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| Unlovely disco boat
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When its good, sailing is both big fun and aesthetically pleasing. We left Falmouth Harbor on Antigua to sail up the coast a few miles to Jolly Harbor where there is a big grocery store and a customs station where we could clear out of Antigua and leave for Saint Martin. Jolly Harbor, which otherwise seems to be suffering a genteel decline, is now graced with a floating disco/water-slide/bar/restaurant. Half the marina stores have joined the gigantic casino in plywood finery (RIP Swiss Peter's BBQ) but the Budget chandlery has expanded into new quarters. Other than cruisers hiding from the winds, there are very few people around. We took advantage of the ample power courtesy of the continuing winds to work on new covers for the settees. This is a big project. We brought 22 yards of upholstery cloth to make new covers for 16 cushions. This is necessary so that when the inevitable coating of sun screen, bug spray, sweat appears, the covers can be removed and thrown in a washing machine. This upgrades the appearance of the interior to no end.
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| Susie cuts it
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| New covers with old (bottom left) |
The true beauty in our lives is found at sea. We left Antigua in 20-25 knot winds and following 2-3 meter seas. Since the wind was off the beam and the seas long period swells, this makes for a fast and exhilarating ride. Hour after hour, we ticked of the miles, our trusty auto pilot steering effortlessly through deep blue seas. When traveling fast, the wind blowing off the jib blasts the spray flying off the hull creating transient rainbows that appear and disappear just over the indigo watery background. We compared fantastic forms of the tall cumulus blowing by. We admired the occasional rainbows above and the flying fish below. Meanwhile, amidst all the flying water, we can still move about: make peanut butter and banana sandwiches, get cold drinks, listen to podcasts and just sit and talk.
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| Lance catches it
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This passage has always offered good fishing and this time was no exception. As we passed over one of the sea mounts nearing St. Barths, the line ran out with a rising whine. The boat is heavily listing under the winds and bucking over the seas but we have done this before. Susie takes the wheel and starts the engine while I gingerly crawl out onto the aft deck. She puts the boat into the wind to slow the boat down while I start reeling in line to keep tension on the fish. Once the boat is stable, traveling only a few knots and on autopilot, Susie joins me on the back deck ready to help get the fish aboard and to apply the rum which will dispatch him. Meanwhile I am lifting the rod, pulling in line as I drop it down painfully a few feet at a time. Occasionally the fish will try to run towards us to lose the tension on the hook; I take advantage and reel in as fast as I can. We bring him along side. Susie flips the cooler open and we hoist him in. She quickly applies rum to his gills and the fish is stilled. Remove the hook, put away the rods and we are off again to the races..
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| Ile Fourchue
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15 miles later, we are approaching St. Barths and we are in white out conditions. Susie is guiding us in past wicked rocks visible only on her charts but sounding loudly as the big seas hit them. We edged around outside toward Ile Fourchue just as the squall passed. We picked up a mooring ball wordlessly. Susie indicates the distance to the float by counting down with her fingers. I bring the boat to a stop and Susie hooks the buoy with a boat hook, threads the line through the buoy's loop and cleats it at the bow. We then return to our finny friend and gut and fillet him. Ziplock bags of tuna are freezing while we mince onion, tomato and pepper. The smaller bits are chopped, added to the mixture while limes are squozen over the mix. By the time the boat is cleaned up from the passage, we are sitting in the cockpit. Eating ceviche. Admiring the sunset from an isolated islet.
I love my first mate.
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| The bow babe |
St. Martin is a short day sail from Ile Fourchue. It is the hub of yachting in the eastern Caribbean. Boats of all sizes and descriptions come here for refit and provisioning. Motor launches and water taxis ply the busy waters of the lagoon and tourists come through in all matter of craft: enormous rectangular music boxes blaring reggae, little rubber dinghies with tiny steering wheels, jet skis following the leader who is channeling Mad Max. The sound track is provided by the jets taking off overhead and the sirens and mad traffic ashore. Other parts of the island are nice but the lagoon is all business.
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| The new causeway bridge |
There is a new bridge across the lagoon almost exactly on the border between French and Dutch St. Martin. With the dredging of the bridge and the turtle grass below and the gusty winds and squalls, the lagoon is a slip and slide theme park, We find endless entertainment while doing our share to boost the local economy.
A few examples:
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| Hoist by his own petard |
The Dutch coast guard boards the boat next to us to inspect. The launch that brought them out takes a few officers over to the boat beyond that and then hangs around waiting to take them to the next boat. The launch skipper allows his boat to blow down on the anchor chain of the boat they have just been hassling and is stuck there when his prop hits the chain. The officer removes his boots and cop paraphernalia and jumps in the foul swamp in full uniform to free the prop. They prevail on the skipper they have just inspected to push his boat forward, easing the chain and freeing the launch. Kind of a man bites dog story.
A French Canadian boat (thankfully behind us) is re-anchored several times by cruisers when its oblivious occupants are gone and the boat drags toward the megayachts in Palapa Marina. The last time he dragged, the cruisers on rescue duty decided that they just couldn't get the anchor properly set and tied the boat to a mooring ball. In the morning the two on board decide that they don't like the way the lines are tied and try to reattach the 55 foot sailboat to the mooring ball. They also decided that the mooring ball was in need of cleaning and vigorously scrubbed the ball. This is followed by two hours of revving engine and cartoon antics while they try to retie. At one point the gentleman in the dinghy at the bow is straining to stay in the boat while being pulled by the mooring ball in one hand and his sailboat in the other. When all was done to their satisfaction they retired to the cabin to avoid the approaching squall. When the wind hits, the boat slides off once again along with its newly polished ball firmly tied to their boat.
Next stop: St. John and the much anticipated birthday celebration. We are newly equipped with bow thruster battery, start battery, 250 feet of galvanized chain and new flares. Time to go - we've almost finished our tuna.
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