BACK FROM BARBUDA.....

On Tuesday,  Persephone "turned the corner".  You may recall many posts ago that I vowed not to sail  one inch further north than Barbuda. (Barbuda is on the same latitude as St. Croix, USVI)   So, for the first time in nearly three months Persephone was on a port tack (wind coming over the left side of the boat)  heading south.  We will continue south for the next several months returning to Grenada for the hurricane season.

Again, the sail was terrific.  Constant winds of 14 knots, just south of east, and moderate seas.  Persephone literally flew the 25 miles from Barbuda to Jolly Harbor, Antigua.  The plan is to remain in Anitgua for the "Classic Yacht Race" which is held in mid-April.  This is one of  the world's premier yacht races; attracting vintage wooden yachts from all over the world.  I may even try to get a crewing position on one of them !!  And now, a couple of pictures from Barbuda :

Pink Beach

This is the anchorage at Pink Beach

Notice that the sand really is pink !!

Sunday, Sunday......

Today is day 10 anchored off Pink Beach, Coco Point, Barbuda. Perhaps a poet or philosopher could describe the natural beauty of this anchorage, but a sun drenched and rum soaked sailor could never find the right adjectives..although a gerund may work well in this case: "f-ing beautiful" !!
This is the beach where Princess Di took her sons William and Harry. I wonder if the Prince and Kate Middleton will be honeymooning here ??
This is the beach where you lose your shoes. After being anchored off Pink Beach for a week, the crews of 'Silver Heels III', 'Elin Alida' (our Swedish friends) and 'Persephone' decided to take a cab to the "Big City", Codrington. (3 or 4 streets, and a couple of stores) We dinghyed ashore to meet the cab, and hauled the dinghy up on the beach where I suddenly realized that I forgot my Tevas. We relaunched the dinghy and motored back out to 'Persephone' where I had to search the boat to find my Tevas. I realized that after a week of not wearing any shoes (actually there are no 'shoes' on Persephone, only Teva sandals); I had no idea where I had left them. Finally, after a search of several minutes, I found them buried in a seat locker. Man was never meant to wear shoes; so when you misplace them for a week, you know you really have become a beach bum.
This is the beach where you gaze up at the night sky and  see is a gazillion stars. There are very few lights on Barbuda (the population is only 1,500) so there is no "light pollution"; and the sky is crystal clear without any man made contaminants. You are so overwhelmed by the number of stars that the easily recognizable constellations get lost in the multitude. When astronomers say that there are more stars in the heavens than grains of sand on a beach; they couldn't possibly be referring to this beach; otherwise, the stars would be pink.
Capt. Dave

Liming in Barbuda.....

Yup, we ('Persephone' and 'Silver Heels III') haven't moved an inch; still firmly anchored off Coco Point, Barbuda. We are about to rename this place "Velcro Harbor"...once you hook up, you can't peel away. In fact, there is really no reason to leave; as it is nearly perfect.

One day melts into the next...mornings are still filled with minor boat projects. Yesterday, I started disassembling and cleaning the six winches aboard (actually, I only got one done; more today). Afternoons, there is the obligatory long walk on the beach to keep the knees in shape; followed by sundowners on one of the boats. So far, we have seen two green flashes at sunset.

Other than sand, sea and sky, there is not much happening here. On average, there are about 8-12 boats which anchor here each night (mostly charters);staying only a night or two before moving on. Our major source of entertainment is watching the charters trying to get their anchors to hold. One poor charterer attempted to anchor at least five times and I am not sure he has got it yet. The bottom is plain sand, so if you can't hook up here, you should just give up !!

By standing on the cabin top, with my hand held over my head I am able to get one bar on my cell phone for texting. We have no internet whatsoever. We have heard that one of the resorts on Eleven Mile Beach has an open wifi system. Depending on the sea swell, we may move up to Eleven Mile Beach tomorrow to see if we can avail ourselves of their wifi.

Plan on staying in Barbuda through the weekend, at least. Loving the freezer and watermaker; well worth the cost and effort of installation !!

Capt Dave

Beautiful Barbuda

Yesterday we ('Persephone', 'Silver Heels III' and Josie Bird'), sailed the 25 miles from Antigua to the island of Barbuda (Antigua and Barbuda comprise on country). At first blush, it appears that a chunk of the Bahamas drifted into the Caribbean. Unlike the other Carib islands, Barbuda is pancake flat...essentially a giant sand bar. This is not to say Barbuda is small, it's not at 12 miles long by 8 miles wide; at the longest and widest parts. The island is rustic and beautiful.

