Hot News

September 23, 1999 ~ July 8, 2000

Links: Hot News July 9, 2000 ~ Present, Hot News January 6, 1999 ~ September 23,1999, Julie's Home Page

Pictures: Virgin Gorda, St. Martin, St. Barts, Antigua

July 8, 2000

We had more rain this morning and the wind is up at the beginning of this tropical wave passing through. MANGO LATITUDES did leave at first light, and we talked on the SSB and the VHF when they were about 20 miles out on their way to Tobago. Hopefully we will see them in Trinidad, before they head back north and we head west.

I spent all day working on emails and updating this website. We still haven't solved the problem of updating it, so I am not sure when everyone will read this. Hopefully, it will be soon!!! Eric and David windsurfed. The board needs to be fine tuned for me and I also have a problem of no extra sunglasses....I can't see. Maybe I can get some cheap prescription sunglasses in Grenada. (I did find my windsurfing sunglasses....yea!!!)

We swam out to a different section of the reef and snorkeled again for an hour. Absolutely so beautiful!!! We returned to have our last meal of black fin tuna --- delicious!!!

Eric actually met a girl late this afternoon. She is a college student in California, here on a Moorings boat with her family. Guess what???? She leaves for Grenada tomorrow!!!

July 7, 2000

David and Eric worked on trying to fix our "Windbugger", wind generator, with NO luck. We emailed them an SOS, and hopefully, they will be able to email us what to do to fix it. It is still on warranty, but there is no way, that it can be shipped back to Florida.

We dinghied over to the south side of Baradel Island, Tobago Cays to check out the roll in the anchorage. SOLITUDE had already moved because it was too rolly on the north side. We went back to the boat and anchored over here. We dinghied way out to the reef and snorkeled for an hour. Then Sandy and Darryl came over for Happy Hour. It was very nice to visit face to face, not over the one way radio, or at the dock or in a store or beside the boat in our dinghy!

MANGO LATITUDES came into the anchorage and anchored right next to us. Eric went over to see Fred Jr. We thought they would stay for a couple of days and we could visit tomorrow, since we had already planned for Sandy and Darryl to come over. We find that it works better to have get togethers one on one...rather than lots of people at one time. But they had already checked out and planned to leave for Trinidad/Tobago in the morning.

July 6, 2000

We were up early to listen to the weather and then we went into the town of Hillsborough to buy fruits and vegetables at the market, bread at Grandma's Bakery, and then to clear out of Grenada, which we had to do at Customs and then at Immigration. We were sailing with Darryl and Sandy on SOLITUDE, so they went in to clear out and Darryl came over to go over the charts about where we need to go.

We then motor sailed to Clifton Harbour on Union Island (We anchored on the other side in Chatam Bay on the "run to Grenada".) We went ashore to check in to St. Vincent and the Grenadines at the tiny little airport. We had less problem with the officials there. The island was very beautiful. We then motored (directly into the wind) to the Tobago Cays. We swam out to the reef and snorkeled for almost an hour in beautiful turquoise crystal clear water. This place is the most beautiful place that we have seen in the Caribbean. It is almost as nice as the Bahamas, the only problem is that we can't fish here because it is a preserve.

July 5, 2000

We were up at 6am and left Clarkes Court Bay, Grenada at 8am and sailed to Hillsborough Bay, Carriacou (part of Grenada) almost straight into the wind. I lost count of how many tacks we took!!!! We were finally anchored at about 6pm after three tries. When David dove on the anchor, he realized that there is nothing on the bottom except two inches on top of shale and a few scattered rocks around. We just put out more chain and we were really being held there by the weight of the chain (maybe wrapped around a rock) and the weight of the anchor (176 lbs). Thank heavens, it was not a windy night.

We caught two black fin tuna on the way, so we have been eating VERY well. They are almost as good as yellow fin or ahi. It is so nice to be catching and eating fish again.

July 4, 2000

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!! HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY, USA!!! We are so very lucky to be citizens of the United States!!! She is still the best country in the world and we should be thankful every day.

We hope that you are all enjoying summer weather, traditional barbecues and picnics, and fireworks! We definitely missed our fireworks, as we did last year. Now, I know why we had so many wonderful fireworks displays along the way last year in Albany, NYC, Camden, Disney World and the New Year's display in Key West!!!

We had more rain, but didn't do any more wash! We did our swim and about 3pm we dinghied over to have sundowners with Willie and Liz on MYSTIQUE. They are from the Boston area and have been sailing for about 3-4 years. Very special people - wonderful people to celebrate the Fourth with!!!

July 3, 2000

More rain, more wash, more drying inside!!! When it cleared after lunch, we dinghied to Secret Harbour and then walked to Grande Anse Shopping Center. Daryll and Sandy on SOLITUDE said that it was a 20 minute walk....was closer to 45!!! We did some shopping and took a taxi back. We stayed for Happy Hour at the Moorings with SOLITUDE, MYSTIQUE, and QUALITY TIME. Liz introduced us to Shirley and Sanford on SLIPAWAY. They are from Tucson (I am sure that we met them there, but the only person we knew in common was David Fraker, who built our house). They left from Puerta Vallarta on their circumnavigation in 1994, I think. They will complete it as soon as they go through the canal and sail north to Puerta Vallarta. What a trip they have had!!! We only heard about a little of it, before it was so dark, that we had difficulty unlocking our combination lock on our dinghy!!! We had to cross over two bays in the dark. Thanks heavens it was a beautiful calm night with a little moon! They left the next morning at 3am for Trinidad, so we will probably see them there in a few months.

July 2, 2000

Another rainy day but we did another load of wash and hung them inside to dry (seems to work ok...you just walk around in a maze all day!). I worked on updating this web site and emails, Eric took apart a winch and we are still going through our last mail delivery. We did manage to do 20 laps around the boat.

For our movie of the week, we watched an Explorer episode, entitled "Son of Town Hall", which was taped and sent to us by Ray on Maui. After watching this, we will NEVER complain about the seaworthiness or lack thereof of PEACE AND ALOHA. SON OF TOWN HALL was made and assembled in the river in NYC from trash picked up out of the garbage of the city. It was a raft/boat???? They made it across the North Atlantic on their second try. We were VERY impressed. Try to watch this episode on tv and we think that you will be impressed with these people, also.

July 1, 2000

Our resident weatherman said that it was going to clear off, so we did another load of wash. However, it rained all day, so we had to rig up the clothesline inside the boat and they were finally dry about 4pm when it cleared off. We did manage to collect alot of water for our tanks off the deck. We snorkeled for about 15 minutes and went into the small town of Nimrod with Craig and Katherine on SANGARIS (they were in our spot at Bruno's in Ft. Lauderdale and they are also waiting for Jim and Debbie on MAH JONG to catch up to us!!), Kathy and Chuck on FIRST LIGHT, and Jim and Katie on ASYLUM. We went into this grocery store and the other cruisers were going" to cross the bridge" with the owner after writing in his guest book. The other couples did it first...and then we very politely declined. It was gulping a small shot of pure white rum and washing it down with cold water (to put out the fire!!!). And then lots of hand shakes, etc. We did buy some delicious bread and bake stuffs from him and went down to the Island View to talk. We left about sunset, having met some very nice people.

June 30, 2000

We did a load of wash and hung them out on the life lines to dry, while we wrote emails on the computer. After lunch we dinghied to the far side of Calivigny Island, where we landed on a nice beach. We decided to walk around the island and we found a boggy swamp in the center of the island and on the other side we discovered a beautiful beach...populated with cows!!!! They didn't seem to bother us, but we left the beach to them to enjoy while chewing their cuds, and we headed back through the machineel trees along the path to the other side of the island. We snorkeled around the coral by the boat and did laps around our boat for our daily exercise. We headed over to Hog Island Bar to join all the other cruisers for Happy Hour....except, everyone else was at the Moorings Bar in Secret Harbour for their barbecue. We were there on the wrong night! The guys had a Carib beer, which was the right price, but tasted like it!!!!

Just for fun we turned on the tv....and voila, we had two channels: a soap and CNN news. So we watched the news for the first time since we left the Virgins, I think. We are able to get tv on the English Islands, but not the French.

June 29, 2000

We were up early and left at 8am to be at the Customs House to take Darius's taxi/van into the city (???) of St. George's with Liz on MYSTIQUE, along with 21 other cruisers (at least we were thankful that it was not a local bus with chickens, roosters, and goats!). We walked through many shops (and no, I didn't buy a thing!!) and went to the market and purchased some fruits and vegetables and then to the supermarket. We had chicken roti (a curry chicken mixture wrapped in a flour tortilla) and lime smash for lunch at the Nutmeg, before catching Darius's return van at 2:30. We need to return to visit the various forts, churches and museum. We returned to the boat and swam and snorkeled around the coral shoal behind our boat.

June 28, 2000

We spent the morning and part of the afternoon on board, typing up crew lists, making the Grenada flag, writing emails, cleaning, until it cleared off enough to go on a dinghy exploration trip to the next bay. We met Chuck and Kathy Hall on FIRST LIGHT, anchored next to us. Aboard was George and Betsey Marburger on ZORRA, who was anchored over in Egmont Bay, a hurricane hole. They are all planning to head west through the canal next year, so we will be seeing more of them. It is also nice to FINALLY meet cruisers who will be sailing west and not just staying in the Caribbean. When we dinghied to Egmont, we found Mack and Rebecca on BEYOND, tucked away with about 10 other boats near the mangroves. Unfortunately, if it were REALLY a hurricane, the bay would be filled with hundreds of boats. That is where the real danger lies...the other boat dragging into you! So, in reality, there are NO hurricane holes any more. The best place to be is NOT WHERE THE HURRICANE IS!!!

June 27, 2000

We dinghied over to Secret Harbour in Mt. Hartman Bay to check in with customs. We were almost fined ($500) by the official for NOT being in a Port of Entry. We explained that it was too crowded in Mt. Hartman and we were preparing for a severe tropical wave. He did not fine us for whatever reason, Thank heavens. We did hear on the Safety and Security Net, that another boat WAS fined, when they anchored in Tyrrel Bay and dinghied to Hillsborough. Dealing with customs and immigration is sometimes VERY difficult, actually the problems, strangely enough, are in the English speaking countries, and NOT the French. After we were finished with Customs (our boat is cleared in), we had to walk to Prickly Bay (about 20 minutes) in the rain to clear in with Immigration (us and our passports!). That went a little better. We stopped at the little marina store and also at Moorings to see about having our whisker pole shipped to Grenada (sounds very complicated and expensive) and then we had a VERY WET dinghy ride to our boat, which was anchored in Clarkes Court Bay, two bays to the east.

We had lunch and spent the afternoon making a flag for Grenada. I had cut it out, but not sewn it together, because we had not expected to be in Grenada for several weeks. It continued to rain (we collected ALOT of rain water in our tanks!) and blow (30+ knots; according to the weather guru, David Jones, winds were clocked at 54 knots in Mt. Hartman Bay. I don't think we had that much wind, but it was definitely gusty! We also had thunder and lightening for the first time since last summer. That is definitely not appreciated when we are the tallest mast in the harbour!) We had a delicious dinner of tuna and our LAST (sob!) French pastries!

