Ok, here’s the deal.  If you are heading to the Caribbean next season I’m here to tell you that the best place to make landfall is Antigua.  So, feast your eyes on this beautiful sunset that could be yours and read on.  There are a number of options for heading to the Caribbean from the US east coast.   Beyond where to make landfall, a key question is about how convenient it is to explore the rest of the islands once you arrive.

Several years ago, when I was planning for Pandora’s first run to the eastern Caribbean, I asked around about where would be the best island to head for.   Many skippers, heading south for the first time, default to the British Virgin Islands as they are familiar with the area from years of chartering.  And while it’s a wonderful place to charter for a week, it’s tough for cruisers to get further south without slogging to weather.  The bad news is that there just isn’t a lot of information easily available regarding the islands to the south.

Cruisers wishing to continue south from the BVIs to the next island, St Martin, must make a run of nearly 100 miles due east, directly into the trade winds.   Some will say that this trip is “easy if you wait for a cold front”.  However, that may take a long time according to weather router Chris Parker who says that you are likely to wait weeks or worse, especially during mid-December through March for a more northerly wind shift. Several years ago, Brenda and I made the run between the British Virgin Islands and St Martin and in spite of light easterlies of only 10kts, it was quite an unpleasant trip, very bumpy motor sailing directly into the wind and waves that made for a VERY LONG DAY that began before sunrise and lasted until long after dark.

It was not a great way to begin our run south after the holidays.  Brenda hated it.  Unfortunately, our experience was not unique and for us it wasn’t a great way to begin our winter season aboard Pandora.   As they say “gentlemen do not go to weather”.

For years now, we have worked with Chris Parker of Marine Weather Center, as our preferred weather router and have relied on him for guidance for local weather forecasting as well as advice on where to cruise based on the type of sailing conditions that Brenda and I prefer.  And, when I asked him about cruising the eastern Caribbean, his recommendation was to head directly to Antigua from the US and begin our winter cruising from there.

From the Hampton, VA, the starting point for the Salty Dawg Rally, the run to Antigua is only about 100 miles further than the BVIs and by the time you get there you have made all of the easting required to begin your sailing season.  Once you’re in Antigua, you can sail just about anywhere on a reach or down wind.

Chris also notes that Antigua is well protected from the large winter north swells produced by the all to common north Atlantic storms.  These swells, that grow out of major lows in the North Atlantic, make anchorages farther north and on the smaller islands untenable for much of the winter.

Stronger winds, known as the “Christmas winds” pipe up in the Caribbean in the second half of December through mid-March.  However, it is easy to ride them out with good holding in the protected harbors of Antigua.  With so many cruisers in the harbor, there is plenty to do on the island if you opt to spend several weeks there before heading further south.If you need a place to keep your boat when you head home for the holidays, dockage, moorings and marina storage in Antigua are a lot less expensive than you might think and flights home for the holidays are convenient and reasonably priced.

Of course, on any long voyage, stuff always breaks and Antigua has extensive services available so you can get just about anything fixed.    And, while equipment is somewhat more expensive than in the US, most anything can be brought in quickly and installed by those who know how to do it.   It’s no surprise that many skippers of megayachts have work done in Antigua.  Need paint work or varnishing?  Antigua is a great place to have that done too and it won’t drain your cruising kitty, well, now compared to some other areas at least.

When heading further south, you’ll be sailing on a reach, the distances between islands are short line of sight sailing and the longest distance you’ll have to cover between harbors is only about 50 miles with most islands closer together than that.

To the south, there is great variety in the islands that you will visit, with each stop offering their own unique cultures, especially the French islands of Guadaloupe and Martinique and the very quaint Le Saintes archipelago just south of Guadaloupe.  

Dominica, the “nature island” is very popular with cruisers given its’ rustic nature and extensive hiking trails through the rainforest.Love waterfalls?   Dominica’s got that…There are often questions about safety and crime in the Caribbean and while it’s always a good idea to keep your dink locked when on shore and tied to the boat at night, crime is mostly concentrated in certain areas of St Lucia and much of St Vincent.  A bit farther south, Bequia and the Grenadines are wonderful and safe.

