June to September 2006

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After many squalls in the afternoon we enjoyed a breeze free evening. The scenery was spectacular as the rain washed the air clean and we could see every single plant in the distant mountains. After a restful night we pulled anchor at 5 am and slowly inched our way out the harbor of Salinas into deeper water. The wind was still asleep and the sea still calm with just an occasional swell. That didn't last long as the east sky was covered with squalls and we headed into them. The radar comes in handy as we can see where the rain is. The squall headed for us didn’t seem to have any wind involved and knowing we already had a reefed main and staysail up we were not worried all too much. It started to rain so no big deal until we saw the frothy white line in the water heading for us at high speed and knew trouble was ahead. Luckily we were prepared, Manuela on the helm and Sid tending the sails. 32.2 knots of wind hit us and blew the rain side ways, the sails were noisily flapping in the gusts as we headed right into the wind not to put any strain into the sails. About 5 minutes later all was over, we were soaked. After the adrenaline stopped pumping we were glad to have survived it in one piece. Poor Tika didn't know where to go before she decided to hide down below; she stayed hidden for the rest of the trip. A few more squalls skirted us but no problem as we now also reefed the staysail. We only sailed 18 miles which seemed a whole day’s trip. The trades started to blow again and we started doing the Caribbean two-step, two steps forward and one step back and had to motor sail in a zigzag pattern along the coast to be more comfortable. We finally decided to stop in Puerto Patilla and wait for the daily trades to stop blowing. It was a beautiful and very tropical looking anchorage and we got a good rest. By 11:00 pm, the wind had calmed enough so we headed on. The swell and lumpy sea still existed we realized that the sea here is never really calm and it was dark. We had to dodge some squalls but missed them all. A loud bang got our attention and we knew immediately what it was, we ran over a fish trap, not something you want to hear. The motor never slowed down, no vibrations and no leaks, so we figured the shaft shark cut the floats loose. A few minutes later the prop started squealing, not good. Then some 20 minutes later another bang, must have been another one and the squealing stopped. The engine again never slowed down. Sid checked for any water coming in, the engine seemed to run just fine and so we decided to head on to Vieques and assess the eventual damage there. We had to dodge many squalls but in all it was one of the best motor sail we’ve had in a while. First thing after we had anchored in Sun Bay we jumped over board to see what the damage was. It wasn't pretty as the strut was bent by 3 inches, but the relief was to see that the shaft didn’t seem to be bent. With a line wrapped around the strut running up and through the cockpit and around the winch Sid used a 4 pound sledge hammer pounding on the strut and after every tenth hit I winched in on the line and after a couple of hours he got it bent back about 1 inch. At least now it was freed from grinding on the hull. Poor Sid was under water for over 2 hours and was pretty sore by now not to mention the exhaustion. We knew we had to eventually haul out but that would have to wait until Saint Thomas as Vieques has no facilities. In the mean time all we could do is wait out the weather again.

Sun Bay was a fun stop. We hiked along the beautiful beach, which had some tidal pools deep enough to sit in and cool off. Now and then a wave crashing ashore would make it high enough and trickle over the rocks of the reef into the pool we were sitting in, like a little ambiance waterfall in a pool. One of the next bays over is known for its bioluminescence and since the ocean was too rough to take the dinghy around I went ashore to find the one mile path. I was about 5 minutes away from the bay a heard of wild horses were grazing along side the path. Most of them got out of my way, a lot of them were hidden in the bushes but one jumped out in front of a smaller one and walked straight towards me with head high above. It didn't take me long to realize that I was trespassing and turned around and walked as fast as I could, now and then looking over my shoulder to see that the horse would start walking towards me again every time I looked back. Later when it was dark we didn't think it was wise to hike the trail in the dark amongst wild horses and never got to see the bioluminescent bay. Stacey and I took the dinghy around to the town of Esperanza which had a small convenience store, two restaurants and a few tourist shops. We had fun exploring and the excitement was coming back around the corner into our anchorage as 6 foot waves came towards us, making it rough, very rough. The only way to get back was driving the dinghy very slowly along side the waves, while we got soaked but finally arrived safe and sound back in the anchorage. Another tropical wave brought us squalls and kept us here longer. On the 19^th we heard that another system was already underway and since this anchorage was a bit rolly we decided to lift anchor and escape to well protected Ensenada Honda, it’s surrounded by mangroves. It was only 8 miles but getting there was tough as the wind started building and the waves doubled up. We had 8 footers crashing right over the bow and the two hour trip seemed like a whole day’s nightmare as the water seemed worse than what we had in the Mona Passage. Good thing we moved as squall after squall with winds up to 30 knots whipped by. The tropical wave should have only lasted another day and we were looking forward to get to St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands, but no such luck. We finally had some clear sky but the next wave was already underway to hit us the following night. The blue sky lasted just long enough for us to explore the anchorage. There is nothing but mangroves and only towards the entrance was a beach area, but very hard to get ashore, then you have to walk across a shallow bank in ankle deep to knee deep water, depending on the tide. The bank is overgrown with some sea grass and is full of hidden holes, which took the fun out of exploring it. In all we had just a short time to explore before the next tropical wave rolled in. This was a very fast moving system as we could see it coming. Just as soon as this one had passed the next one was underway and brought us again one squall after another for another whole day and night. Then we finally had a break, the sky was blue, but knew the next tropical wave would hit us again the following night. We took the opportunity of that 24 hour weather window and headed the 32 miles to St. Thomas. We actually were very surprised to see that the ocean was calm as we came out of the anchorage but too good to be true as within a few minutes the waves started to build up again. In the next hour a huge squall hit us with lots of rain but luckily not much wind. Then we slugged along towards the Virgin Islands. As soon as we passed the Vieques Island and headed into the canal to St. Thomas a current was pushing us into the oncoming waves. All of a sudden to port we had huge waves and on starboard the sea looked like a giant pot of boiling water, the current. We got out of that as fast as we could by turning the rudder to port. The bow went completely under the water several times and it was just another miserable trip. The good thing was we had the current on our side which made our trip faster we motor sailed over 6 knots. I couldn't believe the mess I found when I went down below. Everything down below is secured and can’t fall down, but we never expected things to fall up, well they did. It was so bad that even one of the wine bottles fell out of the wine rack which is almost impossible, just good it didn’t break, it was red wine, a good one at that.

It was a huge relief to finally arrive in St. Thomas, mainly knowing that from now on sailing would, could, should be easier. We took a slip in the Crown Bay Marina for a few days to rinse all the salty crust off the boat, we had a lot of cleaning to do, oh what joy.

