April 2020

After much back and forth about how we will be getting Pandora back to the US, Brenda and I have decided that the best option is just for the two of us to make the run ourselves.

It’s been a tough call as Brenda does not do well when things are rough as she is so prone to motion sickness.  We have found that the Scope patch is sorta, kinda, pretty good for her, even though it gives here a pretty bad sore throat.   For most, seasickness tends to go away after a few days but Brenda’s longest run wasn’t long enough to try that theory out .   For sure, this run will test that hypothesis.  Fingers crossed.

Brenda, and others who have suffered from mal de mer, say that “at first you feel like you are going to die and then fear that you won’t”.   Not her first choice, to be sure.   So, what to do?

We have considered many options for Brenda to allow her to avoid the run to the US, including having crew fly in so she can fly home.   However, as expected during this scary time, my crew didn’t feel comfortable flying down and Brenda also decided that she didn’t feel comfortable flying home herself.

So, the plan is for Brenda to make the run with me, something that would have seen unthinkable only a few short weeks ago.  It’s safe to say that much of what’s going on in the world these days we unthinkable only a few weeks ago.

So, what about the trip?  We spoke with our weather router, Chris Parker a few days ago to see what we can do to make the run the least uncomfortable for Brenda.  As we have been working with him for nearly 8 years, he knows Brenda well and is very sympathetic. His suggestion remains for us to take the southern route via the Old Bahamas Channel to Florida, basically 1,000 due mile west from here.

The problem is that the wind, beginning this weekend, is forecast to be very light, too light for sailing, for much of the route.   However, Chris holds out hope that if we wait a few days longer, perhaps until the middle of next week, that there will be more favorable wind and we will be able to sail more of the run, perhaps much of it.  Having wind is very important as we simply do not have enough fuel to make the entire run under power.  Experience tells me that if I manage things well I should be able to make as much as 3/4 of the 1,100 miles to our destination under power.

As recently as last fall, on my run south to Antigua, winds were quite light and contrary and I was under power for over 100 hours.  I can tell you that the anxiety about running out of fuel was all consuming and I have no interest in going through that again on this trip.

Light wind or not, it’s hard to forecast the weather even one week out.  However, with weather, a week is a long time and it’s highly likely that we will get some wind as long as we choose our departure date carefully.

We do know that Brenda is most uncomfortable when we are off the wind in rough conditions (isn’t just about everyone?) so leaving here when the winds are behind us makes sense.  Having said that, it is also a good idea to plan things so that there won’t be wind of more than 20kts behind us as above those speeds is what causes her the most discomfort.

Ideally, we will want to leave with a good wind forecast to allow us to do well for at least the first few days and allow us to put some miles “in the bank” before we have to rely more on the engine.

The winds south of the Bahamas, our planned route, are nearly always from an easterly direction so it’s not likely that we will be dealing with adverse winds until perhaps as we approach Florida where fronts exiting the US east coast can bring adverse clocking conditions.

One way or the other, it’s just me and Brenda to make the trip so we will just have to work through this, something that we have been doing together for nearly 50 years so I’m sure that we will again muddle our way.

So here we sit, and over the next few days we will just have to hang out and be ready for a quick escape as soon as conditions are right.   I plan on calling Chris again in a day or so to check on his “Brenda forecast”.  While we recieve a general forecast via email each day, speaking to him directly is good for Brenda as it gives her the feeling of Chris’s hand on her shoulder and, to her, it’s like him saying “Brenda, it’s going to be OK.”

That’s it, we are counting on you Chris so give us a good forecast and soon.

For now, we’re here in St Johns, a lovely spot with lovely beaches to walk on and water so clear you can see 40′ down. And sunsets that will take your breath away.
Remember, the Salty Dawg Flotilla has a tracking map compliments of Predict Wind, to help you keep track of where all of the boats are as they leave each week for the US.   Note that the map has a listing of all the boats down the right side of the screen so you can click on Pandora to see where she is and what her speed and course are.

