Grenada with Visitors

Mark and I have been very busy lately and the arrival of visitors would mean we HAD to relax and do some fun stuff, at least while they were in Grenada. Irie got put back in the water right in time for the arrival of my cousin Griet and her husband Wim. The preparations were made for a nice, easy vacation and my plans included lots of sightseeing, relaxation on beautiful beaches, anchoring in deserted bays, swimming in the clearest of waters, watching millions of sparkling stars and snorkeling with tropical sea life. Why do I always have high expectations? When will I learn that making plans is impossible while living on a boat? Well, making plans is the easy part; it’s the execution of those well planned activities that require a little more than luck and agreeable weather gods…

For a little bit of extra money, the bus driver dropped me off at Grenada’s airport on Thursday, November 12^th. Mark stayed with Darwin. He can’t be left alone these days and we needed the room in the dinghy for the luggage anyway. Griet and Wim arrived from Belgium a bit tired, but in a good mood and ready to take part in our sailing life. The first evening we had a lot of talking and catching up to do. The cocktails added to a wonderful evening.

The first few days we stayed in Prickly Bay. It’s easy to take a bus from there into the capital St. George’s, which is exactly what Griet, Wim and I did on Friday. Mark had a lot of online stuff to do for The Wirie, since that got neglected a bit in the boat yard, where we needed to focus on Irie. I led my family around Fort George with its nice views of the town and The Carenage (the inner harbor) and we explored one of the many churches, the center and the local market. At night we all went out to the Tiki Bar for tasty drinks and the best pizza in the Caribbean.

On Saturday, we planned to rent a car for the day to visit Grenada’s interior. Darwin, however, decided to start ruining our plans. He had gotten into his tail again the previous evening and needed to be taken to the vet. This would be the fourth time! We still hoped to combine the morning vet visit and the island tour, but when Darwin-left alone in the vet office by the doctor for a few minutes- bit his tail until it bled, he and his disappointed daddy went back to Irie. Griet, Wim and I set off inland. Wim did a great job navigating the narrow roads, avoiding the crazy drivers and staying on the left side. I focused on suggesting the correct turns and keeping him from falling off the edge of the road. A high level of concentration was needed!

We had a great day visiting Annandale Falls, avoiding cruise ship passengers, laughing at the absurd tourist traps, enjoying peaceful Grand Etang, observing a couple of monkeys, having a yummy sandwich in a local establishment, driving around the countryside and exploring the Seven Sister Falls, our highlight. After following a narrow, bumpy dirt track, we arrived at the muddy trail to the falls. For about half an hour, we walked and slid through the mud down a hill to two pools at the bottom of nice waterfalls. After some quiet time and a dip in the water, we splashed back to the car.

Our last day in Prickly Bay was spent on a beach with many of our cruising friends. Over drinks and a BBQ, we shared stories and said our goodbyes for the time being or for longer, since all of us have different plans for the winter season.

Then, it was finally time to leave the South Coast of Grenada. Irie and her crew spent two days in Morne Rouge for some snorkeling, beach time and relaxation. Darwin behaved, but only because he wasn’t left alone. Mark and I decided against more tests for now and took the dog to the vet one more time in St. George’s to obtain a health certificate for the trip north. We also went shopping for the last time in a decent grocery store. That day, Griet and Wim did a few more sights in the capital and treated us to a fancy and tasty dinner.

The day before our planned crossing to Carriacou, a part of our outboard engine broke. With a lot of effort, Mark brought the four of us to shore. Our guests went of by themselves again to see their last points of interests on the island of Grenada, while I ran errands in town and Mark tried to locate the engine part for the dinghy. Our dinghy is as important as a car on shore, or even worse, since we can’t get anywhere without it. Having to take a dog to shore at least twice a day makes the dinghy invaluable for us. Darwin stayed home with a huge cone on his head. When Mark and I came back after a couple of hours, he had managed to reach his tail and bite more fur and skin off it! Needless to say, our moods were pretty foul… Mark spent the rest of the day fixing the engine in the beaming sun. He succeeded and I was very proud of him!

Once we left for Cariacou, the sky cleared up, figuratively anyway, because it actually did start to rain a bit more… Our group had lunch and a wonderful snorkel experience in Ronde Island, before continuing on to Tyrrel Bay, where we spent two comfortable nights. We all walked to Paradise Beach, one of the nicest beaches in Grenada and soaked ourselves into the local, relaxed culture of the island.

The following two nights, we anchored at peaceful Sandy Island for some snorkeling and rest. We also hopped over to Hillsborough, Carriacou’s “capital” to run a few errands and book a flight back to Grenada for Griet and Wim.

Next, Irie brought us to Anse La Roche, a cruiser’s secret of a harbor. We were the only boat there and the nice, undeveloped beach, clear water and snorkeling spots belonged to us for the day! Before we headed back to Tyrrel Bay, the next day, we took Griet and Wim out sailing for one last time. The hope was to catch some fish, but we failed. We nevertheless had a wonderful sail and a nice dinner on shore that evening.

