Golden Dragon

The Finishing Line

10 April 2017
Sat 08 April 2017

Last minute jobs were happening on all of the boats to get them looking shipshape for the parade into Rodney Bay. At 0900 we gathered for a final pre-sail brief by Victor. With all the plans in place for the order of sail the yachts slowly started to slip from berths. With horns and whistles sounding the 15 remaining Arc yachts took up formation and made ground to the north. The parade looked pretty good with all yachts having made the effort to dress ship for the event. All but the boats that joined the rally in Australia passed through the finishing line marking the completion of circumnavigating the globe. When we secured our lines in the dock the emotions were flowing from many of the other skippers and crews for their achievements.
Before we new it we found ourselves at on the pontoon where welcome drinks (rum punch) and nibbles where being served. With local drum music sounds all around the crews shook hands and patted others backs and generally showed how strong the friendships of the group have grown.
Many of the crews took an opportunity for a safety sleep for an hour or two before it was time to put on the most formal attire we had. Long pants and shoes were needed. We all jumped into taxi busses and made our way to a very flash resort complex entertainment room about 10 minutes from the marina. Food was great, speeches funny and not to long and the wine flowed. With all the presentations over and done it was time to hit the dance floor and so off came all the shoes as only yachties can. The fun continued until closing when our taxis picked us up and took us back to the marina where a pontoon party carried on into the early hours.

The final hurrah signifies the end of the 2016-17 World Arc Rally and for Golden Dragon this means that she will need to find a spot in the southern Caribbean to safely see out the hurricane season. John will be taking GD back to Grenada and she will go up onto the hard stand at Clarkes Court marina for the season. John will eventually make his way back to Aus to square away some home matters and see his daughter Holly get married. Taff and Pam will be moving their kit over to the 50ft catamaran Paradise Found to assist the owner Mike in getting her back to the USA. But on route to the US the Leeward Island of the Caribbean are just begging to be explored. When we have achieved the delivery of PF Pam will then make her way to see her family in New Brunswick, Canada and Taff will head off in search of a yacht of his dreams.
So there you have it! Six months and some 13000 nautical miles of sailing to over a dozen countries. A few stories of frustrating times and many stories of unbelievable experiences. A book to fill of new friend from countries all over the world and with that loads of places to visit to see these great people again.
I hope you have enjoyed reading these blogs. John assures me he will continue the task of posting the blogs but be aware there may be a quiet period when GD is resting on the hardstand.


Fri 07 April 2017

A lazy day at the pool and then an unofficial dinner at the neat shore side restaurant on the other side of the lagoon. Almost all of the Arc participants went along to the restaurant so it was a might ask of the chef to produce the food at one hit so we did need to do a bit of waiting for meals.

Bequia to Marigo Bay

06 April 2017
Thur 06 Apr 2017

This morning was taken up with helping some of the other Arc boats to get a berth. This involved the boat jigsaw where shuffled boats into spot to make space. With this achieved John and Taff jumper on tenders and headed out to assist some of the shorthanded Arc boats who remained on moorings overnight. Taff then went over to Paradise Found to help make a gangplank for stern access for their crew.
With the day heating up there was only one place to be so it was back to the pool.

Wed 05 Apr 2017

Once out of the bay and into clear water at the north end of Bequia we reef down because we are getting winds of nearly 30 knots. The wind angle is at such an angle that we are sailing close hauled and we are on quite a heel. We pass St Vincent during the early morning and then approaching Capella Marina lagoon in Marigo Bay, St Lucia we spot a couple of Humpback Whales breaching and putting on a show about 300 yards away. After passing on some advice to the whales about staying away from Bequia we continue on and into the marina. In no time we are secured stern to the wharf and so we set out to give GD the clean and polish she needed.
We do the Customs check in and then head to the pool for a dip. We have the choice of two magnificent pools one with a swim up bar at one end. The pools are part of the motel complex and out the from of the motel are berthed three super yachts. It feels as if we have just won lotto just being here.
By evening we have found a place for happy hour and sampled the local rum punch a few times.

Tues 04 Apr 2017

After hearing the evening before of the interesting story told by the crew of Meara Nieida about the whaling station that was still in operation on the island we decided to gather a group of Arc’ers and take a taxi ute to check it our for ourselves. Our taxi driver seemed to be taking us for more than just one ride so after just looking at the whaling museum and down over the whaling station from quite a distance we had him take us back to the town. The story of whaling though was fascinating. The locals are permitted to catch a maximum of 4 whales per year but over the past few years they have only been able to harpoon one a year. This is because the way that they are required to do it is without any mechanical assistance until the whale has been harpooned and then bought to the side of the boat where they shoot the whale to put it out of its misery. The boats are sailed and or rowed to the whale and the harpooner jumps onto the whale to strike the blow. Then the boat is towed along until the whale runs out of steam. During the tow it is not uncommon for the whaleboats to be tipped or taken under when the whale dives. But in accordance with the taxi driver he could only recall a rope burn injury to one of the men. Apparently, the local town people use the entire whale. Nothing is used for making perfume and the majority of the whale is consumed.
In the evening we catch up with a few of the Arc’ers for a meal and then head back for a quiet night in readiness for a 0100 departure.


