Making tracks to Martinique

Just four days of almost perfect sailing saw us make a quick transit from Grenada to Martinique.

We said our goodbyes to friends in Grenada, but time was marching on and we had to leave.

Marie, Codey & Cathy - just missing Allen in this picture.  Wonderful young friends who are on the verge of making their marks on this world!  Can't wait to see what they get up to.

Day 1:  Mt. Hartman to Carriacou (43 nm).  Wind almost the whole way right on the nose, we took the western (leeward) coast and didn't even bother taking the sail out of the sailbag.  We hoped once we cleared the northern tip of the big island we might see some wind, but it just stayed right on the nose.  There was a big weather cell sitting just to the east of St. Vincent and thankfully it didn't move into the area but the effect was the northerly wind.  At least it was only blowing 10-15 knots and the seas were nice and calm too.  We arrived just in time to clear out of customs for an early morning departure the next day and to fill up all our diesel and gas jerry cans with duty-free fuel - the cheapest in the eastern Caribbean!

Day 2:  Carriacou to Bequia (41 nm).  Sailing through the Grenadines, the wind came round to the beam and we saw 8.2 knots SOG at one point!  The only excitement we encountered was when the reef in the sail decided to come undone.  Even though the winds were such that we could have deployed the full sail, we often find the boat more balanced and she sails better with the first reef, even in winds at 15 knots.  This day however, we didn't bother to try to reattach the reef and instead put the full sail up, and promptly lost a half knot of speed.  We had removed the sail for our time in the boatyard (required by the yard) and apparently when putting everything back, someone (ahem, me) obviously forgot how to tie the right knot - back to basics I guess.  All was fixed when we arrived in Bequia and is now performing quite nicely.

Sailing the Grenadines - pretty sweet.

Bequia treated us to a dramatic showing with the sunset.

Day 3:  Bequia to Rodney Bay (74 nm).  Up at 3am for an early morning departure under an almost full moon.  We had to motor to the top of St. Vincent and then again hit great conditions with almost flat seas across the channel to St. Lucia.

An almost full moon played hide & seek behind our sail.

In the early morning with the sun rising behind St. Vincent and the moon setting over the Caribbean Sea we had this intriguing lighting effect looking west.

Here's an interesting little study in perspective.  We were tracking up the leeward shore of St. Vincent with this monohull who left Bequia with us.  From our viewpoint, they were sticking awfully close to shore and we were hanging out a bit trying to pick up some wind.  However, when we checked their AIS signal on the chart plotter they had plenty of room.  Just goes to show how big those hills really are!

A bit blurry but Marinade appears to be almost on the shore.

Their signal on AIS (the little triangle) shows they are actually closer to us than to land.

Rounding the top of St. Vincent with barely a breath of wind, and then BAM!  20 knots on a perfect beam reach.

Early morning drama with the sunrise behind St. Vincent.

Approaching St. Lucia from the south provides beautiful views of the many moods of the Pitons.

I still maintain they look like cat ears in the early morning haze.

After a dry crossing, rain showers ahead.

There's an anchorage between the Pitons - bet they're getting wet today!  I love the twin 'smoking' volcano tops.

Almost obliterated in the intensity of the rain.

And then the sun came out and the whole fury was done.

Day 4:  Rodney Bay to Ste. Anne (25 nm)  With our early start on the previous day, we lazed around a little, let the sun rise, used up the last of the data on our Grenada SIM card (it doesn't work in Martinique) and then picked up the anchor to head north on a short little hop to the south end of Martinique.  Once again, another beautiful sail and amazingly few fish pots as we approached the anchorage at Ste. Anne.  When last here in July we had our pick of spots to anchor, now the anchorage is filling up and there are hundreds of boats here.  We found a nice sandy spot right between other fellow cruisers and here we will rest for a while.

Phew - what a trip and probably the best three days of sailing we have had in a very long time.  183 nm in 29 hours which is an average of 6.3 knots - very happy with this!

The Traditional Side of Carriacou

We arrived on Carriacou and have been enjoying the social life of Regatta and the beginnings of Camp Grenada 2016.  Today, with Janice & Dave (Livin' Life) and Sunny & John (Notre Vie) we decided to get ourselves over to the other side of the island and check out the wooden boat building scene.

We are anchored in Tyrrel Bay on the west side of the island, Hillsborough is the main town on the north side and way over on the other side is the little village of Windwardside.  Given that the sun is now directly overhead at noon and it is getting brutally hot, we opted to hop on a local bus and am I glad we did.  All told, the round trip is 28 km and it is hot, hot, hot!

