26/03/2010 by admin.

Today is Friday 26^th March, the end of another busy week in paradise. We got in to Providenciales, or Provo, as it is locally known, in  Turks & Caicos yesterday.

We left Tortola in the British Virgin Islands on Saturday 20^th March for the long 360’ run over to the Dominican Republic. The wind let us down with only light airs from astern so we had to motor most of the time. It took 2 days to get to Cofresi on the northern coastline of the Dominican Republic (DR), passing north of Puerto Rica. Samana bay on the eastern tip of the DR is where hump back whales gather in their hundreds from January to March each year during the mating season. Apparently they come down from as far north as Greenland. We kept a good lookout for them as we went past Samana Bay and were able to see 3 whales pass about 200 feet down the starboard side of the boat in the middle of the afternoon. It was a fantastic sight, they were bigger than the Minke whale we saw crossing the Atlantic. Very exciting.

We arrived in Ocean World Marina in Cofresi, DR,  at midday on the 22^nd March. The wind had picked up earlier that morning so we managed to sail the last 40’ which gave us some relief from the constant noise of the engine. Ocean World Marina is a remarkable place, a bit like Las Vegas mixed up with Disneyland by the sea. The marina was built only 2 years ago, and was almost empty, just a couple of big sports fishing boats and 6 yachts. In the centre of the marina is a big 4 storey building that looks a bit like a wedding cake with a huge neon sign on the top advertising the casino. There is also a night club and a theatre in the building, with a burlesque show called Bravissimo running from Tuesday to Saturday every week. Alongside this building is a waterworld park where you can swim with dolphins and watch performing seals.  Just what you would expect to see in a marina. Apparently holidaymakers from all over the DR come to Oceanworld marina so it is obviously very popular. Our first night there(Monday), everything was shut so we got a taxi round to Puerto Plata, the neighbouring town, and had dinner in a very local place with live lobster in tanks in the front window. The food was OK and reasonable but the local area looked a bit dodgy with lots of security guards everywhere carrying pump action shotguns, so we didn’t stay long. The following day we met up with a nice Canadian couple on a catamaran, from Edmonton, Alberta. We had a traditional Canadian pancake breakfast with them on their boat on Wednesday 24^th, before we headed off for the 185’ run to Provo in the Turks and Caicos. This trip involved a 40’ run just south of the Caicos Bank where the water depth was between 7 and 10 feet throughout, with frequent coral heads reducing the depth to 4’ or less. This was a nerve-jangling trip as our draft is 6 feet, so Pam and stu took it in turns to act as lookout for the coral heads. You could se them in the water as dark patches up to 15’ in front of us. Eventually we got to the southern tip of Provo and anchored off Bay Cay while we waited for the high tide to get in to South Side Marina. We swam to the small deserted  island at Bay Cay which turned out to be an Iguana sanctuary. Stu managed to spot a couple of Iguanas hiding in small caves. We then headed in to the entrance to South side marina, but ran aground on a sand bar at the entrance. After a few tense minutes trying to get off the sand, we managed to back off the sand, and deciding not to risk running aground again, we ended up anchoring in the bay overnight. Today we plan to do some provisioning ashore in Provo, before heading round to Sapodillo bay to anchor tonight.  

More to follow.

Chris & Pam

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20/03/2010 by admin.

Well, it’s Friday 19^th March, and we are back in Village Cay marina in Road Town, Tortola. We dropped Gareth and David off at the airport yesterday afternoon after a great week cruising round the BVI’s.

Picking up from the last blog, last Monday night’s Mash-Up at the Bitter End yacht club lived up to expectations, with ‘Heavy B’ doing a great job keeping the party going. We were on a mooring buoy just off the yacht club so getting back on board in the early hours was a triumph of seamanship.

The following day we headed round to Virgin Gorda marina. The boys took the dinghy round to the Baths at the southern tip of the island to do some snorkelling and exploring the remarkable caves. That night we treated ourselves to dinner ashore at ‘Chez Bamboo’, a tapas restaurant a couple of hundred yards from the marina. The highlight of the evening, apart from the surprisingly good tapas, was the live music played by guitarist /vocalist Morris Mark. He had a wide repertoire, playing local as well as contemporary music, and kept us entertained all evening.

On Wednesday 17^th March, we all went round to a beach close to the baths. Pam and I then took the dinghy round to the Baths, but the red flag was up as there was a big swell running in, so snorkelling round the rocks was not recommended. We did, however, meet up with an American guy who had managed to loose his dinghy. He had tied it to a buoy while he went swimming and when he got back to the buoy, his dinghy was no longer there. We worked out where it was likely to have drifted to and headed in that direction. Pam then spotted the dinghy tied to another anchored yacht which had managed to rescue it before it hit the rocks, so the slightly embarrassed  American was re-united with his dinghy. After dinner on board that night we went ashore to the bar in the Marina, where there was more live entertainment by ‘Profile’, a keyboard and bass guitar duo, who performed almost non-stop for over 2 hours. As the boys were not keen to see Pam and I showing our disco dance moves, we headed back to the boat, leaving them to sample the local nightlife.