Mon 03 Apr 2017

An early start had us weighing anchor at 0600 and by 0900 we were sailing into Bequia. We took the tender ashore and did a self managed walking tour of town. The town had a good feel about it. Quite a few Arc boats were at anchor in the bay so before long we were catching up with may of our friends. We settled down for a sing-along with a few locals at the Gingerbread house that evening before taking off for a pizza at another nearby shore side venue.

Sun 02 Apr 2017

After a relaxing da of snorkeling and swimming of the back of the boat we made our way back into the island and enjoyed an evening of live music. We later got to know the couple who entertained us with some original numbers and a few favorites. He had been a Jazz band member who came out to Bequia to play a gig 25 years ago and decided the Caribbean was where he was going to stay.

The Grenadines

02 April 2017
Sat 01 Apr 2017

We survived the morning without the Meara Nieida crew pulling any April Fool pranks on us. We did think that the lady at the bakery was trying a prank when we asked for a loaf of bread and she asked for $17EC (about $9Aus). But things on this island are not cheap and that is probably why the rich and famous live or holiday here. A night at the one and only resort is $600US and you can rent out some of the houses when the owners are not in residence. The going rate for rental is anywhere between $17000 to $80,000US per week.
We join the Fins and hire two 5 seat taxis for a tour of the island during which half way around we stop for a swim and a game of beach volleyball. Tour taxi guide was most informative but he did ask that we respect the privacy of the residence. He did however point out the lady in a golf cart who is the wife of the “man” who bought the monster mansion for US$54 million. We passed Shania Twain’s house as well as the others previously mentioned.
The evening was spent at Basils Bar where we enjoyed a pitta bread roll of BBQ chicken and a few rum punches.


Fri 31 March 2017

At about 0900 we weigh anchor and set sail northward for Mustique. This is a private Island with about 90 houses or should I say mansions on it. The island was developed by a bloke called Colin Tennant as a playground for the colorful, rich and famous. House prices have soured from over a million to over 10 times that much. They are now owned by the 0.1 percent of the world. People like Mick Jagger, Mr Lacoste, Tommy Hilfigger and so on. The island has an overall manager who ensures that process and the piece is kept. Only three more houses will be built on the island to ensure that the natural beauty of the island remains in tact.
We arrive at the Mustique at around 1600 and pick up a mooring. We pay our obligitary $200EC or $60US for the night but the bonus is that we receive two extra days free. So we may as well stay for the extra two days.
After securing we take the tender and wander ashore. While sitting at Basils Bar we spot the Fin’s arrive on Meara Nieida. Soon enough, the seven crew of Fins land ashore and plans are now being put together for dinner. Dinner setting was on the balcony of the restaurant called “The View” and oh my did it have a view. The menu was a choice of lobster, tuna or chicken and although it took a while to be served the wait was worth it.


Thur 30 March 2017

All but three of the seven Arc yachts in the Tobago Keys head off for another island but we were a bit of a late arrival in this spot so we will stop for another night. For John and Pam it was a day of snorkeling but Taff had overdone the hours in the water without a hat on yesterday so he decided to keep his scone out of the sun for as much of the day as possible.

Wed 29 March 2017

0800 and we motor away from Palm Island on route to Tobago Keys. Tobago Keys anchorage is only about a three miles passage and we needed to charge up the house batteries so we are happy not to set any sail. Along the way we find that the recently defrosted fridge is now not working meaning that we are now without fridge or freezer. Luckily we are able to buy ice from the local boat boys at $25EC ($12Aus) per bag.
Now at anchor in Tobago Keys we do a quick swim over to some of the other Arc yachts to say G’day and then back to GD to get out the snorkeling gear. The turtle life here is legendary and we were not let down spending many an hour just swimming with these big guys. After quite some time in the water we are starting to look like prunes so we head ashore to one of the islands to check out the Iguanas. They were easy to spot and quite use to people walking amongst them.
Tonight we headed to another island where seven of the Arc yachts joined together to book a lobster BBQ cooked by one of the “boat boys”. His name was “Mr Best Price”. How could we go wrong with a bloke by that name! It all turned out to be lovely. A bit expensive but lovely. Another great day in these very scenic Caribbean Islands.


Tues 28 March 2017

Back into town and we load up with supplies for the next few stopovers. Again prices for everything seem to be increasing as we head further north into the Caribbean so the shopping bags were pretty light on.
Back onboard and we weigh anchor and head on our big half mile passage to Palm Island. This is a resort Island built up by and Australian John Caldwell. He has passed away now and the island has changed hands a few times since but if you read the book “A Desperate Voyage” then you will know the story. We swam ashore and spent and hour on the beach and another looking over the parts of the island that non houseguests are permitted to enter. It was nice but the view from the boat to the island was probably just as nice so we swam back and made up our own blend of Rum Punch for Sundowners.

Mon 27 March 2017

Hillsborough is a pretty laid back place. John and Taff wondered the beachfront street before checking out at Custom and Immigration. By early afternoon we find what appears to be a place where we might be able to get a bite to eat. We wander in and the owner Rasta Joe with a rolly of marijuana hanging from his lips thrusts a beer in each of our hands. We had a couple of beers there before making our way back to where we had landed the tender where Pam had stopped for a swim. Once back onboard we weigh anchor and motor a mile to Sandy Island which is one of the Caribbean’s most spectacular snorkeling grounds. The fish life was a plenty and the reef spectacular in places. Back onboard and we once again weigh anchor and sail over to Clifton Harbour on Union Island. Back in the tender and off to the Customs Office for checking. They then directed us to Immigration at the airport which was about half a mile away. To get to the airport one must walk through Yacht Club so on our way back into the town we stop for a quick refreshment.
We wandered the main street and checked out the best places to do a bit of grocery shopping before heading back to GD to get ready to head over to Happy Island by tender for sundowners. Happy island is the initiative of a local who in 2002 decided to throw a whole lot of Conch shells in a pile at a stop on the reef where only tenders and swimmers can get to. Adding some concrete for seats, walls and other bits and pieces he then build a bar and kitchen from old building timbers. The venue had a great vibe to it but also high prices to match so we didn’t stop for a meal and took it very easy with the drinks.

