5-6 Update

Well, here's the report: the food is delicious! The various lobster platters served are large, tasty and well priced. Further, we had met two scuba enthusiasts, Thekla, from Germany, and Melanie, from Switzerland, and they had arranged their dive master to bag enough lion fish for all of us. The kitchen staff prepared them with expertise, and it was the first time for us to eat lion fish. The meat was white, flaky, and very tender and we picked the bones clean. Thanks Thekla and Melanie! We also had some mahi; again, delicious. Roger and his wife, Marcela are gracious hosts, and we highly recommend this stop to other cruisers. Btw, if you need any further inducement for coming here, cruisers are offered an 8% discount when paying in cash. This morning, we're moving about 10 miles south to Roseau, staging for our passage to Martinique next week. We're expecting rain and squalls to come through Sunday, so will wait out the weather there. Lastly, Happy Mother's Day to all our friends and relatives - we hope you have a wonderful time; we're sending our love and hugs!

5-5 "EYE CANDY" Picture album posted

This is an album that is long overdue and one you won't want to miss. No, it's not beautiful people wearing skimpy (or no) bathing suits. It's much more subtle, enjoyable and provocative. Let us know what you think and, most of all...enjoy!

5-5 Sunset Bay Club, Batalie Beach, Coulibistri, Dominica

Pos: N15deg27.08min / W061deg26.85min. We had lunch with Bill & Joanna of sv Baidarka at Le Triangle on the beach; good food and company. Early this morning, we left for Dominica, bypassing Portsmouth and going about 8 miles further south to Batalie Beach. It was a lovely sail in 9-18 knots E-ESE winds, which turned to calm, then NW in the lee of Dominica. At Batalie Beach, a Belgium expat, Roger, and his wife, Marcela, own the Sunset Bay Club, and we were told by some cruising friends to not miss their lobster dinner. Amongst the ususal resort amenities, they also offer free moorings, FW showers, a pool, and bar/restaurant. Walking around the resort, we saw lots of different birds, plants and trees. Roger and his staff have been busy. We'll be going back for our lobster, so will report on that soon.
Pic: Infini's the only sailboat here. View from the 4 Seasons Restaurant.

5-2 Les Saintes

Pos: N15deg52.00min / W061deg35.43min. Our baked goods were delivered at 0700, as promised. By 0730, we departed for Les Saintes, having looked at the weather and figuring it wasn't going to get any better for a bit, and also staging us so much closer for our run to Portsmouth, Dominica. Of interest, the forecast SE wind never developed in the lee of Guadeloupe. What we got was W-NW winds, from 6-12 knots. At the end of the island, the wind finally changed to ESE-SE, but, again, was variable from 4-18 knots. Lots of sail changes, lots of motor sailing in the calms. Overall, however, it was a lot drier than our sail yesterday, with the exception of one rain squall that packed winds up to 34 knots and white-out conditions; it only lasted for about 20 minutes. We're anchored in 31' and plan to stay for a few days; all's well aboard.
Pic: Always entertaining watching the different classes of sailing instruction. Amazing how they maneuver amongst the moored boats and many fast ferries.

5-1 We're on the move!

Pos: N16deg18.49min / W061deg47.92min. After a month in Antigua and Barbuda, it felt good to slip the anchor and head south. We had a boisterous run to Deshaies, Guadeloupe in 18-25 E-ESE-SE winds, anchoring in an incredibly busy spot. Fortunately for us, a private fishing boat failed to hook up and left a prime area just as we got there, freeing it up for us to drop the hook and relax. After, about another 6 boats came in, a few tried to anchor too close but were actually called off by our neighbors, and we realized what a prime piece of real estate we had lucked into. The currents here have everyone turning in circles, so you really need a lot of room to anchor and spin around. One piece of advice to those following: if you're late and it looks tight, anchor outside everyone else. The holding will be good, although a bit deeper, but no one will get upset and chase you off. Just saying. One of the locals, (Lydia) has a business delivering groceries, ice, vegetables, meats, fish, lobster, and wine & spirits to the boats, and will also arrange laundry, taxi, etc. Her cell is +59 06 90 40 0588. We ordered a couple of pan chocolate, pan raison, and baguettes for delivery early tomorrow morning; the good life.

4-27 Hermitage Bay, Five Islands Harbour

Pos: N17deg05.24min / W061deg53.77min. We dropped Sonja off as planned; the girls in the office at NS Marina couldn't have been more helpful. After breakfast #2, we decided to sail towards Jolly Harbour. Of note, there's a burn going on somewhere around Deep Bay, and it's very noxious. Shame it is, as the bay is beautiful and a good anchorage, but it's hard to breathe with the awful smell around. We bypassed it and went down to Five Islands Harbour, anchoring in 15' in Hermitage Bay in front of the Hermitage Resort. This is just alongside Jolly Harbour nearby, but less crowded or built-up, and the resort has unlocked wifi. The weather looks like it will take a turn for the worse, so we'll be looking at it closely over the next few days to figure out when we'll check out of Antigua (there's Customs & Immigration in Jolly Harbour) and head down island.
Pic: Arriving Hermitage Bay

4-26 Great Bird Island snorkeling

Pos: N17deg08.66min / W061deg43.77min. Yesterday, we threaded our way thru a few reef areas, visible in good light, and anchored behind Great Bird Is. Folks visit here because of the clarity of the water, the good snorkeling, and the lack of any housing or buildings. It's also a lot less crowded than many of the other anchorages. We donned our snorkel gear and during our stay here took the dinghy both just north and south of Great Bird Is. to explore. The reef was mostly washed out, but the coral was making a resurgence in many areas. The fish were small but colorful and plentiful. In two days snorkeling, we spotted a 4' barracuda, several sting rays, a live conch (unbelievable), and a lobster (again, unbelievable. Of note, the conch and lobster were on the small side...). There were many different varieties of coral. The water clarity was very good, but we'd advise to be aware of the current, dependent on the state of the tide and phase of the moon. We climbed the volcanic rock trail from the beach which leads to the top of Great Bird Is. It's a very easy walk and takes about 15 minutes. Besides the great views, there are also two blow holes at the summit to look down into. Long-tailed tropic birds hang out here also. So, it's been a good week but it's gone by way too fast...Sonja leaves tomorrow, so we'll be taking her to North Sound Marina (near Crabb Point) to take a taxi (or hitch a ride) to the airport. We'll post pictures and videos when we get decent internet.
Pic: On one of the beaches at Great Bird Island; our morning excursion waiting for the sun to be overhead.

4-24 Jumby Bay, Long Island

Pos: N17deg09.37min / W061deg45.86min. The anchorage at Jolly was a bit rolly, and we were able to sail in wind of SE 15 most of the way around the NW corner of Antigua to North Sound, our destination being Long Island. The water was a bit thin in places, but no real worries. It's a lot more developed around here than we had thought, with private houses, resorts, and commercial, industrial buildings everywhere. We anchored in 9' in front of the Jumby Bay Resort, where rooms go for between $1400-$6000USD per night; dinners are, by arrangement, $175USD/pp...Hmmm. We dinghied over to a small rock formation and donned our snorkel gear. The reef was totally washed out, but there were lots of small fish, and I spotted one lobster. It's calm here, the views are (as one might expect in this stretch of neighborhood) beautiful, and we're enjoying the privacy. In the evening, we took out the iPad and fired up Night Sky; always a fun app.
Pic: Sonja having a go at the helm.