We sailed to Dominica with variable winds that started off very high as we rounded the north-end of Les Saintes, but moderated as we sailed south, varying from low 10s to 20 knots. We arrived to Price Rupert Bay at the north end of the island in mid afternoon, where the second largest city of Portsmouth is located. The bay is large and there is plenty of anchorage space with depths of less than 30 feet a welcome relief for us. Soon after we arrived to Portsmouth the winds picked up and by 5 PM we experienced ongoing high winds with gusts in the mid 30s - the most we have ever felt at anchorage. The customs office was at the south end of the bay about 2 miles from our anchorage so we decided to stay put and make sure that Kikuyu's anchor was holding well. The high winds prevailed for the next 24 hours and sleeping that night was rough - rather none for most of the night. The sound of the wind would go from whistling to howling, with ruckus bumps and shakes that would make us feel as if the boat was about to rip out of its anchor. The next morning we debated when to make the dingy ride to customs which we finally did in late morning.

After clearing customs we walked the town from its center to the north-end where a smaller beach can be found in front of the Purple Turtle Club. This is the area where most sailboats were moored but was too full when we came in. Portsmouth gave us an initial glimpse of an amazingly green and beautiful country, filled with nature, rainforests, valleys, gorges, ravines, lakes, about 400 rivers and 8 potentially active volcanoes. The highest of the volcanoes is a little over 4100 feet high. Dominica is still undeveloped because its tourism has been late to start due to the few beaches available. However, its nature is what makes Dominica beautiful and a worthwhile place to visit.

To view a few pictures of Porsmouth, copy and paste the following link to a web browser.

http://picasaweb.google.com/sailingourway/2008_02_19Portsmouth?authkey=c9XybUCqEok