Antigua has some crime but it’s generally centered in the largest city, St John, where the cruise ships dock, far from Falmouth and English Harbor.   Actually, there is a police station right near the entrance of Nelson’s Dockyard.   You will feel safe when walking around the area, even at night.

It was no accident that the British Navy chose English Harbor and Antigua as their base of their naval operations in the Caribbean for several hundred years as these harbors are very well protected and offer consistent trade wind sailing on a reach to just about every area of the Caribbean.It’s a truly beautiful place. And loaded with fabulous yachts of all sizes.  Yes, Antigua is the ideal place to begin your season and from there you can head further south without beating into the trade winds.   And, as the season winds down you may choose, as many do, to leave your boat south in Grenada or Trinidad where you’ll be safe from the seasonal hurricanes.

And, for those returning to the US, sailing back to the Virgins is an easy run, off the wind, and there you can join up for the Salty Dawg Rally back to the US and home.  Along the way you’ll want to be sure and stop in St Barths and St Martin as well as some of the smaller islands if the north swell is not a problem.

Antigua is very simply the sailing capital of the Caribbean and very cruiser friendly.  And, as rally port captain, I have seen first-hand, that they have been extremely welcoming to the Salty Dawg Rally and have gone out of their way to help us.  The Antigua Yacht Club even throws the Dawgs a free party, with food and drink for all.  It doesn’t get more welcoming than that, if you ask me.If you’ve been to Antigua in the past you know that what I am saying is true and I am sure that you won’t be disappointed by your next trip.  If you are new to cruising the area, trust me, making landfall in Antigua and tying up in historic Nelson’s Dockyard for the first time will give you and your crew a thrill to be in a magical place that has hosted sailing vessels for hundreds of years, a UNESCO world heritage site and the only operating Georgian boatyard in the world.How about this view of the Dockyard from aboard Pandora?Still need convincing?  Contact me, Antigua Port Captain for the Salty Dawg Rally, SDSA board member and I’ll answer your questions.   Believe me, if Antigua wasn’t such a great spot, I wouldn’t be spending so much of my time working to make your arrival a great experience.

And, speaking of plans, when the Dawgs arrive in Antigua in November there will be quite a lineup of events to please skipper and crew alike.   So, I hope that you will join me and the rest of the fleet in English Harbor for our arrival and more than a week of events, some free and all reasonably priced.  Click here to see the details of what’s planned.

Can’t bring your boat?  Not a problem, there are really special, super great rates at the Admiral’s Inn, in the heart of the Dockyard, just for Dawgs and their friends during our arrival time.   How about this as a perfect spot to begin your day with a cup of coffee at the Inn?  The place is beautiful. Or perhaps for a glass of wine as the sun goes down.  Pandora will be in the Dockyard waiting for you.  Well, that’s assuming that you don’t get there first.

So, there you have it.   The case for making landfall in Antigua.  And, with so many Dawgs together, it’s going to be awesome.

Oh yeah, we even do dinghy drifts and pass around snacks to share or should I say “Dawg Food”. So, why would you miss out on this?

Well, it’s been two weeks since I last posted and that’s way too long.  Along with visiting our son and grandchildren, I have been busy building two looms for Brenda, perhaps as penance for keeping her away from home for the last six winters voyaging here there.

It’s just beginning to get light outside and this is the view from my office window.   Not looking too good for an early spring.Beautiful yes, in a wintry sort of way.  Me, I prefer this instead.   Soon enough.    It’l get better in May.Yes, it’s been tough for me to be here in CT with the sub-freezing weather for months now but at least I have been spending a lot of time in the the shop with no windows so I can’t see outside, the bare trees and… well, you get the picture.  Actually, I already showed you the picture.

