As sailing cruisers, we strive to be “Green” by reducing our carbon footprint whenever possible, and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.  We are officially an “auxiliary-powered sailboat” – meaning that sails are our primary propulsion, and our Yanmar diesel engine is considered the auxiliary power.   Beyond propulsion, a cruising sailboat has lots of other things that require power – lights, refrigeration, water pumps, autopilot, navigation instruments, water-maker, outlets for charging cell phones – to name a few.  We are a “12 Volt boat”, so the vast majority of our systems run off power stored in our 12V batteries.  Our battery bank is comprised of four 225 Amp Hr AGM house batteries and one dedicated engine start battery, and is charged and replenished by the engine alternator when we’re motoring, and 110V power when we’re dockside. Our batteries can also be charged with a generator, solar power, or wind power.

When we commissioned KINETIC in Fall 2015 we opted not to install a diesel generator, but to install wind and solar power to see how we could get by.  This blog is about the evolution of KINETIC’s power generation and our lessons learned. 

Wind

In preparation for our first 2-month cruise in the summer of 2016, we installed a wind generator that looked great on paper and at the boat show, but never really performed to specs.  When the boat heeled, the blades “spun out”, so it was virtually useless underway. Customer service was less than satisfactory, and within a year, the unit stopped producing any power at all. We were cruising the Caribbean at the time and had the unit bench tested by a reputable technician, but couldn’t open it up to make a repair without violating the warranty – the company wanted it sent back to the factory.  Since we had 5 months remaining on our winter cruising plan, we packed up the unit and agreed to ship it back upon return to the US.  Long story short, we lost the unit, our money, and faith in that company. 

Lesson learned:  install equipment that has a good track record with cruisers, and can be repaired/replaced in your cruising grounds.

The good news is that we replaced that unit with a 12V SilentWind 400, purchased at Island Water World (IWW) in St Martin in Jan 2017.  This model was recommended by cruising friends and the IWW manager, who had one on his on boat. SilentWind is based in Portugal, but has technicians in the Caribbean and US.  IWW has a number of chandleries throughout the Caribbean, and they carry SilentWind units and spare parts.  (One lesson learned well).  This unit was easy to install, and had a controller operated by a cell phone app and Bluetooth connection.  The Bluetooth controller was new on the market, and did have a learning curve and some growing pains, to which SilentWind responded promptly with updates and eventually an updated controller.  Our SilentWind started producing power immediately, consistently, and quietly!  Of course it produces some sound, and we can generally estimate the wind speed by the pitch of the SilentWind. We call it the “sound of power”.

The “400” means our SilentWind 400’s max output is 400 watts at about 30 knots of wind. The 400 watts is measured at the generator, and is reduced by the various connections to controller, batteries, etc. It makes more sense to measure amps, which are accepted into our batteries – so 400 watts / 12 volts = 33 amps. Using the app, we can see how much power is being read by the controller, before it goes into the battery bank. On a typical tradewinds day with 15-17 knots of wind, our SilentWind inputs 18 amps into our battery bank. Considering that the trades blow all day and all night, that’s a significant input!  When sailing to windward, our apparent wind is increased, and consequently our wind power generation.  Sailing downwind, or when apparent wind is less than 10 knots (ie sheltered anchorage), our wind power generation is negligible.

Over the past 28 months of cruising, we’ve been really happy with our SilentWind. When we encountered issues (some of them operator error), SilentWind’s tech support helped us troubleshoot and gave us explicit illustrated directions on how to remedy the issue, and even scheduled a video call to show us how to take apart the unit for cleaning.  We can’t say enough about the outstanding customer support, and we even named our unit “Sam” after our favorite SilentWind engineer.

Solar

Before heading to the Caribbean in Fall 2016, we installed a 140 Watt Solbian flexible solar panel (from Climate Control) onto our Sunbrella bimini.  Our bimini was designed a bit smaller than some; less crown to facilitate boarding and dinghy outboard storage, and less length to give easy access to our boom and sail.  A larger bimini would yield more “real estate” for solar panels, but we opted differently.  Our solar panel is secured by double-backed Velcro on all 4 sides, and the power cable is enclosed in a reinforced Sunbrella sleeve with a quick-disconnect.  In storm conditions, the panel can be easily detached and stowed belowdecks. The wires run down the same stainless post that hosts the SilentWind generator, and the controller is installed near the battery bank, at the nav station. 

The solar panel’s 140 watt rating assumes ideal conditions. Like any electrical device, output is lost at all connections along the way to the battery. On a sunny Caribbean day, our solar panel inputs about 5 amps into the batteries for 6-8 hours. Power is consistent, reliable, and silent – but requires a sunny day. We’ve never had an issue with our solar panel or controller, and only wish we had loaded the bimini with more panels.  Next design, we will. 

Lesson learned:  maximize your available “real estate” with high efficiency solar panels, and incorporate that into the bimini design. For more details, install your controller where you can read the power output.

Diesel Generator

After Hurricanes Irma and Maria ravaged the Caribbean island in September 2017, we were unsure if we’d be able to cruise the Caribbean that winter season.  Security was restored fairly quickly, but we didn’t want to be a drain on already scarce resources – food, water, fuel, electricity.   We decided that Antigua was a viable destination since it was relatively unharmed by the hurricanes, so we scheduled our passages, courses, and family visits accordingly.  And we added two major bits of gear to KINETIC.  The first was a 6 KW Northern Lights diesel generator, to supplement the wind and solar, and to reduce the number of engine hours required to get a full charge on the batteries.  Fortunately, we had KINETIC wired and plumbed for a generator during the build, in the event we (or her next owners) wanted to install one after commissioning.

As we had experienced freshwater shortages the prior year in Antigua, and not knowing the water situation on other post-hurricane islands, we decided to add a watermaker, too.  Given the short notice, we opted for a portable Rainman unit, which required 110V power. Now that we had a generator, we were set!  The Rainman worked well, but after the season we realized we’d like a permanently installed unit, and opted for a 12V Spectra 200T that did NOT require a generator.  Back to our theme of being a 12V boat.

Complementary Redundancy

When cruising, we prefer anchorages to marinas, so we want to remain charged when away from shore power. On an average sunny day anchored in the tradewinds, our wind and solar power keep KINETIC charged nicely.   On light wind and/or cloudy days, we need to run the diesel generator to keep charged.  When daysailing and island-hopping, we typically run the engine in and out of port until the sails are set, so the 2x120Ah alternators take care of charging the batteries.  On multi-day passages where we’re running electronics 24 hours per day under sail, solar and wind go a long way to charging the batteries, and we may or may not need to supplement that with the diesel generator.   Call it complementary, call it redundancy – we have multiple means to keep our batteries charged.  

We could produce lots more power with diesel generation, running air-conditioning at anchor and maximizing electrical appliances.  We prefer, however, to reduce our power requirements and live within our solar and wind capabilities, reducing our carbon footprint and overall running costs. It just feels better.

