escapade sailing

May 20, 2015

Southbound with Monty. Part 2

Barbuda:

I managed to get completely lost on my early morning run around the wilds of Barbuda, few landmarks in the sandy tracks through the scrub. Nobody around to ask except the wild deer, donkeys and land crabs I met on the way. The sun was getting too high by the time I found my way back to the boat, very hot and in need of a dip before we raised the anchor and navigated through the reef pass and out to sea. Sails up and two fishing lines out. Soon we have a good size Spanish mackerel* on one line, while wrapping the other around a rudder. This was to be the last fish Monty and I landed on his trip, although we continued to troll a lure most of the time. There is a huge amount of Sargasso sea weed in the ocean this year. It is a free-floating weed that grows on the surface and moves with wind and current. we have encountered massive rafts of it, but more usually it seems organised in long strips aligned to the wind direction. We saw it all the way across the Atlantic and around the Caribbean. It is heavy enough to clog the fins of my windsurf board so that I have to stop and remove it. And of course it is disastrous for fishing. The lures don’t look so enticing to fish when festooned with a grass skirt of sargasso weed. Later in the day we sailed through a big floating island of this weed which slowed the boat from 10kts to 3kts and miraculously dragged the fouled fishing line free from the rudder!

*May have been a kingfish?

Antigua:

We enjoyed a great sail down the W coast of Antigua and Monty took the helm as we short-tacked up the Goat’s Head Channel, eyeballing the coral on each side before the final approach to Falmouth Harbour. As we dropped the sails and looked for a spot to anchor we could hear a major party on Pigeon Beach. It was the lay-day in the regatta week and the crews were being entertained.

We head ashore for some wifi and get the update from Team New Zealand. All’s well. We pass by Dawn’s favourite restaurants as Monty wants to have a ‘rootsy’ Antiguan experience. So we start with a beer at the IMPROVE Rasta Shack. It’s Sailing Week so there is street food, music and impromptu bars everywhere. All the race crews seemed to be having an early night but we had a late one with the locals who were all out to enjoy the evening. Charlene’s steam fish washed down with cold Wadadli.

Next morning we sailed out of Falmouth and past the leeward mark of the first race of the day. The fleet came streaking past, including the spectacular foiling G4 Gunboat.

Escapade is headed South again, the volcano on Montserrat is smoking moodily to starboard and the green mountains of Guadeloupe are rising ahead.

Guadeloupe:

We spent the night in the fishing village of Deshais where we cleared customs, ate good French pizza on the beach and sampled an authentic ‘Ti Punch’.

Next day we continued South down the coast of Guadeloupe, past the Cousteau marine reserve and on to the group of small islands ‘Les Saintes’ a few miles S of Guadeloupe. We enjoyed these isles with their goats and guanas, we spent a few days exploring some remote anchorages, windsurfing, snorkelling and eating well in the charming village at Bourg des Saintes.

Then it’s time to go, and the next island twenty miles to the South is Dominica. Twenty miles, but a world away.

Dominica:

It was very windy as we rounded the bluff and sailed in towards the town of Portsmouth in Prince Rupert Bay. A local guy in a small boat came to greet us and direct us to his mooring. He had motored a couple of miles offshore in 30 kts of wind to be the first ‘boat boy’ to contact us and thus enjoy exclusive trading rights with us according to the local code of practice. This starts with him renting us a mooring. It is not the most secure looking arrangement but as Titus takes our lines he assures us the mooring is sound. We have seen gusts of 35kts and there are whitecaps all over the bay. Titus comes aboard for a beer and he is a mine of local information. He would like to arrange jungle hikes and river trips for us. Whatever we need, Titus is our man. There is a brief misunderstanding at the mention of the word ‘weed’. We were referring to the Sargasso, Titus to the local mountain variety.

The moment we stepped ashore we felt at home here. It’s hard to explain the appeal of this island. The funniest, friendliest people who welcomed us into their life and culture. Wild misty mountains covered in jungle. Neither Monty or I were particularly excited about Dominica from what we had read, but now we would both say it would be the first place that we would return to. Monty even has his own bar here.

