APRIL = ANTIGUA

    As in 2011, Persephone spent the month of April in the country of Antigua-Barbuda.  Most of the cruising community assembled in Antigua for the annual Classic Regatta.  The race is only a five day event, but the partying starts the week before.  The Classic is co-sponsored by the Mt Gay Rum Company, which supplied copious amounts of rum at nightly 'Red Hat Parties'. 

Mark and I 'relax' the morning after a 'Red Hat Party'

The Classic is a race among beautifully restored antique yachts (or modern replicas) of all sizes.  The yachts have so much highly varnished teak, they look like floating pieces of furniture.

The starting line for the Classic Regatta

  
We all had a blasts during the two weeks of camaraderie...  Many of the cruisers have made reservations at the Betty Ford Clinic !  But not the crew of Persephone....we were off to Barbuda for  more adventure.....

PS....I am trying to catch up with the past couple of months when the Blog was in suspension (Red Hat Parties ??)   Persephone arrived in Rodney Bay, St. Lucia yesterday and will be here for the next several days.  Sould get caught up in the next couple of postings......

Blog is Back.....

It has been nearly three months since I posted a blog.  In the past three months,  a lot has happened aboard Persephone.  In the next several postings, I will bring you up to date.   Most importantly, my Dad (age 88) pasted away after a relatively short illness.  In early May, Persephone was docked at Jolly Harbor,  Antigua while I flew back to the States to attend the funeral. 

It has been 18 months since I visited the States (or driven a car...Yikes !!).  Attending the funeral was important; not only to say 'good bye' to my father, but to get re-acquaint with family and friends.  

A couple folks in the Blog-o-Sphere wrote and asked if I had lost my appetite for cruising.  Another friend wrote and was worried that I was spending too much time at anchor and may have lost my spirit for adventure.  Bob on 'Pride' figured I just drank too much rum and fell into oblivion.   Let me assure you all that none of these scenarios are true.  Any fleeting thought about giving up the cruising life (and there haven't been any) would be quickly crushed by the following:

This is Connecticut's famous Mystic Seaport   May, 2012



This is one of the 360 beaches on Antigua  May, 2012

This is Ian's Sabre 452 (a big sister to Persephone) at
her dock in Mystic, CT   May,  2012

The is Persephone anchored at Jolly Harbor
Antigua   May, 2012



Pictures sure speak a thousand words.....   !!





Just Liming......

Francis Bay, St John looking west at St Thomas

One day melts into another here on St. John, USVI.  Life is an easy blend of lobstering, beaching, hiking, lunches ashore, minor boat projects and socializing with other cruisers. As this is the dry season, everyday is nearly the same with bright blue skies and puffy white clouds; with the obligatory afternoon spritz. The climate here during the winter months is ideal....daytime highs in the low 80s and night time temps is the low 70s.  (In contrast, the temps at night in Grenada don't drop below the mid 80s !)  If it were any easier here, I would be comatose !!  As Paul Simon sings, "we get all the news we need from the weather report".   As winds and sea swells change, boats are moved from the west side of the island to the southern anchorages and then back again.  As St John is a territory of the US, the postal service and rates are the same as in the continental US; making ordering supplies simple and inexpensive.  This respite in US waters has afforded me the opportunity to restock Persephone's inventory of spare pieces and parts. In addition, ATT provides cell phone service at the same rates as the US; including free nights and weekends. Being back in civilization is terrific...at least in the short term ! 

Simply, it is seductive to be on an upscale island with all the amenities of the US. It is going to be VERY difficult to peel away from this "Velcro Island" and return to the southern Caribbean; perhaps not returning to the VIs for 2+ years.  'Persephone' plans on remaining in the USVIs for about a month before starting the 500 mile trek south for hurricane season.... But, before heading south, the bottom paint must be renewed....more on that in the next posting.

Yup, plenty of cold beer aboard, looks like its going to be another great day !

Dave Goes Down with Mike......

The lobster in this story is the one
on top weighing 3 lbs 12 oz

So, there I am, Diver Dave, cruising along at 60 feet below the surface with my dive buddy, Mike. (Mike is a guest aboard s/v ‘Chimayo’). The lobster hunt wasn’t going very well on this dive….not a crustation was spotted (pun intended). We were both getting low on air, and our bottom time was limited. I was slightly ahead and below Mike when he poked me with his snare. I whirled around knowing that he must have seen something. Yup, it was a nice spiny lobster hanging out in his hidy-hole…unfortunately for him, he forgot to tuck in his antenna. Mike tried to get his snare into the hole and around the lobster’s tail. No luck, the hole was just too small and the lobster was firmly wedged in. So, in a macho move Mike grabbed the lobster’s antenna next to its head. The lobster went nuts !! A steel cage death match ensued ….mano-a-mano….it’s tail flapping wildly (the lobster’s that is), sharp spines slashing at exposed flesh, face to face, NO, eyeball to eyeball the brawl continued. Neither man nor beast blinked….then again, lobsters can’t blink… (just go with it, I’m on a roll here)… The lobster wriggled as far back into its hole as it could with Mike still holding it’s antenna. Mike was literally up to his shoulder in the hole. I was slightly above Mike and blinded by the bubbles from Mike’s SCUBA gear as the death match continued. Which one was going to emerge from the hole victorious ? At this moment it was dead even; or perhaps the lobster was slightly ahead on points. Finally, Mike is able to drag the agitated animal far enough from it’s hole for me grab it from behind. In the open, the lobster had more room to flail its tail in a last ditch effort to escape; Mike holding dinner from the front and me from behind. The lobster’s spines penetrated my gloves as the lobster drew first blood. Although it was two against one, the lobster was beginning to wiggle free. Instantly, Mike jumped him and wrapped himself in the fetal position around the pissed lobster. Picture a football player falling on the ball after a fumble in a protective curl…that was Mike. Immediately, I opened the catch bag and we stuffed the still battling bug inside. DONE !!

