Les Saintes & Dominica

We spent the afternoon in the small village of Terre-en Haut, in the Les Saintes archipelagos. It's a small typical village, very pretty and where the people are not stressed at all. We ate at the restaurant (and it was slow). The water was very clear and the bay is superb, really a nice piece of land.
This morning, we returned to the village for the breakfast and visit a little more, then we left for Dominica. A very nice sailing day like we would always want, with good 18 knots winds and small waves. We are actually anchored in Dominica and we got the typical welcome committee, selling services, fruits, pick up trashes, etc. We won't unfortunately, not visit the island, I'll have to come back. Jean and Jacinthe are anxious to be in their condo so we have to make compromises between visiting the island and getting as soon as possible to the condo.
Tomorrow direction Martinique...

Guadeloupe

Sunday November 29, 1pm, sailing near Les Saintes.

We stopped in Nevis at sunset, for the night. We didn't go on land because we were leaving very early the next morning for Guadeloupe. We left at about 5am because it would be a very long sailing day. We went sail and engine with a head wind. We dropped the anchors at about 9:15pm in the Deshaies Bay.
The next day, we visited the small typical village of Deshaies, then walked on a trial to a point of view and down to the nearby beach of Grande Anse. I tasted a few caribbean dishes, like "accras de morue" and "bokits" (well I think that's what it's called).
This morning, we pulled the anchor early to get to Les Saintes. Right ow we are a few nautical miles from there. We will probably spend tomorrow here, then leave for the Martinique (with a sleep-stop in Dominica). I didn't get internet yet so for the pictures it will have to wait a little.

Direction: Nevis

November 26, 11:35 am

It's been a little while since the last post, either because nothing worthy was happening, or what were where too many or too busy to write.
Last Sunday, we went to a pool near an hotel/timeshare close to the Sint-Maarten bridge. It was nice and warm as usual. We then went, by bus this time, to the Mullet bay beach, near the airport. When the girls had landed, we walked towards the airport, but gettign closer, we saw a 747 gettign ready to take off so we stopped at Maho beach for the jet blast. I was disappointed because the pilot did not hold the brakes like the last plane so the blast lasted only a few seconds. We met the girls at the airport and went back to the boat after an american fast food dinner.
Monday was the least busy day of the trip, I did NOTHING. I went to the McDonalds in the morning and evening to send a few work emails and pictures, but the remainder of the day, I rested on the boat while the girls and the boys were shopping, each on their side.
Tuesday morning we lifted the anchor early for a small sailing day towards St-Barthelemy. We anchored in Gustavia Bay and went to visit the town. We got dinner at the famous restaurant "Le Select", where Jimmy Buffet hung out when he lived there and that he references in the song "Cheeseburger in Paradise". This town is ultra jet-set, the girls seems to work a lot less than the guys, or outnumber them, because we see a lot more girls than guys in town (and at the beach). They are always dressed nicely, even when they are on a 4wheeler (that can be driven on the street).
Wednesday we went for a walk to St-Jean, on Nikki Beach and near the airport. We did a little bit of beach and we could have small airplanes take off right on top of our heads. The island seems to be a little overcrowded, there are small cars, motorcycle, all terrains everywhere... and once again, no sidewalks.
This morning, we lifted the anchor to get to Nevis. I don't think we will go on the island, only spend the night to leave very early for Guadeloupe.

Kerosene Beach

Sunday, November 22 10:45am

Friday, we went to Philipsburg as planned, it's the port where the cruise ships stop, but the one for the day was postponed to the following day, so there weren't many people in town. The "town", it's only two streets with at least 100 jewelries and a dozen electronics stores, nothing else. We didn't stay long, then we left towards the Simpson Bay Lagoon, We had to wait for 5:30 as the bridge opens only once in the afternoon.
yesterday (Saturday), we went for a walk. First stop: Maho Beach, commonly known as Kerosene Beach. This beach is at the end of the airport runway, and when the planes tak off, they need to put themselves against the fence, then push the engines to take off. The beach being just beind, when the engines thrust, you get a load of sand and insane winds. It's an experiment and they say it's even better when it's a 747 (see youtube videos). We then walked West towards Cupecoy Bay with its small beaches nested betwen rock cliffs. Aside from the fact that often some naked people took the spot before you, it's a small paradise. We went to visit a huge comdo complex under construction over there. In the evening, we went to see a few bars in "town", but it was almost empty, as the big boats will come here in December, in a few weeks.
This morning, we'll walk a little more, but it will be relax, the girls are arriving tonight and tomorrow it will be a few errands and a departure for St. Barth Tuesday.

