13:00.18N 61:14.57W

 

Hello everybody,

 

I’m afraid you’ve got the bloggers apprentice this time......the master blogger is off on neighbouring yacht having a rather long ‘jam’ session with several musical people and their instruments, and i suspect from her late return, that  alcohol may be involved?!

 

We’ve come south from Rodney Bay now, along St Lucias west coast to Bequia, 40 miles south of St Vincent. Its probably been one of the most Magical weeks of our journey so far.

 

Two thirds of the way down  Lucia are the Well photographed ‘Piton’ Mountains. Very steep sided volcano plugs covered with precarious vegetation. Both have guided ‘hikes’ up then.....(2500 ft), so R felt that his fitness levels wer’nt quite up to it this time ! Next time however......

We had a mooring off the beach beneath the lesser Piton, with a line ashore to keep us head to the swell but still felt a little apprehensive, especially after a neighbours mooring snapped off at its base, and they drifted down on top of another (much smaller) boat!We spent the next night on the opposite side of the bay (!)  just outside a huge cleft in a cliff which was full to bursting with bats.

 

Bequia where we are now is part of the St vincent and Grenadines complex. Its gorgeous! very laid back but also lively and full of interest and fun. A sort of Caribbean version of St Ives perhaps. (Pic No 1 shows Sue at the Turtle Sanctuary....to which we we had a glorious 3-4 mile bicycle ride. Sue is tickling the tummy of a Hawksbill turtle called ‘Sue’! ) The man who runs the sanctuary ....Mr King....is an ex turtle hunter....turned gamekeeper. he was almost even more fascinating than the turtles.

 

And yesterday we caught a sailing boat to Mustique! The Friendship Rose (pic No 2) is a 50 year old 70 ton gaffer built as a ferry boat to run between St Vincent and Bequia.........and built by its present Skipper and his brothers on the shores of Bequia.  It was all done by ‘eye’ with hand tools from locally sourced timber.It was a working boat for 25 years, and now runs small groups of people on day trips. She sailed like a dream and they looked after us like royalty. Breakfast on board, then a 2 hrs  across to Mustique on a dreamy sea.

   We had’nt really realised just how exclusive Mustique is!. It is owned by a ‘company’, and actually only has 90 residents; although over 2000 people work and stay on the island, looking after them......when they are there! The whole place is a bit like toy town and one almost expects to see Postman Pat or Bob the Builder come driving round the corner. It is said that in some areas the coconut palms are regularly ‘pruned’ of their coconuts.....just in case they were to fall on somebody’s head! Very beautiful, very manicured and clean but somehow very sterile.....except around parts of the coast where they allow fishermen to work. The bit of snorkling we did was exquisite, in the clearest water we’ve ever experienced.

 

Tomorrow we leave for Mayreau and the Tobago Cays    R and S  XXXX