June 26, 2000

We were up at 6am, made sandwiches and left at 7:30 after the weather, and deciding that the best course was to go to a safe harbour in Grenada, just in case, this tropical wave reformed into a tropical storm. We had a really FAST sail (10.8 knots on GPS) all the way down to Grenada! We did have to turn on the engine for a while in the lee of the island. Off the southwest tip, Point Saline, we caught a Black Fin Tuna!!!!!!! We had three DELICIOUS dinners....you have to remember this is the first fish that we have caught since Rum Cay in the Bahamas, which was a LONG time ago!!! We first went into Mt. Hartman Bay, where most of our friends were already anchored, but we did not feel comfortable....too many boats, not enough swinging room, especially if the wave came through with really high winds. So we left and were anchored in Clarkes Court Bay (the next bay east on the southern coast of Grenada) by 4pm. We were VERY tired but we had a very delicious dinner: tuna with wasabi sauce, rice, plantains, avocado and french pastries!!!! We were asleep by 8:30, I think!!!!

June 25, 2000

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DENNY!!!!!!We were up at 4:45am and left at 5:30 am in the POURING rain to head to Bequia, along with everyone else. There were about ten of us sailing together. We passed by the beautiful Pitons and there should be pictures in the rain and clouds!!! After the weather at 6:30, 7:15, and 8:30, we decided to do an overnight to Grenada, because of the circulation that was present within the Tropical Depression #2, which I think was named "Alberto". I had made sandwiches last night, so we were all set for lunch, but I had to go below (after we were in the lee of the island of St. Vincent) to make a salad for dinner.

After we listened to the 4:30 weather, when the Tropical Depression #2 had been downgraded, we discussed what our options were. We thought that it had been named and we didn't want to stay in Bequia because we are not covered there with our insurance. Darryl and Sandy on SOLITUDE offered to guide us in with radar, lights, and compass heading to Chatam Bay on Union Island, The Grenadines. Since they had left from the Pitons, they would make it before dark. Other boats were going into Mayreau, but they had been there before and it was a more difficult harbor to navigate. So, Darryl had plotted a course (110 -120 degrees) with NO fish pots to bring us directly into the anchorage to anchor behind him about 9:30 that night. He was a definite life saver....Thank you, Darryl and Sandy!!!... otherwise, we would have had to do an overnight and would have been in Grenada, a little early about 4am. It was nice to get a few hours sleep!!!

June 24, 2000

We decided that we would head to St. Lucia, but we needed to use up our French Francs (had NO problem doing that....lots of pineapple, mangoes, soursop, French baquettes and pastries, and rum) and we FINALLY were able to talk with Julie (we WOKE her up, since it was only 6am in Colorado!!!! Sorry about that, Julie...but we couldn't even remember when we had last talked with her on the phone) and use up the last minutes on our phone card. Relunctantly, we left beautiful St. Anne and Martinique (our last French island until the Pacific!) about 10 am. Somehow, we never seem to accomplish everything that we want on all these islands. So much more that we wanted to see and to do on Martinique. I guess that is why there are so many cruisers that have been sailing in the Caribbean for years and years and never grow tired of it!!!

We were anchored in Rodney Bay, St. Lucia by 1:30pm. We went into clear into customs and to get some EC (their dollars) from the ATM machine, since we were planning on spending a few days here, visiting the Pitons, etc. They really charged us for every little thing and overtime, etc. to clear in and clear our for three days - $95EC. We went into a few little stores and bought some bread and went back to the boat to swim only 10 laps and listen to the weather. Unfortunately, Tropical Depression #2 was coming our way!!!! We made our decision to head directly to Bequia and NOT stop at the Pitons. We were talking with MYSTIQUE, ELUSIVE, and SOLITUDE, who were all in the Pitons and REALITE, who was in front of us, anchored in Rodney Bay. All of us decided to head south!!!

June 23, 2000

MYSTIQUE left early in the morning for St. Lucia and we dinghied over to LaMarin to provision and to buy boat parts. It was still really windy, so we were thoroughlly drenched by the time we arrived. Luckily the return trip was all down wind, so we returned with all of our purchases dry! We returned late in the afternoon and had to inventory and stow all in preparation for departure tomorrow morning. We heard on the late afternoon weather that there was a possible tropical depression developing in the Atlantic off the coast of Africa....so we had to pay VERY close attention!!

June 22, 2000

Eric went over to help Willie with a computer problem early in the morning. All of us went into town to do a little shopping and then we visited at our favorite Boulangerie over sandwiches and pastries!!!! We spent most of the afternoon working on the administration from the mail delivery, painting the flags, and swimming our 20 laps around the boat.

June 21, 2000

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LYNN!!!! What a busy boat work day!!! We did a load of wash (dried it on the life lines!) and made two courtesy flags, (St. Lucia and St. Vincent and The Grenadines and also cut out Grenada). Liz and Willie from MYSTIQUE picked up our mail which had arrived via Fed Ex in three days (for another small fortune!!!) at the Marina office in La Marin and brought it to St. Anne. Eric dinghied over to pick it up and we spent all evening opening mail. Thank heavens there weren't any MAJOR problems to have to handle. We were even able to get in out 20 laps around the boat!!!

June 20, 2000

We dinghied over to say goodbye to DRISANA who was making a passage to Bequia, to see if we could help SECOND MILLENIUM who had come back into the anchorage after they had smelled smoke while they were heading to LaMarin (Melodye said that she had TOO much help, thank you very much!!!), and then we talked bottom paint with Sandy and Darryl on their boat, SOLITUDE.

We then went into town and walked up the path to the Shrine above St. Anne, which has the 14 Stations of the Cross with a little church to Nortre Dame de La Salette. Very beautiful little church and I am sure that there are many pilgrimages up this steep rocky path to the church.

David and Eric worked on repairs on the boat and then Andrea from INOUIE stopped over. She is a single hander from Switzerland....we were VERY impressed!

June 19, 2000

We went back into town to shop ...more baquettes and pastries, bananas, pineapples, and mangoes. We all went over to snorkel on the reef that is in the middle of the bay. There were lots of fish traps, nothing but small little fish on the reef and poor visibility, especially, when the clouds came over and it started to rain.

June 18, 2000

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO ALL!!! especially to our Dads: Albert Brooks in Cincinnati and Bob Ernisse in Bonita Springs, Florida!!! We wish we could be with you both to celebrate!

Busy boat work day!!! We did two loads of wash and three haircuts: David cut Jason's and Eric's hair and then Eric and I cut David's!!! We think that we should go into the business!

We went into the beach about 2:30 and play Botchee (SP???) Ball with many other cruisers: Sharon and Gary on ELUSIVE, Barb and Steve on REALITE, Wendy and Lorn (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!) and Kamy on KAMYTOO, Marsha and Jerry on SOL Y MAR, Jack and Julian on CAPTAIN JACK, Melodye and John on SECOND MILLENIUM, and John and Ricarda on DRISANA. We had two games going and it was alot of fun, but we were too busy playing the game to really meet and talk with people. Jason came with us, but Eric went windsurfing again. We thought that we would have to go pick him up again, but the water ski boat brought him back to the boat, when he ran out of wind right in their area!!! So, David and I were able to have our 20 times around the boat swim before dinner.

We watched The Thomas Crown Affair video. I think that Eric had been saving it...the best for last! It was an excellent movie, suspense thriller, James Bond Romance mystery! But what was so incredible were the locations....where we have been: The Art Museum in NYC (we were in the exact room!), Harris Hill in Elmira for gliding, and then Martinique and driving through St. Pierre, Martinique!!!! If we had watched the movie earlier, we would not have recognized Martinique.... We definitely recommend that you rent this video!!!

June 17, 2000

We had hoped to catch up with Liz and Willie on MYSTIQUE, but when we arrived in St. Anne, we realized that they had gone to La Marin that morning to get mail and do some repairs before returning to St. Anne. We went into town early to get fruits (we got some red bananas!!!), vegetables, and bread and pastries. We stopped to see Darryl and Sandy on SOLITUDE, to meet Ricarda on DRISANA with John, and to meet John and Melodye on SECOND MILLENIUM. Melodye does the Caribbean Safety and Security Net every morning on the SSB, so it was fun to finally put a person to the voice! Liz had given me the address for mail delivery at the marina in La Marin, so I had ordered that over email.

Eric went windsurfing, but we had to got pick him up off Club Med, because of a wind hole! We were then chased by the big power boat from Club Med, thinking that we were escaping with one of their windsurfing rigs!!!!

June 16, 2000

We left Anse Mitan about 9:30 and weren't anchored in St. Anne until 4. The weather was much better than yesterday; however, the wind was back to east and we had to do three or four tacks along the southern coast of Martinique to reach St. Anne. Very beautiful anchorage off a lovely beach, where Club Med is located. We snorkeled on the anchor and then over to the shore. It was shallow and terrible visibility...again.

John from BRISANA came over to introduce himself, and to commesurate about the boats that anchor on top of you, especially the rental boats!

June 15, 2000

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CHINA!!!!! We were all ready to leave for St. Anne and Eric noticed that the main halyard was ready to break, so we fixed that inbetween many large rain squalls which came through all day.

Since we had already stowed the dinghy motor for our passage, we rowed into the demolished marina dock and walked around the hotels, beaches and shops. We bought some more baquettes and pastries and a billabong hat for David for Father's Day. David and I swam 20 times around the boat!!! David never did go into Anse Mitan because of his back. The boys went out that night with Fred, but unfortunately, it was very quiet and they were home early (Good Thing, since they were sailing to St. Lucia and we were heading to St. Anne in the morning early!)

June 14, 2000

HAPPY FLAG DAY!!! We were all really tired and Eric was not feeling really well. So, we finally got it together to go into town about 3pm. Unfortunately, this resort beach suffered alot of destruction from Hurricane Lenny last November. We did find the pastry shop and bought our dose of baquettes and pastries!!! Then David and I swam out to a big buoy which was marking a coral reef. Unfortunately, the visibility was still terrible.

June 13, 2000

We were able to check in early, along with Mack and Rebecca on BEYOND and Fred, Penny and Fred on MANGO LATITUDES. We did some final shopping at the market and the shops and we left about 11 am to sail to Anse Matin, arriving about 3:30. Fred Jr. came over to visit with the boys. He just graduated from Old Dominion College in Norfolk. David's back continued to improve, so we snorkeled around the anchor and 10 times around the boat. Visibility not very good.

