Dominica - Jewel of the Caribbean - North End of the Island
19 March 2024 | Portsmouth, Dominica
Donna Cariss
We put the mainsail up as we left the anchorage at Terre-de-Haut and the foresail shortly afterwards, as we approached the headland and picked up some wind. Because we were sailing between the islands, the winds were fluky; up and down and all over the place, making it difficult to control. I was on the helm and feeling nervous as we headed towards the reef, which appeared to only have a narrow gap. The engine battery was on, just in case we needed to start the engine if the light wind failed us at the wrong moment. We cleared the reef without the engine and had a good sail over to Dominica, in close company with Freedom Girl for much of the time. There was an odd squall and the winds were variable but we were happy with a reef in all the way. We passed a Portuguese man o' war, with its magenta sail up to carry it along. Eventually, Freedom Girl left us behind and they arrived in Portsmouth about 20 to 30 minutes ahead of us. On our way into the anchorage, we were met by Elvis, one of the PAYS boat boys, who gave us his card, saying he could help with trips, taxis, laundry etc. FG had anchored in front of a big, decrepit, red fishing boat called Sea Siren, so we anchored alongside them. Their boat boy was called Titus and they had agreed we would use the same person (sorry Elvis). Alexis, another boat boy (they are all men, not boys!), came alongside selling tickets for the PAYS beach BBQ and collecting donations and useful items for the under-privileged school children. I gave him a pack of coloured pencils, a note pad and a pack of playing cards. We said we would consider the BBQ later. Jimbo came across in his dinghy to collect Pete so they could go to clear in. As Pete handed Jimbo our file of papers and passports, he missed and it went in the water. Jimbo couldn't reach it and Pete jumped in, fully clothed, to retrieve it. The one time he didn't put it in a dry bag and he drops it! That put paid to clearing in, as we had to lay everything out to dry. Luckily there was no permanent damage done. Cock up number 2 was Pete pouring my dilute lemon juice in the kettle to boil to wash the rice, thinking it was water. Number 3 came after tea. We were sitting in the cockpit after sunset when we started to get very close to the Sea Siren. We had to move quickly to avoid hitting it as we swung in different directions. I had to motor out of its way while Pete was lifting the anchor. We motored close to Freedom Girl, giving the 'whoop whoop' signal as loud as we could, to alert them to the danger. Eventually they heard us and were also able to move, just in time. Sea Siren was on a very long line. It was now fully dark, so we set the anchor well behind the fishing boat, rather than try to find a space anywhere else. Freedom Girl followed and anchored close by. Pete and Jimbo slept in their respective cockpits, to keep watch and I was up and down all night checking, as I could hear Pete snoring. It was crazy how Sea Siren moved as the wind and current changed; sometimes in front of us, sometimes to port and sometimes to starboard. Jimbo and Lil had to move again at 2230 hours and dropped anchor well away without putting any instruments on.
First thing next morning, we re-anchored close to the north side of the bay, having looked close to Freedom Girl and found they were in 18 metres of water. Jimbo and Lil followed and anchored just behind us. Pete and Jimbo then went to clear in, down near Indian River. Although in 1 dinghy and not using the dinghy dock, which was terrible,, they were still charged 15 EC each for using the dock, in addition to the 10 EC to clear in. They had no issues with the fact they hadn't cleared out of Guadeloupe. While they were away, I swam over to Freedom Girl and had a cup of tea with Lil and we discussed the BBQ and potential taxi tours. I spotted another Westerly coming into the anchorage; it was another Typhoon, Nessa V, number TN38 (we are TN28), sailed by Nigel and Sara. Later, we went into town with Jimbo and Lil to get cash, buy courtesy flags and have a couple of beers. Kubuli is the local beer in Dominica. The old / local name for Dominica is Ytokubuli. You remember this by the joke, 'Why 2 Kubuli? Because 1 is not enough!'. Back on board, I managed to break one of our new glasses, having left it upside down to drain. A bow wave from a fast boat created a big rock and the glass flew off the worktop and smashed all over the saloon and galley. We had just finished clearing up when we head a 'whoop whoop' but it didn't come from Freedom Girl. Tantrum, another catamaran based in Jolly Harbour, was motoring in to drop anchor, right beside us. It was time for our pick up to go to the BBQ, so we didn't have time to say a proper hello.