Grenada and Beyond

26 March 2017
Sun 26 March 2017

First up this morning it is Sailblog catchup time. I’ve been a bit slack over the past week and with all the happenings going on it was easy to let the typing slip. After punching the keyboard for an hour or so GD weighs anchor and 3 nautical miles of motoring is just enough time to charge the batteries from 11.7 to 12.3 volts. Now it is up to the wind generator to do its thing and keep topping up the batteries. It’s now 1030 and GD is securely anchored in Hillsborough Bay. We will need to remain here until sometime Monday as this is the venue to check out of Grenada at the customs office.
We are ashore now and have just finished enjoying lunch with the crews from Firefly and Blue Flyer. While I have the opportunity I’ll post the backlog of blogs. Cheers

Sat 25 March 2017

At 0700hrs we took our fins and face masks and jumped in the tender for a 200 yard trip over to the area where the Underwater Sculpture Park was. We spent about an hour snorkeling over numerous sculptures. We had the area to ourselves as it was too early for the tourists from the mainland. Back onboard and we sailed from the mooring and passaged 30 nautical miles to Tyrrel Bay on the Island of Carriacou. This island has over 100 rum distilleries and only one fuel depot and we don’t need fuel. After launching the tender it is all aboard to check out the happening shoreside. A quick refreshment at the Turtle Bar and then up the hill we go for the best vantage for some photos. Taff spotted a snake crossing the road. John wasn’t keen to pick up a snake that he had no knowledge of so the snake is happy to find its way up the steep road bank. Further up the road we chatted to a couple of local ladies who said the island doesn’t have any snakes! Yeh right! They did know all about the local rum process though.
Pam finds Silvia from Paradise Found and spend some time together while John and Taff head down the road to get the best spot for a sunset photo. He has a mate in Darwin (Roy) who is a sunset photo junkie. So I hope you (Roy) appreciate that we traveled nearly 11,500 nautical miles to take this photo for you! Hopefully the photo isn’t too blurry as we had to sample a few rum punches at DJ’s bar and grill while we waited for the sun to set.
Pam and Silvia find the blokes at around sunset and after sampling a couple of local brews we head back to the Turtle bar for dinner.


Fri 24 March 2017

With Pam missing and down south on Paradise Found. John and Taff slip the marina and head for Dragon Bay about 3 nautical miles north. Dragon Bay has some moorings where we could secure and take the opportunity to give the boot topping line a bit of a scrub to make the hull look a little bit more respectable. After about an hour of swimming around the hull Golden Dragon was back to her beautiful self and so it was time for John and Taff to head ashore to check out the sights and Charlies Bar. Charlies Bar was a spot we saw as we passed on the bus tour a few days ago. Charlie had used tires and any bric a brac he could find to dress up both sides of the road and to build a “watering hole”. It was all painted in the typical Caribbean colours of green, yellow and red. Charlie was as much of a character as the watering hole he built. We had a ball talking to him and his few regulars. Once we started talking cricket and John producing stats of West Indian players we were in hysterics. All good things come to an end and we made our way back to GD. On a nearby mooring was Wishanger II and Paradise Found were just leaving so we headed over and collected Pam. After Pam cooked us dinner (Chili con Carne) we promptly fell asleep afterwards – must have been all the ha

Thur 23 March 2017

Paradise Found let go lines and head out to go south to Hog Island for a beach BBQ dinner, with an extra crew member aboard. Pam took the opportunity to look south and intended to head back by bus with the crew from Exocet Strike who went onboard Belafonte to help Tim and Magda get their boat hauled out at Clarks Court (its up for sale as they’ve completed their circumnavigation and have been away from their Toronto home for almost 2 years). As always, great plans don’t always come together and the anchorage that they found was not ideal so they moved onto Pickly Bay. This left Pam stuck onboard for the night, which I think she may have been quite happy to do. (She was – had a lovely dinner out at The University Club).

Wed 22 Mar 2017

Some of the domestic things just can’t be put aside forever so Pam grabbed the shopping bags and headed over to the local supermarket. John waited for the Raymarine man to come and check out the chart plotter and radar. Taff assisted Mike on Paradise Found to come up with a solution for making his fitted pole for his Code zero sail more secure. This was almost a half day job but we think the outcome is now a reasonable solution. During the forenoon the Raymarine man did the required repairs to the plotter and radar and loaded the Caribbean charts onto the plotter.