For Sale – 9.9 hp

If you decide to upgrade your outboard motor at home base, it’s dead easy. Buy the upgraded model and install it on your dinghy. Put the old one on a rack in your garage, post an ad, and await a buyer. You can test it in a bucket of water, or put it onto your dinghy for a test run. When you’re cruising, it’s a slightly different story….

When we arrived in St Martin, we agreed that if we could find a 15 hp 2-stroke outboard engine for our dinghy at a reasonable price, we’d get it. We had such an engine 10 years prior, but sold it when we sold the tender and her mothership. 2-stroke engines are no longer available in the US, but are ubiquitous in the Caribbean. They are significantly smaller and lighter than their counterparts, uncomplicated, and far less susceptible to gunking up with ethanol-laced gasoline (Andy rebuilt the carburetor multiple times last year, in rather inconvenient places).

On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, we found the engine we wanted, and decided to take the plunge at St Maarten’s Yamaha dealer. St Martin is duty-free, so prices are very reasonable. We planned for a “Black Friday” tank-test and purchase, break it in over the weekend, and set sail for Antigua the following week. The dealer wouldn’t take our 9.9 hp 4-stroke in trade; they said it was too difficult to sell – the same story we got from 3 vendors we approached. Nobody wanted to buy a 4-stroke, or carry one on their inventory. If we didn’t sell the 4-stroke in St Martin, we might have better luck (and more time) in Antigua (where 2-strokes are not sold). So we planned to put the 4-stoke in the 2-stroke box, store it in the aft cabin, and sell it over the next month.

Meanwhile, we posted a few signs at cruisers hang-outs, and posted ads on St Martin Cruisers and Antigua Cruisers’ Facebook Pages, as well as the St Martin equivalent of “Craig’s List”. It was still early season in St Martin, too early for the TimeOutBoatYard nautical flea market, opening 1 Dec when “the season” began. More cruisers would arrive over the next few weeks, but we’d be farther down-island. One broker expressed interest for a client, but the client was adamant about getting a 2-stoke – who could blame him?

Boxed Yamaha

Waking up that Friday, we had a change of plan. The 9.9 hp 4-stroke was heavy and awkward, and we realized the folly of trying to sell it out of the aft cabin. Any reasonable buyer would want a test-run. So we watched our new 15 hp 2-stroke engine tank-tested at the Yamaha dealer, then asked them to drain it and pack it back in the box – we would store the new engine until the old engine sold. Then I saw the box… it looked like it might contain a refrigerator! Far too big to fit in the cabin, but the dealer kindly cut it down to a more reasonable size, packed the re-boxed engine onto their large rib, and the followed our dinghy across the lagoon and to our Marigot Bay anchorage. Better yet, they helped us get the box onboard and down the companionway. We had removed all intervening doors, and removed the mattresses and soft goods from the aft cabin to prevent any gas fume contamination.

Attempts to get the boxed engine into the aft cabin failed – it was about ½” too wide, even with the cabin door removed. We couldn’t keep these guys all day, so we hastily asked them to help get the engine out of the box into the cabin, then bring the box back on-deck, where we would re-re-size to fit. We sent them away with a nice tip for their troubles; I think they were very glad to not deal with this any further!

Interior packing was removed, and the box was slightly resized to fit the aft cabin. As you might guess, nobody had looked closely or took photos of how the packing fit into the box, or how the engine fit into the packing. So the engine came back on deck and we did a few trial runs to make it all fit. Next, the box went down below and into the aft cabin. Then the outboard engine – where it eventually fit into the box. Cargo straps bound up the box, and cockpit cushions wedged in to prevent any movement while underway. The engine was remarkably fume-free – the techs had drained it well. I was concerned not only for the smell, but the proximity to the galley, and considered a month of cold food…

Having a new Digicel data plan and good cellular coverage, we decided to spend the next 5 days visiting our favorites in St Martin, while monitoring the onrush of prospective buyers via Facebook. Off we sailed to Tintemarre, Orient Beach, and eventually Grand Case. By Sunday evening, we had 3 prospective buyers lined up in St Martin and Antigua – all through Facebook. We would meet the first prospect, Filipe, on Wednesday in Marigot, since he was off-island until then. Our plan was to depart for Antigua on Thursday – with our without the outboard sale.

While anchored in Grand Case on Tuesday, we had a Facebook message from Louise asking if the engine was still available. I explained that Filipe had first option, but Louise would be next – we were currently in Grand Case, but could meet in Marigot on Wednesday. Louise said they’d be in Grand Case that afternoon. Sure enough, I saw a custom Danish-flagged boat motoring into the harbour (the same boat I saw departing for Marigot that morning) – I messaged Louise to ask if she was on the Danish boat, and she responded yes – could her boyfriend come over to see the engine when they anchored? Certainly! Razmus dinghied over promptly, had a look at the engine, then took her for a test drive around the harbour. A good mechanic, he removed the cover and inspected inside. He said he was certainly interested, and as long as he could get sufficient cash from an ATM that evening, we’d have a deal. Razmus came aboard for a beer, and explained that he and Louise had refit their boat Cortona and sailed it from Denmark to St Martin 3 years ago. He was a carpenter and fully employed on-island, rebuilding after Hurricane Irma. I messaged Filipe to explain the cash contingency, and he was fine with whatever decision was made. Later that evening, Razmus rapped on the hull announcing that he had the cash, and we agreed to make the exchange the next morning.

Hoisting onto Cortana

On Wednesday morning, Andy dinghied over to Cortona, where Razmus, Louise and her visiting sister hoisted it aboard. Razmus towed Andy back to Kinetic (does anyone row?), made the agreed payment, and our deal was made! Next we extracted the new outboard from the aft cabin box and hoisted it onto our dinghy – with a “break-in” spin around the harbor.   The box was disassembled yet again, removed from the aft cabin, and loaded into the dinghy. We took it ashore to the recycling bin (French islands are great for recycling!) – Andy disposed of the box while I stayed with the engine – still idling for her break-in period. Meanwhile, I had a conversation with the Mate of the commercial snorkeling boat tied to the same dock, who pointed out his two diesel outboards! I never knew… but now we know the next step!

by Steve Struve

Steve & Teresa on passage

My wife Teresa and I are nearing retirement. We have enjoyed sailing and currently own a Jeanneau 409 located in SF Bay. Our retirement plans include sailing about and warm climates, specifically the Caribbean and potentially the west coast of Mexico. Although the 409 is a great boat for San Francisco Bay and coastal cruising, we have felt it was a little too light and flat to do significant passages or to be caught in serious weather/seas.

While at the Annapolis boat show a couple years ago we first viewed the Outbound 46. Both my wife and I fell in love with the boat. However, it is a sizable investment and we wanted to make sure the boat performed as advertised. Phil Lambert, President of Outbound Yachts, recommended that we get in touch with Andy and Lisa (Frailey) Batchelor who owned the S/V Kinetic that we were actually viewing at the boat show. We looked up their website, and read their blog. I called Andy, and we had a great conversation regarding the boat and potentially signing up for one of their passages. Eventually our schedules meshed, and we booked a passage with Andy and Lisa from the Chesapeake Bay to St. Martin.

