West Indies, March 2014

This is our first posting of the 2013-2014 Caribbean Sailing Season. The photo below explains why, as much as we enjoy living in our little waterfront caboose in Nova Scotia during summer months, we choose to be in warmer regions during the winter.

Recommissioning the Charlotte D.

On November 24, 2013 we returned to the Charlotte D stored ashore in Grenada for the hurricane season just ending. Among the routine annual maintenance and standard recommissioning items were reconnecting and charging batteries, filling water tanks, applying anti-fouling paint to bottom, reinstalling blades of wind generator, replacing engine zincs, reinstalling furlers of two head sails and bending on sails,

In addition, we carried out tasks required less frequently. These included sending out two alternators for servicing and re-installing these on engine, replacing 250 ft of anchor chain, purchasing new Yamaha outboard engine, Fiberglas repair of a crack in the keel that we had opened for drying in the spring, and installing new swim ladder.

Our sewage pump got a much-needed rebuild.

We brought our reverse osmosis water-maker back to life by replacing the head of the feed pump and installing a new membrane.

And, of course, every sailor must maintain the cordage.

A major effort was needed for us to complete the removal of our deceased Onan generator; 500 lbs of dead iron left in the boatyard. The generator would not fit out the door of the engine room. Consequently, we tore down the engine as much as possible to decrease weight and size, until we were able to manhandle the engine block overboard with the help of two young Italian cruisers. The space created in the engine room was used for a new storage bin for engine fluids.

We replaced a section of decayed wood from the bow of our sailing dinghy and with new wood and epoxy.  This was followed by new paint for her topsides and interior.

Catherine showed her artistic flair by decorating the edges of two mirrors with pink sand (from Barbuda), shell, coral and beach glass. To make the new outboard engine less attractive to thieves, she stripped the Yamaha decals, and lettered the engine coaming in Khmer script. I think it means something like, “may the gods curse you if you steal this engine”!

We installed a new lift pump on our propulsion engine and

bled the fuel system.

A leak under the galley sink and some corroded wiring inside the chain locker were repaired.

All-in-all, it required 25 days to ready the Charlotte D for the 2013-2014 cruising season!  And once she was in the water, we soon followed.

Fortunately to date,  the maintenance efforts have paid off (knock-on-wood). Beyond routine maintenance, few repairs have been needed during this cruise. 

A bit of line tangled around the prop shaft

of the outboard engine was one of the few

minor problems.

Grenada to Martinique.

On Christmas Eve, we departed Grenada for

the 165 nm passage to Martinique.

There was quite delightful weather during the first day of this trip. On the morning of the second day we were even considering extending the trip onward to Guadeloupe, until we collected the weather forecast which included prediction of numerous squalls and possible thunderstorms! At this point, we were about 50 nm from Martinique with no attractive alternate harbour. We ran our engine to make all possible haste to Martinique, but we did not outrun the approaching weather. 

Before it was over we survived 6 hours of almost continuous squalls and thunderstorms, a concentration of harsh weather like we have never before experienced in the Caribbean winter! 

 It was a truly spectacular display of nature's power. We were concerned enough to pack all possible portable electronics inside the microwave oven, hoping for protection from EMF. We feel fortunate to have suffered no damage from the multiple nearby lighting strikes!

While on the topic of marine weather, we are pleased to have access to weather information from several sources. Our HF radio gives us access to NOAA forecasts and GRIB files through Sailmail, Chris Parker (0700 hr on 8137 USB), and Dennis of Tiger Lily II (0745 hr on 4420 USB). We particularly appreciate Dennis because of his countless volunteer hours analyzing meteorological data. His net is two-way and also keeps us in contact with several cruising friends. When we have internet access ashore, we regularly consult www.windguru.com.


All weather forecasts can be wrong at the same time.

From December 25 through January 2, we enjoyed Martinique, as always. There is minimal holiday hysteria in the village of Saint Anne, so the anchorage there is usually peaceful. Inside the Cul de Sac Marin is access to groceries (the Leader Price has a dinghy dock), boat supplies and parts (fortunately, we had few needs in those categories). Of course, when in Le Marin we never miss the Leffe and Hoegarden on draft, fresh baguettes, and the economical and enjoyable meals at “The Sextant”.