The waiting game continued as well as the pounding into the weather. It seemed like a never ending slug heading east as we're running out of time with hurricane season approaching closer. We missed a good window as we also had to wait for Welsh Roves mail to be sent which was delayed. We got a lot of shopping done and rented a car to tour the island. St. Thomas is a very pretty island but only takes about 20 minutes to drive around. Toni was doing the driving, as a Brit he’s used driving on the wrong side, although we had to remind him now and then. When the mail arrived we had just about a 24 hour window left to get out of St. Thomas. The sail to St. John was again rough and the closer we got to Round Bay on the east side of St. John the wilder the ride got with 8 foot swells and very choppy seas. The Bay is fairly big and has several small bays within, all surrounded by steep lush hills. We headed into the national park and then realized that anchoring in the whole park was prohibited. They have some daytime moorings though but only allow you three hours of use. Just around the corner, some 2 miles, lays Coral Harbor which has a little convenient store, three restaurant a few souvenir huts and a small marina. The anchorage unfortunately is very crowded with derelict boats and private moorings leaving just little swinging room for cruisers. Besides it was open to the weather and therefore rolly. It was such a bummer not to be able to anchor in the beautiful national park and having to be in such an ugly anchorage I went ashore to find out where else in this bay we could anchor. The southeastern most bay with a little bite into it is half park and half not, so we anchored in the not park area the next day. It was the prettiest anchorage since we left the Bahamas the kind of anchorage you dream about. With its rocky shores, cactus and shrubs it reminded us a bit of Catalina Island, except that it was lusher here. We took the dinghy ashore to explore, there was a very steep road (45 degrees) up the hill and offered the most spectacular view over our anchorage and on the other side Tortola in the background. The snorkeling here was fantastic with crystal clear water.

The next tropical wave lasted several days and as we anxiously waited to hear Chris Parker's weather prediction he confirmed our fear, a no go again as heavy and gusty winds were sweeping through our area, which was caused by a high and low pressure system working against each other. Therefore the sea state had no chance to settle. Right after that we had roughly 24 hours of a window, the trip across the Anegada Passage would take us 24 hours. A tough decision to decide as we had several options, getting beat up heading across to the Leeward Islands, sail to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands which would give us a better angle, St. Croix which would get us 40 miles further south or just to sit tight in this anchorage and wait out the next tropical wave. That evening we had Pizza and Movie night on Welsh Rover and discussed our options and decided with the only 24 hour window to take a shot at St. Croix. We also discussed the Thorny Passage if we would do it again, we all simultaneously came to the conclusion that we would NEVER sail this stretch again, it's just too rough and unenjoyable, not to mention the wear and tear on boat and crew.

Early the following morning we lifted anchor and headed out the calm anchorage and bay into swells of 4 to 6 feet, just what was predicted. A beautiful rainbow was showing in front of a squall to the west in the background of the beautiful island and the wind blew with about 15 knots. Our heading was 196 degrees and placed the wind and swells on our port side beam. We were excited and glad to have found a good weather window and got settled into the wave action. About two miles off shore, finally out of the lee of the island the true wind revealed a full 20 knots. A nasty squall that snuck up on us confirmed the ugly conditions. The waves all of a sudden were 8 to 10 feet high and only 5 to 6 feet apart and made it impossible to steer the 196 degrees as they now slammed us on our side and as soon as we came back up the next wave would slam us, soaking us to the bones with gallons of water right into the cockpit. Manuela was on the helm while Sid was tending the sails, but no matter how he adjusted the sails Manuela had the hardest time steering the boat. Then a clank noise from the staysail, the cheek block broke. This was definitely not fun and if it isn’t fun anymore why do it. We called Welsh Rover who was struggling behind us. We were turning around this was a no go. They agreed and we both limped very disappointed back into the very beautiful and protected anchorage we just came from. Sid also found a cheek block on the mainsail boom broken. Later on a small craft warning was posted. We were once more stuck playing the waiting game, but we truly were in the most pristine anchorage. At least we were in great company of Welsh Rover and the guys had nothing to complain as Manuela and Stacy alternated with cooking. One night as Sid was snoring away in the cockpit, Manuela sat on the bow looking up into the starry sky and saw the most incredible shooting star exploding twice and leaving an enormous trail. The area lit up like daylight. Several more interesting shooting stars were seen but non as incredible as the exploding one. Early the following morning Stacey and Manuela went snorkeling. The water was the clearest it had been and they saw everything from sole, snails, rays, trumpet fish, colorful tropical fish, boxfish a huge puffer and barracuda, but the most exciting was beautiful turtles, it was a great start to a beautiful day. As we were sitting perfectly calm in our anchorage, the waves outside the bay were raging. It was deceptive from were we were that only the crashing waves on the rocks 2 miles across the bay revealed how bad it really was.

Two more tropical waves were under way the guys decided that we girls deserve to have lunch ashore and took us 2 miles across the bay to "Skinny Legs" in Coral Harbor. This is the land of 10 dollar burgers but we all admitted it was one of the better ones we've eaten. After lunch came the shopping there are 5 little tourist stores attached to the restaurant. Stacey and Manuela went shopping while the guys decided to have another rum punch. We returned 5 minutes later the guys were gone: "oh well, we'll just go into the next store". A few minutes later, we returned to the restaurant, but no Sid, Toni or Sailor the dog. Off into another store. After this one, we checked again, but still no Sid, Toni or Sailor. So we walked down to the dinghy dock to see if they were there but again no Sid, Toni or Sailor. We were done shopping and so we decided to have a drink at the bar while waiting for the boys to return. We sat on two tall bar stools by the guard rail next to the steps that lead from the open patio down to the horse shoe pit. We sat there for at least thirty minutes waiting for our husbands but still no Sid, Toni or Sailor. We came to the conclusion that the boys went to get gas for the dinghy and not wanting to order another drink, we decided to walk towards them. The question now was, which path to take, the one leading along the water front or the road. Since the one along the water was not paved we figured they would have to come back via road, to be able to pull the cart with s heavy gas jug, so we walked in the heat and humidity and were sure that we probably would miss them as thy walked the other path. Of course we asked everybody who passed us if they had seen two guys with dog pulling a cart with a red gas jug. Nope, nobody had seen our boys. Neither did the kid working at the gas station. From there we spotted a little Mini Market and checked it out. Then we headed back, this time on the small path again hoping to run into the boys. Nope, still no boys. Back at the restaurant again, Stacey walked down to the dinghy dock, I went back into the restaurant and checked out every table twice, and even walked over to the bar and looked at every customer twice, but no Sid, Toni or Sailor. Stacey came back and we're wondering where they could have gone. We didn't want to drink another drink, so Stacey saw a video store across the street and headed over there. While she went browsing in the store I stood guard on the terrace which was overlooking the restaurant, all 5 little stores, the dinghy dock and half a mile of the road on either side, but still no sign of Sid, Toni and Sailor. Where could they be? It's been almost 2 hours since we've been looking for them, they couldn't just disappear. By now our feet were smoking and we were soaked from the humidity. Once more we went into the restaurant and this time I told Stacey to help me look as well. No Sid, Toni or Sailor as we walked from table to table and bar, then we approached the stairs, where we sat earlier, the one leading to the horse shoe pit and I discovered a table hidden right under the porch and who was sitting there? Sid, Toni and Sailor and had been sitting there the whole time. They never believed us that we were done shopping after 10 minutes and had been looking for them for the last two hours. What happened was as we were in the first store, they were told that they had to leave the table as dogs are not allowed in the restaurant and so they moved downstairs, never telling us, even when they saw us walk to one of the stores above them. They enjoyed quite a few rum punches. Obviously the rum punches made them invisible, while we were forced to shop!!!

