1 April 1994 Bequia
I had an awful night and woke up with flu, 100° temperature, aching hair, the runs – everything! In the middle of the night, while I was half asleep, I was convinced that I had decompression sickness and then I was convinced that I had kidney failure and then food poisoning and then…….
Glenys and the boys had a nice time on the beach with “Wise Cat” while I stayed in bed, sweating, running to the toilet and wishing I was in a house!
2 April 1994 Bequia to Cumberland Bay, St Vincent
Feeling better today. We had a nice sail across to St Vincent and then had to motor up the west coast. We saw a group of bottle-nosed dolphins which were not very interested in us. Just after, we ran into a school of tuna and we caught three in the space of 10 minutes. The last two took the lure before I had a chance to pay it out fully!
We went into Cumberland Bay and I managed to get one boat boy to tie us up to a tree for 5 EC (£1.25). We then got surrounded by boat boys who were persistent but pleasant. I gave a 5lb tuna to one of the boys who promised to come back and give me $10EC for it. He came back an hour later insisting that he only got $10EC for it, but gave me the $10EC – I don’t know how he kept a straight face!
Brett and I went for a walk and saw an interesting cross section of the soil where they have created a small cutting by the road. There is a layer of laval pumice about 18” thick in between layers of soil which is like ash – definitely volcanic.
We all went to Stephens Beach Bar. He insisted on giving us a guided tour of his garden – aubergines, pineapples, ginger, bananas, callalai, etc. He gave us a big bag of vegetables and his wife gave Glenys cooking tips. We gave him a 5lb tuna which seemed a fair deal. We’ve still got more tuna than we can handle! I have been worrying about the hassle from boat boys and the mooring problem for days, but in the event it has been one of our most pleasant overnight stops.
3 April 1994 Cumberland Bay to Marigot Bay, St Lucia
Easter Sunday. Craig came padding in at half past six looking for his chocolate from Easter bunny. Unfortunately, Glenys had not got it out. When he finally “found it” he said – “that’s not very big”. He obviously doesn’t realise how difficult it is to get Easter eggs in the West Indies.
It rained as we motored up the coast of St Vincent but stopped as we started sailing across to St Lucia. It was a beat for 25 miles with winds up to 30 knots but at least the sun shone. We could smell St Lucia 10 miles out – a sulphur type smell like the smoke from burning coal. We went into Marigot which I should imagine was very beautiful once, but not with 50 boats crowded into the lagoon and the approaches. That’s not to mention the Marina and hotel and restaurants and...
The Customs office was closed, so we had to stay the night. We ended up anchored next to an American yacht who had a rope anchor rode and waltzed all over the place actually hitting a French boat and getting very close to us. It’s the first time that I’ve put fenders out at anchor – I didn’t sleep well!
4 April 1994 Marigot Bay to Soufriere Bay, St Lucia
Got up, cleared customs and left. I’m not left with good memories of Marigot. We motored-sailed around to Anse Chastanet and I went to the dive centre there. In the quarterly PADI Bulletins they are listed as holding instructor courses, but the last and only one was two years ago – typical Caribbean! I’ll just have to ring PADI and find out from them.
We did a bit of snorkelling on nice rock reef with very good visibility. We then went around to Soufriere Bay and anchored off the Hummingbird Hotel. We met Larry and Shirley on “Dad’s Dream“ (USA) – we’ve been seeing them all the way from Grenada, but never had a chance to say hello. While motoring towards Soufriere Bay I heard a rhythmic noise from the engine. I checked the exhaust and made sure that there was nothing around the propellor, Glenys then pointed out a tourist tripper boat about ½ mile behind us blaring out music with heavy bass!
We walked into Soufriere Town, had a quick walk around and watched a cricket match. The town is a bit rough and run down. We watched a guy climbing a 50ft coconut tree and bought one for 25p – very refreshing. We had great excitement in the evening when Craig discovered a tiny crab in the aft heads – how did it get there?
