St Lucia to Tobago 28th May - 23rd June

The passage to St Lucia. Tuesday 28th May 2013 arrived Rodney Bay lunch time on 29th May. Welcomed back by the dockmaster who was pleased to see ‘Piano’ again.  We caught up with Mari who is still here and Bridget & Derek who are both looking well.  Invited Jane & Tony over for sundowners. And tried out the waterside steak house which was tremendous.
  Finally decided to move to Bequia on 6th June.  Not quite an all night sail but very slow since the currents are against you when travelling south! Managed to snag a picture of a dolphin!

 Anchored in Lower Bay at ten to eleven that night.  The sea was alive with lots of fish and turtles.  Next day Coffee at the Gingerbread Hotel while the skipper signs us in then a trip to the top of Mount Pleasant with Baldwin and a wonderful view from the top,

Flamboyant Tree

 before a pleasant walk down to the Fig Tree for lunch. Each day we have been visited by Joseph the travelling chef with his offerings of fruit and fresh bread.  He also cooks at the Friday night Fish Fry at the Fig Tree.

      Tuesday we went to the Italian for a Pizza and Lasagna.  Great idea to have a take away for the trip tomorrow so ordered another Pizza but it came as the next size up so had to be cut to fit a) the fridge and b) the oven

Wednesday 12th June

  Set sail from Bequia to Man of War Bay, Tobago. 

Malcolm says he enjoyed this trip (!) I was more discerning, the grey sky and uncomfortable ride, was not my idea of fun.  I enjoyed lunch but went below for greater comfort and missed out on the Pizza for dinner.  Malcolm battled away all night without calling me for my usual watch. I returned to deck the next morning while it wasn't raining.  That didn't last long, by the time we were 12 miles off Tobago the grey skies had returned and the heavens emptied. Meanwhile down below the towels had a worst time, they ended up in the bath/shower try and the hatch wasn't tightly closed so they were comfy too but sodden with seawater! 

  It was still pouring next morning when we went ashore to sign in.  So we waited ‘til after coffee and then made a dash.  The customs lady ‘Venice’ has just started her job here and is a very happy lady.  Such a change to talk to a human being rather than an official! ( Ramsie you are not alone)

 A good job the water tanks are full so that the washing machine can go on– just need to empty the drying racks to hang it in the drying room/workshop! Plus there was plenty of Pizza and meatloaf left over for a tasty lunch.  The rest of the week was spent making a trek up to Fort Cambleton for the views.  We also visited ‘Sharon and Phebe’s for dinner another night.  Malcolm hiked up Flagstaff Hill too, while I put in some serious ‘liming’.  Wednesday we found Jabba’s store for internet and I was able to forward a few funnies.  Thursday we got free Wi-Fi at the library, but nothing new. 

Monday 17th we took a bus ride to Scarborough! (didn’t we have a luverley time the day we went to …) For a 2 hour trip I thought £1.80 return was good value!  Snaps here and in Picassa

Fort St George.

     Friday 21st June. A short sail round to Parlatuvier Bay, Tobago.  From the seaward side it looked as though it would be rolly but once in (almost on the beach) amongst the fishing boats it was mostly pleasant. Saturday we hiked to Parlatuvier Falls, 

Parlatuvier Falls

the only thing we forgot was the insect repellent!  Of course following a stream we were attacked by many biting insects mosquitoes included.  Malcolm said the water in one of the pools was plenty warm for a swim.  I had a couple of hours on the beach while Malcolm went looking for a restaurant. We haven’t seen a supermarket since St Lucia so we are making good use of the emergency cans which I shall not be replacing! We have sufficient with what’s in the freezer to reach Trinidad! And I’m back to hand kneading the bread as the motor on the bread-maker seems to have a problem. 

    Sunday 23rd June motored round to Englishmans’ Bay   Very nice quiet no other yachts. No Jetty, so we were unable to take the tender ashore here.

 Unpacked the diving gear and had a quick dive,  Malcolm had problems with his mask but managed to get it sorted.  Not much to see with a sandy bottom and just a few underwater rocks.  Quite a long swim back to ‘Piano’ for lunch and liming.  Light rain intermittent during the afternoon.  Also the camera is playing up since we recharged it , one of the lights stays on after it has been turned off!

Pigeon Island Reserve to The Saints 24th May

Friday (!!!)  we sailed for six hours in variable winds. At one point we even got the pretty Multi Purpose Genoa out of it's locker to give it an airing- it hasn't been out since the Atlantic crossing!  Of course as soon as it was set the wind came up so it was furled again -along with all the other sails- as a rain front came through with  strong puffs (30 knots) and big waves.  Still I managed a Hot smoked salmon 'Sub' with fresh french bread for lunch AND Devils Chocolate cake at tiffin time, not bad eh?
      We picked up a mooring at 'teef time.    Iles de Saints , named because there being so many small Islands the explorers couldn't find enough saints names for them all!  Hey Ho! A pleasant few days with no wi-fi and intermittent tropical rain to keep the tanks topped off. It was rather rolly on arrival so we ate aboard.
   I also took some pictures of the 20 or so competitors in the round the Islands race.

