Today we had to clear out of Mustique which involved a trip to customs and immigration which was situated at the airport and, rather than take a taxi, we decided to walk and explore the island.
What a beautifully manicured island! Everywhere was very clean & tidy and the walk to the airport was lovely. The primary school had bright white picket fencing and a brightly coloured schoolhouse, the playground was neatly cut grass lawn fringed with palm trees gently swaying in the breeze.
The Primary School
Immigration was very easy and we continued our walk around the island.
We decided to stop for a drink at a beach bar but it wasn’t as we imaged (I.e a little shack on the beach) it was a lovely restaurant owned by The Cotton House which is an exclusive hotel frequented by people who have more money than sense. We both had a couple of cocktails and the bill wasn’t too bad. The bar had a waiter for each guest and a lady who stood guard with a water pistol to frighten the birds off.
We decided to stop for a drink at a beach bar but it wasn’t as we imaged (I.e a little shack on the beach) it was a lovely restaurant owned by The Cotton House which is an exclusive hotel frequented by people who have more money than sense. We both had a couple of cocktails and the bill wasn’t too bad. The bar had a waiter for each guest and a lady who stood guard with a water pistol to frighten the birds off.
The Beach Cafe
Mustique is gorgeous without a doubt, maybe a little too manicured but the Island was loved by the people that lived there.
We went snorkelling off the reef in the South of the bay where we anchored the dinghy and watched all the brightly coloured fish. Not quite as good as the Tobago Cays but still very impressive. We saw a Conger Eel that slithered in and out of the holes and tunnels in the reef. We both agree that, on our own, we keep a cautious lookout in the distance for anything large and unknown coming our way!
No such thing as a free lunch? We returned from snorkelling on a reef in the South of the bay and the skipper from a charter boat raced over in his RIB and asked if we had eaten and did we want some lunch. We agreed and he raced back to his catamaran and returned with a massive platter of cold meats and salad, a fresh baguette - plus a nicely chilled bottle of white French wine - and left us to it! We transferred the goodies and cleaned his serving plate ready to return.
He came over after an hour and said that his "Guests" did not eat much and he didn't like to waste food. He came aboard and duly praised Nadezhda (now a mandatory stipulation) and explained that he chartered his own yacht out of Tobago but was currently doing a few trips on Catamarans for a friend. He went on and on about French-dodging out at sea and in anchorages and told of the many times he has been hit - must be his pet hate. Anyway, he told us to be careful in the islands further North between St Lucia and Antigua!
It’s been a wonderful couple of days and I’m sorry to leave but we have to make our way to St Lucia.
Tuesday 9th Jan 2007
At midnight we left Mustique for St Lucia and as usual it was closed hauled all the way with bumpy confused seas.
The visibility wasn’t good and we didn’t see the island until we were only a few miles off. In the distance we could see dark clouds all around the island and heading our way. Squalls after squalls hit us so decided to give in & put the engine on.
We arrived at Fort Vieux, St Lucia at 11am after a gruelling pain in the neck sail.
Fort Vieux isn’t pretty and is quite run down. After a few hours we decided that we should clear customs and immigration and we ventured into town.
Fort View is run down & depilated and the area looks very poor . Rather than waste time trying to find immigration we went into a Going Places office and she told us to head for the airport, we picked up a local bus and a five minute journey later we arrived.
Not sure what to do we asked the information desk and she said that once all the aeroplane people had cleared through w could walk through the door into immigration, when Pete asked how would we know when all the passengers had come through she said “Trust me you’ll know”.
Two and half hours later we were able to go through, we’d obviously picked the wrong time as two planes had just arrived.
The reception we received wasn’t the best as we should have cleared customs at the fishing port and they reluctantly agreed to do it. They made sure that we were aware that they were unhappy with us.
On the way back to the boat a young boy walked up to us just as he approached he dropped a kitchen knife, we believe it was for our benefit as he then said he had looked after our dinghy and asked for money. He was promptly told to bugger off as we hadn’t agreed a price plus he hadn’t been there when we arrived.