Taff made some arrangements with the owner of the yacht astern of us for a ride to the Clarks Court Marina. This marina is where John intends to lay up Golden Dragon for the hurricane season. Although a hurricane did find its way to Grenada in 2004 (Hurricane Ivan), the insurance companies will generally not allow boats to lay over at islands north of Grenada. Clarks Court marina is brand spanking new and at the moment they are offering great deals to compete with the established marinas. One of the Horizon lecturers from Monday night was an Australian (well a Pom with an Aussie wife) works out of Clarks Court marina so John feels comfortable that he will be a good contact. At about 1100 hrs John and Taff head off with Dennis (from Puss n Boots – the catamaran astern of us) and off we go to Clarks Court Marina. Dennis was born in Trinadad and then as a young kid moved with his family to live in Grenada. In time he became a policeman but it was around the time of the revolution and it was dangerous to have an opinion and express it. Dennis a good cop did exactly that and as a result felt like it was not safe to remain in Grenada with the politics as it was so he moved with his young family to USA. He obviously did very well with the rest of his life and he now goes between his house in the USA and his yacht and property. Dennis was kind enough to take us to other spots on the island. He showed us his block of land that overlooked Hurricane Bay where many yachts that remain in the water at marinas go if a hurricane comes their way. This was good information for us as we could pass it on to Katarina whose intentions are exactly that.
That night the three Golden Dragon crew headed over with some meat and a salad to Paradise Found for a BBQ followed by a game of cards. Taff was the victor in the card game and as you could imagine he didn’t rub it in to the other players!


Tue 21 Mar 2017

0900hrs and we load onto a tour bus to look over the island. The bus driver was also the guide and this bloke was extremely knowledgeable. He managed to keep 30 Arcers quiet for ‘most’ of the time while he passed on amazing stories from history, flora, fauna, farming practices and many other insightful information. He was also quite the environmentalist who in his spare time went to all the schools to educate the kids on the importance of looking after our planet and the importance of tourism for Grenada. The message about the tourism was certainly getting across as at no time did we as tourist feel anything but friendship and kindness from the locals. It is a whole different story in Trinadad where in the past 12 months over 2600 people have been murdered.
We visited waterfalls where we had huge amounts of fun diving into the pool from the rocks. One of the stops was a working chocolate factory but what you are imagining is probably far from the building we visited. It was a ramshackle timber building surrounding smaller buildings that are probably better described as sheds. But the chocolate was AMAZING. We bought a 60% cocoa and ginger blend – so good we had to buy another at the next stop $12.50XCD (about $6AUD). Our guide ensured that we sniffed, scratched and tasted every pod, leaf, nut or piece of bark that could produce a spice. Nutmegs are amazing – every piece is used – the pod for jam, the coating is Mace and then inside the seed pod is the nutmeg (which will keep for years and years inside the shell). The smell of the produce was so pure and nice.

The evening was set aside for the World Arc official function and prize giving. Many of the yachts who deviated from the course direct to Grenada (those who went to Fernando de Noronha or Illes Royale were not eligible for any prizes as we lost to much in time by those visits. This didn’t worry us as we believe by visiting Illes Royale that in fact we were the big winner. The presentation night started brilliantly as on of the sponsors was a local well respected Rum distillery and glasses greater than sample size where being distributed with gay abandon.
A few speeches by the Marina manager who reduced our marina fees by 50%, the rum bloke, and Grenada Yachting administrator we were underway with the prize giving. Laughs a plenty as prizes of bottled rum were handed to prize recipients.
Then the music and you could imagine how that goes in the Caribbean. Fantastic live music that didn’t need too much for everyone to get up and shake body parts that hadn’t been shaken in many a year.

Mon 20 Mar 2017

Finally it is time to take a look at the local town but first we have heard good things about the small bakery near the marina. Later Taff and Pam hitch a ride on the tender from Exocet Strike and John heads off to do a few emails. Luckily only one cruise ship is in and a hybrid tallship at that so the towns folk are not over doing it trying to offer goods and wares.
Now back to John’s emails. One of the emails he received was from his son Bruce Greatwich. If the name rings a bell then it is because he was one of the fellows who spotted the Night Parrot “somewhere” in WA. Bruce let the cat out of the bag to his old man a few days ahead of telling the media. Bruce was the photographer as well. John, a bit of a bushy, was over the moon about the news but withheld expressing it to the fleet until the news was broken to the Australian Media.
Tonight we were given a brief from Horizon about the best destinations and areas to be aware of. This was most informative. We have so much to see and do on our run up to St Lucia. After the briefing we sat down in the Victory bar and discussed the destination options over a fish BBQ. The meal was not as exciting as the conversation.