Speaking of picture, this is one of the two Takadai looms that I built while hanging out in that windowless shop.   Takawhat! you say.  Check this link to learn more about this obscure fiddly technique.  Trust me, I won’t be ditching Pandora to make ancient Japanese braids any time soon.  However, now Brenda has one of these arcane gizmos of her own…The loom looks deceptively simple, but, trust me, it’s not simple to make at all.   I used some exotic materials including zebra wood.  I have had a single board on hand in the shop for a decade waiting for the right project to come along. I also had to make 40 of these.  They are called Koma and each one has 9 pins inserted into fiddly little holes.  Yikes, talk about repetitive motion…And, there are SO MANY OF THEM.  And that’s just one of the two looms I made.   To set up jigs to make all the parts took plenty of time so I decided to go ahead and make two of everything.  Brenda plans on selling one of them to another weaver. 

Interestingly, there is only one guy in the US that makes these looms and there is a 2.5 year long wait to get one.  From me, Brenda got hers in only two months.  Go me!  However, we won’t talk about the fact that she purchased the plans over seven years ago.    Well, I did have to think about it long enough to get it right.  Right?

Anyway, the looms are nearly done and I can soon turn my attention to getting Pandora ready for spring.    There’s still plenty to do and I’ll be spending days aboard Pandora scraping old glue off of the overhead so I can put in a new head-liner.  I’ve decided to hire the guy who did my cockpit enclosure to install the new material.   That way I can be sure that it will turn out perfectly and I HAVE to have PERFECT.

I’ll also be taking out the last of the less efficient lighting and replacing it with LEDs so I won’t have to be quite so stingy with cabin lighting when we are on the hook.   Pandora’s cabin lighting has been mostly upgraded but there are still the overhead halogen puck lights that need attention plus a number of high pressure fluorescent fixtures that aren’t very efficient either.

And, well, there’s always the quest of trying to fix those small if persistent leaks coming through that bolt hole on the traveler, under a line clutch and one of the granny bars that drip down below from time too time.  Annoying, but a bit of proper bedding should do the trick.   Of course that all sounds easy enough but to get things sorted out and ready for that “bit of proper bedding” will take hours or days.

And, remember my last post?  The one about our visiting the UK and renting a Narrow Boat?  Well, NEVER MIND…

Brenda and I both decided that being away for a month wasn’t all that great an idea after all and we’ve decided to put that trip off and go to CA instead for a week to see our son Chris and his girlfriend Melody.    We’ve been looking forward to seeing them again so that’s the plan.

So, it’s UK out and CA in…  Best laid plans? Right?

We’ve also been visiting with our son’s growing family.   They are getting bigger and louder by the day.  It’s fun to be with them but just about everything that gets done all day long involves bathing, bouncing, playing, feeding or changing diapers along with putting them down for a nap and then getting them up  again.  Really adorable but what a handful…Feed me, FEED ME “Tepe”!!!  That’s Tori’s name for me, Grandpa.   Double adorable.  The best thing about being the oldest is that you get “naming rights”. The morning after we returned home from our visit, Brenda and I both were struck by how peaceful it was to have coffee and read the paper in ABSOLUTE SILENCE.  We miss them but not until after that second cup of coffee and an hour spent reading the paper.   Such are the joys of being a grandparent.

So, back to sailing.   We still plan on going to Maine this summer and I hope for a brief visit up the St John river in Canada.   I’ll be running Pandora to Annapolis for the sailboat show in October.  After that, on to Hampton VA and the Salty Dawg Rally to the Caribbean and my “home island”,  Antigua.

I should mention that there is a load of activities planned for our arrival in Antigua in November and I sure hope that at least one of you will decide to go there too.   The events are great and I should know as I’m port captain and set them all up.   Check out what’s planned for our arrival.   The page is still a bit rudimentary but it will be fleshed out more soon.   While you’re at it, why not sign up for the rally now.  And, of course, make it Antigua, I will.   Everyone I’ve been working with in Antigua has been so supportive and the government is even taking a booth at the Annapolis boat show as a result of my prodding.

