Guadeloupe
Moonshine
Mon 2 Apr 2007 19:58
sun, a little rain, some fresh sailing and some motoring. The day was rather
like a blustery spring day in England, except warmer.
We treated it as a delivery trip rather than a cruise, and started the motor
each time the boat slowed, just looking forward to Guadeloupe. The sea was
livelier than we expected, but this was only a 5 hour journey, so that was
unimportant.
We arrived at Pointe du Pitre at about 3, and made for Bas du Fort marina.
Gosh, I have never experienced such professionalism. I had radioed the
marina to say we were approaching, but didn't hear their reply.
Our lines were taken at the holding dock, and we were refuelled. Then a
uniformed marina officer in a small boat showed us to our berth, took our
lines, secured us, and gave us power and water. We were then introduced to
the marina office, who obtained our details off their computor, and asked
for customs clearance for us. The clearance was faxed back, and within 20
minutes of arriving, we had legaly entered Guadeloupe.
We must not expect this again!
We walked the 3 miles into Pointe du Pitre town.
The town is a mix of modern international architecture, and historical
French/Caribbean architecture, and has the feel of being vibrant, but run
down.
In other circumstances we would have explored more, but had forgotten how
hot and tired we were, and taxied back to the boat.
We explored Bas du Fort the following day, eating local creole food. Good,
but missable, and the Virgin Islands are calling! .
We were beginning to feel like the American coach trip tourists we met in
Venice who, surrounded by so many treasures, had been given tick box lists
to complete to make sure they could 'do' Venice in one day.
We intended to leave Guadeloupe through the mangrove swamp that divides the
two halves of the island, so there was a bit of planning to do that day. In
places, the channel is only a few inches deeper than the boat, and whatever
courses are to be steered have to be planned well in advance. It's no good
scratching your head at a chart table as the boat runs aground on the coral.
Also, the bridge leading into the swamp opens at 5am, so the first bit is
done in the dark.
We anchored that night within sight of the bridge. It was idyllic. we swam off the boat, cooked
on board, listened to nice jazz, and set the alarm for 4am.
The morning brought torrential rain.
Rod Sandra and the mouse
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