At the BBQ, we met Maurice and Jackie, from Amble in the North East, who have a yacht called Fiddlers Green. Marie-Anne (Dutch) and Bill, from Tantrum joined us at the BBQ for drinks only. We enjoyed the tuna steak with rice and salad and the rum punch, all for 60 EC (less than £20) per head. There was live music and we were soon dancing on the tables, too much rum punch consumed by all!
The following morning, I struggled but did get up, dressed and packed for our Dominica north island tour. Titus collected us in his boat and we went over to get Jimbo and Lil. There was no sign of life and after knocking on the hull, Jimbo appeared and said they were too hungover to do the trip. I was relieved and went back to bed, as Titus agreed to reschedule for tomorrow. Always beware the rum punch; it's all great until it suddenly hits you. We were invited for sundowners on Tantrum. I refused all alcohol but everyone else went for the hair of the dog. Marie-Anne passed on all her knowledge of anchorages in Martinique and I committed as much to memory as I could. All of a sudden, we realised that Muirgen was dragging her anchor and drifting sideways down the anchorage towards other yachts. Pete and Jimbo jumped in the dinghy, as did people from 2 other yachts and went to rescue her. Luckily she didn't hit anything. The PAYS boat also came out. PAYS (Portsmouth Association of Yacht Services) is a great organisation. They look after every boat, organise events, arrange tours for you, get your laundry done and take you for water or fuel. They make Portsmouth a very secure anchorage and ensure nobody bothers you. All the people in town appear very friendly and welcoming too. Pete anchored in 7 metres of water with 50 metres of chain out. Overnight we put the anchor alarm on and we didn't drag again.
Next day, we were all fit and well for our rescheduled tour and Bill agreed to watch the boats while we were out for the day. A friend of Titus came to pick us up, dropped us at the PAYS dock and introduced us to our driver, Bongo. He told us a lot of Dominica's history as we travelled through town and up into the hills. It started pouring with rain, so we decided to go directly to Syndicate / Milton Falls, rather than stop for a while in the forest. There were beautiful flowers around the parking lot, as well as a small bar. Bongo stayed behind while we walked to the falls, crossing the river 4 times, using stones and a rope across the river. We were lucky to be there almost on our own; just one other couple who were mostly out of sight. It was a pretty waterfall but not particularly high or spectacular. However, it was fun crossing the river back and forth. As we made our way back, several minibuses of cruise passengers arrived. Back at the bar, we enjoyed the obligatory rum punch, this one with lime and enjoyed the view out over the valley to the mountains opposite. From there, Bongo took us to the chocolate factory, where we had a tour. It was very small, just 2 rooms and drying tables outside but they produced about 10 to 15 varieties of chocolate. We all bought a bar after having a tasting. Next stop was Calibishie, on the Atlantic side of the island. It was wild and pretty with surf rolling in over the rocky foreshore. We had a massive lunch at Coral Beach, which probably wasn't the best thing given the steep and winding roads we would be driven round later. We visited Red Rock, a small area of coastline that was red in colour, interesting and again we were alone there. Bongo then took us around the northern coast and over the tops to see the views. All the way, there were beautiful red-leaved plants at the side of the road, purposely planted for effect. Bongo decided to have some music on and it was terrible, as well as loud. I had indigestion from the food and was ready for home. We passed the source, where people can go to fill up with fresh water but we didn't stop. The tour cost 350 XCD per couple, which wasn't bad. Back on board, we relaxed with a beer, set the anchor alarm and then went to bed. It was a rolling night and I eventually moved into the saloon and read a book for 3 hours. I slept in until 8am.