And speaking of signing up.  Put the “Open Boat Blue Water Weekend” on your calendar too.  In my “spare time” I have been working on this meeting at the Essex Yacht Club beginning June 21st for three days focused on preparing skippers, boats and crew for safe and fun, well mostly fun, blue water passages.  And yes, you can sign up for that too. But wait, there’s more…  I’ve been asked to give a talk on July 23rd as part of the Camden Yacht Club’s Summer Speakers’ Sunset Series.   I’ll be speaking on behalf of the rally and about cruising the Windward Islands, south of Antigua, an area that I just love.    The event is also a rendezvous of the Salty Dawg Sailing Association and they have a signup page if you’re interested.  It’s free.

The Camden Yacht Club is a beautiful spot with a view of the Camden Hills from the clubhouse.  Other than that, I’m just hanging around waiting for the crocus to come up hinting that spring is just around the corner.   And, now that the “takawhatervers” are nearly done, I can turn my attention back to Pandora so that I’ll be ready in time for some summer cruising.

Oh yeah, and Brenda wants some bar stools for the kitchen so I’ll have to somehow fit that in too.  And, the passerelle (boarding ramp) for Pandora, almost forgot that.

So, there you have it.   Nothing to do except to wait for spring except, well, except just about everything.    A sign, please, at least give me a sign…

But, you know they say, “busy people are happy people”.  Than I must be about the happiest guy around.  Well, the happiest one with dry feet at least.

The Narrow Boats of England’s inland canal waterways have always captured my imagination.  To me these distinctive boats are a pinnacle of “form follows function” as they all look very similar being designed within a strict standard that will fit with the locks on the canal system throughout the UK.

A Narrow Boat must be under 7′ wide and most are kept to a maximum of 6′ 10″ and to a maximum length of 72′ and sometimes a bit smaller as there are some locks on the system that can not accommodate anything longer than 57′. Originally these boats were more like simple barges with horses pulling them along with a rope on a tow path.   With the development of compact steam engines,  many became self powered and ultimately converted to diesel engines. The canal system of the UK and the iconic narrow boats played a key role in the industrial revolution in England making it possible to cheaply move material throughout  the country before the development of the railway system.  As canal traffic became the standard way to transport heavy cargo, shipping prices dropped precipitously with the cost to move coal dropping by 75%.   However, by the mid 20th century the canal system was all but abandoned in favor of train transport.

While the decline was years in the making, the winter of 1962/63 sounded the final death knell of commercial canal traffic when the canals completely froze the system, locking traffic in place for three months.  Shippers made the final shift to the railroads and never turned back.  Even the trains struggled with the unusually cold and snowy winter but they got through. As you can imagine, it wasn’t long until much of the canal system fell into total disrepair.
As is so often a basic truth, if you don’t use it, you loose it.
Today the system is thriving, thanks to a small group of enthusiasts that campaigned to repair the waterway.  A particularly seminal moment in this reversal of fortune was the publication of the book Narrow Boat by L.T.C. Rolt, originally published in 1944.  The author, Tom Rolt, brought attention to the decaying system.  Many give credit to this book as being the catalyst that lead to the renewal of the canal system as it exists today.   This book is still in print, after all these years, providing evidence of the enduring importance of his words.

Here’s Tom on his beloved narrow boat, Cressy.  He toured what remained of the the then decrepit canal system and founded the Inland Waterway Association in 1946 with a friend, Robert Aickman.   This group remains a major force to this day in restoring and maintaining the canal system.   Robert Aickman aboard a narrow boat.  He was a successful author of what is described as “supernatural fiction” whatever that is.  Remarkably, today there is in the neighborhood of 4,700 miles of navigable waterways in the UK with some 2,500 miles of those waterways primarily accessible by narrow boat.   If you ever wonder about what can be accomplished by a single individual, consider the impact that both Rolt and Aickman had on what is now a thriving canal system with over 30,000 registered vessels in the UK alone.

I am focused on all of this, beyond the obvious is this is all about boats, because, as I announced in a recent post, Brenda and I are planning a holiday to the UK in April, beginning with the annual meeting of the Ocean Cruising Club in Wales (I wrote about our plans and a few other random thoughts in this post).  After that we plan to tour other areas and are considering renting a canal boat or should I say Narrow Boat.