According to Chris Parker this was a very unusual year for this kind of weather. He has never seen such strong trade winds to last this long. The tropical waves usually are five days apart, this year only 2 to 3 days not giving a chance for the sea and wind to settle and leaving us stranded instead. We could chance it but it would be sailing in "Small Craft Warnings", no thanks. At least we know how to kill time and rented another car for three days. Three days of driving didn't even put a dent into the tank as the island is even smaller than St. Thomas but is a lot more pristine with breathtaking views. The driving is also more exciting as the roads literally turn into a roller coaster ride. The roads are very narrow; of course they seem a lot narrower when driving on the left side and go over every steep hill there is. As the car slowly grinds it's way up, up, up and up and comes to the top all you see is blue sky, until the car drives over the hump and goes down, down, down and believe me it gives you the willies when you look down that steep narrow road. Some are as steep as 60 degrees and wayyyyyy down the hill the road disappears, I mean gone as in no more road until you just get to the end and you realize it sharply turns to either left of right and up, up, up you go again. If you sit in the back seat all you see is asphalt on the downhill run it is so steep that the roof of the car is blocking your view. It was quite exciting and made for a few screams from the girls in the back seat, more so the first day we slowly got used to it by the third day. At every curve there is a sign saying "Stay Left", even though the curve turns right, but it will keep you alive driving in the left lane. Some wild goats and donkeys occasional help the excitement as they share the road. It was quite an adventure and we really enjoyed the magnificent views from all sides of the island with all the many little islands of US and British Virgin Islands. The beaches around the island are just as you dream them to be. While resting with a cocktail we also had the chance to watch Italy win in the soccer finals. Every day we drove around the island, no matter where we went people kept greeting Sid, some took photos of him, some gave him hugs, most wanted to shake his hand; we still want to know who they think he is.

Another very strong wave blasted us with heavy winds and lots of rain and yet another one was underway, leaving us little time to move. Definitely not enough time to head to the Leeward Islands. Plan was to sail to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands and from there to Virgin Gorda, where we hoped to finally catch a ride across the Anegada Passage, but we were stuck once more with heavy winds. But the excitement of the day was a family visiting our bay. As they swam around out boat we started talking to them and found out that they were from of San Diego. We told them that we were out of Marina Del Rey, she said that her father works in LA as a life guard for 50 years. "No way, what's his name?" was Sid's reply and couldn’t believe his ears when she revealed his name “Dick Ellerson”. Small world as Sid knew him very well, as a matter of fact Dick saved his bacon one time Sid was surrounded by a whole bunch of no good scum that wanted to kick some police butt. It’s a small world after all.

After 14 days we still didn’t get a break in the weather, while another tropical wave was headed our way, this one was trying to become a low pressure system and since we were only 12 miles away from a protected marina we decided to take the chance and head for safety. It should have been a very short and easy trip to Road Harbor as the Francis Passage we had to sail across is surrounded by small islands and protected from the Atlantic swell, kind of like being on a lake. But with the blow of 18 to 28 knots of wind we endured it. It turned this usually calm stretch into a churned up wild ride with white caps all around. In the middle of the stretch is a counter current and oh boy, did it get uncomfortable there. The bow dug into the waves, water sprayed over the dodger into the cockpit and the boat slowed down to 2.3 knots. It was a struggle to get to the other side, where we every so happily anchored.

Customs in the BVI are very strict and you have to check in right away and only in Road Harbor if you have pets on board, which both of us have. You are not allowed to enter a marina before checking in either and have to anchor in a horrible anchorage, the only one here which is right in front of the customs building. The anchorage was full of mooring buoys all occupied with boats, surrounded by yellow cones stating no anchoring here, which left us barley any room. Right next to us was the busy ferry dock and we were right on the edge of the fairway and got the wake of each boat that came by. Check in was short and sweet, then we headed to the Moorings Marina to weather the approaching wave. The weather had just been unbelievable, a lot of boats were still stuck between the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and here, we were not the only ones. The positive side was if it wasn't for the weather we would have not seen much of Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands as we would have just blasted by. These islands are really too beautiful to miss.

We are definitely not marina people but we enjoyed our stay at the Moorings and have to admit that we would stay at any Moorings Marina again. It's like checking into a hotel, actually easier, they didn't even want credit card info when we checked in. There is 24 hour staff on hand and whenever we placed a bag of garbage on the dock, a minute later the staff took it. On the weekend the docks were swamped with people, some leaving, some coming and the working crew getting boats ready for the newcomers. We met some nice people and all squeezed everything out of us about cruising, of course we love to talk about our life. One group was 8 American Airline pilots, chartering a catamaran, the other 16 neighbors from Atlanta, GA chartering two cats (I would move into their neighborhood, they were like a big family). We were busy talking that's for sure and just had a blast.

Only one day later Chris told us that we had a two day weather window we jumped right on it, provisioned, checked out and couldn't head faster out of there. Unfortunately Welsh Rover decided it was not time yet to leave and we parted. We had such a great time with them over the last two months but the good side was, they were heading south as well and we knew that our paths would cross again, the latest in Venezuela. We left Sunday at 11 am; the wind was blowing 12 knots and increased to 15. We did have to tack our way across the Sir Francis Bay to Round Rock where we finally headed into the open sea. We were really anxious to see what awaited us out there. We had a fairly strong current out the cut but then it was easy motor sailing. The seas were 5 to 6 feet and the wind blew mostly 12 to 15 knots, a comfortable ride. Later on at night the wind increased a few times to 18 but that was about it. Our plan was to sail the 80 miles to St. Martin, but the wind and waves came out of that direction and we had such a good motor sail to south east that we decided to head for Guadalupe instead. The trip was a piece of cake, although a pound cake that is, as the night crawled along it got a bit bumpier but still comfortable enough. Considering what we've endured the last few months this was just a walk in the park. We actually had to slow down as we started to jump the waves and came crashing down a couple of times, slowing the boat down a half knot made all the difference. And of course a crossing is not perfect unless something or two things break. We had two glitches, the Autopilot refused to work again, so we had to manually steer the boat the entire 126 miles to Basseterre, Saint Kitts. Then the wind generator came loose from the base and started swinging around madly, Sid grabbed it and the solar panel bracket that also came loose woke me up out of a dead sleep, plus some &(%#@! words out of Sid. I grabbed the wheel as Sid was fighting the darn thing for 45 minutes before it was securely tied down again, while the seas were at its worst. Luckily Sid caught it before it destroyed itself and the solar panels. Poor Sid was sore the next day and had know clue why, until I brought up the fact that he was wrestling a wind generator during high seas. Due to that we decided to head for St. Kitts for repairs. Good thing too, because the two day window we had closed after a day. And wouldn't you know right after the generator was tide down again, the sea got calmer again too. As daylight approached the water got a bit more churned up again but it still was very tolerable. As a matter of fact whenever the seas got churned up Sid would check on the depth finder to find some sea shelf that disturbed the surface. By sunrise we closed in on Isla Saba and were just flabbergasted by the humongous rock formation of an island. The huge island shoots out of the ocean with steep walls, a huge mountain in the deep blue water with no beaches anywhere, just a rugged coastline around the island. On the SW side is something like an anchorage but I bet the water stays deep until it hits the rocky shore, as all the boats were sitting on a mooring. Then there was this steep, steep road heading 3/4 up the mountain and all the way up there are villages to see. House were built way up the mountain and right next to the most horrifying cliffs, with probably the most spectacular view over the other islands. It's a very bizarre looking island, but pretty neat at the same time. Two islands further south is Saint Kitts, what a beautiful island to approach.

