The Travels of Running Tide - Ile a Vache, Haiti

Ile a Vache, Haiti

The Travels of Running Tide

Mick Norman

Fri 4 Apr 2014 15:23

The 125nm passage from Isa Beata to Haiti went slowly, wind on the tail with lots of banging and clanking from the rigging as RT rolled in the slight wind. In order to make sure we didn’t spend two nights out a sea we had to run the engine on two occasions each for 2.5 hours.

We hung in there with light winds for the last 6 hours and sailed round the western end of Ile a Vache and into the bay. The anchorage is stunning as was the approach. As we entered the bay we assailed from all sides by various craft hanging on to the side of RT before we had come to a stop. They wanted to do work on the boat sell their wares do laundry. We had difficulty shaking them off so that we could anchor. We finally dropped anchor in a few metres of beautiful clear water just off the small fishing village of Cay Coque and a small hotel run by a French couple.

Haiti has had hard times. Poor governance and then a devastated earthquake in 2010 which shattered the capital Port o Prince have contributed to a country which barely functions. Trouble with warring factions has lead to the the United Nations taking over security of the country and there are massive aid programme to keep it afloat. Haitians are at odds with Dominican Republicans. Many Haitians have migrated their and have taken many of the more menial jobs which in reality DRs won’t do. They are good workers and disliked for this. Does that sound familiar. Many of the workers in the salt pans of Salinas where Haitians.

Travel on the mainland Haiti is still possible for foreigners but with some caution. The IIe a Vache is somehow insulated from the problems of the mainland and exists as a microcosm of peace and tranquillity. However, there is evidence that big wigs in power see the island as a gold mine for tourism and are making overtures about developing the beach front and displacing the villagers. The locals think it would be acceptable if it comes with benefits like schools, hospitals and jobs. There are few jobs on the island, there is no power , no metalled roads and no cars. Transport consists of walking, riding bikes, and on horse back. Today I walked with some locals to the market in Madame Bernard at small town at the other end of the island. Suppose to be one hour away. It was about double that but the walk was along roads, beaches coconut groves, and little trails. I was relieved that we didn’t have to walk back and got a local sailing boat back with the locals. That is another amazing feature of this place. All the fishermen use sailing boats, nowhere else in the Caribbean does this. Looking out at the straights between us and the mainland is looking out across the Solent to Cowes with the seas dotted with sails. To be fair the sails in most cases are just hanging together but they know what they are doing and can get around like any normal sailing boat

The mainland is a 50 minute ferry boat ride away so Norm and I decided to explore the town of Les Cayes. The Customs and Immigration Authorities are located over there but no one bothers to go there. They visit the IIe a Vache about once every 3 months so there is little chance of being caught out. The ferry is an open boat with outboard and a pleasant ride across the straights. Transfer to land is by rowing boat at the other end. The town has a busy market and a small port. They were offloading bagged cement when we were there again by transfer to small boats as no large ship can get near to the harbour wall. The locals were not intrusive but friendly. We walked around the market and the rest of the town even managed to get some local cash from the only ATM in town.

When we came to go back to the island it was back in the rowing boat for the transfer. Norm nearly took a header into the water on the transfer. It was something like his performance on the dock in Cape Verde if anyone can remember that far back. By now the wind had picked up and the journey back was carried out under a tarpaulin I was in the stern of the boat and my fellow passenger was steadily bailing as we progressed across the bay. The captain seemed calm enough with spray drenching the boat slowly drinking a bottle of beer.

After three days its time to move on, we have had the stainless steel cleaned on the boat by the locals and done various other jobs to get RT ready for the next leg of our journey to Jamaica. We will be heading off in a few hours time.