The next day it was still blowing hard and I was windsurfing around the bay fully powered on my smallest gear when I saw something that I’m sure I will always remember. As I came speeding back towards our mooring, there was Monty standing on the bow of Escapade. She was underway, serenely gliding through the anchorage and across the bay towards a rocky headland. Monty was less serene, aware that he was now single-handing a 51ft boat adrift in a Force 8, dragging the remains of Titus’s mooring down the port side, while the skipper was doing 25kts on a wave board. They were making pretty good speed under bare poles, but I could catch them.

A challenging moment! Monty threw me a line and I scrambled aboard, we ditched the shredded mooring so we could start engines. From past experience I know that towing a windsurfer behind a yacht can easily compound problems so we manhandled board and rig into the shelter of the cockpit and calmly motored back through the howling wind to drop our anchor off the beach. On 50 meters of chain. Having dived to check the anchor was secure, we ran through a few of the ‘what if?s’. It could have happened at any time in the night! I can’t believe I trusted that mooring and I won’t be doing that again. Monty has a few grey hairs but apart from that no damage done.

Aside from that drama the few days we spent in Dominica were a real pleasure. It is another one of those lands that time forgot. We sailed up the coast and anchored in the wilds, chopping green coconuts and diving for conch (we have at last figured out the correct way to get the meat out of the shell!). Our last night was in the capital Roseau where we were invited to a local reggae party in the boatyard. Now that was a rootsy night!

Next morning at first light we said farewell to the enchanted island of Dominica. Thanks to all our new friends for making us so welcome.

Martinique:

A lively morning sail down to Martinique. Fort De France looms like a big city so we anchor in a quiet bay, but Martinique feels like Europe and is such a contrast to Dominica. Our bubble is burst.

We are here for a crew change. Monty is jumping ship after three weeks, but first Dawn is flying in to join us, so we clean the boat.

So good to have Dawn back on board! She is ready for a swim round the boat after a 38hr trip from Auckland. Mission accomplished and Jemima is healing well.

For three weeks Monty and I have been testing the sanity of our decisions with the ‘Dawn Check’ (If she was on board, would she let me do this?) Now we have the real thing back to keep us out of trouble.

We spend a couple of days swapping stories and eating French Creole food, then it’s time for Monty to go.

Thanks for everything Mont, it was great to sail with you again.

May 19, 2015

Southbound with Monty. Part 1

Monty arrived in St Martin fresh from another season in the Alps and ready for 3 weeks of tropical sailing.

The forecast was for light and variable winds but with a long-period groundswell from a late winter storm in the North Atlantic. Not great for passage-making, but dream conditions for a weekend of surfing on St Barts.

St Barts:

We set sail for the dramatic rock of Ile Forchue and then on to Anse du Grand Colombier on the Western tip of St Barts.

The next morning we loaded the dinghy with surfboards, a grapnel anchor and about 50m of line. As we left the protected bay and motored around the headland we could see the swell funnelling between the outer islands and wrapping around the reefs. The dinghy was riding over the swells and around the rocks along the North coast, (without the benefit of a map or chart!) we could see waves breaking on to coral and cliffs but no sign of any surfers, and too dangerous to explore further in.

Finally we come to a wide bay and see two surfers paddling out. This looks promising. We estimate the depth, throw out the anchor and paddle our boards in towards the break. Our first question is ‘Where are we?’. The two locals are amused at our arrival from sea and welcome us to ‘Anse des Cayes’. a glorious bay lined with coconut trees, a small hotel and a mellow left-hand reef break that was to become our base for a couple of days while the swell lasted.

We can’t believe our luck. We had no idea where we were going. A perfect set-up, some long left walls, nobody around and all the waves we can handle. Don’t you love it when a plan comes together? Even better, the dinghy hadn’t drifted off! We save just enough energy for the paddle back and finally return to Escapade for a very late breakfast and a nap. By lunchtime we have sailed to the pretty harbour town of Gustavia, cleared customs, rented the silliest car we could find, strapped the boards on, driven over the steep hill and back down to our new favourite beach for the afternoon surf session. We have a bag with some money and phones. Monty asks at the hotel if they will look after it for us. The first of many occasions where Monty’s charm and fluent French would ease our path through the French Caribbean. We then seem to become honorary hotel guests and are welcome to park our car, use their gorgeous bar and pool and sleep on their beach loungers when not surfing. A very happy weekend.

