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Caribbean Travel RoundupNewsletter - Paul Graveline, Editor |
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We recently returned from a long awaited vacation from St. Lucia. Although the villa we rented was beautiful, a number of problems occurred and we feel very strongly about making sure others are aware of the problems we encountered. Background Jennifer and I are a married couple both originally from Miami, Florida. We have recently moved from Washington, D.C. to our current home in Iowa City, Iowa. I am an Army physician and Jennifer is an elementary school special education teacher. Although we are certainly not Caribbean experts, we have made a number of trips to different islands that include St. Thomas, St. John, and Barbados. Jennifer has also been to Trinidad. We have stayed at villas twice before and have had great experiences. We have never had a bad experience and have never found a reason to make public our discontent with a facility until now. We are very much the type that likes to find our own way around and really explore an island rather than be deposited at an all- inclusive facility that you never leave during your stay. St. Lucia attracted us with its beautiful landscape. The mountains and rain forests are beautiful. We looked extensively though the available villas on line and selected one in Soufriere, near the Piton mountains. Although the property, La Batterie was in a beautiful location and was very nicely decorated, we encountered a number of problems that made our stay difficult at best. We feel that this villa, especially during the rainy season, is one that should be passed up in favor of other properties in other locations. We hope the following serves as a summary and would be happy to answer any questions if you leave your comments in the feedback section. We feel that the information we were given regarding the property before our trip was not accurate. Had we had this information, we would have either booked at a later time or with another location. There are a number of specific examples. First, I specifically had asked the villa owners about insects at this time of year and was given the impression that they were not a factor. Jennifer and I grew up in a tropical climate and understand that insects are a part of warm weather. We are quite used to them. The situation in the villa after sunset was striking even to us. With ANY lights on in the house, moths, gnats, and mosquitoes would swarm. During our arrival, Terry was nice enough to have all of the lights on in the house. This resulted in each of the bathrooms being full of moths and we had to literally sweep out the showers to use them. Any food in the kitchen would be almost immediately attacked by ants and roaches were frequently seen in all areas of the shelving. Finally, the mosquitoes were aggressive enough to gain access around the bed netting at night. This was despite a floor fan and copious insect repellent worn to bed. I'm sure all of these issues are not as significant in the dry weather but during the rainy season, guests should be made aware of the challenges. We did not find this level of difficulty on other parts of the island and have not experienced anything like this on other Caribbean islands. Second, the villa is located down a very isolated and poorly maintained road. The only facility within reasonable walking distance is the Anse Chastanet Hotel. The villa owners make a strong point of the fact that villa guests are recognized and given detailed attention at this hotel. This is simply not accurate. We found the hotel staff to be generally aware of the property but that no additional help of any kind would be offered. At one point, we tried to gain a small cash advance at the hotel, which was initially approved in the afternoon and then denied in the evening. It was made very clear to us that "non-guests" are afforded no additional hotel courtesies. We feel that this element of the villa information should be clarified. In addition to this matter, we were a little disappointed with the hotel in general. While regarded as a well-run facility, we found the beach to be adequate at best and the overall facility to be aging. For example, there are a number of storage "huts" on the beach made from scrap metal and plastic! Given the number of well maintained hotels and beautiful beaches in the Caribbean, we were hoping for more. Finally, the weather was not what we had expected. While most tropical rainy seasons seem to have rain for periods in the late afternoons, this area of the island had rain for periods on average of about once an hour. I think this is due to the sudden change in elevation directly behind the property. We did not see this pattern as much while on other areas of the island. Again, this is probably not a big issue in the dry season. As I stated, this is a beautiful place and a beautiful property. The rooms are well decorated, and with the exception of the kitchen which is quite dated, the rooms are open and comfortable. We feel that the owners were not forthright about a number of issues that detracted greatly from our stay. We would simply advise anyone contemplating this property to be very clear in his or her communication with the owners. We certainly have no plans to return.