Thursday 18^th March was our last day with Gareth and David, so we headed over to a dive site at Great Dog island. Gareth and David went snorkelling while Nick and Stu did some scuba diving. It was a fairly lively spot with a swell coming in to the rocky shoreline , but they all managed to see plenty of coral and fish, including a barracuda which took an unhealthy interest in David. Once they were back on board, we headed over to Trellis Bay for a final BBQ and swim. Shortly after we had picked up a mooring buoy, we saw 2 dolphins swimming very close to Fizz. They turned out to be a mother and baby dolphin and they just kept swimming round the boat. The boys got the snorkelling gear on and went swimming with the dolphins, getting really close to them. It was amazing to see them swimming so close to the dolphins. The boys said afterwards it was the most incredible experience and one they will remember for a long time. We then had to get Gareth and David ashore in the dinghy to catch their flight. Luckily it was a short 5 minute walk from the jetty to the airport. Once we had seen them off, we headed round to Village Cay marina in Road Town, where today Nick caught his flight back to the UK via Antigua.

So tomorrow we start heading up to Miami with a 366’ run over to Puerta Plata in the Dominican Republic. This will take us 2 and a half days so we are hoping for good weather.

More to follow.

Chris & Pam

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16/03/2010 by admin.

Well, here we are again in Virgin Gorda, one week on. It’s Monday 15^th March, and we are half way through our week with Nick, Gareth and David. We left Virgin Gorda last Tuesday 9^th with Jayne and Richard and headed over to Road Town in Tortola tying up at Village Cay Marina. Jayne and Richard flew back to the UK on Wednesday 10^th via Antigua while Pam, Stu and I got the boat ready for our next set of visitors, Nick, Gareth and David. They flew in on Thursday evening, and hit the deck running with a late night at the Bat Cave bar opposite the marina.

The Following morning there were a few sore heads in evidence as we headed off to Pirates Bight on Norman Island, about 8’ from Road Town. We picked up a mooring and spent the rest of the day snorkelling and canoeing. After supper we took the dinghy over to Willie ‘T’s , a well known drinking hole on a barge  tied up at the other end of the bay. After a couple of drinks there, we headed back to Fizz, where Pam and I were dropped off before the boys headed off in search of something a little more exciting. They started at the Pirates Bight bar ashore before heading back to Willie ‘T’s where things had hotted up considerably, particularly when one of the young ladies decided to remove most of her clothing while lying on the bar.

On Saturday 13^th we headed round to Cane Garden Bay stopping off at Sopers Hole for lunch. Nick and Gareth, as part of their daily work-out, decided to canoe round from Sopers Hole to Cane Garden Bay, a distance of about 4 miles.  In their relentless drive to get a thorough understanding of the local nightlife, the boys were off ashore again on Saturday night to sample the delights of Cane Garden Bay. Allegedly things were a little quieter here, and the boys were back on board relatively early. Sunday 14^th saw us over at the Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost Van Dyke (so named after a Dutch pirate who was well-known around these parts in the late 16^th century). This spot has become so popular that it now attracts cruise ships and loads of day boats from the nearby US Virgin Islands. We had a couple of hours here and had the obligatory painkiller at the Soggy Dollar bar before heading off to Trellis Bay, round to the north of Tortola. We got back in to Virgin Gorda earlier today and picked up a mooring buoy just off Prickly Pear Island. Tonight we are heading in to the Bitter End Yacht club bar where the legendary Monday  night ‘Mash-up’  kicks off at around 9 . Could be a late one.

More to follow.

Chris & Pam

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08/03/2010 by admin.

Today is Monday 8^th March, and we are alongside in the marina at the Bitter End Yacht Club in Virgin Gorda. We have had lots of adventures over the last few days, with loads of sea-life and full-on sailing.

We left St Kitts on the 2^nd March, and sailed across to St Barthelemy (St Barts), a trip of approx 43’.  St Barts has a mixed heritage with both the French and Swedish taking an active interest over the years, until the island was sold by the Swedes back to the French for 80,000 francs in 1877. It is now a French department and uses the Euro as it’s currency.  We got into Gustavia, St Barts , midafternoon after a light winds crossing, but with plenty of sunshine. We anchored at the northern end of the bay, which was very busy with other yachts and several superyachts. Quite by chance we found ourselves anchored right next to a sunsail charter yacht ,appropriately called “Something Hot”, full of American girls,  who spent most of the afternoon sunbathing topless on the front of the boat. Luckily we had 2 pairs of binoculars, but there was a bit of a struggle getting Richard to share.  Taffy was taking more than an active interest in the girls on the boat, and had offered to serenade them with a medley of Welsh love songs while they had their dinner, but I had to put a stop to it, as the noise was upsetting other boats in the area. In order to avoid any further incidences, Taffy was confined to quarters for the rest of the evening.