When the swell is over we do a quick lap of lovely St Barts including the legendary ‘Le Select’ bar which has been serving cold beer, cheeseburgers and rum under a tree in Gustavia for 50 years. Then it’s time to clear customs and sail for the next island.

Barbuda:

I had planned to stop at Nevis and Montserrat on the way to Guadeloupe, but the wind veered right round to SSE so we changed the plan (again!) and at 04.30 set sail in the dark under code-zero and full main, bound for Barbuda.

A beautiful morning, tacking round Ile Coco in smooth seas with the sun rising. The wind gradually builds until the code-zero sheet parts with a bang and it’s time to switch to the jib. Monty catches a barracuda with an armour plated head. My first attempt to dispatch him was a tap on the head with a winch handle. He didn’t appear to notice that, but seemed keen to demonstrate his powerful muscles, jaws and teeth. The next three strikes with the winch handle don’t seem to calm him down at all. For the next few minutes I am locked in a violent and undignified battle with an 18 inch fish, from which I finally emerge slightly scaly, with two fine fillets. The islanders say the barracuda is the most delicious fish in this sea.

The wind keeps building and as we reach the sheltered waters of the outer Barbudian reefs we sail fast over white sand and around coral heads until we finally drop anchor at Low Bay for the night.

Next day we pack passports, boat papers and clothes into dry bags and swim ashore to the narrow spit of sand between sea and lagoon.

Goldilox has arranged our boat ride across the lagoon to the only village on Barbuda, Codrington, where I have permission to clear customs and immigration. This process involves visiting officials in three different offices spread around the dusty tracks of Codrington. Along the way we meet so many friendly people, stop for a chat in the kitchen of the ‘Roti Queen’, hurdle the waist high board across the door of Valerie’s Variety Store (“to keep de lizards out”) and rummage through the amazing selection of wares while she tells us her memories of Princess Diana’s visits. We pause for cold beer at the sleepy ‘Madison Square’ with chickens scratching around, and finally complete all our formalities with stamped passports and papers. Codrington has the feel of a place that has been by-passed by the last 50 years. A true one-horse town backwater in the Caribbean. It is poor, and life is lived very simply. The island is remote, the rough water between Barbuda and Antigua makes the ferry ride unpopular. The air strip is tiny with a few local flights, so there are very few tourists to supplement the income. I think most of the islanders live on the plentiful fish and lobster, they hunt wild goats and deer and we saw some well tended vegetable patches around the simple wooden houses. All the talk on Barbuda is of a massive investment in a new hotel complex led by Robert de Niro. We were told it includes a casino and a new airport to receive direct flights from US.

Big change is coming, for better or worse.

Most of the locals we spoke to were in favour of the deal and say progress is necessary. Monty and I raised a glass to the fragile charm of the place and wondered how much will be lost.

We swim back to Escapade, hoist sail and beat up from Palmetto Point to Cocoa Point, then motor through the reefs to anchor in 4ft transparent water at my favourite spot, Spanish Point. Monty flags down a passing fishing boat and we buy a couple of lobsters for supper. Then we inflate a SUP and he lays on a stylish windsurf performance around the turquoise lagoon.

Over sundowners we discuss our next move. The friendly Codrington customs officer had been surprised that we didn’t realise it was Antigua Sailing Week.

A famous regatta attracting top race boats and international sailors, plus the biggest party of the year for Antiguans with live bands, locals, yachties and hangers on.

And all this in full swing on the next island, 30 miles to the South…

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May 18, 2015

Change of Plan

Since Escapade was hatched we have learned to be a bit sceptical of our firm plans.

They do seem to change pretty drastically within a few weeks, or days!

One of our original plans was to sail up through the Turks and Caicos islands to the Southern part of the Bahamas.

We were keen to go exploring among uninhabited islands, shallow waters rarely visited by yachts, surfing and windsurfing the North swells that hit the reefs and banks of this huge area.

Our winter sailing season was only limited by an Atlantic crossing in December and the start of the hurricane season in June. Six months! Surely that is easily long enough to experience everything we want to in these islands?

As we sat studying the charts in early April, we realised the Bahamas dream would not happen this year. We had sailed as far as Puerto Rican waters and the Turks and Caicos were within reach, but to return to the Eastern Caribbean would be a hard slog against wind and current. We still wanted to leave Escapade on this side of the Atlantic for the hurricane season while we return to Guernsey for the summer. A new plan was formed to sail to Trinidad and haul out there in June. Our old shipmate Monty would join us for the trip from St Martin to Martinique.