We found the island at the end of November to be beautiful, green and floribundant, thanks to a hurricane-free summer and fall. While the green of vegetation was in abundance, however, the green of American dollars is missing in SXM this year. Just as harmful to the island's economy as the worst hurricane, were the events of September 11. Most people we talked to on the island gauged business to be down about 40 percent from the same time last year. Considering last year's economy was still down from Hurricane Lenny in 1999, it's easy to understand that SXM is really hurting. Yet, in typical St. Martin style, just about everyone seemed optimistic about business picking up as soon as the high season starts. Even during our 11 days on the island, we noticed a slight increase in tourists. Still, the island needs us now, more than ever. If you're at all on the fence about whether or not to make the trip, by all means, go. Although overall security improvements in most of the airports we traveled through were subtle and random, there were some noticeable changes. At O'Hare, before anyone boarded the plane, the pilot came out and walked among the passengers. He made a point to talk to some people, such as a man carrying a cane. On another flight, the crew made an announcement asking everyone to use only the restrooms at the rear of the plane if possible to avoid having people moving toward the front of the plane. In both Miami and San Juan, the only notable security procedures were having about a dozen people on each flight randomly called for a more thorough search of their carry-ons. The most noticeable change in security, however, was right in SXM, where all luggage, both checked and carry-on, is given a hand search. I'm sure a determined hijacker or "shoe-icide" bomber could still get something past these guys, but nonetheless, it was higher security than I saw at any U.S. airport. After landing at Juliana, we got to experience the new "transit" system at the airport. Frankly, I don't get the point. You still have to come down the stairs (which I enjoy - getting that first feeling of island breezes and Caribbean sun when coming out of the plane), then you walk more than the length of the plane to the bus, ride the bus for about 100 yards and still make a good hike over to immigration. I suppose there must be some sort of safety regulations at play here, because the bus seems highly unnecessary otherwise. We proceeded from the airport to get our car from Unity. In the past, we've been loyal users of Hertz, having had one "just okay" experience with Unity a few years ago. However, since there were four of us traveling this time, we wanted a particular type of 4- door vehicle that we knew Unity had and Hertz didn't. We are now among the legions of Unity devotees, and will definitely use them on future trips. One example of how Unity won us over: we decided rather spontaneously to extend our trip by two extra days. At the point in time we were originally due to return the car, we drove up, told them what we wanted to do and with a handshake we were on our way. I have no doubt that with Hertz, there would have been paperwork to reconcile and a lot more time involved. Our home for the next eight nights was Grand Case Beach Club. This is one of my favorite hotels on the island. It's centrally located, has two beaches - including Petit Plage, one of my favorites, and has good security and a super staff. They are gradually renovating the resort. Landscaping projects were underway, and rooms were being redone as well. Our room, an oceanfront loft, had obviously recently been redone, although my brother-in-law's room right next door had not. The loft set-up of the room worked out very nicely. The king size bed and dresser are upstairs, leaving the downstairs free to function as kitchen and living room. The satellite TV gets several American stations and - a nice surprise - rooms now have CD players. The only thing that could have improved this set-up would be a second bathroom upstairs. One evening, we ventured out on the catamaran Scoobidoo for a sunset sail. We cruised around the waters between Grand Case and Anguilla, enjoying an open bar and appetizers. If you happened to see a show on the Travel Channel hosted by Hunter Reno, the Scoobidoo was one of the attractions featured in the program. We had an opportunity to chat with the owner and captain of the boat and he said that Hunter herself actually came to the island in advance of the filming of the show to scout out locations and attractions to feature. I was impressed, having always assumed a production crew did all the legwork and the star got all the credit. We spent time, on