To date, there are over 200 boats signed up to participate in the Salty Dawg Flotilla to the US, a great example of Cruisers helping Cruisers during this difficult time.  I am glad to be a part of this effort and hope that I NEVER have to be involved with something like this again.  Just sayin…

We’d love to be home but here we wait…

Two days ago Brenda and I arrived in St John after a 200 mile run from Antigua.

Clearing in was easy using the ROAM app on my phone.  I tend to be a bit skeptical about any government sites or apps but this one worked remarkably well.  I opened the app, scanned the photo page of our passports, it populated almost everything needed and automatically sent a notice to customs and Immigration.  About 10 minutes later, my phone rang and an officer cleared us in.   It was amazingly easy.

The only thing I had to do after that was to call a second number and submit to a brief Covid-19 health survey.  I was also surprised to learn that by clearing into the USVIs, a territory, that we were cleared into the US, as long as we didn’t stop elsewhere prior to arriving in the US.

We made the run here at an average speed of about 7kts with the wind on a very deep reach.  This made for a very easy run until the wind picked up to 20+kts and the seas rose to a lumpy 4-7′.   The problem with being on that deep a reach is that I was unable to use the jib as a way to more fully stabilize the boat and with the waves nearly directly behind us, we rolled a lot which was quite uncomfortable for Brenda.

Overall, Pandora is fairly stable, even with a following sea, but being sure that we didn’t end up with any sort of unexpected jibe required constant vigilance as having the boom slam over unexpectedly can cause all sorts of mayhem.  Fortunately, between the boom break securing things and a careful eye on the wind, we had no problems.

The biggest issue for us was that Brenda really didn’t feel well and at one point we forgot to dose her on additional Stugeron seasickness pill, so as that wore off, that was the end of her taking anything to keep her comfortable.

As we passed St John on our way to St Thomas to pick up Brenda’s meds that had been shipped here from the US,  the waves got pretty big and we decided to bail from rolly Red Hook harbor and head over to the more protected St John national park and the site of the old Caneel Bay resort, where we now sit on a mooring.

We still have to get her meds so I am thinking that I’ll head over there on a ferry in a day or so to meet the folks that accepted our package.   In spite of the fact that there are more virus cases here, I went to a small market yesterday and felt pretty secure with the safety considerations in place, distancing, sanitizer and my mask in place.   I hope I am right.

There are some pretty inquisitive turtles keeping an eye on us here.   This guy, about 2′ in diameter, would approach us within 10′ of the boat, poke his head up seemingly to say “do I know you?”Most of St John, one of three major islands in the USVIs, is a national park and anchoring is not permitted in park areas.  The primary reason is that anchors and chain will damage coral and tear up the grass that grows on the bottom as the boat boat drifts one way or the other.   The moorings, managed by the National Park Service, are $26/day.    Fortunately, I signed up for a senior discount card for use in any National Park which gives us access to any services at half price “for life”.  I purchased the card 3-4 years ago when Brenda and I were visiting Chris and Melody in San Francisco.  Frankly, I haven’t used the card, even once, since purchasing it and was shocked to find that it was still in my wallet.   Lucky us as this means that we only pay $13 a night.

The water here is remarkably clear, more so than any place that we have visited since being in Cuba and the Bahamas and surely more clear than most places in the Caribbean so far.    I’d guess that the visibility is about 40′, much more than the 6′ of Falmouth Harbor, which was more green from algae than the pure ocean blue here.  We are on the closest mooring toward shore, perhaps the best location of all.   On shore is a resort, the Caneel Bay Resort, closed like all others in the Caribbean these days.  However, I don’t think that they will be emerging from lock-down any time soon as the resort, destroyed in 2017 after being in business since 1956 it has yet to be reopened.  It was an eco-resort, opened by Laurance Rockefeller when he owned nearly the entire island.  Their site suggests that they may open up again soon but I didn’t see any evidence of construction or demolition in evidence.  I guess we will have to wait and see.There are dozens of moorings in the area with only one or two opening up most days.  I recall seeing this very unusual catamaran in Antigua a few weeks ago.   Having one mast on each hull.  Very unusual. I think she was designed by Chris White from RI.  It seems that he is known for some unusual designs, many of them multihulls.  Not sure as I wasn’t able to find her design on his site. However, he seems like a logical choice to have been the designer based on some of the details of other models he’s drawn.