Do not miss the lovely harbour of Petit Anse d'Arlet.  Beautiful fish around the boat.  Excellent "pieds sur l'sables" eateries.  And, recently, it became possible to clear in/out at this wonderful place.

Reve de Guadeloupe

It was a non-stop sail from Martinique to Les Saintes, Guadeloupe, 92 nm, with one night underway and upon arrival we rewarded ourselves with some of our favourite island fare; vieux rhum, creole boudin, feroce d'avocat, accras de morue, and crab farce!

We spent 27 days in Les Saintes. Peter had somehow injured his knee, but it was recovering enough for some good, vigorous hikes. 

Of course, we hiked cross island to the spectacular Pompeii Beach, where Peter continued his recuperation in hammock.

The beachfront at Le Bourg is ideal for wading and swimming among the colourful local fishing boats that are moored or beached there.

Several beachfront homes are nicely decorated, even when they don't try to be. We saw the artist at work painting these imaginative hibiscus.

There there were climbs! Le Chameau is the highest peak at 313 m (1044 ft) and yields spectacular views of the harbour and the surrounding sea. The peak at Illet a Cabrit is only 88 m and has some interesting ruins of a Napoleonic Era fort. We “donated” a pair of prescription sun-glasses at the top of Fort Josephine, unfortunate for us. Henrique is still making his Amerindian earthen-ware masks and teaching pottery classes.

There are many excellent restaurants in Les Saintes. One of our favourites is “Le Saladerie”, which as the name implies, does indeed specialize in salads, and, Oh!, what salads!

Of course, with Catherine in the galley and Peter at the BBQ, we have fine meals aboard the Charlotte D, as illustrated in the photo below.

Several waterfront establishments are perfect for leisurely Happy Hours with magnificent harbour views.

Some small cruise ships do enter the harbour at Les Saintes. Fortunately, several of them are in the most beautiful category.

The harbour is often calm enough for sailing our dinghy, “Her Majesty”, built for us by our friends Tim and Marie, of Windsor, Ontario. 

We enjoy small boat sailing ourselves, and so derive great pleasure from the passing hobie cats and nutshell dinghies used by the local sailing school. Much kite-surfing takes place off Le Illet de Cabrit and is fun to watch. Blessedly, there is no jet-skiing or water skiing in this harbour, preserving the quiet.

After several visits, we are remembered by some of the locals, which is flattering to us of course, but may also say something about how they know we appreciate them and their lovely island. It is clean, quiet, beautiful, safe and polite.

Walks around Le Bourg are scenic and pleasant.

Now, for a “political diatribe”. There is much bemoaning the action of Le Bourg in filling most of the harbour with moorings for rent, substantially reducing the opportunities for using one's own ground tackle. We agree that usually it's preferable to trust one's own anchor and chain, which you maintain (personally, of course) and know how to use (usually), rather than trust a mooring with maintenance unknown. However, we also remember the pre-mooring days at Les Saintes (circa 2005). Because the harbour is deep and the holding is variable, there were many night-time “excitements” of dragging anchors, and loud disagreements between boats-in-place and newly anchoring charter boats with crews “half-in-the-bag”. Consequently, we believe that the moorings at Les Saintes make for a happier time for all. Consider also that for a month stay, the daily mooring charge amounts to about 4 Euro 20 for our boat length. Compare to US $30/day for mooring in the BVI! These charges are revenue helping to sustain communities that are pleasant to visit. Furthermore, the higher the density of moorings, the greater is the number of cash-bearing sailboats that can be accommodated in the harbour. C'est l'argent qui fait danser le chien.

The British Virgin Islands Revisited

On January 23, we departed Les Saintes for the non-stop passage to the British Virgin Islands; 230 nm over 42 hours. The first 21 hours were splendid for sailing, even though Catherine was less excited than Peter when boat speed approached 8 knots! It was a broad reach from Les Saintes to the SW corner of the big island of Guadeloupe. In the lee of that island, there were two hours of wind too light to sail, but the wind soon returned, and we continued our fast beam reach north across the Guadeloupe Passage and onward to Sint Eustatia.

