11/12/09, Union Island, Grenadines
Early...ish the next morning we sailed around Mayreau Island and on the Union Island, we had a very lazy sail to Union with only the foresail out. We checked out as soon as we got there as we wanted to leave the next morning for Carriacou, to spend some time at Sandy Island. After checking out, we went to Happy Island for sundowners, rum punches......
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11/12/09, Tobago Cays, Grenadines
So our last night in the Cays and here the sun is setting over Union Island, our next destination, to book out of the Grenadines...wow!! it has gone so fast.
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11/12/09, Tobago Cays, Grenadines
Tobago Cays is a very special place, we spent time swimming with the turtles, who are not put off at all with people swimming around them, they have some wonderful patterns on their shells. Here is a pic of "Pod" (our dingy) and Pizzazz in the background.
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09/12/09, Tobago Cays, Grenadines
So after a stopover in Canouan, we moved on to Tobago Cays the next morning, which only took us about an hour sailing and we anchored in the clear water of the Cays.
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09/12/09, Bequia Island to Canouan Island
So one night we were boarded and I was stabbed, leaving a DEEP cut just on the rib cage area..........joking..joking, I was injured...while loading "Pod", our dingy, and then the whole crew ganged up on me and forced me to apply this stuff!!!....the scar remains.....
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09/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
Yes, and then the time came to depart our favourite Island in the Grenadines. We left on Saturday and set sail for a stopover in Canouan Island.
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09/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
Sundowner's and some super snacks by the super Chef on board......
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09/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
And then it was back to Bequia for a sundowner....
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07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
And then there were other famous people on one of the beaches on the Island...
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Your Hhhigghhhnesssess!!!!
07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
Then came Friday and we were off to the Island of Mustique, on the local schooner Friendship Rose, where all the "Stars" have holiday homes.
Because of its luxury and isolation, Mustique has over the years attracted a number of the rich and famous: Amy Winehouse, Noel Gallagher, Princess Margaret, Mick Jagger, Bryan Adams, Shania Twain, Kate Moss, David Duchovny and Tea Leoni, Felix Dennis, David Bowie, Tommy Hilfiger, Hugh Grant, Kate Middleton, Prince William, Robert Worcester, Jack Diamond, Pierce Brosnan, Alex Beard and Nigella Lawson.
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07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
The restaurant was called Moskito Bar/Grill and was located right on the water, the food was really tasty.
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07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
We found a wonderful place in Friendship Bay, it was a Resort/Hotel which never progressed to it's original plan, they must have run out of money, so not completed, but has a few very nice units, but they did build the restaurant, which has such a nice location and was nicely done up. Keith & Lyn decided to treat us, Glyn & I, to a lunch there because it was actually our 26th year anniversary....aint that fantastic (thanks again Keith & Lyn), so Fat Man our taxi man, left us there and returned later to collect us again, the gardens were beautiful.
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07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
We also stopped by at the Turtle farm which was amazing, great to hear someone out there cares. This guy, Orton King, used to be a skin-diving fisherman and then retired and thought of saving the turtles would be his bit for the enviroment. The place is called OldHegg Turtle Sanctuary and has been providing a nursary for young Hawksbill turtles since 1995. The turtles are cared for from birth to 18 months, when they are tagged and returned to the ocean, I think he told us he sometimes keeps them until 4 years old as well.
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07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
Here is a shot of Pizzazz & Glyn from the Hamilton Fort, Pizzazz is the one second from the right....we thought she was "big"......
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So as you can see....this is Hamilton Fort......
The remains of Hamilton Fort in Bequia provide a fantastic view over Admiralty Bay towards Port Elizabeth and Princes Margaret Beach. The old fort lies to the north of Admiralty Bay and was built in the late 18th Century by the French who fortified the site to protect the harbour approach from the English.
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07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
This was our taxi man, he does not look fat at all.........he did tell us that he took the van over from a guy that was fat...so he kept the name....
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07/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
So we decided to say at bequia a few days and just Lime for a while. We had one day where we just lay around the boat reading, swimming and just taking it easy. We also decided to go to Mustique Island on the local Schooner Friendship Rose, because it is such a nice experience and that was only on the Friday, so this decided how long we would stay. The one day we went on an Island tour by taxi and had a great day out, this is a view of the bay from the "Fort"...
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04/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
As usual in Bequia, we always get some stunning sunsets, and some interesting visitors as seen in the pic.
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It looked such fun and I have been reliving my trip there - which only makes it worse for me.
04/12/09, Bequia Island, Grenadines
It was great to be back in Bequia, as it is really our favourite Island so far, it was so green and lush as seen on the photo. We arrived here on Sunday and only planned on leaving again on the following Friday, so some time to lime, and lots to do and see.