Wednesday 10th January 2007
This morning at around 7am we had the most violent squall ever, the winds must have been a good force 9 with stair rods of rain we were grateful that we were anchored as it would have been a scary moment.
Marie & Allan arrive on Friday so it’s boat maintenance and boat tidy up to make sure that Nadezhda looks her best for the royal visit.
Friday 12th January 2007
We went to the airport again to collect Mum and Dad. Easily accomplished, we all settled down and then motored just across the bay to anchor in an area that was a little more scenic than the concrete blocks of the new fishing harbour. A few arrival sundowners later, we went to bed.
Saturday 13th January 2007
So with the new crew onboard we lifted anchor and headed off for Soufriere Bay with the wind behind us we had a lovely gentle sail as we rounded the headland the wind died and on came the engine.
Mum & Dad settling-in
As we drew into the bay a small fishing boat appeared alongside welcoming us into the bay. On motoring around we decided to pick up a buoy with the help of the boat boy “Lucius”.
He was a totally chill Rastafarian and you couldn’t help but like him!
The standard greeting when meeting a Rasta is that you touch knuckles, touch your heart and say “Lets do it like Bob Marley, one love, one life” Marie we believe in her past life was a Rasta as she is excellent at the Rasta greetings! The locals love her to bits and crack up when she greets them in this way.
The nice thing about the Caribbean is that they totally respect the elderly and really look after them.
Opposite the boat was Bat Cave and if you rowed past you could hear the flapping sound of their wings.
During the afternoon the heavens opened and we had a terrific tropical down pour, this was a concern as we had run out of lemonade for the rum! Prayer mats out we prayed for a break so that we could go ashore to buy provisions.
It worked! So Pete and I ventured off in the dinghy to the town, the water was filthy with plastic bags, plastic bottles and loads of other discarded rubbish that it was a real pity as the bay was very pretty with the Deux Pitons dominating the background.
The town itself was quite rundown and you had the usual nutters shouting in the street and the drunks making a fuss in the shops.
First impression wasn’t that good but we had to see more in order to make our minds up.
Spaghetti Bolognaise for tea, with our new crew on board I had to make a good impression on them so I went to great efforts. I opened a tin of sauce, cooked some mince beef then added it to the carefully mixed sauce, I opened a bag of pasta and boiled it in water for the recommended 10 minutes and served it with great pizzazz.
The problem with the Caribbean is that really isn’t a lot of choice so to have minced beef and pasta sauce was a real treat. Meat in the Caribbean is usually hacked into pieces and left uncovered in a deep freezer. If your doctor recommends that you should live solely on a diet of corn beef and fruit then this is the place that you should come. Personally I’m getting a little bored with it!
He was a totally chill Rastafarian and you couldn’t help but like him!
The standard greeting when meeting a Rasta is that you touch knuckles, touch your heart and say “Lets do it like Bob Marley, one love, one life” Marie we believe in her past life was a Rasta as she is excellent at the Rasta greetings! The locals love her to bits and crack up when she greets them in this way.
The nice thing about the Caribbean is that they totally respect the elderly and really look after them.
Opposite the boat was Bat Cave and if you rowed past you could hear the flapping sound of their wings.
During the afternoon the heavens opened and we had a terrific tropical down pour, this was a concern as we had run out of lemonade for the rum! Prayer mats out we prayed for a break so that we could go ashore to buy provisions.
It worked! So Pete and I ventured off in the dinghy to the town, the water was filthy with plastic bags, plastic bottles and loads of other discarded rubbish that it was a real pity as the bay was very pretty with the Deux Pitons dominating the background.
The town itself was quite rundown and you had the usual nutters shouting in the street and the drunks making a fuss in the shops.
First impression wasn’t that good but we had to see more in order to make our minds up.
Spaghetti Bolognaise for tea, with our new crew on board I had to make a good impression on them so I went to great efforts. I opened a tin of sauce, cooked some mince beef then added it to the carefully mixed sauce, I opened a bag of pasta and boiled it in water for the recommended 10 minutes and served it with great pizzazz.