There is no real harbor...you just pull up to a crescent shaped beach and drop the anchor ! And let me describe THE BEACH...it is the most beautiful, perfect beach I have ever seen. I know I have Blogged about how great the beaches are at Conception Island, Bahamas; Chatham Bay, Union Island; Paradise Beach, Carriacou; Grand Anse, Grenada.... forget it !! Cocoa Point, Barbuda is where God himself goes to the beach...(In fact, after a couple of rum drinks, I think I saw Him on the beach last night...anyway....)

Did I say the beach is perfect ? Picture a crescent shaped beach of pale pink sand that goes forever in either direction. The sand is awesome, the consistency of granulated sugar. There are no rocks, seaweed, trash, tourists; nothing to detract from the beauty of Cocoa Point. The water is crystal clear, (you can clearly see the anchor and chain on the bottom at 18 feet) turquoise green and just laps the beach with 6 inch waves; so landing the dinghy is effortless.

We plan on staying here for several days, and then may move around the corner to Eleven Mile Beach....I can hardly wait to see to see it. We are limited only by the amount of food aboard. There is no place to reprovision at Cocoa Point; or comm facilities (no internet, wifi, or cell service....although my cell occasionally beeps indicating I am getting one bar of service for a few seconds and then nothing). I fired up the watermaker yesterday, and have offered to share some water with SH3; so no one is in any rush to move.

Will post pictures when I get internet, but for now, ham radio is the only option for all onboard communication; including this posting.

THE BEACH is calling....gotta go !

Ole Dave

Beaches.......

As I look out from the cockpit of Persephone at Jolly Harbor, I am surrounded by beaches of every description.....there are at least 10 within a short dinghy ride:

The green water reminds me of the Bahamas.......

Photos from Falmouth

     I will again let the pictures tell the story.....These are photos of Nelson's Dock Yard National Park at the north end of English Harbor, Antigua.   In 1723, the Brits recognized that English and Falmouth Harbors were easily defensible, had quick access to the trade winds, yet shelterd enough to withstand a hurricane.  By 1784, English/Falmouth Harbors were Britain's main naval station in the Caribbean.  England's national naval hero, Admiral Nelson was assigned here in 1784; and, thus, the restored dock yard now shares his name. 


The main street in Nelson's Dock Yard

 The pillars that supported the sail loft in the harbor.

 Waterfront offices, and stores builing

 Not a bad neighborhood for "Persephone".......The anchorage is adjacent to the Dock Yard.

 

Thought of the day:  Some people put boats in little bottles; I like to put little bottles in my boat !!

 



Liming in Antigua.....

After our sprint north, the crews of  'Liahona', 'SH 3' and 'Persephone' have spent this week just "liming" (hanging out, relaxing).  On Tuesday, we all spent the day cleaning up the boats after the passage, and doing some basic shopping.  Tuesday evening, I hosted a "dinner party" for 5 aboard 'Persephone'; featuring chicken, a side of spaghetti and home (boat ??) baked brownies.  No one got sick, so I guess it came out alright....during dinner we decided to take the bus into THE CITY (St. John) on Wednesday morning.....

While walking down the street, a local lady convinced Mark that he just had to have his hair braided....

 Several colorful beads, and pieces of aluminum foil were added to the ends of Mark's braids.  Ken took one look and said: "you look like a giant fishing lure....all we have to do is drag you behind the boat and we would catch a huge wahoo...!!"  We all howled !!

We were hungry, so we asked a cabby where to get some lunch...he started suggesting the local pizza joint, and high price eateries along the boardwalk in front of the cruise ships....(all filled with pink skinned, obese, American tourists, in their resort ware)  No thanks, "we want to know where you  would eat", Lynn asked.  Oh....!!  He made a suggestion, but while walking there we found just what we wanted "Daddy's Boy" !!


Upon entering down a long hallway, the smell of delicious local cooking made our mouths water.  The food was a fusion of West Indian, Trinidadian, and Guyanaina  (much of it I didn't recognize or could pronounce). So, we each ordered (I just pointed)  a separate dish to share.  We ate 'family style' each trying the others culinary delight....chic peas in a spicy sauce,  liver in a different sauce and a stewed chicken dish over rice, dried fish.... With beers the price came to $16 EC per person or  $6 US.  We were stuffed !!  I can't wait to go back again !!  You just gotta eat where the locals eat........(In historic Nelson's Boat Yard, a touristy pub had a signboard in front offering rotis for $14 US....the local snackette down the street had the same for $14 EC or $5 US)

   It was time to return to Falmouth Harbor, but we had to do our obligatory fruit and vegetable shopping at the local farmers' market....Here Lynn is buying a fruit called "stinky toes".  It looks exactly like a large, brown toe and smells like dead socks....it is supposed to be good and sweet inside the shell.....I took a pass on the "stinky toes"....maybe next time.....