Onwards and Southwards.....
andromeda of plymouth
Susan and Andrew Wilson
Tue 24 Apr 2012 10:50
We were fortunate that there was a mooring buoy available in Les Saintes
as it made a form of justification for staying and ordering some of their
lovely croissants and baguettes for early morning delivery.....mmmmmm.
We stayed over the Easter weekend (a bit of a surprise to us as we had
lost track of dates) and as it was likely customs and immigration would be
closed further south until after the break. So we enjoyed the town,
bobbing about on the buoy, swimming and the croissants and the baguettes
and the pan de chocolat and, well that’s enough really, thinking of waist
lines etc.
We left the islands and headed South for Dominica and its capital Roseau.
The southern part of the island was something we wanted to see and to
explore the capital. We arrived late in the afternoon and were met by
Pancho who guided us to a mooring he managed. The sail south was rather
bumpy and gusty but good none-the-less until we were in the lee of the
island, when it was time to motor sail. Pancho offered us four nights for
the price of three if we went on a tour he had arranged the following day
– we agreed, but little did we know quite what the tour was, as we were
told it was botanical gardens, hot springs, etc., the standard tourist
fare. The following morning Pancho picked us up from Andromeda and
arranged for his friend Jones to take us to Customs and Immigration while
we waited for another couple to join us for the tour, and once formalities
were completed an American couple arrived, Pete and Sharon and we were
taken by Jones and Bamboo (‘cos he’s as thin as bamboo....) to Victoria
Falls, yes there more than one. These falls are on the windward/Atlantic
side of the island and it takes an hour driving over very steep roads to
get to the car park which is the property of a locally famous, ageing
rasta called Moses, who cooks vegetarian food for visitors and guests
alike and who appears in all the quide books. Quite a character to meet,
as is his brother!
The path to Victoria Falls is a 45 minute hike along a river, through the
river 5 times, scrambling up rocks, rain forest and narrow logs, and
eventually arriving very wet at a 175 foot waterfall. This is not a
typical tourist place and we weren’t really prepared for the trip, but we
enjoyed it. The falls are very dramatic and indeed the river was rising as
we descended due to rains in the mountains further up so the return trip
was scarier. The following day we ached in all sorts of places! The meal
cooked by Moses when we arrived back at the car park was a mixture of
beans, breadfruit, plantain and obviously secret herbs – interesting and
filling, served in a calabash bowl with a piece of calabash for a spoon,
totally vegan as is the Rastafarian way.
The following morning we once again watched as some local fishermen cast
their net behind Andromeda. Everyday we were there they were ready to go
at 6am. There were 3 men in a boat (yes we know) and one guy snorkelling
as they paid the net out in a very traditional manner. Once the net was
fully deployed, and the snorkeller had spotted fish, the boat headed back
to shore then quite a few other people turned up on the beach to slowly
pull in the net and land the catch. Once all the fish had been landed they
collectively straightened out the net passing it hand to hand back into
the fishing boat, and after two hour process was completed.
Later that morning we headed into Roseau and had a good look round –
fortunately no cruise ship was in so it was quiet and not too busy to get
round the town’s narrow one way streets without too much hassle. We found
the place quite surprising and very pretty with a great mix of old and new
buildings as well as a very vibrant, busy and colourful market. Susan even
managed to find a store with a new bright orange hat – much needed as her
previous one has lost all it’s colour in the sun. We went back and had
lunch in the Drop Anchor bar,( just by our mooring) which has a pier and
wifi, and then dinghied back to prepare to set off for Martinique the
following day. Dominica is one of our favourite places so far and we
expect we will return for another visit.
The sail to St. Pierre in Martinique was not too bad and we had a great
highlight of a huge pod of dolphins joining us for about half an hour mid
way on our crossing. Very difficult to count these fast swimming creatures
but there seemed to be a lot – they always bring a smile to the face when
seen. Arriving in St. Pierre we had to anchor on a lee shore for a while
(that meant if our anchor dragged we would be heading towards the beach
instead of out to sea) due to very light winds – not something we enjoy
but eventually the wind turned. There is a narrow ledge to anchor on here
and one yacht barrelled in late that night, dropped its anchor and was
next seen several miles off shore, having dragged! However we were ok and
off we set early the following morning for Fort de France.
The anchorage in Fort De France is lovely and spacious and we were pleased
to set our anchor first time. Arriving on a Sunday meant we stayed on
Andromeda until we could clear in on Monday morning, and it also meant we
could enjoy a quiet night! In the French islands, clearing in and out is
so, so simple. Just go to a computer screen, say who you are, boat
details, passport details and print this out, get the cafe, bar or in this
case chandlery staff to stamp it, and off you go! Compare this with
non-French islands when there are usually lots of forms to fill in and at
least three separate organisations to see. At least in Dominica it was two
forms and we could clear in and out at the same time which is very useful,
however the islands with UK links are very strong on forms and process!
Fort de France is very lively, very French and Caribbean at the same time,
and quite a nice place. On our way in we passed a yole- this is
traditional narrow hulled local sailing boat which has a huge squarish
sail and folks on logs hanging over the side to balance it – a very wet
ride it would seem.
In the town/city there are the usual tourist shops, but there are lots and
lots of clothes and other shops ranging from cheap to very expensive and
everything has a touch of the French, yes we know, but there is an
unmistakeable French character/ambience, call it what you will, to
everything they do. For the best wifi by the way, go to KFC! We enjoyed
the town and wandering around. The anchorage is very close to the town
centre and the dinghy dock close to the main park and children’s play
park. The anchorage was not very crowded, although some we passed heading
south were very busy, but whilst we were there the weather changed and it
rained off and on for the most for the time. Not sure quite why, given
this is the dry season, but there you go.
After checking the weather we decided to head for St. Lucia and Rodney Bay
before going to Bequia. However the weather was not as it was forecast,
which seems to be increasingly the case of late. The winds were light and
whilst we were making progress it was slow. As we approached St. Lucia
ominous black clouds appeared and we were caught in a squall with
torrential rain and 25knot winds dead on the nose – forecast said winds
from the east, these were from the south! However, drenched as we were we
dried out after the squall passed and were rewarded by the sight of a
large pod of dolphins – these had a distinct red tinge to their bellies,
and alongside them some pilot whales – at last we had seen some whales,
yippee! These stayed with us for a while until we were off Pigeon Island,
to be greeted by yet more rain and wind from the south. Our intention was
to take on some fuel and to see something of Castries – however the
weather put paid to that and so the town and the rest of the island is for
another time.
More in due course.........
Susan and Andrew
S/V Andromeda of Plymouth
St. Lucia
Ps fame but no fortune beckon, there should be an article in either May or
June’s Yachting Monthly about when the forestay broke.
pps since writing this the weather has improved and we now have blue skies
again yipeee.
all the photos are from Dominica