The particular segment of the canal system that we are interested in is often described as the most popular one, crossing from England to Wales, the Llangollen Canal.   This area of the canal system, under 50 miles, offers spectacular scenery along with a number of remarkable aqueducts and tunnels and is quite manageable for a week long holiday.   When you think of the fact that this canal was built in the early 1800s, it’s an all the more impressive feat.

Perhaps the most amazing part of the journey on the Llangollen is the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, a specatular bit of Victorian engineering.   Named a world heritage site, it is lovingly maintained to this day.  Check out this short tour.  We’ve been watching a number of shows recently about the canal system and have particularly enjoyed a series highlighting various areas of the system, hosted by two British actors, Timothy West and his wife of 50 years Prunella Scales.  Sadly, Prunella has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and her condition plays into the touching narrative.  I urge you to view this 45 minute piece.Timothy West is a well know stage and film actor and, in addition to the above episode, made many others with his wife, covering other areas of the canals of Europe.   It’s an impressive list and the number of episodes alone highlights the historic importance of canals in the history of Europe.

Prunella Scales, is someone who you will probably remember as playing opposite John Cleese, in the television series, Faulty Towers or perhaps in Monty Python skits over the years.  Anyway, West and Scales, who clearly have a love of canals and Narrow Boats,  bring this wonderful lifestyle to life and I am hopeful that Brenda and I can find a way to fit a canal boat holiday into our trip in April.

Perhaps the most impressive part of all of this is how the rebirth of the now thriving canal system in the UK was catalyzed by one man and the publication of a book shortly after the end of WWII and how that has grown into a thriving economy that attracts boaters from around the world.  If the sheer number of videos on YouTube is any measure, the canals indeed mean a great deal to many people.

For me, the chance to visit the UK and spend time aboard a boat, now that would be very special indeed.  Oh yeah, there’s one rub, we have to find someone to come along with us as Brenda’s freaking out about those pesky locks and don’t get her started about those scary aqueducts……and long dark tunnels. So, will we go?  As Brenda once said, “Bob and the dog, ever hopeful.” 

Way back in the 40s, Rolt and Aickman had hope when they had the bold idea of reviving the entire canal system.  Me, my hope is a lot less ambitious.  All I want to do is to go for a boat ride.

That’s me!  Fingers crossed and, oh yes, the power of hope.

My memories of my Grandfather Wallace, on my father’s side, are faint as he died when I was very young.  I do have one memory of him with my grandmother and parents in their kitchen but that’s about it.  

He became a successful business man, publisher of a trade magazine in the building trade, American Artisan, which is long gone.   I expect this photo predates that part of his life. My father did not speak much of his childhood but I do recall hearing that his parents, Wallace (Wally) and my Grandmother, Wilhelmina (Willy) Wilhelm, a good German Girl, ran a pretty tight ship and were stern with their boys, my father and his two brothers.

My memories of my Grandfather, such as they are, were mostly formed by what I heard after he was gone.  I guess that most of my memories were formed by the “things” that he surrounded himself with.  The stuff that he left behind.  When I was a bit older, I would sneak up to the attic, to gaze longingly at his enormous stash of fishing gear that was stored in a special climate controlled room.   Part of the allure for me was that I wasn’t really supposed to be up there in the first place but I did it anyway, and it was, surely, the most amazing place that I had ever been.

The room, tucked away in the corner of the walk-up attic, was lined with all sorts of outdoor gear, everything from winter jackets (find more info), snow shoes and all manner of fishing gear.  My Grandfather was a fisherman and a hunter but a fisherman first, and not one who’d “beat the water” with casting gear but a firm believer that the only proper way to catch a fish was with a rod and fly. 

And, for proper fishing gear, THE place he shopped was Orvis and Family legend had it that my Grandfather had one of nearly everything that Orvis sold, and I believed it.   I was entranced by what I saw in that secret room and imagined what it must have been like for my grandparents to trek deep into the wilderness, wading out in a cold running stream,  looking for the big one that I imagined never got away.  

