It’s Monday morning and we are anchored in the lee of St Kitts, one of the two islands, including Nevis that make up this island nation.    As these two islands are pretty small and have no natural harbors, all you can do is to pick a spot on the coast that indents somewhat to get you out of the northerly swell.

As we sailed out of Jolly Harbor, Antigua we were greeted to a beautiful rainbow.  As showers come and go most days, rainbows, sometimes double, are common and keep the decks salt free, which I appreciate.On our way here we had the wind directly behind us, not a very efficient point of sail.  However, it gave me an opportunity to try out my new preventer on the headsail.  It involves a line that runs to the aft end of the jib boom and out to the end of the short bowsprit.  The idea is to keep the boom from slamming around when we are running off the wind.  The preventer are the two red lines running to the aft end of the boom, leading back to the cockpit. It worked pretty well, but in the bouncy conditions, with 20-25kts behind us, we did jibe the jib once and the pressure of the preventer, that couldn’t quite “prevent” a jibe,  pushing against the bow pulpit, bend it a little. 

I guess that’s better than a constantly slamming boom.  Not completely sure about that but it did help us move along faster.  The other three boats we were traveling with had to run their engines much of time to keep their speed up so I guess that the trade off was worth it, to be able to sail the entire way.

The distance from Antigua to Nevis was about 40 miles and it was impressive to see the high peaks of Nevis, shrouded in clouds appear out of the haze. Our plan was to round the south end of Nevis and pick up a mooring near the main city.   They have placed quite a few moorings off of the beach to encourage boats to stop and visit as anchoring isn’t recommended with the wind and swell. 

These moorings are needed because it’s pretty deep and there are waves breaking on the beach just a short way off.    After about an hour watching the waves crash high up on the nearby beach, and wondering how we’d ever get ashore, we decided that it was just too rolly and dropped the mooring to try our luck in St. Kitts, where the coastline promised to be a bit more settled.  
The first place we tried, White House Bay, turned out to be particularly windy, with wind funneling between two nearby peaks, and there was an annoying swell coming around the point.  In addition, the bottom was a mess of medium size rocks so anchoring didn’t go well.  I was concerned about dragging and we decided to up-anchor and move to yet another spot.   Fortunately, it turned out to be a bit calmer and had as sandy bottom.   Problem solved, mostly as there still was a bit of a swell, although small one, there as well.

The four couples decided to get a taxi to head the 30 minutes into the city to clear with Customs and Immigration.    We walked around town and went out to lunch.    The clock tower is the centerpiece of the old section of the city.  As it was Sunday, most of the businesses were closed which made the streets look fairly abandoned.  However, the businesses catering to the cruise ships were open with  T shirt shops and duty free jewelry shops dominated the area.   Any interest in a day-glow monkey?  I say that as there are green monkeys that run wild on the island so every shop has stuffed monkey toys for sale.  To be clear, not real stuffed monkeys.

A technicolor riot of brightly colored “St Kitts” items, all promising a “free gift” if you stop by. It wasn’t all tacky as there were some lovely old colonial buildings in the historic area. As we headed back to where we had anchored, we stopped to take in the view.  Pandora is anchored behind that little mountain on the point.   Notice that there are a few massive yachts in the marina to the left of the point.   I was told that the largest, over 300′ long, is owned by a guy that has three other yachts.  Not sure if it’s the largest or the smallest but this one alone has a crew of 40.  It’s hard to believe that any one individual can accumulate enough wealth to afford one yacht of this scale, let alone four.
Not us, that’s for sure.  However, we can afford a glass of wine or a beer at the marina’s bar.   This is the view from our spot in the bar, back toward the overlook where the above shot was taken. And made even more scenic with our drinks in the picture. We were comfortably seated in the “chaise lounge” benches, sort of, out of the wind. The bar was packed by the time sunset arrived.   It was quite dramatic.  No green flash though. All and all, a nice spot but tempered by the fact that it’s been quite windy and a bit rolly.  Unfortunately, many islands down here don’t have good protection from the swells but unlike the Bahamas, where the winds clock regularly as cold fronts push south from the US, here the winds are very consistently out of the east.  The only question is how hard they will blow.

