Cruising South
Eowyn
Sat 9 May 2009 19:46
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Éowyn is presently in Prince
Rupert Bay, Dominica in position 15:34.89N 61:27.79W
Our second cruise started with some
trepidation as we were fearful that we might have some unwelcome visitors
onboard when we arrived. When we had Eowyn hauled in January, we had found two
German cockroaches crawling around and it is said that you have 100 for every 1
you see!!!. We had put down as much poisoned bait and traps as reasonable but
when we opened the hatch it was a relief to find just 1 dead cockroach -
phew!
The first problem was discovered at
the bow where the Furlex upper swivel was found to be too worn for a
circumnavigation - another addition to the work list!
John Chesbrough & Carole Naylor
were due to join us on the 2nd May so we had a couple of days hard work to get
Éowyn shipshape.
With our crew onboard we headed for
Falmouth Harbour and on Sunday evening made the compulsory pilgrimage to Shirley
Heights for the steel band and barbeque. the next day we headed for Green Island
having toured Nelson's Dockyard and cleared customs.
Green Island was a brief but welcome
contrast to the bustle of Falmouth Harbour and from there we headed to Deshais,
Guadeloupe. The passage was fast with a SSE force 6 but it was a bit rolly for
the girls who migrated to the sea berths in the saloon. It was a lively night at
anchor in Deshais as the wind strengthened still further - not helped by a
rather inconsiderate German yacht who was causing havoc in the
anchorage.
Deshais was just a stopover and we
did not land, but sailing Southwards to the Saintes. This beautiful collection
of islands is part of Guadeloupe but has an entirely different feel to it. It is
a holiday playground for the Guadeloupe French but has a particular Gallic charm
which magnifies once the day trippers leave about 5 pm. We hired scooters on the
second day and visited Fort Napoleon which has an acceptable museum - the Fort
is in exceptional condition. The scooters enabled us to explore the little
Island to the full. We dined in one of our favourite restaurants, La Saladerie
which specialises in smoked fish.
  The Crew at
Fort Napoleon, Saintes
Today we had an excellent close reach
to Dominica and anchored in Prince Rupert Bay. This area has been transformed in
recent years as the boat boys have got their act together and provide an
excellent professional service to visiting yachts. It is right we should reward
them by using their services. the authorities too provide one of the fastest
clearance services for yachts
  Two Sides of
Dominica
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