Cassini Blog #69 - Oh What a Night!
Cassini's blog
Simon and Sally, Nigel and Catherine
Mon 18 Dec 2023 19:52
Yesterday we had a leisurely motor up from Roseau, the
capital of Dominica to Portsmouth, the town on the North West coast. This is
located in Prince Rupert Bay and was only 18 miles away. We decided to motor to re-charge the batteries and run our water
maker, and we arrived with fuller batteries and a water tank that was almost
full, so a good result. Sally also decided to take the opportunity to make some
bread in the Ninja while the engine was running which was particularly delicious
with our fresh fish.
All was quiet and serene until we rounded the headland
into Prince Rupert Bay where we were met with 30 knot winds blowing straight on
the nose. It is a local effect caused by the bay being between two small
mountains which funnel the wind from the east and accelerate it through the bay.
We called up PAYS (Portsmouth Association of Yacht Security) which is a
locally run organisation which controls and maintains the mooring buoys and
provides lots of other services including water taxis, tours, river trips etc.
The mooring buoys seem strong enough and we have survived many gusts of over 20
knots while being here. After safely securing to the buoy we were then
approached by a number of guys in boats all trying to sell their wares from
bananas to beach barbeques. After some debate we ended up with a mango, an
avocado and 4 tickets to the beach barbeque (which we had heard was a good
event). Catherine also took the opportunity to give Simon and I a much
needed haircut after our Atlantic crossing.
We were in desperate need of some local cash so Sally,
Simon and I set off in the afternoon in search of an ATM. Our first attempt was
unsuccessful but after a local man pointed us in the right direction we managed
to find a working ATM and get some much needed East Caribbean Dollars. You can
use US dollars here but the exchange rate is unfavourable and it pays to use the
local currency when possible. On the French islands they tend to use
Euros.
After a short respite onboard we headed for the beach
barbeque at 1830 and were not disappointed. Great food, which just kept on
coming, and an endless supply of rum punches ensured that we had a very good
night to celebrate Sally and Simon's 40th wedding anniversary. We ate, drank and
danced and a had a wonderful time. We also met a French couple (Jean-Marc and
Vanessa) who are on the next mooring and also touring the Caribbean. Hopefully
we will meet up with them later in our travels.
After numerous rum punches it was decided to return to
the boat. At the dinghy dock Catherine had a serious gyro failure and ended up
missing the dinghy and going for a short night swim in the bay! All
very funny in hindsight but a bit of a shock at the time. We eventually got back
onboard the boat safely and got everybody tucked up in bed.
Today is a quiet recovery day before setting off for
Guadalupe tomorrow which is our final stop before arriving in Antigua for
Christmas.
Nigel the Navigator
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