The wind was really up and we suspected that we had dragged again, although not as far or as fast as before, so at 0930 hours we moved to a mooring buoy, not far from the PAYS dinghy dock. We had called up PAYS before picking up the buoy but there was no answer. It was Sunday and everyone would be at church. Pete snorkelled to check the mooring and it had a new chain and shackle so we felt safe. There was a small reef by the buoy, made from the rocks that had been dug up to make room for the mooring plate and it was alive with little fish. It turned out to be 30 EC dollars a night (about £8.50) for the buoy so we said we were staying 3 nights. At 3pm, Bounty Bonto, another boat boy, picked us all up to do the Indian River trip, which was 60 XCD per person. We also had to buy a permit for the national park, which we should also have had for our trip yesterday. We bought a weekly one for US$12 each. Highlight of the river trip was passing Calypso's house, from Pirates of the Caribbean and having the dynamite rum at the bar up river. We didn't see much wildlife up the river, other than an egret. We have been up some spectacular mangrove rivers in Mexico and Margarita, so the river was a disappointment to us but everyone else loved it. We had another roly night on board.
The rocking didn't stop next morning and I was starting to feel quite debilitated by it, so we went over to Freedom Girl for a while, as catamarans are more stable, with their 2 hulls. At around 11am, 2 beautiful Clipper cruise yachts came in, one with 5 masts and the other with 4. We later discovered, from Jackie and Bill, who we spoke to in a bar in town, that they slept 230 and 160 people respectively. Pete and I needed to go into town for more cash, as we had booked a south of the island tour for the following day, so we called to see Peter and Ingrid on Ocean Deva on our way. In town, we shopped, visiting about 10 stores to buy about 10 items and had a Jamaican chicken pasty in a bar; tasty. In the evening, Jimbo and Lil came to us for sundowners and as the sun set, we watched the Clippers raise their sails and sail out to sea.
Iles des Saintes with Freedom Girl
13 March 2024 | Iles des Saintes
Donna Cariss
We departed Bouillante at 0815, with Jimbo reporting that there was now a message on the Digicel site saying top up was unavailable due to maintenance. They were just going to have breakfast and would be right behind us, probably catching us quickly, as there was no wind and we would be motoring. I checked my phone and we had a message from Robin and Liz, on Circus, saying they had arrived in Deshaies and could we meet up; just a day too late! Marine Traffic told me that we were also going to miss Dave and Shani, on Joyful Surprise, as they were just leaving Iles des Saintes for Martinique. We were soon able to sail, with the wind up and down and although we spotted Freedom Girl in the distance behind us, they didn't get close enough to call on the VHF. After Basse-Terre, we started to get little squalls, with light rain and stronger winds but nothing too much to handle. In the distance, we could see yachts racing and they were well heeled over, so we put a reef in before we got there, which proved fruitful. As we left the end of Guadeloupe, we hit a big squall and put a second reef in, to deal with the 22-25 knot winds and then we disappeared into the gloom. With the wind veering, we were heading too far west and would miss the Saintes altogether so, 7 miles out from Terre-de-Haut, we dropped the sails and put the engine on and struggled into the wind and swell at about 3.5 knots. We could see blue sky and sunshine over Iles des Saintes, which kept us going and the last couple of miles were pleasant. We dropped the hook about 50 metres from where we had anchored on our previous visit to Terre-de-Haut, just in front of 'Brightness', who we seemed to be following around. It was 1400 hours. Looking back towards Guadeloupe, we could see nothing but grey and certainly couldn't see the island itself. We sat down to wait for Freedom Girl to arrive but they didn't appear. With no internet, they would be unable to contact us and we had to assume that they had taken shelter and decided not to cross in the squall, rather than anything untoward happening. We had a music night in the cockpit and slept pretty well.