It’s nice to finally head out to explore more of the islands.   In a few days we will head down to Guadaloupe.  For today, off for a walk on the island.

Last season, and again this year, Brenda and I wanted to visit Montserrat, a short 35 mile sail from Antigua.  However, it’s a challenging place to anchor and get ashore as there isn’t a sheltered harbor and the sea drops off very fast near shore.

Our friends Bill and Maureen on Kulanamoo suggested that a group of us go there by ferry and spend the day.  The cost seemed quite high but Brenda and I decided to do it anyway as we didn’t see a way to visit the island with Pandora.

So, yesterday we boarded a fast ferry in St John, where the cruise ships come into Antigua.   One thing that we hadn’t really thought about was that we’d be clearing out of Antigua, into Montserrat, out of Montserrat and back into Antigua in a single day.   The problem is that clearing in and out of Antigua is a tedious process, much more complex than many of the other islands.   And true to form, it took over two hours for them to clear all the passengers for the ferry to depart.

We left Pandora, at 06:45 to head to the taxi for the 20 minute ride into St John and it wasn’t until after 09:30 that the ferry was able to board it’s passengers and head out for the 90 minute run to Montserrat.    The ferry was powered by water jets and to see the water jetting out behind us as we made our way at better than 20kts hinted at the power of the twin engines.Montserrat is not very large, about 14 miles long and about half that distance wide and has a very steep shoreline that drops to depths of over a mile very close to shore.  In 1995 a powerful volcanic eruption destroyed Plymouth,  the capital of the island on the western end of the island, violently blowing off the entire top of the mountain and displacing much of the island’s population.  Following the eruption, 2/3 of the population left for the UK leaving as few as 1,500 on the island.  Since that time, the population has rebounded but is still under 5,000.  Fortunately, there was good warning that an eruption was eminent and fatalities were minimal with less than 20 killed.  And those were some particularly unlucky individuals that headed back to their homes “one last time” to collect belongings that they had left behind.

When the eruption hit, a massive amount of rock and ash blew some 40,000 feet into the atmosphere, with millions of tons of red hot ash and boulders crashing down on the city.  Within hours the entire city was virtually buried under millions of tons of volcanic debris.   In the days and months following the eruption, nearly  2/3 of the population left Montserrat and most haven’t returned.   To this day, nearly 1/3 of the island is  uninhabitable and that’s, in part the area that we would be touring with our guide.