The following morning we went in to Gustavia for a wander round. The shops were very expensive, Gucci,Prada etc, so it was mainly window shopping. We had lunch at the Wall restaurant next to Fort Oscar. It’s a great traditional French restaurant, with very tasty seafood and a huge choice of wine.  Highly recommend it if you ever find yourself in St Barts.  That afternoon, we motored round to Anse de Grand Colombier, the next bay north of Gustavia.  We tied up to one of the mooring buoys and snorkelled most of the afternoon. The water was warm and crystal clear, and to our surprise there were turtles swimming round near to the boat, several of them. It was fantastic to watch them swim up from the bottom, poke their heads up at the surface and then swim back to the bottom again. Stu and Richard did some scuba diving over by some rocks and saw a stingray. The following morning, after an early morning swim, we went ashore to the beautiful sandy beach and explored the hills behind the bay. Then it was off for the short 18’ trip to St Martin, where we anchored in Baie de Marigot for the night.

Saturday the 6^th, we sailed from St Martin to Anguilla, a run of about 12’ , and anchored in Road Bay on the northern side of the island. Fizz was rolling quite a bit at the anchorage as a weather system started to blow through. The wind veered round to the north and increased to 24 knots, so it was not the most peaceful nights sleep. Sunday 7^th, we were up at dawn for the run up to Virgin Gorda in the BVI’s. This at 77’ was our longest trip since the ARC, so was going to be a full day’s sail. The wind was still strong at 25 knots, gusting to 30, and we had several rain showers throughout the day . Both the main and the genoa were reefed, but we still managed to average 7.5 knots with 3m waves. One of the highlights of the day, apart from the full-on sailing, was the sight of the dolphins which joined us half way through the trip. We got our first sight of Virgin Gorda in the distance at about 2 in the afternoon, and after passing Richard Branson’s Necker Island, we eventually tied up at the Bitter End yacht club marina at 4:30 for some well-earned R&R. 

More to follow.

Chris & Pam

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03/03/2010 by admin.

Today is Wednesday 3^rd March, it’s 7 o clock in the morning, and we are alongside in Port Zante marina in Bassterre, the capital of St Kitts.

The problem with Fizz’s inmast furling was successfully fixed last Friday in Falmouth, Antigua, and the mast was re-stepped. We motored round the corner to Nelson’s dockyard on Saturday 27^th Feb and anchored in the bay, with Kalandia. Jayne and Richard Golds arrived later on Saturday and we had a BBQ on Fizz with Bill, Leila and Tom off Kalandia joining us. Stu, Tom and Leila then went ashore to sample the nightlife of English harbour, leaving us old fogies to get some well-earned sleep. We have a suspicion that Taffy also went ashore with them as he was nowhere to be seen . That suspicion was confirmed the following morning when we were visited by the local constabulary asking me if I was prepared to pay bail to release him from the local nick. It appears he decided to stay ashore when Stu Tom and Leila came back in the early hours, and as last seen dancing on a pool table in the “Mad Mongoose” bar with a stewardess from one of the superyachts anchored in Falmouth.  Anyway once I had cleared up the mis-understanding that he was not in fact the Prince of Wales on a short vacation in his megayacht, and paid for the damage to the pool table, he was released on the promise that he would not be allowed ashore again anywhere in Antigua.

With Taffy locked up back on board, we went ashore and did the Nelson’s dockyard museum before lunch in the Dockyard hotel. This was followed by a swim in the bay, where Richard had his first taste of scuba diving under Stu’s expert coaching. The inflatable chairs, one of which was kindly donated by Michelle Quaidoo after their recent holiday in St Lucia, were also deployed for Pam and Jayne to try out. We had one last run ashore on Sunday night with team Kalandia to the Mad Mongoose bar for a game of pool. One of the pool tables was still out of service, bearing the scars of Taffy’s attempt to do the Welsh tea cake dance.

We were up bright and early on Monday 1^st March where after completing clearing with customs, we bid an emotional farewell to Bill, Leila and Tom on Kalandia, and headed off to Nevis, with the boat speakers playing Jerusalem at full volume, much to the consternation of the neighbouring German yacht.

We arrived in the anchorage at Pinney’s beach just north of Charles town , Nevis, at 5 in the afternoon, just in time for a swim. We followed dinner that evening with a film show using Pam’s laptop in the cockpit, but were only able to get about half way through the film before a mysterious sound emanated from one side of the cockpit. This was subsequently found to be Jayne snoring. It was also noticed that Richard had perfected the art of nodding off while sat upright, but as his head was moving perilously towards the console grabrail, we thought in the interests of health and safety that we should postpone the rest of the film and retire to bed.

Tuesday 2^nd March we were visited by the local Port authority police boat just after 9. Fearing the worst that Taffy had managed to get ashore again, we were greatly relieved to find that they were only there to remind us to clear with the local customs and pay the harbour dues, before we headed of. So Richard, Stu and I headed ashore in the dinghy where I spent an interesting 1 and a half hours with customs, immigration and the port authority. Once the formalities were completed, we headed off to Basseterre in St Kitts, 7 miles further north.  We managed to find a pace in the local marina here, and had lunch in a local beach bar before sampling the local shopping delights around the cruise terminal. Last night it was eyes down for a session of poker where Jayne managed to lose most of her chips in the first half hour, before doing an amazing about-turn and winning seven straight hands in a row.

So today we head off to St Barts, about 47 miles north east of here, and then on to St Martin’s tomorrow.

More to follow.

Chris

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