Neptune finds us in Grenada

20 March 2017
Sun 19 Mar 2017

THE ANCIENT HISTORY OF KING NEPTUNE
``Way back in the enlightened days of the world’s history when the Greek civilization was in it’s prime ... when Romulus and Remus were nothing more than twinkles in their father’s eyes, and Britons were even less civilized than they are today ... there was a god called Poseidon. His domain was of Hercules and he had some authority’ – in other words he was a god of the seas and the ancient Greek matelots were accustomed to burning incense and signing ‘Eternal Father’ and other odds and ends to intercede for his good offices. In fact, the Greeks went even further than we do today by erecting Atlas at seaports and training specialist-priests to attend to the rites and rituals. It was an extremely high organized business but history does not relate whether or not Poseidon cam through in the pinches.
Now Poseidon, by the simple expedient of turning on a storm now and then to frighten the poor Greeks was doing quite well for himself for several centuries and would have lived happily ever after if it hadn’t been for the Romans. The Romans were not up to much in the way of seamanship but they had all taken Leadership Courses and even in those days this was what counted in the long run for they finally succeeded in driving the Greeks from the seas, Even then, however, Poseidon continued to whip up the odd storm at sea and the Romans, although this did not frighten them particularly decided it was only logical to do something about the situation. The answer was of course, to obtain the services of a god who could effectively put Poseidon in the shade and the Romans, having no spare gods around Olympus at that time, had to borrow one from the Etriscans.
His name was Nethuns but the Romans called him Neptunus for short. Poor old Poseidon, of course, was left far behind because the Romans were fairly rich and could erect more altars and sing more choruses of Eternal Father than the Greeks ever deemed absolutely necessary. In fact, to show you how far Neptunus did go, Poseidon had a wife called Amphitrite, who was incidentally, the daughter of Oceanus, a very big wheel in the Greek system and he had gone to some trouble to marry this woman ... she didn’t particularly like the idea and has fled to Mount Atlas when she heard of it, but Poseidon had sent along one of his dolphins to collect her ... Neptunus actually adopted this woman, which made him Poseidon’s father-in-law and Poseidon, on hearing this, committed suicide by drowning himself in his own ocean.
RECENT HISTORY FROM GOLDEN DRAGONS PASSAGE TO GRENADA AND HOW THIS NEPTUNE CAN TO VISIT GRENADA.
Radio transmit ion from King Neptune’s Aid “Herald”
Herald:

I’ve heard your yacht’s around, Now tell me, whither bound?
Golden Dragon:
We sail for Grenada, We’ve sailed for many a day, Now I’ve got a lot to do, So tell me, who are you?
Herald:
I am the Herald of the court of his Oceanic Majesty; King Neptune ordered me aboard and I’ll commit no travesty.
Golden Dragon:
For you I’ll stop my ship, Come forth, and no more lip.
:
Look sharp, then sire, if you please, By what right do you challenge us on the high seas?
Herald
By the custom of powers invested right, In King Neptune and Queen Amphitrite Who sent us to your mighty ship To check and see if you are fit, We cannot take you cross the our Line Without the stamp of the Trident Sigh.

Golden Dragon:
Alas Herald but Golden Dragon is part of the World Arc Fleet, many of whom you would like to meet.
Herald
Then the meeting place will be Grenada with beer and wine and loads of larder. Each Captain shall present before Queen Amphitrite each Pollywog and Tadpole for her delight.


………………and from that a party was born.

Sherriff

All Hail His Majesty The Ruler of the raging sea.
All Hail Queen Amphitrite Her gorgeous beauty, what a sight.

Neptune:
From my courtly Herald I’ve heard it told That there are some in your crews so brave and bold As to warrant my favor ... there may be some missed. So Captains, bring forward my honor list.

Neptune:
King Neptune, I, Lord of the Sea,
Welcome you all who ‘ere you be:
I am the Lord of the Oceans wide,
Lord of the Rivers ... Lord of the tide,
My laws are strict, but do not fear,
If you will only persevere To keep the freedom of the seas,
As recognized by our degrees, Here are the Bears, the Suds, the Bath;
They are the only certain path
For all who wish to cross the Line, And be enrolled as sons and daughters of mine.
In order then, as we command,
Before us let each Tadpole and Pollywog stand
Who has his freedom yet to win ... Enough ... My Trusty crew, Begin!


Queen Amphitrite:

Many a boat do we have here
Sailing the ocean for many a year.
Weeing and pooing without any fear,
Into MY ocean ever so dear.

Now we give you your own back!!!!!
(Bears pass around the barrel of wee looking rum with a chocolate bar look like a number 2)

Sherriff:

…….The Ode……

(utilising all the boats names the Ode is Read out in small sentences and repeated by the crowd.)


I solemnly swear that I ……………………………………
Will be “RESOLUTE 2” the cause of protecting Neptune’s Aquatic Kingdom.
I shall join others in this cause.
People like “BARBARA, JEAN”, “KAT A RINA”
And even Harry “BELAFONTE”.
Together we shall search “INTO THE BLUE” but we shall not feel “BLUE as we FLYER” “GOLDEN DRAGON”,
our “FIREFLYING” mode of transport,
on our “OVERSEAS EXPRESS” crusade.
As we travel we will take every advantage of wind shifts
And even the slightest “BRIZ O”h
We shall seek that “PARADISE FOUND”.
Even if we where to be attacked by an “EXOCET STRIKE”
We shall not “WISHANGER TWO” any of the aquatic Kingdom creatures.
We do not wish to Sea Anemones.
We shall delight in the beauty of the ocean and its family
And it is likely that we shall be gobsmacked by beauty
And we will say “COR AN GO” forth into the aquatic home where coral reef produces flowers to match the “TRILLIUM”.
Together we say chant “MEARA NIEIDA” which you may think is Swiss for Beautiful Sea Lady
But in fact is an acronym for
May Every Aquatic Royal Ascendant – Never Inhale Excrement I Deposit Again!!!!


And with that our Tadpoles and Pollywogs became Shellbacks of Neptunes Kingdom.

French Guiana

18 March 2017
Sat 18 Mar 2017

Here we are in the Caribbean. wow!

