The Caribbean De-caribbeanized

Spring 2010 was mostly spent in St. Martin/St. Maarten by Irie and its crew. We anchored at our favorite “long-term” spot near Explorer Island in Simpson Bay Lagoon, a huge, protected surface of water. Working and selling Wiries were our goal. St. Martin evokes mixed feelings: it is busy but relatively cheap, touristy but convenient, cruiser friendly with Happy Hours and marine stores but money devouring because of it. The lagoon is sheltered from the swells, but distances are long. The trade winds turn into a very welcome natural fan, but the accompanied wind chop makes dinghy rides bumpy and wet. The blackish water turns every boat’s bottom and chain into an underwater rain forest. In short: we knew what to expect.

Only, some of the expected didn’t happen. The wind generator didn’t create any electricity, we needed to turn on fans every day, sweat was dripping from our faces without exerting ourselves and during every trip in the dinghy we stayed dry! Something was up. It was only March! Where were the trade winds? We weren’t looking forward to a summer in the Caribbean…

The season progressed and summer arrived. At this point, we were making our way south through the island chain. Under motor. No need for sails. As usual, the wind dropped to zero along the coastlines, but even in the wide channels between the islands, the wind was but a flaky breeze, or it came out of an “un-sailable” direction. Living aboard became a hot endeavor. We couldn’t wait to get to Grenada, where, based on last year, the southern anchorages were comfortable.

The Tobago Cays are a famous, wonderful and idyllic Caribbean destination. Brochures show clear, palm bordered water in all hues of blue. Not this year. Our watery surroundings were green and snorkeling with turtles and reef fish took place in cloudy water with green plant particles floating around and little visibility. No reason to spend a lot of time there; let’s move on to Grenada!

The more time passed, the hotter the weather became, surely a typical behavior of summer, but this is the Caribbean… Where are the trade winds? Where is the attractive sea? We used to swim from the boat or the beach to cool off and stay cool for a little while. Now, jumping in the water resembles a bath tub. The water temperature is 88°F (31°C) and feels gross in the hot and humid climate. The heat index shows over a 100°F (38°C) almost daily. When it is raining, however, I do enjoy stepping into my ocean bath from Irie. The cold rain shower afterwards does the job as a “cooler-offer”.

So, no electricity from the wind generator and little electricity from the solar panels, because the boat doesn’t lay in a certain direction anymore, but slowly turns and floats around all over the place. Careful not to hit any neighbors that might weigh a bit more, have less chain out, are attached to rope or are twice your length! Time to get the tarp installed for extra shade and a tad cooler interior. “Luckily” there is no wind to make havoc with it. And, keep that gas generator purring, because the boat batteries are low! Yep, this summer, the Caribbean –and even Grenada- is pretty unbearable to live, work or sail in. Let’s hope Mr. Winter turns the world back to normal (at least in the islands). In the meantime, Mark, Darwin and I will spend fall in New England, USA.

Spending Some Time in The Southern Grenadines

In the more remote Grenadines (other than Bequia, Canouan and Union Island), it is a little hard to find decent wireless internet. Even with The Wirie! We would pick up signals from other islands, miles away, but to be able to work without frustrations, we need a good connection, not one that cuts in and out (which is OK to grab emails and check the weather). Mark and I got very fond of the island of Mayreau, but WiFi is non-existent. That resulted in Irie having to return to the “metropolis” of Clifton in Union Island multiple times. There, we focused on the business and customer service for a few days and then left for the weekend to a more quiet area.

During one of our short stays in Clifton, we checked out Happy Island with our friend Dave from Tatia. Janti founded Happy Island a few years ago, by building his own piece of property/paradise on a pile of conch shells, in the middle of the reefs. The place is very popular with tourists and has grown out to be a successful enterprise. It is totally self contained (he collects power and water from Mother Nature) with 360 degree views over the islands, just like on a boat!

The Tobago Cays lure from a distance and from the pages of guides and brochures. Irie stopped there briefly last November, for my birthday. We looked forward to returning for a while. The little islands, or cays, belong to a National Park, which charges EC$ 10 (US$ 4) per person per night and mooring balls are available for an extra cost. The main anchorage is protected by a big horse shoe reef, so the water is relatively calm, but the breeze is steady and perfect to create electricity. All of the five islands have pretty white sand beaches, framed by palm trees. The reef offers good snorkeling and some trails lead to the top of hills with nice views.