So, here we are in St John and our next step, planned for on or about May 10th, is to head to the US.  However, I’ll admit that I am a bit unclear as to how our plans will play out given how uncomfortable Brenda was for much of the trip here.  And both of us are nervous about making such a long trip without a clear plan for dealing with her sea sickness.  We have been told that nearly everyone gets over nausea after a few days but not always and the idea of single handing back to the US is not sounding particularly appealing to me.

Before we left Antigua we had to go back to St John harbor, an industrial, wholly unattractive and smelly port to clear out.   The one bright spot was seeing the ship, known as “the big lift” that transports yachts from place to place.  There’s a lot to be said for putting a yacht on a ship to avoid the wear and tear of an ocean voyage.  However, to move Pandora to say, Newport, would costs more than $20k, and that would pay for a l0t of repairs.This is a big ship.  Her biggest passenger was the classic J, Topaz, one of the boats that competed in some races in Antigua prior to the arrival of the Covid-19.  Topaz was on the receiving end of a dramatic collision between her and Svea with Svea ultimately found at fault.  Check out this article chronicling the event.   This very brief video shows what happened.  It’s hard to imagine what it must have been like to have Svea ride up over her stern.  Amazingly, the mast didn’t come down.  That had to have been some really fancy footwork on the part of the crew of Topaz to secure the missing aft support for the mast.

Another boat to be hoisted aboard was Maiden.  We had seen her in Antigua, most recently in English Harbor.  Maiden, the first round the world race boat to carry an all female crew.   Brenda and I enjoyed a showing of the movie about that race at the Antigua Yacht Club back in early January when we first returned to Antigua after the holidays.  How much has changed in a few short months.  When we met the still all female crew of Maiden, they were planning to sail up the US East Coast this spring to visit many yacht clubs along the way.   Not now…It was interesting to see yachts pull up, one after another to be hoisted aboard.  The crew made pretty fast work of getting the boats prepared. In the slings, and over onto the deck.  I’ll admit that seeing all this happen made me wonder at the simplicity of it all as a way to get Pandora home.

Alas, we headed back to the harbor near St John to spend a final night in Antigua.  Quarantine or not, we did have our friends Mark and Lynn over for a brief visit before we headed out on Thursday morning.

I expect that these two cavorting on their boom were likely more focused on fun than the risk.  Down below, parents holding their breath…So, off we headed the next morning.  Things were very settled for much of the day, mostly with just enough wind to make a decent speed. We passed to windward of Nevis and St Kitts. And into the night as the sun set.  From there, not a sight of land for another 100 miles.  Unfortunately, it became progressively windier and more lumpy.   Brenda wasn’t amused and didn’t feel well at all.  She was only able to stand watch for part of the time.

However, it all worked out even if I didn’t get much sleep.   So, here we sit waiting for our date and a good “window” to head to the US, unsure about exactly when it will be the right time to head out.  Mostly, because we are both fearful that Brenda will not be able to hold up her part of the crew responsibilities.  And, if I don’t get at least some rest, I won’t be able to make good decisions and that will put us both at risk.

We are still considering options and the best approach to use to get Pandora and us back to CT safely but for now we will hang out here and come up with a plan that is safe and workable.

I did talk to Chris Parker yesterday to compare notes on the best options and as the next few weeks unfold, I am sure that we will figure it out.