several days, actually, at Sunset Beach Bar. I'm happy to report that even with new ownership, everything we've always liked about the place is still the same. In fact, they are enlarging, with the deck now extending to adjacent to the restrooms, and adding a boutique to sell SSBB logo merchandise. And yes, women can still choose to get their drinks for free. Aside from the excellent cheeseburgers at SSBB, we did our share of dining around the island. Overall, we much prefer the food on the French side; we don't come to St. Martin to eat American-style food, but I guess it all depends on what you like. VERY GOOD: L'Amandier - Grand Case. Limited menu, but good food in a beautiful location. Restaurant du Soleil - Grand Case. Nice blend of French and Caribbean cuisine. Sol E Luna - Mt. Vernon. Italian with French attention to preparation. Turtle Pier (for lunch) - Simpson Bay. Really good conch chowder and conch fritters (surprisingly, these are hard to find elsewhere on the island). GOOD Lee's - Simpson Bay. Overrated in my book, but seafood was indeed very fresh. Peg Leg Pub - Simpson Bay. Excellent selection of beers; American- style food, good burger. Le Pinel - Cul de Sac. Food was excellent, but service very, very slow. Bikini Beach Bar - Orient Beach. Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings. Was good, but Bikini's regular menu is better. Talk of the Town - Grand Case. Home style food right off the grill. A little too salty this night. Coconut ice cream was perhaps the best ice cream I've ever had, anywhere. FAIR TO GOOD Princess Casino free buffet - Port de Plaisance Hotel. It was free. Great coleslaw. Turtle Pier (for dinner) - BBQ chicken, rice and beans, etc., was pretty good, not great. Happily, I can say I've never had a truly, flat-out lousy meal on SXM. That proved to be true again this trip. When it got to be November 29, we had a decision to make. We were due to return home the next day, and we just weren't ready. Off to the airport we went, swallowing the $100 per person change fee on the tickets and extending our visit by two more days. As I mentioned earlier, we extended our rental with Unity, no problem, mon. We did move to a different hotel, however, getting a great deal at Le Chatelaine near the airport that made up for the cost to change our air tickets. This is an interesting hotel. Rooms are spacious and right on a nice quiet beach. A much-needed renovation of the rooms could make this place a gem, but there's a fair amount of work needed. The hotel's proximity to the airport - it is directly adjacent to the runway - is no problem, although we were not there during the peak flying hours of 2-5 p.m. We were in the room for the take-off of one large plane - a BWIA jet, which, by the way, took off the "other" way, toward the ocean - and it rocked the room enough that I don't think I would want to be there when Air France departs. Otherwise, it's a quiet location and there are NO planes coming in or departing at night. We nearly got a third extra day on the island besides the two we had already taken. Upon checking in at the airport, we learned the plane we'd be leaving on would be late coming in to Juliana, and we would miss our connection in San Juan. We were given the choice between another extra day in SXM (paid for by American Airlines) or an overnight in San Juan. We ended up opting for San Juan because they couldn't guarantee us a seat from SXM the following day, and I really did have to get back to work by Tuesday. Have to start salting away money for the next trip, after all, and it can't come too soon!
Copyright 2001 Mike Haynes. All Rights Reserved
In early May, 2001, six of us embarked on a one-way bareboat charter
from St. Lucia to Grenada. We had sailed the British Virgin Islands
several times, and decided on a change of scenery and more
challenging sailing conditions. We were not disappointed.
We flew American to St. Lucia, which involved a long layover in San
Juan, because the first flight to St. Lucia (American Eagle) doesn't
leave San Juan until 5:30 p.m. That put us into St. Lucia at 7:40,
almost 12 hours after leaving home.
All the flights were on time (a real surprise) and there were only
two inconveniences: 1) Although we made our reservations almost a
year in advance, none of us were sitting together, and 2) the
"dinner" on American Eagle was amusing - sliced Turkey on a hot-dog
bun. Reminded me of something I might have done in college. We
wondered if some other flight had hotdogs on whole wheat! The worst
part was that after traveling all day with a long layover, we landed
in St. Lucia after dark, missing out on what must have been some
spectacular aerial views.
