66) St. Lucia

Rodney Bay Marina

Rodney Bay, St. Lucia, West Indies

14° 05.5 N 60° 58.2 W   

                                                                           

 

  

This morning I found the Internet café/car rental place upstairs near the marina office.  They accepted USD and ECC (Eastern Caribbean Currency) and I was in luck.  I have less than 100 USD and no ATM card or a pin number for my Visa or MC.  They were fairly reasonable at about 7-8 USD per hour.  Amazing how some of us are so addicted to e-mail and the Internet.  The disc that went home with Clive had a huge amount of data on it and I was dreading downloading all of it because the Internet has been pretty slow in places.  I am all caught up now and hope to keep on it.  I am going to try to write each night as it happens.

 

We left the marina around 10am in the rental car.  There was total chaos in the marina parking lot.  The first few miles are pretty much a blur.  One of the most memorable items is that KFC is everywhere on this island.  I saw at least 6 today on this little island. 

Our first touristy stop was an overlook above the commercial harbor where 2 cruise ships were docked.  This particular overlook is a sanctioned trinket market and we were hounded upon leaving the car.  They spoke English, as it is the official language and were polite but very persistent.  They were good at working the crowd by asking where you are from, etc.  I said California and was repeatedly called Chicago by the same guy who wanted to sell me some local stuff.

 

   

This island is a jungle.  It is amazing how they cut roads in this place.  The roads are twisty with switchbacks everywhere.  Lots of potholes and then in some areas the roads are perfect.  We did notice lots and lots of people just sitting in front of their houses, on the streets, etc.  It appears there is a lot of unemployment.  Yet, there are nice cars, nice clothes, and nice homes amid ramshackle places.  On just about every corner in the hills there is a drinking establishment with a major liquor manufacturer’s label and colors painted on the entire building.  It seems they also sell food and drink out of their houses.  Many cattle and sheep tied off in yards and along the roads and lots of skinny happy dogs roaming the streets.

                 

Our next stop, which took forever, was a botanical garden.  We planned our route so as to have Danielle at the airport in time for her 3pm departure.  I was looking forward to seeing some exotic flowers and plants as I enjoy that.  But, it was a letdown.  It was pretty sparse and the only thing of significant interest and even that wasn’t much was the placard in front of a ruin, although, there was nothing much of a ruin to see.  We were able to get Danielle to the airport on time and then decided to get lunch.  There are not many places that appealed to us and after asking around we were told to go to the restaurant called ‘Four Doors’.  After some driving and asking for more directions we came upon a place in the area described and it was called ‘Foun Doux’ (sp?).  We thought this was what the locals told us about and that they just had a dialect that we couldn’t understand.  We eventually found out that we were referred to a restaurant on the other side of the island.  We thought they said 4 doors and really meant ‘fondue’.  Ugh.   

    

                     

We stopped at many overlooks to see the ocean and cliffs.  The scenery is spectacular and you realize how much of a jungle this place is.  Didn’t see many birds or animals other than mentioned. 

 

Bananas in blue plastic bags.

  

                                                               

We were pretty interested to see the only ‘drive-in’ volcano in the Caribbean and after seeing it realized it was kind of a letdown, too.  The hype really sets up the experience.  We pulled up to the vendors selling trinkets prior to the ticket booth.  From this vantage point you can’t see much but you can smell the sulfur in the air.  We paid and they lifted the gate and we drove a few hundred feet and stopped.  We could have walked in.  Anyway, we walked to the lower vista point, then down the steps and across a stream and then up the steps to the closest vista point.  We were upwind and the smell was not bad.  We saw water gurgling where the gases and steam were escaping.  And that was it.  For the full journal experience this would be a great place for a smellavision video clip.   

They drive on the opposite side of the road here and it takes getting used to. 

 

On our way back to the boat we stopped at a grocery store and were able to replenish some food.  Going into foreign grocery stores is always interesting.  American products, or things we associate with home, are everywhere.  We now have lots of food and snacks to keep us going for a few days. 

This driving around stuff can make you tired by the end of the day and after loading all the food on board we all took a rest.  I typed and the rest read.  John, Nancy and I ventured out to the other side of the bay for dinner, as it was our last night here.  We ended up at the restaurant that is in the channel entrance for this inlet/marina.  Steak and lobster was on the menu and a little hard to pass up.  Well, the steak left something to be desired and lobster is pretty hard to mess up and that was good.  We tried conch cakes and they tasted similar to Abalone.  The coffee was great and the banana split really was a banana split in half and 1 scoop of ice cream.  We are so spoiled with what we are accustomed to.  While sitting there we watched a couple people on the other side of the narrow channel moving around in the dark.  I just happened to see them light something and then casually walk away.  They lit a firework that apparently they shouldn’t have.  It was of the type that should have launched a hundred feet in the air and then explode but instead it exploded on the ground.  The sound was powerful, the explosion of red and white sparks spectacular and looked odd in that it was muted into a half circle shape instead of a full round circle due to the ground deflecting it.   