The next change of plan was Dawn flying down to New Zealand to look after my daughter Jemima who was recovering from surgery in Auckland.

I was left in Tortola in need of crew to sail the 90 miles to windward, back to St Martin to meet Monty.

My racing crew Caroline kindly volunteered and we press-ganged her friend Richard to sail with us the next day, before he had time to think about it.

We sailed away from the Virgins and out to the East, reefed down and beating at 8 and 9 kts into the swell. Richard entertained us with a non stop stream of hilarious anecdotes and observations all the way, he only stopped talking once in the afternoon to catch a Mahi Mahi and again at midnight for 3 hrs sleep.

By sunset the wind was lighter and the reefs shaken out. Fish tagine for dinner.

At 10pm I commented that if Dawn was on board, we would put a couple of reefs in as “the sails seem to be bigger in the dark”. The breeze is 15kts, the boat is going well and Dawn is not on board, so we continue under full main.

Soon after midnight all hands are on deck reefing in 25kts of wind with Escapade romping to windward at 10kts in a cloud of spray. Drama over, boat slowed down, we are able to enjoy the moon and the stars and reflect on how wise my wife is…

First light at 04.30 and the morning sun warms us as we tack up into the harbour at Marigot Bay.

We spend a couple of days recovering and starting on my list of boat chores before Caroline and Richard fly back to Tortola. Thanks again to the delivery crew!

(Apologies for this late post. Regular readers of this blog will understand that this technology only works when Dawn is aboard.)

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April 27, 2015

Team California!

Brice and Genevieve made the long trip from Santa Cruz to Tortola to join us for a few days relaxation and sailing in the sunshine.

They arrived on the evening of the full moon, so naturally we had a drink at Trellis Bay where the Full Moon festivities were in full swing.

Then it was back to Escapade where we were preparing for the last day of the BVI Spring Regatta. Their first sail with us was an intense day’s racing.

Not too relaxing so far!

Did we mention that we won the regatta? (See previous post) So our new guests were required to join the celebrations at the closing night of the event.

Brice found himself on stage with the rock band in front of a substantial crowd of revellers playing solo on an electric piano.

After the regatta we were free to sail away for a few days and explore some new places. Still so many places we haven’t visited here. We started at Sandy Spit where B & G were able to swim, snorkel and windsurf. We had a fire-risk barbecue on board under the stars, then marvelled at the squadron of squid swimming past, glowing bright green and looking up at us through big luminous eyes.

Next was a quick trip to the lovely Cooper island where our snorkel trip was blessed with a large eagle ray gliding past us.

Then an early start for the 25 mile sail north to Anegada. Brice took the helm and steered Escapade at high speed on a close reach. Our first trip to the remote, northernmost BVI.

A wild, undeveloped, sparsely populated island famous for its reefs, wrecks and lobster. Anegada is to the Virgins what Alderney is to the Channel Islands!

We had heard of good surf and windsurf conditions at West End, it was only a couple of miles from our windy anchorage, so Brice and JP set off on wave boards to sail downwind to the break, slaloming between turtles.

The rumours were true. The swell was wrapping around the reef on the deserted westernmost tip of the island. Side shore breeze, fun-size waves and nobody else in sight. A magic session, one to be added to the long history of wave seeking adventures shared with Brice over many years.

The hour long slog back to the boat against wind and current was less fun, but so worth it. We had plenty of appetite for the wonderful local lobsters at Neptune’s Treasure.

Keen to see more of Anegada, the next day we procured a vintage 4wd rental, loaded it with toys and set off along the dirt tracks of the North Shore. The coastline is protected by a long barrier reef with lagoons inside and beautiful deserted beaches. We liked Cow Wreck bay (a ship carrying a cargo of cows was wrecked on the reef, several of the cows survived and made it ashore. We saw some of their descendants roaming along the beach one morning) and Loblolly bay where we found a channel in the reef and sailed a windsurf session.

Next morning was another early start with Brice at the helm, a fast sail south, past Necker Island and in to the Gorda Sound. Brice windsurfed across the impossible spectrum of blue water colours in Eustacia Sound where we snorkelled the reef and picked some choice conch shells from the seabed.