Monday 11th March dawned bright and sunny and we could see Guadeloupe very clearly. I cleaned the heads and the galley, to occupy myself and then we kept a vigil in the cockpit as yachts departed and started to appear crossing the channel towards us. At 0930 we got a 'whoop whoop' on VHF channel 77; Jimbo and Lil were close by. Then we saw them tacking out from behind the island and back again towards the anchorage, where they anchored beside us. They had decided not to head into the squall and had anchored just outside a small marina at the southwest tip of Guadeloupe. They had a good sail over this morning. After lunch, we went ashore in Jimbo's dinghy and wandered the streets before going to Cafe a la Marine for a beer. Pete and I completed the forms for Clarkes Court boat yard in Grenada and Jimbo had another unsuccessful attempt at topping up his Digicel. We had a swim, back at the boat, before sundowners on Freedom Girl.
On Tuesday we hired a voiturette (golf cart) to explore the island of Terre-de-Haut, at the ridiculous price of €90, 50% more than we paid for a large car in Deshaies. The island is only 2km x 3km, very hilly and has lots of one way streets. It's very picturesque. We visited a number of beaches, on different sides of the island. One, on the Atlantic side, with a view of Marie Galante, was wild and windswept, with the small airstrip alongside it. Another, in a sheltered bay, behind a smaller island, had a long sandy beach, backed by trees, with picnic benches, showers and other amenities, in the typical French style. We headed up to the fort, walking the last half mile uphill, only to find that it had closed at 1230. Next stop was the Baie de Marigot, where we sat under a tree, outside a bar / restaurant, for a couple of beers. There were goats and chickens roaming everywhere on the island, with tens of chicks around this bay. We returned the golf cart at 1645, tired and hungry and we decided to head off the Dominica the next day. Back on Freedom Girl, we completed SailClear for both boats, before we returned to Muirgen and had curry for tea.
Wednesday morning, there were a number of small aeroplanes flying over the anchorage and coming in to land at the airstrip we had seen yesterday. Jimbo and Pete went into Terre-de-Haut to clear out and to check whether we could pull alongside the jetty for water but the customs office was closed until 2pm. They decided that we should just leave, taking the completed paper forms with us, along with a photo of the notice on the office door, in case there was any problem in Dominica. I suggested that the customs officials were probably down at the airstrip that morning, given the planes arriving. With that, we prepared to depart for Dominica, some 22 miles south.
A Week in Deshaies
10 March 2024 | Deshaies, Guadeloupe
Donna Cariss
On account of arriving in Deshaies on Saturday, having agreed to meet Jimbo and Lil, of Freedom Girl, on Monday and then them being delayed by various electrical issues and not arriving until Thursday, we ended up spending a whole week in Deshaies (Guadeloupe). It's fair to say that a week in Deshaies is too long but we learned that staying in one place for a period of time is how you really meet other sailors, find out what they know and where they are going. We briefly met Jo and Carl, from Widnes, on our way back from our post passage beer and agreed to catch up with them for a beer and to provide insight for their trip to Antigua but unfortunately that never happened, as they departed before we had a chance. Features of Saturday evening were the Air France jet dumping its excess fuel (what a smell) and a very strange band performing onshore until late at night.
On Sunday, I was up, bleary-eyed, to WhatsApp call the family, who were all gathered at Mum's for Kyla's (my niece) 9th birthday. We went to clear in but customs was closed on Sundays, so had a walk, visited the ATM and went to Catherine's Bar (real name Le Madras), of Death in Paradise fame for a drink. We returned there for dinner but it wasn't great, obviously living on its TV location.
On Monday, we were moved from our anchorage because our anchor was about 3 metres inside the boundary of the mooring buoy field and we had to anchor well out as the anchorage was very busy. We cleared in, after a bit of a wait for the tardy team of customs boys, then shopped for provisions before returning to the boat. We spotted, on Marine Traffic, that Dave and Shani (Joyful Surprise) were closing in on Deshaies but they headed down to Pigeon after seeing how busy Deshaies was. Hopefully we will catch up with them later. We did meet Adam, solo sailing on a 34 foot Gibsea, who anchored behind us. He stopped to chat on his way to the dinghy dock and ended up staying for lunch and all afternoon, during which time Pete helped him re-anchor a couple of times, as he was dragging. We decided that his chain was so heavy that it wasn't allowing his anchor to catch and dig in. He eventually ended up on a mooring buoy.