At 0405 local time Golden Dragon crossed the finish line and by 0500hrs we were secure alongside a temporary berth in the marina. Tony from Katarina kindly got up and came over to receive a line. The people of this World Arc fleet are such nice people and always willing to help regardless of the time of day/night.
We caught some shut eye for a few hours. By 0900 it was time to rise and do our deeds to assist Barbara Jean with her berthing. The Marina staff were up and about by this time and so she headed straight around to her more permanent Med berth. Blue Flyer was next to head around and then it was our turn. The wind picked up as we made our approach but John did some good boat handling and Taff worked the line so before too long and with the Marina tender at hand we were secured in our spot. Peta the World Arc staff passed over a bag of goodies as a welcome pack. We had heard about the goodies or should I say the Rum Punch that was in the pack. Cold and ready to be sampled. As we sat and cracked the top off the bottle we were joined by crew from some of the other boats. Within the next few hours Tim and Magda arrived on Belafonte and this for them was the completion of circumnavigating the world as they started here in Grenada. Sooooo to aid in their celebration we provided the party boat and they came over armed with their rum punch, champagne, and many other bottles of booze that they had collected on a world voyage. They were in fine form. I suppose it is something to do with the lack of sleep and booze.
John and some of the other owners grabbed passports and paperwork and after a bucket full of rum headed to the customs office. It would have been entertaining!
Day turned into night and the wise ones headed off to sleep but many of the rest of us headed to a place called the West Indies Brewery for a feed and night cap (had a nice ginger cider and Pam had a watermelon one).


Fri 17 March 2017


We have missed a few days of blogs. Sorry about that. My Macbook Pro laptop has succumbed to old age and the keyboard has given up the ghost on the A-L and the Z-M keys. Luckily I have been able to borrow a Bluetooth keyboard and so I am back up and running al-be-it slowly.

We continued to sail fast over the past few days. The current was with us and strong for most of the way petering out a little at the end. The wind was greater than 15 knots for all of the way and at times we saw gusts of 30 knots when storm cells passed over. The sea state was sending us waves of up to 4m which kindly gave us assistance with surfing as they were coming from the starboard aft quarter of the yacht. We managed to catch Barbara Jean and beat her into Grenada by 5 hours.
One of the highlights of this passage was today at 1300 when we were surrounded by about a dozen pilot whales. They were amazing! The large ones were about half the length of the yacht and they were surfing the waves, jumping and spending time on our bow. The turn of speed they could put on was incredible. Taff always wanted to return to earth as a dolphin but now the desire to be a Pilot Whale has taken over the dream for the next life.

Mon 13 Mar 2017

0730 and it was anchors away. We stared with very little sail to try and maintain pace with Belafonte but our weight and waterline length meant that we were always going to do good speeds in the conditions. Day one from the island had us complete 207 nautical miles. We decided that we may as well set more sail and push on to Granada. The yacht Barbara Jean was only 80nm ahead so we had a chance of catching them before our arrival.

Sun 12 Mar 2017

We made contact with Belafonte and Magda kindly offered to pick up some bread and other fresh victuals for us before they left the mainland. Brizo sailed mid afternoon and Belafonte arrived shortly thereafter. John and Pam headed onto the island for a look around. They were blown away after spotting a wild Macaw up in the trees. Later at the restaurant a male peacock put on a show for over an hour for five hens all of whom showed no interest in this males energetic display. John tried to console the Peacock by telling him he knew how he felt!
Taff picked up Tim and Magda and after a quick tour of the Island headed back up the hill to join the others at the restaurant. Tim and Magda shared their stories of Ascension Island, Fernando de Noronha and the launching of a satellite from the the rocket launch centre at Kourou, French Guiana (which seems to be their major economic source in this country). We love the passion in their stories and listen intently as they tell us of their tales. One of the yarns was of the Sloth they saw on the roadside on the mainland of French Guiana. They are not sure if it counted as a wild find as it had been hit by a car and was dead.
At 2200hrs we head back to the tender where the 5 of us squeeze onboard to putter back to the two yachts.
We give the generator a quick 30 minute charge and then head to catch some sleep before a dawn start tomorrow.

Sat 11 Mar 2017

Well rested we awake to find that we hadn't dragged anchor overnight even though the wrapping swell and reasonably strong winds meant Golden Dragon would have been pulling quite a bit on the anchor warp.
Yesterday Taff noticed that the oven had broken away from the aft gimbal (the connector that the oven pivots on when we roll around). So John and Taff pull out the tool boxes and manufacture a interim measure to ensure we don't go hungry during the next leg to Granada. Pam gets on the VHF while the blokes do the oven repairs. Belafonte who was up the river at nearby Kourou were calling. It was good to hear their news as we haven't had contact with them or Bob and Laura from yacht Barbara Jean since St Helena.
With the repairs done John and Pam take the opportunity to do some washing and Taff hits the keyboard for the blog.

At midday we jump into the tender and head for shore to explore Ile Royale of the Iles du Salut group. Iles du Salut are made up of three islands, Ile Royale, Ile St Joseph and Ile du Diable (Devil Island). The islands are known principally as having been the refuge for the survivors of the 1763 KOUROU expedition. Now their names are associated with the history of the penal settlement and many remaining vestiges bear witness to this. Ille Royale is 21 hectares and after a climb of 47 meters you are at the top where now stands a restaurant and bar so a thirst from the climb can be quenched. Some of the buildings once housed prisoners condemned to death. This place was deemed to be a Lunatic Asylum. There is a case where one of the inmates believed that by throwing stones into the water at the same point then in time he would be able to build a causeway between South America and France and he would be able to walk over it to return home. Yep - that constitutes either a lunatic or an optimist!
Ille St Joseph was selected as a place of solitary confinement for those who attempted to escape. Ille Diable (Devil Island) once had 15 huts for the lepers but these were burnt down some time after 1859. In the mid 1850' the islands were reserved for political prisoners amongst whom DELESCLUSE was one. When DELESCLUSE arrived on Devil's Island their were already 36 detainees who were citizens that had been condemned after the coup 'Etat of 2 Dec 1851.

