Exploring Saint Martin

When we woke up our first morning, the big surge had started from the north.  Fifteen foot swells were coming into the harbour.  In his dreams, Glen was enjoying the rocking - Pam was not enjoying watching other boats surfing.  So before coffee, we started Yan Diesel and headed around to the bridge.  This time it was working and we joined a line of 8 boats seeking refuge from the surge into the lagoon.  Easy and secure anchoring in the lagoon.

Met up with Andy and Isabella, cruising partners from last year who travelled down with us from the Bahamas.  Very cool to meet up with people with whom we have so much in common.

We need to spend some time explaining this two country/one island thing.  It's kind of weird.  We can't move the big boat from side to side… but we can scoot here and there with the dinghy.

On our way to some natty seaside restaurant for lunch and internet on the Dutch side we met an interesting couple (French?) who wanted to tell us about all the cool things to see here.  They told us McDonalds was THE place to do internet so we walked past the natty restaurant to McDs.  On our way in the door, Pam stooped over and picked up $40 lying on the parking lot.  A guy had just past us so we asked him if he had dropped some money.  He tried desperately to think that he had… but in the end… he hadn't .  So Pam won the lottery…. and bought Glen a Big Mac.

The French couple told us that we HAD to see the KLM 747 landing at Maho Beach so we set that as a priority. 

We took a bus ($1.50) into Phillipsburg to see the cruise ship base.  Saw litre bottles of Dalwhinnie for $40 in the duty-free stores.  Sucks to be you, Scott!  Had a great wander about and found a funky local/chinese restaurant off the beaten path!  Great stuff!!!  Back to the boat for a snooze and then $1.25 Happy Hour beers at Barnacles.  

Our kind of beach

Cruise ships... beautiful beaches

Spelling mistake?

Random scenery photo

Directions

Going through the Dutch bridge

A morning Bloody Mary... necessary for internet

 Next day we did some morning boat maintenance and then off to Maho Beach to watch the KLM landing.

Plane spotters

My middle name is Danger

More on Saint Martin as we continue to explore!!!

We must be in Saint Maartin

Misquoting Captain Ron, "When we left… we had just enough wine to get to Saint Maartin… AND WE ARE OUT OF WINE!!"

If that doesn't make sense to you then watch "Captain Ron" or even this little clip.

After our anchoring adventure at Cane Garden Bay we went up to Leverick Bay to stage for our trip to Saint Maartin.  But also to get the ice and water that comes with the cost of a mooring ball and to go to the the Michael Bean Arrrrrrrrgggghhhh Pirate show.  Well worth the trip.  If you get a chance, check out the Arrrrggghhh show.  He is a very energetic, enthusiastic entertainer and you really get caught up in the act.  Lots of fun!  And there is a humanitarian side to his work.  He supports a school in Isle la Vache in Haiti.  Good stuff.

Talk like a pirate - Arrrggghhhh!

We had hoped that lots of folks would be making the trip with us but after a couple of failed attempts on the VHF radio to raise cruisers who might be heading our way we cleared customs at Gun Creek ($0.75) and took off by ourselves.  That's always a worry - what do they know that we don't?  Are we stupid to leave now?

Saw Sir Richard kiteboarding with Christie Clark on his back at Necker Island

Problem was, we hadn't seen a good crossing window in 2 weeks nor was there one on the horizon.  So we left.  It wasn't horrible… but it wasn't great.  The winds were a little too high, the waves were a little too steep and choppy and it's no fun trying to adjust sails at night.  We had a reefed main and took down our jib and put out the little staysail instead.  So we just gritted it out.

Six hours out of St. Maartin the alternator failed again so that just added to the angst.  But the dawn brought our first glimpses of St. Maartin and all of a sudden we are here.  At anchor Glen found a broken wire leading to the alternator so now that's all good.

