{"id":6520,"date":"2017-02-05T13:53:14","date_gmt":"2017-02-05T18:53:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/?p=6520"},"modified":"2017-02-05T13:53:14","modified_gmt":"2017-02-05T18:53:14","slug":"slogging-our-way-to-st-martin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/?p=6520","title":{"rendered":"Slogging our way to St Martin"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s 6:30 on Sunday morning and we are anchored off of the capital of French St Martin, Grande Case.\u00a0\u00a0 The couple we buddy-boated with for the crossing yesterday, Free Rein suggested that we stop here as it was less congested than the harbor off of Simpson Bay Lagoon, Marigot, on the French side of the island.\u00a0\u00a0 We were both concerned about approaching the anchorage in the dark and trying to find a spot to anchor among all the boats.<\/p>\n

It was a very long day yesterday motoring into the wind for the ENTIRE day and then some. \u00a0 We left North Sound Virgin Gorda at 05:30 and didn\u2019t drop the hook here until 19:30, a very long day indeed.\u00a0 Actually, we motored 14 hours, not to put too fine a point on it.\u00a0 I guess that was to be expected as we covered over 90 miles.\u00a0 Did I mention that we had to motor into the wind and waves the whole way?\u00a0 Into the easterly trades?\u00a0 Into the waves?\u00a0 Brenda loved it. \u00a0 Yahoo, bring it on! \u00a0NOT!!! \u00a0“Sounds a lot like a CLM, career limiting move<\/em>, to us Bob.)<\/p>\n

Actually, a few times the \u201cbring it on\u201d had to do with my fetching a bucket for her.\u00a0 Happily, if that\u2019s the right word to describe her not actually puking, she never actually used the bucket.\u00a0 I felt sorry for her.\u00a0\u00a0 If you have ever been seasick, you know the feeling.\u00a0 At first you think you are going to die and later you are afraid you won\u2019t.\u00a0 Not the best way to get the most of a day out on the water.<\/p>\n

All I can say is that St Martin had better be good, really good, for my sake. \u00a0Can you say want to eat some French cheeses, wines and baguettes?\u00a0 Yum.<\/p>\n

We had to motor into the wind and waves the entire way because the wind nearly always blows from the east and that\u2019s where you have to go to make your way from the BVI to St Martin.\u00a0 After that, the island chain curves to the south so you can generally sail both ways after St Martin.\u00a0 Not so from the BVI.\u00a0 Well, at least the worst is over for us. \u00a0\u00a0And, the remaining islands between here in Grenada are much closer, usually only about 20 to 40 miles apart.<\/p>\n

Well, we made it, we\u2019re here and it\u2019s beautiful. \u00a0Here\u2019s the view that greeted me as I peeked topside first thing today.\"\"We arrived last Monday in the BVI and have been pretty busy getting settled and meeting fellow cruisers through the Salty Dawg Sailing Association.\u00a0 They had a party at Foxy\u2019s, the famous watering hole on Jose Van Dyke, BVI.\u00a0 About 50 of us enjoyed an evening together there on Thursday night.\u00a0 As part of the festivities, a bottle or rum, actually shots of that rum, were auctioned off to benefit the local school on the island.\u00a0 This is the famous Foxy himself telling a story about the charity. \u00a0He’s quite a character mon.\"\"After our visit with some fellow Dawgs, we took Pandora up to North Sound, the most eastern point of the BVI to position ourselves for the run to St Martin.\u00a0 We stopped ashore for a drink at the Bitter End Yacht Club. \u00a0\"\"As we were making our way toward North Sound we were passed by Necker Bell, the 100\u2019 catamaran owned by Richard Branson.\u00a0 You know, the \u201cVirgin\u201d guy.\u00a0 He owns Necker Island.\"\"Well, bright and early on Saturday we headed east.\u00a0 Really bumpy. \u00a0It’s that whold into the wind thing.\u00a0\"\"Before I break, remember the 31 years ago we were last here in Tortola? Actually, I wrote that we were here 32 years ago.\u00a0 Well, as usual, Brenda\u2019s math skills are better than mine as it was 31 years ago.<\/p>\n

When we last visited Tortola we stayed at the Sugar Mill Hotel for a week so on this visit we just HAD to have dinner there again.\u00a0 It was terrific and is as expensive now as we remembered it being 31 years ago.\"\"When we were there in the “olden days” this pool wasn\u2019t and the rooms weren\u2019t air conditioned. \u00a0Now it is and they are. \u00a0We heard the surf in the distance each night.\u00a0 It was beautiful.\"\"We arrived early and enjoyed a drink on one of the lovely covered decks overlooking the ocean.\u00a0\"\"Lovely dining room in the ruins of a sugar mill.\u00a0 Brenda\u2019s at the far back right table.\"\"So, we are here in St Martin and it’s time to make some new memories.\u00a0 Yes, let\u2019s make some quickly so yesterday\u2019s rough crossing fades from Brenda\u2019s memories.\u00a0 It was a calm crossing\u2026It was a calm crossing\u2026<\/p>\n

Ok, it was actually a real slog getting here and I am afraid that it\u2019s going to take a lot of new and really excellent memories\u2026<\/p>\n

Perhaps if I bring on the baguettes, French wines, cheeses, pastries….\u00a0 Yes, that will be a step in the right direction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s 6:30 on Sunday morning and we are anchored off of the capital of French St Martin, Grande Case.\u00a0\u00a0 The couple we buddy-boated with for the crossing yesterday, Free Rein suggested that we stop here as it was less congested than the harbor off of Simpson Bay Lagoon, Marigot, on the French side of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","_s2mail":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6520","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6520"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6520\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6531,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6520\/revisions\/6531"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6520"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6520"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6520"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}