5 April 1994 Soufriere Bay
I did a dive this morning which was along a bottomless wall – amazing. We motor-sailed up the coast and anchored off the beach. Mark from “Sancho Panza” came across to say hello and went away with three tuna steaks – we’ve still got loads. Five little fish mysteriously appeared on our foredeck flapping like mad this morning – they are now fried, pickled and in the fridge awaiting consumption.
Glenys and I have had upset stomachs for a few days – perhaps all the fish we’ve been eating is working as a laxative. We had a quick look around the lagoon and Marina, then went to “Sancho Panza” for a beer.
6 April 1994 Soufriere Bay
We all took a bus ride into Castries. Glenys went off by herself to buy material for tableware which she hopes to make and sell to charter companies. The boys and I walked around, played in the park and (oh joy!) went to Kentucky Fried Chicken. I’ve still got stomach ache and sloppy poos – god knows what it is! Start of a new tax year in the UK. We’ve been out of the country for a complete tax year so that should help towards our non-resident status – I hope!
7 April 1994 Soufriere Bay to Anse a L’ane, Martinique
I cleared out first thing in the morning and to my annoyance I had to pay $30EC (£7.50) to clear out. We had a nice sail to Martinique. We arrived off Anse a L’ane at about four o’clock and decided to head there instead of going to Fort De France to clear in. We’ll go over on the ferry and clear in tomorrow.
It’s really shallow in the bay (3-4 metres) and there is a reef in the middle that we couldn’t see. There are regular ferries from a pier in the middle of the bay. We tried to keep clear but they appear to delight in “harassing” yachts at anchor – I’ll have to leave an anchor light on tonight.
8 April 1994 Anse a L’ane, Martinique
We all caught the ferry to Fort De France. Glenys went off with the boys while I went to clear customs and do some running around. I had a disappointing time – I expected to get information and prices on different ranges of diving gear and compressors but only found one dive shop.
The boys had a great day, elevenses in MacDonald’s and lunch in Burger King. After lunch we caught the ferry back to Anse a L’ane, exhausted. Glenys took the boys to the beach while I did some jobs.
9 April 1994 Anse a L’ane, Martinique to St Pierre, Martinique
Glenys went to the supermarket and bought 8 litres of cheap red wine then we motor-sailed up to St Pierre. As we arrived we spotted “Sancho Panza”, so I ended up doing two dives in the afternoon with them. Mark, John and Rowena came for a beer.
10 April 1994 St Pierre
I went raving mad in the morning and carried 60 gallons of water from a tap in the market square. We’ve now got enough water to get us to Antigua (I think!).
I did a dive on a wreck. My diving watch is playing up and I nearly had to abort the dive. I scrubbed the rudder while I still had some air left. I did a really good job of the starboard side and a quick scrub on the portside. The bottom of the boat looks awful at the moment - we have a lot of 1” diameter “spots” which are starting to join together. I’m interested to see how long it will take for the “spots” to appear on the rudder again. I must start doing a bit of scrubbing each time I go diving.
We all went for a walk around town to look at the devastation caused by the 1902 eruption of the volcano (Mt Pelee). St Pierre was the main port of Martinique at that time with 30,000 inhabitants, only one person survived the hot gases and falling rocks – he was in prison!
11 April 1994 St Pierre
Brett, Craig and I went to the beach before breakfast to watch the local fisherman pulling in a siene net. I did school work while Glenys did some shopping. We went to the beach after lunch and did some snorkelling. It was a very nice day and I feel like we’ve settled down to family life again after the disruption in Grenada.
12 April 1994 St Pierre to Castaways Beach, Dominica
It absolutely threw it down first thing this morning – we collected about 1 gallon of water in 10 minutes. We just stick buckets under the edge of the awning where the biggest drips are – I must work out a more efficient method.
We had a very hard bash with 25-30 knots and 4-5 metre seas. We spent most of the time with the port deck awash and the toy cupboard ended up with 1” of water in it. I ripped out the head linings and found that the wooden surround for the middle window was soaked. I assumed that the window is leaking, so I put silicone sealant around the outside edge of the window until I have time to remove the window and reseal it.