It looks like we will take off from here tomorrow and head to an anchorage on the south side of the island.  This way we cut in half the 70-mile +/- trip to St. Vincent.  I’m OK with getting out of here and moving on quickly so as to have more days to stay when we find a great place.  And, there is no good scuba here so… 

If the seas are friendly for the next passage I will drop the fishing line in the water.  It’s not so much the rough conditions making it hard to trail a line but the cleaning, bagging, meal preparation that is difficult.   

 

                     

  

65) Martinique

Le Marin, Martinique (anchorage near the floating dry dock)

14° 28 N 60° 52 W

The early bird eats the worm.  John made off to shore to get new sheets for the repaired Genoa.  If you remember, we had to cut and splice them to make it to Barbados.  Luckily, the marine stores open early here and he got what was needed. 

   

First things first, we needed to lift the dinghy and stow it on the foredeck.  We use a halyard to lift it and spare short lines to lash it down. 

John wanted to install the Genoa so we could use it on our way to St Lucia.  It is an easy enough procedure when the wind is low but when the wind is on the nose in the high teens it becomes an issue.  The first attempt to raise the sail failed.  When the sail was a third of the way up the mast the boat swung through the wind causing the sail to backwind.  Then the boat started sailing forward on the anchor.  This was not an option and unplanned.  We immediately dropped the sail before unseating the hook.

We figured the best way to install this sail in this wind was to weigh anchor and head out to deep water.  The exit from this bay was just as fraught with coral as the entry was.  We basically followed our GPS waypoints out that we used to get in.  Instead of raising and furling the sail we decided to raise it and then sail away. 

 

Time to weigh anchor and depart.  While outside the bay we raised the sail, trimmed it and got on course.

Rodney Bay Marina

Rodney Bay, St. Lucia, West Indies

14° 05.5 N 60° 58.2 W 

St Lucia

The sail across to St. Lucia was fast.  The wind was in the high teens and we sailed with just the Genoa and managed to do about 7-8 knots.  But, the waves were just slightly off the beam, 6-8’ and the ride was fairly sloppy.  We saw about 10 sailboats transiting both ways and a few freighters.  St. Lucia from a distance looks very similar to the island we just left.  Today there were lots of clouds and lots of rain over the island. 

  

We are in a marina and tied to a dock.  This is an odd dock in that the fingers only go out about 25’.  All the boats hang past the ends of the dock.  But, everything is within close walking distance.  After we got settled in Nancy made a call to Sparkle Laundry the local laundry service and they came out in a boat and picked it up. 

Sparkle Laundry

One of my goals when I got here was to walk around the little bay and find Hooters.  I wanted to have a typical American BBQ meal and buy Tina a trinket.  Yes, she specifically asked for a pink t-shirt from the St. Lucia Hooters.  I wanted to make it happen.  I looked on the guidebook and figured it was about a mile walk.  After getting a little lost over there the walk probably doubled by the time I got back.  I had to ask twice for directions.  Both times they said where it was.  Well, I get there and Hooters is gone and the restaurant that replaced it is closed.  I figured this is what happened.  A place called Pizza Pizza moved in next door with a lot of playground equipment for kids and was entirely a family joint.  There is no way a seedy place like Hooters was going to compete with a family place like that.  Long story longer, there is no trinket to be had from Hooters. 

64) Martinique

Marina du Bakoua, Pointe du Bout, Martinique, 14° 33.382 N 61° 03.265 W

We tried to get out early but it just never happens.  We were plagued with heavy rain and that caused some delay.  I once again volunteered for dinghy duty for the dismount from the dock.  We were med tied with stern lines to the dock and 2 bowlines to mooring balls.  My job was to motor out, disconnect the bowlines from the balls, meet the boat at the fuel dock a few slips away and attach the dinghy.  This went well and no lines were wrapped on the prop. 

We also needed to fuel up and that is a long, long process.  Unfortunately, this boat is not fill-friendly.  John sits on the deck and nurses the fuel in.  It takes a while to get 200-300 gallons. 

I sat up in the chair for a couple hours of clouds and sprinkles.  The winds were blowing into the mid thirties and hit 34.  But, we were motoring.  After turning east the waves were on the nose and it was a slow go.  We were down to going only 2.5 knots.  Ugh.  

  

We passed very close to Diamond Rock on our way to Le Merin.  This is a popular dive site and the dive boats I dove with come here too.  From a distance the rest of the island does not look spectacular.  It’s pretty low but still has lots of lush greenery.