Although Teresa and I had sailed a bit, we have never done a passage of this duration. We were Bay and coastal cruisers. Below we will detail our experiences.

Andy and Lisa

Both Andy and Lisa, are quite accomplished and incredibly interesting people. Andy is English, and was a Royal Air Force Wing Commander. My suspicion is that he is much more than that, as we talked about a number of his experiences and cases that put him in the center of dramatic world events. At times he was in the intelligence world, while other times he rubbed elbows with world leaders. Lisa is a retired Captain in the US Navy. She too has fascinating and diversified experiences including navigating the C130 aircraft, deploying on an aircraft carrier, and helping to shape Navy personnel issues. She has significant expertise and training in navigation, meteorology, oceanography, and aviation. They are both US Coast Guard Masters and ASA sailing instructors. We were onboard S/V Kinetic for a total of 17 days (including the pre-passage weather delay). So over that period of time we talked about many things. Andy and Lisa are both phenomenal individuals with experiences that will keep you mesmerized during the many hours on watch. Moreover, they are incredible instructors. They were patient, and tireless in helping to impart their sailing knowledge, answering our endless questions. Their organization and well thought-out plans from watch, mealtime, space utilization, charting, communications, route planning, daily maintenance, safety, weather, and last but certainly not least sailing and seamanship were comprehensive and impressive.

We flew from California to Baltimore and then drove to Solomons, Maryland. We spent an afternoon of onboard orientation and safety training before getting a good night sleep at our hotel. Next morning before dawn, we were picked up at the Holiday Inn dock to start our sail down the Chesapeake to Deltaville, VA.  The weather was somewhat unsettled and for a number of days there was no “weather window” to cross the Gulf Stream. During that time we had daily seminars regarding sailing concepts, systems, navigation and passage issues. The time was also filled with exploring Deltaville and Norfolk. Lisa monitored and spoke with weather routers at least twice a day.

Steve at the helm

Finally there was an acceptable window, and we left Norfolk, making our way down the coast and eventually crossing the Gulf Stream East of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The Gulf Stream Crossing was somewhat choppy, but not too bad. It was like and ebb tide, with the prevailing summer west wind, experienced on SF Bay. After transiting the Gulf Stream, we had a period of time with little wind and unfortunately we had to motor a fair amount. Lisa and Andy were diligently attempting to set us up in a favorable position for when the trade winds filled in. As we were approaching the longitude of Bermuda, the forecast for a developing tropical low was of concern. Weather routers advised continuing East for 200-300 more miles before turning South to avoid the potential developing storm. This was not feasible  given fuel constraints. and the low probability of storm development. Fortunately the potential storm fizzled,  but did manage to whip up the seas and provide 20-30 knot winds.

Teresa on watch

During the last 4 days of the trip we encountered one storm cell after another, creating significant local winds and rain. Throughout all, the Outbound was steady and comfortable, performing “as advertised”. The last 4 days she consistently cruised through the swell and waves at 7-9 kts. She was stable, sea kindly, and fun. I remember one night while on watch with Lisa. Our wind generator was making an exaggerated noise when the wind freshened. Coming into a storm cell the wind would accelerate from 18-30 kts over a few seconds. These “sound effects” in conjunction with our boats acceleration in the midst of a pitch black universe was very surreal feeling.

In conclusion both Teresa and I had a fantastic experience with Andy and Lisa. We learned a tremendous amount about sailing and ourselves. We would do it again in a heartbeat.

S/V KINETIC Offshore

Offshore sailing

Arrival in the Caribbean!

Passage Team: Capt Andy, Lisa, Teresa, Steve 

by Capt Lisa Batchelor Frailey

Weather Windows. An ocean passage to the Caribbean generally takes us 10-13 days, albeit with months of prior preparation and planning. We plan to depart as close to Nov 1^st as possible, given our insurance requirements to remain north of Cape Hatteras until that date. Then we find a weather window that gets us from Solomons down the Chesapeake Bay (about 15 hours) then safely across the Gulf Stream (another 18 hours), with no tropical storms in the long-term forecast.

Sunrise departure from Solomons

This year’s passage was somewhat different, in that we simply had no weather window to allow a straight-thru-from-Solomons departure. So we did what many cruisers do – work south, stage, and wait for the window. That meant nearly an additional week, but we were fortunate to have two enthusiastic, talented and flexible crew for the passage. Steve and Teresa flew in from California for the passage, and received a half-day of onboard orientation before retreating to the Holiday Inn for a good night’s sleep. We picked them up at the hotel dock before sunrise on Oct 30^th and headed down the Bay as the sun crept above the horizon. We had a great reach sail south to Deltaville, where we made arrangements to stage until the next leg, some 4 days later. Keeping the crew engaged and happy while “waiting for the window” can be a challenge, but this crew was terrific. We spent several hours a day training, lots of time studying weather and talking with our weather router, then free time to explore Deltaville and exercise ashore. Everyone enjoyed the marine museum/sculpture garden, by day and on Halloween night!

Halloween in Deltaville

The next window to exit the Bay appeared to be 5 November, after a retracting front lifted north of the Norfolk area. On 4 November we sailed south from Deltaville to Little Creek, getting us to the mouth of the Bay while practicing some tacks, gybes and reefing. Several cruising friends (including 2 more Outbounds) were also staged in the Norfolk area, so we had a quick conference call to discuss plans. A final night ashore, and we were more than ready for departure!

As forecast, the front lifted north at noon on Nov 5^th, and we headed out of the Bay with a parade of passage-making cruisers awaiting the same window. We motorsailed down the coast towards Cape Hatteras to our recommended Gulf Stream entry point – or as close as the southerly winds would allow us to get to that point. The passage fleet dispersed over the next 12 hours – both visually and from our AIS screen – as several boats opted for a more northerly entry point and high-rpm direct course to Bermuda to stop for crew or fuel.

Gulf Stream GRIB

Gulf Stream. We entered the mighty Gulf Stream early morning of Nov 6^th. Southwesterly winds at 20 knots quickly built the seas to 6-8’ of nasty chop for the next 10 hours. We tracked our position in the stream by sea temperature, current set & drift, and sea state! This matched well with the GRIB files, and we could easily see our position on the LuckGrib app. The seas settled after we exited the Stream. Winds diminished too, so we progressively shook out the reefs in the mainsail and proceeded with the next phase of the passage.

Catch of the Day

Not long after crossing the Stream, Steve noticed a black line trailing from our stern. He and Andy retrieved it “sideways”, pulling some 100’ of thick black polypropylene line on deck. Luckily, it had caught under the rudder, but was not wrapped in the propeller.