June 12, 2000

David decided that he could go into town, if we would drop him off on the beach, and he didn't have to scramble up the dock. We visited with BLUE HORIZONS, then went to shore and first tried to check in again with Customs. He was not there, since it was another holiday! They seem to enjoy many many holidays on these Caribbean islands!!! We visited the Museum there. St. Pierre is located at the base of Mt. Pelee, not far from where the last Caribes were wipes out in 1658 by the Europeans. We were told that as they died they cursed the Europeans and asked the mountain to take revenge. This happened according to Caribbean time (similar to Maui time!) on May 8, 1902. St. Pierre was considered the "Paris of the Caribbean" with a population of 30-40,000 people, many of whom were very wealthy plantation owners who sold rum, sugar, coffee and cocoa to the ships that returned to Europe. There were warnings from the volcanoe, however, Governor Mouttet did not want to evacuate such a large city and the elections were scheduled for May 9. The side of Mt. Pelee released a giant fireball of superheated gas which flowed over the city, releasing more energy than an atomic bomb. All 30-40,000 residents were killed instantly at 8:02 am May 8, 1902, except for the famous prisoner, Cyparis, who was incarcerated in his stone cell. He was badly burned but recovered and was pardoned. He toured with the Barnum & Bailey Circus.

We toured the museum which have photos of pre and post eruption of Mt. Pelee. They have artifacts: watches stopped at 8:02, melted glass, food which is all melted and burnt together. We walked around the opera house and saw Cyparis's cell. We walked around the church (couldn't enter, but we saw pictures of the incredible grandeur before the eruption) and then we visited the cemetery, where many of the pre-eruption tombs are melted. The devastation is mind boggling. The fact that many persons died because of a governor not wanting to lose an election. It could have been prevented! New buildings are built upon the old. New buildings share at least one wall with the past. Possibly it affected us so much, because Haleakala on Maui is also a dormant volcano, not extinct. That type of eruption could happen there! Would we heed the warning signs???

We had a delicious pizza (even had to order in French!) there for lunch. There were some girls on holiday but the guys couldn't seem to connect...and we seem to be asked many times about our President and Lewinski?????? laugh laugh laugh!!! He seems to an international JOKE!

We used our washer/dryer for the first time and it worked great! We didn't use the dryer cycle because it takes too much energy, just hung all the clothes up on the life lines and they were dry in a jiffy!

June 11, 2000

HAPP BIRTHDAY, ROSANNE!!!!! We had rain off and on all day with the wave passing over. We cleaned the boat, defrosted the refrigerator and worked on emails. We snorkeled for only about 10 minutes, since we were being stung by man-o-war jellyfish. (They must come in when the wind changes slightly south, just like Makena.) We had the flying fish for dinner. The fish tasted delicious, but we become very tired trying to deal with so many small bones. We were wondering what trick the restaurants used, since we have seen flying fish and flying fish sandwiches on many menus.

June 10, 2000

The captain (who had been resting for the past two days) got the crew up very early in order to go into town to the market! We bought red snapper and flying fish. They were both excellent, except that the flying fish had way too many and too small bones. The flying fish actually do have wings and we have watched them travel incredible distances in the air. Sometimes their tail fin will touch the water and direct them in a different direction. Awesome! We also purchased mangoes, pineapples, plantains, soursop, fresh parsley to cook with the fish, bananas and nutmeg. We walked back to customs, but he was not there. We stopped for bread again. We must admit that we are really addicted to French baquettes and their delicious pastries! We went ashore again in the afternoon, but most places were closed. David's back was feeling good enough, so we swam around the boat for about 15 minutes. Terrible visibility. We had a delicious dinner of red snapper, plantains, breadfruit and pastries for desert. YUMMY!

June 9, 2000

We were up early trying to decide if we should head across the passage to Martinique, with David's back, a wave approaching, and with only 3 days entry for Dominica. We decided to go and left at 8am and were anchored in St. Pierre, Martinique by 3:30. David anchored, since the holding was terrible and we had to try about three times before we were satisfied. The passage wasn't too bad: 15-20 knot winds with higher gusts and 5-7 foot seas. We had our forward hatch open a crack during the night, and forgot to close it....so we had salt water on it when the water went over the bow!!!

The boys and I went into town to see if we could check in, but no one at Customs. We stopped at a store and bought bread and pastries. We also talked with Chuck and Ruth on BLUE HORIZONS, a Hylas 49. They are from Clear Lake, Texas and first time cruisers like us.

We had a quick bite to eat and crashed into bed very early.

June 8, 2000

We listened to all the weather and tried to decide what we were going to do. Alexis finally brought the fruit that we had ordered. We said our alohas and Eric, Jason, and I sailed to a mooring (it was too deep to anchor in 150+ feet) at Anchorage Beach Hotel, just south of Roseau, the capital of Dominica, arriving about 3:30. David was flat on his back in bed all day....wondering how we were doing sailing without our captain!!! There were a couple of boat boys there but no problem. The hotel had music and a buffet that evening, but unfortunately, we could not go in.

June 7, 2000

My Dad flew to Los Angeles to join my brother, Peter and his wife, Susie and Jon, to attend the graduation ceremonies and festivities for Chris, their son, as he graduated from California Institue of Technology with a degree in Mechanial Engineering. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE GRADUATE, CHRIS, AND TO THE PROUD PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS AND BROTHER!!!!

I made lunch for all of us, Eric rowed us to shore and we all met Alexis in front of the hotel at 8am to go on our island tour. He drove us in his car and we didn't arrive home until 6pm. We drove north and passed through the Carib Indian Territory. I finally purchased two large fruit baskets. The Caribs were fierce warriors who predated the Europeans and kept them at bay for hundreds of years. They loved war for its own sake and the rugged mountains of Dominica was ideal to defend, however, as their numbers dwindled, some migrated to South America and the rest were given a reserve on the windward coast by the Europeans. The pure Caribs are native Americans, bronze in color with oriental features. They appeared similiar in appearance to many Hawaiians.

We drove to Emerald Pool and had lunch, which we had brought in our cooler. We had the BEAUTIFUL pool all to ourselves, because there were no cruise ships in the harbour. We drove to Roseau and up to Trafalgar Falls. We hiked to the platform with a view towards two large waterfalls, one to the right and the other to the left. Alexis informed us that during the Hurricane of 1995, many huge boulders and rocks slid down and made access to these two falls very difficult, especially the one on the left, which was the one that had the hot and the cold falls. We elected to scramble up to the one on the right. We were just getting ready to go into the water, when David put his back out. We were very concerned about getting back to the car and then to the boat. He was able to make it down to the car and we arrived back on thePortsmouth Hotel, where I was able to purchase some ice. We rowed back to our boat and arrived about 6:30pm. He used his high power medicines, the ice and made it through the night. We had so enjoyed our tour of a very beautiful, lush tropical island. We brought home breadfruit, cashews, bay rhum leaves, bananas, pineapples. We had stopped at a bakery for bread. The people of Dominica were very friendly. We didn't see any parrots!!! We wish that we could have spent more time hiking and exploring this beautiful island.

June 6, 2000

We left the Saintes about 9am, arriving and anchored off Portsmouth Hotel/Coconut Beach Hotel in the south end of Prince Rupert Bay in Dominica at about noon time. We had 36 knot winds and 8 foot seas...the biggest so far! I was ok until about 11...and then I did get sick!

We picked Alexis to act as our boat boy and he took us and Ward from EXPLORER into customs in Portsmouth about 2pm, where we checked in and out.

June 5, 2000

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PETER!!!

David wanted to check out the beach on the far side of Terre d'en Haut, so we dinghied around as SOLITUDE was leaving for Dominica. The beach was not very pretty or interesting so we dinghied back to town to shop (and we got drenched, because of the high winds and wind chop). We picked up some sardines from a fisherman for 15 FF (about $2.14)..and they were delicious! Our first fish in months!!

EXPLORER arrived...we had last seen them in Marigot Bay, St. Martin. They said that they had caught quite a few fish on their way over from Nevis. We were very jealous! David and I went snorkeling for over an hour and saw garden eels, sea snake, eel, flounder, stone fish, flying gurnards, etc. etc. Very incredible!!! What a beautiful last snorkel in the Saintes!

June 4, 2000

We dinghied in to town, bought from bread and cheese and hiked to Fort Napolean, which was VERY impressive. The English had forts and their navy all over the Caribbean. It is amazing considering how many years ago!

Eric and David went windsurfing the channel between Ile Cabrit and Terre d'en Haut, so I just sat in the sun and read. Having only one windsurfer is for the birds!!!

We watched "Joan of Arc"....which is a wonderful, very moving story. Excellent video!

June 3, 2000

HAPPY HEALING, COUSIN SALLY!!!! Hope that ankle heals very fast, and that you will soon be rid of the crutches and caste!

Saturday was a rainy, windy (25 knots) day...so we cleaned the boat and worked on emails. I spent all afternoon making our Dominica flag and mending our French one (it hits the spreaders and was in tatters on one side). So, I didn't have time to go in swimming.

June 2, 2000

We went snorkeling again from the dinghy around the western part of the island so that Eric could try to spear some dinner!!!! NO LUCK, again!!! We even tried on the eastern side in the afternoon for another hour...still no luck!

Eric and David worked on the halyard again...which seems to be chafing through. Not good....

June 1, 2000

We ventured into town, even though it was still windy and purchased some fruits, but the bakery was out of bread, even after we stood in line!!! We did purchase some beautiful prints of the Saintes and Guadaloupe. Ever since Patricia gave me two small prints of the Virgin Islands, I have been collecting prints of special significance from the different islands which we visit. A very special momento!

We hiked to the top of the island to visit Fort Josephine, which is in complete disrepair. It looks like someone may have tried to develop it into a restaurant and hotel on the island, but couldn't make a go of it. We also noticed that there is an over abundance of wild goats and they have eaten all of the vegetation, so there is no longer growth to hold the soil and prevent erosion during heavy rains. The soil washes down the steep hills into the oceans and kills the coral reefs, so between the silt and hurricanes the reefs are in very sad shape. The fishermen returned and plundered more from the sea and we went snorkeling again.

May 31, 2000

We were up early, in spite of the fact that we could have slept in this morning!!! It was still cloudy and VERY windy, so we did NOT want to venture across to the town and get drenched in our dinghy. So we cleaned up the boat, worked on emails and then snorkeled for almost an hour along shore for the best snorkeling since we left the Virgin Islands. We watched the fishermen set their nets, and we think they caught the small sardine type fish which were in big schools under the boat. Unfortunately, all these places seem to use nets and fish traps and take EVERYTHING from the ocean and nothing is left.

May 30, 2000

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CILLA!!!!

We left about 7:30 and were anchored at Ile de Cabrit in the Iles de Saintes about 5:30. We had 35 knot winds with 6 foot seas, with 100% cloud cover and sometimes 2 knots of current against us. But I did NOT get sick...who knows????? Unfortunately, we did not get to really see the coast as we sailed by, since it was so cloudy and rainy. This was still part of this tropical wave. (Actually it is yuccky...June 15...I guess we should have kept quiet about our beautiful weather, because it came to an ABRUPT end!!!)

We actually arrived in the Saintes (about 7 small islands about 6-10 miles south of Guadaloupe)about two hours before we were finally anchored. Very French, very picturesque, and very clean! We tried to anchor close to the town of Bourg des Saintes on Terre d'en Haut (the most populated of the two islands), but it was VERY rolly with the swell and the ferries, so we checked out the anchorage at Pain a Sucre, and that seemed better, but too cramped for our taste, so we went back to Ilet Cabrit and anchored there, below Fort Josephine. And luckily we were in just the right place, since the fishermen did not make us move.