Pictures from St. Martin / Sint. Maarten

While I have very good internet, I am uploading all I can, so here are the St. Martin / Sint. Maarten pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=174108&id=621427208&l=01d9e69af2

Pictures from the Birtish Virgin Islands

Here are the pictures, unsorted, unedited:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=168441&id=621427208&l=5e75944b24

St. Martin, French side

Friday, November 20, 6:50 am.

We got into St. Martin early in the morning, I was asleep when the change in engine rpm woke me up, indicating maneuvers to anchor. We were in the Margiot Bay. We went ashore to clear customs and visit the town of Marigot, where they speak french and there are dozens of stores as the ones you would see in any big city. It was very hot, but I can't complain. We then left to sail to Pinel island, to the east. Getting there, we saw a wrecked sailboat on the shore, he must've hit the reef; it's sad to see this.
Once on Pinel island, we anchored near the beach, thanks to the shallow draft, we could be where other boats can't go. We swan tot he beach, located in a superb setting. The next day, we used to dinghy to go to Orient beach, on the other side of the bay. Part of the beach is nude and people are not shy to get a tan without lines. It's supposedly a world renown beach. The rest of the beach is filled with small restaurants that rent chairs and umbrellas in their small reserved space to the water. It's so nice outside, the perfect day to be on the beach.
This morning, we woke up early because we were touching the bottom, we shifted direction during the night and it's shallower. We are leaving for Philipsburg, the big commercial place on the Netherlands side, so that Jean can buy a dvd player. We will then be in the lagoon for a few days.
Internet is not readily available here, I've been told that the big telecom companies have gotten a law passed that restricts companies to get wirless signal outside of their walls, for us to have to pay... So to get internet, we often need to be clients of a restaurant. I'll try to put my pictures online before leaving for St. Barth.

On our way to St-Martin

We are Tuesday, November 17th, 10:37pm, AST.

This morning, the rain finally stopped, then the sun came out and stayed with us all day. We went to visit the Bitter End on Virgin Gorda Island, it's a really high end resort. There was an 80 feet Swan sailboat, it's impressive to see such a big sailboat! We couldn't go to Anegada because the weather was not stable.

Right now, we are almost half way between the virgin islands and St-Martin. There is no moon and the sky is filled with stars but we can see lightning to the east. I am at the navigation center inside checking the radar, there is a huge vessel closing in and I am checking if it will pass in front of us. The sea is calm, there is no wind. We will arrive very early tomorrow in St-Martin.

Rain :(

Today, it rains a lot and it doesn't seem to want to stop. The trip to Anegada is canceller for now, we'll see tomorrow. We are currently in a small resort for lunch and to look at the new on internet.

First two days in the BVI

Finally the vacations!
Saturday we left Tortola tu get to Norman Island. Right to the north is Pelican Island, a tiny island with rocks around, I stopped and did a snorkel dive around. I saw lots of fish and could do pictures and videos. We then went to Norman Island see the caves at Privateer Bay where I did a second dive to try and find the treasure that the legend talks about, then we ate lunch in The Bight. Afterwards, in the afternoon, we sailed towards Peter Island to Deadman Bay for the night.
This morning we went to the next island to the east, Salt Island, and we stopped for a dive over the Rhones shipwreck. unfortunately, I couldn't dive at the bottom but the view from the top was impressive. We then sailed towards Virgin Gorda Island to visit "The Baths". These are huge rocks piled up making caves and baths under them. It's magnificient and because we were before the tourist season, it wasn't too crowded. It's normally the big tourist thing here. Right now we are anchored in Gorda Sound for a good dinner. Tomorrow we are going to Anegada!!

Leaving Tortola

Internet stopped working yesterday so I'm sending a quick email from the boat this morning. It will be short as there is not much to say. We had the award ceremony yesterday and got a nice little plate saying we made this year's Caribbean 1500. It's hot here, 39 degrees yesterday (that must be over 100F)! It's unbearable but on the beach with the wind it will be muuuch better. This morning we are leaving to go around the islands, it will be good to sail a little.

