Picture Update

We have added two new slideshows of pictures taken over recent months. Hope you enjoy them.

Still stuck in Curacao awaiting parts and repairs so not much happening apart from lots of socialising with friends, an occassional dive and cleaning!!!

Happy Christmas to everyone!

Mike and Karen

In Curacao!

Our final week in Bonaire was very hectic. We did our third bike ride to the north of the Island. Very pretty but very hilly and the ride was about 30 miles. We both must be fitter because it didn't hurt as much as the first one! The ride followed the coast and we had a great snorkel and passed a lake with lots of Flamingos. The following day we hired a car with friends Wendy and Bobby. It was a surprise to see them, as they had visited Venezuela and we didn't think they would catch us up but they arrived in Bonaire in time to snorkel with us on Kline Bonaire (small island off the W coast) and then go sight seeing.

We took the car to the national park in the north which was very wild and picturesque. It was dirt track roads so the driving tested Mike's skills. After a picnic and a snorkel we headed south and also stopped at Rincon the other town on the Island.

We had another day's diving and managed to do 3 dives. We saw lots but its very tiring! The US company we wanted to buy the dive gear off (see last blog) would not accept a credit card (no one has told them that the credit card company is responsible for fraud not them!) so we left without ordering anything.

We had a good sail to Curacao a week ago. Unfortunately, we didn't catch any more fish but it was an enjoyable day with a good breeze and we had a visit from the dolphins as we rounded the northern tip of the island. We anchored in Spaanse Water on Saturday, so Sunday we caught a bus into Willemstad to check in. After a long walk we found Immigration who were very friendly and on our 3rd attempt we managed to get in to customs by knocking on their window to get their attention! We also need an anchoring permit (office closed weekends!) so we had to go back into town Monday to get this, but they were closed for a long lunch hour!!! We finally managed to get hold of them Wednesday. They do not make it easy here to comply with their rules but it is probably a taster of what it will be like in the Spanish speaking countries.

Although Willmstad is very pretty, the town is a world heritage site with lots of lovely old buildings, we are missing the lovely clear waters of Bonaire. The water here is very murky and we have not had a swim since arriving here. It is also not as convenient as you have to get a bus to do anything and they run on Caribbean time (i.e. when they feel like it!).

We were hoping to leave for Cartagena this weekend but unfortunately our generator has majorly broken down. For the mechanics amongst you the valve has broken and gone into the piston. We are trying to find someone to mend it but getting parts could be a problem. There will probably be even less chance of getting it fixed once we leave here so we could be here a while!

We are consoling ourselves with wine and cheese and socialising with friends. The supermarkets here do have a big selection of foods, more than we have seen since leaving the UK. So there are worse places to be and its too windy this weekend to go anywhere anyway!

Life in Bonaire

We have now been in Bonaire 3 weeks and are loving it. We have completed our PADI open water course which took 4 days and was very tiring. I (Karen) found it very stressful as one of the things you have to do is take your mask off and put it back on. For some reason breathing through my nose always seems good when I don't have a mask on so I struggled but managed to do it once in the pool by holding my nose! The actual dives are amazing, we have seen so many fish and the coral is so colourful. Both of us are so much more relaxed in the water now. We have had our first day diving by ourselves and dived under the boat. We have so many divers under our boat that we thought it must be worth a look! Even snorkeling we have seen so many fish including Angel fish, Parrot fish, Squid, Tarpon (big) and a Turtle. We may need to get an underwater camera!