May 29, 2000

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!!!!! PICNICS AND PARADES AND THE BEGINNING OF SUMMER!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOY!!!! David and I were up early and went in with Eric to return the car at 7:15am when they opened. We had to pay 700FF (about $100US) for the window, even though we had insurance. We had left Jason on board, so he was able to see the boat sail out of the harbor in what was now 40 knot winds!!!! Luckily, the boat did not hit anyone! The owner lives in Gaudaloupe and no one was aboard, and the engine and the windlass do not work. We understood that the owner was taken to the boat later that morning and sailed it to the Saintes. It was amazing to see how fast and how far the boat traveled with just bar poles! These tropical waves are really big storms!

Finally, about 11 am the winds calmed down and most of us went to shore. We met Daryl and Sandy on SOLITUDE and Dick and Kim on PEGASUS. They had ripped their sail trying to leave the day before, so we helped them get the sail up on the dock and out to the rain, while Dick rented a car to drive to Point a Pitre, on the other side of the island to have it fixed. We went shopping in preparation for leaving the following day. Hopefully, they were able to have it fixed at head back to the Virgin Islands and then home to Chicago for the summer.

May 28, 2000

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ROD!!!! Hope it was happy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PEACE AND ALOHA!!! One year old!

We could not hear the weather in the morning. It was cloudy and windy, blowing at 30 knots.. David talked with Jim Clubb (neighbors of his parents in Florida) on the SSB/Ham net for the last time until he returns south from Connecticut where he spends his summers.

We decided to go anyway (mistake #2). We drove up as far as we could at the La Soufriere volcano. Of course, we were in the clouds and the rain there. So we did not walk anywhere up there. It is a 3-4 hour hike to the top from there. I wish that we could have hiked it. We ate our lunch in a little park in St. Claude, just at the beginning of the steep road up the volcano. We shared our lunch with about four well behaved neighbor dogs and a family of chickens!!!

We then went to find the Three Carbet Falls. We arrived at the top parking lot with a few other cars around. We decided to walk in the rain and check it out (mistake #3). We put on our rain jackets, but did not take our packs (mistake #4). We locked the car and found that the trail was not a problem and was not slippery with mud in all the rain. We hiked to where a bridge was closed because it was not safe; so we forded the stream. We hiked to the bottom of two of the waterfalls. Hopefully, there will be pictures to accompany this update. We arrived back to our car with a smashed small back window. The thief had been scared off and grabbed Eric's pack and left his knife on the front passenger seat. So we lost Eric's pack, pair of swim trunks, water bottle, dinghy key, sun tan lotion, and a small towel. It could have been much worse!!! But we should know better from Maui!!!! We tried to find the police in the towns close by couldn't locate their office. We stopped two police on the roadway, and they finally agreed that we should just report it in Deshaies. It was getting late. We reported it with the two gendarmes in Deshaies. So we had the police report to give to the car rental company.

We arrived back at the boat about 6, very exhausted and very wet. After all this activity and driving for three days under very stressful conditions, David went to bed very early with a bad stomach. I stayed up until almost 1am watching the boat swing around in the anchorage. I was very concerned that we were going to swing into another boat, or someone else was going to drag. We had our 176 pound Bruce anchor plus 300 feet of chain, so WE weren't going anywhere. All the flack David got from Manfred Kanter about that size anchor, we are sooooooo thankful that we have it!!!!

May 27, 2000

We left about 9am in our little rental car and traveled to the National Park and visited the Mammelles Parc, where we saw many plants, animals and birds. The parrots were not labeled. We were able to identify some of them. The SAD part was that they did NOT look very good! They were listless and it was morning!!! The only noticeable food was sun flower seeds and water. I only wish that I had the money to set up a trust for all of these parrots and make sure that they are fed correctly with fruit and pellets, or at least, something with more sustenance than sun flower seeds. This park also had nest boxes set up for breeding. Parrots cannot breed unless they are well nourished.

We went to Crayfish Falls and had lunch up the stream. Very beautiful falls! The entire area is very similiar to Hana. We left the National Park with its rain forest and drove to the eastern side of Guadaloupe. Guadaloupe looks like a butterfly! The western "wing" is volcanic, mountainous rain forests with cliffs to the Caribbean Sea, named Basse Terre (someone had a sense of humor!!!). The eastern "wing" is limestone, flatter and drier, with beaches and more development named Grand Terre. We had difficulty seeing places, for lack of a good map and not knowing exactly what to see. The French drive like maniacs with reckless abandonment!! They also do NOT believe in switchbacks. Their roads go straight up and straight down!!!!

We arrived back at the boat in time to snorkel on the southern side of the harbour for almost an hour. There were lots of big boulders and some fish.

May 26, 2000

We went into town and rented a car for three days (mistake #1), since they would be closed on Saturday and Sunday. We drove to St. Rose to find a bank, rather than have the pharmacy give us an exchange rate of 5.5 (over 7 at the bank!) But they were closed at noon, when we finally arrived. We used the ATM around the corner from the car rental and it worked perfectly!

Eric, David and I went north along the coast in the dinghy in search of fish to spear!!! No luck! We did see some interesting rocks with small fish and it poured rain...that was interesting seeing it rain on top of the ocean!

We defrosted the freezer and have left it off, to see if we can save our batteries. Actually, it is giving David and Eric fits. They can't understand it; it runs almost as much now as it did before. Hopefully, we can talk with some technicians and figure it out. We are also planning on putting more insulation in the boxes when we are in Trinidad. We need to do something!

May 25, 2000

We were up at 5:00am to leave at 6:00am. I made lunches, which was a good thing since I was sick for the first time in a long time. We arrived in Deshaies, Guadaloupe about 2pm. It was pretty rough...so who knows? I just don't like using a patch for a short crossing, and David said that the sturgeron made me weird the last time!!!!

We walked in and toured the town, checked in and out of Guadaloupe customs (waited with some Austrians for the agents to return from lunch. It was interesting trying to converse with them!..but we managed.), and purchased pastries for dinner and wonder baquettes with a wood smoke flavor from the fire. Absolutely delicious!

We also heard via email that Beth and Evans on HAWK had arrived safely at Kinsale, Ireland after 21 days at sea across the Atlantic from the Virgin Islands and a broken staysail shackle, which they stopped to fix in the Azores.

May 24, 2000

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JIM on MAH JONG!!!

We took all our wash into the laundry at 8am and did some shopping. We moved all our clothes around. We packed away parkas and warm clothes and took out more summer clothes. We also packed away blankets. That took us until about 3, when we went in and picked up our clean clothes and cleared out of Antigua. Then we had to make all our beds and move to Hermitage Bay in Five Islands Harbour, which wasn't so rolly and had clearer water, where David and I snorkeled over to the beach for about 35 minutes.

May 23, 2000

We left Dickenson Bay and arrived at the fuel dock at Jolly Harbour about noon. After filling up our diesel tanks we went back out to anchor in the Harbour. David and I snorkeled over to the beach on the other side of the Harbour and found an incredible number of shells. We had to figure out how to get them back to the boat???? David said that we found a new use for my bikini top!!! We put all the shells in the lining and I put it back on...very voluptuous....but slighly weird shapes with lots of hard points!!!

May 22, 2000

We listened to the nets and the weather. We had a call from Karyn and Steve James on THRESHOLD in the Bahamas. We had very light copy on them, so had trouble communicating on the SSB. I just sent them an email. They had looked at our boat while we were in Ft. Lauderdale, since they were thinking of having Chuck Paine design a boat for them. We are wondering if they will design a boat like ours.

We left Nonsuch (named for the first visting "yacht," which found its way in through the small entrance and dropped anchor in 1647) Bay about 10 and sailed north around Antigua to arrive at Dickenson Bay about 4:30. This bay is for tourists with all the parasailers and jet skiis. Jet skiis would be fine, if they would just stay away from our boat and not use it and other boats for a slalom course!!! We are thinking very seriously of getting a sling shot!!! David and I snorkeled for about 30 minutes, while Eric worked on cleaning the other side of the bottom of the boat. Unfortunately we did not have the time to explore all the anchorages along the northern coast of Antiqua in the Boon Channel.

May 21, 2000

Very quiet Sunday! I cleaned the inside of the boat and David cleaned the bottom!!! We all went snorkeling over the barrier reef for about an hour. It was interesting, but nothing to write home about! David and I watched the First Tape on Small Groups from our church. Very interesting and stimulating! We wished that we had it on Maui a couple of years ago. But who knows, we may have small groups meeting here on PEACE AND ALOHA!

May 20, 2000

We did update the website today as you all know; however, it cost us a small fortune, so we are STILL looking for other alternatives. We listened to the nets and the weather, and went into the market to pick up some last minute items, to return the video, and to say goodbye to all our friends that we had made there. We left Falmouth Harbour about 10:30 and sailed eastward around the island to Nonsuch Bay, arriving about 2:30 to anchor between Green Island and Bird Island in beautiful turquoise waters with only a few other boats. We went snorkeling for a little while and David worked on cleaning some of the "garden" off the bottom of our boat. The snorkeling was another disappointment. The water was cleaner and clearer, but nothing was there.

We started reading "Poisonwood Bible," by Barbara Kingsolver, which Julie had read for one of her classes and RAVED about and wanted us to purchase. Lord Jim's Locker in Falmouth was able to obtain the book for me. I am enjoying it, but the male members of this crew (ie everyone else!!) says it is a girlie book...so we shall see. (Another added bonus from this web site...book reviews!)

May 20, 2000

Good morning!!! We finished the website and added pictures with captions yesterday afternoon and were at the cable and wireless office about 2:30, in order to be finished before they closed at 4pm. David and I walked over to Signal Locker to settle up the bill for the work on the refrigeration, while Eric updated the web site. We returned to find that he could not access IPASS...our password did not work. We called Maui Net and found out that IPASS is defunct, probably right after we uploaded on April 15. We are going over this morning to try to connect with Maui net. If there is anyone out there who can give us ideas as to HOW we can access local number to servers world wide, we would definitely appreciate this information. It is really difficult for us to change servers or accounts with our lack of phone service, etc., but we might have to change our modus operund. Please send suggestions via the ham email direct to boat, as we are unable to receive maui net email, if we can't update the web.

We had our last video last night...Entrapement, excellent adventure thriller with Sean Connery!!! That is our last video review for a while!!!

We should also note that last night was VERY HOT with no winds...in fact, we were swinging in every direction on our anchor. I guess we should not be complaining...it definitely is better than being too COLD!

Keep in touch...Love and aloha to you all! We will be heading to Nonsuch Bay after we go into update this site, buy some fruit and bread and return the video this morning. We will be there for a few days, then over to Jolly Harbour for a few days for reprovisioning, washing and filling up the diesel tanks. Then on to Guadaloupe and the Saints, probably at the end of the month. See ya soon!!!

May 19, 2000

I am sorry to take this long to update...but it is getting harder and harder. Please check out Ports of Call, I did update that. I must close so Eric can add the pictures and hopefully put captions on them for you. Please keep in touch, using the ham email address. We miss you all! Hope you are all well, happy and having a wonderful Spring!