Ahh warmth

Second day in Tortola, small relaxing day with some pool time and some internet time when it rained. I have too many job emails. It's really hot but I can't complain. Tonight there is another cocktail with a musical show and tomorrow the final evening with the awards. There is not much to say since we are staying here until Saturday.
I bought my return ticket already :( One month to go... I miss my girlfriend, but I certainly don't miss the cold and the work;)

Now in the BVI!!!

So here it is, the last day went by fast. We couldn't wait to arrive! We entered the virgin islands at about 9 am. Testing the engine, it was doing a strange noise. Jean dived once again, like when we were going to Hampton, to see what was there. As expected, there was a fishing net in the propeller! Then we went to customs, it was complex, they wanted US dollars and not their local currency, etc. Then when moving towards the marina, we turned around and went to help another sailboat that had no engine, to get into customs. He was in a really bad situation. It will help our karam :)

Once at the marina, we washed the boat to remove the salt that was everywhere. Then the long awaited time.. SHOWER! How nice it feels to take a good shower, shamnpoo, etc. We also have pretty stable internet so I'll be able to work and talk to people with Skype. We had a couple free beers with the other ralliers, and ate a good pizza at the restaurant. It took forever to get it but I guess we have to get used to the island speed.

We are leaving saturday to go around the islands and then go to St-Martin.

So, here's the scoop, the PICTURES!!!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=168437&id=621427208&l=a4f409de35

Pictures of the USA leg

Here is the link for the pictures of USA leg of the trip:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=165021&id=621427208&l=cbd0cf3448

You don't have to be on Facebook to see them.

Tuesday, November 10th, 4:30 am, AST

We had a god wind all day, but it diminished in the evening. We passed the 100 miles left mark, which is an important milestone. We should be at the dock during the day, after a stop for customs. Aside from that nothing really special, the day was pretty much like the one before. I cross my fingers in hope that we have internet at the marina!

Monday, November 9th, 2:45 am, AST

I am writing during my night watch. I am spending it at the navigation console inside the boat and I look at the instruments. Outside it's way more comfortable with a good breeze, but the boat get so many splashes it makes it impossible to stay dry, which is not very fun. We still had 20-25 knots of wind all day. The sea was huge so it's shaking a lot, and we have a side wind with side waves. It is a real sport to move around today and today we stayed relatively calm on board. Everyone was tired from last night I think. We are making good ways, we expect to arrive tomorrow (Tuesday) sometimes during the day, the fastest boats are currently arriving as I write. I can't wait to sleep more than 3 hours in a row! We will stay at the marina until Friday's party, then we'll leave to visit the British Virgin Islands (and I hope Anegada too) to get to St Martin meet the girls (Jean's and Guy's wife, unfortunately, my girl couldn't come:(), they will arrive by plane.

p.s.

a few little things:

- I am writing on an email that sends through amateur radio (HF) so I can't read your comments from the boat, but I will read them as soon as I'll have internet and it will be fun to see who reads.
- I will put pictures on when I'll be at the dock, I have very good ones! I have also a bunch of videos but we'll have to wait until I'm back home because they are HD.
- Don't look at my bad english, I am translating the french blog and am not taking the time to do a proper translation, so most of the times I know it may sound weird. When I write in english from the start, it's way easier to use proper english.
- I've been told that I mixed the dates a little... oops, let's say that we loose track of the days when we're on watches and that we're moving all the time. Normally, I have written every morning, starting from Tuesday, November 3rd, so you can deduct the dates from then (I can't edit anything right now)

Saturday, November 7th, 6:25 am, AST

So yesterday we got the fishing rod out, but the clicker was broken (another thing broken, it seems a boat is like a summer shack, you're always fixing things). The day was magnificent and calm, I was able to take good pictures and videos. The was is so blue it's incredible. Around dinner, the wind picked up and then the fun started. We cooked spaghetti (propane is fixed) and I must say that fortunately the stove moves with the heel because there would've been some everywhere. After dinner, the boat was moving very fast; since the Marcotte have a little competitive side, we decided to keep the full sails and keep an high speed. I had two watches last night and Jean showed me how to better steer the boat, so most of the times I was "divin" it by hand and it was really fun. We need to keep the boat "on the edge" where there is too much sail for the conditions, a little too much into the wind and the boat wants to go up, and not enough then the min sail can flip on the other side (dangerous). We had 20-25 knots of wind and were managing 8.5 knots with nice surfing time. It was like being in the Volvo Ocean Race. After about two hours you are very tired and I also found out new muscles in my shoulders. The wind is supposed to stay strong today so we will likely keep it the same for the day. yeee haaaa! (or "yaaa hoooo" for the Calgarians)