 Saturday we went ashore for a café au lait and general look around. They really go in for electric cycles here!

 Many artisans stores with gaily coloured fabrics and crafts.

 That evening we ate ashore in a pleasant restaurant which had tables around various water features.  No trouble from mosquitoes and the rowdy noise from the frogs made conversation impossible.   Sunday we hiked up hill to the Napoleonic fort for some history.

 1782 Admiral Rodney was here wresting the place from the French along with what I think must have been one of Sir Francis Drakes grandchildren, namely Francis Samuel Drake.  From old records someone had made a model to show 10,11, and 12 o’clock on the day of the battle.  The men o’ war had their ships name on the sail and boats were either red for the Brits or white for the French, it was most impressive.  As were the outside grounds, almost as good as the Botanical Gardens (on a smaller scale).

 The DOWNHILL walk was more to my taste.  It was spitting again by the time we had coffee.
Later….What a tasty Sunday dinner a leg of New Zealand Lamb obtained in the small local supermarket
  Monday was a grey day so we moved to the smaller Islet a Cabrit for more snorkelling. Pleasantly wall to wall fish! Plus we did get to see the mother and baby dolphin too.
Tuesday back to Desaires to sign out and we see the OC Club burgee flying next door so pop over to introduce ourselves to Jane and Tony aboard S/Y ‘Capisce’.  Then the passage to St Lucia.

Many more snaps in the latest folder on Picassa 'The Saints.

The Passage to Guadeloupe 18th May 2013

After a quiet meal at the ‘Piano & Steak Bar’ on Friday evening ( back in Jolly Harbour) we were not in the mood to lift the engine and tender.  So early the next morning we made an effort to get it done before being at the Customs dock at Jolly Harbour.  Saturday is the weekend and we were delayed by a late opening.  However I had a good chance to pass the time with ‘Ramsie’ the Boss who truly epitomises the Antiguan way of life.  He told me that he easily manages to remember the Yacht names if people return year on year and I can vouch that he is one of the best ambassadors for his country.  I’m looking forward to next time!
     So at 9.30 after coffee and strawberry cup cake with Ramsie we slipped the customs dock and set off for Guadeloupe.  Having sighted many fishing buoys ’Piano’ failed to snagg any—or touch any shallow sea bed.  By 10.00 we had set  three reefs in the main with full Yankee and staysail and we were roaring along on a close reach at 7.7 knots!  I had prepared lunch while at the customs dock so we ate ravenously around three in the afternoon. As we approached Deshaies we could see rain over the mountains so Rolled 1/3 of the yankee ( in case there was an acceleration zone). 17.00 we anchored in Deshaies Bay 16° 18’North 61° 47’ West and had tea.  Malcolm then went ashore to clear in ( just a French computer in a general store).
    On Sunday we had an enforced day off due to torrential rain but the upside was that I could finish my part of the quiz and yes Malcolm did his too!
  Monday we took the empty dive bottle in to the dive shop to be filled (5€ ) and they also checked my identification of species so that I could email the final part of the quiz.
  Next we made a visit to the Botanical Gardens—It was MORE expensive than Wisley but even so well worth it. I’ll tel the snaps tell the story. Koi Carp at the entrance:

Map of the Gardens:

A walk in bird avery with brightly coloured Parakeets.  They were tame enough to know that the dispenser gave a sugar drink.

Plenty of Palms :

Bromeliads :

Orchids :

Then a 50 ft waterfall complete with Flamingo enclosure.

Further on a village of McCaw houses with pairs of birds mostly sleeping.  We could see that they had a fun life with tight-ropes and various items of fun around.  (I suspect that their wings had been clipped).

After the tour we had another brilliant meal in the hilltop restaurant and then a leisurely walk down hill to the jetty.
Malcolm took a detour to Pointe Batterie.  A few loose cannons and a picnic area:

    Unfortunately Hemingway's Restaurant is now a ruin with a 700,000 € restoration grant from the European Community!!!
  Tuesday we needed a few items from the shops so took time to tour the small town.  It has a LARGE library, TIC, market area, bakery with coffee shop, tennis courts and all the local shops needed.  Not much in the way of tourism since it is a small village, not on the cruise liner run. Lunch was crunchy fresh French bread and quiche with salad etc from the bakery. As we were finishing S/Y Mistral arrived and came alongside to say Hi.  I mention this as Dave the fridge man was aboard and we haven’t needed anything done recently.   After tidying away we motored round to Pigeon Island Anchorage.  This lies in the Cousteau Marine Park so has good snorkelling and dive sites. I actually followed a small turtle along the rocks.