We passed close by the islands of Sint Eustatia and Saba, special municipalities of the Netherlands. These are “steep-to” mountainous islands without sheltered anchorages or sand beaches. We thought that they appeared rather foreboding from the sea, perhaps because it was a gray day.

Moorings are in place in the deep water along their lee sides, but the boats we saw there were not lying quietly. Ocean swells wrap around the islands. We concluded that visiting in the summer would be preferred. Both of these islands have long and intriguing cultural histories. There are interesting fort and town ruins, and hiking trails with beautiful vistas.

Passing Saba, the wind diminished precipitously, and it was necessary to use our engine to continue westward toward the BVI. It is rarely necessary to motor westward in the winter because of the more-or-less constant easterly trades. This was one of those days. We finally passed through the Round Rock Passage at 0700 on day three and entered the Sir Francis Drake Channel of the British Virgin Islands.

In the days of our approach to the BVI, Peter experienced increasing discomfort from a cracked tooth with nerve progressively exposed as pieces of the tooth continued to break away. We have a variety of medical supplies on board, but we are not prepared for oral surgery. Fortunately, we found Dr. Garfield Neita in Tortola. He was able to see Peter at the end of his busy schedule on the day after our arrival, and performed a “root canal”, immediately relieving the pain. We were satisfied in every way with the service of Dr. Neita and his staff. After the dental chair, we visited “Pusser's Restaurant, Bar and Store” where Peter was helped in his recovery by a “wee dram” of the famous rum.

In 1975, Peter, Catherine, mother Suzanne, brother Steve, sister Jane and her husband chartered a sailboat for two weeks out of Maya Cove, Tortola. We were amazed at how much BVI cruising has changed in the 40 years since that previous visit. The ratio of chartered boats to private cruising yachts has increased dramatically. Many of the anchorages nearly deserted then are densely occupied now with chartered boats using moorings. There are many alternate styles of cruising. We of the Charlotte D prefer to spend several days (sometimes weeks) in each anchorage, to explore local communities (preferably on foot), hike in the hills, read on the beach, snorkel a reef or two, and get to know fellow cruisers and locals at Happy Hour. This leisurely cruising style is much less common in the BVI now. Most charter boats arrive every day for Happy Hour/dinner ashore and depart for the next harbour early the next day. After all, they have only one or two weeks to see all of the Virgin Islands.

Fortunately, the BVI is a large and diverse cruising ground, able to satisfy the preferences of all.

Some examples will illustrate. Road Town, Tortola, is the focus for the Cruise Ships, with 3 or more large ships per day, and ACRES of charter boats at dock waiting for customers. Soper's Hole is packed with moorings occupied by “mega-yachts” and, ashore, provides high-end bars/restaurants (requiring reservations and “appropriate attire”), spas, boutiques, live entertainment and lodging options. Buy your Rolex and diamond rings. White Bay, Jost Van Dyke, is the focus for “day-trippers” in their high-speed boats from St. Thomas, who flock to the row of popular ticky-tacky beach bars for loud music and "the-best-drink-in-the-islands".

In Little Harbour, Jost Van Dyke, quiet and low key, there are only two bars/restaurants, and we patronized them both. At Sydney's Peace and Love, we enjoyed the Honour System Bar for Happy Hour.

At Harris' Place, we were hosted by Cynthia, daughter of the late Harris.

We walked up the steep hillside along the now-paved two lane road, where, 40 years ago, we ran uphill along the one-lane dirt track.

Of course, lobster is still part of Caribbean cruises, as it was in decades gone by!

Still on Jost Van Dyke, we enjoyed Great Harbour, which is a convenient point of clearance in/out of the BVI.  Very "laid-back" with it's main street of sand.

















Foxy's Bar is still there,
with it's famous selection of rum drinks.








Near Jost Van Dyke there is another beautiful and sparsely occupied anchorage at Sandy Spit.

In Brewer's Bay, Tortola, there are no moorings, good anchoring in clear sand, two run-down bars along the beautiful beach, and plenty of peace and quiet.

We anchored in Brewer's for several days with one to three other boats. There is a lovely hike 700 vertical feet up Mt. Healthy to see the ruins of the 1800's windmill and the panoramic views of the harbour and distant islands.

