Position 17:54.41N 62:51.46W
Freewheel
Julian & Anne Whitlock
Sun 10 May 2009 02:06
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St Barts - 6 - 9th May 2009
Arrived in the dark after a slightly turbulent passage from
Barbuda. Force 10
gusts and a heavy sea. Our original plan to
moor in the outer harbour of
Gustavia was thwarted as there were no moorings left so we
carried on
northwards to Anse de Grand Columbier where we dropped
anchor. Very
crowded so in the morning we moved back to Gustavia and having
moored,
went to look at the town and to stock up. A very pretty
town with the original
buildings, many in the Swedish style, having been well
cared for. Interesting
architectural style of shiplap and wooden
shingled or corrugated metal roofs.
Had a meal in La Route des Boucaniers on
the waterside then walked around
and saw the castle ( Fort Oscar ) and
the shopping areas.
We hired a car and moved to a different
berth in the north of the bay. Next day
we drove around the island stopping to
watch the astonishing flying feat necessary
to land at the airport over a gap in the
hill-side onto a downwards sloping landing
strip. No obvious signs of wreckage but only the brave
would dare to
land on St. Barthelemy. Many picturesque
properties overlooking the
sea with tortuous access on the narrow concrete roads.
Looking down
from the cliff tops onto the bays it is a very attractive
island. The main
road across the island was closed so, following a detour, we
arrived in
the Anse de Grand Saline where, following a drink we sat on
the beach
and read. Back to the Grain de Sel restaurant where we
had an excellent
lunch and watched humming birds in the flowers.
Driving back to
Gustavia we did some more shopping and divided our
resources to
visit the wonderful shell museum at Corossol and to take
more photos
of the planes landing. Following a night in Gustavia we moved
back to
the bay of Anse de Grand Columbier where we had
a lazy day reading
and sitting on the beach. There was some
interesting reef life with a
family of rays and others but the high point came when a
turtle was
sighted and he and several others entertained us with regular
trips to
the surface. After an
embarassing display by Ian of how
not to launch a dingy into a perfectly flat calm sea, Anne
rescued Elaine
from the beach. A pleasant walk over the
cliffs towards Baie des Anges,
rich with wildlife as great white hunter Anne spotted snakes
and a pretty
orange-hoofed tortoise in quick succession.
The tortoise was fed and
photographed before it could effect an escape. Our
efforts were rewarded
by more beautiful coastal sights and a beer in a
local resort before a
susnset walk back, dinner and a few games of
Bridge.
F10 in the Caribbean - what
fun... Landing at St
Barts - even more fun...
 
Tortoises on the
land.... and
Turtles in the water.....
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