Bus 10 from Tyrrel Bay to Hillsborough and Bus 11 from there to Windwardside.

Back when we were in Antigua for the Classics Regatta we had a chance to view the film Vanishing Sail.  If there's any way you can catch a showing and if you have any interest in island boat building or just a good story, don't miss the chance.  After watching the film we decided that we had to get ourselves over to see the actual building of one of these boats. I don't know if it's a result of the film or whether it was well on it's way before that, but there is a revival of traditional boat-building going on here with the sloops being sold to foreign sailors for racing or tourist excursions.

We found our way along the little beach and arrived in the yard of Anthony McLawrence.  When I say yard, I mean literally in his back yard, with the 64' hulk that he expects to finish by Christmas sitting solidly on the ground behind a fence.  Once the boat is finished the fence will have to come down and then it is just yards to the water.

The bus driver dropped us right on the town dock and we easily found one of the boat building locations, although there were a couple being built at various places in town.

Due to all the reefs and out-islands, houses can be built unusually close to shore on the windward side.

Standing on the dock, we watched a couple of island sloops getting ready for today's race around the island.  They fly these massive mainsails, a jib and a genoa or gennaker, have almost no keel and use men for ballast.

This half-planked boat was the first we found.

64' long and beamy inside.  These boats don't get finished off inside, the ribs will always be exposed, the advantage being things can't roll around too far.

The guys are checking out the planks that are nailed to the ribs with 10" nails.

Most of the wood is local Grenadian but the keel is Greenheart from Guyana - a very solid, heavy wood.

We had the pleasure of meeting Anthony McLawrence, the builder of this particular boat.  He has built 6 or 7 forty-plus footers but this is the largest he has built.

We carried on our exploration of Windwardside, finding another fishing boat being built alongside the road and magnificent views of the islands, including the start of the sloop round-the-island race.

One of the boat-builders featured in the movie owns this house.  It may need a little paint but is pretty none the less and a great example of a local house with gingerbread trim and lace in the windows.

An interesting story here - a memorial to nine boatbuilders who lost their lives in 1945 when a mine drifted to shore from a sinking WWII boat.  The mine exploded and killed the men working on shore nearby.

Petit St. Vincent (left) and Petit Martinique (right) with the sloops racing across the start-line.

Bus stop bench - great use of two pallets!

These guys seemed unperturbed that they were a half-hour late for the start of the race.

Welcoming sidewalk step to a local establishment.  We stopped for cold beers but although the pizza smelled delicious we were on the hunt for roti in Hillsborough.

One last look around Windwardside.  Dave found the site of the building of Genesis, the boat featured in the movie.

Lunch time was coming on and our tummies were empty so we hopped back on a bus to Hillsborough where the streets were bustling and the speakers were pounding out the Soca.  Nothing particularly special going on - just a nice Saturday in town.

Main street and market stands in Hillsborough.

Did we step back in time??  We've also seen signs saying they're licensed to sell Intoxicated liquor - I think I like Spiritous better.

Patti's Deli - a lovely example of traditional Carriacou architecture.

Not the bar we went to, but appropriate for Regatta weekend!

Noon and my shadow is almost directly below me!  We're just above 12N latitude and the sun is tracking south so it's just going to get hotter.

Found it - Sunny & John knew a great place to get roti.  Literally a hole in the wall, just up the stairs past the sign.

After lunch, we wandered onto the beach to watch the goings-on.  Prep for racing, liming(*) with beer, swimming, boats going back and forth to the pier, more liming, kids playing, adults relaxing - all a perfect way to spend the afternoon.

Checking out the boats at the pier.

There's something just a little unsettling about watching a laughing gull eating a chicken wing.

We leaned on this guy's boat long enough so he came over to join in the discussion.  Where sailors gather the conversation always comes round to boats and sailing.

Just along the beach a catch of whelks were boiled up.  The 'ladles' are actually the tree-end of two palm fronds and made most excellent scoops.

Visiting Windwardside totally lived up to expectations - laid-back, no fancy demonstration or museum, just people carrying on with their daily lives and bringing back a traditional craft that had it's heyday a hundred years ago.  Perhaps we will be able to find our way back up here for the launch of the boat we saw under construction.

* - Get ready for carnival, here's the dictionary:
Liming:  to hang around and relax, usually shooting the breeze with your buddies and a cold beer.
Chipping:  carnival step - little steps in time to the music
Wining:  another carnival move - a little more licentious and probably after consumption of much rum and beer.