We “discovered” old cannon and remains of rhum distilleries in the forest.

Click on the video clip below for a sample of one of the unique creatures found in tropical forests.

Cane Garden Bay, Tortola, is a splendid large bay with plenty of options for taking a mooring or anchoring in clear, white sand. Ashore, there is a selection of pleasant eateries with our style of live music in the afternoon. There are two groceries.

From here we took a taxi, by way of the “elevator”, across to the south side of Tortola to purchase a few boat supplies at Nanny Cay. Fortunately, we returned in time for another spectacular BVI sunset.

At Lee Bay, Great Camanoe Island, the bottom is rocky, which presented some difficulty of anchoring.  Crew from a neighbouring boat kindly helped us clear this mess.

As we were sometimes the only boat here, we renamed it “Bare-Butt Bay” (B-B Bay) and enjoyed B-B swimming, B-B BBQ, and B-B B.B. King. Click on the video below to appreciate the solitude.

There was a brief stop at Marina Cay, a beautiful location with an interesting history, but too much of a loud party place for our personal taste.  Go here for action!

After Tortola, we proceeded to Virgin Gorda. The popular Baths are one of the highlights of the BVIs and it is easy to understand why. Pictured is some of the evidence that we were there 40 years ago!

We continued along the west shore of Virgin Gorda, bypassing several lovely deserted anchorages before reaching the North Sound.

At Leverick Bay, in the North Sound, we took in the Michael Bean Show, a pirate-themed “Happy Arrring” time. There is a small, well-stocked grocery and diesel fuel is available.

From our anchorage along the south side of Prickly Pear Island we visited the Bitter End.

Forty years ago, our crew of 6 made up about half of the customers for dinner. Now, the several bars and restaurants accommodate hundreds daily. Indeed, untold numbers attended the “Super Bowl Experience”, where the "Big Screen" projector broke down near the end of the game, leading to near panic as all crowded around the smaller monitors. Fortunately, we were not there at that time.

We enjoyed the trails through the hills behind the Bitter End Yacht Club.  Rugged and scenic.

Saba Rock was also accessible from our Prickly Pear Anchorage. With spectacular sunsets and the excellent service by Glennie, the Saba Rock Happy Hour is not to be missed.

The tarpon feeding at Saba Rock before sunset was a unique experience. Click on the video for a sample.

The island of Anegada was next, 15 nm North. We are greeted by friendly islanders who collect mooring fees and distribute menus for the local restaurants. We enjoyed Lion Fish Sandwiches.

Long, deserted, white sand beaches and low population density make this a delightful island that we intend to revisit.

A word of caution. This is an exposed anchorage with a high density of boats. The anchor holding is questionable. We dragged anchor during a squall at 0400.  Thanks to our anchor alarm, avoiding contact with an adjacent boat by about 1 metre.  Far too close!  In the beating wind and pouring rain, we held position with engine until first light before re-anchoring.  In future, we will select calmer weather, arrive earlier in the day, and go directly to mooring instead of anchoring.  Some places just need moorings!

Our return from Anegada provided a diversity of sailing. In the open waters just south of Anegada, we took advantage of robust winds and seas for a frolic of a broad reach. Click on the video clip to understand why “Life is a Reach”.

“This was pure sailing, with a fine and regular heave and lift, an urgency of water along the side, and sea-harping in the taut sheets and windward shrouds”,

 Patrick O’Brien, “The Hundred Days”.

Later, inside the Sir Francis Drake Channel, with islands on all sides, conditions moderated enough for Catherine to entertain with cockpit fiddle playing. This is shown in the next video clip.

The British Virgin Islands are beautiful and diverse. However, we fear that future in-water and on-shore development, if continued at the pace of the past 40 years, could threaten the health and vitality of the anchorages, and degrade the cruising experience. We sincerely hope that development is under competent management, and sustainably, so that cruisers of 40 years from now will be able to enjoy the BVI as much as we did this winter! As David Suzuki wrote, “Take care of our planet, so it can take care of us”.

“Cruising Window”, The short period of a life when health, money, time, and interest all come into brief alignment. Enjoy it!

Peter and Catherine, aboard S/V Charlotte D, posting from Marie Galante, Guadeloupe.