15 August 2010 | Jaji, Venezuela
15 August 2010 | Venezuela
15 August 2010 | Merida, Venezuela
15 August 2010 | Merida, Venezuela
15 August 2010 | Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Tortuga, Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Tortuga, Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Tortuga, Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Tortuga, Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Tortuga, Venezuela
12 July 2010 | Tortuga, Venezuela
07 July 2010 | Navimca, Venezuela
07 July 2010 | Cumana, Venezuela
07 July 2010 | Cumana, Venezuela
07 July 2010 | Makro Store, Cumana, Venezuela
Handsome Dude
27 July 2007 | Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten
Pelicans are a common sight on this island. They provide great entertainment watching them soaring the ocean in search of fish. Once spotted they dive headlong into the water completely submerging and then emerging with a meal.
Lovin' It
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maartin
Bill looks good with a backdrop of beautiful palms. This cruising life suits him perfectly. It is everything and more than he ever imagined.
Philipsburg Promenade
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
This is the beach and promenade in Philipsburg where tourists enjoy beautiful sandy beaches and shops catering to them. No wonder cruise ships stop here.
Second Trip to Philipsburg
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maartin
Philipsburg, a popular spot for tourists and a cruise ship port, is great. We enjoyed it so much the first time we came back for another visit.
These are landed fishermen's boats.
Simpson Bay
27 July 2007 | Sint Maarten, West Indies
This is a view of Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten. This is where boaters stock up on boat supplies and do maintenance at the tax free prices. We bought a bottle of reasonable-quality French wine for $2.50 U.S.
Floating Inside the Dinghy
27 July 2007 | St. Martin
This looks like a condo with a spectacular view of the ocean. Along one of these beaches we decided to take a rest stop while exploring the Atlantic ocean beaches by dinghy. It turned out to be anything but. As we headed toward the deserted, sandy beach it wasn't until we reached the shore that we discovered a steep wall of hard-packed sand developed from the waves pounding into the shore. We were suddenly caught between high rollers crashing into shore and a wall of sand. We jumped onto shore just as a wave broke over the dinghy, filling it with water to overflowing. It swept my legs our from under me landing me back on the floor of the dinghy. Fortunately the dinghy motor kept running and we jumped back in the water-logged dinghy and Bill steered us out as I frantically pumped out the water. Everything inside was soaked. Fortunately my camera was inside a case, inside my purse and survived unscathed. That was a lesson. What you see isn't necessarily what you get.
Cathedral Park Look Alike
27 July 2007 | Marigot Bay, St. Martin
We took a dinghy ride one day from Simpson Bay to Marigot Bay, out along the ocean past numerous lovely and deserted beaches and back to Simpson Bay. This is a rock formation as we rounded the corner to begin our bumpy Atlantic adventure from Marigot Bay. The rock formation looks like the Devil's woodpile in Cathedral Park, B.C.
Tug Amuck
27 July 2007 | Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten
There were surprises in Simpson Bay that the charts didn't reveal. We didn't feel so bad hanging up on a sandbar when we first arrived when we saw it even happened to a commercial tugboat.
American Eagle Officers' Deck
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
The naval recruits were providing the tour and indicated that this area was for officers only. Everyone quickly learns their place and respects the hierarchy of authority.
The ship was immaculate. Unfortunately they didn't allow viewing of the living quarters. That would have been very interesting.
American Eagle Training Ship
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
Good thing they have a large crew to handle the rigging.
It's a great opportunity for young naval recruits to spend three weeks sailing and living on the ship. We chatted with a few of them and they were nearing the end of their stint. It had been a marvelous experience.
American Eagle
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
What a privilege to be aboard the American Eagle.
American Eagle Story
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
The American Eagle is the largest Tall Ship (295 ft) and only square-rigger in U.S. government services.
American Eagle Tour
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
American Eagle in St. Maarten offered tours one weekend. This was a rare opportunity to see and board such a magnificent ship.
A Wonderful Day in Philipsburg
27 July 2007 | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
A lovely beach in Philipsburg.
After our visit to Philipsburg we went for groceries at Le Grand Marche and how grand it was. It is the largest supermarket in St. Maarten with everything we could possible need at fair prices. We loaded up with as much as we felt we could physically handle, considering we had to take a bus back to Simpson Bay where we had left our dinghy.
We later found better bargains at Cost U Less. It was identical to Costco except there was no membership required. We got a six-month supply of everything we could think of, packaged it ourselves (late on a Friday afternoon) and it was delivered to the dock on Monday morning.
Quaint and Inviting
27 July 2007 | Phillipsburg, Sint Maartin
Philipsburg is the capital of Sint Maarten and at the head of Great Bay. We took the local bus from Simpson Bay where we are anchored in the lagoon. It has two main streets: Front Street and Back Street. Front Street is full of expensive stores selling jewelry, electronics and clothing. It is also a major cruise ship stop.