Got cut off by this guy

Sun rising as we arrive at St. Maartin

We attempted to cross under a lift-bridge into the lagoon at 8:15AM but after circling for an hour we were informed that it wasn't going to open at 8:15, 2:30, 5:30 or, in fact, all weekend due to a problem.  So we decided to anchor in Marigot Bay.

Right away we met up with cruising friends from last year - it was so nice to see familiar faces in a new spot.

For the cruisers who are searching for info… you need to know that the French side is decidedly laid back while the Dutch are very serious about this running-a-country business.  Our Dutch friend Tina would probably wag her long finger at the way the French run their affairs here.  

A lot of french speaking on the radio - good thing Glen is fluent in french.  Zut alors!

We dinghied up to the Captainery - very official sounding.  The guy in charge was dressed like Glen - shorts, t-shirt and very friendly.  He definitely didn't go to the same border-guard school as the boys and girls that we've met at home and in our travels.  He sent us off to a computer to fill in our info - when we printed the form he asked for $7 and sent us on our way.  What a nice guy.  We thought of inviting him over for dinner.

Marigot Bay

Non opening bridge

Clearing in

Dinghy dock in Marigot

Fellow cruisers in Marigot Bay

We will explore here for a week or so.  Dale Taylor tells us there are several interesting clothing rules on some of the beaches so we will have to avoid those.  After that we will look at the other island opportunities around to see where the wind blows us!

We celebrated our arrival here - and JINDER'S 50TH BIRTHDAY!!! - with a bottle of cava!  Happy Birthday, Jinder.

An Extra Adventure

Lots of fun this morning.  We decided to get away early because there were forecasted big winds. So a quick coffee, peanut butter on bread and off we went.  About 38 feet.  Because our anchor was fastened securely to the bottom.  

After trying to pull it off with brute force for half an hour or so we finally gave up.  Glen donned his bathing suit and dove on the anchor to see the problem.  He saw the anchor chain disappear into a maze of steel on one angle and our anchor off in another direction.  

Because Glen can hold his breath for an astonishing 12 seconds he thought he would be able to unwind the chain.  So down he went, the full 14 feet, to untangle the mess.  Well, it turns out that you can't do much in 12 seconds.  So Glen floated on the surface for 5 minutes or so, looking at the mess, pondering the problem.

Blue Pearl, floating idyllically, firmly secured to the bottom 

After a few more futile attempts to use the boat to pull us off, we made the mental decision ($$$) to see about getting professional help.  Glen dinghied over to the gas dock to see if someone knew a diver.  In 15 or 20 minutes a young man appeared and made towards the dinghy with his mask, snorkel and fins.  Glen volunteered to help with the tanks but the diver said he was afraid of tanks and that we should go.

Back at the Blue Pearl he jumped in and after about 5 minutes he surfaced and told us it was a mess.  He wanted to know which of the 3 anchors was ours!!!  He dove and dove and dove with a knife, a wrench and a rope. Finally we were able to attach the rope to an anchor - we hoped it was ours - and haul it up to the dinghy.  We unshackled the chain from the anchor and down he went with the chain.  He came up about three times saying, "One more time," and finally it was just one more time and the chain came free.

What he does best... supervise.

Turns out there was a caterpillar tread on the bottom decorated like a Christmas tree with chains and anchors.  

SO IF YOU ANCHOR AT CANE GARDEN BAY, DON'T DROP IT RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE DINGHY DOCK - GO TO ONE SIDE OR THE OTHER.

On the way back Glen asked him what we owed him.  He said whatever we thought was fair.  So Glen gave him $2.  No, actually he gave him everything in his wallet which was $80.  Glen was prepared to get him more if he asked.  The anchor is worth $400 and 200 feet of chain must be another $200+.  We suppose $80 is not bad pay for an hour of work but we wish we had given him more.

So we didn't get away early and we had 25 knots in our teeth for 4 hours.  But… we have our anchor!!!  And we are in Leverick Bay waiting to cross to Saint Maartin.