Normally, the water is turquoise and very clear, but this time, there was a green hue to it, something we have noticed all through the Caribbean this summer. We think it has to do with the higher temperature of the sea water, which attracts algae. The water of some beaches is now so warm that it makes you want to get out again! Another inconvenience was an annoying swell that made Irie bounce all over the place, twelve hours a day. A result of outgoing tide running into wind chop, we presume. The six hours of daylight with calm seas and wonderful surroundings, we used wisely. Mark and I went snorkeling on the reef and enjoyed the pretty, colorful waterscapes and many fish species. A feeding snake, sliding through the coral heads was the most interesting sight.

We picked Darwin up for a dinghy tour around the islands and checked out every sandy beach, with a little swim to cool off. On a couple of islands, a trail revealed wonderful vistas of the Tobago Cays. In the shallows off Baradel Island, sea turtles feed on grass. It is a delight to snorkel with them and watch their habits. All you have to do is don some snorkel gear and float away from the beach. The uncomfortable pitching of our boat, made us leave the area prematurely after two nights.

Mark and I decided to give Salt Whistle Bay another try. The setting is gorgeous in this bay, but last time, a whole bunch of powerboats disrupted the peace and took up most of the space. This time, all we could see was a huge mega motor yacht, surrounded by sailboats. One of them left the bay, so we grabbed their spot close to the beach. The wind was absent and boats started to do weird stuff. Before long, we found our butt very close to the beach. It was a bit nerve wrecking, but after some calculations and personally checking depths in the water, we figured we’d be all right. For the first time ever, we could just walk off our back step, in the water and all the way to the beach! Quite a funny and practical revelation, but not one we’d like to repeat often!

After combining relaxation, reading, snorkeling, walking, having fun with Darwin and the normal chores with the necessary days of work in between, we felt it was time to leave St. Vincent and The Grenadines for Carricaou, one of our favorite islands and part of Grenada. A few days at quiet Sandy Island (which is being turned into a National Park on August 1^st 2010, prohibiting anchoring and charging for the mandatory use of mooring balls) is now followed by a week’s stay in Tyrrel Bay to attend the Carriacou Regatta, be part of the local culture and festivities and promote The Wirie. Vacation is over!

A Happy Birthday

The day after our visitors left Irie, Mark checked out of Grenada and off we went! Our trip back north started with a first stop at Chatham Bay in Union Island. The long beach is great for walks and the people were very friendly and welcoming. Not many yachts were present, making this a quiet and enjoyable stop for the night.

November 28^th is my birthday and this year, we decided to actually do something fun and make the day somewhat special, by sailing to the Tobago Cays in The Grenadines. Mark and I have wanted to come here many times, but it had never worked out thus far. We tacked to the east for a couple of hours to find some of the prettiest water in the midst of a group of little islands and anchored behind the big horseshoe reef for protection against the seas. We managed to find a nice spot away from the other 50 or so boats. It was very windy and quite swelly, but we dealt with it for the short time we were there.

Before lunch, I checked out the reef with my snorkel gear. Mark had to stay with untrusting Darwin. Swimming into the current to reach the patches of coral was very hard and tiring, but getting back to Irie was a breeze. The choppiness of the sea made the experience less fun, but the coral and the fish were pretty enough. We’ll be back next season to explore this area more…

The best thing about birthdays is that I didn’t have to do ANYTHING! Mark made a nice egg sandwich breakfast, fried hot dogs that “hit the spot” for lunch, prepared a wonderful spaghetti carbonara with garlic bread for dinner and did all the dishes, while I soaked up the beautiful views around us. I even got a gift this year and what kind of one… It sure made up for last year’s “birthday”!

In the afternoon, we relaxed a bit and I took off snorkeling again, this time to see the many sea turtles near one of the beaches. I observed a bunch of these gentle creatures, while they nibbled on sea grass, moved through the water and swam to the surface for a breath of air. Later on, we all explored one of the little islands and enjoyed a nice sunset in Irie’s cockpit, while drinking my favorite cocktail of coconut rum (thank you, Griet and Wim) and pineapple juice. Is this what vacation feels like? I can’t wait until it’s November 28^th 2010!

(For more pictures, check out itsirie.shutterfly.com)