For now, were’re here but it’s not the “here” that we want, not quite yet, anyway.

As I write this we have moved Pandora to Deep Bay, a small harbor right next door to St John, the main commercial port for Antigua.

We moved here today as St John is the only place where we can clear out of Antigua.  Normally, we would be able to clear in English Harbor, near Falmouth where we have been, or in Jolly Harbor, near here.

However, we called the Antigua Coast Guard and were told that the only place to clear in and out now is St John and that they would arrange for an appointment  for 09:30 on Wednesday morning.

We were going to do some provisioning in Jolly after clearing out before we head to the USVI’s Thursday but we have decided that we have plenty of food to last for our run to the USVIs where we expect to arrive on Friday afternoon so we will just come back here.

So, tomorrow afternoon we will just hoist the dink aboard and prepare for our 200 mile offshore run to the USVIs.  We have been offered the use of a mooring in Red Hook, St Thomas, the same couple that has offered to receive the prescriptions that we had Fedexed to them from the US.

After all the back and forth on getting Brenda’s scrips delivered, we learned that there is a Walgreens pharmacy in St Thomas where we could have had her prescriptions filled.  Live and learn.

I expect that the provisioning in St Thomas will be better than here in Antigua so we have decided to pick up things for our run to FL there instead of trying to determine what we need now, two weeks before we plan on heading out to make our way to Florida.

Before we head out I thought that it would be fun to share some information about a spectacular schooner that is in the marina in Falmouth.

Meet Athos, tied up at the Antigua Yacht Club Marin.  She is the largest schooner in the world at over 200′ long and she cost her owner $30,000,000 when she was launched in 2010.   Her profile is pretty impressive and yet, she doesn’t look all that big against the mega-yacht dock.   No, I take that back, she looks huge.Her interior is very lush with cabins for ten guests.   Brenda would take one look into the cabin and say “I need a nap!”And his and her’s sinks.  Brenda would settle for nothing less, of course.  I’ll bet that these aren’t stinky potties.   It is remarkable how acute Brenda’s sense of smell has become when judging imagined smells aboard Pandora.   Why is that? Not so sure about what she would say about this Pullman berth.  That’s perhaps the only thing that we have in common with Athos.  Aboard Pandora I am always stuck in the “airless corner”, against the wall.  No, wait, it wouldn’t be ANYTHING like Pandora as the AC would be blasting.   This would be a terrific cabin to host a visit from our “grandbaby-twins”, Emme and Rhett. I would enjoy writing blog posts from this office.   Athos features satellite broadband internet, 24/7 at sea or in the harbor,  a service that I am told runs in neighborhood of $5,000/month.   And, I’ll bet that coffee cup doesn’t have mud in the bottom.  “Garcon, please fetch me a cafe late. without mud please.”
And, when it’s time for dinner.  Decisions, decisions, where to eat?  “I don’t like to eat in the cockpit.  It’s way too buggy outside!”   “No problem Madam, we can move you and your guests to the salon.”   Under full canvas, she flies 10,000 feet of sail area.   Just look at the scale of her main boom.  It must be over 5′ wide.    Note that she was black when she was launched.  Now she’s white.   I am told that most mega-yachts are painted every four years.   Pandora, now grey, has been painted three times since she was launched in 2007.    Of course, one of those paint jobs was when she was fresh from the yard.  As an epoxy boat she does not have gelcoat.   Athos has a huge sail plan and a spinnaker that alone is nearly 5,000 square feet.  That single sail has 5x more sail area than Pandora’s main and jib combined. As Brenda and I make plans to run Pandora home ourselves, the owner of Athos doesn’t have to worry about those pesky details.   Nope, just hop on his private jet and fly away.  It’s up to the crew to move her to, well, wherever he says to go.

And Athos has gone to plenty of places, Greenland, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean and South Pacific.

Her owner, Geert Pepping, knows a bit about the ocean as he operates one of the largest fleets of refrigerated transport ships in the world.  There must be money in “fridging” as it seems he’s done pretty well for himself.

