Growing Roots in Carriacou?

The initial disappointment of not being able to sail to Tobago (unfavorable wind and current) is slowly ebbing away, while Mark and I are spending more and more time in laid-back Carriacou. This island has always been one of our favorite stops, but we never managed to stay “until we got bored” because of other “obligations” in Grenada, like carnival in St. George’s or conducting business in Prickly Bay, or because of the urge to get to St. Maarten to sell Wiries during the high season. So now, Tyrrel Bay finds Irie in its protected harbor, with tons of other boats over the Carriacou Regatta week.

Actually, that event just finished and –even though we didn’t race or crewed on somebody else’s boat this year- we were a little bit involved in some of the activities. While the regatta is in process, the Carriacou Children’s Education Fund organizes a whole bunch of activities to collect money for its good cause. Mark and I went to the annual BBQ and potluck and met up with old friends and new friends while savoring a variety of delicious dishes. The youngsters (that’s us and our German friends) hung out until midnight that day and even the electricity outage couldn’t chase us off. Hurrah for the flashlight that lives in my pocket every night to help us find our way back to Irie, a mandatory habit form the St. Martin days…

The auction, where donated items are up for bit, was also a great success, with record sums being gathered this year. We donated a Wirie, just like last year, and now there is yet one more of those decorating a cruising boat in the Caribbean. It was a very hot day, with little shade around, and all the organizers and volunteers did a fantastic job. Also, for the first time in my life, I joined a yoga session organized by one of the cruisers in return for a donation. The air was hot and humid and sweat kept running down my face, but I truly enjoyed the experience and already feel more at peace… Keeping it up is another (non-existing) story. It might sound like I am promoting the CCEF events a bit too much, but that is because I have been deeply immerged in all the activities. I was appointed to write articles about the CCEF gatherings and they will appear in the September issue of Caribbean Compass and the October issue of All At Sea (also available at the Annapolis boat show).

Last Sunday the racing cruising yachts had a day off and the whole Tyrrel Bay crowd moved to Hillsborough by local buses to watch the events taking place there. The local work boats took off from the beach for several races and many activities with funny names took place in the streets and on a stage, while loud music boomed through massive speakers. The local bars were flooded with islanders and tourists alike and the atmosphere was festive. Drinks were very affordable and the streets filled with party goers. As always is the case with island events, time schedules were way off and finding/watching some of the games and competitions proved impossible. Mark and I did manage to observe the “balloon shaving” competition, but missed out on the donkey races, which would take place the following day. We did purchase a T-shirt to support the “We CARE-organization” (Carriacou Animal Rescue Effort) in hopes that one day they will be successful in spaying and neutering all the stray dogs and cats and in making sure all pets receive love and a good home.

The big differences between sitting in Simpson Bay Lagoon (St. Martin) for a while and in Tyrrel Bay are the pace of life ashore (and onboard), the shorter distance to shore (we’re not going through 5 gallons of fuel a week anymore) and the fact that we manage to take (most of) our weekends off. [Another big difference is that most food items are hard to come by, but we manage and spend less money in the process.] The advantage of those weekends off is that we are actually devoting some time together, the two of us, that we succeed to relax a bit and that we explore new places, like two weekends ago. Mark and I motored into current and wind for a good hour and a half, to reach Saline Island, where we rested, read, enjoyed the scenery, marveled at and into the clear water and snorkeled amongst the pretty and colorful coral. (See full story on http://xwaters.com/blogs/topic/off-the-beaten-sail-path-saline-island-carriacou) It was nice and we’re hoping to do something similar the coming weekend. The goal is to find a healthy balance between work and fun and I think we might actually be on our way to achieving that!

Cultural Experiences in Grenada

This year, the Carriacou Regatta took place over the last weekend of July into the beginning of August. Since we just missed it last year, we decided to be in Tyrrel Bay for this year’s racing activities. Irie anchored in her usual spot close to the beach and we felt very happy to be back in this quiet, relaxed and friendly area, with decent WiFi. Once again, we were surprised with the discrepancy between the amount of anchored boats and the lack of activity on shore. Even during the regatta. We hadn’t seen our friends from SV Imagine, SV Alianna and SV Opus for at least two days, so it was time to catch up!

Sam and Jon from “Imagine” signed up for the yacht races and Sim and Rosie (“Alianna”) and Mark made up the extra crew. Jim from “Opus” decided to crew with the locals again in the Carriacou Work Boat class. These developments resulted in a lot of activities and sights for all of us. We joined a potluck, went out for street BBQ, saw the start of Imagine’s first race, were present at a sweltering hot auction for the Carriacou Children Education Fund (for which we donated a Wirie) and listened to the final race results. Imagine, with its great skipper and experienced crew did pretty well!

When Mark crewed his first race, Darwin and I walked over to Paradise Beach to see the launching of the work boats. From all over the Caribbean, competitors arrive. These boats don’t have engines, so they start the race by being pushed off the beach by the last person to jump in, with all sails up; an impressive sight.

On Sunday, the “day off” for the yachts, we collected some of our friends and took Irie to Sandy Island for a wonderful pancake breakfast and tasty late lunch. In between, we saw the Carriacou Sloops and Work Boats race past us, sometimes very close by. A great photo opportunity, especially when the colorful spinnakers were flying. Jim’s boat passed us as well. We tried to fling him a pancake, but that didn’t work out so well…

After the Carriacou festivities, it was time for carnival in St. George’s, the capital of Grenada. Mark and I saw a couple of parades last year and weren’t all that interested this time, but… Port Louis Marina offered great rates for a marina stay during this period. The location is pretty and convenient. We figured we could spoil ourselves once in three years and ended up staying at a dock for four nights. It was so easy to take Darwin for walks and rinse him off with fresh water. The showers are very modern and a real treat. Having our friends around in walking distance was a plus as well, with many social evenings as a result. The shopping was within easy dinghy reach, the unlimited supply of fresh water made hand washing our clothes so much more enjoyable and the internet connection was reliable, providing Mark with the needs to work hard for four days.

In spite of all the amenities, we had to deal with VERY hot, wind free weather (no air in the boat at this angle), a high rate of humidity, the loudest (repetitive) soca music anybody ever heard, a bunch of mosquitoes and sleepless nights. The pool looked very attractive, but the lack of shade around it and a beating sun on top of it, made the water as hot as a bath and not very refreshing. To say it with Mark’s words: “I’m done with marinas for another three years now!”

The last carnival parade took place on a superhot Tuesday August 10^th. With some friends I walked over to the main watching area and managed to see most of the groups, while frying in the sun (Thanks for bringing an umbrella, Rosie) and covering our ears from the thumping, vibrating noise. It was very similar to last year with scantly dressed women, seducing moves and just a few impressive costumes. Carnival in Grenada happens in the summer, because the competition of Trinidad in the “normal” carnival period is too overwhelming. It was a good decision to attract the crowds from the surrounding islands, but less sweat would stream and fewer headaches would be had in the more pleasant February climate.

Our (temporarily) last month in Grenada will be spent in the southern bays, trying to make a few more cruisers happy with The Wirie.