All in all, we had a great time together and all of us enjoyed the experiences. Mark and I are very appreciative of Griet and Wim’s attitude on the boat. They were very easy and flexible guests, “taking it as it comes”, making all the things that go wrong less stressful for us. We are happy we could share our “usual” life on Irie with them. Their relaxed and positive moods rubbed off on us, while we have picked up our cruising life once more. Now I just have to get used to doing those dishes myself again!

(For many more pictures, look at itsirie.shutterfly.com)

Exploring Grenada by Sea

September is coming to an end and with that the hot and steamy weather hopefully will as well. Time to crank up our energy, motivation and wanderlust level. Compared to our hurricane season from last year, however, we can’t complain. At least, this year, we can jump into the clear waters of Grenada when needed; something that was impossible in the Luperon Lagoon (DR). Why did they call that place Pooperon again?

Five consecutive days of heavy rain made our lives a bit cooler and work focused, since there was not much else to do. For Darwin this came at a good time as well, since he started biting his tail again. As a result of that wound, he was not allowed to swim (read: cool off in the water). Fortunately it looked healed again just when the sun resumed her strong self. The only negative about the timing of these rain storms was that we just started our two week vacation! Yes, we decided to actually sail a bit and explore the anchorages around Grenada…

On September 12^th we left the safe, secure and social scene of southern Grenada to round the western “bend”. Impressive sunsets, with a colorful fire ball disappearing behind a watery horizon, even after a rainy day accompanied cocktail time again. The surrounding clouds were impressive. Funny how the sky “way out there” was always bluer than over the mainland, those days. It must have to do with the mountains.

There are quite a few protected anchorages along the western shore. We’ve always wanted to check Morne Rouge Bay, just south of Grand Anse, Grenada’s most popular beach where anchoring is prohibited. The beach at Morne Rouge is pretty as well, but more deserted and low key. The water is clear and the snorkeling good near the southern point. We tried to find dinner in the form of conch or lobster (yes, lobster season is open again), but all the ones we found appeared too small. For three nights, Irie was the only boat present. Other sailors are put off by the charts of the area. They show a four foot depth. Sometime

s it’s good to have a catamaran! Definitely a place to go back.

In the capital, St. George’s, we stocked up on some groceries and three pounds of fresh fish. We had to, because all our own fishing expeditions and trials in the deep Grenadian waters failed miserably so far. Our big excitement in the anchorage outside of the lagoon (inside they are expanding the Fort Louis marina and anchoring is becoming “unwanted”), was that our anchor caught from the first try. The holding here is not the best and luck was on our side this time, even though we couldn’t see the bottom with the rain and clouds. It almost made up for our three hour endeavor the previous time we anchored here.

Our next stop was 2.5 miles north of St. George’s, in a bay called Dragon Bay. We entered and approached the shore for more protection, when a group of fishermen on the beach started yelling. “Don’t anchor there, use the moorings!” It took a while before we understood what they were getting at. Two pink mooring buoys are located near the entrance of the bay. We turned Irie around and carefully investigated this area close to the rocks. There appeared to be no painters on the buoys and fishing nets and floats were attached to them. Mark jumped in the dinghy to talk to the guys on the beach to confirm what they wanted. They needed the bay to fish with their big net. After a few tries we finally managed to attach ourselves to one of the mooring balls. After a look around with our snorkel mask, the mooring seemed to be in decent shape and the big nets contained lots of bait fish. Our keels rubbed against them once in a while and the fishing float banged against our hull. The swell was also more uncomfortable than deeper in the bay, but other than that, the night was uneventful. By next morning, the fishermen still hadn’t started their fishing. It is their bay, of course, which is why we followed their wishes, but to us it appears as if they simply don’t want boats to anchor in Dragon Bay anymore.

The reason one checks out the Dragon Bay area is the underwater statue garden. Mark and I snorkeled around Moliniѐre Point, but more than a few women’s statues lying on the ocean’s floor, we didn’t find. Next time, we bring a statue detector or underwater museum expert.

The winds were enormously light, so we decided to motor sail to our next destination, just like a few other boats. It had been a while, so we justified it to be able to continue our trip. When we arrived at Ronde Island, one of the islands between Grenada and Carriacou, we were surprised about the relatively calm waters. People had warned us about the swell here and depending on that we would just have lunch here or stay for the night. We anchored off the beach in some of the clearest water we’ve been in. This comes close to the Turks and Caicos and Bahamas!

With a visit to the beach we decided to stay and enjoy an afternoon of relaxing and snorkeling. It felt like being part of an aquarium. The visibility was awesome and the fish were plentiful and quite unique. During the night, the notorious swell arrived and the current and gusty wind played funny games with Irie, keeping us from spending another peaceful day here. Next time, we will have to put out a second anchor.

When we first arrived in Carriacou, now almost two months ago, we ran out of time because we wanted to attend carnival on the “mainland”. Now, we’re back to be part of the Tyrell Bay community for a few days. There are still a lot of boats, but it is quiet enough and the atmosphere on shore is different than Grenada. We find the people more friendly, the area quite laid back and the mingling with the locals interesting. Next on the agenda: Petite Martinique and Petite St. Vincent, after stopping in the Hillsborough area.