It has been a few more days since I made my last entry ...hopefully, we will post to our web site today. Fillmore from Signal Locker is on board...hopefully, fixing our refrigeration problem. We will be able to leave Falmouth Harbour and be on our way. We are thinking of going to Nonesuch Harbour, then to Jolly Harbour to reprovision, to wash, and to fill up the diesel tanks and then head to Guadaloupe. I think we have decided against going to Barbuda. We would like to see more of Antigua. So today, will be a busy day making ready and saying good bye, if we head out tomorrow. Actually, there is very little wind out there, so that is not good for making passages. The change in the weather never materialized from the trough over Puerto Rico from a couple of days ago. We continue to have beautiful sunny warm weather with rain at night. Perfect!!! We just found out that Fillmore couldn't find the correct freon, so I don't know what we will do if we need it!!??? Will keep you posted. I am busy trying to finish this so Eric can add pictures, and hopefully, captions and post it this afternoon. The refrigeration is fixed.Thank heavens!!

May 18 - We had quite a day...we hiked to Shirley Heights. Not quite as simple as it sounds: we arrived at the gate house, since we were walking via the road for maybe two miles or so, mostly uphill. They said we needed to pay an entrance fee of $5/person. We didn't really have money and didn't really think that we should have to pay...so we left. We walked down to Galleon Beach, where we talked with people at the resort. In fact we met a gentleman from Indiana, who has been vacationing there at Galleon Beach Resort for the past 30 years and had just begun building his home nearby. We were informed that we should take the trail up the hill, behind their resort. They indicated that the worse and steepest part was at the beginning and it would take about 20-30 minutes. David and Jason had worn their hiking boots, I had my flipflops on but had brought my jogging shoes, but Eric was wearing only flipflops, but we went any way. It was an incredible hike through desert vegetation with cacti, century plants, and bromeliads. We saw lots of goats with their babies (we are not sure if they are wild or belong to someone). We saw hummingbirds and two different small yellow birds...we need to get a bird book for this area. That is how to see these different countries -- get off the boat and hike!

The top of the mountain at Shirley Heights was quite a significant fortication with many large buildings to house soldiers on duty as lookouts and for protection. You can see forever from there!!!! After having a Balance bar and some water for lunch we started down the road, but decided not to deal with any hassles should they arise at the guard house when we passed...so we walked back to the top and down the trail. We took a short cut through The Inn at English Harbour, toured the grounds of Clarence House, built by King William IV of England (known in Europe as the "Sailor King"), and arrived back to the video store to pick up The Runaway Bride, which we really enjoyed last night, at about 4pm, rather tired, hot and very thirsty!!! But what a wonderful adventure!!

May 17 - We had our official tour of Nelson's Dock Yard. We enjoyed another movie, which was Tarzan (refreshing after the movie that night before). We also tried some sweets, called Rocks and a potato pudding (both were different, lots of coconut, but very tasty).

Julie's Update:

Julie and Chris are in Alaska with his family to attend his sister, Julia's high school graduation on May 23. On May 25 Julie will fly to Italy with his Mom and sister until June 2. She is getting to be quite the jet-setter!!! Wonderful to have parents who work for United Airlines!!! She is trying to figure out when, where and if she will be coming to sail with us this summer. Hopefully, both of them can join us for a little while in some beautiful place!!!! She needs a rest after doing so well this semester! She also needs to get a job and to start qualifying for in-state tuition, since she is almost 21 (I can't quite believe that!!!). Poor Nalu...our grand-dogger!...is staying with a friend, whom she likes alot and where she spent a longer time at Christmas. Julie said she was pouting and looking very sad the few days before they left! Poor Baby...

May 17, 2000

This quote from "Racundra's" First Cruise by Arthur Ransome will maybe explain our desire to be on this journey, this adventure: "Houses are but badly built boats so firmly aground that you cannot think of moving them. They are definitely inferior things, belonging to the vegetable not the animal world, rooted and stationary, incapable of transistion. The desire to build a house is the tired wish of a man content thenceforward with a single anchorage. The desire to build a boat is the desire of youth, unwilling yet to accept the idea of a final resting place."

We are still here in Falmouth Harbour, Antigua. As we wait for our refrigeration part to arrive from Grunert in Florida, we are watching the harbour empty as most of the large yachts are heading to the Med and the rest of the cruisers are already further south. There were probably 75 boats here when we arrived last week and there are less than 30 now.

We are hoping that the part will arrive tomorrow, and will clear through customs and the technician willl be able to fix it on Friday. Hopefully nothing else is wrong besides the leaking shaft seal on the compressor. Grunert is honoring their warranty, but we still have to pay for extra hours, freon, and customs duty (even though it is considered "duty-free" for a yacht in transit, there is still a $50 per package customs charge. After that is fixed we will probably head north (?) to Barbuda for a couple of days and then back to Jolly Harbour to reprovision and check out of Antigua. Unfortunately, we will not have a chance to explore the north and the east coasts of Antigua and some of the many beaches (365 of them, one for every day of the year, is what the brochure says), unless we decide to stay another week. The weather is scheduled to get nasty tomorrow night and the first tropical waves (first precursors to the hurricane season) were announced yesterday on all the weather channels that we hear...so it is definitely time to be heading south.

We toured Nelson's Dockyard in English Harbour this morning. All of the construction is really quite amazing when one considers it was built in the 1700's, when there was no water, there was malaria and all of the English were dressed from head to toe!!!! Unfortunately, no wonder so many of them died! When Lord Nelson went back to England, he was very sick. So sick that he carried aboard a huge keg of rum to preserve his body if he died during the passage. He lived through the passage and returned to good health and another station with the British Navy.

We will bring you up to date today and then Eric will add pictures and HOPEFULLY, I will have time to add captions, especially for those who requested it. We will update to our website probably on Friday before we leave on Saturday (all subject to change!!!). Not sure when we will be updating again and it may be another month. We will go to Deshaises in Guadaloupe, the Saints, Dominica (????still a question), and then St. Lucia. Just remember that you can contact us with short text messages on board at KH7JL@cho.win-net.org....I am STILL working on transferring addresses and answering letters from the maui.net site. The only time we access those emails is when we update the website, so it is NOT very timely. It also costs us telephone charges at $3/min here, while the ham email doesn't cost anything. Just PLEASE remember....NO forwarded messages and NO pictures!!! Thank you. But we REALLY do enjoy hearing from all of you...please keep in touch!!! We continue to miss our friends and family, even though we are enjoying meeting new friends and seeing new places along our journey!!!

May 16 - We were able to get the parts that we needed and they arrived yesterday, so David and Eric rigged up the backstays so that they can be positioned from the cockpit and Eric no longer needs to go forward in heavy seas to move them when they need to be reset with each tack. We were also able to have our dinghy repaired. Avon also paid for Seagull Inflatables to replace the valve which was leaking on the floor. I spent the entire day cleaning out all the files and the chart cabinet. Actually I didn't throw away as much as David would have liked, but we do now have much easier access to all the information in the files and the chart cabinet.

David and I have been swimming laps around the boat and dinghy...we are up to 20!!! Actually pretty good exercise...but we need to leave soon, the bottom of the boat is really growing!!!

May 15 - We took the floor of the dinghy in for repair and anwered emails. We watched another movie..."Dogma", which actually had what sounded like a funny storyline, but the language is absolutely filthy...so, it didn't make my rec's list (see - you get an added bonus by reading our web site, you get free video reviews!!!).

May 14, 2000

HAPPY HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL!!!! As you can see, I am STILL behind. I will try to bring you up to date so that we are able to post this on the web soon here in Falmouth Harbour, Antigua.

Jason and Eric gave me a yellow headed amazon parrot for Mother's Day!!! Jason said, "Mom, you don't have to feed him or clean up after him....but he doesn't talk like Manu!!!" We are still working on a name....any suggestions???? He is now our official mascot also!!! Pat and Mike and James and Liz....please....don't tell Manu, Sammy and Squirt that they have been replaced by a STUFFED GREEN parrot!!! I miss them lots...Thanks for caring for them and loving them lots!!!

April 28 - We dinghied over to Cole Bay on the Dutch side of St. Maarten. It was just too difficult to move the boat, to go into the Lagoon (which was filthy) because it was too rolly to stay in Simpson Bay, to clear out of customs (French) and then to clear in on the Dutch side. We went to both boat stores: Budget (??? nothing is cheap around here) Marine and Island Water World. We had a nice sandwich in a little restaurant...$3 each on French baquette!!! Delicious!

April 29 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TIBY!!!!! The guys worked on boat repairs and I worked on administration and mail, which I had not done from the mail drop in Coral Bay on April 15. It was carnival in St. Maarten until Wednesday and St. Martin celebrates May Day, so almost everything was closed from Saturday until Tuesday.

April 30 - HAPPY HATCH DAY, IPO!!! Six years old and living with a wonderful family in Atlanta! Antigua flag making day!!!! Too bad they aren't all like the French flag!!!??? We snorkeled around the boat for 30 minutes - it is clear, but nothing but sandy bottom about 9 feet below!!! We watched "At First Sight"....excellent movie...we recommend that one!

May 1 - HAPPY MAY/LEI DAY!!!! ALOHA TO LONO, WHO FLEW TO BIRDIE HEAVEN TODAY!!!! Our love goes out to Jerry and Dot!!!

We did some major provisioning today at Food Center on the Dutch side. We walked there and they drove us back to Island Water World, where are dinghy was docked. It took me a while to inventory and stow all of it.

May 2 - We purchased a complete windsurfing rig!!! We put it together and figured out how to attach it on deck. Actually, we ran out of parts so before we could leave in the morning Eric and Jason went to Budget Marine to get them. So, the windsurfer was on Julie's bunk for a couple of days!!!

May 3 - We left for Orient Bay, arriving in time to have lunch there. We went to the beach in the afternoon and Eric had a chance to try out his new skim board. David and I went snorkeling again...still nothing to see. David and I went into a wine and cheese party at the Orient Bay Resort. We have never seen quite a spread: delicious red and white wines or fruit punch or orange juice to drink. There were pates, french bread, and probably 25-30 different cheeses to sample. I have never seen David eat so much....maybe it will fatten him up a little!!!! We met Barbara and Steve, a couple from Fort Myers, FL, on their boat, REALITY. They spend 5 weeks there every year before they head south.

May 4 - We sailed over to Anse de Columbier, St. Barts (Bartholemy) in about 3-4 hours. BEAUTIFUL SAILING!!!!! David and I snorkeled all along the edge of the bay...saw more fish, under the rocks, but no coral????!!!! We went with Eric to the other side of the bay and he tried to get fish for dinner (we haven't had any since we left the Bahamas!!!). He didn't catch any and then we realized that most of the island is a reserve!!! ooops!!!

