17.03.97N 61.53.02W
JENNY
Alan Franklin/ Lynne Gane
Sat 22 Dec 2007 17:20
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We finally made it to Antigua 3050nm 21 days and 5
hours after leaving Lanzarote arriving in English Harbour yesterday we really
landed on our feet.The customs,immigration and port officials allowed us to
officially complete our entry formalities so that we could go ashore especially
as we arrived at their offices (all next to one another ) with only17 min to
closing and paperwork to complete that normally takes 45 min on a good day.No
formal entry papers no going ashore.
Not only did they stay open after their closing
time but one of the girls recommended a restaurant that was brilliant not only
for the food but when we walked in we bumped into a friend from East Grinstead
Paddy who was out here meeting up with her daughter Becky.They had booked a
table for 2 we had no booking and the place was fully booked ,with a lot of
smiles and a little gentle persuasion the 2 became 6 and we were
in.
Prior to eating we went to a quayside bar
frequented by yacht crews the professional paid variety.Well its a different
world from the Solent circuit 60 ft is small the boats are lit up on one
catamaran the stairway yes the stairway up each of the hulls were lit up as well
as the deck ,spreaders saloon and underwater lights.This is without the motor
cruisers not the plastic variety that we see at home but ocean going ship types
one cost 80,000 USD to fill up with fuel,we did agree that we couldn't afford to
turn over the engines let alone go anywhere ,how the other half live.Mind you
after 3 rum punches and a beer we were ready to eat or sleep after all we had
sailed 3000nm with night watches of 3hrs each for 21 days but we deserved a
little R&R.So it was off to the restaurant and then off to a bar to meet
some of Becky's fellow crew members by which time we were knackered
Getting from boat to shore when you are at anchor
needs a boat referred to as a dinghy,rather like one of those blow up things you
see at the beach but bigger and stronger with an outboard motor on the back no
oars for us (emergency use only) as the distances from boat to shore can be
quite a long way.Its no use getting to dressed up as many times you have to wade
ashore and getting from boat to dinghy and dingy to pontoon or shore can be a
little haphazard.Coming back after a few can be interesting especially trying to
find the boat in a bay in the dark with no moon and no lights on the boat ,it
took us an hour once just to find it.
Anyway we all managed that and went to sleep, it
was as though somebody had just turned out the lights I woke up at 0730 without
interruption unheard of for me everybody was the same,we must have been
tired.
We had arranged to pick Paddy up from the quayside
to spend the day with us as she had never been on a sailing boat before,nor a
dinghy,she managed really well as we got the boat ready to go to sea lifted the
anchor filled up with fuel and left the harbour to go to Jolly Harbour about
2+hours sailing away.
Once out side the harbour conditions were quite
blustery and not ideal for Paddy's first sail seeing that she looked a little
apprehensive I did ask if she wanted a life jacket to which she replied "why do
you think I need one" After one squall we saw us doing 11.3 knts our best
ever we reefed down to steady the boat up as the look on Paddy's face was
questioning and this was her first time,what an initiation for
her.
Mind you our reefing (reduction in sail area and
speed) was tempered by the fact that we had another boat the same make and more
or less model type as ours was about 1.5 nm in front of us completing
their passage a day after us.Now remember that this is not a race and we
were refreshed from our nights sleep but we could not let them beat us to the
entrance channel to Jolly Harbour so by taking a slighter shorter but slightly
more challenging route we got there first and then waited for them to let
them go first.We haven't seen them yet so we haven't had any comments but they
may not be printable.
On being given our berth the rally control described our berth as
challenging to get into but with brilliant crew work it all went well it is
always much harder for just husband and wife crew .We just had time for a bite
to eat a couple of beers,a natter with other boats and then it was off the a
place called Shirley Heights which is the highest point on the island and
overlooks English Harbour,where had we just come from,but the views were really
good the sunset great and the steel band just out of this world.I don't think
any of us had ever heard a steel band sound so good bums were a wiggling and
hips were swaying mind you the rum punches helped.
And now the log and off to bed.We will be here
until the 23rd doing work on the boat and seeing the island so don't expect to
much on the blog.
Its been a good long trip makes 1500nm across the
Caribbean to Panama seem like a short hop
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