Isles de Petit Terre

As well as a few yachts on these, there were a multitude of day trip boats, filling the only beach with tourists so we waited for them to leave at 1600 before going ashore and exploring. A quiet night, an early rise and ashore at 0730 to again have the island to ourselves before the first day trip boat arrived at 0830.  A lazy middle of the day then ashore again for a longer explore before returning for sun-downers, joined by Andy and Lisa, fellow OCC members from yacht Kinetic.
King of the Castle


On Friday we decided to complete the circumnavigation of Guadeloupe so, with an early start, we headed north with full sail in a light easterly. Once again, there were passing showers and much reefing and un-reefing of the genoa. Our first check point was to pass between Pointe de Chateaux, where we had been a week before and Desirata. Towards the top of the island, a larger shower came through. We had the genoa well reefed but still full main up and it was an interesting few minutes of hand steering with the wind gusting up to 27 knots on a broad reach. I found it exhilarating; Elsie possibly not so much. What did disappoint was my ‘new’ Helly Hansen jacket. I had bought this 18 months earlier in Newport, Rhode Island but only worn it 3-4 times. I now found that it was leaking badly and the lining was coming away in shreds. Change of brand required. Once round the top of Grand Terre, the wind died and we motored the 7 miles down to anchor off Port Louis. As we settled in for the night, there was loud drumming from the town and fire-crackers going off. We later found out that this was part of the carnival which seems to stretch from Christmas to Mardi Gras.
Supper

Ashore in the morning, leaving Rubette in the fishing port. A pleasant little town, with a street market on. We managed to find a butcher, for some nice pork steaks; a stall selling bakery goods including a lovely pate en-croute and a fish monger butchering a fresh tuna. We bought from all 3 and stocked up on vegetables from a green grocer and, of course, bought fresh bread and pain chocolates from the boulangerie. We then had a pleasant broad reach across Grande cul-de-sac Marin to Basse-Terre and our starting point, Deshais, where we checked out and prepared for our crossing to Saint Kitts.

The direct distance is about 80 miles, which is too much for a daytime trip so we did it in two. On Sunday, with an ENE’ly F4 we had a close reach back across to Johnsons Point, which had been our departure point from Antigua 10 days earlier. A quiet night, then an early start as we wanted a daylight arrival and check-in. The wind was E’ly F2-3 so we started broad reaching with full main and cruising chute, giving us 4, then 5, 6, 7 knots as the wind built. By 10:00 it was up to F4 and still increasing, so we put it away and used full genoa instead. We were aiming for the gap between Nevis and St Kitts but the wind didn’t have enough north in it to allow us to make this on a reach. Rather than slow down on a run, we accepted a slightly longer track to route north of Booby Island. This worked well and, with just a short wing-on-wing run, we were able to gybe round to slip between the islands then back to sail on a beam reach up to the capital, Basseterre, anchoring off Port Zante at 1545. This allowed me to nip ashore in the dinghy, check-in and get a few goodies. A slightly rolly night at anchor, then discovered the following morning that we could come in for US$20 a night so did that. This allowed us to wander around the town at leisure and plan on a big touristy day for Wednesday.
Lime kiln or 18th Century space rocket?

There is a well preserved 18th century fort on top of a volcanic outcrop on the western side of St Kitts. One can pay for a taxi from town to the top but instead we had an early start, taking a local bus to the foot of the hill and walking up. Our timing was perfect and we got to the gate as it opened at 09:30 to get the whole site to ourselves for an hour or so before the cruise ship hoards arrived. A full tour, walk down the hill again past troops of Green Vervet monkeys, and we decided to stop off for more tourism on the way back. Again, a bus, then walk up a hill to Romney Manor where there is a batik printing workshop. There is a ‘tour’ which consists of of a bored
Brimstone hill
woman reciting her spiel for the 27th time today while painting a little wax on a piece of cotton before pointing you in the direction of the shop. I must confess that some of the product is gorgeous but it is the first time I have been charged $3 to enter a shop. Bus back to town and, while Elsie did a little food shopping, I had a much needed hair cut.
Batik

