We got up not so early for our short hop to Saint Martin. I hauled up little star's motor, for hopefully the last time, and stowed it on the rail. After getting Little Star on the deck we started to get the boat ready for a short sail. Kelp Fiction was already getting underway as we prepped the boat. KFII and crew were heading to Marigot on the French side which is a little more picturesque than Simpson Bay. We needed to go to the Dutch side though so that we could get some work done (most of the boat related stuff is inside the lagoon on the Dutch side).

We had a nice wind and made 8 knots on the way over to Simpson Bay. Unfortunately as soon as we turned around the North West point of Saint Martin we got the southeast wind on the nose. We motor sailed in and anchored in a fairly crowded Simpson Bay. It was pretty but a little too busy for my taste. Certainly the most developed Caribbean island we'd seen since Puerto Rico. They are building a new resort on the south shore which was rather noisy but the anchorage was good and comfortable.

We got the dinghy down and made a covert beach landing with Roq, he leaves only foot prints of course. We listened to the local traffic on 16 and some other channels for a bit, a habit I've gotten into which really seems to help you get oriented to the marine activities of a place. After a quiet dinner we watched some Alias (Hideko has gotten me hooked) and hit the hay.