Favourite Islands Part 4: Martinique to Grenada

These are the Windward Islands and when sailing south, Martinique is the point where you no longer have to sail east to make the next island.  Who said Caribbean sailing was all gentle breezes behind the beam?!  At least from here on down the chain there's a good chance the wind won't be hard on the nose.

This is the final instalment in my little island series - here's the one that started it all off.

Martinique

Approaching Martinique is much like walking into a tropical greenhouse - you can smell the flowers from a couple of miles off the island, especially at the end of the dry season when it seems just about anything that can bloom is showing off its most spectacular colours.  Visiting Martinique is like stepping into a heady mix of first world France on vacation in the Caribbean.  The island has just about every convenience and if you like shopping this is the place to come.  Also, if you have a French boat as we do, this is the place to find all those unique little requirements that are hard to source elsewhere.  Le Marin is huge and much like the lagoon on St. Martin offers services of all types and chandleries with direct supply lines to France.  The island of Martinique is a delight but is most easily explored by car on excellent European-signed roads.  Highlights include the volcano of Mt. Pelee, many rum distilleries and a banana museum, Fort de France - a bustling city, the mountainous interior region and we have particularly enjoyed hiking on the east coast.  The best thing about Martinique are all the anchorages starting with St. Pierre in the north, many little Anses around Fort de France and then Ste. Anne and Le Marin in the south.  Even if you don't speak French, the locals are friendly and will help out with quite a bit of English.

     Love:  Lorraine beer, cheap wine, great cheese, pain chocolat for breakfast

     Hate:  (apart from the effect on my waistline) There's really not much to dislike about this place - I suppose when you're trying to get a repair done, the French-Caribbean working hours are difficult to accommodate.  We use the mantra, "But of course, we are French."  Most trades work 9 to 12, 2:30-ish to 5, Monday - Friday and sometimes Saturday morning.  Also, if you use propane make sure you are well-stocked before visiting the French islands since you can only buy butane cooking-gas here.

St. Pierre nestled under the heights of volcanic Mt. Pelee.

Hiking the dizzying slopes of Mt. Pelee.

Fort de France - back to all the mod cons.

Night time concert at Fort de France.

The southern beaches and anchorage at Ste. Anne.

Christmas eve night in Ste. Anne and there's standing room only outside the church.

St. Lucia

St. Lucia is an independent island that has developed quite an infrastructure to support cruise ships and resort visitors.  After Martinique it feels a bit like visiting the wild, wild, west and in fact we have found there is even country music sometimes playing on the radio.  Rodney Bay at the north end is where most cruisers congregate and there is a good marina and boat yard with associated services here.  If you ran out of propane in Martinique because you stayed too long, this is the place to fill up (or to prep on the northbound voyage).  There are restaurants to please every taste and some of the best Indian food we have eaten down here.  However, it's not cheap so plan your visit accordingly.  In fact we find that St. Lucia is one of the most expensive islands to visit since prices are geared with cruise-ship and resort vacationers in mind.  On the flip-side, staying in the marina is affordable and a great place to take a little break.  Marigot Bay with access to the Capella Resort if you stay on a mooring is a delightful visit and we use this as our arrival and jump-off point to the south.  The south end of St. Lucia is dominated by the magnificent and iconic Pitons.  Many people do stop off in these southern anchorages but we prefer to view them from afar and avoid the clamour of the boat-boys.

     Love:  The ARC (Atlantic Rally for Cruisers) arrives in Rodney Bay in December and we loved the crazy energy of the place as these long-distance cruisers arrived.

     Hate:  It's hard to walk down the street without being asked for a hand-out.

Rodney Bay - another big anchorage where cruisers congregate.

Buying fruits & veg from one of the boat boys - just check everything for bugs and roaches cause they love to live in that canopy!

Gros Islet feels like a town out of the wild west, right down to the horses on the street.

Beautiful tiny Marigot Bay.

Sunset behind the palm trees.

Hiking here is straight up the mountainside!

Sailing to the iconic pitons.

Sunrise over Petit Piton.