The log impellor stopped working half way across and I found that it had jammed sideways. There is a deck/hatch leak in the front cabin and the port cushions are getting wet, god knows what that is! We also noticed a strange smell halfway across and we eventually traced it to a leaking petrol can cap which has dribbled petrol into the “coffin”. The boat is falling apart – I need to get some maintenance work done in Antigua!
We decided to stop at Castaways Beach because it is fairly secluded and we aren’t bothering to clear customs in Dominica.
13 April 1994 Dominica to Ile des Saintes, Guadeloupe
The boat rolled all night – just what we needed. We motored up the coast of Dominica as far as Prince Rupert Point where an amazing squall hit us – torrential rain and gusts of 35 knots. After that we sailed in winds of 10-20 knots with sloppy seas.
About two miles from The Saints, we gave up and put the engine on. We anchored off Ile a Cabrit and after lunch went for a walk up to the deserted fort on the island. We met Claude and Pat on “Saltire” (GB) who asked if we would like a drink of their wine – is the Pope a Catholic! The Iles Des Saints are beautiful.
14 April 1994 Iles des Saintes
We had big squalls coming through last night and this morning with lots of wind and rain. Jobs and schoolwork in the morning and then I did a nice dive. Glenys spotted some “horrible looking fish” which turned out to be flying gurnards.
We went over to Bourg Des Saintes because we need some food and beer and the wind veered to SE making Ile A Cabrit uncomfortable. The anchorage at Bourg De Saintes is deep at 13 metres so I ended up putting out 50 metres of chain. We went for a walk around town which is very pleasant and very French - there’s a small boulangerie selling wonderful fresh baguettes.
15 April 1994 Iles des Saintes
We went for a walk up to the fort above the town. There are good views from up there and the main building has been turned into an interesting nautical museum. Most of the exhibits cover a naval battle between the French and the British in 1782. The British won, led by Admirals Rodney and Drake.
When we got back to the boat we re-anchored because we’re too close to a French yacht on a mooring. I did school work while Glenys did some sewing. Brett, Craig and I went snorkelling on the east coast of Ile a Cabrit. Brett can now dive to about 4 metres and picked up a sand dollar. We all went out for a meal which was “interesting”.
16 April 1994 Iles des Saintes
School work and sewing in the morning. I went for a dive and the others went snorkelling. I had a strange taste in my air supply which appears to be oil in the tank. I’ve either got a bad fill in St Pierre or here.
17 April 1944 Iles des Saintes to Pigeon Island, Guadeloupe
We had a nice sail across to Basse Terre and anchored off the Marina. I went into the Marina to try to clear customs but they were shut. We managed to get fuel and water at the Marina and pay for it with Visa, which was lucky because we’ve only got £30 worth of francs left. It threw it down while we were going into the Marina.
We motor-sailed up to Pigeon Island (Cousteau Underwater Park) which on first sight was a disappointment. It was windy and raining when we anchored in the bay. We caught a big tuna on the way from Basse Terre.
18 April 1994 Pigeon Island
It blew a hooley all night. We were both up at four o’clock in the morning because another British boat had picked up a mooring and was dragging it past us. He must have moved about 400 metres during the night, but for some reason, best known to himself, he stuck with it.
After breakfast, we motored over to Pigeon Island and picked up a mooring on the south side of the island. It was like Piccadilly Circus with dive boats milling around. I went for a dive and Glenys and the boys went snorkelling. We went to the beach after lunch. We are running out of food essentials (bread, orange juice, beer, cereals) so we will have to move on tomorrow. We had a quiet night and I taught Brett and Craig how to play three card brag.