Recently, I have been sorting through boxes of old family photos that Brenda and I have taken over the last forty years, and have come upon some real gems, some of which have appeared in recent posts.   I am nearing the end of the boxes of photos and today I came upon a small envelope with some remarkable pictures. Tiny black and white photos of my Grandparents taken while they were on several of their legendary wilderness fishing trips in the 1920s and later in the 40s, in Maine and Canada including Newfoundland.

Prior to today’s remarkable find, the only photo that I had of my grandfather, was this one, that I keep on my desk of him dressed as I always imagined he must have been when he was out exploring the wilderness.  There he is wearing his waders for trout fishing in a river and I can still remember how they smelled when I handled the old rubber in that forbidden place. 

I also have this photo of me and my late dad fishing on what I believe is a reservoir near our home, at the time, in Fairfield CT.   I’m not sure if Dad really enjoyed fishing so perhaps he was just doing his “good daddy” thing.  I wish I remembered that day.  I am sure it was awesome. So, back to the travels of  my grandparents, Wally and Willy.   Over the years I heard bits and pieces of the many trips that they took to Maine and Canada to fish and hunt but  mostly to fish. 

I can only imagine what it must have been like to head out into the wild back in the early part of the 20th century and it was surely very primitive by today’s standards.  Legend has it that on one of their visits to Newfoundland, my grandmother was confronted by a bull moose that towered over her head.  I remember her as being pretty tough so I expect that she stood her ground, no doubt, having been told that to run away was a decidedly bad idea. 

They were really on their own, guide or not.  No cell phones or GPS transponders with little red “help” buttons to push if you got into trouble back then.  Cars were even a fairly new thing and most transportation in the back country, at that time, was certainly by horse.  This photo was captioned on the back in neat printing as “Lori Pond Maine”.   I couldn’t find it on a map.Here they are, fording a stream, clearly in the same area, labeled  “Katahadin Maine” which I learned is the highest mountain in the state.  Located in the remote center of the state and I can only imagine how tough it was to get there in 1922 when this photo was taken as it was years prior to the interstate highway system. 

Perhaps they took a train from New York or took the long drive up route 1.  It’s hard to imagine them making the trip on their own as cars of that era were pretty primitive with running boards and brass headlamps.  One way or the other, it must have been a days long journey from their home in Fairfield CT.In his later years, I heard that my grandfather flew to fish in the Pacific Northwest to fish for salmon but back in the 1920s this was the sort of plane that was used commercially and I doubt that there were many airports, if any at all, in that part of Maine.   Well, this photo isn’t actually a commercial airplane and has nothing to do with my grandparents but I love the image and all that it conjures up.  You’ll get the point that air travel wasn’t quite the same then as today.  Not sure what this photo is all about but it’s labeled as “Maine Woods 1922”.  Yep, looks like the woods.  I wonder if they ever visited when there was snow on the ground.  Perhaps the trails were to rough for wheels so this was the only way to carry their camping gear. 
Roughing it or not, this photo, taken that same year, shows grandfather looking right at home in the backwoods, especially for a city guy.   Adventuring of the sort that they did was probably not all that common at that time. 
My grandmother was no shrinking violet.  And here she is “packing”.  Notice the sidearm.  I wonder if that was before or after her encounter with that moose?  Of course, as you’d expect for a proper rusticator, a skirt, appropriately below the knee, of course. Wally packed too.   It’s photo was taken some years later, in 1937, again in Newfoundland.  And, of course, complete with his ever present cigarette. And out by the cookhouse in Newfoundland in 1940.  I would imagine that they flew there as I can’t imagine having the time to get there by train, car or ship. 
My grandmother did plenty of fishing in those years too.   I remember her as pretty stern but with a great smile.   When she was much older and saw me she’d say in a high pitched voice with a jaunty lilt, “little lamb, little lamb, little lamb chop, chop” and poke me in the ribs.   I loved that. And, our Willy could handle a gun as well as a rod and reel.   Love the feather in her hat. Looks like lunchtime with their guide.  In those areas I doubt it was a good idea to go it alone.   And, I expect that there was plenty of critters, large and small, that “went bump in the night” to keep an eye out for. I’d love to know the story behind this moment.  Willy could fish with the best of them it seems although she never spoke of it with me. 
This photo, labeled only as “Maine” appears to be some sort of ferry.  Imagine being out in a remote area and wearing a tie and hat these days?   Heck, I even get comments at our yacht club when I show up in a bow tie. 
This photo carried an interesting caption on the back, “Dashing Youth, Wrecked City, Canada”.  I tried but couldn’t find any reference to such an event in the 20s when I guess the photo was taken. 
Along the way they did the tourist thing.  This was taken along the Mohawk Trail in western MA.   The name comes from it’s origins as a trade route for native Americans.   Some of the photos show my grandfather in what looks like really remote areas, like this one on a rocky riverbank, also from the early 20s.   I guess that is an Atlantic Salmon.   Come to think of it, all the photos look pretty remote. Legend has it that in his later years he had a standing order from a guide in the Pacific Northwest to contact him when the salmon were running and he’d hop on a plane and fly out.  In those days that was a very long way as planes didn’t have nearly the range of today’s jets and had to stop every few hundred miles for fuel as they made their way from coast to coast, across the continent.   

