While we are slowly transforming 'Silverheels III' from a barge to a sailboat again, we are still finding time to have some fun. After all, no need to miss the fun stuff just because we are planning on moving on soon.

A couple of weeks ago, we had a weekend without a hash. Okay, not the end of the world for some of us, but it did take away from the regular exercise "fix" some of us around here have become used to. That was simple, I phoned Fletch, my favourite trail guide and set up a hike to the upper falls at Annandale. Throw in transportation and a chance to get some food at the end and it makes for a pretty good day!

We arrived at the entrance to the touristy Annandale Falls and started walking into the Nature Preserve. The Preserve (one of a number in Grenada) is designed to protect the watershed that provides the municipal water to the island. No chemicals, no farm animals (in theory, anyway) and acres of land protected by the Department of Forestry. We walked past experimental plots of various trees and plants to find what might work well in Grenada for either cash crops, lumber, or other reasons. Fletch was a fount of knowledge since he had worked with the Department for many years, and described the various trees and plants, as well as their uses. Even the bush medicine uses were discussed (the baccano tree was especially popular since it is supposed to help with weight loss). We came to the point where the groups split off, the easier group and the harder group. the harder group set off for the water falls. The path was actually not that difficult, and signs of Fletch having cleared some of the trail the day before were quite noticeable. We finally arrived at the waterfalls, and had a chance to cool off under the rather cold spray, and to refill water bottles as one saw fit (the water was fantastic). On the way back down the trail we came upon the other group going up to the falls - they wanted to see them, too. No to be outdone, we followed the "easier" trail that they had followed, so everybody ended up seeing the same things. We got back to the area close to the touristy falls and enjoyed cold drinks and oildown. It was a very pleasant day.

On Halloween, there was a plethora of options for cruisers to enjoy. There were a number of costume parties, a Halloween Hash, and even a cricket game that rewarded people who played n costume. I chose to play cricket, then we would stick around for the weekly Burger Night. My costume was "Night of the Living Dread" - I had a little hat with "dreads" attached, and did my face up in a zombie motif. The stage blood oozing out of my mouth at times was quite effective (the kids were fascinated and wanted to touch it). This cricket game was my debut as a team captain, and we actually won! The other team skipper has been playing cricket for most of his life, so I felt pretty good about that.

This past weekend also had no opportunity for hashing, so a hike up in the rainforest in Grand Etang with Fletch was planned. In a nutshell, WOW. The air plants (orchids amongst others) were incredible, and the different mosses and other plants on the trees were beautiful. Some of the views were fantastic, eliciting a comment from one person that he regretted not bringing his camera (I second that, and am grateful for those who post albums on Facebook!). We enjoyed barbecued chicken and cold drinks by the crater lake, then crammed back into the bus (a combination of poor communication, assumption and oversight made for an uncharacteristically cramped bus ride for part of the trip).

So we aren't just thumb twiddling and navel gazing, in between boat jobs, we do get out and about a bit.