Besides diving we have also been exploring the island. We decided to get fit and hired bikes. Our first ride was around the south of the island which according to the local map is about 10 miles. It was very hot and windy with huge salt ponds and mountains but fairly flat. Mike spent ages trying to photograph Ospreys but they flew off every time he got the camera out! We also saw old slave huts used by the workers on the salt ponds. The only break was on the east coast where we had a welcome beer. It turned out to be about 25 miles back to town and we were both exhausted and in pain! Neither of us have been on a bike in the last 6 years so our legs and bottoms were definitely feeling it and drugs were required to sleep!!!! Our second ride was shorter, across to the lagoon on the east coast. Again we saw lots of birds including Flamingos, Osprey, Herons and Storks. It was on dirt tracks and on the way back I managed to acquire 2 punctures so we had to get a lift back to town (neither of us was too upset about this!). We still have one more day cycle hire left and are hoping to head north.

Last weekend we took our dive instructor out for a sail which was a lovely relaxing morning. As usual the fishing line was out and as we pulled it back the line screamed out. We thought we had caught the bottom or a piece of debris but no, it was a huge Wahoo. It put up quite a fight and several times pulled the line back out but eventually it was gaffed and hauled onto the boat. It was 52” long but too heavy for our scales. However having weighed the bits we estimate it was about 30lb and we had 16lb of skinless fillets. We gave some away but still have a freezer full!!! Its our first Wahoo and it tastes lovely.

We have also been socialising with fellow cruisers. Our neighbours, Bonnie and Tom are very keen and expert divers. They keep recommending things to see which unfortunately are too deep for us novice divers to see. We are meeting up with boats who are heading in the same direction as us so we should see them again in the coming months.

Still not sure when we will leave as we are now looking to have dive gear shipped from the States and want to do some more diving! We also have to wait for our dive certificates to be delivered.

Grenada to Bonaire

We moved round to Hog Island for our last few days in Grenada. A beautiful and quiet anchorage with just 3 other boats. Wonderful starlit nights there as there was little external light so the Milky Way was visible too. We met with our friends Wendy and Bobby for lunch/dinner at a beachfront 'bar' and had a lovely afternoon just relaxing and having a great time. After a quick visit to St Georges to check out, do a bit of last minute shopping and say goodbye to W & B, we left for Bonaire at about 8am - quite a civilised time compared to some departures!

Our departure was most uneventful as there was no wind for several hours and we had to motor. About midday there was enough wind to put the spinnaker up so we were able to make 4 - 5 knots. Afternoon brought very heavy rain in bursts but strangely little wind came with this. Wind picked up in the night and for the next two days we had 20 - 25 knots of wind and a 2 knot tide in our favour. The wind was dead behind us so we were on a run the whole time and the sea was only just a bit to the side of the boat. Occasional waves would come at a different angle and if you were moving at the time, you really had to grab hold of something or lose you balance! After a bit of experimentation, we settled on just the mainsail held out with a preventer stay. For non-sailors a bit of rope shackled to the boom and used to hold it in position. This worked well and we didn't change things again until we reached Bonaire.

On Day 2 we caught a beautiful Mahi-mahi - a fluorescent green/yellow fish and the best eating in the Caribbean sea BUT just as we were bringing it aboard it got free and swam away. Neither of us were very happy as this was the first one we had caught!!

Day 3 we lost another fish, but didn't get to see what it was! We did have a lovely visit by a pod of Dolphins who stayed with us for quite a while playing in our bow wave.

We arrived at the northern top of Bonaire dead on schedule at about 9am. We then had to spend about 4 hours beating to windward as the wind was from the southeast. Clearly need to put a bit more thought into arriving as we could have come in at the south and had an easy sail IF we had made that decision a day or so earlier!

After spending a few days recovering and sorting the boat we have been doing a bit of exploring. We hired bikes and set off around the southern end of the Island for what should have been a 10km ride. However, the scale on the map is clearly wrong and we cycled about 20 miles! Given neither of us has been on a bike in years this was quite a shock to our bodies! The recovery could take a while!!!!

The island is a one huge dive site. We often have divers under the boat and just snorkeling off the boat we have seen more fish than ever before. Checking the mooring line out we saw a spotted ray and have seen eels, angel fish and huge rainbow and parrot fish. This has tempted us into doing our paddi course which we start in the next few days. Most of the diving is from the beach so hopefully it will be a gentle introduction!