A lazier start on Thursday then out and motored the 5 miles across to Whitehouse Bay to anchor and spend the afternoon sun bathing. On Friday, we dinghied into the, very posh, Christophe Marina. The average size of the yachts here is in excess of 200 ft but they still met us with such charm that we spent $28 on some fresh Italian and balsamic vinegar, which was kept in the shop for us while we went for a walk. The marina is the first stage of a development and, as is our wont, we strolled around and picked the plot we would buy as soon as the lottery paid up. As we untied our scruffy dinghy, I noticed the fuel price and a bit of mental arithmetic showed me that it was the cheapest we had seen for months so resolved to top up the following day. Back on board, we pigged out out on fresh bread then, after a pause to let it settle, a dinghy into the shallows for a little snorkelling. On Saturday, we swapped islands, stopping off for fuel n the way. As it was only 6 miles across to Charleston, the capital of Nevis, we didn’t bother with the main and just reached across under the genoa. Not terribly efficient but, in the flat waters with 12-15 knots on the beam we did the trip in an hour, taking one of the obligatory buoys on arrival. We dinghied down to the town and managed, after a struggle, to land on a derelict pier. Wandered around the town for a bit then, on our way to find hot springs, noticed that a cricket match was being set up. Dangle of feet in the springs then back, beers in hand, to watch a seniors match between Nevis & St Kitts. The cricket might not have been of the highest standard but was enlivened by the commentary: "The crowd is building, we expecting a capacity of 26,000" (there were about 100 of us on rickety bleachers); "They are going wild" (our polite British applause at a six or a clean bowled or groan at a dropped catch were the loudest reactions). Also entertaining were the breaks when, after almost every 6, someone had to scramble over a wall to retrieve the ball or ask a passing pedestrian to fish it out of the main road.

On Sunday, we took the dinghy to the beach and walked up the hill opposite and through the forest to an abandoned sugar estate and beyond to work up an appetite for the last of our Italian bread. Monday was, basically, a lazy day with just a little trip ashore for bread and to check out.

We had an early start on Tuesday, 22nd, letting go our buoy at first light, 06:30 and motor-sailing the first few miles back past Booby Island to the windward side of St Kitts. Here we were delighted to find that the wind was due East, just a little further round than forecast and giving us 15 knots from just behind the beam. With full genoa and a single reef in the main we flew along and were at anchor off Gustavia, the Capital of St Barts before 14:00. Leisurely lunch and dinghy ashore to check in and explore the town. Voyaging round the Caribbean we encounter the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’. These latters are often elderly, poorly dressed and have been left behind by the consumer society. While some may beg, they mostly seem content with their lot. In Gustavia, we realised that we were the have nots. The harbour was filled with yachts, but they were almost exclusively of the motor sort and averaged about 150 ft long. The bigger ones, including Abramovic’s Eclipse (435 ft) were anchored outside. While there were some of the usual Diamond ‘n Emerald shops for the tourists, there were also some seriously high class boutiques and our brief foray into the liquor store revealed that wines at less than 50 Euros per bottle were not to be considered. Even the Thai takeaway had dishes priced at 30 Euros plus. But looking at the lovely ladies in their designer floaty dresses and their bronzed men sitting at the cocktail bars, we couldn’t help wondering if they were actually having more fun than us. The local supermarket provided baguettes for a Euro, good rum for 12 together with fresh meat, fruit and vegetables at European prices, so we just enjoyed our stroll, stocked up the fridge and retired to Ruby to watch the sun go down.

