Marina Bound
Irie
Sat 8 Mar 2008 17:38
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Position 14 04.462N 60 56.942W Rodney Bay
Marina
Saturday 8th March
The last few days in the Bay have zipped by. It's breezy,
but flat, so an opportunity to catch up on some boat jobs prior to leaving for a
week. It's certainly warmer here - partly a product of moving south, but
also a sign that summer's approaching. We walked the length and breadth of
Pigeon Island, charting it's fortified colonial past and spying upwind to
Martinique from the lookout point, just to make sure the French weren't up to
anything. The snorkelling off Pigeon is excellent, piles of fish and a skulking
octopus, who peered up warily with slit eyes while his round, white
gill apertures rhythmically opened and closed. Entering the marina on
Friday, some fierce rain came through, and for a while it gusted to 35
knots. Fortunately, by the time Irie lined up for the dock it had dropped
to 15 or so, but it still made the downwind, stern to approach fairly
interesting, despite the benign attentionsof the dock guys. We had to come
in today, to sort out the temporary boat importation with customs. Despite only
being away for a week, there is a mountain of paper to complete, plus a visit
from a very smart and thorough customs officer to ensure that our inventory is
correct. The whole thing is meaningless, and it's not
even surreptitious taxation as there's no charge. As with much of
the administration out here, it's a legacy of colonial procedures relating
to a bygone age that inertia or vested interest refuses to change. Still it's
reassuring to know that the St Lucian Ministry of Finance, International
Financial Services, Economic Affairs and Information has bestowed its blessing
on Irie.
Some entertainment a little later, as a large Spanish
flagged ketch turns in next door. It's crewed mostly by middle aged
slightly portly Spanish ladies and gentlemen, entirely bereft of either
English or any attached lines. It simultaneously removes a piece of the
concrete dock and a chunk of its bow, whilst winding up sideways across the
berth, convincingly proving that six pairs of arms are no match for 30 tons of
boat in a gentle breeze. Some applied muscle and simple logic with lines
finally sorts it out, though not before a further blunting of the sharp
end.
Saturday is rather frustrating. Most of the boat is
sorted, and there's little to do here for half a day. BA flies today at
19.05 , but Herranworra Airport is right the
other end of St Lucia and is around a two hour taxi ride on rather poor
roads. Still, it's the first time in a car for a few weeks, and tomorrow
there'll be Sunday papers readable on the same day.
Pirates attacking Pigeon Island
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