We haven't decided when to move on yet, given how lovely it is here we could be here a while!

On our Way Again!

We left Chaguramas just after 4am on a still and starlight night. After picking our way through anchored yachts and ships, we made our exit from Trinidad via the Mouth of the Dragon narrows just before dawn. On the other side we had little wind for an hour or so so motored on under autopilot while we had breakfast and watched the sunrise. Later, the wind rose to a comfortable 15 knots on the beam and we kept this all the way to Grenada with just a few slight increases in strength. This was probably one our best ever sails with a consistent 8+ knots speed with almost 9 for a short while. Our only problem was that we hooked a fish which was able to break the hook from the lure so we never saw it! Must have been big and maybe something we wouldn't have been able to bring aboard.

We've been in Grenada 2 weeks now and met some old friends and seen something of the island. A full day round the island tour with our friends Nell and Phil from Moondancer was really great as we really got to see almost everything. A swim at the Concord Falls was a highlight and it was also great to visit a nutmeg processing station. Work there is still all by hand in 19th century style although the volume processed is only 10% of pre hurricane Ivan levels as so many nutmeg trees were destroyed. One interesting fact is that if you leave the nutmeg in its shell it will keep for 10 years. So, the ones they gave us will probably still be in use when we eventually return to the UK!

The island is very beautiful and a vibrant green and it's hard to see the devastation caused by Ivan except in the number of new roofs. Islanders are friendly and helpful and not at all persistent in their attempts to sell you something. A change from some of the other islands where 'No thanks' doesn't mean anything other than they need to try harder.

We've also had friends we have previously met up Island aboard for lunch and also for dinner. Needless to say, our wine and beer stocks are going down! These have all been good fun and great to catch up with their adventures. That is, apart from the washing up!

Our plan now is to head to Bonaire, off the north coast of South America and we have been busy buying the right charts plus ordering in from the States the right chip for this area to go in the chart plotter. This has now arrived so I guess we just need to get the weather right before we leave sometime in the next few days.

In Trinidad Again!!!!

We had 3 very hectic weeks at home visiting friends and family. We were hoping for a rest after working hard on the boat but came back even more tired and half a stone heavier. 3 weeks just wasn't enough to spend enough time with everyone. It was very sad leaving again but when we got back to Trinidad it all felt very familiar and as if we had never been away!

The heat was nice after being so cold for the first few days at home but at times it was unbearable for working. Alice will be pleased to know her dad has stopped saying he is cold!!!!

We had 3 weeks on the hard getting the boat ready to launch on 28 August. We were getting up at 5.45 to paint the wood before it got too hot and working through most days until 6pm. Everything on our list was completed, anti-fouling, re-housing the generator, new prop seals etc. We did manage to have time off, especially when the local off license had a half price sale with tasting! Phantasie, a boat we met in St Maarten, were next to us for a few weeks so we had a few drinks with them.

After launching, we went back to Crews Inn to have the generator re-commissioned and to put sails on etc. Trinidad independence day we went to see a local concert including pans (steel band for non-Trini's!) We also had an exciting morning ( not!) queuing at the American embassy to get our US visa's. After waiting 2 hours we had a quick 2 minute chat and that was it, passports were posted back within the week.

Our friends on Coho, Louise and Gordon came back from Europe so we have seen them quite a few times for wine and meals. Phil and Nell on Moondancer who we met before going home, are also back in Trinidad so we have also had meals and drinks with them. As you can see there is a theme, buy 'cheap' wine and then drink it with friends!!!!!!

The heat is overwhelming at times and makes hard work difficult. We have both lost weight and have got very tired. We have spent the last week in Scotland Bay which is beautiful and quiet except on weekends and holidays, still working on the boat but at a more leisurely pace. We finally feel as if we are winning, we have done jobs which have been on our 'to do' list for months. The sewing machine seems to be working and the missing hatch cover is finally finished along with a cover for the hydrovane and covers for the door hatches and security bars we have had made.

