We are presently anchored in Caneel Bay on the island of St John in the US Virgin Islands after an all night motor trip from Saba - the wind has just disappeared. It was January '03 that Piquet was last in US waters. There were no entry problems.
Saba was a very good stop with a calm anchorage that can quickly turn nasty. This island is an example of what very determined people can do with a very inhospitable landscape. Most of the island is on at least a 45 degree slope coming straight out of the ocean. We were there for 3 nights and made an effort to see most of the island. A very unique society.
Wednesday 12th March
It took until last Saturday for the winds in Nevis to calm enough so that we could repair our mainsail. Once that was done we sailed over to St Kitts and anchored in the West corner of Basseterre Harbor. This is close to the commercial dock but the least roll in the anchorage.
There is not too much in St Kitts but it is a favorite of the cruise lines. There were two there both Saturday and Sunday. The passengers are easily identified ashore being very white and over sized. So our stay here was short, long enough to get a little fuel and have a good Sunday lunch ashore.
Monday we sailed to St Eustacia, commonly just called Stacia. The sails to both St Kitts and Stacia have been good with winds at a manageable 15 knots and just forward of the beam. Stacia is part of the Dutch Antilles and remains an old style Caribbean island. It is also the center for oil tankers to off load cargoes that then get redistributed through out the islands. There have been as many as six super tankers in the bay which makes watching interesting. The downside is that there is a large amount of tug traffic that stirs up the sea and causes us to roll. This is an open road stead and today we are experiencing a very uncomfortable wave induced roll. If it keeps up we will have to put out a stern anchor to face us into the action.
Tomorrow we are heading for Saba and then the US Virgins this weekend.
Thursday March 6th
We are presently sitting in the lee of the huge extinct, we hope, volcano on the island of Nevis, which is part of St Kitts where we will be going in a few days.
The sail here from Antigua was absolutely down wind, which makes life difficult. A jibe, when the boom comes across uncontrolled, is always an ever present danger. The waves were short and we had many rain squalls. In taking the main down we did not do things quite right and managed to put a nice tear in an upper panel. This will need a repair before we move on and presently the wind is too brisk to attempt it. This is the first damage we have inflicted on it since leaving French Polynesia in the South Pacific.
Nevis is still an old style Caribbean Island - except for the Four Seasons Hotel and others. We will add photos when available.
There have been several inquiries regarding Peter's burn. It is healing nicely, but the nurse insists on still dressing it every day. There will probably be a 2 inch diameter scar, another war wound, and again self inflicted.
One other note we forgot to mention. When we were in the Saintes we observed the separation of the space shuttle from the space station. It was very impressive as it accelerated about 20 degrees in as many seconds, then maintained the same orbit.
The lunar eclipse was also plainly visible - by the crew only as it was way past the Captain's bedtime.
Tuesday 4th March
Harry and Claire left for Puerto Rico yesterday morning after a week on Piquet. It was a good visit and they were very understanding of our boat problems. We are presently moored in Jolly Harbor on the West side of Antigua.(17.04/61.54 formerly known as Mosquito Cove}. This is a pleasant facility that was dredged out of what was formerly a lake. We were here 15 years ago when the project was first started. The changes have been impressive.
It has been quite a week that finished well in the end. We last reported that we were leaving the marina and all the mega yachts and going out to anchor. We did that after waiting for the 20 million dollar yacht next to us to leave. Putting a scratch in it would have made my insurance company quite annoyed. Just as we setting the anchor a 50 knot squall with driving rain came through. In the middle of doing this the anchor windlass failed. Fortunately we were able to let the chain out by hand and except for getting very wet all was well. The rest of the afternoon was spent fixing it - a small wire in the hand held remote had parted.
Saturday we had a good sail from Falmouth around to Jolly Harbor and anchored at the entrance. That evening we dined on shore as guests of H&C. Sunday we went for a sail up the coat and all was well until a series of squalls came through so we returned to the harbor after a couple of hours and took up a mooring on the inside. That evening we had dinner in the cockpit using one of our "duck a la confit" purchases in Martinique, very nice.
Yesterday I finally was able to track down the source of our electrical problems. A ground bolted to the engine had corroded and was loose . Simple once you know how.
Having completed their circumnavigation Peter and Karen are now sailing in the Caribbean. Details of part of their circumnavigation are available HERE
