St. Lucia and St. Vincent, Skipped for The Grenadines

Sailing past St. Lucia and St. Vincent, both islands look lush and in some areas such as the Pitons in St. Lucia, truly spectacular. While our travel buddies headed from Martinique to St. Lucia to reunite with Diane and Ken of Annie II, we skipped to Bequia (pronounced Beck-way). Customs and Immigration in St. Lucia would have presented some difficulty for us with Australian passports and also because we have Daisie Dog on board. We spent some time with Ken while Annie II was under tow by Spectra from Luperon to Puerto Rico and we were sad to miss the reunion.

Basil's Bar sits over the water at Mustique

A small section of Balinese carved ceiling at Basil's Bar. Unfortunately I was not able to climb over the other diners to get a better shot.

We rely on Noonsite for cruising safety and security reports. Unfortunately St. Vincent has a reputation for not doing what is necessary to protect the safety of cruisers on the mainland. There are so many wonderful places to visit that we don’t see any need to place ourselves or our boat in such areas.

Gingerbreads are a feature of Mustique architecture, as well as an abundance of Bali carvings, doors and garden sculpture. We wondered if we had crossed the Pacific!

The Grenadines includes Bequia, Union Island, Mustique, Canouan, Tobago Cays, and various other small islands. As July 1 and the forecast of unsettled weather approached, we moved through the area more quickly than we would have liked. These are the areas we’d like to return to with our sons when the hurricane season is passed.

The most expensive mooring ball in the world? At Mustique the moorings are $75US for 3 nights minimum.

Every island has it’s own unique character. Our favorites include Conception Island (one of the out islands in The Bahamas), Saba, Guadeloupe, Mustique and Tobago Cays. While mountainous islands and deep water anchorages are the norm in the Northern Caribbean, throughout The Grenadines we anchored or moored up close to reefs and sandy cays in crystal clear water, reminiscent of the gorgeous waters of The Bahamas. The Grenadines are spectacular for swimming and snorkeling straight over the side of the boat. We swam with turtles and so many kinds of fish we couldn’t count them all.

Tobago Cays mooring. A chance to swim with turtles.

To Grenada... Fair Winds, Following Seas, a Two-fish Passage, and Icing on the Cake - Time to Celebrate!

Well, the seas are a little forward of following but under six feet and we’re not beating into the wind or seas, for a change. It’s a good day for sailing. The forecast is for winds and the seas to build and conditions to deteriorate after today, with three tropical waves due to come through within days of eachother.

Spectra passes Channel Rock

As much as we’d love more time in the Tobago Cays and The Grenadines, it’s 7:00AM and we’re under way from Union Island to St. David’s Harbour, on the south coast of Grenada. We’ll hang out there until the weather improves. Mel and Joe, Spectra, will be with us for a week or two until they head south to Trinidad.

Robert has charted a course down the windward side of the islands. We expect the wind to be “cleaner” and more consistent than on the leeward side. Just out of Union Island a five pound Spanish Mackeral gave itself up for this evening’s dinner.

Spanish Mackerel, destined for a "Boundary Waters" marinade (ask Elliot)

Tomorrow night it will be the six-seven pound Wahoo that we dragged a while before realizing he was hooked. Plenty of fish to share. It’s a good thing we bought that snapper from the fisherman in Union Island. That purchase ensured we’d be catching fish today. Seems to be how it goes with us; buy water and it pours, buy fish and we catch more than enough.

It’s been a great day and at 2:00pm we’re entering St. David’s harbour, having averaged about 6 knots per hour over the 40 mile passage. We’ll be celebrating our arrival in Grenada with fresh fish and a glass of wine aboard Spectra.

That's a nice Wahoo, Robert!

Robert discovered a little extra icing on the cake in St. David’s. Our “old” mates Gerald and Diana, Whiskers, are on the hard here for a week of boat maintenance before heading west. We met them in Marsh Harbour, Bahamas and spent some great times with them in the Exumas.



Entering St. David's Harbour, Grenada

3,500 miles (mostly to windward) are behind us. It’s time to relax and celebrate; we've made it to Grenada.

Mates are Great... Meet a few of our friends, cruising down island.

The best and worst of cruising. We've made many new friends in the past 7 months (the best) and said goodbye to most as we've gone our separate ways (the worst). Along the way, we've been able to share passages, some great; some challenging. We've enjoyed quiet and vibrant anchorages and locations with our mates, making our time so much more special. Here in one spot for a while are some of our cruising mates, friends old and new.

Left to right and back to front - sort of: We met Dave and Jacqui, Jackster in St. Pierre; we crossed from Turks & Caicos to Luperon, plus the Mona Passage and the Anegada with Jack, Anthem; it took many "you have to meet Beach House" moments with others before we finally met Pat and Geoff (Aussie) in Basse Terre, Guadeloupe; Mel and Joe are "old" mates aboard Spectra - whom we met in Conception Island, Bahamas in early March; (front) Ray and Genna, Night Hawk rescued Bristol Rose when our anchor dragged in Luperon in March and we crossed the Mona and Anegada with them; Barry joined us from Australia in St. Martin mid May; we met Jackie and Gary, Inspiration Lady, by radio, en route across the Mona Passage from Luperon, Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico, March 30 to April 2.

Everyone gathered for a meal at a nice little french restaurant in St. Pierre, Martinique to say farewell to Barry on one of his last nights aboard Bristol Rose.