We are hoping to leave Sunday for Grenada to check everything is working. After seeing some friends there we will then be heading off for a 4 – 5 day sail to Bonaire and on our way to Central America!!

On Our Way South and Arrival in Trinidad

We left St Maarten on a sunny Sunday morning with the promise of a NE/E wind to head for Ile De Sainte. We rounded the headland and Mike put out his fishing line, as he lifted it and put it in the rod holder there was a bang as it got caught in the new wind generator! At the same time a squall hit us so we sat extricating and rolling in fishing line while 28 knots of wind blew and we still had all the sails fully out!

Unfortunately the forecast was wrong again and we had a SE wind so had to tack. Not a problem except our autohelm decided to go on strike at 3am so that we had to hand steer. The morning was brightened up by Mike catching a 9 1/2lb blackfin tuna at the southern end of Nevis which unfortunately made the cockpit look as if there had been a massacre!

Late afternoon the wind died completely so we decided to motor into Deshaises on the north end of Guadeloupe getting in around 10pm. After recovering for a day we did the relatively short sail to the Saintes with the autopilot working. We spent a few days socialising with 2 couples on catamarans, one of whom we had met in St Maarten, before moving to Terre En Basse, another island in the Saintes.

After a rolly night, we decided to continue south to Bequia. We were ready to leave at 6.30am and started to raise the anchor but it was stuck. It's chain was attached to a lump of concrete about 6ft square and a foot thick with a steel post and lots of rope and chain on it.

We think it must have been part of a harbour wall at some time. We managed to lift it slightly and motored into shallower water about 10ft deep. Fortunately a nice French fisherman came to our rescue and after he and Mike free dived on it for 4 hours we were free. We finally started our journey at 10.30am!

4 hours into the trip our autohelm stopped working again so back to hand steering. Then later in the afternoon our genoa came down, the halyard splice had broken. I started to cook tea and found we had weevils in the pasta, what else could go wrong!
Apart from that, it was a great sail and we got to Bequia in 30 hours.

In true Bequia style it took us 5 attempts to get our anchor to set. After the sail we had an early night to be woken at 4.30 by the boat touching the bottom so it was re-anchoring time again! After that we did not do very much just had a relaxing time and met up with another couple we had previously met in St Maarten.

We left Bequia and had a terrific sail to the Tobago Cays (working autopilot!) hoping to get some good snorkeling. BUT we could not snorkel there as the sea was too rough and the night was rougher even than if we were sailing! So we left early morning for Union Island. We had an exciting time with a number of squalls going through and up to 40 knots of wind. A good forecast was planned for Monday so that was when we decided to leave for Trinidad.

Finale

We left for Trinidad Monday lunch time as planned and had a great sail with lots of phosphorescence and a lovely starry night and smooth sea. We were doing so well that we had to heave to while having tea and reduce sail to slow us down. Otherwise, we would have arrived in the dark. The autohelm was still not working so the wind vane steering came into its own and did a great job except when the wind went below 10 knots.

We anchored in Chaguaramas and recovered for the day before moving to Crews Inn marina where we spent 2 days washing the boat and sails! Then we were lifted and are now busy preparing the bottom for anti fouling, changing the cutlass bearing and generally getting the boat ready to leave for a while.

Its very tiring and we are both looking forward to a rest and a holiday when we get home. Our flight home leaves Thursday morning so time is running out. Still, what doesn't get done will wait until we get back!!!!

We have also made time to have some fun and had a great time watching the giant leather back turtles nesting. Our night vision monocle was great as you can not have any lights other than the 10 minutes when they are laying when you are also allowed to touch them. We have also had nights out with friends we met in Crews Inn and a couple we met in Antigua. Still, this makes the 6.30 am starts even harder.