St. Vincent & The Grenadines

St. Vincent (the big island) and the smaller islands of The Grenadines - Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Mayreau, Tobago Cays, Union Island and many little islets scattered in-between make up this nation.  We have not yet visited the big island of St. Vincent due to security concerns so Bequia is the first stop we make here when heading south.  We check CSSN regularly when cruising throughout the Caribbean and especially when in this area.  It is unfortunate since we have heard that the island of St. Vincent is magnificent, much like Dominica.  While some visit the island, most take a miss preferring not to take the risk of being the "one" vessel that ran into a bad guy on a particular night.  The island of Bequia has taken the cruising community to heart with many small businesses and restaurants all gathered around the end of large Admiralty Bay which makes this a delightful place to stop and visit.  The islands south of Bequia are unique in their various attractions and spaced apart to make day-hopping a pleasant activity.  Mustique - an expensive private island and resort for the rich and famous.  Canouan - another resort island with a dodgy reputation so we haven't visited (yet).  Mayreau - so small you can walk around the entire island but big enough to support a surprising number of bar/restautant establishments.  The Tobago Cays - turquoise, Bahamian-like waters full of turtles.  Union Island - we like Chatham Bay on the west side where you really get away from all the hustle and bustle.  All these islands have spectacular palm-tree lined white-sand beaches and look like they were plucked off a postcard.

     Love:  this is what you dreamed the Caribbean would look like

     Hate:  the unstable and corrupt government that has led to the security problems 

Bequia - Admiralty Bay from atop Peggy's Rock with 'Jetman' as our guide.

Bequia - Friendship Bay and the whaling station. 

Mayreau - Righteous & Da Youths bar.

Mayreau - Saltwhilstle Bay

From Mayreau - looking out over the Tobago Cays.

Tobago Cays - Petit Tabac and absolutely clear turquoise waters.

Sundowners in Chatham Bay on Union Island.

Grenada

Grenada is our chosen destination for hurricane season (August to November) and as such has been our home for about three months of the year for the last couple of years.  We've had a chance to get to know Grenada up and down the island but spend most of our time on the south shore.  Before getting to the big island however, there is one more island to visit that is geographically part of The Grenadines, but politically belongs to Grenada rather than St. Vincent.  Carriacou is our gateway to this southern island and is a great place to get away from the busy-ness of Grenada during the season.  This little place is where time tries to stand still and if you haven't seen the movie Vanishing Sail, I highly encourage you do so.  Grenada, on the other hand, is a busy, vibrant island full of cruisers, university students, ex-pats and locals.  The cruising social scene really heats up in Prickly and Mount Hartman Bays but there are plenty of quiet little anchorages where you can safely tuck yourself away if you prefer a more peaceful sojourn.  Weekly shopping buses, Saturday Hashes, cooking classes, yoga, fitness, volleyball, loads of great haul-out facilities and boat services mean that Grenada is strongly competing with Trinidad as the place to stay or leave your boat during the hurricane season.  We like to kick off our stay in Grenada in August with the annual Spicemas - a week-long party in St. George's that celebrates Grenada and all things Carnival.

     Love:  the friendships and camaraderie of Grenada and the Grenadians

     Hate:  heat and humidity - why do we come so far south at this time of the year!

Beautiful Secret Harbour on Mt. Hartman Bay - our home in Grenada.

There are so many waterfalls on Grenada to visit - Concord is one of the easiest to get to and most popular.

Volleyball kept us busy at Secret Harbour.

We managed to play a round of golf too.

Carnival time and the ladies are in high gear with the sequins and glue guns.

Old and young - all love to parade in costume.

Jouvet morning and we're ready to party.  Who knew we'd make friends with young med school students!

The frenzy that is carnival.

Jouvet is all about the paint - we're heading for the communal wash-down next :-)

Every Saturday afternoon there is a Hash somewhere on Grenada.  We were lucky enough to be there for the 900th - 900 organized runs on this tiny little island!

Bring on the dotty potty for the birthday celebrations - there's always a reason to have another beer after the Hash.

Hash buddies - ON ON!

Well, there you have it.  These (and the ones in my preceding posts) are all the islands that we have come to know and in some cases love over our travels of the past two years.  We still feel that there is much more to discover but we are starting to get a measure of these places.  Have we found an answer to the question, "What's your favourite island?"  Perhaps not, but we definitely have favourites (plural):

     St. Martin - duty-free boat parts

     Antigua - great round-the-island cruising grounds

     Dominica - abundant nature

     Martinique - France in the Caribbean

     Grenada - home away from home

... oh wait - can I add more? - it's too difficult to choose!!

Our explorations are so enriched by these guide books - don't leave home without them!

Name the country!

And of course - Cheers to all the friends we've made along the way.