     With the few hundred pounds of air in our tanks, the three of us slowly made our way to the surface. Thankfully, the dinghy was only a few hundred feet away. Later, back on ‘Chimayo’, beer and bugs were served for dinner with friends. What could be better?!…

     “Excuse me, could you pass the drawn butter”….”another coldie, Dave” ? You bet !

NOTE:

((Geoff on "Beach House" asked if SCUBA gear is legal for catching lobsters in the USVI.  The answer is yes, as long as you are using snares and not spears.  Lobsters are plentiful here, so the restrictions are limited, even in the National Park.  Mike is in the US Coast Guard and was assigned to the station in St. Thomas; so we were careful to comply with all regulations.   So com' on up to America's paradise and snare yourself dinner !!  Geoff, we'll even let Canadians in !!))

Living off the sea......

During the past week, "Persephone" has teamed up with the crew of  "Chimayo" for an all out lobster safari.  In the USVIs you are permitted to use SCUBA gear and snares to capture the spiny critters.  Since last Tuesday, we have been averaging at least one dive per day, and on several days we have done double dives.  We have been diving so much, we had to get a special package rate for 25 tank refills  at the local dive shop (final cost was $5/refill).   As of yesterday, the count was 13 lobsters captured; the largest was snared by Mike (sv 'Chimayo') weighing 7 1/2 pounds !  Mike literally had to wrestle the beast into the catch bag. (None of us had a pot large enough to steam him !!)   Most of the tasty crustasions have been in the 3-4 pound range...not the small 2 pounders seen down island.  For the past week,  the menu has been 'lobster anything lobster everything'....lobster dips, lobster plain, lobster mac and cheese, and lobster hors d'oeuvres.  Sunday is 'pasta night' aboard 'Persephone', so Debbie made up homemade lobster ravioli for Sunday dinner.  Mike and Crystal  of  'Dancing Dolphin' are living and working on St. John to replentish their cruising kitty and joined us for dinner. Each of the boats brought a dish to share.  There was so much food, we were all stuffed as much as the ravioli !!   Thanks, Debbie !!  (It was a bit confusing as 'Chimayo's' guests are also conincidently named Mike and Crystal !!)

It hasn't been all hunting...last nite, we managed to enjoy a few sundowners on the beach at Francis Bay, St. John, USVI----->

From L to R:  Mike, Crystal, Bob, and Debbie of s/v 'Chimayo; Janice
and Steve of s/v 'Sailacious' and of course 'Diver Dave' 

THE CRUZATEERS

St Thomas, USVI

CA Harbor

On Thursday, Persephone motored  (there was no wind for sailing) the 10 miles from St. John  to Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas.  CA is the capital of the US Virgins, and the #1 cruise ship destination in the Caribbean. Enough said ??

So, why is Persephone in a tourist trap?  One reason...the shopping.  NO, not beads and bobbles; but supermarkets, Home Depot, and K-Mart. It was time for a major reprovisioning.  We haven't had access to "American Stores" since leaving Puerto Rico two years ago. (literally !)  You know that the credit card is in trouble when you can see the bottom of the freezer, or when you start to weep when you enter Home Depot !   It has been three days of solid shopping, and shopping some more....

But, before you start feeling bad, there has been lots of partying also.  We met up with  friends on "Foggy Mountain, who have been here for about a week.   "Chamayo" arrived Friday morning and on Friday afternoon, the radio crackled announcing the arrival of "Sailacious".  Plans were immediately made for burgers ashore.  The eight of us had a blast at a local waterhole.

Last night, the party was aboard 'Persephone.  The "Cruizateers" (named coined by Janice of 'Sailacious') were back together.  Mohitoes were the specialty drink of the night served aboard....an entire liter of rum was gone by the third round !  The "Cruizateers" were the "Hangoverteers" this morning !!

The sun sets on Charlotte Amalie

The shopping is done, so it is time to leave CA.  Tomorrow morning 'Persephone' will leave St. Thomas and return to the serenity and sanity of St. John...not for the benefit of THE CREW, but for my Credit Card !!!



Not to

Paradise Found....

For those of you freezing your butts off up north, here is a Post Card for you from Francis Bay, St. John in the  US Virgin Islands....

And for those you who are still working....please keep it up !  I received my first Social Security check last week, and I need you to keep paying your taxes to help support this lifestyle !!  (And a special 'thanks' to D. Grover)  Off to pick up dive tanks this morning....gotta run.

Diver Dave