That’s good to hear as while Athos cost about $30,000,000 to build, that’s just the beginning as it costs at least an additional 10% of that in operating expenses every year.  The rule of thumb, I am told, is that you should not spend more than 10% of your net worth on a yacht.  While estimates put his net worth in excess of $100,000,00o, I’m guessing that the operative phrase must be “in excess of” as it surely takes plenty of coin to support such a magnificent vessel.

Athos is truly a spectacular machine and perhaps her owner is ready for something else as she is currently for sale.  And, for a cool $28,000,000 Euros, she can be yours.   Check out this link to learn more. 

So that’s about if for now.  We have left Falmouth and will leave Antigua on Thursday to head for the USVIs.  And after a brief visit, on to the US, toward home.

Don’t forget to check in as we will be posting our position every four hours on the “where in the world is Pandora” button on this page.  And, as always, you can sign up to receive a notice when I post so you won’t miss even one scintillating rant ever again.

So, there you have it,  we’re on our way and all about Athos, the largest schooner in the world.

Well, we’re outa here!  Wish us luck.

It’s almost time to for us to leave Antigua and we hope to begin moving north on Thursday, a few days from now.

The run home will be a long one.  First, two hundred miles to the United States Virgin Islands and the second leg from there to southern Florida and probably to Lake Worth, where we will make landfall and clear customs, a run of nearly 1,200 miles and about a week at sea.

After that, it remains to be seen if we will leave Pandora somewhere and drive home or if we will continue part or all of the remaining 1,200 miles north to CT.

I expect that the best option will be for us to leave Pandora somewhere in the southeast US for a few weeks and I’ll come back down with crew to bring her the rest of the way north.  The good news is that we have until July 15th to move Pandora north of Cape Hatteras, and out of the hurricane “box”.

A few weeks ago, when it became clear that the USVIs were, along with Antigua, the only two places left in the Caribbean where we could still make landfall legally, some cruisers, like us, headed to Antigua but many more rushed north to the USVIs, fearful that that they would be denied entry if they didn’t get there as soon as possible.

When we left St Lucia to begin our trip north, we too considered continuing on to the USVIs, after a short stop in Antigua, but after hearing that the USVIs were  becoming terribly overcrowded with so may cruisers, we decided to wait here in Antigua until the crowds thinned out.  I was fairly certain that the USVIs would remain open to US citizens for the duration and fortunately, at least as of today, I was correct.

So here we are, several weeks later, the crowds in the USVIs are thinning as cruisers begin to move north toward the US and we have heard that there are once again, moorings and reasonable places available to anchor available.

The Salty Dawg Homeward Bound Flotilla, now numbering nearly 180 boats, just added yet another departure date in the second half of May.  The first group that left a week ago Sunday is now arriving in Florida.   The second wave of boats left the USVIs yesterday, Sunday for what will likely be a week long run to southern Florida.

The goal of these flotillas is to provide support for any cruisers that wish to head to the US, many that will be making the run shorthanded.  Quite a few of the boats heading north are doing so as they are fearful that Trinidad and Grenada, where many cruisers store their boats for the summer, will remain closed to any additional seasonal arrivals.  Those islands are vital to cruisers as they are the only islands in the eastern Caribbean that are generally safe from hurricanes.

Many other cruisers, who do not want to make the run north to the US, are opting to leave their boats in Antigua and other islands that lie within the hurricane zone.  However, given the arrival soon of what is being forecasted as  especially active season, with more and stronger storms than normal, that may prove to be a very risky decision.  Only time will tell if any given island will be hit, but it’s not a chance that Brenda and I are willing to take.

