Blasting Through The Caribbean - 10 Islands in 10 days

For personal reasons we needed to be in Grenada fairly promptly. We had stayed in St Martin/Maarten a little too long enjoying the good food, good company and a few days work Sim had picked up along the way; which meant we would have less time going down the island chain. I know we have seen all these islands before, many times, but I can’t deny I was a little sad we were dashing past. It’s like passing by old friends and not having time to say hello. Which in fact did happen and we were sorry for that too. I know too, we most likely should have night sailed to put some miles under the keel. But I wanted to at least stop each night in an island, just to see the pretty anchorages and soak up their ambience. Plus the trades were strong and the nights squally – not my favourite way to night sail.

And though it was tough at times, hard on the wind most of the way, with the trade winds howling – we stonked along; often going miles further then each day’s intended destination; the anchorages were gorgeous at each stop. And even though I only caught a glimpse of each island it was enough to fill that desire to see all these places.

Sim will tell you the sailing was great. And for the most part it was. I cant deny there were a few moments when I wanted to jump ship. Wandering Star handled it much better then I did. But being a little familiar with the islands and the gaps between them, we knew what to expect, which produced odd wind directions or where the winds bend around the islands or where the currents are strong and how far we could expect to go in one day and whether the holding will be good when we got there. It made the trip a lot easier. 

Ten days after leaving St Maarten the anchor is down in Clarks Court Bay, Grenada, in the same spot as when we left two and half years ago and it feels like we have never been away.

Leaving St Martin through the French side bridge.

Pinneys Beach, Nevis.

Little Bay, Monteserrat.

The anchorage at Deshais, Guadeloupe.

The cute little town at Deshais - where Death in Paradise is filmed...we even saw the crew there!

Deshais village on the waterfront.

Portsmouth, Dominica.

The squally windy days.

Sailing past Saint Pierre - the now dormant volcano at the north end of Martinique

The beautiful anchorage at Anse D'Arlet, Martinique.

Arriving at Rodney Bay St Lucia.

Sailing past the infamous Pitons at the south end of St Lucia.

The Captain - taking it easy in the lee of St Lucia's coast.

Leaving Bequia as the sun rises.

Lots of dolphins playing in our bow waves.

An old favourite - Tyrell Bay, Cariacou - a perfect beach for seaglass.

The anchorage at Tyrell Bay.

Local boats on the beach at Tyrell Bay.

We Made It! - Crossing The Mona Passage For The Third Time

An early morning start out of Luperon with 7 other boats all heading on an overnight passage to Samana.

The route taking us back to the east Caribbean via the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico is known as the ‘Thorny Path’ for good reason. Travelling east into the prevailing trade winds and building seas is no easy task. An understanding of how to take advantage of night time lees produced by the huge land mass of Hispaniola, the effects of currents and shoals in the area and picking the right weather window are all essential in smoothing the ride. Bruce Van Sant’s book ‘The gentlemans guide to passages south’ is a must have when transiting this area. Even if you don’t follow his advice to the T, you need to have an understanding of it.

The mass exodus....boats following in our wake as we leave Luperon harbour.

The prickliest part of this trip is moving along the north coast of the Dominican Republic and crossing the Mona Passage. We waited for over two weeks for the winds to abate enough so that we could get moving again.  On Tuesday 5^th April there was a mass exodus from Luperon as eight boats filed out of the harbour like a trail of ants for the 130nm trip to the next decent anchorage on the east coast of the DR. I can’t say I was sad to go. As much as I like Luperon I was ready to shed that dirty, grimy feeling that comes with the place.

Sailing in company.....Wandering Star and four of her companions showing up on AIS.

It was not an uneventful trip. One boat lost its entire anchor and chain in the seas and two more boats later had fuel problems from the notoriously dirty fuel available in Luperon.

Leaving Luperon we mostly motorsailed with a couple of hours of pure sailing all the way to Samana.

But on the plus side we got to see the gorgeous landscape and a family of whales frolic in the morning sun as we rounded the corner of Cabo Samana.

It was awesome to watch a family of whales frolic iabout

Rounding the headland at Cabo Samana in the morning sun.

Our destination was Marina Puerto Bahia in Samana - a very reasonably priced marina/resort at the east end of the Dominican Republic. At $1/ft we could afford to lap up the luxury for a couple of days without it breaking the bank. 

