Wandering Star Back In SXM!

Anchored inside the logoon

It was with some excitement and trepidation that we arrived back in the East Caribbean after our little two year jaunt in America and the Bahamas. We needed that time away to fall in love with the islands again; Islands that over the years have become as good a home as any but had lost their sparkle and magic. We had been living within our contentment zone for too long and needed something different for a while. America may not be the answer for some but for us it was just what we needed with a whole different type of nature and scenery and for a while, a different type of life... or as different as you can get while still living on a boat. Now we can see these magnificent islands through fresh eyes, there is beauty in everything and we no longer feel complacency that was settling in before.

We left Puerto Rico behind (and all the wonderful new people we had been cruising with) on a long day sail to the Spanish Virgins and dropped anchor only for the captain to announce – “we have a weather window all the way to St Maarten – I think we should take it!” Gee Whizz! While a little disappointed that we were going to miss out on the rest of the Virgins and some of our old fav spots – there’s always next time right? Apart from Grenada, St Martin is probably the island we have spent the most time in over the years, so we have been looking forward to returning.

A cloudy day in Marigot Bay

After an easy night sail from Culebra, we dropped anchor in the beautiful Marigot Bay on the French Side of St Martin and took a dip in clear blue water, the first we have been in for a long while, almost since the Bahamas.  I love SXM (the islands abbreviated airport name), both the French side and the Dutch. The superb food and the quaint tres chic charm of the French side and the lively, holiday feel of the Dutch. Whatever anyone might say, in my opinion the two are halves are beautifully paired. On either side the beaches are some of the most stunning in the Caribbean.

Marigot Bay, St Martin

The only thing that marred our time here was our own faux pas, (things change when you’ve been a way for a while)  by checking in at the wrong place on the French side (the ferry port) and being charged more than we should (go to Island Water World on the French side peeps, in Port Royal). But we consoled ourselves in a patisserie with frappechinos, French pastries, magnificent macaroons and beer and soon forgot our woes.

Oh my goodness the joys of the French patisseries.

We decided to anchor inside the lagoon. From the French side there is unmarked channel to where the main cluster of boats chose to anchor – which puts you somewhere in the middle between the Frenchside and the Dutchside to make getting about easier. 

Chartlet available at Shrimpys

A chart can be bought from Shrimpy’s but make sure you get him to print out the waypoints as the ones on the chart are wrong. We have been in and out this route many times but it does get very shallow – we draw 1.7meters, the lowest we saw this time was 1.9m. We have been through with a 1.8ft draft on our old boat. It can be a little hairy. But if in any doubt people seem to go through Simpson Bay bridge on the Dutch side and then through the Causeway Bay bridge dividing the lagoon.  Make sure you anchor in a sandy patch as the bottom is weedy and winds can howl in the lagoon sometimes.

Going through the Sandy Ground bridge on the French side

 It’s been great catching up with friends we have not seen for some time, at the St Maarten Yacht Club, at Lagoonies, and on each other’s boats.

Catching up with Mark from Sealife and Lynsey and Darryl

Sim and I danced to some funky beats at Lagoonies one night. We trotted along with Mark from ‘Sealife’ to see the brightly coloured carnival parade in Phillipsburg on another. It was a riot of feathers, sequins, glitter and scantily clad girls all shaking their booty to thumping, deafening, whole body vibrating music blasting from the parade trucks. 

All the amazing costumes at the Phillipsburg carnival

We managed to catch the last boat jumble at Time Out Boat Yard and unbelievably came away with a few pennies in our pockets rather than spending any.

Last boat jumble of the season at Time Out Boat Yard on the French side

While we would love to stay an revel in all things SXM and I am left a little wanting, we have decided to move on to points further south.

Says it all!

*Shrimpys is on the French side just before bridge going in. Mike is the main man around here who runs the morning net  VHF 10 at 7.30 am and monopolises the laundry for cruisers on the island – he also has internet, water and spare boats parts and fixes outboards.

*Lagoonies – a great bar and restaurant – near to both Island Water World and Budget Marine, apparently also does laundry.

* You can get free wifi at any of the bars and restaurants or coffee shops. If you are staying for a while you might want to invest in Caribserve or Scarlet. But we find a Telcell sim card suits our purpose. $10 for the sim card, $32 for 2gb. The shop is on the Dutch side opposite the shell station.

Shrimpys -before the bridge going in on the French side

Fantastic view visiting friends on the Dutch side

Sunset in the lagoon

Street corner in Marigot

Swimming in Marigot Bay

Road Bay, Anguilla - One Road, One Bay

 

Road Bay, Anguilla

Last Saturday morning Sim and I left the confines of Simpson Bay lagoon and its snotty waters behind; we said a final goodbye to our friends the night before at the Yacht Club Happy hour.  For the first time on this boat I took the helm as we motored through both the bridges – an attempt on my part to be at least the jack  if not the master of my own boat.  A little nerve wracking in the gusty winds, I breathed in as we breezed or should it be squeezed through – not such a daunting task after all.  Once out in the beautiful blue waters we unfurled both the headsails and set a course for our next destination.

