Dear All,

 

First of all, we must apologise for the long absence of news. After putting our boat computer in for repair the week before Christmas, we have only now had it returned, a burnt out motherboard, a victim of the Caribbean heat.

We have now installed additional fans as the heat has also been playing havoc with our fridge compressors and service batteries.

 

We have also received and said goodbye to our three pairs of friends. It has been wonderful to see them and catch up with news from home, by the time we return in May we will have been away for almost nine months.

It’s not been all plain sailing as Out-Rageous has been quite demanding repairs wise as she has sailed in excess of six thousand miles since we left Falmouth in July.

On the way to Grenada we had major sail drive problems to our engines resulting in a tense moment as both engines failed about 50 yards from the dock in Grenada. Fortunately wind and luck was in our favour.

We had both repaired in Grenada, this resulted in a two week stay on a very lovely island.

 

The arrival of our guests has meant that we have now ventured far beyond St Lucia and have been sailing amongst the beautiful archipelago called the Grenadines.

The photographs tell it as it is.

 

Bequia, a sleepy island and very friendly, it has its own turtle sanctuary where they collect Hawksbill turtle eggs, hatch them and realise them after three years. This gives a good start to a very endangered species of turtle.

We moved on to Tobago Cays where the sea is a light turquoise and swimming with turtles is the main occupation. The anchorage is behind the reef which leaves it quite exposed and a rolly night is the debt to pay for being in this wonderful location.

After the Cays we moved on to our favourite Bay called Chatham bay which is in the the lee of Union Island, fantastic snorkelling and a bar on the beach that cooks the best fresh lobster outside of Cornwall.

There is something so good about sitting down to eat and drink whilst covering your feet in soft coral sand and listening to the sounds of Bob Marley or similar. The only way to get to Chatham is by boat or 4x4 so its peaceful and tranquil; however once the rum punch is flowing and the ganja is burning look out for de limbo man. (see pics)

 

After Union Island we moved on to Carriacou, another sleepy island, well that's what it was on our first visit, however when we returned its was Carnival time.

Again the Pictures tell all apart from the shootings!

 

From where we sailed down to Grenada which I would say is the best Island so far. As I mentioned earlier we had mechanical problems which meant an enforced two week stay in Grenada. We were unable to return to St Lucia to pick up Roger and Sue, fortunately they caught a local flight from St Lucia to Grenada with a Caribbean airline LIAT which stands for Leave Island Any Time or Luggage in Antiqua Tomorrow. As you can guess they are notoriously unreliable.

 

If there was ever a good place to stranded, Grenada is it. We even got roped in to a fun run!

We are now currently back in St Lucia from where we will travel North to Martinique and Dominica before heading South to our Summer layup destination in April, Trinidad.

 

Before I close, I would like to tell you the story of our gas bottle.

We left Falmouth with good old Calor Gas and regulator which lasted until Las Palmas, unfortunately Cornwall bottled gas do not deliver to the Canaries so we then exchanged for a local gas called Disa and a different regulator. This lasted until St Lucia where without any problem they took my Disa bottle and refilled it. Great; I thought that was until we reached Grenada where we ran out again.

I enquired at the marina office and was told it could be filled and to leave it with the lady at the rear of the building. I knocked at her door and was met by a rather large Caribbean lady who was quite happily carrying two 15kg gas bottles one in each hand. I asked her if she could arrange to get my bottle filled to which she agreed and said I would have to wait until Monday, today was Thursday and we were leaving Sunday.

She said to me that if I had brought the bottle to her yesterday I could have had it back on Friday, to which I replied “ I had not run out yesterday.” She just looked at me and gave me the Caribbean smile.

I then returned to the office who directed me to the gas bottling centre, luckily we had a car so off we went.

Some ten miles later we arrived at the bottling plant I took out the bottle and asked if they could fill it, I was told to go to the office which was up two flights of stairs with my bottle! By this time we were getting very Pi!!!! off and guess what? They could not fill our bottle due to the wrong valve.

 

We then conceded and went to the nearest petrol station which also sold gas.

I went inside and explained that we had sailed from the Canaries and our old gas bottle was no longer acceptable and that we needed a new bottle of gas and regulator to which the man replied  “no problem brudder.”

He then asked for my old one in exchange! And was very confused because it was not the same as the one he was going to give me.

I then explained again that how I needed a new bottle.

Eventually the conversation went something like this.

 

“Well I have tree types of gas, I have de white gas, de blue gas and de green gas, de white gas is in de white bottle the blue gas is in de blue bottle and the green gas is in de green bottle.”

I then asked which colour is propane and which colour is butane to which he replied.

“I  have nunna dem, I towld you  I have de white gas, de blue gas and de green gas.”

I then asked did he have regulators to fit each one as butane and propane regulators were different.

“Yes brudder for de white gas I have de white valve, for de blue gas I have de blue valve and for the green gas I have de green valve.”

I then asked as we were on a sailing boat which gas would he recommend.?

“well brudder as de sea is blue I tink de blue would be just fine”

So we settled on a blue bottle and guess what colour the regulator was? GREY they were all bloody grey!!!!

So just to change the gas bottle took all day and so that is brudders and sistas  Caribbean life!

 

All for now

 

Lynn and Derek.