This month’s blog is short and sweet as we really didn’t do
a great deal in May, at the end of Antigua sailing week we set of for Jolly
Harbour on the west coast of the island, using just the headsail we had a
lovely sail to our destination.
There were probably as many boats there on our second visit
here as had been on our first, in fact some boats hadn’t moved at all. During
our stay we indulged in a lot of chill out time, strolling on the beach and
making new acquaintances at “Happy Hour” at the Crow’s Nest, where you got two
drinks for the price of one, and at the Marina bar where all drinks were 8 EC
Dollars.
It was at Happy hour that we met Adrian and Sam who
encouraged us to join the Ocean Cruising Club (OCC), we were now eligible as we
had completed 1000 nautical miles in one continuous passage, and apparently was
good value for money.
On the 17th May I set of back to the UK as a
surprise birthday present for my sons 40th birthday courtesy of my
daughter Claire. The flight left Antigua at 1600 and arrived in Gatwick at 0530
the following day a flight of just over 8 hours. I had never flown with Virgin
Atlantic before and I have to say I was impressed by the service they provided.
As we approached the runway for landing we could see several
fire engines with their blue lights flashing, very intriguing never come across
this before, as we touched down we could see the fire engines following us down
the runway. We then came to a stop just off the runway where the pilot informed
us that there had been a problem with one of the tyres pressures and that once
it had been checked as ok we would make our way to the terminal.
My daughter met me at the airport and we then drove back
home, she had moved house since the last time I was back in the UK and so I was
treated to the grand tour. Across the passage from the bedroom I was to use
there was a model of a Storm Trouper about the same size as a child which
startled me on several occasions as I left the bedroom, by the end of the week
I had got used to it.
On the 19th May we travelled up to Derby for the
joint birthday party of my son who was 40 and his wife Kirsty who was
celebrating her 30th. Steven
had no idea I would be attending and so it was quite a surprise when he saw me
come into the room. It was great to see family and friends and a great time was
had by all.
The following day we met up for Sunday Lunch, and once again
a great time was had by all, someone had made Steven a birthday cake which he
very much appreciated.
My time in the UK was for only a week and the time passed by
so quickly, no sooner had I arrived and it was time to head back to Antigua.
My luggage on the way back was far heavier than on my
outward journey as it was now packed with parts to mend the water maker and
other essential items for the boat, so I was glad to hand the bag over to Kevin
when he met me back in Jolly Harbour.
On our last night in Jolly Harbour we met up with friends we
had made there for a farewell drink and to enjoy Petals Fish and Chips, she
also makes a mean Fish Burger at a very reasonable price.
On the 26th May we commenced our journey south on
our way to Grenada for the hurricane season, along with friends Peter and Sue
in S/Y Swan, we stopped off in Deshaies in Guadalupe, the bay has a reputation
for being windy but there was no wind the waters wee tranquil and the bay very
picturesque. The following morning we were up early next stop Price Rupert Bay
in Dominica, unfortunately Peter and Sue where not up in time to sail alongside
us, we had to motor down the Leeward side of Guadeloupe but once we cleared the
southern headland the wind picked up and we had quite a bouncy ride across to
Dominica. However once we got into the lee of the island the wind dropped and
we were back to motoring.
It was an early start the following morning for our Passage
to St Pierre in Martinique, this time we were able to sail most of the way, we
stayed one night in St Pierre as we wanted
to get to Marin and a calm anchorage where Kevin planned to repair the water
maker. On our journey down our Auto Pilot packed up and so it was hand steerage
all the way, it wasn’t too bad as we had to motor all the way as we were head
to wind.
In Marin we tried to get the part required to mend the Auto
Pilot without success and so we are now in the process of getting it shipped
out to Grenada. Kevin did however manage to get the water maker working again.
After three days in Martinique we headed south again to
Rodney Bay in St Lucia, the plan had been to spend one night here and then head
of St Vincent so that we were there for the first of June, but fate had other
plans for us. As we lowered the anchor we managed to get approximately fifteen
meters out before the windless jammed, the chain would neither go down or up.
There was only one plan of action we had to lift it manually which was no mean
feat. Once the anchor was up we headed into the harbour where we picked up a
buoy overnight and then transferred to the marina the following day.
The staff in the marina were very friendly and soon put us
in touch with Roger who was able to make repairs to the windless gearbox. It
was a Friday and so we didn’t hold out much hope of getting the repairs done
quickly, however by Monday Roger returned with our repaired windless which we
fitted ready for departure on Tuesday.
Distance travelled this year: 3940Nm