Route. Our intent was not a rhumb line but a shaped course – ESE towards Bermuda, continuing our “easting” past St Martin’s longitude (62°W), then south for a reach to St Martin in the tradewinds. Which never quite appear when you want them to, so “easting” is key. Our track line looks wobbly, as we flex the heading with the wind. Quite frequently our autopilot was set on “wind vane” which maintains a constant apparent wind angle, instead of a constant heading. We sailed where the wind would allow us, and made up the difference when we had to

Kinetic’s Track

motorsail. From Nov 8 – 12, our log entries show generally SouthEast headings, but some South, and a rare NorthEast! Using Single Sideband (SSB) radio and sat phone messages, we stayed closely in touch with our weather router, who advised on waypoints and options based on enroute weather. We sent twice-daily position reports via sat phone, keeping family and friends apprised of our progress. (see OCENS track)

Keeping the log

Watchkeeping. We maintain a watchbill on Kinetic 24/7 on passage, where all crewmembers stand 6 hour watches, followed by 6 hours “off”. Andy and Lisa rotated at 7 and 1 (am and pm), and Steve and Teresa rotated at 10 and 4 (am & pm). This put a fresh person on watch every 3 hours and allowed for more cross-training with watch leads. In addition to our electronic navigation, we maintain a log with entries each hour, and plot our position on paper charts every 3 hours. It takes about 2 days to acclimate to the watch routine, after which everyone was tuned-in, rested, and eating well. Our crew learned to use autopilot, AIS, radar, sat phone, all the electronics, and enjoyed hand-steering Kinetic as well. The daily watch routine involves rig checks, fuel & water monitoring, engineering checks, weather updates, communications, meal prep and housekeeping.

Windward Ho!

Dodging squalls with radar

By 13 Nov we had attained our easting, and were luckily on the “correct” side of a low pressure trough, which gave us 18-20 knots of easterly winds for the rest of our passage. We flew along at 7-8 kts, negotiating 8-10’ seas with ease. Occasional squalls provided some diversion and a fresh-water rinse, but winds stayed below 30 kts throughout.   We adjusted the watchbill so that Steve and Teresa could stand watch together, taking a greater role in decision-making and running the vessel. The plan worked well until our final night, when a rogue wave washed through the cockpit and found it’s way into the crew cabin, soaking the bedding and changing the sleeping/watch arrangements.

Safe Arrival in St Martin!

Land Ho! In the wee hours of 16 Nov we sighted the lights of Anguilla, lying just north of St Martin. We furled the headsail to slow the boat for a daylight arrival, and arrived in the Anguilla/St Martin channel at dawn, in heavy rain. By 8 am, we were safely moored in the lee of Isle Tintemare, off the NE coast of St Martin. The crew celebrated with a hearty breakfast, swim and a day of R&R. The next day we enjoyed a downwind “glory sail” along the coast of St Martin before making our way into Marina Fort Louis and arrival formalities. Steve and Teresa departed for a few days at a St Martin resort before returning to California, while Lisa and Andy began transforming Kinetic from passagemaking to cruising mode.

Stats. A sporty but excellent passage, all in all. 1673 nm from Solomons to St Martin. 1567 nm from Little Creek, and all of it to windward. Kinetic averaged 6 kts over our 11 days of passage, including our economy-rpm motorsailing. We motored more than we’d like, but burned only 83 of our 185 gallons of diesel. More importantly, we arrived safely, with lots of learning, and strong friendships forged in the shared experience.

I don’t believe I’ve ever seen an island so breathtaking as St Lucia. The tourism board uses catch phrases “Simply Beautiful” and “Let her inspire you”, but neither quite captures the majestic beauty of this lush volcanic island. To be moored beneath the Pitons, to watch the colors and shadows change through the day, and to feel the wind gusts, calms, showers and sunshine is just magical.

We had a “boisterous” sail from Martinique and arrived at Rodney Bay on 4 Feb, on the NW sector of St Lucia. Nine foot seas refracted around the island’s north coast, practically rolling us into the protected harbor of Rodney Bay. Fort Rodney stands prominently on Pigeon Island, made famous by the pirate Jambe du Bois (Peg Leg) and later by England’s Admiral Rodney, for whom the fort is named. When securely anchored, Andy, Rick and I headed ashore to climb Fort Rodney and the Signal Hill. Rick (a friend and neighbor from Solomons) has been sailing with us for 10 days, and last visited St Lucia when his adult sons were tweens – so the visit brought back lots of memories. The fort has a commanding view of the bay (and KINETIC anchored below), its entrance, and the northern channel between St Lucia and French Martinique (England/France battles were commonplace). The signal hill was returned to military service during WWII, when the US established a communications site. From the fort, we could also see the expansive Sandals Resort, and massive Rodney Bay Marina – a village in itself. Descending to sea level, we stopped at the waterfront café/gallery Jambe du Bois for a Piton beer, and decided to stay for dinner.

Andy, Lisa & Rick atop Fort Rodney

Signal Hill at Fort Rodney

Next day, we sailed downwind (finally!) to Marigot Bay, encountering several squalls blessings. It was nice to get the salt washed off the boat! Marigot is a sheltered hurricane harbor, hidden from the eye until you’re right upon it. The 1967 film Dr Doolittle was filmed at Marigot, long before the marina and mansions were built. The channel now leads back to a mangrove-lined harbor seeded with mooring balls. To the right lies Marigot Bay Marina and Capella Resort – our destination. Taking a $30 mooring ball grants access to the marina/resort facilities, so we enjoyed the infinity pool while Rick checked into his new suite at the Capella. After a couple of days of restaurants, relaxation and a few boat chores, and we said farewell to Rick and sailed south to explore a few anchorages enroute the Pitons. Anse Cochon (Bay of Pigs!) proved a secluded and beautiful harbor; we were assisted to a mooring ball by Titus, who also sold us some fresh coconut from his kayak. Ashore, the Ti Kaye hotel presided to the right, with a strip of pristine beach to the left. We noticed a number of boat boys with kayaks and SUPs relaxing in the shade, and wondered what business they might have with so few moorings. By mid-afternoon, we found out. Anse Cochon was a snorkeling stop-off for the many day catamaran charters loaded with cruise ship passengers! At one point there were 4 “cattlemarans” on the beach, with hundreds of passengers snorkeling by the boat. The boat boys were hanging onto the cats, then towing snorkelers for a tour. By sunset, all were gone, and shared the quiet bay with 2-3 other cruising boats.

Enjoying the Capella pool

View from Rick’s new digs

Waxing the chopper

Arrival to the Pitons is always a mystical experience – catching that first glimpse of the iconic lava domes of the Soufriere volcano, then having them loom over you. The Soufriere Marine Management Agency (SMMA) controls access to the area; yachts smaller than 125’ may take a mooring, and those larger may anchor after being cleared by SMMA. We took a mooring mid-way between Petit and Gros Piton, which afforded fabulous views of each.   Andy and I agreed that engaging a guide to hike Gros Piton was not in the cards this trip, in an effort to preserve our knees – but we instead walked “the steepest road in the world” to the village of Morne la Croix.  (Note: Rick DID hike Gros Piton) Snorkeling at the base of Petit Piton was excellent, after the day-trip crowds departed. We enjoyed a selection of fresh fruit delivered to the boat by Cletus, on his boat Distant Thunder.

