Martinique East Coast
Oriole
Sun 27 Feb 2005 15:06
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We returned to Ste Anne, Martinique on Saturday
having taken delivery of our
new dinghy floor and on Monday anchored in the most protected spot in Marin in preparation for sorting out our gearbox. A visit to the gearbox mechanic decided John to have a go at curing the problem of the leak himself having received a lesson in leak solving. We were not charged for either the lesson or the replacement gasket but a tip was accepted with reluctance. We were instructed to report back with our results. A couple of hours of 'head in the engine compartment' finished the job and we discovered that where there should have been a gasket, none existed, explaining perhaps why we had a leak. All is now well and we have saved a week of waiting for the mechanic to do it himself, no doubt at great cost. We met up with Simon and Hilda Julian from Newton Ferrers in their yacht Calisto and we had supper together on Oriole. Now that our guests have returned to Europe the weather has improved dramatically and we are back to typical Caribbean weather. This decided us to come up the Atlantic side of Martinique which we have not visited since Stuart, Paul and John sailed up here in the old Troubadour in 1972. Although there are more houses along the coast than there were then, it is still unfrequented by yachts as the sailing and pilotage is somewhat more challenging than the rest of the East Caribbean. Yesterday we had a pre-arranged mini Royal Cruising Club meet with Chantal (Nigel and Elizabeth Pattison) and now they have left to go south we are alone in the Baie de Tresor which is probably the most beautiful anchorage in Martinique which must put it in the top 10 for the Caribbean.  Chantal
and Oriole in the Baie de Tresor
We are
protected by the offshore reefs and a gentle breeze is blowing through the anchorage. It is a great pity that we could not have shared this with Andrew and Katherine last week. Although we should be pushing on north to Antigua and the Virgin Islands we plan to have a few more days solitude here. |