The Moorings (our charter company) had made hotel arrangements, and
provided free airport transfers. A porter quickly recognized our
Moorings luggage tags and sped us through customs, bypassing a long
line. He delivered us to the taxi dispatcher who also recognized us
as Moorings charterers immediately, but almost sent us to the wrong
hotel. Turns out he had received no information about us. After
several phone calls, he put us in a free cab to the Rainbow Hotel.
The Moorings base is in Marigot Bay, and I had expected to stay in
their hotel there. I was surprised to find the Rainbow was not
their hotel, and was in Rodney Bay, several miles in the opposite
direction from the airport. This situation was both good and bad.
We had planned to spend the first day ashore, maybe see some sights,
and also get a handle on the operation at the Moorings base, as well
as local advice for our upcoming sail. However, we got an
opportunity to see Rodney Bay, which was quite nice, even though our
subsequent charter start was more hectic.
Rodney Bay is very nice. It has a beautiful crescent beach and a
large Marina, as well as a reasonably large town on the water.
There are lots of restaurants and bars in the area. We didn't have
a car, and didn't need one with so many businesses within walking
distance.
The first night, we dined at "The Buzz." It was a nice atmosphere
with a good bar, good food, good service, and a large, varied menu.
I tried an Indian dish, and the others mostly grazed on the large
selection of appetizers. Entrees were in the low to mid $20s, US.
The Rainbow is an adequate hotel. The grounds and exterior are
attractive, and they have a great pool. The rooms are very basic -
no shampoo, two thin towels, no washcloths, no ice bucket, and a TV
with no clear reception. They have a small restaurant which
served up a nice, inexpensive breakfast.
The Rainbow is situated a short walk from the beach on one side, and
a short walk from the Marina on the other. The price was reasonable
- about $85/night. We were just into the off-season, so I expect
the prices are much higher in winter. For the more luxury-minded,
I'd recommend the Royal St. Lucian, which was nearby. It has
fabulous grounds, a beautiful lobby, and is beachfront. I don't
know the price, but I'm sure it wasn't cheap.
We had planned an island cab tour, but after the previous long
travel day, we lazed around too long. The island is large, and a
decent cab tour would have taken about 7 hours. So instead of sight-
seeing we decided to drink.
Our walk on the beach was interrupted by a sudden rainstorm.
Fortunately, we were right in front of a beach bar/restaurant called
Spinnakers. It's a beautiful spot, with a fabulous view of Rodney
Bay. The bay is surrounded by large hills, which unfortunately were
pretty brown that time of year. The Windwards were at the tail of
an unusually long and intense dry season, and we saw mostly brown
islands on the entire trip. But it was still a beautiful spot.
We walked through the local neighborhood, which was mostly very nice
private homes, and ended up at a tiny outdoor bar called the "Happy
Day." It's owned by a big hotel, but is just a low-key,
freestanding shack by the canal entering the Marina. It offers a
nice breeze, a beautiful view of the bay, 2-for-1 drinks, and a
continuous stream of offbeat tourists, yachties, and locals - all
friendly and interesting. If you like this kind of camaraderie,
don't miss this place. It's my favorite memory of Rodney Bay.
That night we had dinner at the Mortar and Pestle restaurant down on
the Marina docks. This beautiful waterfront location has a great
view and excellent food. We had lobster (last day of the season),
fish, shrimp, and steak. All were excellent, and the prices were
reasonable - less expensive than the Buzz. They also had a great
steel drum band.
Next morning, we got a late start because the Rainbow front desk
forgot our wakeup call. Moorings picked us up at 9:00, and we got
no breakfast. It was nearly an hour drive to Marigot Bay, and we
stopped by a bank to convert some US$ to EC$ (Eastern Caribbean).
We couldn't exchange the previous day because it was Sunday. I had
read in the Caribbean Roundup that you shouldn't exchange to EC
before you leave, because the local rates are much better, and that
advice was accurate. The bank was a zoo, however, and we got to
Marigot Bay about 10 minutes late for our 10:00 briefing
Alex, the base manager, said "no problem", and hustled us right on
in. He gave an excellent briefing of our sailing area, and provided
lots of local knowledge. He's a wonderful and very interesting guy,
and it was a real pleasure to meet him.