On Tuesday, it was still blowing hard in Deshaies. There really hadn't been much let up since we arrived. We were confident that the anchor would hold and Pete had snorkelled to confirm that it was well dug in (up to the hilt), so we decided to visit the botanical gardens, 1.5km outside Deshaies. On route, we spotted a Westerly Oceanlord, called Locomocean, so stopped to chat, meeting Martin and Debbie. Again, we agreed to catch up later. The gardens are at the top of a very steep hill. You can call for a free shuttle bus to collect you but Adam had told us we could flag it down as it went backwards and forwards, if it wasn't in the carpark at the bottom of the hill, so we decided to start walking. It was midday and extremely hot and the minibus never came. We were dripping by the time we arrived at the gardens and some people in a car congratulated us on our achievement. The shade and breeze in the gardens was welcome, as was the beer at the end. The gardens were pleasant, especially the parrots and parakeets but they were busy, with lots of children around and we didn't enjoy them as much as the gardens on Nevis. We called for the bus to take us back down the hill! Adam invited us for evening drinks and provided some very nice bread and cheese, plus chorizo which he still had from Spain, prior to his Atlantic crossing.
It was a very windy and uncomfortable night and we were up early on Wednesday morning. The Austrians in front of us had dragged their anchor and were very close to us but they were up and preparing to leave. There was a mass exodus from Deshaies. I spent the morning doing my beauty regime, before going ashore to book car hire for Friday, when Jimbo and Lil would be with us. On our way back to the boat, we met another British couple, Peter and Ingrid, on Ocean Deva. They live in France and have done so for around 30 years. They invited us to call for drinks any evening after 6pm. Next stop was Adam's yacht, Francis Bee, so we could say goodbye before he left for Antigua the next morning. The wind gusted again overnight but dropped off in the early hours.
Thursday saw another mass exodus from Deshaies. We went over to Locomocean for coffee and croissants and Martin and Debbie provided lots of useful information about Grenada and other places that we plan to visit. They said that they were planning to leave early on Friday but had been to clear out and customs, fuel and water were all closed today and then I remembered that someone has said it was a French bank holiday today. They would need to wait and clear out at 0830 hours on Friday. It wasn't good news for us either as we had planned to fill up with water today, making several trips in the dinghy with our empty 5 litre bottles. At 1330 Jimbo and Lil arrived. I spotted Freedom Girl coming round the headland. They appeared to be looking for us but missed us completely, so as soon as they were anchored, we went over in the dinghy and took them a refreshing beer. Later, we had drinks on Freedom Girl, watching the sunset.
First thing on Friday we moved to a mooring buoy because we would be away all day. Jimbo would be driving the car and we were heading for Pointe-Pitre, the capital of Guadeloupe, to buy a sim card that covers all of the Caribbean islands. It can only be purchased on the French islands though. As we passed through Saint Rose, I spotted a Digicel shop, so we went in there, to be told that the deal we wanted was no longer available but there was another similar option called Nomad. However, they didn't have the sim cards and we needed to go to the Digicel shop in the shopping centre outside Pointe-Pitre. We were shocked at how the narrow roads suddenly became 3 and 4 land highways and became clogged with traffic. It was like being in Lyon or Bordeaux! Google Maps took us to the right carpark and entrance to the massive mall and we found the Digicel kiosk just inside. The young man spoke very good English and was very helpful. Jimbo took Nomad, at €45 per month, as he could switch it off when back in the UK, providing he topped it up with €10 every 3 months or so. Pete took a 12 month contract at €29.99 which activated immediately. This was OK for us as we would be in the Caribbean for 8 or 9 of the 12 months. Next stop was the marina to buy various items to allow us to lift the dinghy on the side of the boat at night. Now for some sightseeing. We took the scenic route around the coast, on steep and winding roads but as the rain came down, we couldn't see Iles des Saintes or any of the views. Twice, in a village, we went the wrong way down a one way street and had to turn round. Pete got really angry at a man in a van that was honking his horn and gesticulating at Jimbo. We ended up in the village where the ferry goes across to Iles des Saintes and just made it into a bar as the torrential rain came down again. On the way back to Deshaies, we called to the Leaderprice and Carrefour, at Pigeon, to shop. Back on Freedom Girl, after returning the car, we had the first attempt at registering Jimbo to top up his new Digicel Nomad account. We eventually created the account but couldn't top up.