Three restaurants, three pools, fresh water, showers, gym, laundry and mini-mart make it a very attractive place indeed.

Unfortunately we were put on dock B close to the wall where there was less protection from the breakwater. A gentle swell crept in and ricocheted off the wall causing us to snatch and pull at our mooring lines making an awful racket. 

Yes its a tough life for some!

The resort part of the marina.

Even though it was a lovely place to hang out I don’t think we would have stayed more than the two days unless we could have moved docks. But an opportunity to move on presented itself and though it wasn’t a perfect weather window we decided to take it.

We left Friday 8^th April afternoon with one other boat for a two night sail. We motored down the coast of the DR, then headed north to miss the hourglass shoal where the seas can ferociously build; and then headed southeast towards Puerto Rico. 

The black zigzag line indicates the route we took to miss the hourglass shoal.

Despite the hard slog, with our powerful 85hp engine (Percy the Perkins we love you!) we made good time and dropped anchor in Bouqeron in the dark at midnight on the second night. We drank a couple of stiff drinks to toast our arrival and flopped into bed.  This was our third Mona Crossing and once again we were grateful to have successfully crossed this body of water without too much trouble – if perhaps only a little uncomfortably. 

We moved around to Puerto Real the following morning as we heard the marina was helpful with clearance procedures. A retired ex army guy met Sim and Tony (from Exit Stage Left) at the dock and helped them make the relevant calls to Customs and Border control. As it was a Sunday and the offices closed we didn’t have to do the paper work until the following day. The ex army dude picked us up in his beat up old Volvo the following morning and drove us all 10 miles to Mayaguez to officially clear customs. We are not sure if he was just some friendly guy wanting to be helpful or a taxi driver, or someone wanting to earn a little extra side income. Either way we slipped him a few bucks each, grateful to him for helping to ease our arrival. Now we are all legal and happy to be back in familiar waters again and our old stomping grounds, and looking forward to creeping our way back through the island chain.

Read an article I wrote for All At Sea Magazine about Samana when we passed through the first time in 2009. Click here to read article.

Sailing To Luperon

Crossing the Caicos Banks......can you see the big coral patch?

We left the Turks and Caicos at sunrise with four other boats, heading east across the Caicos banks, dodging coral heads as we went – good light is certainly needed for this area. Then we turned southeast laying a course for Luperon, in the DR.  It was a motor all the way but better that than the possible alternatives. The moon was full and shone brightly all night. 

It was a bright moonlit sail!

When the wind died we dropped the sails to stop the flogging but without their balance we rolled ceaselessly in the slight swell, so much so we slept with a leeboard up. It was a busy night on watch with cruise-ships, sailboats, tankers and motor-yachts all travelling on the same rhum-line. But the time passed quickly, we watched the sun sink behind the horizon as the moon rose and then the moon set as the sun rose again.  Its small wonders like this that makes these trips memorable. Whales were sighted by other boats but we saw none.

The sun setting 

With daylight we could make out the land looming in the distance, the kitty stepped out into the cockpit sniffing the air some 15 miles away, sensing new land was approaching.  

The kitty smelling land for miles out.

The entrance was fairly straight forward with three proper markers in the channel to guide the way in.  We touched bottom once but soon had ourselves off just as ‘Papo’ came out in his boat to guide us in and help pick up a mooring. 

The marked enterance to Luperon

We were in two minds about using a mooring over using our own anchor. We spent six weeks here six years ago on our previous boat “Alianna” where our chain was severely fouled with barnacles during that time.  Was that better than taking a mooring of suspect integrity? But at $2 a night with Papo standing there waiting, we were swayed to decision and here we still sit. 

'Papo' leading us into the anchorage in Luperon

Within minutes Papo had disappeared and returned again with the Commandante and his side kicks to check us in. All three came on board and stepped down below into the saloon. They were all incredibly friendly; the one uniformed guy spoke good English. And wherein 6 years ago they had asked us for a tip (read$$), there was none of that this time, only a request for a soda and a couple of cervezas for his sidekicks.....at only 10am in the morning it made us smile knowing that five more boats behind us would get asked the same thing....not bad for a mornings work! When they left, Sim as the captain was to go and shore and fill out the paper work for Customs, Immigration, Agriculture, Coast Guard & Port Authority at the little port-a-cabins that are used as offices near the dinghy dock.  While I waited for him to return, I put the sails away and the bimini cover back up and cleared up some of the mess that always ensues after a night sail. Then I sat in the cockpit taking in the gorgeous surroundings, the green rolling hills and boats gentle bobbing on anchor and listened to the birds sing as I tried to stay awake a little while longer.  Sim arrived back just as I was dozing off in one of those rare truley relaxed states, we had a bite to eat and then fell asleep on the sofas, tired from the night sail.