We checked out through customs in Marigot, and after a brief boat
checkout, were ready to go. Customs was a real pain-in-the-butt
bunch of red tape, but didn't take too long and the agents were
friendly.
I'd like to provide more information about Marigot Bay, but we were
only there for a few hectic hours. Unlike the Rodney Bay area, it
was quite green because it's situated near an inland valley. It was
a lovely spot and I wish we could have spent more time there.
Doolittle's is probably the most famous spot, and it looked really
nice. Gorgeous restaurant and bar, right on the water. Maybe we'll
visit it next time.
We didn't sail out of Marigot Bay until about 2:00, because the
Moorings were out of towels. The late start was unfortunate, as
I'll mention below.
The sail to the Pitons/Soufriere area was wonderful, and uneventful -
15 knot breeze on a broad reach, flat water, and a dolphin escort -
about all you could ask for. Soufriere and the Pitons are probably
the most-visited tourist area on St. Lucia. The Pitons are a
striking pair of steep conical mountains about a half-mile apart at
the base. There's a lovely anchorage between them, which is only
practical if you pick up a mooring - the water is 900 feet deep
(according to Alex). Unfortunately, the boat in front of us picked
up the last mooring. Now you understand why I was miffed about the
towels!
We left the Pitons and motored over to nearby Soufriere, which is a
small town on the water. It's famous for its nearby sulfur
springs. Other sailors had warned us that it smelled like sewage.
We noticed the odor immediately, but I think it may have been sulfur
from the springs. At least, we gave them the benefit of the doubt,
because we had no choice but to anchor there. Once anchored, we
never noticed the odor again.
We encountered our first boatboy on the way to Soufriere. He
offered to lead us to the best anchoring spot. We were warned
repeatedly about boatboys by guidebooks and other sailors, and
expected the worst. Surprisingly, they were extremely helpful,
friendly and knowledgeable. I learned to trust their advice and
accept their help with anchoring and mooring. All they wanted was a
small tip, and their advice was accurate and helpful. The vendor
boatboys were also quite nice, and readily accepted "no thank you"
when we weren't interested in their products. My advice is to be
friendly and act like a guest in their islands - they will treat you
most hospitably.
Anchoring in Soufriere is a trip. The shore is so steep, you must
drop your anchor off the side of an underwater cliff about 100 feet
from shore, and tie a stern line to a tree. The procedure is so
common, the locals wait by the trees to tie you up for a standard
$10EC ($4 US) fee.
Our anchoring was especially exciting. As we approached our
anchorage, a shoreside rainshower greeted us with a beautiful
rainbow over Soufriene, so close we could almost touch it. As I
nervously anticipated the coming squall (which never materialized)
our boatboy told us exactly where to drop the anchor and how much
scope to use. Then, with my crew on the bow, I was both steering
and handling the stern line. With the boat in neutral and
presumably safely situated for the moment, I began paying out line
to the boatboy.
Suddenly, everyone was yelling, and I spun around with horror to see
our boat heading for a T-bone collision with the huge, immaculate
catamaran alongside. I yanked the boat into reverse about 10 feet
short of a collision. Our neighbors were all on deck regarding us
with amusement and probably no small amount of disgust.
After our boatboy expertly tied us up, two of us dinghied over to
our neighbors with two Carib beers (the excellent local brew) as a
peace offering. They were gracious to a fault, and invited us
aboard for drinks, reinforcing my opinion that sailors are almost
universally wonderful folks. Unfortunately, we had a ton of stuff
to do aboard and had to decline.
Back at our boat, we were running the engine in neutral at 1500 RPM
to charge the batteries and chill the fridge (have to do that twice
a day). Boatboys started coming by and telling us we were in
reverse and pulling on our anchor. One of our crew snorkeled and
discovered the prop was indeed turning. After several attempts, I
managed to shift into neutral. That explained why we nearly T-boned
the big cat - when in neutral, our boat would sometimes decide to
drive itself around. What a way to start a trip. Rather than delay
our trip, we decided to wait until we got to Bequia to try and get a
repair.
