We left Barbados with Jim and Patti after enjoying a couple of nights in the luxurious marina of Port St. Charles, on the north east coast, where we had arrived. Whilst there we by chance bumped into an old friend; who was there with her partner’s family. Sarah was our first female, and youngest commodore a few years back at the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, it was great to spend a little time together.

Our overnight trip to Bequia was a tad bumpy. Poor Jim and Patti suffered the dreaded “Mal de Mar” and were very happy to stay in lovely Bequia for a couple of days before we headed off again. They were due to leave us at Union and the generator was organised to be fixed there too. We stopped off at Mayreau Island and Tabago Cays, two of our favorite spots, although sadly there was a lot of wind. We even had 40 knots at anchor in Tabago Cays; which made snorkling and swimming slightly harder work than normal, although we saw lots of marine life including turtles.

Jim and Patti were able to enjoy Happy Island at Union while we got our “new” generator fixed by some mechanics that flew up from Trinidad. Happy Island is an island made of conch shells. A local entrepreneur collected all the shells, that were in piles everywhere on the beach, and took them out to the end of the reef. They slowly grew and what was a shack bar six years ago is quite the busy little bar where the owner now lives. It is a great place to watch sunset over a rum punch, but be warned they are VERY strong. As it was Jim and Patti’s last night onboard Ta-b we went ashore to Clifton for a lovely dinner and to celebrate the fact that at long last we had a working generator. They said that the flight from Union to Barbados was incrediable, lots of stunning islands, reefs and turquoise sea, a wonderful way to see the Caribbean from a different perspective.

It was now serious time to chill out. We did not realise how tired we were, we have done a huge amount of mileage in the last year. So it was great to spend ten days mainly around PSV and Carriacou doing not a lot before we went back up to Bequia to meet up with our friends on Happy Hour and Sonsy Lass. We met both boats on the EMYR and last year saw them on our trip up to Venice and in Gibraltor. Our plan was to share some of our favorite places in the Grenadines before we started to head north. What a fantastic time we had together.

While we were in Bequia we were able to enjoy an amazing three course lobster dinner one evening while listening to some bands playing in the Mount Gay Rum music festival. Then it was off to Mustique for the start of the Blues Festival that is an annual event there. It was magic. We were supposed to only spend three nights there, but the band who we got to know said we had to stay for the Wednesday jump up as it was not to be missed. We were not dissappointed and would recommend making sure you are in Mustique at the end of January next year.

We met some fasinating people at Basil’s Bar, however we would not know if they were rich or famous as we do not follow the social scene. Kate and Will (with son George) were on the island, but we did not see them. However, we were invited to a cocktail party at a beautiful house on the east coast that had a gorgeous beach and spectacular views. It was called “Sapphire House” and it is a fantastic home owned by the developer of Mustique. Our hostess was a three time olympic gold medalist for riding horses; she rents out a different home each year. There are about 90 private homes on the island, about 50 of which you can rent out. The staff (there were five at Sapphire) all live on site and are mostly from St. Vincent. It is worth going online, just to dream about which one you would rent, if you ever had a chance.

We then went back to Tabago Cays, Mayreau, PSV and Union before heading down to Carriacou. Happy Hour were staying in the Grenadines and Sonsy Lass had headed up to St. Lucia to buy a new tender and motor – lucky things, we are so jealous ☺ Whilst we were in Union we caught up with Dick and his crew on Van Kedesi. They were heading down to Grenada from Antigua and were due to put VK on the hard on the 10 February for nine months. We saw them again in Carriacou, sadly they lost their second genoa on the way, so many drinks were consumed on Ta-b that night in commiseration.

We had a wonderful time in Carriacou in Hillsborough, Palm Island and Tyrell Bay catching up with old friends. Our friend Uli works in the sail loft and we met her at the Slipway restaurant; a locals place to go for Sunday lunch. For 25ec (about $10) they have the best BBQ tuna, ribs, salad and fries. There are a lot of expats and cruisers who now live and work in Carriacou. It is a delightful island with no big hotels, just the odd guest house, or a villa or two you can rent. It has hardly changed since we were last there six years ago, hopefully it will stay as charming for many years to come.

We were also able to link up with Certitude who we had not seen since we left the Caribbean from St. Martin. Steve became a good friend when we were last in the Caribbean and now does a couple 3-5 day charters from Carriacou to Bequia a month for a German company. A great way to pay off boat costs ☺

It was time to sneak up north, so after checking out of Carriacou we popped into Union to meet Happy Hour for the full moon party, then spent a couple of nights in Bequia where we meet up with Jenna of Liverpool who we last saw in Cyprus and friends from Petronella whose boat is still in Turkey, although they plan to sail over at the end of the year. Jenna were on their way south and Petronella had rented a boat for two weeks and when we met them were staying in a lovely villa ashore. Always wonderful to see boating friends who we had not seen for a couple of years.

We had some fantastic sailing up to Martinique where we checked in after spending a night in Rodney Bay, St. Lucia with friends on Sonsy Lass. When we were here last we found the energy in St. Lucia and St. Vincent very negative, which is why we decided not to spend any time there. Sad really as both islands are very beautiful, although very wet; which is why they are so lush.

Arriving in Marin we could not believe how many boats there were. They have tripled in the amount with a huge new marina for 250 boats and 100 bouys laid out in the anchorage. It was packed with French, but very few cruising boats. Heading to the shops it was great to pick up wonderful French food and wine before we left for the quieter anchorage of St. Annes where we are now staying until the end of the week. We have our Australian friend Andrew on board for a while until he sets off again to Barbados where he is getting free shipping for his boat back to Australia. He was one of 17 rowing boats in the Atlantic Challenge. He came first in his class of solo rower and came seventh overall. Five boat crews had to be rescued and as you can imagine he has some fascinating stories. It is a delight to have him stay and we have had quite a few curious visitors with his boat tied on behind us.

The weather, like the rest of the world, floods in England and snow today in Vancouver, has not been normal for this time of year. Lots of sunshine, but also more wind and rain then we remember. Keeps us on our toes as we often have to jump up when a squall comes through to rush around closing hatches. We have been kept busy as the hull needs constant cleaning, lots of spring cleaning inside and jobs to cross off on the “to do” list. The odd rum punch over sunset certainly helps with the constant sociallising with new and old boating friends ☺ Life is treating us very well on board Ta-b, we feel blessed. Enjoy the photos.