Guadeloupe
Ernestina
Thu 27 Feb 2020 12:24
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6th Feb 2020
We raised the anchor off Dominica at 0900 and enjoyed a very windy sail up to Iles des Saintes, a small group of islands off the south coast of Guadeloupe. We anchored but it continued to be very windy so decided to carry on to the main island taking a fender-squeezing berth in Marina Riviere des Sens. Amanda was delighted to find an excellent boulangerie adjacent to the marina! Like Martinique, Guadeloupe is a department of France and, having benefited from significant investment, has very good infrastructure with multi-lane highways and large shopping malls. Not, perhaps, what one comes to the Caribbean for, and in complete contrast to the smaller independent states, but the ability to get around easily in a hire car and to find familiar products in the shops made a welcome change for a while. 7th February We checked-in using the efficient online system at the marina. Simon and Brenda arrived at around 11 o’clock. Our planned volcano walk was aborted due to bad weather so we had a short hike in the rainforest on the way back to Simon and Brenda’s Airbnb. In the evening we went to a nearby microbrewery and enjoyed some very interesting local beers including one made with chilli. 8th February Saturday – market day In Point á Pitre we bought a large red snapper and some great fresh fruit & veg. A wander around the town centre revealed a surprising array of street art, some of which would not look out of place in Shoreditch.
 Next a visit to the local marina to check out the chandlers; sadly all were closed. ☹️
In the afternoon we drove up to the north-west coast and had a swim at the lovely beach at Grand Anse followed by an interesting visit to a rum distillery on the way home. Sunday 9th February A visit to the Memorial ACTe in Point á Pitre, a new museum dedicated to the history of slavery was an informative and moving reminder of this awful aspect of humanity In the afternoon we collected Simon & Brenda’s daughter, Amy, from the airport and returned home for a short walk before dinner.
Monday 10th February Simon drove us all to the marina and after some boat orientation for the new crew we sailed north to Pigeon Island. The wind was somewhat more than forecast with gusts of 35kts and after trying unsuccessfully to anchor we gave up and headed back to the marina. On the way we rescued a lone fisherman who was on an open kayak and had been blown offshore. He was exhausted and clinging to a fishing pot float. We got him on board and returned him to his home base at Anse a la Barque nearby. Tuesday 11th February After a night on Ernestina we sailed to Iles des Saintes under staysail and with three reefs in the main-sail. Windspeeds of 25 to 30kts made for another exciting sail with everyone taking the helm for a while. The mooring buoys were all taken when we arrived and we were contemplating anchoring or heading back when somebody left their buoy and we managed to grab their spot. After lunch aboard we went ashore (two trips in the tender) and explored the town including sampling the local ice cream and drinks in a waterfront bar before returning to the boat for dinner and a rolly night on the mooring. Wednesday 12th February A walk up the hill to Napoleon’s Fort – very interesting – and then on to Sugarloaf Bay for snorkelling showed us a lot of the island. It is extremely pretty and has a well-to-do feel about it – very much a holiday destination for comfortable French folk.
We had a cracking sail back to the marina on Guadeloupe with the wind gusting 40kts+ over the stern quarter – absolutely brilliant! Thursday 13th February Simon drove us from the marina up to Clugny Bay on the north west coast for a lovely walk before going to Grand Anse for a swim. We then went back to the house before going to the airport to pick up Louise and John (Nick/Simon’s sister & Husband) and a second hire car. Nick and Amanda returned to the marina leaving Simon, Brenda and Amy with their new guests. Friday 14th February The delayed volcano walk took place today although the weather was still inclement. It was very windy, very wet, and visibility was very poor, but an interesting and challenging walk nonetheless. From there we drove to the beach at Pigeon Island for swimming and snorkelling before a second visit to the microbrewery. Saturday 15th of February Cleaning and various jobs on the boat for Nick & Amanda before driving to the house for dinner and a sleepover. Sunday 16th February Another coast walk from Deshaies to Grand Anse followed by lunch and swimming there. We then said goodbye to the Canadian Clayton’s before dropping our hire car at the airport and returning to the marina by taxi with Louise and John. Monday 17th After provisioning we checked-out of Guadaloupe at the marina (with 24 hours grace) and sailed up to Deshaies where the anchorage was too full so we found a sheltered spot in a small bay just to the south and had a pleasant and quiet night there. Tuesday 18th February We motored back to Deshaies and found a good spot to anchor. Ashore we walked up to the beautiful botanical gardens and back down to the village for lunch at the Madras bar (also known as Catherine’s bar from “Death in Paradise“); this meant nothing to some of us but others were quite excited by it.  Nick Clayton Sent from mobile phone +44 7733 327026 |