May 5 - We dinghied over to the city of Gustavia, but we had not checked in, so we did not go ashore. Very quaint little village...I would have liked to have roamed around. We also talked with "Earl" on the trawler SURF RIDER, which was anchored next to us. He makes surf boards, but unfortunately, Eric already has two. His family comes from Maui (he is related to the Sudas in Kihei), but he grew up on Oahu!!!! Small world!! David and I went snorkeling again...did see some fish that we hadn't seen before...and an eel and a small shark under a rock. The water is a very comfortable 83 degrees!!!

May 6 - We finally were able to talk with Jim and Debi on MAH JONG on our SSB, while they are in San Juan. Hopefully, they will be catching up to us soon.

We hiked over the rock trail to Anse de Flamade, where there was a beautiful beach (remnants of a hurricane with beach erosion and a destroyed hotel/condomium) and a small little store where we purchased some bread and pastries - our last French ones until Guadaloupe!

We had lunch, made dinner, made the boat ready, snorkeled, took showers and headed to Antigua at about 4pm. We had a rough night with squalls, which made the wind come from ten different directions at once, which is very difficult when we are sailing. There was also another problem which we hadn't encountered before: boats with illegal lights, so we couldn't tell which direction they were going (or coming)! Actually, that is very scarey!

May 7 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CHRIS!!! Sorry it was during exams!! we arrived at Jolly Harbour, Antigua (An-ti-ga) at about 11am. We tried to go into the customs dock, but it looked too small and shallow for our boat, so they said we could anchor in the harbour and come back in the dinghy, which we did after lunch. Jerry and Lil on QUALITY TIME, had arrived much earlier than we did, since they motored more (we went 102 miles -80 mile trip, because we were tacking all the way over!). We left customs about the same time and walked around the shopping center, which was mostly closed because it was Sunday. Pretty quiet place and no other boats in the anchorage. Very pretty area with higher and greener mountains and greener water!!! However, when David and I went swimming, we couldn't see two inches in front of our mask....we still don't know what was in the water! Sand? Plankton??

May 8 - Eric and David worked on boat repairs and I read the guide books to see what we should see!!! David and I swam to the little beach and back...very scarey, when you can't see anything!! Movie night: "Can't Hardly Wait"...was given to us by Patricia in St. Thomas. It is about seniors not being able to wait to graduate...we all could really relate...so we enjoyed it alot. Thanks, Pat and Michael!!! We also came about an Antiguan channel...only one!!! First tv we have had in months. Jason said it was more like home videos...we really enjoyed the weather man!!! (We can't receive that channel here in Falmouth.)

May 9 - we sailed up to Deep Bay, because we wanted to be able to swim off the boat. That harbor was CHAOS....a jet skier zooming around as close to our boat and the others anchored there, plus the kayakers and divers. They came out and told him to stop but he did not...I think we are going to get a sling shot!!! We decided to leave after lunch, so we sailed to Hermitage Bay in Five Islands Harbour. We put the windsurfer together and Eric sailed across the bay. The biggest problem were the winds...they were too gusty, almost 0 to 30!!! David started to try it, but by that time it was raining and there wasn't enough wind. We will have to try another day!! We had some BEAUTIFUL rainbows...full ones, double ones....!!! We just finished reading "Prophecy for the New Millennium", which I have been reading to everyone after dinner. Hopefully those rainbows are a sign of our wondeful adventures to come on PEACE AND ALOHA!!!

May 10 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JILL AND DANIELLE!!!! Hope it was happy for you both! We left Hermitage Bay about 9:30 and did not anchor in Falmouth Harbour until about 3:30. It was blowing 25 knots and was very LUMPY!!!! but I didn't get sick and I didn't take anything....Yipee!!! We also snagged a fish pot...wrapped around the prop, but we were sailing so it didn't do any damage. Eric had to jump into the dinghy and cut it off with the really sharp knife that we carry in the cockpit. He looked just like a pirate with the knife in his teeth going between the boat and the dinghy!!! We then went ashore and checked out some places for tomorrow.

May 11 - HAPPY LAST DAY OF FINALS FOR JULIE AND CHRIS!!!! We walked all over Falmouth and English Harbours trying to find someone to fix our Grunert Refrigeration. Signal Locker is going to take care of it. Thank heavens they are not very busy here!!! Actually, I think that we will be closing down this harbour like we closed down Camden, ME and Marblehead, MA!!! The HUGE Antigua Regatta was over on May 6, and almost all the boat must have left on the 7th. However, we have been able to see a few of them. These boats make our boat look like a dinghy!!!!We also went into the Wayfarer office here and saw Steve, who remembered our boat from Camden last Sept-Oct. There is a video store right here in the marina, so we have been overdosing with videos, since they are $6.50EC or $2.44US to rent. We saw "Sliding Doors"...which we highly recommend: a comedy with a very interesting twist...of fate??!!

May 12 - The guys tightened up both head sails, since we were lucky enough to have a VERY calm day. They are also working on figuring a method to position the backstays from the cockpit, since it is much too dangerous for Eric to go forward to move them in rough seas. The problem is getting the parts! Signal Locker heard back from Grunert that they will forward the part and it should be here Tuesday or Wednesday. We just have to pay $50 for duty free clearance and then freon to bring it back up. Thank heavens they are honoring their warranty. I am working on all the food in the freezer, so that if we have a really big problem, we won't have to throw it all out, since we don't enough people to have a BIG party here!!!.

David and I swam 10 laps around the boat....can see a little more than in Jolly Harbour!!! We finally got to see 007 - "The World is not Enough". Wonderful James Bond movie!!!

May 13 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MRS. WENTWORTH!!!! Hope it was happy!! Eric, Jason and I took the wash in to have it done for me....same price as doing it yourself!!! First time that I have had anyone do wash for me!!!! Happy Mother's Day early!

It also looked like Monserrat was erupting! We heard on the weather that a dome collapse is imminent and recommend giving the island a WIDE berth! We are about 30-40 east - upwind, so we are safe! It would be very exciting to see, since we never saw any of the eruptions on the Big Island.

We stopped to check out some of the huge boats at the marina: WALLY has got to be THE most expensive boat we have ever seen. ABSOLUTELY AWESOME! I didn't have my camera and they left yesterday, so no picture of her. BRISTOLIAN and GEORGIANA were also there and we had seen them in Camden. They are both heading for the Med tomorrow. MAYA left a couple of days ago. Last night SOUTHERN CROSS III left about 9pm amidst horns and blasts!!! She is a motor vessel equal the size of a small cruise ship! We came up in the cockpit to see what the horn blast meant...usually five blasts means danger!!! We were watching "Apple Pie", which is a very raucous, rated R, movie....it was funny, in a gross and crude way....Parental discretion!!!

David and I worked all afternoon on making the additional cover for a Shade Tree Canvas sun shade. We used our trusty new Europro sewing machine, which has already paid for itself. While the boys and I were picking out the video, David installed the grommets and had it up by the time we returned.

April 27, 2000

I don't really know where the time has gone, but we continue to be VERY busy. I know that it is really hard for those ashore to comprehend that we are not on an extended vacation, allowed to lay in a hammock and sip pina coladas all day!!! Now that I have your complete sympathy, I will bring you up to date:

April 13 - After lunch with Nancy and David Black here on PEACE AND ALOHA, we went back to the caves at Norman Island to snorkel again for almost an hour. Once again we were completely enthralled by the beauty of the rocks under the water and inside the caves above the water. The colors of the corals, sponges and fishes are awesome.

April 14 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TED DALTON!!! We had hoped to have Nancy and George from TRUMPETER aboard to see our boat before we headed out; however, Jason developed a "GOK" (God only knows) fever last night after dinner. We didn't want to infect them with something, so we never did have them aboard, and they will be heading back up to Maine soon. We left Norman Island early and arrived in Coral Bay, St. John, US Virgin Islands before lunch. The anchorage was very crowded and windy, so David and Jason remained on board, while Eric and I dinghied in to town. Eric updated the web and I made many phone calls. We had returned to St. John to receive another mail drop before we left US soil; however, it did not come that day. We moved from the harbor at Coral Bay over to Hurricane Hole, which turned out to be a very quiet, pristine anchorage.

April 15 - We all know what day today is!!!!!!@#$%^&*()**!!??? The weatherman for the Caribbean, David Jones, gave his morning report: it is blowing like stink!!!!! We were lucky ...we were in Hurricane Hole. Only problem was that we had to go back into Coral Bay for our mail and to mail letters. In the meantime, we were trying to connect with Beth and Evans from HAWK. We had been hailing them on the VHF for several days from the BVI's, and we noticed another girl was also hailing them. So...I called her...They are Jim and Debi on BEEDAHBUN from Ontario, Canada. They were in Leinster Bay on the north side (the other side) of St. John, having just sailed over from Peter Island in the BVI's. They hiked over the trail to Coral Bay to meet us for cokes at Skinny Legs Bar and Grill. David and Jason stayed on board. David got a really bad rope burn on his leg, when he grabbed for his hat and the genoa furler rope came off the winch. (We seem to be taught a new lesson every day!) Eric and I went over and met Jim and Debi and got our mail (actually the LAST box to come off the mail van!!!!). Otherwise, we would have had to wait until Monday....Thank you! Eric and I had quite a dinghy ride home in the big waves and wind!!!

April 16 - We decided to sail over to Leinster Bay, to hopefully, intercept HAWK they sailed by enroute to North Sound, Virgin Gorda from Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas. Debi and I kep hailing them every hour. We couldn't believe that they had passed us by...WRONG! As it turns out, Beth and Evans had sailed to Virgin Gorda on Friday and they were also having trouble with their radio. We arrived at Leinster Bay about noon, finished going through all the mail, answered mail that we needed to and then walked all the way the the Camp at Maho Bay.

Jim and Debi from BEEDAHBUN came over to visit about 5:30. What wonderful people! Debi is soon to become a published author: her book "Changing Courses" will be release this summer. She has promised me one of the first copies. This book was the result of the research for her PhD thesis. She had over 100 responses from First Mates regarding what it was like to abruptly change life styles when their husbands said, "Honey, let's go cruising!" We could have talked about everything all night! (But we didn't...they went home about 8!)

April 17 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MRS. SALLY BROWN!!!! We left early and arrived about 10 at Road Town, Tortola to do some shopping. We managed to go to three stores, return to the boat, store and inventory all and sail up to Marina Cay by 4:30. (Remember...it is still blowing 20-25!) Debi was telling us that there is a movie, entitled "Two on an Isle," that was written here at Marina Cay and later filmed here. It is a true story. Maybe we can find it to rent or to buy somewhere. Unfortunately, we didn't have any time to snorkel or to onto the island. We watched our movie of the week: "What Dreams May Come" with Robin Williams. We will have to watch that one again, since David slept through most of it.

April 18 - We left early, sailed to Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbor, to check out of the British Virgin Islands. We sailed into North Sound, Virgin Gorda about 11:00 and found HAWK between Brisas Creek and Bitter End Yacht Club, anchored right next to Jerry and Lil on QUALITY TIME. In fact, when we were trying to hail HAWK, we talked with Jerry, because we knew they were in North Sound. Jerry told us that he thought he had seen the boat somewhere....!!!!! Beth and Evans came aboard and joined us for lunch. We had lots to catch up with first meeting them in Camden, Maine last September.