Le Marin, Martinique (anchorage near the floating dry dock), 14° 28 N 60° 52 W

The first attempt to anchor failed and we got it set on the second try.  Some sitting around and settling was going on until it was time to get the sail.  The reason we anchored here was that the sail loft was close by and we were to pick it up with the dinghy.  

It was getting to be late afternoon and John, Alan and I took the dinghy to the shoreline.  The loft was tough to find and we had to ask for directions.  They said go that way and turn in…  it was a slough.  We thought this couldn’t be the way.  But it was.  The sail loft was part of a new large commercial complex.  This particular building was designed for a loft including an electric winch that ran thru the length of the building for loading sails.  You can pull your boat in and they will lift it and put it in the building and the process is reversed on the way out.  On the other side of the building you can do the same from the ground or vehicle.  This place was fantastic and very well designed. 

  

OK, we got the sail and it’s time to leave.  But, Alan says he’ll walk a mile down the road and meet the boat when it comes back for dinner.  It’s dark now and John and I head out the slough and he’s puttering along and it started sprinkling.  He says, no problem we’ll dry off soon.  Then it pours.  Hard.  He floors it.  The rain stung our eyes badly and I said that I could not see forward and he said don’t worry.  And then, bang!  I thought we hit a rock or tree.  The boat stops dead in its tracks.  I turned the engine off and said get the paddles.  Are we going to shore or the boat?  He says the boat is right over there and I start paddling.  It’s pouring rain and for yesterday and today it was a bit cooler and on the water it is noticeably cooler.  It was now cold.  He said he thought that the transmission just popped out of gear and he was right.  We got it started and then made it to the boat.  We still had to lift the sail in the boat with a halyard and were happy that is all we had to do.  Now, I hadn’t had a shower for a couple days for whatever reason and I decided to take one.  I knew that I was not going to get back in that dinghy after I was clean and warm and go to shore for dinner and that was a good decision.  While they were away I was able to shower and make pancakes for dinner.  Mmmmmmm…

I also watched almost an entire movie and thought that they had been gone for a long time.  I kinda figured it was because of the bad service or maybe they were enjoying themselves.  When they showed up the first thing Nancy said was that they were all the way down by Club Med.  We passed it on our way in so that means it is on the way out; and, at least a mile past the boat.  They had been looking for the boat for almost 45 minutes.  They got lost.  I could not believe it.  I asked how hard is it to see when you get to the end of the anchored boats, or there are no more anchor lights, or why didn’t you follow the shoreline and why were you way over there and how did you get lost?  They all said they could not see the boats or the boat lights because all the lights on shore were too bright.  They were all soaked.  They motored past the boat and realized when they got to Club Med that they were going out to sea. 

63) Martinique

Marina du Bakoua, Pointe du Bout, Martinique

14° 33.382 N 61° 03.265 W

I just took the electrical motor off the scuba compressor and the prospect of the unit working does not look good.  The motor has been exposed to salt water far too long and the exterior corrosion is extensive.  Alan briefly worked on it yesterday and did not get far.  Today he said that it is probably a short circuit that causes it to spike.  Then he pointed out that the belt is ripped halfway thru and it is of a non-conventional type.  The likelihood of finding a new electrical motor and belt is low.  I am now faced with the reality that there is no scuba compressor onboard.  As a diver going to exotic places I am very bummed.  Snorkeling for me only goes so far in the pleasure department.  Besides, when I am on scuba I have a better chance of getting good pictures.  I am prepared to spend the money in my piggy bank to go on dives with a retail scuba shop.  What the hell I traveled this far and what’s another $500.  In reality that’s a few hundred that I was hoping to keep.

It’s quiet all around us.  The breeze is blowing nicely with lots of cloud cover and making for nice temperatures.  Alan and Danielle are here and ready for tomorrow’s departure.  John is working on the boat.  I managed to rinse my dive gear, remove the motor and reserved the rest of the day for doing nothing. 

When the water is added to the water tanks it has to be put in very slow because it causes a vacuum somehow and then we can’t fill the tanks all the way.  They also make a loud boom when the tanks flex while filling and draining.  The filling procedure is very temperamental and it is very unlikely that we get full water tanks.  While filling the tank the water spills into the bilge somehow and then gets pumped overboard with a few dollops of diesel fuel and engine oil that is spilled in the bilge. 

Most places are closed today.  Of all places the Internet café opens at 5.  I have something to do now at 5.  I still have 40 euros and need to unload them somehow.  Maybe I’ll buy some laundry soap, too.  Aah, the life of a cruiser.  I’m almost finished with paperback #17.