On Friday morning, having done a single run for water (50 litres) and being charged for a cubic metre, we were ready to depart for Bouillante, 12 miles down the coast. We had run out of time to go for drinks on Ocean Deva but would catch up with them again later. There was no wind, so we motored, Freedom Girl overtaking us. Then we suddenly had 18 knots of wind and Pete being in the heads, I attempted to put the foresail out on my own but I wasn't strong enough to hold the gib sheet and the outhaul at the same time, so I was stuck holding on until Pete came up to help. We sailed for an hour, to just beyond Pigeon, then dropped the sails and caught up with Freedom Girl, to show them where we would anchor. We hauled Jimbo up his mast to fix a lazyjack and had another failed attempt at Digicel Nomad top up, then had a swim. I was stung twice by jellyfish threads. There was a fantastic sunset and we had a good night on board, ready for our trip to the Saintes.
Airborne in the Heads
03 March 2024 | Monserrat to Guadeloupe
Donna Cariss
We hadn't had a weather forecast since Wednesday morning and it was now Saturday. The original plan had been to stay in Monserrat for 3 days but with Little Bay being so uncomfortable, we hadn't stayed to do a tour onshore and there seemed to be no point sitting at anchor for another night, even though the old forecast suggested that Saturday would be the windiest day. That's what reefs are for! We lifted the anchor at 0610, hoping to get a decent way before the wind picked up too strongly, assuming that the forecast hadn't changed. The sails were up immediately and the wind was up and down, between 5 and 15 knots. As we were approaching the headland, at the south of Monserrat, I asked Pete to put a reef in the main. I was on the helm, as usual. 10 minutes later, we were hit by a squall, torrential rain and wind gusting to 28 knots. Pete offered to helm so that I could stay dry but I was already soaked, so I told him to stay under the sprayhood. I asked for a second reef in the main, which Pete could do from the shelter, as we have single line reefing from the cockpit. A reef went in the foresail too and we were sitting more comfortably. The second squall soon hit and was much the same as the first. I could barely see for the rain hitting my face. I stayed on the helm, in challenging conditions for a little over 2 hours. The swell was 2.5 to 3 metres, with the wind up and down between 18 and 28 knots. Pete came up from below wearing his life jacket and brought mine too. He took over the helm and I crouched in the cockpit, under the sprayhood to dry off and stay safe. We went through another 2 squalls before Pete put on the autohelm, which coped quite well. We passed a couple of fishing pots, going right between the two of them, impossible to see in the waves. We had no recorded depth so assumed they had broken away. About 17 miles out from Guadeloupe, the swell increased to 3.5 to 4 metres, with breaking waves and Pete took over the helm. In a short lull, I risked a visit to the heads. I was just fastening up my shorts when a massive swell hit and I was lifted off my feet and airborne in the heads. I reached out and placed my hands on the sink unit and just managed to stop myself from headbutting the mirror, scrapping my elbow on the door as I flew. I sat down for a couple of minutes before struggling back into my life jacket and returning to the cockpit. The big swell lasted around 45 minutes and then the sea slowly started to settle as we neared the coast of Guadeloupe and the last mile into Deshaies was just a gentle 75cm swell. We hadn't seen another boat all day, other than a yacht further out as we left Plymouth that morning. Deshaies was packed, no mooring buoys available and we eventually anchored on the north side with our anchor just inside the mooring buoy field. It was 1305 hours and we had had a fast sail, 7 hours, averaging about 7 knots. We were tired and hungry, having only eaten a boiled gg and a couple of biscuits all day, so we had an instant pasta carbonara to put us on until tea time. A racing yacht came in, with four young men on board wearing life jackets, so we decided they must have been the other boat we had seen as we left Plymouth. When we were confident our anchor had held, we went ashore for a beer and to get some wifi. I felt inebriated on one beer.