Jim and Debi had gone into Leverick Bay to wash, etc. and we had planned on anchoring there. Debi hailed us and they arrived to anchor in front of us. We are still out in the cockpit, when GYPSEA PALACE, with Heather Brown Sawitsky, sails by!!!! I had also been trying to hail them, but I find that charter boats do NOT monitor 16 or any channel. (Just like the Black's on BYNUM'S BEAUTY). I used to babysit for Heather in Mariemont, Ohio,just a couple of years ago! Our parents have been friends forever. She and her husband, Kitt, are both lawyers and live in Wellesley, MA with their two sons, Aaron and Luke. Heather was an Outward Bound sailing instructor at Hurricane Island in Maine (I noted it in our cruising guide when we were nearby last fall)and delivered boats for them, along the east coast from Florida.

We had a wonderful evening aboard PEACE AND ALOHA!!!!! We had everyone over here for a party!!!! All fourteen: Beth and Evans from HAWK from Annapolis, MD; Kitt, Heather, Aaron and Luke on GYPSEA PALACE from Wellesley, MA; Jerry and Lil on QUALITY TIME from Baxter, MN; Jim and Debi on BEEDAHBUN from Ontario, Canada and us from Maui! Beth had gotten a bottle of champagne to celebrate Debi's forthcoming publication! We had been given a bottle of champagne in NYC from David's sister, Linda, so we opened that one too! We had to make sure to open them over the rail, since the one we opened in Tahiti many years ago popped its cork and went all over!!!! We had lots of wonderful food and made lots of new friends! And nobody left until 9pm! Finally, our beautiful sailing vessel was happy, full of peace and aloha!!!

April 19 - We sailed over to Leverick Bay early to fill up out diesel tanks, to do a wash, to get haircuts, and to see Euphoria, a house which belongs to Sue and Michael Cummins, who we knew in Tucson. David and Eric took care of filling up the diesel tanks at $2.50/gallon....ouch!!! Jason and I went to the laundromat, which was filled to overflowing!!! We waited and waited, I finally had two loads going, and then the power went out!!!! But that did give me time to check out the Cummins's house, which was unfortunately for us (but fortunately for them!) rented, so we couldn't go inside. We were given a beautiful brochure and were able to see it from the water. Hopefully, there is a picture included. So, if you need a place to rent while you are in Virgin Gorda, you know where to go! I couldn't get a haircut; there was a women's salon but it was nails and massage. Being in the laundromat for that lenght of time is not all bad, we met all sorts of other cruisers, actually we met a couple who own a condo at Maalaea Banyans!!!- Lil and Jerry (QUALITY TIME) and Natalie and Ed (FANCY FREE) were also there doing their wash. I think it was about 1:30 when we finally returned home with our clean clothes and sheets, which of course, translates into make lunch and then make up all the bed! Jason usually makes his, but this time he used Eric's sheets, so he was rather upset when he had to pull it all apart and remake it! You must remember that we are talking about beds that are closed in on the sides...actually, you have to be on the bed to make it...really a good trick!!!!

After we returned to the anchorage back at Bitter End, Beth, Debi and I walked up to Brisas Creek Resort for drinks and some girl talk...we finally arrived home at 6:30...the men were supposed to get together and discuss engines or something, but they all did their own thing!!!

April 20 - We listened to all the nets and weather and started to make the boat ready for our passage across the Anegada Passage to St. Martin (the French side). We went over to visit HAWK (which is another aluminum boat, built by the other Bad Boat Builder...we had been aboard her in Camden...very organized and could weather a hurricane easily )about 10...and she had made chocolate chip cookies!!!! Wonderful!!! They helped us with places to see and NOT in the Caribbean. We also talked about rigging, etc. etc. Unfortunately, it was quickly noon time and time to say our farewells and thank yous. We are not sure where and when we will meet again for Beth and Evans are heading to Scotland on April 27-28, if the weather is correct to begin a 30+ day Atlantic crossing. They are not sure whether they will stop at Bermuda and/or the Azores. We are able to keep in contact with email, which helps alot. I am sure our paths will cross again.

After lunch we were invited to visit with Jim and Debi and their springer spaniel, Sydney on BEEDAHBUN, a Nauticat. which is an interesting motor sailer. They are planning to ship her to Europe next spring and do the canals. We really enjoyed our visit with them also...more farewells...I am learning this is a real problem in this life!!! But I believe that we will see each other again...and we were so blessed to have met all these wonderful people.

We dinghied over to the Bitter End Yacht Club to see it, check out the stores and use the last few minutes on our phone card. We didn't find anything in the stores to buy (Everything in the BVI's is VERY expensive)...I am trying to find a little something from each country which we visit. We also found that there were no pay phones so we could not use our phone card!!! We dinghied out to Eustatia Sound to say good bye (another one!!!) to Natalie, Ed and Bob (the cockatoo) on FANCY FREE. We know that we will be seeing them in Los Aves/ Bonaire/Islands off Venezuela later this summer.

Back to the boat and we left North Sound at 4:30. We tried to sail out while Beth was taking pictures of us. Not sure what she got??? We also called back and forth several times on the VHF to check theirs. Apparently, Evans had fixed the problem. Debi had said that they were going to hike to the top of the mountain and take some pictures of us, so maybe we will have some pictures of us ...sailing... Jim took one of us off Tortala, check the picture section. (It has also been requested that I put captions on the photos...hopefully, I will have time to do that before the update appears. Eric usually puts the pictures in, so I will have to figure out how to put labels on them. I am also working on updating the Ports of Call section...we just realized it is empty!!!)

April 21 - We arrived in Marigot Harbour, St. Martin on the French side of this Caribbean island which is shared almost equally...and very peacefully, ..by the French and the Dutch (Sint Maarten). We sailed overnight with some wind. We did some tacking and some motoring. We kept wondering what it would be like out there in the Anegada Passage with strong winds and high seas...No thank you!! We would prefer to motor and tack... We had to go into town to check in with customs, which was about the only place open because of Good Friday.

April 22 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AUNT BETTY!!!!! 93 years YOUNG!!!! So we went into town early to get to the market when it opened at 9am. We bought alot of produce...not many deals. We went over to this fantastic gourmet supermarket and bought wine, cheese, French bread and pastries for desert. We also climbed up to the top of the mountain to explore Fort Lewis/Fort Marigot. Wonderful view of St. Martin and Marigot and its harbour. I FINALLY gave in and David cut my hair...actually, he did a pretty good job!!! Then we went for a swim around the boat.

April 23 - HAPPY EASTER!!!!! We didn't hide any colored Easter eggs this year...but we did enjoy some jelly beans!!! We sailed to Orient Bay, about 2 hours around the coast in 29 knot winds....we heeled over more than we ever have...in the gusts that come down between the mountains. We dinghied in and walked the beach....probably about a 3 mile walk. The beach was VERY crowded with the holiday. There were jet skiis, parasailors, and windsurfers....and we are anchored right in the middle....just like Coney Island!!! We watched the movie, The Paper...nothing to write home about...

April 24 - we were able to get French bread at the little store at the Orient Bay Resort. Eric took us to Green Cay to lay on the beach and then to snorkel. We continue to be very disappointed with snorkeling here. There were many conch, but I couldn't convince David or Eric to clean them....it is a REALLY tough job!!! That night was VERY rolly and lots of salt spray, because of the 20 knot winds.

April 25 - Eric scraped off the bottom of the boat...got off most of the barnacles and they haven't returned, but the grass is growing again!!!! Our own little garden...too bad we can cultivate something that we can eat! He has terrible blisters on his heels from his fins...

April 26 - After another rolly night, we left in 25 knot winds with HUGE swells coming in the entrance to the bay, to go to Grande Case. We spent all afternoon walking up and down the main (only!) street in town, reading the menus. This town has more restaurants than any other town in the Caribbean!!!! The prices are rather high...with entrees at $20-30, salads and deserts were $10. So, we bought more cheese and pastries to enjoy at home!!!

April 27 - After snorkeling at Roche Creole (Large rock at the mouth of the bay at Grande Case) for an hour (again, another disappointment...we were ver confused since there were dive and snorkel boats there. The visibility was terrible...maybe because of the swells??? There were few fish and no coral....or was it all destroyed by a hurricane???), we sailed back around the point to Marigot. We spent the afternoon looking at windsurf equipment and buying more bread, wine, cheese and pastries!!!!

 

 

 

April 13, 2000

We are still at The Bight at Norman's Island and are busy doing repairs, cleaning, general boat work. David and Nancy Black from Cincinnati are sailing over here from Nanny Cay on Tortola on BYNUM'S BEAUTY, their 52' chartered sloop at about noon. Hopefully, we will have a chance to visit with them, meet Nancy, and snorkel the Caves again before they have to head to Soper's Hole to pick up their captain who was in Boston for his father's funeral.

Nancy and George on TRUMPETER are also sailing over here from Cane Garden Bay on Tortola. Hopefully, we will be able to have them aboard to visit tonight with their newly married friends on SALIANDER. They will be heading back up to New England in a few weeks, while we will be going to St. Martin. They have been busy with friends and family for the last month, when we were aboard their boat in Magens Bay.

Our plan is to head into Coral Bay, St. John tomorrow to update this site and pick up our mail, if it is there. Eric will be putting new pictures on here, I hope. If we are not able to provision there, we will go around to Cruz Bay. We have plans to meet with Beth and Evans on HAWK in Drake's Anchorage, Virgin Gorda on Sunday. We will then wait for a weather window (the 30+knot winds with 7-9 foot seas from ENE will have to calm down!!!) for us to make the 80 mile trip overnight to St. Martin. We plan to leave about 3pm and travel overnight for an early morning arrival, so that we do not arrive after dark. The big problem is that we are still heading east, directly into the trades. I think this is our last major passage.

For all interested parties we have traveled 4780.8 miles on our journey. Since we left the Bahamas we have visited St. Thomas and St. John in the US Virgin Islands. In the British Virgin Islands we have been to Jost Van Dyke, Green Cay, Sandy Cay, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Peter Island, Norman Island, and Beef Island. Unfortunately, it looks like we are not going to get to Anegada. We will keep you informed.

Please continue to keep in touch...and let us know if we might be in your summer vacation plans. We would love to see you!

April 12, 2000

We are still in the BVI's at the Bight on Norman's Island. We sailed over here today from Virgin Gorda in 30+ knot winds, but it was very comfortable, since we were going downwind. Now, we will have to go BACK upwind to go east to St. Martin. We decided to go back into the US Virgin Islands for a mail drop on Saturday (hopefully), mail letters, make phone calls and pick up a few provisions. We are finding the Virgin Islands to be VERY expensive, even compared with Hawaii.