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Loved your blog relative at the Grenadines where we had the opportunity to go (tobago Cayes).
Could tell me why you prefer Bequia (where we did not go yet)?
thanks and have a great day
04/12/09, Union Island/Bequia Island
The Saturday night we got Pizzazz ready for an early..ish start, eventually leaving at about 8:00am on Sunday. We had another great sail up to Bequia, arriving at about 2:00pm. This pic is leaving Union Island behind.
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04/12/09, Union Island, Grenadines
We decided to stay at Union Island for the next day to do some exploring and shopping as usual. We also had a great Cheese Burger in paradise for lunch.
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04/12/09, Clifton Harbour, Union Island
We had a great sail across to Union Island, making 2 tacks. We manged to make good time and got to immigration and Customs before closing time. Clifton Harbour is a magic place to stop over if the weather is great, as sit behind the reef and get a cool breeze off the ocean, and the colour of the water is magnificent.
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04/12/09, Hillsborough to Union Island
After lunch I went and did the neccessary with Immigration and Customs, while the rest did a bit of shopping. We wanted to get to Union Island to check-in before the day was over, in case of weekend rates, so lifted anchor and here Lyn was handling the Pizzazz all on her own!!!!
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04/12/09, Hillsborough, Carriacou Island
We anchored off Hillsborough and went in to check out, but arrived on lunch time and the immigration office was closed, so we decided to have lunch with Pizzazz anchored off in the background.
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04/12/09, Carriacou Island
So Friday 13th Nov, we lifted the anchor and sailed from Tyrrel Bay to Hillsborough, the capitol, to check out of the Grenada Islands. We had a great sail past Sandy Island, and as seen in the photo, somebody was happy to be sailing again and have her brother onboard.
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04/12/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
But before we could leave, our outboard developed a problem, it was over heating, which turned out to be the impeller, so we stripped the motor, to find that there was not one blade on the impeller. So I had to order one from Grenada which was a problem, I had a chat to our friend Vossie up in St Maarten, and he offered to help out, and went out of his way to organise an impeller which he found and sent down to us (Thanks again Vossie), in the meantime, the place in Grenada also found one, so had two arriving. Both were the same but had to be modified, which Keith modified and did a great job and it worked well, after a whole afternoon and the next morning, we managed to get the motor together again and we were ready to rock & roll......
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04/12/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
So it was great meeting up with Keith & Lyn, and hoped they were going to have a wonderful time onboard Pizzazz. The weather looked great so we were all looking forward to picking up anchor and moving up to the Grenadines again....
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04/12/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
So time to head back to the Caribbean and get Pizzazz all dressed up to sail again. We arrived in Grenada and spent some "Lime time" and then arrived in Tyrrel Bay, where our great mates Dave & Barbara were waiting to see us again. We had to get all the sails and coves up and Pizzazz ready as Glyn's brother & wife, Keith & Lyn were arriving with in a week. We had a problem with the foresail as the Profurl halyard swivel, did not work properly, but after a few try's and getting into a problem with our foresail flapping and the swivel and sail not going up or down and having it halfway, our friend John from the yacht "Thiswan", came to our rescue and was a great help in sorting the problem out, but after a lot of stressing and hard work we were ready to collect Keith & Lyn from Carriacou airport. So here is Pizzazz all ready to sail away again...
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14/10/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
In she goes and ready for her next leg. Hopefully in 2 weeks we will be on the move again, looking forward to it, it has been a while away from Pizzazz. Where we are going to go, will depend on how we go with putting everything back where it belongs, we are not sure what the inside is going to look like with mildew, as hear when boats are closed up for extended periods, the growth is amazing. We will also be having a few evenings with our friends, which could shorten the days..........but will keep you posted.
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Lydia and Dave
14/10/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
Eventually our new prop did arrive, and it has now been fitted, we just hope it all works out, and we can now get more power, and speed when no wind.
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14/10/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
So time to give Pizzazz a bit of attention, her bottom, sides and a new prop all done.
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11/10/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
These are our great mates Francois and Mad's, who are planning on sailing the blue yonder the end of 2010, we wish them all the luck and great sailing. Thanks for a fantastic weekend.
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11/10/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
Above is a pic of Pizzazz in Union Island.
Well just an update on what has been happening lately. With hurricane season starting to close, it is getting close for us to resume our sailing adventure again. Glyn has had a wonderful time in South Africa and we had a very busy time when we were both there. Unfortunately it was not enough time to make plans to see everyone as we had a few things we had to sort out for our future plans of sailing and moving to Australia.
We had a week up near the Kruger National Park in a timeshare resort with Glyn's family, then we spent a great weekend in Port Qwen with our great mates Francois & Mad's, where we had a great sail overnight on there new boat, and then we spent time with my father and brothers, so was a very full 28 days.