There has been much discussion within in the cruising community about the flotilla and what the Salty Dawg Sailing Association is doing to support those trying to get back to the US.    Amazingly, the SDSA received enough exposure to catch the interest of the NY Times.  Although the article, published last Saturday, is more focused on the effect that the huge increase in cruising boats is having on the USVIs, it does touch on the good work that our group is doing to help cruisers during this difficult time.   If you’re curious about what the Times had to say, check it out here.

And speaking of difficult, it is hard to fathom how much things have changed in the last month and while there are signs that some areas are beginning to emerge from the initial onslaught of the virus, it is becoming clear that we have a very long way to go before we will be able to reach anything that resembles “normal”.

More and more, estimates suggest that we will not really see any meaningful relief for perhaps 18 months when there is hope that a vaccine will become available.   If that’s the case, there will not be much of a cruising season in the Caribbean next winter at all.

So, getting home becomes an even greater priority for us as the idea of leaving Pandora in the islands for perhaps two years, sounds like a terrible idea.

With some luck, we will only be here in Antigua for a few more days and then our journey begins.

Even though it feels like forever that we have been killing time here, waiting until we can head home, that didn’t keep me from being in awe of today’s spectacular sunrise.   For better or worse, I see the sunrise nearly every day as being aboard means “early to bed and early to rise”.  Last night we were in bed before 9:00.  Lights out…The sun came over the horizon in a fiery blaze.
As I sat in the cockpit with a cup of coffee, I was struck by how peaceful the view in “our world” was in a world that is anything but…While every day begins with hope that things are heading closer to normal, those hopes always need to be tempered with yet another round of disclosures out of Washington from a president that seems Hell bent on sowing division. with his latest installment, calling for demonstrations against restrictions and closures that have been put in place in a number of states.  And that was only one day after he announced that those decisions and what is the best timeline, state by state, lies with those duly elected governors.  It’s hard to imagine how this is going to have a happy ending when there continues to be so much division and turmoil.

In spite of all the death and sadness, at least there are the beginnings of a better understanding of what needs to be done.  However, in spite of our best efforts, thousands more will likely become sick in the coming months, suggesting that the current “new normal” will be with us for some time now.  I read today that Singapore, a model for control of the virus, has seen a resurgence of cases as lock-down measures were lifted, not encouraging news at all.

For now, here in Antigua, a country with a very limited capacity to deal with a major outbreak, restrictions remain firmly in place with only the most limited movement allowed and only between 07:00 and noon.  As witness to how things have come to a nearly complete stop, this view of the parking lot at The Admiral’s Inn, which would normally be completely full, was sobering.  The Inn is a place where the Salty Dawg Rally has held so many events, it made me sad to see just how far we still have to go to get back to anything like normal. There has been considerable debate among cruisers who normally keep their boats here in the Caribbean over the summer, about what to do with their boats, take them home or arrange to keep them here in the Caribbean.

Should they stand by and wait for Trinidad and Grenada to open up again or just cut their losses and head back to the US.  It’s anyone’s guess about what will happen but to me the real question is what will next winter’s season look like.

Will we be back to “normal” with restaurants open and again have the freedom to mix socially, or will there still be restrictions and the now required social distancing still in place while the islands wait for the availability of an effective vaccine.

I for one, doubt that next winter season will end up being anything like “normal” so the idea of leaving Pandora down here for what might end up being be two years until the threat of the virus is contained, seems like a terrible idea to me.  I can only imagine what sort of condition she would be in after two years on the hard.

Having said that, I am doubtful that Pandora will see much use back in New England either with the summer sailing season almost upon us and it’s not looking good with restrictions galore and event after event being canceled.

In closing, I should mention that a sub-line for the Salty Dawg Flotilla is “cruising helping cruisers” and that is exactly what the group is all about.

As they say, “what goes around, comes around” and now it’s Brenda and I that are getting help, first as part of the flotilla as well as in other ways.  The outpouring of support has been wonderful with daily notes from friends asking how they can help us and wishing us well on our journey.