As you continue to read the updates below you will note that we were all ready to upload our site last Saturday, April 10 in Road Town, Tortolla; however, we could not find a place to do it. Also, after purchasing a phone card, we realized that it costs $2+/minute to the States, so that is another reason to head back to USVI to make some calls and update our site. We are not sure what we will find in St. Martin and along the chain of islands. It will probably be another month before we log on again. Our plans (get your maps out!) are to go to St. Martin/St. Maarten, St. Kitts, St. Barts, Antiqua, Guadeloupe (maybe), Martinique, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and the Grenadines, but of course all of this is subject to change according to how late we are (we should be leaving St. Martin now), the weather and we need to be to the Grenadines and Grenada by June 1 for the beginning of hurricane season. We will then work our way to Tobago, Trinidad, Venezuela and possibly Bonaire, Curacao and Aruba (we are not sure if they are out of the hurricane zone). At some point we will have to have PEACE AND ALOHA hauled out (again???) and her bottom cleaned and repainted. We have quite an a garden with barnacles on our bottom!!

Now, back to our update: This afternoon we dinghied over to snorkel the Caves on this island. Some of the most SPECTACULAR snorkeling we have ever had. The caves are partially filled with water and the colors are absolutely incredible in the rocks, sponges and corals. There were more fish than we have previously seen here. They had also been fed, because they would follow us around like little puppy dogs, begging for food and to be petted. We saw two GIGANTIC barracuda who came cruising by, much too close for comfort! They were bigger than I am!!!

April 8 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GURU MA! we went into Road Town and did 4 loads of wash, bought some food, all in preparation for our house (boat?) guest.We came back to the boat, defrosted the refrigerator and put it all away (after it was put on my inventory, of course!) We went back into town and check with Moorings about a friend, who should be arriving in Tortola on April 15, but they could not locate the reservation. It was so rolly at that anchorage that we left as soon as we returned and sailed out to Great Harbour at Peter Island. David and I went snorkeling along the edge of the harbor before dinner. We were anchored in 75 feet of water which is very unusually deep for here.

April 9 - We left early to head to Trellis Bay, Tortola, to be at the airport to meet Tuck Fraser, a good friend of mine from Cincinnati. We arrived about noon time, which gave us time to do some repairs and cleaning before we headed into the airport at about 4 to meet her plane at 4:30 or 6:00. We should have checked our email first (hind sight is so wonderful!), but we checked it when we returned since she wasn't on either flight! She had a BIG water leak at home! She tried to get a plumber (on Sunday???) and get another flight out, but she had not been able to contact us, so...she didn't make it! We were really disappointed! Hopfully, she will be able to join us further south, and some more of you will also venture to the Caribbean to visit...We had our Sunday night at the movies - we saw IQ! It is a really cute romantic comedy with Walter Matthau as Einstein!!

April 10 - We stayed around Trellis Bay, because from her emails, we thought Tuck was still coming at about noon. So, Eric changed the oil in the diesel and the generator and I tried (?) to tackle the 288 emails in the maui net in box...remember, please email us on the ham email directly to the boat, unless it is a joke/forwarded material or pictures, which cannot be sent that way. Address is KH7JL@cho.win-net.org. Just remember that we have limited time per day and this is done as a service to cruisers by ham radio volunteers. Thank you. We don't know what we would do without it. Please use that address for normal correspondence, and the maui net for forwarded messages and pictures.

Someone came into the anchorage while we were eating, and left their boat on a fishing mooring, which was not one of the regular anchor moorings. David and I had been snorkeling and had seen the rope which was on this mooring, so we moved and anchored further out in the harbor. We were able to sleep that night without worrying if that boat was going to come crashing into us...

April 11 - We left Trellis Bay about 8AM (early for us now...isn't that terrible?) and arrived at The Baths at Virgin Gorda. We dinghied into the beach and then walked the trail through the caves to Devil's Bay. We then went snorkeling for almost an hour along the caverns and huge boulders, which are in and out of the water. ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!!!! ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!!! I wish that I could describe this place is words, and unfortunately, I did not take my camera. Hopefully, I can get some post cards and Eric can scan them in. The water was crystal clear with beautifully colored corals and sponges. The rocks on land were HUGE boulders, thrown hither and yon, many balancing precariously on one another. They had been worn away into a myriad of shapes by waves over eons of time. We were told it is a similiar formation to the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. David and I were so enthralled by that snorkeling that we swam back to the caves and the beach from the boat for another hour after lunch.

Unfortunately, we had to leave about 3 because the anchorage is not safe at night even on the Park moorings and it had been very rolly during the day. We anchored for the night at St. Thomas Bay outside the Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbor at Spanish Town.

April 7, 2000

We are in Road Harbour, Tortola, British Virgin Islands...and we are rocking and rolling...this has got to be THE rolliest anchorage yet. We arrived here about 4:30, after sailing over from Green Cay, Little Jost Van Dyke, this afternoon. This morning we cleaned up the boat, Eric did some repair work and then we went into the Cay, walked around the island, and then went snorkeling. We finally found a magnificent spot, but Eric was there to pick us up in the dinghy and it was very cloudy. In fact, we had some drops of rain. Our weather has been absolutely amazing since we left Florida on January 23. It has been BEAUTIFUL every day. All of the rain has been at night. We definitely are appreciative of that!!! Thank you!!

David and Jason stayed aboard after we anchored here at Road Town and Eric and I went into check everything out!!! The Spring Sailing/Racing Regatta is happening this weekend...so there are wall to wall boats in this harbor and elsewhere in the BVI's. We saw KALIKOBASS, but nobody was aboard. Hopefully, we will see them tomorrow. We also saw this HUGE motor yacht, MORRECA, which had been in Port Stanley when we were there. We were told that it belonged to Sean Connery, and he went to Canada to play golf at this famous course nearby. So...maybe we will see him tomorrow, too!!!! Then when we returned to our boat, we noticed the boat next to us, REVERY. We stopped to introduce ourselves to Carol and Jim. They traveled here from the Bahamas the same time we did; however, they traveled the "thornless path" through Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. It happens that they live in Huron, Ohio and Carol grew up in Cincinnati and graduated from Withrow High School!!!! What a small world we live in!!!! They will be traveling down to Trinidad, storing their boat and returning to Ohio for the summer.

We are planning on updating this website tomorrow, washing, and provisioning...in preparation for our first house (boat???) guest. Tuck Frazier, who went to Hillsdale with me, will be arriving on Sunday, hopefully. She is flying standby (Delta) to St. Thomas, USVI and then over to Tortola by Cape Air. We were hoping that Jill Hoff was coming also, but a new job got in the way. Hopefully, next time, Jill! We had thought that we might pick her up here, but we will be out of this roll ASAP tomorrow, so we will pick her up at Trellis Bay. The only problem is Jason and Eric, who just went to shore to check out the Fun and Festivities with Music, etc. for the Regatta...if there are girls, we might have to stay for tomorrow night festivities!!!! We might be in trouble...not sure how much sleep we will get tonight with the roll AND the music!!!

Just to quickly bring you up to date: April 5 - we left Leinster Bay, St. John, USVI and sailed to Great (?...it is very small...200 people on the entire island!) Harbour, Jost Van Dyke, British Virgin Island. We arrived about noon, had lunch and then dinghied to shore to clear customs. We were told at the dock by other cruisers, that the immigration officier had gone to lunch and it had taken them 2+ hours to clear through, because of a large cruise ship which was late arriving. So we cleared through customs (PEACE AND ALOHA was cleared in, but we were not!), and then told to return in an hour or so. We needed bread and fruits, so we found a WONDERFUL bakery, and bought three loaves of sandwich bread and some banana bread for dessert. We were able to buy 4 apples, and some bananas and plantains. We also checked out Foxy's. We cleared through and paid our 40 cents. We arrived back at our boat about 4 and spent the next two hours watching 50 more boats come in and anchor (???) in this small harbor. Most of the boats are chartered and it is really scarey. They take their anchor out of the locker, throw it into the water and dump about 25-50 feet of the chain on top and then leave their boat. Luckily, there was no wind, so nobody dragged. I really wanted to leave. Fifty six boats in a small little harbor is not my idea of a quiet pristine beach anchorage in the BVI's!!! One of our friends in USVI said that if we were going to the BVI's we should get out all out fenders and put them around the entire boat to protect us from the charter boats!!!!

The boys went into Foxy's for a drink after dinner...but NO girls... where are all the girls????

April 6 - HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY, NARAN! We hope it is happy! We left Great Harbour about 10, along with most of the other boats. We went to Sandy Cay. We walked around the island (I forgot to take the camera...Sob!) and then went snorkeling. We left about 3 and motored over to Green Cay where we anchored for the night with only one other boat. Yea!

Hopefully, this will bring you up to date with our adventures....hope everyone is healthy and happy! Please continue to keep in touch via the ham email...just remember, no forwarded LONG messages or pictures. It has been working very well. Also, when we received our messages from maui.net last time there were 75 new messages....I have NOT had a chance to read any of them or to answer them. So, please write us on the ham email and you will receive a more timely response. We love to hear from you all! We would love to have others visit. We understand that Grenada is a possibility. We should be leaving within two weeks to head to St. Martin/St. Maarten. Miss you all. Love and aloha.

April 4, 2000

It looks like there will be weeks in between updates....I will keep updating and when we have a chance to attach to a land line, we will update this web site. Many places only have their computers. We are able to use a payphone with our acoustic modem, but it is much easier to use a phone with an 800 number on a desk, rather than trying to juggle our laptop over the cement sidewalk! On the 23rd it took us over two hours and there were 75+ new messages to our email. Sometimes we have trouble connecting and then oftentimes there is trouble with maui.net. Of course, it is never at a time when we can call them. Please write short messages directly to the boat at KH7JL@cho.win-net.org. We are not able to receive pictures or forwarded messages...long messages...since it is transmitted by ham radio volunteers. Please communicate with us that way...otherwise, it could be a month or so between messages...just don't abuse this wonderful service that allows us to remain connected to our family and friends. We just received two forwarded messages from someone that we did not know.....We are alloted a short period of time per day and if it used up for some stupid forwarded message, we will not receive our important messages!!! Thank you for your cooperation!

We are still in USVirgin Islands. We are in Leinster Bay, St. John. . We came here yesterday after we finished making three courtesy flags: English flag for British Virgin Islands, French flag for St. Martin, and Netherland Antilles flag for the Dutch side of St. Martin or St. Maarten. When we enter a foreign country we fly a yellow quarantine flag, plus our American flag. After we clear through their customs and immigration, we continue to fly our American flag, but we also fly that country's flag as a "courtesy" and also to indicate that we have cleared through their customs.

We went ashore yesterday to explore and found the trail to the Annaberg Sugar Mill ruins. It has been restored by the National Park Service and costs $4/person...so we passed on giving the $16. We walked further down the road to see the ruins of the Annaberg School House. The governor required mandatory childhood education for ALL children (slave and free) here, long before it was required in the United States.

We then went snorkeling arounnd Waterlemon Cay, which had much prettier coral and more fish than we have yet seen. David and I got out to warm up on the rocky shore and were leaning up against a large rock. I thought I heard someone coming and looked up - there was one of the 350 donkeys (the National Park counts them) looking down at us! He was very concerned since we were sitting right where he wanted to walk. He went inland around us and come back out on the beach and walked away down the beach!

This morning David and Eric rigged up the Super Snorkel in the dinghy and we went back out there to scuba dive. That was the first time that I had been scuba diving sinc