The white foam formed a beautiful contrast to the rich deep blue of the sea, as the cresting waves rose high around us, tossing Tara Vana like a toy boat. As expected, Tara Vana handled the 8 - 10 foot waves like a champ, and we marveled at how comfortable we were, despite the rough conditions.

It looked like a squall was forming ahead, so we reefed the jib to help slow down the boat; we had started the crossing with 2 reefs set in the main sail, anticipating the strong winds that were forecast. St. Lucia, though only about 10 miles ahead, was not visible in the dark, cloudy conditions. That's ok; checking our electronic chart plotter, we confirmed that Tara Vana was right on course.

As if to brighten our trip, a pod of dolphins came to frolic in our bow waves, bringing instant smiles to our faces. What a treat!

We had left Martinique just a few hours ago, with a tinge of sadness. Of all the islands of the Eastern Caribbean, the French Antilles islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe were among our favorite. We had been visiting many of the same places over the past 3 seasons, saying hi to friends made the prior seasons, and anchoring in our favorite spots. Now we were really saying goodbye....

Before we even bought Tara Vana, we dreamed of sailing around the world. We knew that we had a lot to learn before starting such a challenging trip, though, and planned to spend a few seasons in the Eastern Caribbean, learning more about the boat, improving our skills, and equipping the boat for extended offshore cruising.

After much preparation, we've decided to start heading west on our circumnavigation after this hurricane season. We'll take our time in Venezuela, using it as a base while we do some trekking in South America. The offshore islands of Venezuela are fantastic, or so we've heard, and we're looking forward to exploring them. Then on to the Dutch Islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao. We're looking forward to visiting Cartagena; other cruisers rave about this safe and historic capital of Colombia. And we'll make sure to save plenty of time to explore the San Blas Islands, a group of islands off the east coast of Panama, where the native Kuna Indians' lifestyle & culture has not changed much in 100's of years.

And though the plans of sailors change often, we're tentatively planning to go through the Panama Canal in the spring of 2007, fully prepared for our 25 - 30 day crossing to the South Pacific.

We have installed a watermaker, which converts salt water to drinkable fresh water. We've installed a single sideband marine radio that allows us to get extensive real-time weather information, as well as communicate with other cruisers. We're buying a new life raft, and some additional offshore safety equipment. We're adding more solar panels, and are considering installing a wind generator, to provide us with more electricity. In Trinidad this summer, we will have our standing rigging replaced, and buy a new main sail and a new jib. We've installed an EPIRB, or emergency positioning radio beacon, which allows us to transmit our exact position, via satellite, to the local coast guard, and all ships in the area, in the case of an emergency. We have books on everything, from weather forecasting to medicine at sea, from sail handling to boat maintenance to conjugating Spanish verbs. And we have enough novels to entertain us across the Pacific.

Though we still have some things to buy and some preparations to make, we are feeling ready to set out.

We've thoroughly enjoyed our cruising in the Eastern Caribbean. We've sailed about 4000 miles, and explored 26 different islands in 13 countries. We've spoken 6 different languages (if you include Trini English!), used 5 different currencies, identified dozens of kinds of reef fish and coral, collected lots of cool shells, eaten many exotic tropical fruits, enjoyed wonderful sunsets & rainbows, and made countless friends. We enjoyed 17 months total in our home base of Trinidad, where we were very involved in the music culture and Carnival festivities. We've enjoyed getting to know many other cruisers, who have accepted the same challenges and are living the same dream. We've learned so much from them. We'll take wonderful memories with us as we set sail for this greatest of adventures....