Casamara - As one door closes, another opens

As one door closes, another opens

Casamara

John & Susan Simpson

Tue 21 Apr 2026 20:27

After two fabulous weeks with our children and their families holidaying in Grenada and St Lucia, John and I had a couple of days at anchor so that John could do some wing foiling. He’s had a long wait to get back to it because many of the places we’ve visited over the last 9 months or so have been unsuitable, either due to the wind/wave conditions, sewage or sharks in the water. It was great to be back in Rodney Bay, St Lucia, where John has done so much wing foiling in the past. The sea is relatively calm, the wind is (mostly) steady and nothing is going to eat him if he falls in!

John really enjoyed getting all his toys out on deck again.

Rodney Bay is named after Admiral George Rodney, a 17th century British naval officer who built a fort at Pigeon Island (pictured behind John in the photo). The island of Martinique is visible from the fort so Admiral Rodney was able to keep an eye on the French naval base there whilst the two countries were at war. In the 16th century Pigeon Island was home to a notorious privateer, Francois Le Clerc, famous as ‘Peg Leg’ as he was the first pirate known to have had a wooden leg. Born in France, Le Clerc travelled the world looting treasure but later joined British invaders to ravage French shipping in Le Havre. He suggested to Queen Elizabeth I that she should give him a pension to recognise his good work, but she refused and he ended his days in the Azores whilst hunting Spanish treasure ships.

Thankfully, no pirates troubled us in Rodney Bay so we were able to meet up with the World ARC rally fleet again in Marigot Bay, just a few miles further south. Marigot Bay is surrounded on three sides by steep, wooded hillsides and has historically been used as a hurricane hole where sailing vessels can find shelter in a storm. The location was the setting for the 1967 film 'Dr Doolittle’, still recognisable if you search Youtube for clips showing the Pink Sea Snail. Nowadays, Marigot Bay is known for luxury holidays and day trips from other parts of St Lucia. We lost count of the number of trip boats that came in daily to do a circuit of the bay to see the World ARC boats lined up along the quay and on mooring buoys. It was a great setting for our rendezvous and we enjoyed meeting up with our fellow sailors for the penultimate party events before the final day of the World ARC rally 2025-26.

World ARC rally boats moored in Marigot Bay

The final day of the rally soon dawned and we all prepared for a parade of sail up the north-west coast of St Lucia from Marigot Bay, around Castries Harbour, and into Rodney Bay for a crossing of the notional finish line. The fleet of 22 boats looked magnificent, dressed overall with colourful flags and World ARC banners. We lined up in order of size, smallest boat first, and processed in line all the way. It was a very windy and squally day so at times we had to push hard to keep in line, but the weather didn’t dampen our spirits. The programme of events for the day included welcome drinks after we had docked at Rodney Bay Marina and a prize giving dinner held in the evening at the very swanky Sandals resort nearby. It was a long day but a joyful occasion as we celebrated the achievements of all the participants who had left from St Lucia 15 months ago to circle the globe, as well as those (like us) who had taken a bit longer about it. We are sad to say farewell to a lovely group of people who welcomed us in when we joined them in the Cocos Keeling islands in October last year, and with whom we have shared the highs (and lows!) of ocean sailing ever since. However, as one door closes, another opens, and we will be reunited with at least a few of the boats again as we join the ARC Europe rally in Sint Maarten in a few weeks time.