N18:04.047 W063:05.688

Sulayacht
Sun 14 May 2017 18:41

cid:image001.jpg@01D2CCBA.AA8BFCD0A big swell but steady winds and we arrived at the coast of St Barts at 06.45 on the 4th May and decided to keep sailing until we reached the anchorage of Grande Case, St Martin, where dropped anchor at 11.45, a hearty sailors breakfast was the order of the day.  While setting the anchor the anchor winch stopped working, so at 17.00 after we had our fill of a motor boat towing water skiers around the anchorage, we hand winched the anchor and continued our sail into Marigot Bay arriving at 18.45 and set anchor in 14ft of water.

The weather this season has been very unusual for the Caribbean with strong winds and big swells coming from the West, when we should be experiencing Easterly winds and swell most of the anchorages favour this so when we get a wind switch it can be quite dramatic.  On Tuesday, it rained heavily all day and we were woken at midnight to a wind squall coming through, we sat up doing anchor watch until 05.00, Thursday at 11.00 saw another wild wind squall come through bringing with it more rain.  On both occasions boats were dragging their anchors and one even ended up on the rocky foreshore.

Things are not all bad, it is warm, we have full water tanks and the sea is beautiful and clear so we can watch the numerous Rays which we are swimming with.  All this and we are on an Island where we can source a new windlass, the gearbox has packed up on the old one and it is not going to be cost effective to repair, also ordered parts to repair one of our wind generators.  What a difference a day makes……

Just want to say a very,  very, very, Happy Birthday to Mam for the 12th May, I know you and Dad will have a wonderful visit with Rogers family who could resist the gorgeous Isabelle x