We have been invited to visit friends in their homes as we make our way north, eager to do whatever they can to help.  Making grocery runs, receiving packages and even the free use of a dock near Baltimore where we can keep Pandora until mid June if we decide to leave here there on our way home to CT.

Things are crazy in the world right now but in many ways beyond “cruiser helping cruisers” and all this is helping to bring many of us closer together.

So think of us as we begin our journey north and to home, a voyage that Brenda is not looking forward to in the least.

Today I gave Pandora’s bottom a last scrubbing before we begin to head north.  While we are in the USVIs I expect that I’ll do a bit of last minute touch-up to be sure that we can make the fastest passage possible passage on our way home.

In a few days we will pass through the mouth of Falmouth harbor as we continue our voyage home.  Fortunately, Pandora’s a pretty fast boat but any sailboat still moves at a glacial pace when you really just want to know, “when will we get there?

Our journey begins very soon.  Wish us luck.

Yesterday we got the news that after weeks of being confined to our boats that it was now permissible to go for a walk on shore between 07:00 and 12:00 every day.  What a relief, after weeks of confinement aboard Pandora.

While there are still considerable restrictions in place on the island, being able to go ashore, even for a short walk, without feeling like a convict, was great.  Brenda dressed up in her best Covid-19 protective gear and out we went.   And, you can rest assured that under that elegant silk scarf is a proper mask given to her by another cruiser.

As Billy Chrystal, of Saturday Night Live fame, once said, “doesn’t she look marvelous darling?”.  And, with a lovely hibiscus in her hat. So, off we went for a morning walk, our first in, well, I can’t remember the last time.  We headed towards Nelson’s Dockyard.

Almost nobody on the road.  Deserted.  The entrance to Nelson’s Dockyard is normally bustling with yachties and tourists.  Not today. Almost nobody around.  I wondered if we’d be turned away, actually.  To see all the businesses we normally frequent closed was creepy. Sure, it’s mid April and the season would normally be winding down, with many yachts heading out for the season, but it’s a lot more vacant than normal.   The docks are normally packed with yachts of every size, getting ready for the last big event of the season.  In a normal year, the island would be gearing up for race week, when hundreds of competitive sailors and ocean yachts would be descending on the island. Even the mega-yacht dock , generally full of 100’+  yachts, nearly empty. There are still a good number of huge yachts in the harbor but, one by one, they are heading out, headed to the Mediterranean or Newport for the summer season.  I do wonder if there will even be a summer season this year.  Like us, I expect that many owners are wondering where their yachts should actually go.

Newport, for one, has quarantine restrictions in place that are pretty restrictive and it’s still too early in the season to head that far north.  Just last week, there was quite a nasty storm with gale force winds kicking up, south of Bermuda that would have been quite dangerous for even big yachts to be out in.

Virus or not, nature continues to amaze with beautiful flowers everywhere.  An egret hunting for fish in the shallows. A lone ray nosing around for a meal. And, a school of enormous tarpons looking for a handout where fisherman normally clean their catch. Don’t be fooled, these fish are each nearly 5′ long.   Much larger than they look in the photo. One particular yacht worth noting, that’s still in the Dockyard, is Adventuress, a lovely 1924 Scotland built, Fife that was beautifully restored in Maine in 2009.  She is a work of art and in spectacular condition, in spite of her 90 years.  This photo doesn’t do her justice.  Under sail, spectacular in every way. Follow this link to an article about her with more great photos.   She’s a remarkable yacht with a caring owner that is willing to do whatever it takes to keep her in top shape.  I wonder where she will be heading this summer?

While a very different type of yacht,  I have also admired Skat for a number of years now.  Launched in 2009, the 240′ long Skat is owned by Microsoft alum, Hungarian born, Charles Simonyi.

The owner lead the team at Microsoft that developed Office, the program that  runs on nearly every computer in the world.  When Microsoft went public, he became an instant billionaire.  These days, in spite of being an active philanthropist, giving away millions, he is still worth some $3,3b.   I understand that he is aboard Skat for half of the year.