Jack looks like he's about to let Barry in on a few cruising stories while Joe is wondering where this is going.

We introduced Barry to some of our land-locked mates.

He tried out some of his one-liners, but that didn't seem to go anywhere with this French model in The Saintes.

Ray also had some difficulty communicating with the locals and went away without any baguettes but he did manage to find the Tex Mex restaurant in Fort de France, Martinique.

As the sun set over the gorgeous islands of The Saintes, the rowdy group gathered in the cockpit is entertained by some of those famous Barry Tidd lines.

Roger and Danielle from Chocobo, Jack from Anthem, Gary Inspiration Lady

Robert, Jackie Inspiration Lady, Barry, Ray & Genna Night Hawk, Roger Chocobo

Pat and Geoff hosted a very enjoyable evening aboard their Endeavour, Beach House.

Barry agreed to play the keyboard but when Pat produced her flexible (as in rolled up like a chart) keyboard from the bowels of the ship, he just had to admit defeat. Over at the local bar though, we did get the opportunity to enjoy a tune when I wrestled the piano from the owner and twisted Barry's arm - and I didn't have the camera on hand. Hey Mel, where are those photos?

Melanie and Joe, Spectra, Trish, Robert and Barry on Mel's birthday in Roseau.

Sadly, we said farewell to Barry in Martinique. He is heading back to Australia via the bright lights, slots, wheels and card tables of Las Vegas. We can only hope that luck is on his side in Vegas and that his wallet does not end up as empty as his cabin. Best of luck Barry, it was great to share the Caribbean with you.

Travels around Puerto Rico, Isla Del Encanto. Island of Enchantment

Porch tiles at the home of Victor and Ruthie, Vieques.

Puerto Rico, its islands, Vieques and Culebra, and its people enchanted us from the start with charm, beauty, history, and most of all, a joie de vivre.  No argument, the US territory of Puerto Rico is the Island of Enchantment!  Fun times were had with Sunny and Blake, Slow Mocean doing some buddy-boating and crossing paths many times with friends on Spectra, Night Hawk and Astarte.

I had a lot of difficulty choosing images to share so as soon as I can I'll update the albums to include more of Puerto Rico.  It's been a challenge in the last few weeks to find strong wifi connections as well as time to spend on the blog so while we have the chance we will do our best to bring it up to date.  

Thanks for your comments and emails.  We love to know you are traveling with us through the blog.  Our friend Barry has joined us so we might just get him to post a thing or two as a guest writer!

For now, here's a look back at Puerto Rico, Vieques and Culebra......

Drive by shooting with Joe, M/V Spectra at the wheel of the rental car.  Those are tree ferns.  We whirled around the bends, 13 per minute, climbing up to San Sebastian from Ponce.  Houses literally cling to the edges of the cliffs and the vegetation is lush.

Dinner aboard M/V Spectra. Mel, Joe, Daisie, Robert, Trish and David (yes ladies, he's single!)

Big, orange starfish, commonly seen in the waters around the islands.

The tarpon are protected in Ponce Harbour.  $1 buys a bag of sardines to feed them.  Pelicans and seagulls compete for sardines but leave the tarpon alone.

La Barkita, on a corner in Salinas, PR serves great empanidillas (meat filled pastries).

Barbara, S/V Astarte, Robert and I enjoy a drink at an Irish bar on the outskirts of San Juan.  Yep, those Irish bars are everywhere.

We tagged along with Mike and Barbara from Astarte when they had to go up to San Juan to get their dinghy outboard repaired.  Thankfully there's a happy ending to their outboard worries.  The outboard dealer is also the Harley Davidson dealer so we enjoyed checking out the Harleys and got to walk through the workshop (it's laboratory clean!).

The colors of Puerto Rico are generally bright and intense.  A drive around Vieques was a real treat, courtesy of new friends of Sonny and Blake, Victor and Ruthie.

A sad sight along the road beside the sugar cane field in Salinas.

We enjoy exploring the mangroves.  There's always lots of aquatic life to see.

There's fabulous snorkeling right off the beach at Rosario.  There's no escaping the military history or presence throughout Puerto Rico.  The sign educates about protecting the coral as well as warns about unexploded ordinances.  Yikes!

Flamenco Beach, Culebra was once off limits when used by the military.

In a strange way, the activities and management by the military of much of Puerto Rico for so many years has prevented over-development, keeping the area naturally beautiful.

One of those days.

Blake, Robert, Sunny and I take the ferry from Vieques to Fajardo, about 16 miles and a great deal at $3 each.

Girls day out in Boqueron, Mel, Trish, Jenna, Sunny.

Slow Mocean at anchor.

The beautiful ketch Night Hawk built by owners Ray and Genna, sailing in Puerto Rico.

La Paguerra boat houses, colorful and playful.

Bacalao, a Spanish dish of dry salt cod.  Yolanda's in La Paguerra serves this delicious dish!

Jorge Acevedo, painter and drummer in his Culebra Studio.

Jorge Acevedo's studio looks like it sits at street level.  In fact, it rests in the trees.  His backyard drops away quickly to the mangroves where hummingbirds and land crabs live.  

This tank was left in the sand when the military ceased their activities on Flamenco Beach.  Jorge had painted the tank in bright colors, now faded, and it became something of a symbol.  He told us about an organization called Coralations which was founded to promote and protect the land and sea environment of Culebra.

Destination Unknown Journals is a site I just discovered.  The author shares some pictures and info about Culebra.