So, we will pause the blog for a bit until we return to Trinidad in August.

Late but not too late?

Apologies to all readers for the delay in posting this update. Poor internet and just too many things to do!

We left Barbuda reluctantly and had a good sail to St Maarten. Too little wind and after a while experimenting, we settled on the spinnaker alone as the best set up. Still, this only gave us 4 knots and this meant we had to anchor at a small island off St Barts overnight before going on to St Maarten. The island had been home to goats but they had eaten everything down to the dirt and left a lunar landscape with no plants or goats or anything at all!! Up very early as it was a very rolly anchorage and not somewhere to sleep and relax.

Arrived in St Maarten to find that they had started charging for anchoring at Marigot so quickly moved into the lagoon. It's more protected and calm but no place for swimming!

Lots of our time was then spent organising work on the boat and buying things to use later (lots of storage issues for Karen!!). We also made a few new friends (since departed across the Atlantic) went to a birthday party and had a pretty good time.

After two weeks we headed off to the BVI and had a wonderful sail there. We almost arrived too early to get through the passages between the islands but actually arrived there with just enough pre-dawn light to see by. We spent 2 weeks in the BVI and had a few lovely days, some excellent snorkelling and found some lovely, quiet anchorages. The down side was that we also had lots a rain, too much wind and usually both.

We had to head back to St Maarten to get an arch built onto the boat to hold 2 wind generators and 2 solar panels. We'd arranged this before leaving and so reluctantly sailed back. For the first time we had a continuous head wind so had to beat into the wind tack after tack. What was a 70 mile 11 hour sail there was a 160 mile 30 hour sail back!!

It took about 3 weeks for the work to be fully completed and get the gadgets installed and working and just at the end of that period, the generator broke down (again!!!!!). With some advice from locals and a borrowed tool or two, I have managed to fix it myself so no repair bill but it's still taken a week to sort out. Overall, we have now been here 4 weeks and now we are cleared out and are looking forward to leaving.

St Maarten is a very friendly place and the other cruisers are most helpful and friendly so we have had some good times with friends and time to relax. There are also major shopping advantages like no tax, import duties or customs clearance. One of our major purchases was a 73 pound anchor (replcing the 44 pound one we had) from the US which cost only $88 to ship in including delivery. We also got our full medical kit delivered from the UK so we are now truly ocean capable and independent for most purposes.

As some people already know, we are not crossing the Atlantic so our departure from St Maarten is southward down to Trinidad for a lift out, some bottom painting and some more maintenance before heading to the ABC islands and central america. It looks like our path will be west through the Pacific rather than east to the Med!!

Next update from Trinidad before we fly home for 3 weeks.

Well, here at last are the photos from Bequia plus some more from along the way to Barbuda where I am writing this ready for upload when we get internet access. From English Harbour, we had a short sail to Indian Creek where we anchored below Eric Clapton's house. Unfortunately, despite the idyllic setting and the tranquillity of being the only boat, we had to leave as we could not get the anchor to hold in the very soft mud. So, we head on to Nonsuch Bay (named after the first vessel to enter in the 16th century) but had to motor sail as the wind was coming from that direction and we didn't want to spend hours tacking back and forth given it was only 5 miles.

It is a difficult entry between reefs and although the bay is large, it has reefs scattered across it all over the place and these give it total protection from the Atlantic weather and swells. We picked a spot off Green Island not far from the entrance – West Bay. Absolutely beautiful spot with white sandy beach no buildings and only a few boats. So peaceful and quiet that we decided to stay for a week. It is always hard to describe how beautiful a place is and to tell you how the peace is just pervasive – here was somewhere you just wanted to stop. At night the sky was dark with little light except from the stars and no sounds except the murmur of small waves on the beach. We had some lovely swimming and snorkeling although the reef we went to had less fish to be seen than some. It's odd but the white sandy beach and turquoise water also meant water that was cloudy and in which it was hard to see more than 10 feet! We had to leave a bit early as another small boat problem meant we needed to find some professional help but we will be going back on our way back south.