Waiting for Sim, admiring the view.

We finished the day with the crews of the boats we had travelled with a beer at Puerto Blanco Marina - giant 650ml bottles of “Presidentes” for $3 a pop. If we had had any reservations about spending time in the DR they were quickly vanishing.

650ml Presidents beers in bamboo coolers...and yes mine was a light!

Our trip east across the Caicos Banks and South to Luperon, DR.

Back To The East Caribbean We Go...!

Back to the East Caribbean. That's the decision we have made as to where we will spend next hurricane season. It's not been an easy decision to make, not least because of finances but also because of our very indecisive minds with so many places we wish to go and so many factors to consider. We hope to curve our spending habit in the islands after the temptations of the USA. And we are ready for some Island time  - something we have missed while traveling in the United States.And of course, we are looking forward to seeing old friends again too. We would have loved to have spent more time in the Bahamas but with our route now firmly decided (We hope!), it's time to press on. 

Our route from George Town, Great Exuma via, Long Island, Rum Cay and Mayaguana to Sapadillo Bay, Turks and Caicos.

Sailing the 'thorny path' as it is known is not easy. Our journey is directly east into the trade winds. We will inch our way along trying to gain as much east as we can while travelling south, Island hoping as we go.  It sounds easy but a lot of planning goes into where and when and how we will get there. Taking into to consideration what weather we will get, future weather to come, distances we can cover, coral banks we have to cross - needing good day light etc. It will be hard on the wind all the way. My least favourite point of sail!

Saying goodbye to all our good friends in George Town.

We Left Georgetown saying farewells to all our good friends and sailed to the gorgeous Calabash Bay in Long Island. We have met some other boats along the way, who are sailing in the same direction and we loosely tag along together, sharing plans, weather and beers.

The beautiful Calabash Bay at the north end of Long Island.

From Long Island we motored along with 'Exit Stage Left' who have been our companion for the duration so far, to spend a night at Rum Cay - a place I would love to spend more time getting to know but with the rolly anchorage and good weather to press on, we did.

With coral reefs dotted about the anchorage - Rum Cay was a good place to snorkel.

 It was an overnight sail to Mayaguana. One that at first looked like a motor but indeed turned out to be one of those rare, balmy sails with a gentle 10-15kts breeze on a beam reach and a starry sky. We caught two skipjack tunas along the way and entered Abraham's Bay with a morning sun high in the sky so we could see the coral heads as we made our way in. 

A flat calm motor turned into a lovely sail catching a couple of fish along the way.

We spent two nights in Mayaguana the southeastern most Island in the Bahamas before we left for a hard on the wind night sail to Turks and Caicos.

Bye Bye beautiful blue Bahamas - we will miss you.

Seven or eight boats arrived in all to the small anchorage at Sapadillo Bay, Provodencial, the northwestern Island in the Turks and Caicos group. The fee at customs and immigration to stay a week or less is $100 or an extra $300 if you stay longer. Which makes our 3 day stay here an expensive one. We cleared customs and immigration at the dusty commercial port where we spent two hours with all the other boat crews' first waiting for the officers to turn up and then the painfully slow process of filling in the simple immigration forms, all whilst being sleep deprived from the night before. 

Arriving as the sun rises in the Sand Bore Channel to Turks and Caicos and some scenery around the pretty beach.

Except for a beach with a few private villas or small hotels dotted along there is nothing but a dusty road in Sapadillo Bay. It is notoriously expensive here. Sim popped into the petrol station down the road where a tin of corn beef costs $8! So what are a group of thirsty sailors recovering from a night sail supposed to do when they have finished their clearence procedures? Why meet on the beach with our own beers for sundowners of course.

The crews of Exit Stage Left, Pepper, Eureka, Aqua Vida, Sailacious, Vagabond and ourselves. 

We have two more days here, then Monday we will motor across the Caicos banks to put ourselves in a better position to sail on to the Dominican Republic before a strong front arrives on Tuesday afternoon.