You have no idea how good we felt to finally reach the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean, from here on the weather would be easier to travel as it was now on the beam and not on the nose anymore. The Thorny Passage was behind us. The tropical wave that was underway now had the potential to build into something stronger, which was good and bad, the good thing was, it would bring us a bigger weather window to head further south. After 25 hours underway we of course were very tired but had to check in with the authorities first. The customs guy was not very friendly towards us Americans and refused to check us in and out, he wanted us to come back the next day to check out. Even when we told him that we have the right to check in and out which will give us 7 days to stay on the island before we left, he would not go by the rules. So our plan to sail another 10 miles to a very pretty anchorage was put on hold first because we would have to return here to check out, secondly Sid noticed the cap to our water tank on deck was open, he forgot to close it when we left Tortola. Result, our drinking water was all salty. Since he still had to fix the wind generator and autopilot we decided to head into the marina instead to do repairs. It was not the most modern marina, but water was included and we paid only 50 cents a foot a day. Sid fixed the generator and the autopilot and we filled up with fresh water which was just as good as the water maker they have daily rain here in the mountains. We also found out that the weather was going to cooperate for a change and we could leave sooner than we expects so we checked out right away, this time with the port captain in town, who was angry at the other officer for not doing his job and assured us that he would have a talk with him. After that we provisioned some and plotted a 225 mile sail to Saint Lucia, hoping the weather window would stay open for the 48 hours it takes to get there. If not we could stop at any other island before that.

We left the marina as planned and when we started motor sailing along the lee of St. Kitts instead of calm seas we encountered a swell against us making us do the Caribbean two- step all over again. Knowing that the wind should die down later on and change direction from 110 to 90 we went 2 miles to Ballast Bay and waited there. We enjoyed lunch, awed at the beautiful scenery and Sid watched two Barracudas swim under the boat, one of them was huge. Then we heard this splash and saw the back of the big barracuda cutting through the water like a rocket and the little one chasing behind him. He would get back under the boat, but a few minutes later again would make a wild dash away from the boat with the little guy in hot pursuit. That's when we noticed again that his whole back was out of the water, he was not doing well and the little one knew that and saw dinner. We decided that this was not a good idea to go swimming at this time. Finally the seas settled, we pulled anchor and continued our adventure south. This time motor sailing along the lee shore was calm but as soon as we came to the end of the island the water turned into a washing machine (they call it a katarac sea, it's current against swell and wind = nasty, nasty). This lasted about 2 miles and also had fishing buoys in the way. We checked the GPS chart and realized that we were on a shelf. Since we didn't want to run over a trap again, we immediately changed direction due west, pulled all our sails out, turned the engine off and sailed a couple of miles off the shelf into deep water where there are no traps. From there it was smooth sailing for a long while. Wind was 12 to 15 Knots and swells 4 to occasional 5 feet, a pleasant motor sail. When passing Nevis we realized how much prettier it looked then St. Kitts. The next island was Montserrat, where the Soufriere Hills Volcano is very active at this point. It first erupted in 1995, destroying the capital Plymouth. Two years ago scientists expected that the volcano would quiet down. Last May another major eruption showed that the mountain is still very alive and unsafe. There is both land and a maritime exclusion zone and extends 2 miles from shore around the southern half of the island. In times of bad eruptions and dome collapses the flow of hot ash has been seen to travel in a volcanic cloud at least a mile and half out to sea. The hot ash could burn wholes into sails making them look like Swiss cheese. The best was to avoid the effect of the volcano is to sail around the east side of the island. By that time the wind and sea condition had worsened and in order to sail around Montserrat due east would have been a long 8 to 10 hour pounding, Caribbean two step trip into the weather. Too long of a trip to be miserable and we decided to take the chance and sail around Montserrat on the western side. If it was our time to check out, might as well go out with a big glow, but if our time was not up yet Montserrat will behave and so he did, although he did let us know that he was there by the pungent odor of sulfur and the gritty feel of dust falling on us, we were 7 miles west of the island. We were not alone; three other boats were out here taking the chance. There were several more islands we sailed by (Guadeloupe, The Saints and Dominica) and every time just before we got into the lee of the island we could feel the Katarac effect again lasting a couple of miles. All in all it was pretty comfy and the boat wanted to sail at 6 knots badly but every time she did that we had buckets of water spray over the boat, half way up the sails, into the cockpit and over the dodger and bimini and of course all over us, so we had to slow down and slow down again by a half knot and you wouldn't believe the difference in comfort by just a half knot of speed. Since we departed from Ballast Bay a bit later our estimated arrival time in St. Lucia would have been around 5 pm. Not just that the next tropical wave was underway and we did not want to get into it, so we decided to make it as far as Martinique. We arrived at the north end just around midnight and since St. Pierre is a very easy anchorage to approach in the middle of the night we parked the boat there, got a deserved 3 hour sleep, alarm was set for 6.30 and after we indulged in Sid's coffee we headed to Port de France. Saint Pierre was worth the stop with the most breathtaking view of the French looking houses along the beach, with lush hills in the background and in the near distance the towering Mont Pelee Volcano, which erupted and destroyed the whole village including all inhabitants but one in 1902. Many ruins still remain. Post-disaster buildings have been built onto old structures; so many new buildings share at least one wall with the past. Just outside of the anchorage a school of juvenile dolphins surrounded Paradise. They were a happy bunch as they jumped out of the water, while some waved their tails, while others played tag with the bow. At one point 15 dolphins surfaced next to each other in front of the bow, looked almost like a ballet, it was beautiful.