The island is, in geologic time, quite young and still has an active volcano.  You can see the clouds over the volcano on the left.  It’s hard to distinguish the clouds from the smoke that is constantly coming out from the top of the mountain.As we rounded the western end of the island it was daunting to see the cliffs rise from the sea.  Not a place to be driven onto a lee shore. Overhead the frigate birds circled, looking for fish to catch.  These birds are huge, with a wingspan of more than 6′. A short distance later the “harbor” came into view.  The only way ashore is the ferry dock and that would only be usable in settled conditions with no protection from the seas.   With the swells breaking on the beach, there is no way that we’d be able to land with our dink.  There was a very small spot in front of the ferry dock that had a place to land though and a ramp for pulling the larger fishing boats ashore. The types of conditions that the island must experience was demonstrated by the huge concrete “jacks” lining the shore.  Note the color of the beach, black volcanic sand. Our group boarded a van for a day of touring the island and in particular, the eastern end where the volcano erupted.  We wound our way up impossibly steep switchback turns on our way up the side of the mountain, always with the semi-dormant volcano looming above us.  On the left of the photo you can clearly see the remains of the deep layer of ash and rock that devastated the surrounding mountainside. Everywhere you look there is evidence of volcanic activity, piles of ash pushed to the side of the road and vacant buildings abruptly abandoned.  At an particularly impressive overlook, we entered the ruins of a once grand resort.   The floor had a thick layer of ash.  A calculator on the welcome desk suggested how fast everyone evacuated. Out back was patio with what was once a lovely pool, now full to the brim with ash.  The ash is very fertile though, so nature has quickly taken advantage of the well fertilized soil and turned the pool into marshland. A view back toward the remains of the hotel.
The view of the volcano in the distance from the hotel. In the distance you can see the remains of the city buildings mostly buried in a field of ash. Following the eruption rain filled the vacant crater at the top of the mountain for several years until the waters finally broke free and rushed in a mad fury to the ocean, carving a deep ravine in the landscape.   The round white disks on the pole is part of an island wide early warning system that was put in place after the eruption.   It is still tested at noon every day.  Everywhere you look there is evidence of wonderful homes abandoned.   Most have no roofs as the shear weight of the ash from the eruption caused them to collapse.
However, in spite of all the devastation there is ample evidence that nature is repairing itself with green landscape filling in nearly everywhere.   In the distance there is still smoke mingling with the clouds at the summit, a reminder of what may happen and that the residents of Montserrat should not let their guard down. As we made our way back around the island, there is dense forest with many flowering trees and plants. And this flowering plant clinging to a crack in a whitewashed cement wall of someone’s home is evidence of the power of nature to rebuild in the shadow of unspeakable destruction.  And, it is no wonder that the hearty few that have remained on Montserrat take some comfort in knowing that while the power of nature can destroy, it can also bring life.

To visit Montserrat is a reminder of the power of nature, that we are just temporary visitors and that in the long run she will always have the upper hand.

Here we are in Nelson’s Dockyard, 2017 has come and gone and 2018 is only two days old.  As luck would have it, last night was a blue moon.  I just love to watch the moon rise at night and an extra bright and big blue moon, even better.   What a sight as Brenda and I perched up on the bow with a glass of wine. Of course, as it’s only now the 2nd of January, we were in this lovely spot for New Year’s Eve.  New Year’s Eve in the Dockyard lived up to it’s reputation and to see fireworks burst aloft at exactly midnight was a wonderful sight, certainly unique in our experience.   Not a bad view from Pandora’s bow. Really spectacular.Take your pick.  Loved these too. And, of course, the grand finale.  Sure, we have seen fireworks from aboard our boats in the past but never in the “dead of winter” sitting on the bow, cooled by a balmy midnight breeze. If you haven’t experienced it, I heartily recommend that you do.  It’s safe to say that some things are just better with a gentle tropical breeze wafting over you.

And, my New Year’s resolution is to…. Well, Brenda knows but let’s just say that it’s important that I am true to that plan and leave it at that.   Wish me luck.

While it does not qualify as a “resolution” I also decided to join the Ocean Cruising Club and after being encouraged to apply for membership by a number of cruisers over the years, Bill from Toodle-oo, who was tied up next to me in the Dockyard, offered to be my sponsor the other day.  Well, it seemed like the right time and after my friend Mel, also an OCC member, said the same thing when we visited him and Jane the night before flying back to Antigua, I decided that I just had to do it.  To be considered for membership in OCC you must complete a 1,000 voyage without stopping, which I have done, a number of times.

Well, the time was right, Bill offered and I joined.   As an added bonus, the club has an awesome burgee and Bill just happened to have a supply aboard.  I was approved today and voila, near instant gratification after years of delay.  Thanks Bill and of course my old friend Mel for “priming the pump”. Speaking of awesome.  Bolero, circa 1949, arguably one of the most famous ocean racers ever launched, is tied up just a few boats away in the dockyard.  She was designed by Sparkman and Stephens and has an impressive racing pedigree as a successful ocean racer.   She’s in magnificent condition having gone though a major refit in Maine in 2009 at Rockport Marine.