"The World" - anchored off Sir Richard's Necker Island

Planning for the Anegada Passage

The weather was ideal to set out to Saint Maartin at the moment we arrived back to the boat at Trellis Bay, Tortola, on December 30th at about 8 PM.  The winds were on the nose but only about 7 knots with 4 to 6 foot seas - no breaking waves.  It would have been a 16 hour motor-sail across and we would have been there.  But after a two day trek to get back to Blue Pearl from Vancouver, we were only in the mood for a few drinks and a good sleep.

Tree of Shame - pranged props at Nanny Cay

We spent a couple of nights at the Marina at Nanny Cay and said goodbye to Al and Maria from there. Since then we have been watching the forecasts, looking for something promising.  With the comfort of AC, Glen installed our new Standard Horizon 2150 AIS radio.  AIS stands for Automatic Identification System.  All big commercial boats are required to have an AIS transponder.  If we see someone who looks like they could run us over, it is a simple process - press a button - to contact them so they can change course or tell us to get the heck out of the way.

Perfectly good old radio on the left - fancy new AIS one on the right

Expand the opening

Need every tool we own

Nice new AIS radio - and it works!!!

Glen tested it the other night when "The World," was anchored near us at our spot in Cane Garden Bay.  "The World" is a cruise ship owned by the passengers.  So I guess the "strata" decides where and when they will cruise.  I expect that the cabins (there are 167 of them) cost quite a bit more than chump change.

Apparently pressing the button causes all kinds of alarms to go off on the bridge so the officer in charge wasn't all that much fun to talk to.  He chuckled a little when Glen told him that we just installed the radio.  He said, "Well, it works!"

As you can see, Friday night the winds are 19 and 20 but die down a bit early Saturday.  The important thing is that the direction is almost north-east.  We are going slightly south of east so we might be able to pull off a close reach.

The waves are 2.4m (about 8 feet) and coming from side - not bashing straight into the boat, slowing it down to 2 knots each time we crest.  Also, the wave period is 8 seconds so the boat can go up and down a wave rather than crashing into them and burying the nose like we do when the waves are closer together.

Our route on Pam's iPad

In a couple of days we will move up to Leverick Bay at the north-east of Virgin Gorda.  We will set off with a reef in the main and let it out later if it seems prudent.  We will start off in the late afternoon on Friday so we can arrive sometime Saturday morning.

So that's the plan.

Until then, we snooze, do small jobs, swim, drink and wander around ashore.

The Rug Queen

Happy New Year

You can rest easy that no bad people entered the BVI on Liat flight 508 from Saint Maarten.  All 20 of us were painstakingly scrutinized by the highly professional staff of the BVI Customs and Immigration for almost an hour before we were allowed to enter the country.  At the front of the line, a suspicious husband and wife spent 20 grueling minutes with the agent under a naked light bulb before being allowed to pass.  After another 20 minutes, it was with a rush of relief that we finally passed the daunting portals.

Al was there to meet us and we dinghied back to Maria and Blue Pearl. We had a lovely, refreshing glass of Pussers Rum and a great sleep.  The boat is in great shape and we are itching to get moving.  

We spent New Years at Trellis Bay watching the "Burning Balls," dancing to the "Razor Blades," eating barbeque fish, pork and chicken rotis.  We managed to stay up on the boat 'til midnight and watched a pretty decent fireworks display.  Al and Maria provided a spectacular bottle of Veuve Clicquot to which Glen and Pam added a very nice bottle of Baby Duck.

Burning Balls at Trellis Bay

New Years Feast

Not much left!

Al and Maria were going to come with us for our crossing but the weather is not going to cooperate.  They have booked a flight on Liat to Saint Maartin and will fly home from there.

We are at Nanny Cay getting a little welding done on a broken stanchion and taking advantage of the docks for some good boat AC!!!  Ironic, since the weather is so much cooler... we don't really need it.