By now we got the feeling that Tika wanted to shoot us. It hasn’t been easy on her with all the pounding into the weather ever since the Dominican Republic. One of the main problems for her was not being able to use her litter box in the bathroom. We found pee on the floor next to the box, and one time she peed on the bed. Along Vieques, we guess she had to go really bad; she walked right by us, hopped up on deck, and placed herself in front of the dodger where she was in full view of us. We wondered why the heck she would go up there in this chop until she hunched down and rolled a couple of fresh turds down the window. That gave us a clue how difficult it really was for her. From then on we had an extra litter box in the cockpit, which she gladly started using with our help holding on to the pan. On our trip here, she stepped into the litter box and was balanced a bit oddly on the rim, we couldn't get to her in time when the box tipped over and interrupted her business, only for a couple of seconds as she threw us the dirtiest look and then pooped right in the middle of the companion way. Sid laughed so hard as Manuela tried to catch each single turd as it came out. We had to tell her too what a good kitty she was, poor little thing. Tika might have been embarrassed but she sure had a smile on her face.

Checking in in Port de France was the easiest anywhere. Since the customs office moved some 10 miles out of town you can check in at the chandlery. I had to fill out a form and no fee was applied. The local Internet Café and Point du Bount is checking boaters in as well. Then I explored the city and found the greatest supermarkets and thought I'd died and gone to heaven. The stores were filled with European goodies I haven't seen in years and the wine prices were the best I've ever seen anywhere. Rum is pretty cheep as well and they had a better goat cheese variety than we have in Switzerland and sausages and salamis, just the best of the best.

The first day we played tourists in L'Ans Mitan, we hit a couple of restaurants, had the best Pizza in a long time, the very thin crust you can only get in Italy and of course Sid ordered each time a different local rum. The first impression was not very good as the rum was probably the worst we've ever tasted. It's so strong you can instantly pickle your liver. The result was the same with each rum he tasted; they don’t even have flavored rum here. So when we rented a car to drive around the island we stopped at 3 distilleries, which was really interesting to see how rum is produced. We of course didn't taste the cheapo rum but went straight for the aged rums, which nobody seems to carry in the restaurant. We did end up finding 3 very good bottles of rum, each aged for 10 years, the oldest rum we could find anywhere and of course paid a price, but it was worth buying them. We even broke down and bought snifters, which probably will break the first time. We had a wonderful time driving around the island, which is 75 miles long and 30 miles wide. Rich in rivers and springs, the island is covered by contrasting vegetation and was known as "Madinina", the flowery island. The southern part is a large plain with close to sea-level hills, a mangrove swamp lines in the east and the west many coves, capes and bays. The beaches lined with white sand, coconut palm and turquoise blue sea and lots of islands. The road then took us along the eastern or windward side of the island, with tall mountains which gradually descend to the beaches all overgrown with banana plantations. The coast was more rugged and waves crashing onto the shore. At one view point we pulled out we witnessed rip currents heading out to sea, very interesting. Most of the windward side is surrounded by churning reefs. In the north are the highest peaks of Mont Pelee, Macouba hills, the Lacroix peak and the Carbet peaks. Here is the territory of the big, humid, luxuriant and virgin in places tropical forest, wherein rivers, waterfalls and cliffs are mixed. We drove up to the top of Mont Pelee to view the crater. We were just amazed when we drove up that lush mountain with no sign of any lava streams or volcanic rocks, nothing hinted to a volcano which exploded just 100 years ago, killing a whole village of 30 000 people. Since it is overgrown with a lush rain forest it builds its own weather and the top was totally fogged in, we couldn't even see a crater if there was one. Well, there is but it’s also overgrown with lush tropical vegetation. Driving down the steep Mont Pelee took us by the Depaz distillery, which is built right on the foot of the volcano and includes a most beautiful castle overlooking the Caribbean waters and the northern islands. Which by the way was re-built by the soul survivor of the Mount Pelee disaster and only survivor of the Depaz family. We stopped in St. Pierre and had a wonderful Creole lunch. The sand on the northern beaches is mainly black as a result of the volcano. The Leeward side is very steep and not as soft looking as the Windward side. We had a great time exploring the island and the plan was to leave the island for Baquia the following day. With a predicted 20 knots of wind and 7 to 8 foot seas, we decided it was not a good enough weather window for us and remained in the anchorage. Good thing too as the weather was even worse then predicted.

In our anchorage was a ferry dock ashore and every 20 minutes one or two would drive by. Yellow buoys divide the ferry channel from the anchorage. We were anchored at least 100 yards away from the yellow buoy. We were not sure why, but they sure were picking on us, maybe because we were the only boat in the anchorage flying the American flag. Two ferry drivers every time they came in instead of using the channel they would drive right through the anchorage and about 1/2 boat length next to us leaving us a 4 foot wake, which tossed everything on the floor which wasn't secured. One time the two came in at the same time and sandwiched us with each only one boat length away with two huge wakes meeting by our boat, very dangerous and all we could do was just watch and hope for the best. Sid came up with an idea and made a white flag out of a rag and a boat hook the next one blasting by he was going to stand on deck flying it, wondering if they would get the hint.

One night we had the most spectacular lightning show with cloud lightning, at times the lightning looked like it came out of the mountain peak like firework shooting up into the sky, really neat. Heavy rain woke us up the next day as a squall with up to 29 knots of wind blasted us. We had one squall after another and were not able to leave yet. Sid managed to wave his white flag to the ferry driver and wouldn't you know from then on he came in three boat lengths from us instead of just a half one plus a lot slower. The weather wasn't cooperating and there was a weird system out there they couldn’t explain. They couldn’t tell if it would develop into something more serious but at least we knew that it would be north of us. After at least 6 squalls we finally lifted anchor and sailed 5 miles to Grand Ans D'Arlet. We had just enough time to set anchor and for Sid to get back into the cockpit when a heavy downpour of rain swept over us. This anchorage was very beautiful with water as clear as in a swimming pool. Later in the afternoon we cleaned the bottom of the boat and also looked at the anchor to see how it was set and we saw the weirdest creatures, fish with wings, lots of them. They were hanging around the chain amongst dozens of baby sole. If the flying fish have their wings closed they somewhat resemble a huge fat grasshopper and change the appearance completely when opening the wings which were now surrounded by a glowing blue color. As we cleaned the bottom of the boat I also noticed little tiny shrimp eating off the hull, they could have not been bigger than one millimeter.

We had a great time in Grand Ans D'Arlet and really enjoyed the most spectacular view. Although it rained every 20 or so minutes. We also had the most incredible snorkel around the corner. The water was so clear we could see at least 60 feet and the whole underwater scene reminded us of a nursery with flower pots every where, as soon as you came to a flour pot it turned into a sponge. There is an abundance of sponges here but also saw an eel, sea snake, sculpin, weird tube like worms about 12 inches long and see-through, cuttlefish, trumpet fish changing color according to background, a white albino sole and lots and lots of just perfect lobsters, although in traps.