The problem with the Caribbean is that really isn’t a lot of choice so to have minced beef and pasta sauce was a real treat. Meat in the Caribbean is usually hacked into pieces and left uncovered in a deep freezer. If your doctor recommends that you should live solely on a diet of corn beef and fruit then this is the place that you should come. Personally I’m getting a little bored with it!
Les Deux Pitons - Soufriere
Lucius came back to the boat later on in the afternoon and we agreed to take the tour to Sulphur Springs, Drive in Volcano, Botanical Gardens & the hot water spring not too expensive at 20 US Dollars per person.
Sunday 14th January 2007
Lucius came back this morning and asked whether we would mind having a woman from another boat come on the tour with us. She was a solo sailor who had crossed the Atlantic at the same time as us (from the Cape Verdes) and had met many of the same cruisers as we have.
We were dropped ashore where our taxi (minibus) was waiting. Up steeply out of the bay we headed through the verdant countryside to the “Drive-in Volcano”. This is an area of bubbling mud pools and sulphur that is now well overdue for an eruption. We asked the guide whether she was worried about this and she replied that she was a lot more worried about theft and the security of her home. Hmmm!
Our next stop was underneath the towering Petit Piton rock where there is a hot waterfall. A large, shallow concrete tub has been built where we all wallowed for a good half an hour. The theory is that the water is so vitalising that it will take 10 years off your age – or did he say it would take 10 years off your life??
Sunday 14th January 2007
Lucius came back this morning and asked whether we would mind having a woman from another boat come on the tour with us. She was a solo sailor who had crossed the Atlantic at the same time as us (from the Cape Verdes) and had met many of the same cruisers as we have.
We were dropped ashore where our taxi (minibus) was waiting. Up steeply out of the bay we headed through the verdant countryside to the “Drive-in Volcano”. This is an area of bubbling mud pools and sulphur that is now well overdue for an eruption. We asked the guide whether she was worried about this and she replied that she was a lot more worried about theft and the security of her home. Hmmm!
Our next stop was underneath the towering Petit Piton rock where there is a hot waterfall. A large, shallow concrete tub has been built where we all wallowed for a good half an hour. The theory is that the water is so vitalising that it will take 10 years off your age – or did he say it would take 10 years off your life??
A Hot Shower
We then went to the Botanical Gardens where our guide told us all about the different plants and afterwards he bought papaya from a roadside shack that was juicy and delicious.
Back at the boat, we invited Patricia on board for a cup of tea. Her boat is called “If Knot Y Knot”. Hmmm! Several hours later our eyes were glazed over as she recounted one tale after another, many of which we couldn’t understand anyway. It is obvious that she is very clever and adept but she needed to vent at least a weeks-worth of conversation in one go! After she left, we tried to piece together the various tales with little success.
Soufriere Bay
Monday 15th January 2007
We set off early bound for Rodney Bay with a plan to stop off at a small inlet called Marigot bay. The wind became fresh and then quite strong as we beat hard with two reefs and a small amount of headsail out. It was a little stronger than Mum or Dad usually like to go out in and so, after a little play, we closed the shoreline for quieter seas and motored into Marigot bay. This is a place where many films have been set (including the original Dr Doolittle) but has been built-up with twee wooden quayside buildings and holiday apartments. However, the place was still quite beautiful and we stopped for a bite of lunch before motoring hard into headwinds and steep chop and made slow progress to Rodney Bay where we dropped the hook for the night.
Tuesday 16th January 2007
We upped anchor and took a berth in the marina. The day was spent reprovisioning with gas, petrol, chandlery and other provisions to keep us going. We were very surprised to still see some ARC boats hanging around the marina since, although very pleasant, there is not a lot there apart from ships provisions and a beach.
In the evening, we splashed-out and had a meal at one of the marina restaurants – there was not a good choice but the food was ok.
Wednesday 17th January 2007
We had a full day in Rodney Bay. Again, this was a little lazy and we had clean laundry delivered and collected our full gas bottles. The laundry people delivered by small boat and returned some money that had been left in one of the pockets – very honest. The lady said that she showed the money to her daughter and told her that it did not belong to them and it must be returned – a big tip was given for their honesty.