Blue Pearl leaves the 22 million euro, Mandango in the dust

Anchor buddy

By the pool at Nanny Cay

Broken staunchion

Fixed staunchion

We have to be out of the BVI before January 12, or else we have to get a temporary import permit.  That sounds officious and painful so if we can't leave for St. Maartin before then we will have to head back to the USVI to check-in and check-out.

Apologies to Barry Balmar, the voltage regulator - whom we accused of bad behaviour.  We took it home for testing and it passed with flying colours.  While we were installing the spare, Glen changed out a suspicious looking high capacity cable.  Should have retested Barry at that stage.  Once reinstalled on December 31, Barry performed brilliantly.  So hats off to Balmar for great tech support and a great product!

Back to the BVI

We had a wonderful Christmas holiday home - meeting our new granddaughter, visiting with our other two grandchildren, spending time with all of our kids and their significant others.  Also, we were able to connect with many dear friends to share smiles, good will and lots of Christmas cheer.

But now we are back to cruising, looking forward to exploring St. Maarten, Anguilla, St. Barts, St Kitts, Antigua Guadeloupe, Dominica, Martinique, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada.  

These islands have beckoned us for decades and we are so excited to finally personally experience them as we visit on our own terms… on our own boat… the SV Blue Pearl.

Stay tuned for the continuing adventures of Glen and Pam, family and friends on the good ship Blue Pearl.

Waiting for the New Years party in Trellis Bay, Tortola

What the heck!!!???

So Pam gets to go home to meet our new grand-daughter, Chevy Louise.  Glen stays behind to transition Blue Pearl to Al and Maria.

Air Canada trusted Al with a $130,000,000 AirBus 330 before he retired last week so we figure we can trust him to baby Blue Pearl while we go home for grandbabys at Christmas.  Maria took care of principal-Glen for 10 years in the school office - surprisingly successful at keeping him out of trouble.  They sail a C&C 44 at home in Vancouver but this is their first experience sailing in the Caribbean.

The moment Pam left everything went hell-west and crooked.  (Acadian phrase meaning disaster according to our friend Dorothy.)

We couldn't get the anchor up.  Turns out electrically challenged Glen forgot to connect up the windlass battery to the boat system.  Six weeks into our shake-down cruise the battery finally had enough.

Finally got the anchor up.  So off then to Honeymoon Bay on Water Island to plan our transition cruise.  Had a nice night, a visit to the Pueblo and Crown Bay grocery stores where Glen, once again, tried to guilt our new guests into buying a "thank-you" bottle of the $4999.95 bottle of wine they stock.  No gratitude!!!  We need richer friends.

Off we go to new adventures.  But first we have to get the anchor off the bottom.  Don't know what it got stuck on but it took motoring over it slowly to finally get it to release.  What would Pam have done???  What else is going to go wrong?

Onto Christmas Cove for a snorkel lunch and Francis Bay for a night anchorage.

Maria going Spotted Eagle Ray spotting

Eddy the Eagle... Ray

Al's art shot with his new underwater camera

So when did Barry Balmar the Regulator decide to go south?  We have a 140 amp alternator dying to charge our batteries but a regulator that is having "issues?"   Dang, that ain't good!

Glen read the Boy Scout book on marine regulators and found a "patch" that will get Maria and Al through their sojourn on the boat.  Al, the pilot, is not used to "patches" so we are crossing our fingers.

We wanted to check out the charging so we motored 4 miles to Cruz Bay to have a look.  Yan Diesel seems happy enough with the patched regulator so all is good.  Found a nice shoreside pub and spent a very happy Happy Hour there.

Checking out a different captain's seat

Getting ready to jump in

Cruise planning

Marooned on a USVI park pay station

Enjoying lunch with Iggy

Anyway, we are roaming around, hoping nothing else goes wrong.  We will spend our last night at a marina at Red Hook.  Then it is a taxi to the airport and the ride home for Glen!