We dined ashore at the Hummingbird Restaurant. This place looks
like a dump from the beach, but is remarkable inside. It is built
from stone, with open-air seating, and is decorated with hand-carved
idols - some very large, and holding up part of the roof over the
bar.. They had a great happy hour (four rum punches for $4 US), and
the food was wonderful. I'd recommend it for food, atmosphere, and
service, with prices around $10-$25 US for entrees.
Food in general on this entire trip was very good. I don't think we
ever had a bad meal, and many were excellent. We ate mostly at mid-
range priced places, with entrees in the $10-$20 US range for things
like fresh fish, chicken, shrimp, etc. On advice from others, we
stayed away from steaks and such, which would likely be
frozen.
Our only complaint was that the menus were almost identical in every
restaurant. There was some variety in the preparation or
accompaniments, but in general, every place had the same selection -
Appetizers: salad, Callaloo soup, gazpacho, pumpkin soup; Entrees:
steak, lobster (unfortunately out of season after 4/31 - most of our
trip), lambi (conch), shrimp, chicken, and sometimes pork ribs.
Although this selection sounds broad, the preparation was similar
nearly everywhere, with little variety.
Anyone down there will tell you to always get the fish. It's
local, fresh, and usually prepared in a unique way at each
restaurant. It's almost always fish of the day. We had Tuna,
Dorado (Mahi-Mahi), Flying Fish, Barracuda, and Red Snapper.
Several of our crew were delighted to discover a taste for
Callaloo, a local green, usually used in soup but often in other
dishes as well. Another favorite was Christophene - a fruit which
looks and tastes somewhat like a potato when cooked, but grows on a
tree (we think) and looks a little like a squash.
We met our neighbors from the Catamaran again at the Hummingbird.
Very nice folks. They invited us again for drinks aboard their
boat, but we were all just too tired from the long day and
declined. Too bad - I would have loved a tour of that big Cat.
Sleeping in Soufriere is a little tough. Roosters crowed all night,
it was just rolly enough to be uncomfortable, and there was little
breeze so it was pretty hot in the cabin.
Next morning we got an early start for our 37-mile trip to St.
Vincent. Ubald, the shoreside boatboy, brought us ice promptly at
7:30 am, as he had promised the night before when he helped us land
and launch our dinghy in the surf.
We had paid extra for a 1-way trip from St. Lucia to Grenada,
because the wind "always" blows in that direction, and we'd have a
great downwind sail all the way. It turns out the 10 days we chose
to sail were an exception to "always." The normal NE wind veered
into the South, and we sailed upwind the entire trip. It wasn't a
terrible trip, usually a close reach, sometimes a beat, and we never
had to tack, but a broad reach would have been much easier.
The trip to St. Vincent took six hours. Much of it was in 6-foot
swells or more, with confused seas - no two waves traveling in the
same direction. It was tough sailing but exhilarating. Only one of
us avoided nausea (it wasn't me), and only one lost breakfast (not
me either). But it was still a lot of fun. St. Vincent is a
foreboding sight when approaching from the north. The volcano is
shrouded in black clouds and mist, like some mysterious island in a
horror movie. But down on shore it's beautiful and unspoiled. As
soon as we rounded the northernmost point, the wind and water
immediately settled, and the conditions were perfect.
Our destination was Wallilabou Bay, which has a narrow entrance in
an otherwise continuous shoreline. We probably would have missed it
altogether except for the GPS, and a few inexplicable dots on the
water. As we approached we realized the dots were boatboys - local
hawkers drawing in business which might otherwise sail right by
without noticing.
One picked us out and began rowing his small boat beside us,
offering a mooring. We accepted, and unbelievably, he rowed the
small boat at the same speed we motored - about 5 knots. I was
suspicious of a scam about helping with a mooring, but it turned out
they had no pennants and were hard to pick up, plus they were so
close together you needed to tie the stern to a tree. The other
boatboys pitched in and helped, working
very hard to get us secured. A bargain at $10EC ($4US).