Back on board it took four of us about an hour to remove the meat from these amazingly strong shellfish. Cooked in butter and garlic they were well worth the effort. We have since done a bit more research on how to de-shell them!

Time was running out so we sailed back past The Dogs and in to our old haunt at Trellis Bay. Dinner with our friend Caroline on a little island in the bay at The Last Resort, last night on board for Brice and Gen. There was just time for an early morning surf at the lovely Josiah’s Bay before the flight. It was flat but great fun was had trying to ride the tiny turquoise waves.

We waved them off to San Juan on the first leg of their long ride home.

It was supposed to be a relaxing trip but they may have left more tired than when they arrived.

Great to sail with you two, thanks for coming!

April 15, 2015

BVI Spring Regatta

Escapade is not really a racing boat and we are not really racers, but we happen to be here and there is a major annual regatta taking place, so why not?

To make it interesting we are competing with another Outremer 51: Archer, owned by Rick and Julie Palm. We met at the boatyard in France last year when both boats were being commissioned. Archer and Escapade are from the same mould and the same age but there are differences in the rigs. We have a self-tacking jib and a rotating carbon mast. She has an overlapping genoa and a conventional rig. The mainsails and gennakers are identical. We have elected not to use our Code 0 sail as we are expecting 20 knot winds during the regatta. Both boats are measured for a CSA rating which should adjust for these differences so the boats can race together. The ratings are close but our elapsed race times will be adjusted to handicap Escapade for her carbon mast.

The week begins with a couple of warm-up races. Tuesday is the Round Tortola Race. We are joined by Chris as crew for the day, and Beverly as photographer.

A great day racing round the island. We went round in about 5hrs and we beat Archer by about 12 minutes, but would it be enough? Results are posted as we are celebrating our day at the bar. Escapade 1st! But our excitement is short lived as the rating has not yet been calculated. A few minutes later the adjusted times are posted, Archer won by seconds!

Next day is a pursuit race from Tortola to Jost Van Dyke. We are joined by our new crew Josh and Lucy, and a last minute volunteer Barbara. Now we really begin to worry about our rating, we are starting right at the back with all the high performance race boats and don’t stand a chance. We can’t beat Archer, or anyone else!

After a lay day fixing our water maker, Friday is the start of the official 3 day regatta. The breeze is a solid 20kts+ and we are joined by Josh, Lucy and Caroline. The BVIs make a great race area. The race officers set the courses around islands rather than buoys. Spectacular scenery with tricky wind shifts and shadows around the islands. We race the boat hard and beat Archer across the line in two intense races. The 5 of us on board are working well together and we are getting better at sailing the boat efficiently. Our sail changes are faster, our gybes are getting quicker and everyone is focussed on our boat speed, and Archer’s! Her crew are joined by Francois from Outremer and he knows how to make these boats perform. We can get past Archer, but not by much. The times are adjusted and the results announced. Two wins for Archer! Great sailing from the Archer crew, but everyone disappointed on Escapade after a long hard day. Our rating is punishing us for our rig but we don’t seem to be able to beat them by a big enough margin to win on corrected times.

Saturday morning we notice a chafe on the sleeve of our main halyard, expertly stitched and whipped by Josh and Lucy minutes before the race start. Beverly is back on board with her camera and today’s race course looks like fun for the multihulls with a fast reaching course and a good breeze. A start off Pelican Island and we work hard all the way downwind with slick gybes and no mistakes. But we are not passing Archer. Through the Thatch Island Cut and we bear off for Sandy Cay with the gennaker pulling us along at 14kts. As we round the Cay we are all trimming sails and daggerboards as Josh steers an audacious course between racing boats and anchored yachts, speeding past Archer with our music playing loud in the cockpit. We eventually crossed the line 9 minutes ahead of Archer and calculate that we have won by about 30 seconds. It can be done!

Sunday is the final day with two races to decide the result. So far Archer has two wins and Escapade only one, but we now know it is possible. Our crew arrive on board and are VERY motivated. Caroline, Josh and Lucy are joined by local hotshot sailor Rayne. He is 12 years old and races Optimist dinghies.

