Quarantine day 7
Mystic of Holyhead (successor to Lynn Rival)
Rachel and Paul Chandler
Sat 28 Mar 2020 21:08
|
Nothing is normal these
days but as far as we can tell the Grenadines have yet to be
gripped by the panic pandemic. They have now closed the three
island ports (Union, Canouan and Bequia) to arrivals but
are still allowing check-in at St Vincent ports, subject to
quarantine if arriving from a French island. (Apparently some
yachties had been abusive towards the officials and even refused
to do quarantine - they were, rightly, escorted out of SVG
waters.) The Coastguard visited us for the first time today,
though backed off when they realised we are in quarantine. Over the last few days we've spoken to a few yachties, passing in their dinghies on the way to the town. A Canadian couple we'd met 8 years ago in Madeira were here but they've now hauled out in Kingstown - leaving their boat to the mercy of the hurricane gods - and flown home via Barbados. A British couple have just left and are hoping to do likewise - but they surely run a big risk of getting stuck at an airport somewhere along the way. Another Brit, alone as his wife and family have already flown home, is sitting it out for the time being (hoping Grenada will let us in before long). The harbour is fairly quiet. A trickle of foreign yachts - mostly French but a few Dutch, Swedish and even Finnish and Brazilian - come and go. They may be coming here for fresh supplies and then going to other, more comfortable, anchorages to wait. The charter catamaran businesses have all but dried up, though yesterday we saw a local tripper boat preparing for weekend outings. The restaurants and bars are closed but people are moving about onshore and on the water. Local yacht services staff regularly check on the unattended boats. Small planes still land and take off at intervals, though perhaps only carrying a few people at a time. The ferry services seem to be operating as normal, generating a flurry of activity, and we are hopeful that supplies are still coming in. Like everyone we worry about using up our stocks and being caught out in an emergency.  The big daily ferry from St Vincent  The local island hopper, dive bombing the Anchorage Yacht Club |