But now we are returning to Pizzazz on the 29th October, where we plan on putting Pizzazz together again and prepare her for her next leg to the Panama Canal in January. We are hoping to also sail more north this time, to see friends in St Maarten, but we will see how our preparations go, before we make definite plans.
Pizzazz has also been slipped at the local yard for her anti-fouling, polishing of hull and to have her new propeller installed, so hope that will be making a big difference to our speed when motoring. We are also having a new wind generator fitted.
So we are looking forward to being on Pizzazz again, luckily, so far (touch wood) the hurricanes have all gone north this year and there have been very few compared to past seasons, but hurricane season is only over come end of November, so we hope things stay this way. Till next time.......
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22/08/09, Carriacou Island, Grenada
So Hurricane Bill did track as predicted, and went north. Another system was developing but they now say a small chance.......
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19/08/09, Carriacou Island, Grenada
So our first real hurricane has gone according to predictions, and gone north of the Caribbean, for those who don't know, Grenada is the very last, most southern, of the Caribbean Islands.
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19/08/09, Carriacou Island, Grenada
So we have our first hurricane of the season, the 2nd named Tropical storm. It is predicted to go north of where Pizzazz is, so we are watching very closely. It is picking up momentum as has gone from catagory 1 to now 3 in the past 1-2 days, winds of over 100 knots......
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07/08/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
So another pic of Pizzazz.........
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We are happy that you are well and sound.
So,the sailing is out for the next 3 months.
Mayby we will see eachother in SA.
Regards,Kai & Michelle.
07/08/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou
So we also had to do work while there, in preparing Pizzazz for hurricane season on her own. We removed everything off the deck which had to go inside. The inside was getting cramped with all the sails, bimini, spray dodger, water & fuel containers, all the safety equipment, we also taped equipment up in the cockpit, to save from the sun without the bimini & dodger. I also put extra rope on the solar panels, just in case......
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07/08/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
We had a lot of rain this time and this is a sunset with another local storm approaching....
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07/08/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
Lazy Turtle Pizza restaurant make some really great pizza's, the service has been terrible at stages, but recently the staff have changed and has been more pleasant, the pizza's are expensive at about EC$40 (US$1 = EC$2.67) which is about US$15, which is about R120 (South African) but is located in a really great spot, looking over the bay. A local meal available anywhere else wich consists of mainly Chicken, rice and beans can be bought for EC$15......
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07/08/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
This is a view across to the yacht club and yacht lift......
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07/08/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
Lambi Queen restaurant actually own the mooring we are on at the moment, but it is the place to be on a Friday night, as they have a live Tin Pan Band playing there until early hours of the morning, but we can enjoy our cheap drinks on the front deck while enjoying the sounds, which is magic.....
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07/08/09, Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou Island
This is a pic, showing the distance to shore, from the mooring.....
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07/08/09, Carriacou Island
The beach....
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07/08/09, Carriacou Island
The shop....
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07/08/09, Carriacou Island
This is Glyn doing her shopping......
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07/08/09, Carriacou Island
So with Pizzazz's sails already packed away, we decided to just relax and also see a bit of Carriacou Island. This is a pic taken at Paradise Beach, Glyn did a bit of shopping here and we had a beer or two and then walked back to Tyrrel Bay.
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07/08/09, Carriacou Island, Grenada
We both arrived in Grenada and ready to spend a few days "liming" at Jenny's Place, a complex right on Grande Anse beach, we planned on staying for 4 days but landed up being 7, because we could not get a flight to Carriacou. This picture is arriving at Carriacou Island and is a shot of Tyrrel Bay, where Pizzazz is moored at present, if visible, on the left of the bay, you can see the mangrove area where Pizzazz will be moored if any hurricanes on the horizon.
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08/07/09, Carriacou Island, Grenada
So the time has come to do a bit of maintenance and tidy up and prepare for hurricane season. We are already in hurricane season since the 1st June until the 30th November, but the worst months for hurricanes are Aug/Sept/Oct. We are first going to stay in a hotel for 4 days in Grenada and then back to the boat. We hope to also see a bit more of Carriacou Island, so it is not all going to be work and no play. We will then both be flying back to Joburg on the 31st July, Glyn will be in South Africa for Aug/Sep/Oct, I will be in SA in Sep for 4 weeks. So we will see how we go, till next time....
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15/06/09, Bequia Island to Carriacou Island
So after a wonderful relaxing stay in Bequia, it was time to head back to Carriacou Island. We had plans of stopping off at other places but kept delaying another day until we had no more choices, and had to head straight to Carriacou. Again we had a very quick sail back, about 30 miles we covered in 5 hours, this time though Pizzazz was loaded with diesel and water. Here is a shot of the very casual helms person, Pizzazz doing 6-7 knots.....
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