On Wednesday, we headed up to a little bay, Anse de Columbier. On the chart, it doesn’t look to give particularly good protection from the prevailing swell but reports were good and proved to be accurate. Buoys are provided and we picked one up. Unfortunately, there is a very short eye on the top to pass ones mooring ropes through. Elsie was struggling so I went to assist and ended up dangling over the side, getting my shorts wet. Not a problem in this climate until I realised that my phone was in the pocket. End of phone. Fortunately the SIM survived and we put that in Elsie’s phone to tide us over. We spent 3 nights here, mostly just relaxing with a daily trip ashore for a walk or beach swim and back for some little maintenance jobs including our bi-annual clear out of waste pipes, for once doing it not under pressure. Time for another Island change, so on the 26th, we went back to Gustavia, taking a mooring buoy this time as they are included in the ‘facility fee’ and got us closer in. We booked out the following morning and headed downwind to Sint Maarten, Dutch side of the smallest territory in the world to be split into 2 nations. We anchored overnight at Phillipsburg in a large bay (OK but lacking in charm) and then continued the next morning round to Simpson’s Bay, the major yachting centre.


Initially we anchored outside, as there is a lifting bridge and limited space to anchor inside. In by dinghy to check in and check out maintenance facilities as we had a few jobs to do. We managed to locate someone to repair our dinghy (a tear in the bottom, first repaired in Lisbon, was leaking); put a doubler on our lovely new bimini cover that we had contrived to chafe a hole through and free up our inner forestay adjuster. This had seized, having not needed any adjustment for 3 years but now requiring it as our new furling gear had added an inch to the primary forestay. On dropping this off, at the opposite end of the lagoon to the chandleries, etc. I saw that there was, in fact, space in the anchorage for 2 – 3 yachts and, with a 5 PM bridge opening coming up, we hoisted the dinghy on board and heaved up anchor only to find ourselves the 4th in line to enter. Being British, we joined the back of the queue but, once inside, we came over all continental for a few minutes, took a short cut and dropped our hook in the prime space available. The others also slotted in easily, so we didn’t feel too bad. Tuesday was a busy day, dropping off bimini cover and dinghy early (getting a ‘courtesy dinghy’ for the latter). We then caught a bus back over the hill almost back to Phillipsburg to see if my phone could be mended (no), buy a new, second-hand one and scout the supermarkets. On Wednesday it time to set up my new phone. Fortunately, I was mostly up-to-date with back-ups, so most of the aps, photos, etc. were there. The only thing it wouldn’t do was act as a phone: it wouldn’t make or receive calls or texts. The vendor had told us of problems with the Dutch side system so we dinghied to France and tried there. Eventually, with me one side of the buildings and Elsie on the other, using different networks, we managed to assure ourselves that it was working and, only pausing to buy some proper French bread, we returned to Ruby. Next was laundry. The owner of the laundrette assured us that it was cheaper if we let her do it (though, at $28, I dread to think how much self-service would have cost), so we left it with her. While there, we were told that the dinghy was ready. Oh dear! A not very convincing repair but worse, they had managed to damage the joints between transom and hull tubes. Of course, they denied responsibility but we are now in the position of being in the one place in the Caribbean where we can get a replacement and not knowing if we need it. A few more errands, including dropping off cooking gas cylinders and collecting the forestay adjuster. Thursday, an early bus to Phillipsburg, to walk round Fort Amsterdam, built in turn by the Dutch, French, British and Dutch again but now isolated inside a gated resort, which I suspect we shouldn’t have walked through. A trek back up the hill to a discount supermarket for some stores shopping and back in time for a quick dinghy trip to collect laundry and gas bottles, a late lunch and then caught a bus in the other direction to the beach at the end of the runway. Here, the threshold is very close to the perimeter meaning that that those on the beach feel that they can almost touch the wheels of incoming jets and really can get the full benefit of the jet blast from those departing. A good spectator sport if you judge your position nicely to avoid the eflux but watch idiots getting sand blasted, bowled over, lose their hats etc. 
Warning sign
Warned
Monthly stats:
Log                433
Over ground  361

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