Monserrat
02 March 2024 | Monserrat
Donna Cariss
We departed Charlestown just after 0730 hours and motored for 45 minutes, as there was no wind on the west side of Nevis. When we caught the wind, there was a little too much south in it, not what was forecast, so we were sailing but heading west of Monserrat. I pinched up when I could. Pete made an early lunch and just as we had our chicken and bacon wraps in hand, the wind veered 35 degrees, then dropped and we hove to. We were in the wind shadow of Rodonda, a big rocky hulk of an island, which has the profile of a turtle covered in barnacles, from this angle. The engine went on and we motor-sailed for a while, changing direction frequently as the little bit of wind shifted according to the topography of the island. From the southwest side, Rodonda was a triangle shaped slope at about 45 degrees; probably a difficult climb for an expert in that sport. The place looks generally inhospitable and I doubt that it has any permanent human inhabitants. We arrived in Little Bay, the only remaining port of entry on Monserrat, at 1515 hours and had to anchor well out, in 12 metres of water, as a large catamaran was anchored in the middle of the bay and taking up most of the space. We rushed around getting the dinghy lowered and the outboard on so that we could get to customs and immigration before they closed at 4pm. We located the SailClear computer and completed our arrival notification. Usually we do this in advance but we hadn't had much wifi on Nevis. Next stop was customs and immigration, then a walk over to port security, where we paid our dues and then back to customs. We were done bang on 4pm and they closed and locked the door behind us. All had gone very smoothly and the people were friendly. It probably helps to be last minute, as they have an incentive to get you processed so they can go home. A taxi driver asked us if we would like a trip to the volcano the following day and told us where to find him if we did. We had a really bad night on board, rolling heavily from side to side and constantly up and down to check that neither we or anyone else had dragged their anchor.
On Friday, we were up at first light. Pete went to look for water, successfully and then we departed Little Bay, as we could stand no more time rolling around. We sailed on the foresail down to a bay just north of Plymouth, going straight through the exclusion area and anchoring off the beach, under the Soufriere volcano, with a clear view of the destruction it caused to Plymouth and the surrounding area, back in 1997. The volcano has been active since 1995 and the exclusion zones out to sea are due to continuing volcanic activity. We had read in Navionics reviews that access to the exclusion zone and the anchorages in the area is risk based and we assessed the risk to be very low given we had been offered a trip up to the volcano. We could also see helicopters doing sightseeing tours around Soufriere and Plymouth. The anchorage was lovely with the sun out but felt quite eerie when the cloud came over and the wind blew. We were completely alone; no other boats, no people on the beach and derelict and battered buildings on shore around the debris field. There was a massive rift through the rock, as if the eruption had split the land apart. At midday we were startled by a very loud, electronic tune coming from the land; the early warning siren being tested. Later in the day, when the cloud cleared briefly from the top of Soufriere, we could see smoke or steam coming from a fissure in the top. We spent the day relaxing and swimming. When the sun had set and darkness came it was absolutely pitch black; no moon, no stars and no light pollution from anywhere. We spent a peaceful night, swell free.