While I'm at it, a word about the currency: local currency is the
Eastern Caribbean Dollar (EC Dollar). It has a fixed exchange rate
of $2.67 to the US Dollar. Local banks and hotels will give you
$2.60 or better. Typical street rate is $2.50, because it's easy to
calculate. (Multiply $EC by 4, shift the decimal one place left,
and you have $US. For example, $10EC = 4 x 10, drop the 0 = $4US)
I couldn't find anyone stateside giving better than $2.43. Change
your money when you get there. Or don't bother. Everyone accepts
US anyway. But be sure you have lots of small bills. And it's a
good idea to get some small change (at least $1, $5) in EC, for
buying from the boatboys.
Anyway, back to Wallilabou. As soon as our boat was tied up, I
noticed there were boatboys with their wares lining both sides of
the boat. They had jewelry, carvings, ice, guided shoreside tours,
lobster, fish, you name it. We politely looked at everything, but
only bought some ice. All were pleasant and friendly, whether we
bought anything or not.
Shortly after we arrived, we watched a German boat try to anchor and
set a stern line without the help of boatboys. It took them about
45 minutes. They had crewmembers climbing the rocks ashore, then
diving when they dropped their sternline. They anchored too far
away and couldn't reach the sternline to shore, reanchored, and
still couldn't reach, all with the boatboys patiently watching,
encouraging, and advising for free from a few feet away. When the
boat finally realized the sternline was too short, the boatboys
loaned them an additional one. Maybe they finally got a tip - I'm
not sure. But we were amazed at what some people will do to save
four dollars!
Wallilabou is a beautiful little anchorage. It's very protected,
with a gorgeous view of the Caribbean between the huge rocks on
either side of the bay's narrow mouth. We had to go ashore around
5:00 to clear customs. More carbon-paper triplicates to fill out in
a hot room. Another slow, inconvenient experience, but again the
officers were pleasant.
I wish we'd had time to visit the local waterfall, or hire a car up
to the volcano, but we'd had a long sail and didn't have much energy
left. I'd like to visit Wallilabou again and see a little more of
the area.
Back at the boat, our neighbors were a couple from Dallas, Texas,
with their toy Poodle, Rosie. The Escapade had been working down
from St. Martin for over five months, and were bound for Grenada,
same as us. Wonderful folks, and Skipper Mike had a great sense of
humor to go with his Texas drawl. They were the only American
sailors we met on the entire trip.
We dined ashore at the Wallilabou Anchorage Restaurant. This place
looks like a dump, but its laid-back charm grows on you after a few
rum punches. It's locally-owned with local food. I think some of
our crew found their meals a little sub-par, but the Tuna with
Creole Sauce was my favorite entrée for the entire trip. Prices
about $8 - $20 US.
Sleeping in Wallilabou was again a little rolly, and very hot.
Tying bow and stern doesn't let the boat swing to the wind, and we
had light wind behind us, which doesn't get channeled down into the
boat very well.
Next morning we set out for Bequia, the northernmost and largest of
the Grenadine Islands. St. Vincent and the Grenadines are one
country, so luckily we were finished with Customs for a while.
Bequa was about 45 degrees off the wind, so the entire trip was a
beat on one tack. The wind was 20+ knots, and we had to reef just
to keep the boat under control. But the seas were about four feet
and regular, so it was a fast and glorious sail.
Two and a half hours later, we entered Admiralty Bay, an enormous,
well-protected harbor, which easily held a freighter, a cruise ship,
and hundreds of smaller vessels. Nestled in the corner is the town
of Port Elizabeth. I love this place! The water is a gorgeous blue
surrounded by white sand, the anchorage is vast and pleasant, the
surrounding town is a delightful collection of local architectures
in traditional pastel colors, and there are plentiful services and
distractions for the yachtsman. We stayed two days.