The weird weather system I mentioned earlier finally showed up and had the potential to turn into something serious in which case Chris Parker would come up on the radio 7 am and pm on Sunday, his day off. He didn't come up in the morning, so we pulled anchor and left for Baquia, 90 miles further south. He did come up though in the evening and told us that there was a potential for the system to turn into a tropical depression and it would hit St. Vincent, St. Lucia and Martinique. Did we feel lucky we left and decided to continue as far as we could get which was Grenada, 156 miles. We finally had a chance to sail, 15 to 20 knots of wind on the beam and 5 to 8 foot seas. It was like a dream come true. We sailed between 5.5 and 7 knots and had to slow the boat down for comfort. We took full advantage of the lee of all the islands which made the seas calmer, the wind a little different but better traveling, but we did have to turn the engine on to get us through each lee. Every time we left an island we had an adverse current for about and 1 1/2 hrs. West of Baquia we had the worst of the currents for about one hour, but as soon as we got into the lee of the next island the swell dropped to about 4 to 5 feet and less. We had an average of 1/2 knot to 1 knot of current with us most of the way and it was a wonderful trip and we were glad we had left.

We left Puerto Rico in June and arrived in Grenada by August 4^th. A good feeling knowing we were almost out of the hurricane belt and started to relax. We spent 3 days in the lagoon in St. George doing just that relaxing. We had use of showers at the Yacht Club Marina for not even 50 cents a person and the drinks at the bar were cheap and had an incredible view overlooking the lagoon, which by the way is an underwater crater. The laundry on the other hand was very expensive, one washer load cost 8 EC (3 US) and dryer 12 EC (4.50). I had 4 loads of wash and 3 dry and paid over 25 bucks and had to do my own laundry, ouch that hurt.

The town is very charming and the shopping in the fresh market in down town fun. The fragrances of nutmeg, saffron, turmeric, vanilla, mace, paprika, curry and others are wide spread in town. I went through four grocery stores and wasn't all too happy on what I found, especially in the meat department, all is frozen, nothing fresh and meats are cut into unrecognizable pieces, chicken legs will have to do for a while, which by the way are almost the size of turkey legs, and baby back ribs, those were the best. Vegetables are scares too and not all too fresh. We have to get used to the local currency as the change rate is 2.67 to 1 $US, so a calculator is a must. I took the bus over to Grand Ans and checked out Foodfair but not much better. The Spice Market is a far better store and actually has some fresh beef at very high price so it's going to be chicken and ribs. I was back at the dock I called Sid on VHF to pick me up and somebody else answered and wanted to know if that was Paradise with Sid and Manuela on it. Ed and Linda on Dreamtime were two years ago in the Ortega Yacht Club Marina with us. They told us there was a potluck on Friday at Hog Island which is just past Prickley Bay where they were anchored. We sailed around and stopped to see them. So nice to finally run into cruisers we know. We never made it to Hog Island for the potluck, I wasn't feeling well all day long and so we just relaxed where we were. I keep forgetting to mention how amazed we were about the cool and pleasant evenings and nights here in the Caribbean.

We just chilled in Prickley Bay, and never made it back to the lagoon in St. George as planned as it is not a safe anchorage. Carneval was just around the corner (they celebrate it here in August so not to have competition with Trinidad) and boaters were advised to stay away from the Lagoon during Carnival, too dangerous. A few boats didn’t take the warning seriously. We all monitor Channel 68 on VHF and leave it on at night for safety. Two nights after we had left the lagoon a distress call came over the radio at 2:15 in the morning. Sudiki had a boarder onboard and needed help. Sid called the Coast Guard for them, but by the time they finally arrived at Sudiki the intruder had managed to jump over board and escape. They did take a photo of him though and had his empty loot bag onboard. And still boaters didn’t take it seriously and stayed in the lagoon.

We still had our propane tanks at the Grenada Yacht Club and mail waiting for us as well and decided to take the bus to pick it all up. I tell you taking the buses here is a hoot and worth experiencing. The buses all are mini vans and we believe they work on commission as they honk at any person walking and fill the bus to the rim. It can get pretty cozy and tight and sweaty as they don't have AC, sardines in a can comes to my mind. Each bus has loud local music blaring which is controlled by remote, depending on the phone calls the driver receives. The ride costs $EC 2 (75 US cents) no matter where you go and for an extra $EC 5 they will drop you off in front of your house, so we got to see some neighborhoods we would have never seen otherwise. The buses now and then come to a screeching halt, put the transmission in reverse and race a couple hundred yards backward to pick somebody up and that on a road with frequent traffic, an adventure I tell you. When you need a bus and one honks at you, even if driving the opposite direction, get on it, eventually you will end up at your destination. Everything and everybody here is on island time, so don't expect to get service at the counter right away, they will get with you when they are good and ready, which is GMT = Grenada Maybe Time.

In the mean time Carnival had started. After talking to all the locals, especially the bus drivers, we decided to stay away from it as crime rate is up, too many drunks and fights all around and we cruisers stick out like a sore thumb and are therefore targets. One Soca group everybody tries to avoid is covered with black motor oil grease and hug anybody in sight and will ruin your cloths, no thank you. So far what we heard of the local music, which is blaring in every bus, is not what we would listen too, type Reggae Rapp, so we stayed on the boat listening to Jimmy Buffet instead and grilled some yummy ribs and relaxed.

Even though we were not out of the woods yet with hurricanes it felt great to be able to chill without constantly worrying about the weather. Although a tropical wave appeared from nowhere. Martinique got hit by tropical storm force winds, we had a big squall with 30 knots and hurricane season was just starting. Welsh Rove was still in Martinique and desperately trying to leave for Grenada. We decided to wait for them but if they were not here by next good weather window we would head to Venezuela without them.

In the mean time we keep enjoying our self with our daily noodeling cool offs in the water in the afternoon, toasting sunsets with a cocktail and oh yeah, watching a cool meteor shower.

Sid had a little accident, he broke his middle toe and I had such sympathy and love for him I broke the same toe three days later. Now I know why they say love hurts.

We attempted to leave Grenada several times already but every time another tropical wave stopped us. Carnival passed and we realized that we had already been one month in Grenada.