Rayne knows his stuff. We appoint him as tactician. We are also joined by Brice and Gen who have just arrived from California. The first race is a very short course and we are neck and neck with Archer. Our gybe is slow and Archer cuts inside of us at the leeward mark to take the lead. Rayne calls for a couple of quick tacks behind Pelican island to benefit from the ‘Geographical Lift’. It works a treat and Archer cannot catch us to windward. We win! With two wins each and one race left, the afternoon race will decide the winner of the regatta. The crew are tense, the wind is light now and we are concerned that will favour Archer with her larger headsail. The course is a long beat up past Peter Island and Salt Island, through the tricky Cooper Island Passage and downwind to finish off Pelican Island. Rayne calls tactics and we establish a good lead over Archer and sail a great race. We calculate that we will need to win by at least 7 minutes. We cross the line and watch Archer sailing downwind to the line, all eyes on the stopwatch. She crosses the line 33 minutes after us! Escapade’s crew are very happy and satisfied to have won. A few days ago it just didn’t seem possible.

Everyone felt it was a hard-earned win.

A great celebration at the prize giving party and we dance long into the night.

Great music by Al and his band Hot Sauce, joined on stage for a classy guest piano solo by Brice!

Thanks to all our crew who worked so hard to sail the boat to her limits and Rayne who made all the right calls. Thanks also to the crew of Archer who pushed us so hard in some very close racing, we couldn’t relax for a minute! We learned a lot and enjoyed the whole experience.

More thanks to Beverly Factor (www.beverlyfactorsailing.com) and Archer’s crew for the great action shots.

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April 1, 2015

16 ways to Sunday

Donald M Street Jr is a Caribbean sailing legend. He plied these waters for 40 years in his engine-free yawl and literally wrote the book, plus most of the charts. We still use his pilot notes on Escapade even though they are now 20 years old. The guru has this to say about the Spanish Virgin Islands: “they beat the BVIs 16 ways to Sunday.”
We don’t really know what that means, but it sounded good so we made the 40 mile passage from St Thomas, hoping to get off the beaten track a bit. Now we seem to be quoting Don’s line every time we round a new headland here and see what lies beyond.

Also known as the Passage Islands, they are Spanish speaking and part of the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. The islands were used as a firing range by the U.S. Navy for many years, some areas are still restricted due to the risk of unexploded ordnance, we did snorkel over the odd rusting bomb.

In Culebra we anchored behind the coral and slept on deck in the cool breeze. Cicadas singing in the mangroves, shooting stars above and phosphorescent plankton flashing in the water below.

At Culebrita we anchored in a beautiful bay equipped with its own natural rock-lined swimming pool, a promising little surf break, nice breeze for windsurfing, coconut trees on the beach and wilderness beyond.

In Vieques we sail in to a huge bay protected by reefs. Not a building, person or boat in sight. Anchor drops in 5′ of transparent water over white sand dotted with red starfish. We are alone, apart from the turtles and rays swimming around us and pelicans crash-diving for prey.
Supplies are running low so we climb for green coconuts and dive for conch. Both foods quite labour intensive, but tasty. (We cook conch like an ormer.)

Down the coast in the little town of Esperanza we buy supplies and find great restaurants. It’s Easter holiday time, locals are camping on the beach and merengue music is playing.

There is a bit of low-key tourism here now, One of the bays was judged ‘2nd most beautiful beach in the Caribbean’. We sailed straight past. Who ever compiles these lists really needs to get a boat! None of our favourite beaches have any road access and we could suggest several, all of which would beat that one 16 ways to Sunday.

Whatever that means.

March 9, 2015

Crew!

What a fun week.

Our first guests on board in the Caribbean. Tony and Gill joined us from Guernsey for a whistle-stop tour of the Virgin Islands, They are now both experienced deck-hands. Tony is a natural helmsman, and very handy with a boat hook. Both our guests graduated from the JP Watersports Centre with new skills in windsurfing and paddleboarding, with Dawn claiming wave of the week at Cane Garden Bay.
The local sundowner favourite is the ‘Painkiller’ to sooth the crew after an exhausting day at sea. These were sampled daily at some great beach bars from the Soggy Dollar to the Bitter End and back.
Good times with good friends, thanks for getting out here and hope it’s a smooth trip back.

x

March 3, 2015

St. Martin to B.V.I. – finally!

So we only went to St Martin to get a couple of bits of work done on the boat.