Almost anything you could want can be delivered to your boat.
Daffodil Marine supplies water and fuel from a barge which comes
right out and ties to your boat. They also have an excellent
laundry service which picks up and delivers by dinghy - hand washed
and line dried in the Carribean sun. Garbage? Out of rum? No
problem mon' - call Daffodil on channel 69. I love this place!
Against the charter company's advice, we rented a mooring from a
dubious-looking character, and hoped for the best. It was a good
move, because it was secure, and more conveniently located than any
place we could have anchored. And I do mean secure, because the
wind nearly blew the paint off the boat the entire time we were
there. We had no complaints about ventilation in Bequia!
After evening cocktails and a fabulous sunset, we dinghied in to the
Gingerbread Restaurant for another great meal. The Gingerbread has
a lovely balcony with a view of the town and bay. The next day, we
explored the town, which is situated entirely on the water. There
is nothing more than one block from the shore. There are ample
eateries, watering holes, and shopping. They have a couple of
supermarkets, and even a drugstore. All of these became rare as we
ventured farther down the Grenadines. Be sure to visit the
bookstore, which has a fascinating collection of local history, and
geography, as well as boating books in general. Also notice the
beautiful handmade local boats plying the harbor. Boatbuilding is a
Bequia tradition.
We considered an island tour, but all the cabs were pickup trucks
with benches in the back. After the previous days of hard sailing,
we just weren't ready to bounce down dusty roads on a hard bench,
and declined. I think my retirement plan will be to move to Bequia
and start a cab service in an air-conditioned van. The market is
there.
We lunched at Mac's Pizza - a small place high on a hill, with a
commanding view of the bay. Honestly, it was the best pizza I've
ever had. I tried hard to be objective and ignore the atmosphere,
and I still think it was the best. Don't miss it!
Dinner was a tough decision. There are just too many good
restaurants here. We'd had drinks at the Frangipani, so decided to
dine at the Plantation Hotel's Green Flash Bar. At this point great
meals at a waterside table with a fabulous view were becoming
commonplace, so the best part was the homemade coconut ice cream.
The next morning we left with a choice of destinations. We
headed for Mayreau, with a backup plan to stop in Canouan (about
half way) if the weather was rough. The day was gorgeous, with
light seas and a beam reach, so slipped into Mayreau's Saltwhistle
Bay about four hours later. The sail was uneventful until our
Skipper (moi) got a little confused about our location as we passed
Catholic Island. My unforgiving crew will never let me forget it.
Saltwhistle Bay is the most beautiful anchorage in the Windward
Islands, but don't tell anyone because it's very small. It is well-
protected, with a small white sand crescent beach lined with Palm
Trees. Anchoring is good, but you have to get in early to find a
spot. We didn't get a good anchor set the first time, and on our
second try were helped out by a boatboy named "Yellow Man." We
didn't really need the help, but didn't refuse, and he bug us for a
tip. We made a deal for him to bring us ice from Union Island the
next morning (none is available locally).
There is nothing here except a single resort (Saltwhistle Bay
Resort, I think). It is beautiful! I'd like to go back there and
stay. It is a collection of "huts," all made of stone with thatched
roofs, but with full amenities. The restaurant serves at round
stone tables, each surrounded by a low stone wall with built-in
bench, and a thatched roof.
The resort is on a narrow spit of land covered with palm trees. If
you walk across this little peninsula (about 100 yards), you come to
the ocean on the other side. This walk is truly spectacular in the
moonlight, beneath the shadow of the palms.
The next morning we headed out early for the Tobago Keys - the most
famous spot in the entire Windward Islands.
The official The Caribbean Travel Roundup World Wide Web site is http://caribtravelnews.com. The CTR is also available on America Online. Contact: Paul Graveline, 9 Stirling St., Andover, MA 01810- 1408 USA :Home (Voice or Fax) 978-470-1971. E-mail via editor@caribtravelnews.com or CTREDITOR@aol.com
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