19 April 1994 Pigeon Island to Deshaies, Guadeloupe
I was forced to play three card brag at half past eight this morning with the boys – gambling before breakfast! We went over to Pigeon Island and picked up a mooring on the north side. I did a dive and the others went snorkelling. We then motor-sailed up to Deshaies. I cleared in and out of customs and Glenys went shopping and discovered that the supermarket takes Visa, which is a good job because we’ve got no francs left and we’ve run out of basic provisions.
20 April 1994 Deshaies
School work and jobs in the morning. I went for a dive and then used the remaining air to scrub the bottom of the boat – 15 minutes of hell lying on my back sucking water up my nose. We spent the rest of the afternoon hiding from the rain and did a quick dash to the supermarket to buy 15 litres of wine. We are not looking forward to our 42 mile bash to Antigua tomorrow.
21 April 1994 Deshaies to Falmouth Harbour, Antigua
The sail across wasn’t too bad, but we were on a close reach so we couldn’t do much except sit and wish we were there. We went into English Harbour but it was very crowded, so we went round to Falmouth Harbour and anchored off the beach.
Brett and I walked across to Nelson’s Boat Yard and queued for half an hour for customs. I was fascinated by the customs guy - a huge bloke with a 3 inch long fingernail on his little finger - apparantly it’s a status symbol showing that he doesn’t do any manual labour. I checked with Nicholson’s Charters, but our mail hasn’t arrived yet. Both English Harbour and Falmouth Harbour are packed because it’s Antigua Race Week.
22 April 1994 Falmouth Harbour
I went into St Johns on the bus. I went to the US consulate and confirmed that the visas in our old passports are still valid. I walked around town buying a few bits and pieces. A black guy approached me and asked me if I would lend him £4. He told me that he worked at the Slipway Chandlers and he needed the cash to buy a fan belt for the van which had broken down. He looked fairly decent so I thought what the hell and lent him the money. I went to Slipway when I got back and they told me that he’s always doing this. His real name is Elton Jarvis known as “Grammar School” and he uses the money to buy crack. I went to the local police who said “not again” and started to take a statement, but the sergeant stopped them and said I had to go to St Johns to report it. It’s too much hassle, so I’ll forget about it and never trust anyone again!
I didn’t have much luck with getting on a PADI Instructor Course because the dive centre that was going to hold it has cancelled. However, it sounds like another centre is doing it, but I can’t get through to PADI to find out. “Metani” came for a beer.
23 April 1994 Falmouth Harbour
Glenys went into St Johns with Charlie from “Nagual” and I stayed in to do school work with the boys. By three o’clock, when Glenys came back, I was crawling up the walls – I couldn’t get the boys off the boat because they were intent on a new project of sorting out their Lego men! I went for a walk for a couple of hours.
I managed to find out which centre the instructor course is being held at, but I couldn’t get through to the Course Director. The course starts on 6 June and costs $1200US so it sounds ideal. Glenys has agreed that I can do the instructors course even if I can’t get project “Dive Glencora” off the ground. The problems of getting a compressor out here seem practically insurmountable and it’s going to be hard to get dive gear at a reasonable price. “Dabulamanzi” turned up in the afternoon with guests aboard.
24 April 1994 Falmouth Harbour to Dickenson Bay, Antigua
We rocked and rolled all night. We motored round to Carlisle Bay and anchored so that we could watch the race boats gybe around the downwind mark. The winds were very light and the organisers put the racing classes at the end so that the first two hours were like watching paint dry because the cruising classes can’t use spinnakers. We had just given up, pulled up the anchor when the racers appeared in the distance so we dropped anchor again and watched the spectacle.
We motored round to Dickenson Bay and rafted up with “Dabulamanzi”. We went to the beach to check out the party which was actually about 100 food and beer stalls along the beach with 1000+ sailors wandering about. Good fun. The anchorage is heaving. Boats are closer together than I’ve seen before, but everyone expects to be jammed in so it doesn’t seem so bad. I put fenders down!