The tough luck story was of Capt DRETFUS who was falsely condemned or treason. He lived in solitary confinement for more than 4 years having to be double ironed each night. After 4 years he was recognized as innocent. Other prisoners followed including the military spy ULLMO.

Along with the crim's from Brizo we had a lovely lunch and then toured the island top to bottom and around the edges. We were fascinated by the monkeys who were in turn fascinated by the stuffed toy Sloth that Pat had bought for her grandkids.

At sunset we were invited over to Brizo for sunset drinks that turned into a BBQ. Stuart showed us over Brizo and it was difficult not to trip on our tongues as we drooled at the magnificence of the Discovery 55'. The yacht is artwork from design to craftsmanship.


Fri 10 Mar 2017

Talking of good speeds! From noon yesterday until noon today we managed a massive 227 nautical miles for the 24hr period. This is the best distance achieved by us since leaving Bali. The previous best was 218 on the Indian Ocean. This time the wind was an average of 10 knots less but a current of up to 4 knots was the catalyst for such a good distance achieved. Timing was everything and as a result of the good speeds we made ILE ROYALE in daylight. We dropped the anchor at 1730 and launched the tender. Feeling happy that the anchor was holding we headed ashore with the crew from Brizo. Pat and Stuart from Brizo (a magnificent Discovery 55 yacht with all the trimmings) had arrived a few hours before us at the island and had already been ashore for a reconnaissance run during which they made arrangements for all of us to have dinner at the restaurant. Stuart and Pat have two skilled crew for this leg. They hijacked Josh and Laura from "Into the Blue" so we had a table of seven for dinner.
With our best French we managed to order (from the set menu) meals and drinks. We sat in the open air of this beautiful island and enjoyed a lovely meal and a laugh with the Brizo team.

About the island. This and the two other surrounding islands are not open to the public when the French are firing missiles from the mainland. Apparently the waters around the island are littered with fallout from the fired missiles. The most recent firing was only 5 days back. Two of the Arc yachts who bypassed Cabedello came into the mainland French Guyana town of Kourou (8nm from where we are anchored at Ile Royale) and witnessed the firing on the 6th. As we arrived to anchor Stuart passed on information that a spot ahead of there anchored position had debris on the bottom. They have a forward looking sonar onboard which was how they made the call on the state of the seabed. I did mention that Brizo had all the trimmings but not just trimming, plenty of gadgets as well.

Friday the 10 of March is a special day as Charlie Bruce Ehrat came into this world. John's daughter Jess and husband James now have a pigeon pair. The Golden Dragon crew would like to congratulate mum and dad and welcome young Charlie into the world. Grandad is pretty chuffed!

Wed 08 - Thur 09.

Wind increases and so does the current and we record some good speeds toward French Guyana.

Tue 07 Mar 2017

As we sit here we wonder what news the rest of the world is receiving. Well to put our lot into a news broadcast........here it is!

Good afternoon and welcome to the Golden Dragon midday bulletin:
First the headlines:

• Generator needing Energizing
• Progress continues on Westbound lane.
• Heavens open with a deluge.
• Sharks forfeit as Dolphins take the bow.

Now for the news:

• Overnight the neighbourhood generator trips leaving many with dwindling power. The local authorities put steps in place through a main propulsion unit to ensure basic services remain on line. In the early daylight hours the power authority reset the system and all services are now back on line.
• Overnight the conditions remain good for continued progress to the westbound traffic. Speed bumps and pot holes are not inhibitive and not likely to cause concern or slow progress.
• A freak isolated storm struck late yesterday. Local residence say the rain was the heaviest recorded in the past six months.
• The sharks were too afraid to make a presence yesterday as the local team "Dolphins" energetically produced some of the most spectacular moves seen on the not so turf this summer. The Dolphins, many of whom were new young recruits acknowledged the crowd by taking the bow.

Now for the weather:

• A high ridge over the Ceapa Ridge and extending to the Amazon Delta is expected to produce increasing winds to 15 knots from the NE. There is a 70% chance of rain and isolated thunderstorms may produce wind gust of up to 40% greater than the forecast wind.
That is the news for today - stay safe and enjoy your evening.

................Well it might not be a lot of news but we believe it Trumps the Trump, Turnbull, where we are going with political correctness, commodity prices, and who killed who. Oh and all of that interrupted by advertisements on how Jenny Craig has a magic cure for mothers tuckshop arm flab ...or something like that! ..................


Mon 06 Mar 2017

The 0900 fleet radio sched was hosted by Golden Dragon today. We held the mantle for the role of Radio Net Controller for 24hrs. Well give us some power and the mind boggles on how we can abuse it. The 0900 was going swimmingly and with the formalities of the sched coming to a close a "pretend" radio interruption came over the airways. Herald (King Neptune's) communicator boomed over the airways :

Herald: (In pirate speak!)

