Arrival at St Lucia - By Bob & Elaine
Arrival at
As most of you
will know by now, we arrived safely at
The winds on Wednesday had been difficult. At one point we were down to 5 knots, and it looked as though we might even arrive a day later (and in the dark!). Apart from using the engine, there was nothing we could do about it! However, late in the afternoon the winds picked up and we were soon running at 7-8 knots again, continuing through the night.
By the morning we
were SE of Martinique, and we gybed to make the final approach to
At the
marina we were warmly welcomed by
World Cruising Club staff who we
knew, and a
Pipistrelle is
now back into cruising mode, as opposed to passage layout, and we will today be
sailing south to La Soufriere where the twin Pitons are located, and which has excellent diving facilities. Paul and Nick are planning to undertake a PADI
diving course and then flying home. Alan will stay on with us to sail to Martinique to collect a
new genoa furling drum, and then return to
Last night (Saturday) we hosted a drinks party for the many friends who we have made, and our crew got Pipistrelle spruced up, tapas and Pimms ready. So about 25 people crowded onto the decks and took refuge below a couple of times when the heavens opened! It was an excellent evening, enjoyed by hosts and guests alike. We Pipistrellians rounded the day off by having the best meal ashore since being here at Buzz, a restaurant to the west of the marina.
As to the weather, at 07.35 this morning it is 28C. We have sunshine with intermittent showers falling during the night, some of them heavy.
All is well here in the Caribbean and we'll continue to post regular updates to let you know how we are faring.
Bob, Elaine, Nick, Paul and Alan