Meow!

1/17/11

Darci has gone, Don is swearing and repairing, Deb has been scraping the bottom and it’s blowing!

20-25 knots for the last week with higher gusts and squalls, Christmas winds in January. Union Island has great holding but lots of turnover charter boats, thankfully the only thing between us and the reef is the kite surfers! 

Don and I were very excited to see our friends Mel and Geno from s/v Meow, friends from Puerto Rico, life-long cruisers and fellow Californians. 

Geno is now fully retired from the oilrigs, enjoying an unscheduled life and bemoaning his broken kite in these perfect conditions.

Lots of wind and flat water behind a protected reef contribute to this kite boarding mecca, although sharing the space with so many boats can be a little nerve racking. 

Everyday we enjoyed front row seats as the kites flew back and forth, silently and swiftly, the ultimate personal watercraft.

Combined with a large swell, the wind has been generating awesome power across the reef for days.

 A huge schooner gave us an incredible show as it cleared the headland to the north and made for Palm Island a little south of us.

Watching the wind blow......an incredible moment.

Union Island

1/7/11

The last island in the Grenadines, the last ferry, the last airport, and....baguettes!

A French gourmet store and REAL yogurt for culture, grapefruits, and roti. It is the little things that keep us happy. 

Sorry Uncle Jack, it is all about the gastronomics. (He says all I write about are food and drink....... Aarrrgh.......pirate!)

The main harbor of Clifton is colorful and busy, a main provisioning stop for cruisers and charter boats.

Fresh produce was the main draw for us, no scurvy on this vessel and we were out of anything green.

The local stalls were a visual feast and as expensive as the French cheese, but thankfully, once in awhile, a woman on the side of the road would appear, no brightly colored overhead to support, and pulling a rickety wagon with infant in tow. 

Fresh papayas!

With some mechanical issues to deal with as well as provisioning, and there is ALWAYS something to fix on a boat, the complete protection behind the reef was a perfect spot to do both shopping and fixing.

Prop, generator, water pump........

.......oh and that no reverse thing too.

But what a view!

We still had a few days left before Darci flew back to the Great White North and daily travel by subway so a little exploring was in order. 

On the leeward side of the island is Chatham Bay, protected and remote, we chose to go by land and hike down to the beach.

A natural Stairmaster with a view and only accessible by boat, hike, or quad. 

The beach was deserted even though there were several charter boats in the bay and we had our pick of spots.

 Mostly small local beer on the beach type places serving chicken, conch, and lobster for a pricey price, and yet just a soda or beer was ok too.

A dip and a cool drink, some sun and cool water......

Tobago Cays, the Grenadines

1/5/11

After our turtle in-service, heading to the Tobago Cays was a must as we had been told that it was possible to swim with them in the marine park. 

Twenty miles south of Bequia, a beautiful sail and calm seas, a perfect day in the Caribbean.

Upon arrival however there were many, many mega yachts, charter yachts, mini yachts, mini mega yachts, mini cruise ships and .....SPECTER! 

Not really,  it is the Ocean Pearl....Super Mega yacht???

The Tobago Cays are protected by a large but shallow horseshoe reef and so named,  turquoise clear water that invites you to count the grains of sand. 

Exposed to the trade winds from the east yet protected from the swell, even though there was a strong current Darci and I were in right away. 

Doubtful about seeing any turtles with so many boats, swimming sans wetsuit was oh so nice.

The reef is very damaged from hurricanes and sea life was sparse, even the coral colorless, a not so good sign. 

And yet ....we were oh so lucky....

Snow Boots to Bathing Suits

1/02/2011

 

Darci was finally reprieved from the JetBlue phone lines and rescheduling chaos of JFK during a blizzard and rejoined her floating home in the tropics on New Year’s Eve. 

We quickly headed off to the island of Bequia, first of the Grenadines and white sand beaches. Diving was a priority as the water was clear and a small dive shop available.

 Not as clear as we had anticipated, it still felt good to blow bubbles together again in warm water.

The island of Bequia is only twelve miles long and has a perfectly protected harbor for yachts. Most head directly here when entering the country, bypassing the more traditional St. Vincent altogether.

Restaurants, guest houses, and white sand beaches make it a tourist destination and polar opposite from the mainland of St. Vincent five miles away.

Bequia also boasts the Old Hegg Turtle Sanctuary on the remote windward side.

Run by Brother King, they take endangered eggs from nests on the beach and raise greenback and hawksbill turtles until they are old enough to be returned to the wild.

Ranging in age from a few days to fifteen years, the turtles are then released as they are now old enough to breed. 

There were a few old timers in the twenty-five year range as well, now mascots and no longer able to be set free. 

The sanctuary is a great place for promoting environmental conservation and education for locals and tourists alike, and the stunning views are well worth the short walk from town. 

Only protected in the marine reserve further south in the Tobago Cays, turtles who return to Bequia to lay their eggs are in constant danger from poachers, man and animal. 

What do you feed captive turtles....? Starkist and Bumblebee!

 

St. Vincent, "Home of the Blessed"

12/26/10  

The new year has come and Don and I have headed to St. Vincent and the Grenadines, dropping off a guest and to wait for a last minute visit from our daughter Darci. 

Newly a New Yorker, of course the “blizzard of the year” delayed her arrival by a few days enabling us to hang around the volcanic and tropical mainland of St. Vincent before heading down to clear water and the Grenadines.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines are on odd mixture of volcanic, tropical mainland in the north and low, semi arid coral islands in the south. 

The main island of St. Vincent is practically devoid of typical Caribbean tourism. It lacks the white sand beaches and all inclusive resorts so familiar on these islands, and cruise ships stop for a brief few hours on their way to St. Lucia or the Tobago Keys. 

The coastal road encompasses only three quarters of the island and none cross its interior completely. St. Vincent's nickname, Hairoun, translates to “Home of the Blessed”, a leftover term from the original South American inhabitants, also the brand of the local beer. The people are friendly with fierce looking features and engaging smiles, culturally a mix of South American and East Indian, Black Caribe, and a few scattered colonial European. Chicken Roti, Goat Roti, Conch Roti..........oh and Don has now discovered goat water and calaloo soup. The local food stalls love him, and they provide as much home made hot sauce as you can stand!

We based on the south coast at Young Island, a short but packed bus ride to Kingston, the airport, and the open air market. For a mere two EC (80 cents) you can ride all the way downtown in a minivan built for eight yet twenty passengers is considered minimum capacity. 

The driver drives and the “stuffer” literally stuffs patrons in, miraculously finding extra seats and rearranging according to size and shape. Destination is inconsequential, it’s all about the space.

 Kingston is the capital, with the occasional cruise ship and bustling open air markets, our favorite. 

Everyone selling everything, fresh fruit, spices, nuts, sneakers, stereos, and anything you want that is plastic or a knockoff from China. 

The women rule the markets, they are tough negotiators, and no haggling when it comes to produce. 

You don’t want to pay 16EC a pound for tomatoes? No problem, sometimes with a smile, sometimes not.

If shopping wears you out, rum shop row offers sliding scale prices matched by sliding scale rum, some with labels and some without.

Captain Bligh Rum is the hallmark dark rum, as St. Vincent  is where the infamous captain planted his hard won breadfruit tree after the “Mutiny on the Bounty“.

Of course the locals drink the white rum with the label that reads “Very Strong Rum” in big letters. 

Dominoes if you are invited, and you definitely are if you are drinking VSR! 

It’s tropical, it drizzles, it shines..... Home of the Blessed.