I've heard your yacht's around, Now tell me, whither bound?
Golden Dragon:
We sail for Grenada, We've sailed for many a day, Now I've got a lot to do, So tell me, who are you?
Herald:
I am the Herald of the court of his Oceanic Majesty; King Neptune ordered me aboard and I'll commit no travesty.
Golden Dragon:
For you I'll stop my ship, Come forth, and no more lip.
Herald:
Look sharp, then sire, if you please, By what right do you challenge us on the high seas?
Herald
By the custom of powers invested right, In King Neptune and Queen Amphitrite Who sent us to your mighty ship To check and see if you are fit, We cannot take you cross the our Line Without the stamp of the Trident Sigh.

Golden Dragon:
Alas Herald but Golden Dragon is part of the World Arc Fleet, many of whom you would like to meet.
Herald
Then the meeting place will be Grenada with beer and wine and loads of larder. Each Captain shall present before Queen Amphitrite each Pollywog and Tadpole for her delight.


..................and from that a party was born. More will be revealed post the event.

Sun 05 Mar 2017

Still making good progress toward the equator. At 1952hrs we cross into the Northern Hemisphere at longitude 038* 32W. Our one and only Pollywog onboard (Pam) is now moved up to the ranks of a Tadpole. Until a ceremony conducted by King Neptunus Rex, Lord of the Watery domain then she will remain a Tadpole. Once initiated into the Kingdom by King Neptune then and only then will she be promoted to a Shellback.

Sat 04 Mar 2017

The radio sched this morning confirms our thoughts that our strategy for heading on our chosen course has been beneficial. Some of the fleet are as far astern as 90 nautical miles. Most are around 30-40 astern and only Brizo who did a bit of motoring are in the vicinity of us.

Fri 03 Mar 2017

The winds have been perfect for GD. We have been on a beam to broad reach all day and cracking along at speeds up to 10 knots. We have taken a route that sends us well seaward of the coast as the counter current near the coast can be up to 3 knots. So far our plan has been a beauty and we have been consistently in positive current of 1.5 to 2 knots.

Thur 02 Mar 2017

Taff was up and at it at 0400 filling the tanks with last minute fresh water. John did a final check of emails and then returned to recover the power cable and Pam squared away below for sailing.
Due to the close confines of the marina and the fast moving water during floods and ebbs, a well structured and adhered to plan of departure was put into place. It was executed from 0600 and it all went pretty smoothly. We motored our way down the river and at 0838 we passed through the start line for leg number 16. As we sailed down the channel the wind was building and rain blanked out visibility to only a few boat lengths. Sails were reefed and our progress was good. Once we cleared the channel we settled into watches.
Through the day, evening and night rain squalls came through at regular intervals. To add to the excitement, small fishing fleets were dotted all about and ships passed through them and us at distances of less than half a mile at times.
During the night we had the company of yacht Brizo. We dogged and weaved through the fishing fleet passing info between ourselves to help make it as safe as possible. Into the evening the wind turned 180 degrees and we found ourselves close hauled for a few hours at the back of a thundery patch and then nothing, the wind dropped down to a half a dozen knots. At this point Brizo dropped sails and flashed up the iron headsail (motor) and bid us farewell. We were a bit more perseverant and before long we had favorable winds again.
We shaved off some of our intended track and skirted the shallower waters and by morning we had almost caught up again with Brizo and left the rest of the fleet well behind in our wake.
During the night another feathered friend took up residence on GD. He/she was soaked through and looking for respite from the heavy downpours. In the middle of the night John though that it had either dropped into the port aft cabin or flown away. It was about 0730 the next morning that John appeared with bird in hand from his cabin. The little critter had found a comfy spot in Johns cabin. Luckily all the residue from the meals that the bird had eaten were left on the upper decks and not a dropping was to be found below.

Wed 01 Mar 2017

A pinch and a punch for the new month. Today is clearance day. As advised we muster at the Yacht Village with passports and paperwork in hand with all the crew from all the boats. Only problem is that the Federaly Policia are not there. About an hour later they turn up and we all start again. With most boats plans for the day now in a bit of disarray we find our way to the man checking the passports. Many of the yachts had last minute shopping to do for fresh veg and fruit but the plans are now starting to change as skippers are now going to be required to go to the Policia Station for a final clearance and stamp and to recover the documentation.
Pam heads of with a few of the other ladies from other boats to the store and John prepares to head off to recover the documentation. A even greater delay is now about to happen as on of the skippers who opted to go to the shop with others from his crew, left his phone in the cab that dropped him back at the yacht village. Stella also had some bad luck leaving her purse in the Uber taxi with her credit cards and some cash in it. The two now needed our interpreter to help make contact with the various companies. In the end Andy recovered his phone but Stella wasn't so lucky. The skippers during all of this decided to take things into there own hands and headed off to the Policia Station to recover the documents. Well they weren't happy by the time they returned to the yachts as the officials delayed process for 2 hours for no apparent reason.
At about 1700hrs a skippers brief was given by Victor from the World Arc team. With this out of the way it was time for a quick clean up before dinner.
In the evening most of the crews joined tables together and had dinner as one at the Yacht Village. After dinner a spokesman for the Yachts passed on our gratitude for the help, assistance and good food that our hosts provided. Having spent our last Rial on dinner we all headed back to the yachts for a much needed sleep in readiness for our passage tomorrow.
Vessel Name: Golden Dragon
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