Friday, November 06, 9:15 am AST

No fishing yesterday finally. We had a very calm sea and low wind, we were even able to cook hamburgers on the charcoal! It was a little though though. For dinner, the propane system broke so if we can't repair it today, we'll be stuck eating cold food for the rest of the passage. In the evening, we got the sails back up and go without engine. Last night I was on from 1 am to 4 am and it was very smooth. We are about at the middle of our passage, the forecast calls for good winds so we will likely sail without engine.

November 05, 9:45 am AST

Yesterday we sailed all day on the same "side", it's a lot easier to sleep when the boat heels only on one side, while with a tail wind, the boat heels on both sides and you never know when you'll be slammed into a wall. During the night, while I was on watch, the win almost died so we had to start the engine. It's good for the batteries. This morning the sea is calm and we have wind of not even 8 knots so we're motoring. I allows us to clean the dishes and we'll cook burgers for lunch, since the boat moves less (it's still relative). We have another boat near us, it's good to see something around when we're in the middle of nowhere. Later I'll get the fishing rod out...

November 4th, 7 am

Yesterday was nice. Wind slowed down and the sea was smooth (well, less rough). Wind was from the North so we placed the sails in a scissor with the wicker pole. During the night, I had two watches, one from 7 to 10 pm and the other from 4 to 7 am. During my first shift, a flying fish came right at my feet on the deck, we kept it to use it as a lure later. At the start of my second shift, the wind was from the NE and blowing at 25-30 knots so we removed the wicker pole to change our course. The boat was going very fast, with a good heel and water splashes. Almost like in a rac`:) This morning we noticed that we were in front of a bunch of boats, having known that before we could've registered in the race class!

First day at sea

We left the dock to get to the main marina's fuel dock to hear the weather briefing. The news were: "it will be rough but if we ait it will be at least the same or worse", and to add "take your seasickness pills right now". So it was a go. We left right away to get offshore. We passed the official start at 11 am, one hour before the race class boats departure.

Wind was from North, quite high... We stayed near the coast towards Cap Hatteras and then we crossed the Gulf Stream. What a nice feeling to get into warm air! But it was quite rough (and it is still rough this morning). My official watch was between midnight and 3am. Waves were about 10-12 feet and quite short with a wind from the back at about 25 knots. As a safety precaution, we wear our harnesses on the deck and at night I was also tied to the boat.

It is a little hard to sleep, our body moves from right to left over the width of the bed, we sleep from exhaustion at the start but for now I can't sleep my full 6h. I believe that once very tired and used to the movement of the boat, it will be better.

With that said, that's it for this morning.

Departure tomorrow!!!!

Saturday, October 31st
Another day of… work! In the evening we had the farewell party, but the the average age, let’s say we could replace party with something like « dinner with plenty of people taling and no music ». It’s the intent that is important I guess. We wandered on the docks to see the other boats. The departure seems to get set for Monday, if the weather holds!

Sunday, November 1st
It’s cold, i trains, another cold front, I’m sick of it. We had a last meeting to check the weather, give navigation directions, etc. It seems that the first part will be rough with high winds, heavy seas, but after that it should get better.. I can’t stand being at the docks anymore. Tomorrow morning we have a last briefing and it’s a start!!! I did my online finances and after that I did the english translation of my journal for this blog. Don’t look at the bad English as I am doing this in a rush. Now both blogs will be updated simultaneously.

Friday, October 30th

I spent the day working… again. It’s good because I use my vacation hours more slowly and like I said 120 times already, the town is boring. We have received the infamous part so everything is fixed. In the afternoon they did a flare and life raft demo and we got a lasagna dinner.

Oct 27 to 29

Tuesday, October 27th
We lifted the anchor early and went to get disel. We then went to the docks (finally), so internet is a little better, but still not enough to work from the boat (and it’s not easy to keep my focus).