Off to Jolly Harbour and a great sail with our spinnaker up for the first time. We got our problem sorted immediately – a bit of a shock as we expected the usual 'island time' approach. Decided to stay a bit and make use of the big supermarket to stock up and visit the chandlers to get a few bits. Visited some folks on another Island Packet for a very pleasant evening of wine with CHEESE (something I adore but have been unable to find) and some good conversation. Unfortunately, we did too good a job of selling Nonsuch Bay and they decided to move there the next day! Absolutely amazing sunsets there that really looked better in reality than in the camera. They were quite over the top and literally unbelievable!!

Moved on to Five Islands Bay for another beautiful, quiet and empty anchorage and a very tranquil night but the morning brought a change in wind direction and we had to move as the anchor was dragging. Moved to Deep Bay a little further up the coast where there were a few more boats and a a locally famous wreck that is good for snorkel ling and diving. Another peaceful night but in the morning, the water was a bit too rough for snorkeling and an uncomfortable swell was coming into the bay and so – another move!

First went to St John's – the capital – but the swell was still getting to us so decided to go back to Jolly Harbour. Short sail back and then anchored in comparative peace. We were then stuck there waiting for the wind to change for our sail north to Barbuda but it was only a couple of days and gave us time to chill out plus do a bit of work on the boat.

Off to Barbuda! A brisk sailing day with 15 to 20 knots of wind mostly from the East so a very good beam reach up to the North. Lot's of sunshine and I put the fishing line in for the 6 or so hours it would take us to get there. Lot's of success today!! First, we caught what we thought was a barracuda (lots of teeth) so threw it back after the difficult business of getting the hook out BUT later checked our fish pictures and decided it was probably a kingfish (good eating). OOPS! Next we caught a Spanish Mackerel about 18 inches long and later found to be 2lb. Definitely a keeper! Then we had a 3 foot barracuda – very obvious that it wasn't the first fish as teeth really big and tail shape quite different. Awkward to extract the hook especially as he rehooked himself just as I got it free! Dropped it back in and it swam off after a minute or so. Dangerous to keep as a possible source of Ciguatera poisoning! Last, another Spanish Mackerel of 2 feet and 2½lbs that we kept.

Arrived safely at Barbuda and negotiated our way in avoiding the various reefs to anchor off 11 mile beach – an enormous length of coral sand with no one on it at all and just one building that doesn't seem to be in use. Few boats here and a true tropical paradise!! No internet so will post this from our next port of call. Lovely swimming here and some nice beach combing as we strolled along it collecting shells. Some snorkelling too but visibility not that great – seems to be a problem whenever we find a white sandy beach! Just a great place to relax!!!

Another catch up

Well, stayed in St Lucia only day or so as all the places we wanted to go were shut on the weekend! Didn't want to hang around so left for Portsmouth at the north end of Dominica. Stopped overnight at S. Pierre on Martinique after a really good sail and repeated that the next day to get to Dominica.

Probably the most unspoilt of the islands we have seen so far but organising travel was difficult. Had a nice trip up the Indian River through rain forest and a really lovely explore around the Cabrits fort ruins. A long, long ramble with no one else around and ruined buildings with trees and roots snaking down them and cannon half buried in the earth. Looked a bit like an Indiana Jones film set!!

Made some new friends - Tim and Linda on Matsu. Went to a beach barbeque and drank just a little too much punch. Not sure what they put in it but we both felt a bit unwell the next 2 days!

Moved on from Dominica to Isle des Saintes south of Guadeloupe. Picture perfect place and great french bread and croissants. Managed to find some cheese and Brittany cider too but shops still a bit bare following the civil strike they had had for 8 - 10 weeks. Lovely walk around Terre d'en Bas, the southernmost island, and some great snorkeling when we anchored off Ilet a Cabrit.