Remant of the Past
27 July 2007 | St. Martin, Leeward Islands
A remnant of the Spanish/English wars over dominance of this island.
Marigot
27 July 2007 | St. Martin, West Indies
Marigot is the capital of the French St. Martin. French shops and restaurants are in abundance. Dinghy docks are located next to nearly every business which makes it very convenient for cruisers.
On the advice of fellow cruisers we checked into the country on the French side. However, considering we are anchored on the Dutch side and spend most of our time there, we are going to check out and check in on the Dutch side.
We noted earlier that our traveling companions on Shearwater of Dee had taken an alternate route on our last day of travel to St. Martin to take advantage of wind and to conserve fuel. They were expected to arrive close to the time we arrived. We arrived at 6 a.m. and tried calling Shearwater of Dee on the VHF radio throughout the day with no response. By the middle of the next day we were getting concerned and decided to report them to the Coast Guard as an overdue boat. Leaving our ID with security and being issued passes, we were escorted into the Coast Guard building where a report was filled out. Our friends are highly experienced sailors but our only concern was they may be drifting somewhere unable to sail. To our delight we learned that Nigel & Kathy had arrived that evening, having had engine failure. At one point the Coast Guard had boarded them to inspect their boat, obviously wondering why they were traveling at such a slow pace. They didn't offer any assistance and the Coast Guard we attended seemed to have no knowledge of this. Preparing to enter the lagoon the next morning when the bridge went up at 9:30 a.m., Nigel & Kathy had friends in dinghies on either side of them power them through with us following along to act as a tugboat and give a push if necessary. The operation went smoothly and Shearwater of Dee was soon anchored in the field of sailboats inside the lagoon ready to start repairs on their engine.
There are probably about 40 - 50 boats anchored in the lagoon on the Dutch side now whereas we are told in the winter the numbers are around 400 - 500 boats. I cannot imagine the congestion that would cause and lineups everywhere. I'm thankful we're here in the summer (offseason).
We're Dragging!!!
27 July 2007 | Sint Maarten, West Indies
St. Martin/Sint Maarten (French/Dutch) is a duty free island in the eastern Caribbean's Leeward Islands. One side of the island is French and the other side is Dutch. Travel between the two is at will and boaters can check into the country on either side. The French side caters to more tourists and has a wide variety of elaborate French boutiques and sidewalk restaurants. The Dutch side is more service oriented. French is the main language heard in St. Martin vs. English in Sint Maarten.
Because of the excellent availability of services for boaters, including well equipped chandleries, the majority of boats anchor on the Dutch side.
We arrived in St. Maarten on June 5 at 6 a.m. We anchored outside the lagoon waiting for the bridge to open at 9:30 a.m. allowing us to enter the lagoon. It opens three times a day during the summer. On our last day of sailing our friends on Shearwater of Dee had taken a route away from us to maximize the wind and for fuel economy. They expected to arrive within hours of us. That's another story I'll elaborate on later. Once inside the lagoon we immediately grounded. Once again our Garmin charts failed to locate a couple of sandbars in the lagoon. We managed to free ourselves and set anchor. After getting settled we headed off to Budget Marine where we had a list we were waiting to fill. Budget Marine has everything a cruiser needs at prices comparable to Florida. Many cruisers save their lists for this stop. When we returned to our boat we learned that while we were away we had dragged and were heading to a marina. Fortunately a mechanic from the marina and a local man working on a sailboat nearby, rescued our boat and re-anchored it before any collision had occurred. We were so thankful for their quick action and acknowledged their efforts with a gift. We felt rather insecure and seeing one mooring ball available nearby, we tied up to it for peace of mind. The mooring balls, we discovered, are all privately owned but this one had been deserted. If the owner appeared expecting compensation we were certainly willing to pay for it.
The following night we were in the salon watching a movie on our computer. When it was over I climbed into bed while Bill proceeded to lock up the boat around 10:30 p.m. Suddenly he yelled "Bev, something is wrong, we're over by the airport." I grabbed my street clothes, scrambled into the cockpit and started the engine as we prepared to make an immediate move. The engine seemed to be struggling but we managed to maneuver back into the anchorage area and after several unsuccessful tries Bill re-set an anchor. The bottom is heavy turtle grass and each time we set the anchor in it we dragged. The next day a fellow boater suggested if we set the anchor in a clear patch of sand it would hold. He was right. As an added precaution that night Bill got in the dinghy and set a second anchor. We had trouble comprehending the sea of boats we had dragged through without colliding with anything, to the point we discovered we had dragged. Once again we knew we were protected by God's angels. As it turned out the mooring ball had released from the bottom and we had dragged it with us, coiling its rope around our propeller. Fortunately it hadn't done any damage.