Nevis
29 February 2024 | Nevis
Donna Cariss
As we departed St Kitts, we could see 'Icon of the Sea' docked in Basse Terre and it looked quite stylish from a distance. We had the foresail out straight away and had a lovely sail for an hour and 45 minutes to Charlestown on Nevis, passing a large, barnacle covered turtle on the way. We hooked a mooring buoy, off the beach north of the town and just south of the Four Seasons Resort and then headed to the dock by dinghy. We had been warned to use the beach, south of the dock, as the dock is a nightmare but it was actually fine and we could tie off to the new looking ladder to climb ashore. We had a real Caribbean welcome, with music and a kettle drum, as we entered the little port area. Although we had already cleared into the country in St Kitts, we paid a visit to the port authority, as we weren't sure whether we needed to pay for the mooring buoy or not. We were asked where we had come from and then charged 66 EC dollars and the price didn't change when we said we were staying 2 nights, so we deduced that the price was fixed however long we stayed. We purchased a St Kitts and Nevis flag, on a stick, which we could convert into a courtesy flag and then visited tourist information and explored the small town. The buildings are very colonial. Pete could smell ribs and decided we needed to eat out for lunch, so we went to Wilma's Diner and ordered the ribs luncheon. We were a little worried as we were the only diners but the food was plentiful and delicious, including the breadfruit. The fried plantain was also quite tasty when dipped in the sauce covering the ribs. Full to bursting, we took a walk through the town, passing the hot springs and onwards to find Charles Fort, which turned out to be inaccessible from land. However, we could see the ruins as we walked back to the pier along the beach. The beach was backed by mangroves, with egrets sitting in the bushes. Hot and sweaty, we returned to the boat to swim. The same 5 spreader yacht, SY Adele, came and anchored behind us again, just before sunset but had gone by the next morning. We slept really well, other than being woken by torrential rain.
Next morning, we were back in Charlestown before 9am and taking a taxi tour of the island. Kirklee was our driver and guide. The price was US$100, for up to 4 people, which was expensive with just the 2 of us but turned out to be money well spent. We visited the hot springs and bath house, which are open to the public, free of charge and then headed to the Montpellier Plantation, which is close by where Nelson married Fanny Nisbet. The plantation is now a luxury hotel, once visited by Princess Diana, with William and Harry. It had an understated opulence and the grounds were stunning, as far as we were allowed to roam. We felt slightly embarrassed walking around while guests were having breakfast. I took as much advantage of the free wifi while we there, as no passcode was required and we needed a weather forecast. We passed by the silk tree under which Nelson married Fanny Nisbet and the arrived at the botanical gardens, where we spent just under an hour exploring the gardens and the tropical house, which had parrots and cockatiels too. The English lady on reception was 77 years old and volunteered for 3 months in exchange for accommodation. She was very on the ball and friendly and definitely didn't look her age. From the gardens, we went to the Hermitage, the oldest wooden building in the Caribbean, which dates from the 1650s. The interior is set out exactly as it was when Nelson visited. Within the grounds, there are coloured, wooden cottages, where guests can stay and a lovely little swimming pool with sunbeds. It is on our list for an overnight stay at some time in the future! The taxi took us around to the Atlantic coast, where we visited and old sugar cane mill and passed the race track before continuing along the north coast, with views of St Kitts. Last up was the Caribbean coast, with an old church, before passing the hotel resorts on the way back into Charlestown. On our way we passed herds of sheep (tails down) and goats (tails up), as well as monkeys and donkeys. The 2.5 to 3 hour trip was closer to 3.5 hours, so we gave Kirklee a $10 tip. If you are visiting, his taxi has the registration plate PA90. We had forgotten to bring the boat papers, so returned to the boat for lunch and then had to go back to town to clear out, which cost a further US$26 or 66EC. We are not sure that we should have paid twice, once on arrival and again on departure. On our way back to the boat, we swung by the beach opposite and a Canadian guy helped Pete carry the dinghy far enough onshore, as he could see that I was struggling, the outboard being very heavy. He took us to his friend's bar, the cheapest on the beach and we bought him a beer. It really was cheap; 20 EC for 4 beers (Pete had 2!), cash only. Back on board, we swam to cool down and had another peaceful night without swell. We were going for a record for continuous nights now.
Next morning, we were away just after 0730 and heading south towards Monserrat.