Welsh Rover had arrived and we took a tour around the island and were most impressed. This was yet the prettiest island and recovering well from hurricanes Emily and Ivan, even though there was still a lot of destruction to see. The west side of the island is steep to and overgrown with a lush jungle. To which a question pops up: What's the difference between a weed and a house plant? Simple! The house plant costs a lot of money. Some of the potted little, colorful plants sitting in our living rooms turn here into giant lush trees. On the west side also is the Nutmeg Factory, which really took a beating in the hurricanes, as they nearly wiped out all the nutmeg farms and they slowly are growing back it will take at least another 6 years to fully recover. The good thing about that is they are growing a new type of nutmeg tree they say will withstand hurricanes. The Nutmeg Farm mainly runs for tourism now until it is back to normal. Walking through the farm filled your nostrils with the pleasant aroma of nutmeg and it was interesting to know the history of how it is farmed, dried, packaged and finally shipped around the world. Of course we loaded up on some too, as it is a wonderful spice to use especially for soups.

The north side’s vegetation is more on the dry side, but has the most spectacular view to the islands to the north and on a very clear day St. Vincent can be seen. The east side is more populated and has a beautiful charm. The south side where we were is low lying land and is the home of expensive homes and resorts. On our tour around the island we also visited the River Rum distillery, which is the only one left running with a water wheel. It was an interesting tour and of course afterwards we got to taste the rum. Then we visited the chocolate factory, which was a bit disappointing as we hoped to see the coco plants and beans and the process of it, well we learned the making of chocolate bars instead and of course bought some too.

Not just are the locals very friendly but there is a lot to do here and the cruisers organize many fun activities as potlucks with karaoke. As many of you know Sid is not a very good singer and couldn't carry a tune in a wheel barrel and would NEVER step up to a microphone to sing a song. He even told us on our way to the potluck that there is not enough rum on this island to get him up there and sing. WELLLLLL, you have to know that the rum here is a bit more potent than anywhere else. The Grenadians believe that the stronger the rum the better it is, the rum here is actually so strong that when you take a sip it evaporates immediately in your mouth. So with 79 % = 158 proof rum Sid was one of the first in front of that microphone singing away. It was a hoot. The boys also had a day to themselves and participated in Hash House Harrier. For those who don't know (like me) what that is: The Hash House Harriers is a more social version of Hare and Hounds, where you join the pack of hounds (runners) to chase down the trail set by the hare or hares (other runners), then gather together for a bit of social activity known as the On In or Down Down with refreshment, humorous camaraderie, song and sometimes a feast. (http://www.gthhh.com/). He liked it so much he participated in the next one. I've had my fair share of fun as I love to go to the local fresh market shopping for the most tropical fruits and every time I went I found something new exotic. I could also tell that we’ve been here too long as all the locals at the market knew me by my name and most of them throw something extra into my shopping bag.

Since we left the Dominican Republic I tried to get a banana flower (burgundy tear drop looking flower hanging below the growing bananas) without any success. Finally within 2 days I ended up with 4. They make a wonderful salad, so I brought each one who gave me one a sample along with the recipe and added a new food source to their table as they throw the banana flower away. It's easy to prepare:

BANANA FLOWER SALAD

Slice flower and soak in salt water at least one hour. Drain.

Cover with salt water and boil 5 minutes. Drain and cool.

Mix 1 cup each soy sauce, oil and vinegar with crushed red peppers and garlic. Heat.

Mix flower with 1 chopped onion.

Pour on warm dressing. Stand one hour. Chill and serve with sliced bread or crackers. Holds well in refrigerator

Another few tropical waves have passed but we knew that the next one was going to be a strong system. We all prepared accordingly and even went provisioning as we expected bad weather for a few days. Then was the waiting for it and just before it hit Grenada the system split in two. One part went south and dissipated and the other went slightly to the north and immediately started strengthening and as soon as it was passed Grenada it built into Tropical Depression 5 and later the same day into Tropical Strom Ernesto. As it now was slightly north from us it brought us wind out of the direction we really didn't want out of the S and SW our anchorage was not protected from. As the direction of the wind started changing to the SW our boat started swinging towards shore and we finally had 6 feet of water left behind the rudder and had to pull anchor as now swells started rolling in as well. Since many boats left to find more secure anchorages they left us plenty room to re-anchor with nobody even remotely around. The flopper-stopper was in position and we were ready for the incoming swells which were by now around 3 feet and later grew to 4 with and occasional 5 footer. As Depression 5 was strengthening it kept the wind coming in from the SW and chances of the swells for the night to slow down was slim to none, even though towards the afternoon the wind started to turn back to the E, the swells still came in and as the boats started to swing back to the E the swells hitting the boats on the beam. I tell you the flopper-stopper is an incredible tool to have it breaks the rolling motion of the boat and makes it more comfortable. We had one roller big enough to make some noise down below, so Sid immediately jumped into the dinghy, I lowered the stern anchor down to him, he set it and we were facing again into the swells and had a comfortable night. We had a good night sleep while everybody else in the anchorage was being tossed around. The swell kept coming in the following day and Sid finally had to help Welsh Rover and Maja to put their stern anchor out as they by now were getting seasick. The third morning all was back to normal and every boat was comfortably resting in calm water in this beautiful anchorage as nothing ever happened, except for the very exhausted sailors. While Ernesto was headed for Jamaica still strengthening, we decided it was time to pull anchor as we still were in hurricane territory. It shows again how powerful Mother Nature can be and how fast she can turn against you, we consider ourselves very lucky that it did not strengthen into a stronger system before it came across Grenada.

On August 28 we left Prickly Bay at 9:30 in the morning and as soon as we were out of the channel we pulled the sails up and turned the engine off. From the get go we had a half to one knot current with us that lasted almost all trip long. Our speed was anywhere from 5.5 to 7.5 and we even witnessed an 8 on the meter. As we left the lee of the island it was so perfect we sailed with full spinnaker until sunset. The wind calmed down a bit during the night and when the jib started flopping around, Sid attached the whisker pool to it and we averaged 5 to 6 knots all night long. Sailing through the Los Testigos Islands we encountered a weird current which tossed us around for a couple of hours. Then it was smooth sailing again. In the morning the wind finally died down but we didn't give up yet, pulled the spinnaker up again and waited about 20 minutes and wouldn't you know in no time we were up to 5 plus knots again and sailed all the way into the anchorage in Isla Margarita. Welsh Rover and Maja left Grenada 3 hours after we did and said they didn't get the wind conditions we had, so they motor sailed all the way. You should have seen the starry night, the Milky Way lit up the sky, we saw lots of shooting stars and the water was sparkling with phosphorescence as well. This was by far the most stars we've ever seen. Just a perfect passage in and on Paradise and Sid said: "that's why I bought a sail boat!"