Sailed on to Deshaies at the north of Guadeloupe for an overnight stop and caught a lovely 4lb black fin tuna. Quite a shock as I wasn't expecting anything! Beautiful fish and extremely tasty - beats anything from supermarkets!

On from there to Antigua, English Harbour. Quite the most expensive place we have been to so far and very touristy. We have had another bit of generator trouble with a bit of a fuel leak but I have managed to fix that (I hope)and change the oil as part of routine maintenance. Beautiful days here and very hot! Will be moving on around the coast of Antigua to Indian Creek and Nonsuch Bay before heading north to Barbuda.

Still no pics as haven't had the time to sort out yet. No promises but will try next time I have access but that will not be for a couple of weeks probably!

Oh Calamity!!

After a relaxing time in Bequia, our watermaker packed up despite being brand new. Rather than deal with dismantling, shipping and customs, we decided to sail back to Trinidad (AGAIN!!!!!). Generator packed up again as we were getting ready to go, too.

Got back to Trinidad after 24 hour sail. Watermaker people fixed it promptly and reinstalled the next day and generator fixed too. Nice meal with friends on the day before we left so not all wasted time. Then 2 days sail to Martinique!

Weather, sea and winds not good. 30+ knots lots of the time and never much below 25. Heavy seas and lots of rain too. Boat stood up to it all brilliantly and crew coped. It's amazing what you can get used too!!

Arrived Martinique and dropped anchor at Fort de France. Looked pretty and as too late to clear customs, went to bed with expectations of wine and cheese tomorrow. Ah! tomorrow is Sunday so most things shut. Never mind - time to relax and recover. Ah! Monday everything closed as a general civil strike is going on. Can't clear customs and can't find any open shops to buy anything!!

Tuesday - Generator breaks down again!!!! Everything still closed and no liklihood of any change soon so decided to leave south for St Lucia to get generator fixed plus only short sail so should be easy.

Leave Martinique with regret for lost opportunities and having been able to see nothing of the island (transport shut too). Short damp sail to St Lucia.

Generator fixed by Sean - knew what he was doing and took 20 minutes!!

Now planning to spend some days here and explore the island a bit before heading to Dominica. Will post promised photos next time.

Escape from Trinidad!

We have finally left Trinidad!

After getting the davits fitted and the other work finished, we left for Union Island. We had a long but interesting night sail having left about 1 pm. It was a very warm and pleasant afternoon but the weather got a bit worse as the evening came on. It never got above force 6 and the sea was relatively calm. The night was a bit odd as the wind went from 25 knots to nothing and then back to 20 or so knots not once but several times, especially up the coast of Grenada. It was nice to arrive at Clifton Harbour in the early morning and after anchoring and eating, we grabbed some sleep before going ashore to clear customs and immigration.

We had a quiet couple of days with just one visit ashore and one visit to Happy Island (see earlier blog) for a sun down drink.

We are now in Bequia again after a day sail which was hard work as we were beating to windward (sailing as close to the wind direction as we could) all the time and, for the first time in the Caribbean, we had to put a few tacks in to make port. This adds to distance and time so we were glad to arrive and get the anchor down.

We have been for a walk around part of the island (shoes really pinch after so long not wearing them) and it's all really pretty with lots of lovely beaches and blue sea everywhere. Essentially though, we are just relaxing and plan to spend a few more days here doing just that before we move on to St Lucia.

We will put some new photos on from here at our next post. Keep reading and we'll keep writing!

We're still in Trinidad!!!

Yes, we are still in Trinidad working on the boat. The davits are being fitted tomorrow and the stern stanchions re welded – hopefully! Since the last update we have done very little other than work on the boat, either repairs or cleaning. It has given us a chance to get lots of things sorted out and to ensure we leave with the boat in good order and with lots of provisions on board. The only outstanding problem is the batteries which seem to be discharging very quickly so looks like we may be buying 5 new batteries.

