16:18.489N 061:47.786W
Whisper
Noel Dilly
Mon 18 Feb 2013 20:48
|
Deshaies,
Guadaloupe"
16th February We listened to the 30knot gusts of wind blowing most of the night, fortunately we had snorkelled over our anchor yesterday when we arrived, so we knew that it was dug in well and felt relatively secure. After so much wind it came as a surprise to have to motor most of the way to Deshaies (pronounced dey-hey) this morning. We knew that Sweet Sensation was visiting the bay, she was soon spotted and we were able to anchor close by. We went for a swim and were as disappointed as we were surprised by yesterday's swim, that there were no turtles to be seen. The coral was very disappointing, more a coral graveyard, the sea bottom was covered in broken dead pieces of coral, there were some pretty coloured fish but not many compared to yesterday. We invited Chris, Kevin, Midge and Ken on board Whisper for pre dinner drinks and spent a very pleasant time chatting about where we had all been and where we should visit on our way north. 17th February This morning we had a book swop with Sweet Sensation and now have a good collection of reading material for our continuing trip. We said our farewells as Sweet Sensation will now return south whilst we will continue north. It has been great to meet up with them, their knowledge and experience of sailing out here has added considerably to our enjoyment and exploration. Afterwards, we walked up to the Tropical Gardens, this proved to be a very worthwhile experience. The gardens have been so cleverly thought out, a narrow path wound its way up and down through the most beautiful trees and shrubs. A waterfall cascaded down and a rocky stream flowed through the grounds filling ponds which were full of carp and the most beautiful water lilies of various colours. What struck me most was that many of the plants we saw, we have actually seen whilst out walking, but it was lovely to see them all labeled and so cleverly planted. Also, some of them we see at home, but only as potted indoor plants probably a twentieth of their size here. The Ponsietta was enormous compared to our Christmas specimens. The have even grafted Orchids on to some trees, so that their beautiful flowers hung down from the tree trunks like epiphytes in the tropical forests. A restaurant built above the waterfall created a wonderful view across the forest down to the bay below. It also served a terrific lunch followed by the most tasty coconut, lime and passion fruit ice cream and sorbets, after all, we did need to bide our time whilst a tropical downpour passed over. We walked back down the hill in sunshine after a really enjoyable morning. We had just clambered back onboard when we were hailed from a yacht anchored not far from us. It was Allan whom we had met in St Lucia and who owns a Rustler 42. He had been alone when we met, but now his wife and two friends have joined him. We have been invited on board for an evening meal tonight, I hope that I don't feel too envious of the extra space below! Photographs: "Quiet Anchorage" (Whisper top right, Sweet Sensation top left) "Tasmanian Rainbow Lorikeet" "Tropical Garden Glimpses" |