Wednesday, October 28th
Today, I worked at the coffee shop again. The guys went to West Marine to get parts (again) and we did the final boat inspection. We got groceries (again). The water pump was changed but we have a new leak now…

Thursday, October 29th
This morning, Guy noticed the leak was from the thermostat cover that is cracked. We ordered a new part but nothing proves we’ll get it tomorrow.
Today was also the start of the pre-departure meetings. The average age of people in the rally is quite high. We did our registration and we got our broken part welded, but when installing it back, it cracked again. So now, it’s a little crisis to be sure we get the new one. It’s cloudy today, and cold, with a few showers, I hate this temperature.

Oct 23 to 26

Friday, October 23rd
Nothing to say, this town is too boring.

Saturday, October 24th
Our friend on Meridien 5 rented a car so we got aride to West Marine and to do other errands (Wal-Mart amongst others). Nothing else special, this town is very, very booooring.

Sunday, October 25th
Bleh, nothing special.

Monday, October 26th
I worked ALL day, on the shore, in a small coffee shop. At least internet was good there so I was able to do a lot. Aside from that, nothing else, I’m sick of being here.

Thursday, October 22nd

Another great day today. We got groceries and that’s about it. Internet is very crappy on the boat and it’s annoying, I hope at the docks it will be better because I can’t work from the boat.

So a few details on the trip. We leave from here, Hampton, Virginia, to go to Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands. Then we head to Anegada, then St. Martin to get to St. Batherlemy and Nevis. From Nevis, to Guadalupe, then Dominica and Martinique. This will lead us to St. Lucia ending the trip.

Wednesday, October 21st

Departure at 7:30, when the sun rose. We got out of the bay through a very shallow path. All day using the engine with no wind. We caught a piece of police tape n the propeller, Jean had to dive to get it out under the boat, luckily the weather was nice because the water was cold!
We got in Hampton in the afternoon and we anchored near the “city ». We grabbed a bite on shore and I’m still playing with my GPS thing. We will be anchored for the weekend then head to the dock for inspections before the rally.

Tueday, October 20th

Departure a little late this morning, zero wind so we used the engine all the way. It was a short day of about 25 nautical mailes, to catch up with a few friends in a bay further down, in a town called Deltaville. It is warn, enough to wear t-shirts outside, and again no cloud in sight. I spend time trying to get my GPS thingy to tag pictures to work, but I’m still not quite there. Tomorrow we’ll sail to Hampton, they are forecasting no wind soi t will likely be engine again. Internet works on the boat here, joy!! I can communicate and send pictures :)

Monday, October 19th

FINALLY THE DEPARTURE! We woke up at 6 :05, to be ready to get out of the bay when the bridge would be open. The bridge opened at 7:30 and we went offshore in the Chesapeake to get as south s possible towards Hampton. Not a cloud in the sky. I saw tugs tow boats, hundreds of crab pots we had to dodge one after the other, lighthouses, etc. The day went well with a tail wind most of the day, with some engine help we were able to cover a fair distance (70 nautical miles) at an average of 7 knots. We anchored in a bay shortly after the Potomac River.

The heating system is still not repaired, so we got the cabin as hot as possible when running the engine to keep a lttle bit of heat. Tomorrow evening we should know if the guy in Annapolis could repair it.

Sunday, October 18th

Rain finally stopped, but, the boat’s heating has stopped, so we spent half the day removing it and trying to repair it… no luck. It was quite cold outside so it’s not looking good for future nights.

I went to the bookstore to work a little, finally I found an internet jackpot, free, fast and strong signal… unfortunately we are on our last day here. I was able to do a few things for work. I did a lot less than expected this week so I’m now behind at work.

We went to get dinner at a very old restaurant, where just about every known military, politics or artistic person has been to. It’s called « Chick & Ruth’s Delly » and they do a 6 pounds milk shake (!!!) and 15 lobs sandwiches. Think big! Then we went to have a well deserved shower. Showers are part of the marina and we get in with tokens, I will learn boat stuff everyday. We ended the day by getting groceries because we’ll be moving for the next few days..

I started this journal, and I’ll try to keep it updated. I won’t be able to send many pictures, but I’ll put a few on facebook. When I’ll get back I’ll be able to post a nice album.

Saturday October 17th

Pouring rain started during the night, and never stopped during the day. Only thing to do, put your rain suit on, including pants and boots, and go visit the powerboat show. It was something, companies were hidden in tents and half the boats were locked because they were too luxurious to have wet people in (even though they are on water, those boats are not made to have water inside). Our day ended after that, because were were in a hurry to be warm.