Hopefully, we will be leaving Thursday if not Wednesday. This depends on us getting all the safety gear put back on the pushpit after the welding is done. We're worried that we will be compared with the American's if we stay any longer! They seem to spend most of the season here waiting for a 'weather window'! Given the winds are consistently 10-20 knots and from the NE we are not sure what they are waiting for. The water is never flat, there is always an Atlantic swell of between 6-15ft but the winds never exceed 30 knots and are all quite manageable for a boat our size.

We have had a bit of relaxation meeting up with friends we have made. People are very friendly and very helpful. Most of them have been sailing the Caribbean for years and then go home for the hurricane season. There is a cruisers net every morning where you can get help and also pick up items other people are getting rid of. Its a real expat community mainly run by the American contingent. We have recently met a Canadian couple who have sailed the Pacific for years in a 30ft boat, very brave. They now have a bigger boat and seem content to base themselves in Trinidad and cruise the Caribbean.

Hopefully our next update will be from somewhere other than Trinidad!

Back in Trinidad!!

We had a good New Year toasting the year in with champagne with our feet in the sea watching fireworks! We left Bequia the following day and headed to Canouan (just a few hours away) for an uncomfortable night being rolled around by the swell. So we left the next day and headed to Mayreau where we had a chance to look around the island. Most notable resident – a bright green iguana!!We have not been into Tobago Cays yet (supposed to be brilliant for snorkelling) as the weather was too unsettled. Union Island was our next stop which was lovely especially the bar in the middle of the reef where we could watch the sunset while drinking rum punch!

After a quick stop in Grenada it was a lovely sail back to Trinidad. Before Dawn and Jeff left us, we all went to a bird sanctuary called Asa Wright Bird Sanctuary, our first trip in Trinidad. It was amazing to watch birds so closely and they were all such lovely colours, especially the humming birds. Some were feeding just inches from our faces and it was incredibly special!!

Since we have been on our own, it has been back to work. The generator is now re-installed and works after 2 days of trying. Waiting for the bill and wondering how to get a large overdraft from here! Numerous other jobs are getting done but we keep adding to the list of outstanding tasks quicker than we remove them. I think we are on the treadmill but at least they are getting down to things that are not vital on a day to day basis and should not stop us sailing

We will be here for at least another week as we are having work done on the davits to strengthen them, which is not starting until Wednesday. In the meantime, we have got rid of the heavy dinghy which was causing so many problems when sailing and are using the new one we brought with us.

I (Karen) managed to step off the dock and miss the boat! I caught the guard rails so only got my feet wet but holding myself on my arms has pulled quite a few muscles! In hindsight I think it would have been easier to fall into the water and get up the ladder to get back on the boat, other than the fact the water is quite dirty in the marina!

The plan is to head back directly to Union Island once most of the jobs are done (I don't think they will ever be finished) and then work our way up the Islands. We still want to do our PADI diving course but at the moment I seem to have a desire to breathe through my nose rather than my mouth so keep managing to choke on lots of sea water! Until I master this I can't do the course. Mike is a natural at it and really enjoys it so hope I can do it.

We have realised we need to get lots of provisions on board while in Trinidad as supplies are limited up the Islands and are a lot more expensive. We are also surprised by how limited fruit is as we were expecting to be falling over it given the tropical climate. It's often quite scarce and expensive.

The heat was much more bearable when we were at anchor. Back in the marina it becomes very restrictive as its too hot to do much after about 10am. However, it's nice to sleep through without worrying whether the anchor is dragging or having to hold onto the bed because you are being rolled so much by the swell. Anchoring is also a stressful business as some places have bad holding and others are so crowded that it takes us multiple attempts to be happy with our position – still, it can only get easier as we get more experienced.

Speaking to friends in England it all sounds very depressing news and very cold. I think we may have left at the right time!

Finally we have attached some pictures! Enjoy!!

Karen