I never knew much about my grandfather and although my grandmother was with us until after Brenda and I were married, I still don’t know much about their earlier years.  However, their memory lives on, if perhaps more in my imagination, as I conjure up the adventures that they must have had as they fished and hunted in the wilderness, areas that seem impossibly remote even by by today’s adventure travel standards. 

I expect that it was the allure of fishing pristine streams and rivers and the promise of catching that big one, that drew my grandfather to the remote north country.   

And he, I expect, like me so many years later, was surely drawn to all the wonderful fishing gear, as he dreamed of the promise of what he’d catch and the big ones that, it seems, didn’t get a way.   Particularly the lures that he said, I am told, were designed to “catch more fisherman than fish”.   In his case, I expect that it was the other way around. 

I wish I’d been there with him.   Now, that would have been awesome.   And even though I wasn’t, discovering these photos has brought us just a bit closer after all these years.  

 

When we were planning our first trip south of the BVIs a few years ago, we found it very difficult to get good information about the more southern areas of the Caribbean.  Most of what I could find in the sailing magazines and online, was focused on the American and British Virgin Islands, so popular with the charter set on holiday.   Chartering in those areas is fun but cruisers generally head further south.  This lack of good information was a real problem for us, and finding information about the islands of Antigua and south, the area that had been described to me as “where the real Caribbean begins” was tough to find.

As I consider plans for spending next winter in the Caribbean, the 2019/20 season, I have been thinking about some of the favorite places that we have visited, those harbors and Islands that stood out in our travels, and thought it would be fun to share some thoughts about the spots we particularly enjoyed.

We visited many terrific islands and harbors in the last two years, so from time to time, I’ll be writing about the ones that we particularly enjoyed and share what makes them special to us.

When I make the run from the US, I generally plan on making landfall in Antigua and it is from there that we make our way south before heading north and back to the US.

As I asked around for advice on “favorite places” Bequia, in the Grenadines came up, over an over, as a must visit spot.  And while going there is always fun, it was recommended that we head there for the Easter Regatta, three days or racing an special events.   FYI, in 2019, the Bequia Regatta will take place from April 18th to the 22nd.