Goodbye Simpson Bay lagoon....until the next time

I love sailing off the wind.  It was comfortable ride the few miles up to Anguilla.  Sim was pleased that the prop shaft no longer leaked – our underwater work a success. We were so unbelievably ready for a few days rest after the hecticness of St Maarten and its onslaught on our bank account.  Despite the hefty charges applied to most anchorages in Anguilla, Road Bay is still free.  It is surprisingly comfortable considering its north facing location. The turquoise colours of the sea make its chilly temperature that you get this time of year appealing.  The long stretch of sandy beach is beckoning to be explored.  The friendly staffs at customs and immigration only reiterate the welcoming sign on the dinghy dock.  We walked across the bay, exploring the wrecks and walked through the one road village, investigating what the local store had to offer. Not a lot!  We walked around the old salt pond no longer used for mining salt but now a sanctuary for birds and wildlife.

The wreck of MV Mr Ted on the beach in Road Bay

We like it here.  There is not much to tempt us to spend money on except the odd beer ashore.  The sand is white, the anchorage is calm, the holding good.  The sunsets are beautiful. And always an added bonus the Wi-Fi signals are unlocked. Happy Days!

Wandering Star at anchor in Road Bay.

The well stocked minimart!

Irie Life shop - makes me think of my friends

The Salt ponds behind the beach.

Alex, Wendy and Shirley at the Yacht Club

The low lands of Anguilla with hilly St Maarten in the background.

Welcome to Anguilla

The stunning beach at Road Bay

The rocky pools at the north end

 

Its hard not to love a bay like this.

 

 

 

Simpson Bay Snot & Half Hikes

The floating snot of Simpson Bay Lagoon

We are starting to get itchy feet to leave St Maarten and move on to pastures new.  For nearly seven weeks we have been mostly anchored inside the murky waters of the inner lagoon with its floating weed that can only be described as dragon snot; Snot so yucky and slimy that it sticks to any rope, lines or ladders that you have dangling in the water.  We are longing to be anchored in blue seas with clear water and balmy days.  St Maarten has plenty of these idyllic beaches but the anchorages can often be rolly – the bain of my life or miles from all the places and people we want to hang out with.  Time has flown by in a blink and we would like to start pressing on with our journey northwards.....before we change our mind!

Days have been filled with stocking the boat with spares and food, fuel and water; chores taking so long as we travel from one end of the lagoon to the other.  Evenings filled at “happy hours” ashore or drinks on boats with the company of friends old and new, some heading in the same direction as us others sadly not.  I can’t always say I enjoy our time in St Maarten but this season it has been fantastic.

One of the wonderful views from our half hike on Sunday

Last Sunday Mark from ''Sealife'' organised a walk from the top of the highest point on the French side, Pic Paradis 411m above sea level.  Over 30 cruisers turned up for the hike.  New Dutch friends Jolanda and John from SY "Joho" picked me up 8.30am Sunday morning - as we all know Sim avoids most walks if possible - and dinghied us over to Port Royal.  A bus picked us up and took us up to the highest point so that we could walk back down (approx 4hrs).  It was a very lovely, scenic walk; we had views out across to the neighbouring islands of Saba, St Barts and beyond and to  Anguilla on the other side.  Only after an hour or so of walking it was decided that we had taken the wrong trail and needed to climb back up the way we had come and start again.  Hmf! The party spilt in two – those that were going back up and the "half hikers"- those that would continue down the road. Being at the mercy of Jolanda and John I waited for them to make a decision.  After a few fraught moments of thinking they wanted to go back up, they too also wanted to go down.  I must be very unfit! My feet hurt and I was a little tired, I was very happy to continue down.  It was still a long walk in the hot sun only relived by a brief break in an air conditioned supermarket we found that was open.  It was however a very enjoyable way to spend a Sunday morning. Sim enjoyed a few hours of peace and quiet, achieving more in a short time than he would when I am constantly nattering to him!

 

Walking past the sugar cane vats and old well.

We hope to be out of here by the end of the week.  But that waits to be seen to be believed.  In the mean time we won’t complain too much about being here for a few extra days J.

30+ cruisers on a hike in SXM



With some great views

 

Busy Daze in St Maarten

Wandering Star at anchor in Simpson Bay Lagoon.

St Maarten is not a place for sitting still.  Not for us anyway.  We have been working (fairly) hard every day.  Jobs are slowly being ticked of our latest “to do” list.  Most of the jobs or items are to do with our departure to the US which includes some longer sails and stops in more remote anchorages. We need to be more self sufficient than we have been in a while. The engine is having a thorough check over including redoing the fuel system.  The gauges and sender units have been replaced.  Sails are being repaired. The rig inspected.  Running rigging replaced. Navigation chips for our chart plotter bought. More gas bottles purchased. We are making a rain catcher to keep our tanks topped up. All outside items like the gas bottles and the life buoy have had covers made for them.  We are buying a huge bilge pump giving us three in total.  Having had some good advice from my sister’s doctor boyfriend we are revamping our medical kit. Getting the prescriptions from a doctor on the Dutch side and buying from a very reasonable chemist on the French side.  The cat must go to the vet for her health certificate.  And we have a provisioning list as long as your arm with all the food, alcohol and other sundries to add to our stocks.  Not to mention all the spare parts we want to carry.  The grab bag is being up dated and we have to consider buying a new dinghy. Which basically equates to lots of $$$ being spent.  When you live on such a tight budget it stings a little to be spending so much.  But all of these are necessary investments, except perhaps the alcohol. But you have to live for today right? We do like to know there is food in the fridge for tomorrow  ;-)!