Fruits by Cletus

At the base of Petit Piton

From Morne la Croix

Besides the majesty of the Pitons, two other aspects gave great entertainment. One was the daily parade of colorful narrow fishing boats, where 1 man drove (and bailed), and 4-5 men  stood in line ahead, often wearing snorkeling gear. Occasionally we saw one dive over to retrieve something, but we think they were going to and from areas where their nets were set. The other entertainment was the fantastic collection of superyachts. ACE and her toy carrier GARCON, the classic NERO, ELYSIAN, LAURENTIA on a photo shoot – just to name a few.

Fisherman and ACE

Parade of fishermen

GARCON meets local fishermen

Peekin’ round the Piton

Classic NERO

After two days between the Pitons, we moved around to Malgretoute on Soufriere Bay, now moored at the north base of the omnipresent Petit Piton. This was a surprisingly sheltered mooring area, with a lovely, uncrowded beach. While walking the beach, I was startled  to find 3 cows, a calf and a bull running down the hill to the beach, where they stayed for the weekend. Each had tethers, and were sometimes accompanied by a Rasta cowherd. From the beach, we took a tropical uphill hike to Piton Mineral Falls, and relaxed in the pools of warm mineral water at the base of the falls. While the Pitons mooring field was mostly full of charter boats, this field had a number of cruisers, and we hosted sundowners for our mooring neighbors.

Piton Mineral Falls

Cattle on Malgretoute Beach

We dinghied into the town of Soufriere to explore the Creole architecture and markets. The town seems much neglected – collapsing buildings, trash, poverty – quite different from the picture painted by the cruising guide. After an excellent fruit smoothie at Zakas and quick trip to the grocery, we departed to dinghy along the northern shore of the bay. Hummingbird’s boutique resort looked promising, and we stopped in to see if they might be showing the 6 Nations Rugby game that afternoon. They did their best to accommodate, but didn’t have the right channel. Nonetheless, we had an excellent lunch overlooking the bay and Petit Piton, then checked out their batik shop (the owner’s son David is the batik artist, as well as the chef). Upon returning to the dinghy, a swarm of local boys followed us up the dock to “help”; two jumped into the dinghy to untie it for us. Payment for their help was a sleeve of Oatibix cereal from our grocery bag, which was immediately shared out and consumed with gusto.

Soufriere waterfront

Lunch & Batik at Hummingbird

Dinghy helpers

As happens when cruising, parts fail, and we discovered our engine blower wasn’t getting power. This blower had already been replaced, and the quality was suspect, so I ordered a new blower from the Island Water World at Rodney Bay, contacted a technician, and secured a marina slip to get things repaired. Next day we departed the Pitons and motorsailed north against a very stiff breeze and big seas to Rodney Bay Marina. Our first marina stay since Christmas! Huge slips, full length finger piers, plenty of fresh water, chandlery, laundry, restaurants, sporadic power, and technical support! We picked up the blower, and the technician was onboard that afternoon to diagnose the electrical problem, which he repaired the next day. The old blower works again, and we kept the new blower as a spare. Happy Valentine’s Day! We celebrated with a terrific Indian dinner.

A Mall!?

Docked at Rodney Bay Marina

I had a chance to take the local bus to the “mall” – expecting to find an industrial park that generally passes for a mall in the islands. I was stunned to find a multi-story US-style duty free mall!  Even more impressive was Reena, a schoolteacher on the bus who insisted on walking me from the bus to the particular shop I needed – to be sure I wasn’t scammed. We ran into a few cruising friends in Rodney Bay, and enjoyed a couple of evening get-togethers with old and new friends.

With still one more day before weather allowed a passage, we boarded a local bus into Castries to see the famed cathedral, as well as the markets and waterfront. Two cruise ships were in, so the town was hopping. There was a huge market featuring fruit and veg, fish and handicrafts, all in a Creole setting. The wooden cathedral was impressive, and will be even more so when restoration is complete. We walked through the neighboring Walcott Park, where a group of local school kids were on a very active field trip, and encountered what seemed to be their first white children (cruising kids).  Having checked the Castries box, we headed back to the marina, and departed on the morning tide for Martinique.

Castries market

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Castries

School kids at Walcott Park, Castries

What was planned as a short visit turned into 12 days in St Lucia – each a new adventure, and new delight!

Sailing to Barbuda

This season we’ve made three trips to Barbuda, the lesser-known half of the nation “Antigua & Barbuda” that lies 30 miles north of Antigua. Low-lying Barbuda was absolutely devastated by Hurricane Irma in September 2017, and the entire population of 1700 residents was evacuated to Antigua. It was the first time that Barbuda was uninhabited since it was originally colonized by the Codrington family in 1685. The Codrington Lagoon, which shelters the 2^nd largest frigate bird sanctuary in the world, was breached in two places on its western boundary, allowing direct ocean access into the lagoon. When that much sand moves out, it must be deposited somewhere. We didn’t know how much the undersea bathymetry had changed, and didn’t want to explore new shoals with our keel.  After arriving in Antigua in November, I spent 2 weeks trying to make contact with Barbudans and relief organizations, and was finally able to do so via Facebook sites. Our friends on catamaran GEMEAUX sailed up, confirmed some navigation areas, and took extensive drone footage that I was able to share with Barbuda relief agencies and the cruising community.

Local news emphasized the political aspects of the evacuation and repatriation, the “land grab” bill allowing Barbudans to individually purchase the land upon which they lived (Barbudans already own the land communally and don’t want the change) and the legality of expanded development for resorts like the K Club, now leased by Robert DeNiro. Reading the news made us really wonder what we’d find out on the island.

Anchored off Barbuda

Our first visit was on Christmas Day – we sailed from Antigua to Cocoa Point, on the protected south coast of Barbuda. We anchored off the Cocoa Beach Club, an exclusive resort that was in full swing when we visited last year. Now it’s a shambles – palm trees uprooted, roofs ripped off, concrete walls tumbled, pantry supplies scattered cross the grounds. Wild donkeys graze through the mess in search of a meal. Eerily, a few wineglasses and ceramics remain untouched, and someone has artfully arranged them into a macabre setting on the beach. Further west on the beach is the K Club, already in a sad state of disrepair before the hurricane, and now a disaster. Yet behind the grounds we found evidence of bull-dozing for an expanded airport. We spent 2 nights anchored at the once popular Cocoa Point, with only 2 other boats in sight.

Cocoa Point Beach Club in ruins

Still Barbudaful

Remants of the K Club – once the playground of the rich and famous

Feral Donkey

Our second visit was to Low Bay, on the west side of the island. On previous visits, we anchored off Louis Beach at the Barbuda Outback – Jala’s 2-story beach shack – on the pristine, pinky-white 17 mile beach east of Tucson Rock. It was a short walk across the sand spit to the lagoon, where Jala docked his boats for the frigate bird tours.   Jala’s beach shack is little more than a hole in the ground now, with evidence of electrical conduit, a propane cylinder and a couple of generators peeking from the sand. His cultivated palm trees are bent over at unnatural angles – yet are still producing coconuts. The 17 mile beach is breached in 2 spots, south and north of Outback, at Donna Mouth and Louis Mouth. These are named for the previous hurricanes (1960 and 1995, respectively) that cut swaths through the beach, creating channels into the lagoon, and were gradually filled by natural processes. Nature repeats itself – we learned that the new cuts are already filling. According to a local captain, what was a 12’ deep cut just after Irma is now a 6’ cut, and filling fast. Lighthouse Bay Resort lies just north of Louis Mouth – abandoned a few years ago, it now looks like a Salvador Dali painting, with buildings bent and melting into the surf.