It’s a very popular event with locals and cruisers a like with visitors coming from all over to enjoy all that’s going on and for many, to participate in the races.  Boats of all shapes and sizes join in the three days of racing and parties.  Some came under their own power and some on the decks of inter-island freighters. This regatta draws from nearby islands, including a number of Carriacou sloops, those beautiful traditional, beach built sloops like Exodus, the last boat of it’s type launched in 2013.  It’s quite a sight to see her racing around the course with her cousins. Exodus was the subject of a full length movie about her building and the history of the design.  Here’s a short trailer for the movie.  Check it out.  If that inspires you to watch the full movie, here you go. Get a glass of rum, sit down and enjoy the show. Others came from the US like this lovely schooner Heron.  She summers in Maine, chartering out of Rockport.   Brenda and I will be in Maine this summer and plan on spending time in Rockport ourselves.  Perhaps we’ll see her.  Her captain and owner also built her and he did a great job.   Want to learn more about her?  Follow this link to her home page.  She’s really beautiful. While Heron is a classic design, she’s only a few years old.  Other classics participate in the regatta as well as other events in the Caribbean, such as the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta, held in late April in Antigua.  One particular beauty that was there last winter was Ma Jong, built in the 1950s.  I found this particular shot of her on the Easter Regatta home page.  She’s a beautiful and very powerful boat.  Her home port is Vineyard Haven on Martha’s Vineyard where she was restored to her present glory.  I wrote about her last winter.  There are some good sized one design fleets in the regatta, like these vintage J24 sloops.  This colorful shot is also from the regatta site. And, of course, there are the local Bequia sloops, built and raced on the island.  You don’t have to be there during the regatta to enjoy the fun as they tack around the harbor.  The local youth are out sailing these boats nearly every day, regatta or not.   The youth clubhouse, oddly in a bar, is jammed with burgees brought by visitors over the years including this well used one from the Essex Yacht Club, my home club.  Along with boat building on the islands the history of fine craftsman goes way back including a tradition of model boats.  These are fun to see and watch being built.   I wrote about these models in this post last winter. If you followed the link above, you’ll find this photo a bit repetitive as that post also included discussion about the new dink chaps we had built.  Anyway, we had some great work done on the dink. Pandora’s varnish below was freshened too. There’s plenty to do ashore during the regatta including all manner of competitions.  Everything from musical chairs on stage to threading the needle, yes threading sewing needles.  Brenda competed and won, with a little help from a local and no doubt mortified, young man.   They were both good sports.

Brenda’s favorite event was “crying for nothing” where contestants are judged on their ability to conjure tears and a sobbing cry on command.  I believe that our two year old granddaughter Tori would do quite well in that event. Checking into Bequia is easy if more expensive than the French islands.  Just about all of the islands from St Vincent, south through the Grenadines, to just north of Grenada, are all part of the same jurisdiction.

There’s a very good public landing at the head of the harbor and it can be busy during the regatta.  The harbor is large with many moorings but, even during the regatta, there’s plenty of space to anchor.   Nobody seems concerned about dinks speeding around the harbor so even getting back to your boat if it’s far out in the harbor is a fast trip.  The harbor is well protected from any surge except in the outermost area. Everything about the harbor is colorful including the ferry boats from St Vincent. With all manner of local boats pulled up on the beach. We enjoy checking out local eateries and there are plenty to choose from, convenient from the walkway ringing the southern side of the harbor.  I have used this shot before.  To me, it perfectly evokes the image from the much loved classic book, The Wind in the Willows, when Ratty famously says, “Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing – absolutely nothing – half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.” Well, there you have it, Bequia, one of our favorite harbors and the Easter Regatta, one of our favorite events.  This a place that you should include on your itinerary if you’re headed to the Caribbean.  You won’t be disappointed.  

For more information on customs and immigration check out this official government link.  Another good source of up to date information on clearing into the island and other useful information about visiting, check out Noonsite.com.

It’s worth nothing that while there is a problem with crime in nearby St Vincent, we found Bequia to be friendly and safe and didn’t hear of any particular problems from other cruisers.  With regards to your dink, it’s recommended that you keep it locked up when ashore and out of the water and locked up at night.  Good advice for just about any area in the Caribbean.

Now you can see why Bequia is one of Brenda’s and my favorite places.  I’ll be writing about other favorites in the coming weeks and months, so stay tuned.

Oh yeah, if you’ve signed up to get notifications when I post and aren’t getting them, you’re not alone.  I have had difficulty with that function, I think it was the Russians, but Chris’s girlfriend Melody fixed it over the holidays so if you’d like to get a “ping” when I post, and I hope you do, sign up on the home page and then you’ll know.