Our first impressions were not great and we didn’t plan to stay long. But it seems there is a bit of a forcefield surrounding the place! St Martin is so well set up for yachts, anything can be bought, fitted or repaired there. After her first 5,000 miles Escapade was ready for a pit stop. We met so many capable technicians and learned a lot about the boat. Every time we thought we were ready to leave there was always one more job to do, one more person to see, one more reason to stay another day. Along the way we also found some great places and started to enjoy St Martin. Restaurants, beaches, surf spots, good music and fun people.

Finally the last job was done, the cellar was stocked with French wine and it was time to leave. On 26th February we sailed away in the dark at 04.30 with a 20kt breeze. At daybreak the fishing lines came out and we settled in to a swift 90 mile sail downwind, arriving in Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda in time to clear Customs and Irritations at 3pm and order a couple of Painkillers before the end of happy hour.

Since then we have been starting to explore the BVI. So far we have touched at: Beef Island, Peter Island, Cooper Island, Tortola, Prickly Pear Island, Saba Rock, Gorda Sound, oh and JP windsurfed over to Necker and got rinsed over Branson’s reef (still picking the urchin spines out of his buttocks…). Still dozens of islands to explore, this could take a while…

February 12, 2015

Easy in the Islands

Islands keep appearing over the horizon and the weeks go by.

Escapade has dropped her hook in some beautiful places.
Sleepy Nevis with more monkeys than humans.
Glamorous St Barts with a sort of Tropical/St Tropez/Ibiza feel and a well stocked French supermarket!
The culture shock of the bright lights and traffic of Dutch Sint Maarten.
The beautiful windswept uninhabited island of Tintamarre.
The great restaurants and partying at Grand Case in French St Martin.
The turquoise water off the beaches and outer islands of Anguilla.
The islands are strung out only a few hours sail away from each other, but all distinct in their own character.
Days are busy sailing, exploring ashore, windsurfing, fishing, snorkelling and looking after Escapade. She has sailed about 5000 miles from France and it’s time to tune the rig and do a bit of maintenance in St. Martin.
After meandering Northwards through the Caribbean for a month we have now run out of Leeward Islands. Next passage is 70ish miles to see the next archipelago appear over the horizon: the British Virgin Islands.

January 25, 2015

Antigua & Barbuda

We took a few days to celebrate our crossing in Falmouth with friends old and new.

Enjoying the luxury of bars, restaurants and a stationary bed to sleep on, with no night watches. It’s great to be back here and finding so much unchanged – Mad Mongoose, Abracadabra, Grace Before Meals, espresso martinis in the Skulduggery Bar… We drove in to St Johns to see our old friends the Francis family who cooked us a wonderful dinner while we tried to catch up on the last ten years.

Now fully recovered from the Atlantic crossing we could hear the call of the next island. Time to re-provision and sail 30 miles or so to Barbuda.

On the way we stopped at Green Island to windsurf. We discovered a perfect breezy anchorage tucked in flat water behind a reef where a big groundswell was breaking. For two days JP windsurfed waves peeling down the reef with no other sails in sight.

On the morning of January 15th the swell had dropped a little, we were up early, hauled anchor and set sail for Barbuda, pausing to land a nice Spanish mackerel on the way. Our destination was Spanish Point, a beautiful turquoise swimming pool of an anchorage, with a tricky approach through the reef which protects it from the Atlantic swell. Escapade surfed in through the narrow reef pass at 16kts with breaking waves on either side, speeding out of the channel in to the vast turquoise pool. We anchored in 1.5m of transparent water, the boat hovering above her shadow with stingrays gliding underneath. Not another boat in sight! The fish was filleted and although it was still rather early, an exception was made and the 50th birthday celebrations began.

One week later, supplies were running low. We had explored most of the navigable West coast of Barbuda and anchored off a series of beautiful, deserted, pink sandy beaches. We had explored ashore, visited the astonishing frigate bird colony with our guide, Goldilocks (who used to have long blond dreadlocks – we had wondered here the name came from when we met him!) and the only settlement of Codrington, home to the 2000 Barbudians. Outside of the village you are more likely to meet the horses, donkeys, deer and pigs who roam wild.

On the morning of the 23rd we sailed back to Antigua to re-provision. A glorious sail in to Deep Bay for the night, then on down the West coast and short-tacking up the South Coast between the reefs, back to Falmouth.

Forecast looks good for a crossing to Nevis tomorrow..