Lighthouse Resort

Palm trees bend with the wind

Lous Mouth (photo courtesy of GEMEAUX)

We dinghied through the breach and into the lagoon – once to explore the beach that once was the Outback, and the second time to motor across the lagoon into Codrington. We wondered about the two large white buildings we saw from the beach, but upon arriving, learned they were large tents set up by relief agencies Samaritan’s Purse and Food for the World/US AID. Each contains stockpiles of relief materials – food, water, tents, tarps, building supplies. Pallets of lumber and roofing material are stacked near the fish processing plant that now serves as headquarters and shelter.

Relief headquarters

Relief supplies

Restoring comms

Tents for those rebuilding their homes

Residents are gradually making their way back to the island to rebuild their homes, businesses and lives. Adjacent to many roofless homes are igloo tents, where the homeowners live while they clear debris and rebuild their homes. Tarps provide shade and shelter – blue tarps carry the Samaritan’s Purse logo, and silver tarps are emblazoned with “US AID”. School has reconvened in the green-stone church with the blue tarp roof.

Nothing left but foundation

School is reopened in the church

Samaritan’s Purse provides two warm meals a day for residents working on their homes. A generator-powered pump extracts fresh water from an adjacent well; water is routed to a distribution site under “the brown tent”, allowing 8 people to fill their water jugs simultaneously. Generators were strategically located, several power lines restrung, and phone service is gradually being restored. We found horses and donkeys roaming freely in school grounds and homesteads.

While the news reports led us to believe we’d find rebellious, hostile islanders, it just wasn’t the case. As we walked through Codrington, the Barbudans were very friendly. They greeted us warmly, and were upbeat and optimistic about their progress in rebuilding.

On our third visit, we were able to tour the frigate bird rookery/sanctuary, based in the lagoon’s mangroves. Frigate birds feed primarily on flying fish, but the birds cannot dive or land on water – they must catch the fish while they are above the surface. Frigates are also known as “Man o’ War” birds, since they often chase down diving seabirds with captured fish in their talons. We frequently have frigate birds flying along as we sail – the boat’s bow wave flushes out the flying fish, and the frigate birds pounce.

John Levy has a taxi service, a boat, and a popular beach restaurant (covered with a Samaritan’s Purse tarp, but operating nonetheless)  John can serve you lobster, or deliver a sack of live lobsters for your crew.  He is also the only operating taxi driver with a VHF radio, which makes him the “go to” guy for cruisers wishing to get to town from Cocoa Point, or tour the frigate bird sanctuary. (Note: Digicel and FLOW worked in Codrington, but there was no FLOW service at Cocoa Point in Dec/Jan)  John met us on the beach at Cocoa Point, and arranged for one of his sons to drive us to the dock at Codrington, where Captain Patrick ran the frigate tour.

Pat is an Antiguan who’s spent most of his life on Barbuda. He maintains Barbuda’s power plant, but is also a waterman. Pat’s sons were born on Barbuda, but they are not considered Barbudan. That’s important from a land perspective, as only Barbudans can own land in Barbuda. Pat clarified the communal ownership status, and indicated that Barbudans were “Tenants of the Crown” (as Mr Codrington was 4 centuries ago), not owners. Apparently, that’s an entirely different legal status from the practice of “land held in common by Barbudans.” He also offered another perspective on the proposed legislation allowing Barbudans to purchase their homestead for 1 ECD (about 38 cents US). While the fee is minimal, the transaction is key – the purchase would allow the Barbudan to acquire freehold title to a property, which would allow them to get a bank loan for improvements. It’s more than a way to motivate Barbudans to rebuild – it’s designed to facilitate rebuilding with funds.

Captain Pat offers some perspective

Hopeful male, female & chick

New chick

Mangrove stumps

Back to the frigate birds….. having seen the sanctuary twice before, I was eager to see what may have changed. Thankfully, the frigate birds are in fine form, and fully engaged in the mating season. Males beat their puffed out red bladders to attract a female mate. Several fuzzy white chicks have already been born, and sit comically in the nest while their parents watch over. There are far fewer frigate birds this year, but those remaining look very healthy. Visually, the most dramatic change was the mangroves in which the birds nest. Normally lush and green, the mangroves suffered greatly from the hurricane, and were little more than brown clumps. Pat showed us “Man ‘o War” island, where the frigate colony used to live before Hurricane Donna struck in 1960. Afterward, the frigate colony moved to it’s current mangrove site, a mile or so north. Will they move again, or will the mangroves regenerate? Nobody was able to tell us how the frigate birds survived the hurricane, which occurred just as the males were returning for the mating season. Presumably they flew away (perhaps staying airborne) and returned to their mangroves after the storm passed.

Perhaps we can draw some lessons from the frigate birds. They don’t let politics, privilege, land rights or lawsuits get in their way. They survived the storm, returned to their decimated homes, rebuilt their nests, and went about the business of living and repopulating.   It seems that’s what many Barbudans are doing, as well.   Please go visit, lend support, and help Barbudans recover their homes and livelihoods.

Fishing again

Life goes on in Barbuda

John has reopened his Pink Beach Restaurant

Getting the roof on

Making it work

We sailed north from Guadeloupe to Antigua for the holidays, combining a unique blend of English and Caribbean traditions we first discovered when cruising here on our former boat ZINGARO in 2008.

Christmas Crew: Andy, Lisa, Michael, Celeste.

Our friends Michael and Celeste joined us on Christmas Eve for a week aboard KINETIC. They hadn’t sailed in a few years, but were looking forward to boat ownership and were eager to embrace the cruising lifestyle. We spent Christmas Eve in Deep Bay, and enjoyed a “boisterous” sail north to Barbuda on Christmas day. Cocoa Point, normally well attended by cruising and charter boats, was like a ghost town – only one other cruising boat, and the devastating wreckage left by Hurricane Irma. It was difficult to resolve the natural beauty of Barbuda with the wreckage of the Cocoa Point Beach Resort, active and thriving just last season, and now an eerie shambles.

Anchored at Cocoa Point, Barbuda

Celestial Christmas

Hurricane Devastation

Christmas Dinner aboard

Back aboard that evening, we enjoyed a wonderful dinner of smoked turkey, sweet potatoes and vegetables, along with Buche de Noel and a marzipan Galette (we provisioned well in French Guadeloupe)!  Christmas lights in the cockpit (solar LED, of course) and carols, sharing holiday memories and dreams.

Boxing Day (Dec 26^th) was a lazy day at Cocoa Point – swimming, sunning, and exploring the remnants of the K Club, now owned/leased by Robert DeNiro. Sea turtles made frequent appearances, keeping us entertained. Time for Christmas Pudding!