Skat, in Danish is the word for “treasure” and a term of endearment like “honey”.  His danish wife, who he married in 2008, is 32 years his junior.   Interestingly, he dated Martha Stewart for 15 years.  He broke up with her and shortly after that was married in 2008.   Skat has a decidedly military look about her.   As Charles was dating Martha Stewart when she was in prison, I wonder if this photo of Martha’s cell was inspiration for the color scheme for Skat? Who knows.  Anyway, when Skat was launched in 2009 she her design was way ahead of her time, with a much more angular look.  Nowadays, many of the design details of Skat are fairly common in modern yacht design.

The other day there were two fully rigged catamarans on her stern ready for an evening sail.  Off and on, I have also seen a portable table saw set up on the stern.  I suppose for one of the crew to do a project.  It’s hard to imagine what they might be cutting with a crude carpenter’s saw to fit aboard a yacht of this level of fit and finish. Note the number 9906 on the starboard quarter.  It’s the build number assigned to the boat when she was in build at the Lurrsen Yard.  At launch, she cost in excess of $75,000,000.   Check out this link for some background and thought behind the development of Skat.

And when he’s not aboard, Simonyi lives in a very unique home in Washington state, not surprisingly referred to by some as “windows”.   It is also grey along with having some similar design elements to Skat.  Check more about this very unique home at this link. As you’d imagine, he also has a private jet and yes, it’s grey too.  And you can’t land a jet on a yacht so Skat also sports a helicopter, grey of course. A yacht, amazing home, personal jet and even his own chopper.   What else can an energetic billionaire do to keep busy?

How about a trip into space and a visit to the International Space Station?  Yes, he’s done that and even holds the record for being the only civilian to do so twice, in 2007 and again in 2009. Anyway, I think that his yacht is pretty neat.  Skat has been docked here in Falmouth every year that we’ve visited.   Two years ago, after we had already left for the season,  I heard from a fellow cruiser that the crew of Skat hosted a dock party and invited all the cruisers in the harbor to join in the fun.  I’ll bet after a winter hanging around the harbor that Skat’s crew was also ready for a good time as well. 

So while we are still in Falmouth, if slightly less hemmed in, it’s looking like some of the most restrictive rules put into place are beginning to loosen here and hopefully in the USVIs as well, where we will be heading in the next two weeks, as we begin our trip back to the US and home.

As anxious as she is about the trip home, Brenda seems to be beginning to make peace with what she will have to do to get herself there.   The good news is that the weather reports that was have been hearing about the first flotilla that left the USVIs last Sunday, have been quite reasonable, with nice easy broad reach sailing, all the way to Florida.

Just as with the fall Rally, you can follow the boats in the Homeward Bound Flotilla, this time on a really interesting page provided by Predict Wind, for all participants.

With a total of over 160 boats participating in weekly departures through mid May, there will be plenty to follow.  Brenda and I are tentatively planning to join the Sunday, May 3rd departure that will take us to Florida, weather permitting.

The group that left last Sunday is nearing the US and the next group, totaling about 20 boats, is scheduled to leave on Sunday, weather dependent, of course.

We don’t know exactly when we will head out to make the 200 mile run to the USVIs but it will probably be in about a week.  Right now we are waiting for a shipment of prescriptions to ship out either to here in Antigua or to the USVIs.

Of all the “details” that are challenging when living aboard, I have to say that keeping stocked with current prescriptions is the most daunting.  Here in Antigua, we have to hire an import broker just to receive the order, and with the closures related to the virus, it took about two weeks even to find someone to accept the shipment.

Like it is for everyone these days, life is way more complicated but it’s encouraging that perhaps the worse may be over.  At least we can go for walks now.

Yes, today things seem to be a bit brighter here in Antigua.  Let’s hope it’s the sign we’ve been waiting for.

Fingers crossed.