Also nearby along with Elenora a modern reproduction of a classic 1910 Herreshoff yacht Westward, exact in every important detail.  She is a regular here and quite a sight.  Tomorrow we will pick up our anchor, hopefully without a diver to untangle from all the “classic” items on the bottom of the harbor.  Remember that this place has been popular for hundreds of years and a lot of junk has accumulated during that time.

We plan to head over to Jolly Harbor, Antigua to meet up with Bill and Maureen of Kalunamoo and hopefully, in a few days we will head out to explore a few of the nearby smaller islands of Nevis and Montserrat.  Montserrat is one of the few islands in the Caribbean with an active volcano.  Many of the  smaller islands here don’t have protected harbors so their anchorages can be rolly when there’s a north swell running.  Hopefully, it will be calm enough too visit on this trip.

Tied up in a beautiful classic dockyard, fireworks on New Year’s Eve, viewed from Pandora’s bow and a Blue Moon.    Surely, all experiences that are truly only enjoyed, well, “once in a blue moon”.

Editor note:   Brenda immediately caught on that the “blue moon” is the second full moon in the month and that will happen at the end of January.   Oops.  The moon we saw was actually a “super moon”.  Neat but I don’t have the energy to redo the post.  Oh well.  Better to spend time sailing or thinking of my next post, I guess.

It’s December 31^st, the last day of 2017 and we are back in Antigua to begin our 6th winter afloat.  Tonight we will be celebrating the dawn of the new year with other boats from the Salty Dawg Rally and will have what will surely be a wonderful dinner at perhaps the best restaurant in these parts, the Admiral’s Inn in Nelson’s Dockyard.

We are tied up in the dockyard along with a good number of other Salty Dawg boats, all lined up Mediterranean moored, stern too on the same dock that was once the home to the English Navy.It’s hard to see Pandora in that lineup, all Salty Dawg Boats, but here she is.  Unlike in the days of Lord Nelson, the boats are mostly fiberglass and stainless verses the wood and canvas of so many years ago.

When we left home in the US the weather was just north of single digits and after a few, not so short, hours on a jet from Newark Airport we are once again in the heart of the tropics and enjoying a balmy overcast day here in Antigua.

After five weeks in the north I’ll admit that it was a jolt to be back in the tropical warmth.

The Salty Dawg boats, here on the dock, plans to head to Guadeloupe in a few days and we are currently on the fence about what we will do as our good friends Bill and Maureen on Kalunamoo will be arriving on the 2^nd and it would be good to catch up with them too.   Besides, we were hoping to head the short distance to the west to to visit Montserrat and Nevis, some of the smaller island. It’s looking like later in the week the seas may be calm enough to take a mooring and do some exploring.

Montserrat has an active volcano which would be pretty interesting.  I understand that the capitol of the island had to be moved because it was buried under lava and ash following a particularly big eruption not that long ago.    The problem with visiting some of the smaller islands is that there are no harbors so you just anchor or take a mooring in the lee of the island.  If there is a big swell running, conditions in the mooring field can be quite uncomfortable.

As we haven’t been there yet, we will have to get advice from “someone in the know” and decide if it’s a good time to go.

One way or the other, we will enjoy our time here in Nelson’s Dockyard.  It’s hard not to when you wake up to a view like this. Oh yeah, with all the snow and frigid temperatures in the US, we have had our own “weather” here in the form of very heavy rain that filled the dink nearly half full overnight.  In all the years we have been sailing together, I don’t think that I’ve seen that much water in a dink yet.

I guess that’s about all I can say for now except that we will just have to work hard to adjust to the warmth and to ringing in the new year with palm trees and of course, fireworks.  Yes, there will be fireworks following our 5 course dinner tonight over the fort.

Stay tuned for what will surely be scintillating prose and fab photos of what it’s like to be in Antigua, along with 1,000 of our closes Antiguan “friends” as we enter the new year.  2018?  I still remember when George Orwell and his novel, 1984 seemed a very long way off.

As I think about all those huddled in Times Square tonight, I’ll choose the subtropics over sub zero every time.