Ocean Sailors

Our next leg was around the windward side of Antigua, to Green Island and Nonsuch Bay. A long day of strong winds and big seas, lots of practice hand-steering; we were grateful to have a stable ocean-going boat!  Once moored behind the reef at Green Island, we went ashore to watch the kitesurfers launch off “40 Knot Point”.

Kitesurfing at Green Island, Nonsuch Bay

Next stop, Falmouth! An easy downwind sail along the south coast of Antigua, admiring Eric Clapton’s Cliffside estate and the forts guarding English Harbour. Luckily we reserved a mooring, as English/Falmouth is extremely popular with cruising boats and megayachts for the Christmas holidays. Once secured, we headed ashore for a walking tour of Nelson’s Dockyard at English Harbour. Mike and Celeste also taxied up to Shirley Heights, boasting a commanding view of both English and Falmouth Harbours. Dinner at the Antigua Yacht Club was a terrific finale to the day.

Falmouth by Night

Dinner at AYC, Falmouth

On to Dickenson Bay – downwind to Cades Reef, and a reach up the lee side to the NW corner of Antigua. We anchored behind the cliffs, and dinghied ashore for a long walk on the beach and some island souvenirs.

Holiday Spirit

After returning to Jolly Harbour, Mike and Celeste flew home to arctic Virginia, and we celebrated New Years Eve with dinner ashore and a terrific fireworks display seen from the cockpit.   Here’s to fabulous 2018!

Iles des Saintes (Islands of the Saints) is a small group of islands about 15 miles south of the Guadeloupe’s SW corner. Still part of French Guadeloupe, Les Saintes is closely linked to Brittany in the north of France, and still retains an active Breton fishing community. I’m writing this blog entry long after leaving Guadeloupe, because it’s hard to know where to begin. Les Saintes is overwhelmingly beautiful; we paid several visits to the island group and it’s multiple harbors, and took taking hundreds of photos. So rather than describe chronologically, I’ll describe by mouillage (anchorage).

Pain de Sucre

Sailing to Les Saintes

We sailed to Les Saintes from Pigeon on Dec 4^th (2017), and came directly to the island of Terre-de-Haute. We have a favored anchorage at the western end of the island, called Pain de Sucre (Sugar Bread) for the prominent 200’ mini-piton at its head. On the waterway into Pain de Sucre we encountered a minefield of fishing floats, many comprised of clear 2 liter soda bottles. Fishing has its pros and cons! There is little space to anchor in this deep mouillage, as it has about 20 mooring balls installed now. We took a mooring, which is quite as easy as it sounds…. these mooring balls have no pendants, so one must “joust” to thrust a mooring line through the metal ring atop the float, picking it up on the opposite side before the bow blows down over the mooring ball, scraping off the bottom paint. In many cases, friendly neighbors come to the aid of newcomers, as happened this time.

Fishing net discovered on our prop

Once secured, Andy jumped in for a swim and discovered that we had entangled a large mass of polypropylene fishing net in our prop. Luckily, we could pull it off with a boathook. Les Saintes Multiservices (LSM) maintains the moorings and provides services like laundry, customs and Immigration, wifi, and arranges technical services for yachts. They come out to the anchorage twice daily to collect mooring fees (an easy 13 Euro per night). If only they delivered baguettes!

We dinghied ashore to the dock of Hotel Bois Joli, and saw the extensive damage caused by Hurricane Irma. Several workers were restoring roofs, with expectation to be open for the New Year. Our goal in coming ashore was to hike to La Croix – a cross that stands prominently atop, facing out over the anchorage.  A trail through the hotel grounds leads to another trail through a grassy meadow frequented by chickens and goats. Midway up, we found a statue of the Virgin Mary, overlooking the fleet below. We continued onwards to a steep dirt and stone path, discovering that the Stations of the Cross were displayed along the way. Each was a bronze bas-relief plaque on concrete base. Electrical wiring for lighting was in disarray, but the Stations were unmistakable. At the top of the trail was a plateau featuring La Croix – a white and blue shaded cross with a commanding view of Les Saintes and Guadeloupe. Last year we saw a covered area for services, but this was blown off the hillside by the hurricane, and lies near on the southern beach. Tucked away in the trees we found a small chapel to the Sacred Heart, with the 10 Commandments painted outside (in French), and votive candles and murals of the Virgin Mary (Light of the World, Salt of the Earth) inside.

La Croix

Stations of the Cross

View from La Croix

Snorkeling in Les Saintes

Snorkeling at Pain de Sucre is generally good, and this visit was no exception. It’s easy to snorkel right from the boat to the rocky eastern wall; fish and coral are abundant. This year, the fish were joined by sheets of corregated metal – roofs blown from their buildings during the hurricane.

Anse Crawen

During a later visit to Pain de Sucre, we walked up and over to Anse Crawen, a secluded south-facing beach behind Pointe Bois Joli. We were the only beachgoers for hours, except for the goats and chickens. Andy practiced flying his drone up and down the beach (scaring a few goats along the way) and ventured the drone over water.

Anse du Bourg

After the relative seclusion of Pain de Sucre, we motored a mile east to the only town in Les Saintes, appropriately named Bourg des Saintes. This is the primary entry for Les Saintes, by air, ferry, or yacht. We chose the anchorage (moulliage) to the east of the ferry dock, generally more protected from wind waves and boat traffic. One successful joust of the mooring ball, and we were secure in Anse du Bourg, under the shadow of Fort Napoleon.

The town maintains a nice dinghy dock, supplies trash and recycling (wow) receptacles, and is very cruiser-friendly. We took care of business, then browsed some favorite shops – Maogany specializes in blue tie-dyed garments, scarves, hats – the color scheme draws us in every time. The French Isles are famous for traditional madras fabric, and Andy was in search of a replacement madras bucket hat. He also found a matching shirt and shorts!   The town is centered on the Catholic Church, which now featured a fishing-themed nativity crèche – very creative. On the sidewalk next to the church, the chicken man has a wood-fired oven and serves the best chicken in the country. The town has boulangeries, patisseries, gelaterias, paperies, boutiques, groceries, and a great fruit and veg market. After purchasing and writing postcards/holiday cards (posted 18 Dec, arrived 2 Feb), we loaded up and enjoyed a feast of French delicacies onboard.

Bringing home the bread

Waterfront in Les Saintes

Andy in camoflage, Maogany boutique

L’Eglise Notre Dame de l’Assumption

Nativity creche with a fisherman’s theme

The next morning we went ashore to hike to Fort Napoleon – a national museum housed in a fort built in 1867, with a spectacular 360 degree view of Les Saintes. The fort is only open from 9-12, which works fine for us in the tropical heat. It’s a good climb, but absolutely worth it for the view. From the top, we could see our anchorage and surrounding islands, and also look into Baie Marigot and the fantastic beach at Baie Pompierre (we visited last year). The fort’s museum was a delightful surprise blend of history, art, botany and culture.

View from Fort Napoleon

Fort Napoleon

Well into walking mode, we struck out for more walking tour that afternoon. From the anchorage I could see a crucifix above the town, and enquired about it at the tourist office. Directions in hand, we climbed up the crucifix (Calvarie) and min-chapel, then walked west on Rue de Grande Anse to visit the cemetery. Above-ground crypts as we saw in Deshaies, with a monument to those killed in battle.