Shop, shop, shop till you drop, that's seems to be the motto in Margarita Island. For the seven days we spent here I spent 6 full days shopping. I found the biggest fabric store ever, Sid was even impressed. We bought 30 yards of nice Suede for our salon, 10 yards of nagahyde (can anybody tell me how to spell this and what is a naga?) and 4 different fun colored rayon fabrics to make some dresses and the total was 190 bucks. The grocery stores are awesome and make our biggest grocery stores look like mini markets and offer the most incredible gourmet foods. Rattan has 4 isles with just chocolates, most of them Swiss chocolates so I felt right at home. The thinnest T-bone steak I could find was 1 1/2 inches thick and cost 3 bucks, now it can't get any better than that. The restaurants are wonderful and incredibly reasonable. Unfortunately in Puerto La Cruz everything is a lot more expensive as they add a 10% then a 14% tax on everything so we loaded up on booze here. This is also the place to shop for bottom paint for the boat as it is a lot cheaper than on the mainland. I managed to get Sid to go shopping with me, we saw the funniest thing happening. We were sitting in the taxi headed towards a traffic light and witnessed a car blow the red light. On one side of the intersection were two traffic cops on foot. One immediately blew his whistle and pointed at the first car coming across the intersection to pull over, ran to the car, hopped into the passenger seat and made the driver chase after the traffic violator. We sure thought that was funny, but don't know if he ever got to write him a ticket.

Getting money in Venezuela can be tricky, they want the US dollar but will only exchange 20 to 100 dollar bills, forget the tens and fives. Best is to exchange the money on the black market as the banks don't give the real value. One also has to be very careful to use credit cards or ATM as the scam rate is very high. On the mainland personal checks can be used and are the safest way to make payments.

Porlamar where we were anchored is the biggest city on the island of Isla Margarita and surprising big city with hundreds of high rise buildings we didn’t expect to find in a third world country. The island is known as the vacation island and since it is duty free everybody from the mainland comes here to shop, especially for liquor. Our anchorage had the clearest water we've seen in a long time with a pretty teal color. There were anywhere from 90 to 100 boats anchored and most of them French, German and Swiss and were told that the Americans all go to Puerto La Cruz.

Venezuela has a lot of crime and you have to pull the dinghy up every night, lock it or loose it they say and while we were there an expensive Boston Whaler with a 40 hp outboard got snatched. Even we are warned to be very careful when using ATM machines or using the credit card one boat had problems with that as well. They tried to warn the fleet about not using ATM machines, but wouldn't go into the details until they were asked several times. They admitted that when they approached the machine a guy told them the machine was not working and for them to use the machine next to it, where a women was standing. She then told them that they had to swipe the card first in a separate swipe slot and then the ATM slot. Hello, it's a scam!!!!! Well, they got suckered into it. Anyway, we were having a wonderful time and didn’t let these stories ruin our stay. We had some wonderful meals in local restaurants and enjoyed not having to pay much for gourmet meals.

On the eighth day we lifted anchor and finally headed for Puerto La Cruz with an overnight stop at Isla Cubagua. We had to motor the whole way as there was no breeze, but we enjoyed the view the mountains and clouds were reflecting in the almost mirror like water. The island is pretty barren with red rock lined shores to sandy beaches with cactus in the background. Kind of reminded us of Mexico and felt right at home.

We had a quite night in Cubagua and lifted anchor before the sun came up. Red sky in the morning, sailor takes warning. Red sky at night, sailors delight..... and once more it proves to be true. It was the most spectacular sunrise with the shadows of the mountains reflecting in the red clouds. Red sky in the morning, sailor takes warning. It was flat calm as we rounded the corner of the island and started to head towards Puerto La Cruz. Around the corner pods of dolphins greeted us and flocks of Pelicans were sitting in the water watching the dolphins herding up some fish. The water was as smooth as a mirror and a cloud cover hovered over us. We had a total of 50 miles to go, the wind was right on the nose and we were motoring with 5 knots through the calm water. About 15 miles down the road the wind started to pick up, the prognoses called for 5 to 10 knots of wind, so no problem. A further couple of minutes later the wind picked up some more and the water turned a bit choppy. Amazing how fast a flat sea can turn into the nastiest churning water. Within minutes we had 5 foot wind chops and we started to pound into them slowing us down to 1.2 knots. It got even worse, so both Paradise and Welsh Rover changed direction and headed to Punta de Escarceo. We're anchored snug but the wind kept howling with 25 knots and gusts up to 30 until well into the afternoon and finally died down by sunset. Not knowing ho safe this anchorage was we decided to rest until midnight, pulled anchor and run the finally 43 miles to Puerto La Cruz.

We had a smooth motor trip sails never had to go up and we enjoyed the most spectacular sunrise with dolphins dancing on the water. Approaching Puerto La Cruz was exciting and also somewhat overwhelming to see this huge city. Our destination was the El Morro Development which has lots of canals and is the home of at least 6 marinas. We were absolutely positively surprised to drive through the narrow canal surrounded by the cutest and most colorful houses, a miniature Venice actually it reminds us of the Disney ride "it's a small world after all". The Maremares Marina our home for an unknown time is a five star hotel. You should see the pool here, it's huge and absolutely beautiful and has a wave machine. We get to use the whole hotel facility even have access to the gym, spa and golf course. A two minute walk away is an awesome mall. There are no slips in the marina, everybody is med moored, which makes it tough for us to get on and off the boat, but they had a solution already and placed huge steps in front of our boat. The best about that is the name "Bird of Paradise” is written on it. We installed the air-conditioner, hooked up the ice maker, put all the sunshades in place and it took us no time to settle in.

Because we had to hunker down in Escarseo we were really bummed that we now would not be able to see our old neighbors from New Bern, Doug and Lisa on Highland Light, they were leaving Puerto La Cruz the same day. But luck had it that they were delayed too and so we enjoyed a wonderful day catching up with them.

This has been a challenging trip, that’s for sure. So many times we learned of cruisers that started cruising doing the thorny passage, arrived in the Caribbean Islands and give up cruising. Now we understand why, it wasn’t a picnic rather a huge learning experience and we came to the conclusion that if you can handle and manage to sail the Caribbean you can manage anything.

Stacey on Welsh Rover received an email from cruising friend and they couldn’t describe it better than this:

We start all our trips trying to plan how things may go, though we only plan the plan, not the result. First we figure approximately where we will go. Sometimes you have to make changes as is noted in more than one of our logs. Then you figure approximately how far you have to travel. You can't always sail in a straight line. Then it's on to the weather. From that you can get approximately how hard the wind will blow, and approximately from what direction. This helps you plan approximately when you should start the transit. Just don't count on either velocity or direction; we don't. Now you know approximately when you will arrive, and from approximately what direction to approximately what destination. Do you see a pattern here? With all this uncertainty, it's a wonder we can get anywhere.

All I have to say to this is Amen. It's been a rough long haul to get from Florida to Venezuela. We are glad we did it and are proud of our accomplishment. It wasn't easy but we're here and made it to a safe location before the hurricanes started. Would we do this stretch of the thorny passage again? Probably not, well let’s say not in our boat. We have to keep in mind too that this has been a very unusual weather year and cruiser usually don't have as much of a battle as we had, but it is a rough stretch no matter what.

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