01/Mar/2010, Trois Ilets - Martinique
Before the French revolution in 1792 the town across the bay was called Fort Royale, the Royale was subsequently dropped after the adoption of Liberty, Egality & Fraternity. Fort de France is the principal city of Martinique, this was not always the case. Until 1902 the settlement of Sainte Pierre, on the North West coast, was the main town. One fine day the brooding volcano dominating the northern part of the island erupted and a pyroclastic flow, with its landslide of debris, buoyed up by super-hot gases wiped out S. Pierre. Of the 30,000 inhabitants only three survived this catastrophe, one of them a prisoner incarcerated in the protective thick walled gaol. Many ships laying in the harbour, quietly at anchor, now lie wrecked on the sea bed, their positions marked on the nautical charts give a poignant reminder of how awesome nature can be.
Spruce is anchored in the little cove off the village of Trois Ilets, on the Southern side of the Baie de Fort de France. This is close to the birthplace of Josephine, former Empress of Napoleon's French Empire and many stand-up comic jokes. The photograph shows a typically French village ... but in the West Indies.
Our plans! Off to the anchorage at Fort de France to see the older parts of the town and then, depending upon the direction of the swell, we may anchor off the old town of S. Pierre and visit the museum and relics of the disaster. In the event of a North Westerly swell, making the exposed anchorage untenable, that may all change and we'll press on to the next island northwards. Dominica! A departure from Europe before getting back to France at Guadeloupe on to the north of Dominica.
| News & Updates |
|
Comments [0]
28/Feb/2010, Petit Anse Arlet - Martinique
On northwards up the Eastern coast of Martinique. Our route took us past the famous, or infamous from the French viewpoint, Diamond Rock. A small band of about twenty sailors hauled four cannon up the side of this monstrous rock and took shots at passing French ships approaching Fort de France. They resisted attempts to remove them for a period of seventeen months during the Napoleonic Wars in 1804. The Admiralty raised the status of the rock to HMS Diamond Rock in recognition of the valiant service performed by her crew.
Our anchorage for tonight is Petit Anse de Arlet, a bay on the West coast of Martinique with a nice area of coral to the southern end. We found a number of weekend motor cruisers anchored right on top of the coral, their anchors and chain causing mayhem on the seabed below. Martinique does not appear to have the quality of snorkeling depth coral we have seen elsewhere and maybe this is partly to blame.
| News & Updates |
|
27/Feb/2010, Sainte Anne - Martinique
Departure from "English Bay" was preceded by washing off a very gloopy-muddy anchor and chain as we hauled it from the mire evidently coating the sea bed between the mangroves. Our slow exit was brought to a halt on two occasions as we gently slid onto the muddy shallows between us and the sea, maybe slightly too early on the modest tide, maybe too far off our inward track of yesterday. Once past the islets and reef the breeze freshened to 10 knots and we laid our course back towards the South coast. Destination, Sainte Anne near the famous ClubMed resort.
En route we were passed by a variety of gaily coloured yachts beating up the East coast into the moderate trade winds. The weekend of the round the island race. Crews sitting on the windward rail waving cheerily as they passed. One vessel of particular note was a Martinique Yole. These boats are about 30 feet long with no centreboard or rudder, just a steering oar at the stern and a series of long poles which the many handed crew climb out on to provide righting moment to combat the heeling of the enormous square sail. These boats have their own regatta in August, too late for us to stay. We were delighted to see one in action, an unexpected pleasure. How on earth they manage to sail these craft in the normal strength trade winds is a mystery.
A beautiful sunset this evening as we look towards Diamond Rock, vermilions and crimsons with a watery hint of a Turner painting. Maybe the colours are enhanced by recent eruptions of the volcano at Monseratt and ash in the atmosphere.
| News & Updates |
|
26/Feb/2010, Cul de Sac de Anglaise - Martinique
A rare chance to visit one of the inlets on the windward coast of Martinique, not to be entered in winds above 15 knots! However, we have a couple of days with winds of less than 10 knots so "Spruce" and "Elmarleen" teamed up to venture to the "English bay" on the South East corner of Martinique. A shallow patch over the bar with only a couple of feet below the keel but well in the shelter of three islets guarding the entrance, one named Ilet Hardy giving a hint of historical conflicts in the region, perhaps the man of Trafalgar fame aboard Victory as Nelson breathed his last. A turn to Starboard around the end of Ilet Paletuviers, clothed in deep green mangroves, dipping their leaves and aerial roots into the gently lapping sea. A beautifully sheltered anchorage with mangroves all about assured to attenuate any swell that might creep in from the Atlantic ocean. A pair of Ospreys fishing the lagoon, a backdrop of hills with sparse arid vegetation providing a pleasant vista as far as the eye can see.
The afternoon was spent exploring the wider bay by dinghy, snorkeling on the leeward side of the reef was not particularly rewarding compared with earlier experiences but three large rays were spotted. One half buried in the sand, no doubt awaiting a meal to swim past. Another, a large specimen almost a metre across, its back spotted, cautiously swam ahead of us circling off towards deeper water.
Another superb day. As the sun dips below the horizon the birds within the mangroves keep up a songful chorus as if they must reach a crescendo as the sun sets.
The photograph shows one of the ospreys perched on a dead tree with mangroves in the foreground.
| News & Updates |
|
24/Feb/2010, Le Marin - Martinique
Spruce is anchored at the harbour of Marin in Martinique. What a lots of yachts! More like a Solent port such as Lymington with moored vessels filling the bay. Apparently several charter companies operate from here and it is also a destination port for vessels crossing the Atlantic. The customs check in was fairly painless, a PC at which one fills in the details of the vessel, hit the button and a printed copy emerges which is then stamped by the official on duty - maybe this is e-borders in a workable form? Not like the bureaucratic version the UK intend to impose on yachts in the next few years. No check of clearance paperwork from the previous country was made. We had heard from a French yachtsman at Tobago that some of his less scrupulous countrymen cause ill feeling towards the French in the Caribbean because they have been known sail off without paying. Knowing they can enter French West Indies without any paperwork... we now see how a minority might be able to spoil the reputation of the majority:-)
After clearing in, with 2 minutes to spare before the customs office closed for the day at noon, we headed for a waterfront cafe to enjoy a beer and a lunchtime snack. No reggae music! A French crooner and accordion music instead. No King Fish rice and pigeon peas! Croque Monsieur, Fries, Moules and other continental fare... we felt dazed and slowly realised it had been three months since we were last in Europe and formerly familiar sights and sounds had become somewhat alien. We will surely quickly adapt back to European familiarity, maybe as we venture into the hinterland the environment may well change again. All very exciting, a new place to explore and "discover". Thing that remain unchanged are the heat, sweat and trade winds:-)
| News & Updates |
|
24/Feb/2010, On passage St Lucia to Martinique
An early start for Martinique. Wind generators stowed and loose items below back into lockers and ... oh yes, hauling the anchor up ... and we are off. A light South-easterly wind rapidly freshened to a force 5 as we cleared the lee of St Lucia. A horrible cork screwing motion was momentarily tempered by the beautiful sight of a large pod of dolphins lazily cruising by ... not too relaxing a vista if you are are school of tasty fish, no doubt.
Spruce is now 5 miles from entering the bay to Marin in the South Eastern side of the island. All quite exciting to see how different an EU administered island appears from the independent islands seen so far. Much more affluent and probably more expensive as well... we will see.
The photo shows our French courtesy flag with the yellow Q-Flag requesting "Free Pratique", a sight more normal on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean.
| News & Updates |
|