Boat Boy Selling Fruit
In the afternoon, we took a taxi to Pigeon Island national park. No longer an island after they dredged the marina and created a causeway, it was originally occupied by a French pirate who scourged the area. Following the French, it was fortified to keep the froggies out from neighbouring Martinique. Quite high and steep, we puffed our way up to the peak where the fort offered panoramic views across the bay and also out to Martinique in the distance.
Mum managed to buy some more trinkets from street stalls before we returned to the boat for the usual round of sundowners.
Thursday 18th January 2007
We set sail early and were glad that there was not much wind in the marina since it is made simply of rough concrete piers (a maximum of 18 inches of tide rise and fall). Again, the wind was fairly hard on the nose and we leaned uncomfortably to the wind until we reached the Southern coast of Martinique when the wind veered and strengthened. After a great broad-reach up the coast of Martinique, the wind died and we motored the final few miles to St Pierre – a small town at the North end of the island. We were beginning to get a little worried about schedule for Mum and Dad and therefore decided that we would simply stop overnight and move-on the next day to Dominica.
Friday 19th January 2007
We set off early again for ANOTHER close-hauled sail in good winds. The passages between the islands is further that I originally imagined and we spent most of the day sailing. A very pleasant sail and, again, we had to start the motor for the final run into the capital of Dominica (Roseau) as we passed into the lee of the island. Our concern was that shoreline sloped steeply to over 20 metres depth and we would have to anchor and reverse to the shore where we would put a line to a coconut tree. These fears were dispelled when “Roots” powered-up in a wooden boat and offered us a buoy to moor to (in 28 metres depth). He called-up his team mate (Octavious) who took Fliss and I to the immigration in his mini-van taxi through the bustling clapboard houses of the capital. Having finished Customs and Immigration, we realised that, although I had picked-up Fliss’ purse, there was no money in it and Octavious generously lent us the money to pay the officials.
Mum managed to buy some more trinkets from street stalls before we returned to the boat for the usual round of sundowners.
Thursday 18th January 2007
We set sail early and were glad that there was not much wind in the marina since it is made simply of rough concrete piers (a maximum of 18 inches of tide rise and fall). Again, the wind was fairly hard on the nose and we leaned uncomfortably to the wind until we reached the Southern coast of Martinique when the wind veered and strengthened. After a great broad-reach up the coast of Martinique, the wind died and we motored the final few miles to St Pierre – a small town at the North end of the island. We were beginning to get a little worried about schedule for Mum and Dad and therefore decided that we would simply stop overnight and move-on the next day to Dominica.
Friday 19th January 2007
We set off early again for ANOTHER close-hauled sail in good winds. The passages between the islands is further that I originally imagined and we spent most of the day sailing. A very pleasant sail and, again, we had to start the motor for the final run into the capital of Dominica (Roseau) as we passed into the lee of the island. Our concern was that shoreline sloped steeply to over 20 metres depth and we would have to anchor and reverse to the shore where we would put a line to a coconut tree. These fears were dispelled when “Roots” powered-up in a wooden boat and offered us a buoy to moor to (in 28 metres depth). He called-up his team mate (Octavious) who took Fliss and I to the immigration in his mini-van taxi through the bustling clapboard houses of the capital. Having finished Customs and Immigration, we realised that, although I had picked-up Fliss’ purse, there was no money in it and Octavious generously lent us the money to pay the officials.
Saturday 20th January 2007
The previous day we had agreed to take a tour of the island that involved a walk up a waterfall (Victoria Falls). Roots told us that we would have to cross a river 5 times and that we would have to clamber over boulders at the end to reach the waterfall. We were a little concerned that it might be difficult for Marie & Allan but they felt that it would be ok and if it did get tricky they would sit on the river bed waiting for us to come back down.
At 9am Roots picked us up and we met up with two other couples that were joining us for the trip.
Octavious was worried about crossing the river as it had been raining all night and had rained in the morning, Pete said to him not to worry as we had crossed swollen rivers, wading chest deep through the rapids, Octavious just said “You wait and see”.
