Ron joined us on April 3 to bring us some boat parts and assist with our passage to Guadeloupe. After several weeks in the Virgin Islands, it was time to say goodbye to our friends on SV Torchlight and SV Rhiannon Marie. We moved to Maho Bay in St. John to stage for our escape to Guadeloupe.
We had a few days before the next weather window. So we finished cleaning the bottom of the boat because after just a few days anchored in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, the hulls were yucky again. We also took advantage of the clear water to snorkel around the rocky shore enjoying the frolicking fish and the graceful turtles.
On April 13 a weather window was emerging. It wasn’t the best window as the north of east wind to propel us to Guadeloupe was only a short window and would not last the entire 2-night crossing, but it was the best window for a while. So we left St. John at 1500 and headed out to sea. It was nice that Ron was with us as it would be a less tiring passage with 3 people.
The wind was mostly on our nose when we left, and we had to motor/sail for about 6 hrs. Then finally we were able to hoist the jib and turn off the engines and sailed until dawn. However, when we turned east towards Monserrat, we had to furl the jib and turn on the engines again. The seas were bumpy but not unbearable and we were still making around 6 knots. We didn’t want to arrive in Guadeloupe waters too early as there were fish balls and a crowded anchorage that we would need to navigate around.
The night skies were beautiful with an abundance of stars, and we had a full moon to light up the horizon which was helpful. The sunsets were gorgeous, but it was too cloudy for us to see a green flash.
We arrived in Guadeloupe around 0600 which made it a 39 hour crossing. Arriving as the sun rose was perfect as we could navigate the anchorage without difficulty.
Pigeon Islands are two small scrub brush spits of land with rocky shores except for a small beach in the shallow inlet between the two islands.
Pigeon Islands which were about a mile from Basse-Terre, were a protected Jacques Cousteau reserve. So mooring balls were set up to protect the coral and the sea grass. After dinghying over to the islands, we snorkeled on both sides. The Coral Garden on the southeast side was somewhat rough this time; thus, we spent most of our time snorkeling at The Aquarium on the northwest side.
Bouillante across from Pigeon Islands on the west side of Basse-Terre, was a tourist destination. There were a couple of places to dinghy to shore and several grocery stores and even a boulangerie (French bakery)! You can bet we made use of all these amenities. Food was a lot less expensive here than in USVIs.
We also met up with some other cruisers on SV Slow Poke, SV Shacaro and SV Only Sand. We all got together for a happy hour on Shacaro. We enjoyed catching up with Rachel and Josh from Slow Poke, getting to know Patty and Brian on Shacaro better, and becoming acquainted with Leigh Ann and Darryl from Only Sand.
According to the forecast, the weather seemed favorable for us to take a hop to Les Saintes which was another Island of the Guadeloupe Archipelago. For more information on other islands in the Archipelago check out these prior blog entries:
Guadeloupe and its Glorious Diversity
Guadeloupe: Deshaies a Darling Stop
Guadeloupe: Exploring with Friends, Don and Shelly
Les Saintes
Les Saintes contains several small islands, but the main Island of Terre-de-Haut, is a super cute French island that can be explored in a day by golf cart. There are multiple beaches and lots of quaint shops and restaurants. The island is a tourist destination for travelers as well as locals. Since we arrived Easter Weekend, the ferries from the main islands were full of tourists.
The first night at Les Saintes we met SV Slow Poke and SV Shacaro at the seaside park to watch the sunset and the people enjoying the park. Rocco from SV Shacaro enjoyed the freedom off the boat and playing on the beach!
We had never snorkeled at Plage du Pain de Sucre (Sugar Loaf), but our friends told us it was an excellent place. So, we dinghied around the point.
After tying to one of the mooring balls, we jumped in the water and were immediately amazed by the healthy coral and the variety of fish. We even saw a whole school of small squid and an eel slithering between the rocks. This was a wonderful place to snorkel in the extremely clear and calm waters without any current. You could just drift along and enjoy the abundance of marine life among the rocky shore.
The next day Ben and Ron went ashore and had a guy’s day roaming around Les Saintes in the golf cart we had rented. I got a day of quiet relaxation and time to prepare dinner. Since tomorrow was Easter and we would be traveling to Dominica, I decided we would have an early Easter dinner of Spaghetti, salad and of course fresh French bread. Additionally, the guys bought back some Tourment d’amour (Love’s torment) tarts that could only be found on Les Saintes. So we ate the coconut tarts for dessert.
It was now time to leave Guadeloupe behind and make way to Dominica. However, the mooring balls in the French islands were difficult to both snag and release. They did not have a pennant on the top which you could grab with a boat hook. There was only a metal ring on top which was fixed and could not be pulled upward.
Therefore, when we arrived at Les Saintes, we grabbed the ball with a large Mantus carabiner from the sugar scoop at the stern of the boat. Then we walked the line forward and attached it to the bow. Next, we lowered the dinghy and went to the bow of the boat where our mooring bridle with a Mantus shackle was lowered to Ben in the dinghy and he attached it to the ball. Then the carabiner was released and brought aboard. It was quite the process.
However, the process did not end there! To release the shackle from the mooring ball when it was time to leave, Ron swam out to the ball, where he ran a line from the bow to the ball and back to the bow on the starboard side. Once this line was secured, he released the bridle shackle, and it was raised aboard. Then after he swam back aboard the boat, the line was pulled from the mooring ball ring and we motored away. Whew! We do NOT love these balls!
Nevertheless, the islands of Guadeloupe were beautiful, and we enjoyed our short visit especially snorkeling at Pigeon Islands. and Sugar Loaf on the island of Terre-de-Haut in Les Saintes.
Happy Easter! Don’t forget to love your neighbor as yourself, and be kind as you never know what someone else is going though. Life is too short to not enjoy all the beautiful moments that God puts before us.
The journey continues as we move south towards Grenada for hurricane season. Thus, feel free to complete the form below to receive email notifications of future blogs.
