Friday, March 3, 2017

Boat Jobs in St. Lucia

We like France. Prices are like at home and you can get everything. So getting groceries is great. Also fun to hear the different music at bars and to enjoy the meals at the local cafes.

Huge dinghy dock in St. Anne

Great panini - internet cafe

I'm not sure about their hours of operation but they always seem to be open

Sailboarding school near the Club Med

But we have places to go. We have set Rodney Bay as our turn-around point for this cruising season. The island chain from Antigua down to St. Lucia is quite magical. Our sail over could not have been better. The best of this season so far. We averaged more than 7 knots. Just flying. And that was without the staysail. Also, Pam was smiling... not grimacing like she's having a root canal.

And, speaking of chain, a focus for Rodney Bay was that the Island Water World outlet here that has the chain we want for a reasonable price. Our primary anchor chain (200 feet) was so badly deteriorated that we abandoned it and moved over to our secondary (120 feet.) So we were looking forward to getting our new chain here. Turns out, they have lots of chain, only not in a 200 foot length.

I asked Ian, manager at the local Island Water World - someone I have great respect for - where the chain was made.

He said, "China." The chain is manufactured by Canada Metal - who have a great reputation - but the galvanizing process is very nasty. Apparently you have to vaporize zinc all over the chain which can be quite harmful to humans. So doing the work in Canada, where the regulations are quite strict, is more difficult than doing the work in China, where the regulations are less strict.

So that makes you think!

I guess we will wait on chain.

We were delighted to see Page One when we arrived in the harbour. We met Gary and Donna in Allen's Cay back in 1978 and have kept in touch over the years. They brought us conch up from Carriacou so we could appreciate our Bahamas days together. Very thoughtful.

Page One - build in Surrey, BC

Cleaning and bashing conch for Cracked Conch
Fruit Guy. Want a grapefruit?
So Pam has gone home to inspect the family - make sure the kids are behaving and taking care of our grandchildren appropriately. 

She has left me in charge of boat jobs. I've got some varnish to complete. Loose wires to trace. Rum to drink. A couple of fans to replace. I'm hoping that when she returns things are generally ship-shape!

I'll keep you informed!



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