The drive up to the waterfall was utterly amazing, very steep roads weaving there way through the jungle and when nervous titters was heard in the mini bus Octavious just said “This isn’t steep, steep is just around the corner” IT WAS STEEP!
The jungle was awash with tropical & citrus fruits: grapefruits, oranges, breadfruits & banana’s etc…. there’s no reason to starve in Dominica.
Dominica is stunning without a doubt, lush jungle & weather beaten shore with massive Atlantic breakers, anyone who enjoys walking & exploring then this is the island for you.
The people here are charming and everyone says hello and takes the time to talk to you, infact they really do want to know what you think about their island, little girls stop you and ask you “How do you like Dominica?”… They are wonderful laid back people.
Anyway back to the trip…… the day before we were asked if we would like to have lunch at a Rastafarians house so we all agreed that it would be an experience.
We pulled up outside this shack (loo a hut by the side of the house, just so that you get the picture!). The shack was set in stunning jungle surroundings, beautiful tropical flowers everywhere.
Marie greeted our host “Moses” in the Rastafarian way, right knuckle to his right knuckle and then tapped her heart and said “Lets do it like Bob Marley, one love, one life”, Moses cracked up and responded with “My bones, my heart”….you can’t take her anywhere!
Let me describe Moses: He was around late 50’s, gaps in his teeth and dreads that hung down, some only hanging on by a thread, if you were in the UK you would probably cross the road to avoid him so this gave us a reality check not to judge a book by the cover as he made us really welcome.
He would prepare lunch for us when we returned from our walk which would consist of vegetables picked from his garden, which he gave us a guided tour of.
So we said goodbye to Moses and headed into the jungle for our walk up the river.
Octavious asked if anyone had a change of clothes and laughed when we said we hadn’t, we thought he was pulling our leg, little did we know!
On the way down he tried to recruit a local boy to help him and the lad said no way was he going up there!
Octavious was right! the river was swollen due to the previous nights rain and the water was thundering hard between the rocks, the rapids were rapid!
The previous day we had agreed to take a tour of the island that involved a walk up a waterfall (Victoria Falls). Roots told us that we would have to cross a river 5 times and that we would have to clamber over boulders at the end to reach the waterfall. We were a little concerned that it might be difficult for Marie & Allan but they felt that it would be ok and if it did get tricky they would sit on the river bed waiting for us to come back down.
At 9am Roots picked us up and we met up with two other couples that were joining us for the trip.
Octavious was worried about crossing the river as it had been raining all night and had rained in the morning, Pete said to him not to worry as we had crossed swollen rivers, wading chest deep through the rapids, Octavious just said “You wait and see”.
The drive up to the waterfall was utterly amazing, very steep roads weaving there way through the jungle and when nervous titters was heard in the mini bus Octavious just said “This isn’t steep, steep is just around the corner” IT WAS STEEP!
The jungle was awash with tropical & citrus fruits: grapefruits, oranges, breadfruits & banana’s etc…. there’s no reason to starve in Dominica.
Dominica is stunning without a doubt, lush jungle & weather beaten shore with massive Atlantic breakers, anyone who enjoys walking & exploring then this is the island for you.
The people here are charming and everyone says hello and takes the time to talk to you, infact they really do want to know what you think about their island, little girls stop you and ask you “How do you like Dominica?”… They are wonderful laid back people.
Anyway back to the trip…… the day before we were asked if we would like to have lunch at a Rastafarians house so we all agreed that it would be an experience.
We pulled up outside this shack (loo a hut by the side of the house, just so that you get the picture!). The shack was set in stunning jungle surroundings, beautiful tropical flowers everywhere.
Marie greeted our host “Moses” in the Rastafarian way, right knuckle to his right knuckle and then tapped her heart and said “Lets do it like Bob Marley, one love, one life”, Moses cracked up and responded with “My bones, my heart”….you can’t take her anywhere!
Let me describe Moses: He was around late 50’s, gaps in his teeth and dreads that hung down, some only hanging on by a thread, if you were in the UK you would probably cross the road to avoid him so this gave us a reality check not to judge a book by the cover as he made us really welcome.