Terre de Haut, from the Calvarie chapel

Cemetery in Terre de Haut

Finally, onwards to Grand Anse! This is a no-swimming beach on the windward side, clearly signposted with “no swimming, no watersports” because of the dangerous surf. The “pedestrians take caution” signs were because the airstrip ended at the beach! We walked south along Grand Anse where the more skilled kitesurfers were operating (watersport?), then along a road to the sheltered Anse Rodrigue. We walked back along the airfield and “suburban” homes, then through the south part of town to the dinghy dock and back to the boat. We got a 1-day “HotSpot” to do some internet admin onboard (loving Kinetic’s wifi signal booster). Tomorrow we’ll move and will move along to find better shelter, as the winds crept up to 20 knots and brought rolly conditions into the anchorage.

Pedestrians take caution!

Airport to Beach

Kitesurfers on Grand Anse

Isle Cabrit – Anse sous la vent

Wed, Dec 7^th. The tradewinds have crept up to 20 knots for a few days, bringing gusts and rolly conditions to the anchorage, so we escaped Anse du Bourg for Ilet a Cabrit, a mile west. Also known as “Anse sous la vent” (bay under the wind), we still had some swirly gusts, but flat water for more comfortable conditions. The only thing missing was internet and baguettes – both easily obtained by a 1 mile dinghy ride across to the Bourg. We snorkeled the east and west sections of the beach, but visibility was limited by the wave action.

Andy took his machete and hiked up to Fort Josephine, widening the trail for others. Back on the beach, he was nearly “attacked” by an island cat – barely more than a kitten in size, but with quite an attitude. Not sure if the cat wanted food, or to warn off intruders – acted like a watch dog. Oddly enough, a band of beach chickens wandered by, and the cat took no notice. Weird. Next day, Andy offered the cat some fresh water, and it seemed that’s all she really wanted.

On Wed evening, we hosted happy hour onboard KINETIC for our friends on OYSTER and ALLADIN – cruisers we’d met in Deshaies and Les Saintes. On Friday, OYSTER hosted a pot-luck pasta dinner, and we were joined by Ward, whom we first met upon arrival in Antigua. Lots of sea stories swapped, and a great exchange of information on cruising ports. We made 100 gallons of water that day – the Rainman works well, once we can get it working. Happily supplied OYSTER with several gallons to supplement their supply.

A half-sunken houseboat/cottage was tied off at the beach – possibly towed there for more sheltered conditions during Hurricane Maria. While we were moored, we watched a team of divers attach inflatables to the structure and slowly bring it to the surface. The houseboat was attached to a towing tug, but we departed before the salvage was complete. It seemed the crew was living aboard the tug, saving the commute.

Houseboat beached

Salvaging the houseboat

We love visiting Les Saintes, and look forward to stopping through again for a bit of French charm as we traverse the island chain.

Les Saintes founders

Fishermen’s tools at Petite Anse

Terre de Haut

About 8 miles south of Deshaies is the anchorage known to cruisers as “Pigeon”, or more formally – Islets Pigeon off the beach of Malendure, in the Bouillante region of Guadeloupe. The big draw at Pigeon is the Jacques Cousteau Reserve, a protected natural marine park featuring an exceptional variety of seabed corals and marine life.  You can enjoy the underwater scenes by snorkeling, SCUBA, or taking a ride in the glass-bottomed boat.

Malendure beach

We dropped anchor near our friends Bob & Ann on BALOO, and I (Lisa) went ashore to book a Sunday morning dive with Archipel Plongeé, one of the three dive operators based on Malendure beach.  Winds were SE, and the swells from the south created a rolly anchorage – we had to wedge ourselves into the bunks that night, as if underway!

Malendure dive operators

Saturday’s goal was to do a major provisioning run to the Carrefour and Leader Price stores located just south of Malendure, easily accessed by dinghy through a stone seawall. That is, if the outboard is working properly… Our Yamaha suddenly decided to cut out at idle rpm – definitely a problem when changing gears inside a seawall! So instead of provisioning, we spent the day working on the outboard. Bob of BALOO provided expert technical assistance in helping Andy tear apart, clean and rebuild the carburetor, and we were back in business. Bob and Ann joined us for happy hours onboard – we still had some treats procured in Deshaies.

Andy made the provisioning run on Sunday morning (stores open till noon) while I went on the dive at the Cousteau Reserve. I was the only English speaker in the group (most were French, some Germans), but was able to manage with SCUBA’s universal hand signals and a patient divemaster named Delphine. We had a fantastic 54 minute dive to about 20 meters depth. Jacques Cousteau has been a hero of mine since I was a kid, and to touch his underwater statue and dive in his vivid marine reserve was a dream come true.   Afterwards, Andy and I snorkeled the perimeter of the anchorage, which is abundant with fish, coral and sea turtles.  We’ll be back to “Pigeon” again!

Jacques Coustea statue at the Reserve

Happy Lisa after her dive

Sea turtle in the anchorage

Lion fish along the anchorage wall

Malendure’s dock at sunset

Reaching for Guadeloupe

Squalls near landfall

We set sail for Guadeloupe on Wednesday morning, Nov 29 – fabulous winds that were forecast to die out over the next few days. A beautiful beam reach south, a few squally bits as we approached the coast, and into the welcoming harbour of Deshaies (Dey-hey). It’s a deep anchorage, and requires some tricky maneuvering to have sufficient scope for holding, yet enough space around the other boats – especially since the swirling winds funnel into the harbour from the surrounding mountains. We anchored near our friends on BALOO, and were followed in by another Outbound TOODLE-OO, also arriving from Antigua.

Reward at L’Amer Bar

Safely set, we lowered the dinghy and headed into town to clear customs & immigration into Guadeloupe. In contrast to the formal, uniformed agents at the Antigua offices, the French islands typically subcontract this service, and in Deshaies you check into the country at Le Pelican Boutique – after the shopkeeper moves the piles of sundresses and bikinis from the self-serve customs & immigration computer. You simply fill in the information about vessel and crew, she prints the form, stamps it, and collects 4 Euro – easy! Afterwards, we have our “traditional” celebration at L’Amer Bar – Ti (short for “Petite”) punch and the amazing fish sampler at a waterfront table overlooking Kinetic and the setting sun.  

The following morning we set off with Laurie and Bill of TOODLE-OO to explore the Jardin Botanique. The botanical garden is about a mile’s uphill walk from the dinghy dock, and definitely worth the climb. It’s one of the best botanical gardens we’ve ever seen, in a beautifully landscaped cliffside setting overlooking the Caribbean Sea. In addition to the wide variety of Caribbean trees, flowers and herbs, we enjoyed the aviary, flamingos, and goat pen!

After a morning in the Jardin, we spent the afternoon provisioning the boat with French delicacies, snorkeling along the harbour’s cliff walls, and enjoying happy hours with our cruising friends.

View from the Jardin – Deshaies anchorage

Deshaies town and cemetary