St. Thomas, VI!

Back again. Well, it was quite a ride. We had checked out with St. Martin authorithies and wanted to leave on Friday, March 19, only to realize when we were outside in the Marigot Bay anchorage that the forecast did not agree with the reality. It was blowing hard, steady 25 and 35 kn in gusts ... well, was this really the time to go and do an overnighter to the Virgina Islands. We thought no ... and spend the rest of the day to explore the island again, hike up to the fort, have a coffee at the phantastic boulangerie "Serafina", do some Internet ... and postpone the departunere until the next day.

And we left as planned the following noon. The forecast was mixed, but ... well, the wind was ok, 20+kn. But miles out, we experiencend seas coming from different directions, making terrible cross-seas along the way. We rolled gunnel to gunnel through the next 20 hours. Marleyne was unable to rest down below at night, so I took the opportunity to take a nap - if you can call it that. In the middle of the night we got caught be a very, very confused sea which did through me out of my berth and violently into the lee cloth, which, in turn, ripped the attachment points out of the wood, and I ended up on the floor. My comment was ...: ok, something else to fix! Never mind the scratches and bruises.

We arrived mid-day in the BVI and anchored behind Salt Cay and had a swimm to relax and to refresh, followed by a long nap.

We checked in at Cruz Bay the next day, moved over to Great James for the night, cleaned the bottom of the boat in the morning, and went on to St. Thomas with strong easterlies behind us.

Today, while still blowing hard in the anchorage, we fixed the things we had broken on the passage and did some other work we had not time to attend to.

... and are still working on our decision to go back home or stay another year.

But we love St. Thomas and very much look forward to go on land tomorrow! I have to get some T-shirts, mine are getting a bit old and holed ...

Do we really want to go back????

St. Martin, Marigot Bay

Yesterday morning we left the lagoon anchorage and re-anchored in the Marigot Bay for our overnight departure to the Virgin Islands .... but with winds gusting well over mid 20s and into 30s we decided to stay for another night. Today, the weather looks much more promising and we will be on our way later on in the afternoon.

At the moment we enjoy another coffee at the La Sucriere ... and Internet.

On friday afternoon, we took a bus towards Zion but asked the driver to drop us at the Golden Rock plantation...we read that one could hike from there. And we did...in addition to visit the hotel site (there are only 20 some guests..), we hike the nature trail in yet another tropical forest setting. It was a magical place, with huge trees, old stone buildings covered with vines, and dry river beds with moss covered boulders ...We met the owner of the estate and she gave us an interesting hidtory of the plantation that used to belong to her ancestors.

When we arrived to the Carribean last year, we went from St Martin to Antigua and skipped the small island group to the west...this time around, we decided to have a look at them, beginning with Nevis. It took quite a while to do the check in with Customs, Immigration and Port Authority as two of the individuals were not available at the time of our arrival. We explored town, went to the tourism Office (staff of 8!), and then were finally successfull doing the clearance. Everybody was courteous and nice but they are a bit "penible" about formalities here...Nevis has a definite British flair with its old stone buildings and quaint squares.

This stone alley used to be the site where slaves arrived in Nevis, a "shipment" could be as high as 7,000 people! The actual island population is 12,000...

The nature trail of the plantation offered an easy stroll in a verdoyant forest...

We motored almost all the way from Guadeloupe to Antigua...at least we know now that our engine is doing well! There were not too many boats in English Harbour ..then this mega yacht arrived! Wow, it looked like one of James' (Bond) gadget...only in Antigua!

Nous aimons Antigua ...avec ses grands yachts classiques...quand celui-la s'est montre dans le mouillage, tout le monde s'est exclame!!! On se croyait dans un film de James Bond!!!! Quel specimen!

Lindsay and Karen enjoyed this tour of the island very much and were amazed at how much they saw in these 6 days...we could not have them come with us to Pointe A Pitre on Saturday morning as they left early in the morning. We were amazed at the activity and ambiance of the Guadeloupe metropole and loved the market and the drummers! We had a beer at one cafe of the Place de la Victoire ...great visit guys! We drank that Corsaire beer to your health!!!!

We had a great sail from Les Saintes to Pointe-a-Pitre with a south easterly blowing 20 to 15 ...we witnessed the unfortunate landing of a large catamaran on the breaking reefs of the entrance of the Petit-cul-de Sac marin...sad to see.

On the last day with Lindsay and Karen, we rented a car and toured Basse-Terre...it enabled us to see the Soufriere volcano, other tropical parks, and villages and towns of the west coast. It has rained very little in Guadeloupe and the landscapes with many yeloowed leaves covering the ground was a bit reminiscent of our fall!

We enjoyed the drive and the walk to the volcano. Guadeloupe has great parks and all the hiking paths are "deluxe"...compared to outher islands...well marked, well groomed...

Lindsay and Karen were amazed at the beauty of the anchorage! And so were we…last year, we discovered Terre de Haut and it was our first French island…we were charmed! This year, I was not sure if we would have the same impression as we have seen so many islands in the mean time..but yes, Les Saintes remains a very special place, with its beautiful creeks, wild beaches (Grande Anse), its colourful “cases” and its “tourments d’amour” …exquisite pastries typical for the island. We visited Fort Napoleon and enjoyed the views, the cactus and succulent gardens and its expositions of the tales of battles between France and England.


C’est avec plaisir et encore un certain émerveillement que nous avons retrouvés Les Saintes…leurs paysages sauvages, leurs “cases” aux couleurs brillantes, leur atmosphère…on agrimpé jusuq’au Fort Napoléon d’où nous avons eu de merveilleuses vistas sur les baies environnantes. Les jardins du fort étaient intriguants, le fort impressionant et les expositions relatant la vie des saintois, leurs us et coutumes, ainsi que les batailles qui ont eu lieu dans ses eaux tres intéressantes.

As planned, we sailed to Pointe-a-Pitre in order to welcome back Lindsay and Karen to the islands...it’s their third trip in a year!!! There were several boats in the anchorage which is now free…no more 10 euros charge for anchoring there like it was the case last year. After a major shopping spray at the Champion supermarket of the marina complex, we sailed towards Les Saintes…when we were the least expecting it, we saw a humpback whale breaching about ½ mile ahead of us!!! Oh! We were so excited!!! We were looking for the rest of the pod but we saw only one…Nevertheless, it was something unforgettable!

Marie Galante is an island belonging to Guadeloupe and it has an aura of mystery and exotism to it that draws people to its shores, at least Francophones …we were somewhat disappointed as its towns are really not pretty with their dilapidated buildings. Ther was nothing really drawing us to Saint-Louis and we stayed on the boat, swimming and reading, recovering from the Domenica swells!

Marie-Galante ou la “grande galette” parce que forcée la surface au cours d’une poussée volcanique à l’ère quaternaire..a des bourgs qui semble aussi dater de cette époque la avec les murs dilapidés de ses habitations! Cà c’était surprenant et décevant car jsutement, ce nom évoque, en tout cas pour nous francophones, les horizons lointains, la mer, le mystère! Mais bon, nous avons fait une promenade dans les environs, au milieu des paysages de cannes à sucre et nous avons passé le plus clair du temps à nager et à nous reposer (Ne riez pas!!!! Les nuits de Portsmouth nous avaient fatigués!).