He would prepare lunch for us when we returned from our walk which would consist of vegetables picked from his garden, which he gave us a guided tour of.
So we said goodbye to Moses and headed into the jungle for our walk up the river.
Octavious asked if anyone had a change of clothes and laughed when we said we hadn’t, we thought he was pulling our leg, little did we know!
On the way down he tried to recruit a local boy to help him and the lad said no way was he going up there!
Octavious was right! the river was swollen due to the previous nights rain and the water was thundering hard between the rocks, the rapids were rapid!
He took three people across first holding on tight as one slip would have you taking a swim down stream. The water was rushing so hard that you could feel it pushing your legs backwards.
We were told the previous day that we would cross the river 5 times but what he failed to tell us that was that we would cross it 5 times on the way up and 5 times on the way down!
Marie and Allan were fantastic! Marie was the trailblazer throughout the walk to the top of the waterfall. At times we were waist deep wading through the rapids, looking for rocks to stand ,on this is difficult when the water is trying to push you down stream.
The other couples were in awe of them and said that they may have chickened out but couldn’t now as the “Oldies we doing it!”.
We were told the previous day that we would cross the river 5 times but what he failed to tell us that was that we would cross it 5 times on the way up and 5 times on the way down!
Marie and Allan were fantastic! Marie was the trailblazer throughout the walk to the top of the waterfall. At times we were waist deep wading through the rapids, looking for rocks to stand ,on this is difficult when the water is trying to push you down stream.
The other couples were in awe of them and said that they may have chickened out but couldn’t now as the “Oldies we doing it!”.
Towards the top we had to clamber over slippery boulders and even through a gap in the rocks.
The reward was THE MOST spectacular waterfall! With a lovely plunge pool. We all stripped off to our swimming costumes (we needn’t have bothered as we were all soaking wet) and went for a swim. The waterfall created gale force winds so strong that you couldn’t swim towards it as the water and wind stung your eyes.
The reward was THE MOST spectacular waterfall! With a lovely plunge pool. We all stripped off to our swimming costumes (we needn’t have bothered as we were all soaking wet) and went for a swim. The waterfall created gale force winds so strong that you couldn’t swim towards it as the water and wind stung your eyes.
(Pete: Octavious (aka Octopus, aka SeaCat) told me to dive down under the water and swim to the base of the waterfall but the wind and blast of the spray was taking my breath away too much and I was hooting for air and unable to get far. He then told me to follow him to the far side of the plunge-pool that included a swim through the melee. I arrived out of my depth at a smooth, smooth boulder at the far side with wind and water washing me away. Eventually SeaCat managed to grab my wrist and we both scrambled ashore in the stinging spray. By this time I had had enough! But we ventured closer to the base of the falls and found shelter in a small cave. SeaCat then proceeded to climb up high and took a dive into the base of the falls – I resisted. Later that day, he kept punching me playfully, laughing, making drowning movements and saying “Smooth Boulder”. The panic-stricken look on my face as he dragged me out of the water must have been a real sight).
What ever goes up must come down! off we set back down the river for our lunch date with Moses. The trip down was easier and we were able to take in the stunning jungle around us.
Moses cooked us a delicious stew all fresh from his garden and sat and had lunch with us telling us about the Rastafarian way and the healing properties of the ingredients used. He was a very intelligent man & had lectured on other Caribbean about homeopathic cures.
He had managed to cook for ten people on a open fire, the food was delicious! I couldn’t help but laugh when he rolled a joined and lit it on the open fire and proceeded to smoke it. His family had moved to Brixton in London and he was looking after the land for them until they decided to return back to Dominica.
Dominica is wonderful but you can’t help but feel sad for the people as they have land which has been abandoned as they cannot export their fruit as they are out priced by the western world.
There is fruit trees everywhere just left untended, we pulled up to a house and Octavious climbed up a grapefruit tree and picked loads! We filled a plastic bag!
Octavious was a superb guide and immensely proud of his country and in my opinion rightly so.
What a fantastic day! And hats off to Marie and Allan as they showed us how it was done.
Dominica for me has been the best island so far and the people really do enhance its natural unspoilt beauty.
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