I talked to Gareth about project “Dive Glencora” and he has talked to Paul on Boreal in the Tobago Cays about my idea. Paul has been selling clothes whilst anchored in the Cays for 10 years. He says that I would get loads of hassle from the locals and I would have to move on within one week. Paul says he has a hard time getting work permits and only succeeds because he knows the Prime Minister and “greases a few palms”. This is a bit of a blow, but not completely unexpected. I’ll revert to a lower profile plan – get my instructors rating, buy two sets of gear with five more tanks and no compressor. The total cost including IDC will be about £3700 (instead of £6700) and I should be able to recoup half of that by selling the gear. I’ll give it a go!
25 April 1994 Dickenson Bay to Five Island Harbour
We saw “Lady of Avalon”, who we last met in Ibiza, just as we were leaving Dickenson Bay, they were anchoring so we just shouted hello as we passed by. We motored over to Deep Bay and anchored in 3.5 metres.
I went for a dive on the wreck of the Andes while the others snorkelled. The Andes is a three-masted barque which sank in 1905 when its cargo of pitch caught fire. It sank in about 8 metres of water and makes brilliant snorkelling. As a dive it is pretty boring, so I stopped after about 10 minutes which leaves me with 170 bar to do another dive. We motored around to Five Island Harbour and anchored by Maiden Island next to “Dabulamanzi”. We went for a walk with Gareth & Fi to a beach and then we all had dinner on our boat.
26 April 1994 Five Island Harbour
Glenys went raving mad and scrubbed the waterline at half past seven this morning. She then tried her hand at fishing and caught her first fish, a Palometa. Gareth and Fi took us exploring in their dinghy. We tried to find a river at the end of the bay, but couldn’t find it even though we spent half an hour paddling and pushing the dinghy through mud. We gave up, went back to the boats and moved to another anchorage off a beach. Gareth and Fi went back to Falmouth Harbour after lunch and we went back to Maiden Island.
27 April 1994 Five Island Harbour to Falmouth Harbour
Motored around to Jolly Harbour and filled up with fuel and water. We motored back to Falmouth Harbour and anchored near “Metani” and “Dabulamanzi”.
We went and did a bit of shopping and then went to watch the “fun day” water games. We tied up our dinghy next to Gareth and Andy and Maggie from “Cora Cora”. Dave, Judy and Stephanie from “Metani” turned up and we all drank champagne, beer, rum punch, etc while watching the beer race and wet t-shirt competition. We all went to “Metani” and got really drunk.
28 April 1994 Falmouth Harbour
Hangover today. I rang the Course Director for the instructor course in the US Virgin Islands and she is going to fax me some information and forms. It looks like no problem to get on the course with 48 dives and the 1 year since I got my BSAC Certification last year. We did a bit of shopping and school work and nothing else!
29 April 1994 Falmouth Harbour
Glenys took Craig into St Johns to see a dentist. The dentist said that the front tooth chip should be OK, but he was worried about a top, right-hand molar which is decayed down to the root. He doesn’t want to take it out because it will alter the spacing of his next teeth, and for some reason he doesn’t want to fill it. Craig now has a decayed tooth that will probably give him toothache and then will have to be extracted – what a dilemma!
I received the Instructor Develeopment Course (IDC) application form which I filled in and faxed back. I must admit that I had cold feet for a while because the cost of the course and books comes to £1060! Still, what the hell! It was Gareth’s birthday today, so we went to the Copper and Lumber for “Twofers”. Simon from “Metani” babysat for us so we were able to stay out until 2 o’clock, dancing at Abracadabra’s.
30 April 1994 Falmouth Harbour
Huge hangover this morning. I repaired the windlass, replacing the chain stripper again. Glenys went to “Dabulamanzi” and spent all day struggling to make cockpit cushions for them. The main problem is that they want piping on all edges and Glenys’ machine doesn’t have a zipper foot. She was at it all day and only did the largest cushion.
The boys and I went and selected three videos which they watched for six hours! I cooked dinner on “Dabulamanzi”, chicken, jacket potatoes and beans and we all had a TV dinner before Gareth and Fi went to the Race Week Ball.