Having spent a few months in the Windward Islands, last time, the familiarity is rather comforting. Largely knowing what to expect (essentials: market location, availability of tasty food (or not), laundry facilities, garbage disposal) the changes are noticeable. More yachts…lots more yachts, everywhere.

Carriacou, north of Grenada, is still laid back. Street food shacks and vegetable stores intermittently line the beach road while bleating goats amble in the rough pasture. Pelicans dive for fish in the shallows, avoiding the charter boats that are maybe a little too near the reef at times. Minibuses still offer rides to Hillsborough, the main town. The tired Tyrell Bay boat yard is now operating, complete with travel lift and dock with duty free fuel - once you’ve checked out. The mangrove ridden site of a previous marina development is once again being worked with huge floating pontoons craned from supply ships and towed to their new location by a rather smart motor fishing yacht.

Union Island and Tobago Cays look busy, too busy to stop unfortunately, plus its a good day for sailing. An overnight stay in Bequia reminds us how pretty the anchorage is with its fretwork gingerbread houses along the shores. Then gorgeous St Vincent, the beautiful emerald green island with an unfortunately notorious reputation for ‘security incidents’ (including rather too many nasty robberies) and unsurprisingly it’s one of the least crowded. Such as shame as it looks so inviting and unspoilt but we resist. From here its a quick passage past St Lucia’s towering pitons, complete with sulphurous odour, to the northern anchorage of Rodney Bay for another overnight stop.

Checking in to Martinique, the French islands come into their own. The coffee shop at Ste-Anne has a clearance computer - fill in your own details, print and get it stamped, wifi and coffee optional (for a price of course) - that’s it. Baguettes, soft cheese, pate, wine. It’s all there, and surprisingly cheaper than many of the other non-french islands. Leader Price, the supermarket, has its own dinghy dock. Cruisers trundle around pushing wayward trollies laden with wine, beer and local rum, toilet rolls and tins of mushrooms, creme fraiche and camembert and carefully load the precious produce into their dinghies, then pray it doesn’t rain. We came prepared with (un-needed) tarpaulin this time. Clear water, friends, delightful sunsets and we’re ready to head north again. Last stop in the Windward islands - St Pierre. The northern town and former capital of Martinique, at least before the 1902 volcanic eruption of Mont Pelee. The lone survivor made it out alive from the town prison because the cell was sufficiently thick to withstand the heat. Blackened ruined walls are incorporated into later buildings as the town as gradually re-established itself. The french islands look very, well - French. Not sure what it is but the towns have that French look. Old stone and wooden homes with shutters, those attractive blue signs on buildings giving road name, the central church tower, citroens and renault cars, even with the Caribbean colour scheme the melee of faded colours looks undeniably French.

The sailing is interesting in the lee of the islands, the wind is erratic at best. From 2 knots to 20 knots in seconds as williwaws of accelerating winds sweep down the steep sided land blasting everything in its path, with little or no wind between. Sails are tweaked in and let out, reefed and un-reefed, the course is driven by the wind with a vague and general direction of travel at times to make the most of the fical wind. Between the islands the trade winds gather pace through the gaps with more than enough breeze and a fair bit of swell. The rain squalls however are best avoided. Sometimes you get rain squalls with no wind but not often here it seems. These have their own ferocity with horizontal rain accompanying the horizontal wave-top spray, white outs with lots of wind. Not really what we want from Caribbean sailing!

So onwards north to the Leewards.