Laying out the material for the rain catcher at the local curry house!

St Maarten is also a social place.  The lagoon is starting to get busy.  More and more cruisers arrive every day.  It makes happy hours and get-togethers big social events.  We have eaten out twice in local restaurants where they have had to close their doors to others as there were so many of us. The Shwarmas and Chinese are very good value.  Beer at happy hour is between $1-2.  The days are sunny, the skies are blue, and the lagoon is surrounded by deep green hills.  The beaches are some of the best around with the most amazing hues of blue.  Everything is so colourful and cheery.  It is hard not to like this place and going to be even harder to tear ourselves away.

The lovely Simpson Bay beach

Out for a stroll on Simpson Bay Beach

Fun times for Izzys b'day party on "Izzy R"

 

Decisions, Indecisions, Inflatable Toys & Hookahs

Decisions, indecisions!

I don’t know about you, but Sim and I are terrible at making decisions or more accurately we are great at making them, just hopeless at sticking to them, to the point that we drive ourselves crazy.  Take this impending haul out for example. We feel (and have been feeling for sometime) that we really need to get stuck into a maintenance period on land.  But we have been dragging our feet and changing our minds for one reason or another for some time now.  I actually try to view this fickleness as part of the beauty of our lifestyle. But I digress. Our latest plan had been to haul out here in St Maarten.  But once again we have changed our minds! Maybe we are dragging our feet, or maybe we are looking for change of scene and some new adventures. Maybe to need to feel like we are sailors rather than people who live on a boat.  As much as we love our sunny and colourful Caribbean maybe we need to explore some different places. Whatever the reason our latest plan is to head north, up through the Bahamas to the US east coast.  Where we can find some little yard to plod on with the work during hurricane season without battling the unbearable heat or torrential downpours of biblical proportions and enjoy some of the beautiful coastline that the east coast has to offer.  And this is our plan du jour!

So with this latest plan in mind we need to use this time in St Maarten to get the boat prepped for a few longer sails and to make sure that everything is in order for the stricter rules of the US. 

First on the list were our life jackets that were out of date to say the least! Sim serviced them putting new gas cylinders in and making sure they were in good condition.  We had fun setting the out of date ones off - a good lesson in familiarizing ourselves with the release toggles.  All the out of date vests inflated which was reassuring and held the air for a good 24hrs before we deflated and repacked them.  Now if god forbid, we ever have to use one, we know exactly what we are doing and that they really do work.

Geoff shows Sim his hookah

That is one little job done.  Next is the trickier job of changing the packing in the stuffing box which is the material around the shaft as it fits through the hull of the boat to stop water leaking in.  Ours is old and can’t be tightened any further.  When we motor there is a considerable trickle which can amount to gallons of seawater in our bilge!  Not good when you want to keep a steel boat dry! We also need to grease our “Max Prop”,  another underwater job with the grease gun.  None of these jobs are easy whilst in the water.  Chatting to Geoff from ‘Izzy R’ it was suggested that the use of a hooker might help.  I have to say I couldn’t see how and was not keen on the idea but Sim got fairly excited. Geoff continued that if Sim felt inclined he could try out his and if he got on ok could then borrow it.  I glanced across at Izzy, Geoff`s wife to see if she knew about this business but her serene face gave nothing away.  If she was bothered, she was hiding it well.  As it turns out a hooker (spelt hookah) is a compressor come dive tank that sits on your boat with a hose to a demand valve - similar to scuba gear but without all the fancy bits. Apparently I had nothing to worry about.  We gathered along with Jon from ‘Imagine’ and Dave from ‘Banyan’ for a Hookah party on ‘Izzy R’ to show Sim how to use it the following morning.  Jon bought his new toy along - the ‘’Waveblade’’, to prove to the rest of the party it was a worthy and useful piece of equipment.  The packaging says that this 12v vibrating tool makes easy work of removing barnacles and other unwanted crusty bits from below the water line.  The pastel packaging, along with gloves and carry bag made it look like some sort of kitchen device – it almost resembled my hand blender. Sim put it to the test while hooked up to the hookah.  Verdict – It won’t make smoothies but it does remove barnacles easily, only, if its weed you want removed you are better off with a regular scraper.



Izzy, Jon and his tool

Sim is a convert to the hookah and now wants to get one – it will make cleaning the underneath of the boat a breeze.  In the mean time ‘Izzy R’ have leant us theirs so that Sim can do the two underwater jobs without having to constantly come up for air.  The Waveblade he might pass on....sorry Jon.

Sim testing out the hookah

 

Aside from all this work (really it is work) we have had fun joining friends in the various bars around the lagoon and enjoyed the firework display to celebrate the official opening of the new causeway bridge across the lagoon.

Fantastic fireworks