St. Martin/Sint Maarten (French/Dutch spelling) is a unique island with a protected lagoon. Josh and I had been here last in 2008 aboard Tenacity. We recall spending the better part of a day driving around the lagoon by dinghy in search of fuel (“no more fuel, maybe tomorrow, maybe not.”) and eating a lot of croissants. So this stay was not much different as far as the croissants are concerned. Love the French baguettes, croissants, cheeses, wine, etc. They are so good! For us to enter the lagoon on the French side, we need to pass through the Simpson Bay Bridge and then through the swing bridge. Both bridges have scheduled opening times, but the Simpson Bay Bridge is exciting to watch as mega yachts pass through, some squeezing by with only inches to spare. If you have not seen the TV show "Below Deck," watch it. It is a humorous look into the life of the mega yacht crews. The first season was filmed here in Sint Maarten.
Once on the French side of the lagoon, we found our friends, Skip and Madeline, and their lovely sailboat, Saralane. I’d call them “expert cruisers” as they have been cruising for the past 6 years. They are a wealth of knowledge about boats, projects (more on that), anchorages, and how to navigate around the islands. On our first attempt to anchor in the lagoon, we managed to pick up a HUGE old chain resting on the sea floor. Thankfully, we had the aid of fellow boaters to help us release it.
We enjoyed spending time with Skip and Madeline in the lagoon with its easy access to marine goods, markets, restaurants, music, Wi-Fi, laundry, veterinarians, etc. There is an active cruiser net (via VHF radio) in the morning which gives all of the comings/goings of cruisers, local announcements, services, safety & security, barter/swap, etc. An energetic woman’s voice would come on in the morning saying, “I am Sylvia from Spain. I give super good deep tissue massage…” So, of course we had to indulge, at $30 for one hour, how could one not. AND she comes to your boat with her massage table. Luckily, we have a perfect aft deck to accommodate such luxuries.
We also revisited our screen project (I’m tired of getting bug bites) that my mom and I started back in November in Culebra and used Saralane for inspiration. Skip and Madeline were instrumental in getting this project completed. So now, Occam’s has 7 new screens. Thanks Skip and Madeline!