Antigua
Oriole
Sun 13 Mar 2005 15:27
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On Monday we sailed from Falmouth inside the reefs
to Jolly Harbour to take
delivery of our warranty replacement winch motor. After reams of paper and a 150$US handling fee the Customs finally released it two days later and within an hour we had fitted it and were ready to depart. John took the useless motor to the FedEx office to return it to Denmark which cost the winch manufacturers another 350$US, so not including the cost of the motor it will have cost them 850$US to replace it. Perhaps they will check more carefully before dispatch in future. It has taken two months to get to us but to have two fully functioning electric sheet winches is a real
joy.
The 65 ft British services training yacht 'Adventure' found out the hard way and reminded us how careful the pilotage around Antigua needs to be. On Sunday it ran onto a reef we had sailed past and pounded for two hours before being dragged off. She was hauled out at Jolly Harbour for repairs and the poor skipper had to entertain a group of squaddies for a fortnight with his yacht on dry land. Back in Falmouth Harbour we have met up with friends and are soaking up the atmosphere of the megayachting scene. These enormous toys sit for weeks and months waiting for a brief visit from their owners or a charterer prepared to pay the 10s of thousands of pounds a week for the
privilege.
The late John Paul Getty's yacht 'Talitha G'
Meanwhile the highly paid crews polish and clean and lovingly maintain them.
We do occasionally see them sailing.
It is a rare sight to see a superyacht under sail.
Over in English Harbour the British training ships 'Tenacious' and 'Prince William' make a fine sight against the backdrop of Nelson's Dockyard.  We are due back in Trinidad on May 1st but will be around Antigua, St Kitts and Nevis for a couple of weeks before we move south. The diving has so far taken a back seat this year, a matter we plan to resolve and will start with cleaning the propeller which has become seriously barnacle
encrusted
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