It’s Saturday and today we put the finishing touches on getting our (land) home ready for a long winter snooze while we’re south aboard Pandora.  There’s antifreeze in the boiler, I’ll blow out all the domestic water pipes with a compressor, put antifreeze in the toilets and run it through the pumps in the dishwasher and washing machine.  After all of that is done, along with setting more mousetraps, we will jump in the rental car and head to our friend Craig’s home for a visit and a snooze.  Then on to MD on Sunday, Christmas Eve, to see our family for Christmas.

Yes, you go it, we will be driving through NY on Christmas Eve!  Driving through NY on Christmas Eve?  No problem… Brenda would fight her way through the flames of hell to be with our son Rob, his family, our still new granddaughter Tori (still remarkably cute and so smart, BTW) and our son Christopher who is flying in from CA.  It will be a full house and it’s going to be great.

It’s hard to believe that we are about to head south for our 6th winter afloat and second in the eastern Caribbean.  I can hardly believe that I have been retired for six years now.  How’d dat happen?

Perhaps almost as astounding, if a seemingly random addition to this post, is that our monthly healthcare insurance premiums, I am under 65 thank you very much, have gone from $500 to $2,200 a month during that same time frame.  But that’s another story so all I’ll say for now is that the system is clearly broken when any family of two with an income above the $66,000 Obamacare subsidy cutoff, should somehow be able to pay $26,500 a year for healthcare coverage and that’s before they even go to the doctor and begin to work off their $5,000 per person deductible.   So much for the “affordable care act” being affordable.

Anyway, I’ll return to heading south.

Back in the day, when we didn’t sail overnight, we used to say that it took a whole day of motoring/sailing to go the same distance, about 55 miles, that we could cover by car in a single hour.

Fast forward more years than I care to admit, my runs are much longer and involve multiple overnights at sea but the comparison still, sort of, holds.

Let me explain.  This fall it took me a total of nearly 13 days at sea to get to Antigua, including a stop in Hampton VA where I joined the Salty Dawg fleet.  By comparison, a direct flight from Newark NJ to Antigua takes the better part of a day, call it 13 hours if you include the time getting to and from the airport.  So, as a very loose comparison, it takes an hour in a plane, including ground transport, to cover what takes a full 24 hours in a boat.

Ok, perhaps the comparison is a stretch but it seems to me that there is a certain symmetry to the whole thing after all these years.   The point is that many of us, for some reason, still choose to go really, really slowly in a boat in order to spend time on the water.  However, I guess it’s not that odd if you subscribe to the perspective that  “the journey is the destination”.

Of course, there are plenty of times on a long voyage, the journey part, when a loud in-my-head voiced yells, “are we there yet?” or perhaps more to the point, “Bob, will we ever f*&%$#% get there?”

Somehow, after all the days at sea, finally arriving at a spectacular destination, that the “are we there yet” thoughts fade away and are replaced by “wow, this is a beautiful spot” and the “I’ll never do that again” somehow seems worth it.  Inexplicably those annoying days aren’t that bad when the are balanced against the great stories you can tell, again and again.  It seems that the human spirit is really terrific at making lemon-aid out of lemons.

Yes, sometimes being aboard can be tough when things aren’t going well but what makes it worthwhile is moments like first light in a peaceful harbor.Or when a morning shower gives way to a double rainbow.Or ending the day with a beautiful sunset…
Watching a full moon rise over the hills.
Or a full moon in the twilight at sea with a single sailboat on the horizon. Or dropping anchor for the first time in a new harbor.But, perhaps best of all, it’s about slowing down and making new friends or meeting up with old ones that you haven’t seen for months or years for sundowners.However, when you absolutely, positively have to get there to be with family for the holidays, there’s no question that a 737 goes to weather better than a 737.

Enjoy the holidays and, if it floats your particular boat, Merry Christmas!

Editor:  It this post seems a bit more strained than normal, just try writing while blowing out the pipes, setting mouse traps, picking up the rental car….