continued....

The day turned messy from there on in. We ended up on a bender for 12 hours, where we all went back to Talluah for a break for a bit before heading to a cocktail bar for some drinks later that evening. Some of us left early ish too tierd to carry on, but Brendon and Jewels decided to stay and try out the pulling techniques. No doubt Brendon would have been doing his sexy dance to woo the chicks!!
Ended up being a brillant day and it was so nice to see everyone from back in Portsmouth.



We got awoken by a loud fog horn of them passing by early in the morning as they were heading off as bright as buttons to sail for the Grenadines. I cant believe it but none of them were slightly hungover, while me and Sym nursed a hangover all day long.

Sym had some work to do on Yacht Doris (as on the Atlantic crossing some of his windows started delaminating) and so we had to stay for a few extra days so Sym could fix them before heading down south to meet with our mates in the Grenadines.

St Lucia Part Two

We get boarded early the following morning by three ghosts.Brendon , Jewels and Ian. Jesus I did not actually believe how brown I was ( being ginger and all- everyone is so much browner than me) but hey I stood out like a bronzed goddess



Andy of Talluah had a kite surfing lesson booked so we all decided to go to a beach on the windward side of the island and check him out. We were hoping for some good entertainment but alas there was not even wind.



That turned into a bit messy cos there were beach bars and so the rum punches started at about mid day. It was quite a quiet beach in the middle of nowhere and all of a sudden there comes Amy Winehouse and her disguised bodyguards. We had a little chat and some pics with her and Sym managed to piss her off. Nice one Sym he accused her of not being the real Amy Winehouse and a fake. She was not impressed to say the least

St Lucia

We anchor in Rodney Bay and the water is terrible. There are so many boats at anchor; the crap must be emptied by the ton. I could not even see the boat when swimming right next to it. Really dirty which sucks cos we love swimming!!
We caught up with Doris and met Kat who invited us round for a curry, which was really good. We were surprised to learn that Simon has been baking bread and cakes and all sorts. Cheeky devil said he could not cook when we were in Cape Verdes so we took him under our wing and cooked him dinners aboard Quartermoon. We have come to the conclusion it was all lies and Simon was lazy and just wanted to be fed.
We’ll get you back Boo. Had a wicked evening on Doris where we met James and Freya from Otahi and Mat a single handed sailor who just crossed the pond in a 15 ft self built submarine style boat. We all managed to devour three litres of rum and woke up so goddam rough the next morning. To mine and Sym excitement when going to the customs to check in we discover the ultimate of hang over cures. BURGER KING. Oh yes western civilization felt good. We both ordered a whopper and it tasted the best. We were however a tadge gutted that we did not get a double whopper. Even so it the first fast food place we have been to in about 6 months. Next door was a proper big supermarket (like Tesco’s) full of everything we needed. We have not done a proper stock up for the boat since the canaries and since then it’s been buying odd and ends from tiny grocery stores which tend to be mega bucks.
The following evening we all go to the beach and have a bbq which again was a wicked night and decide to take it easy the next night and have a bit of a detox for the evening as our mates are due to arrive the next day which would end up being a large one.

More Martinique

That day we swim over to the beach and do a bit of sunbathing which we have not done in ages and a couple of games of bat and ball until the ball split apart and we could not play any longer. That night we got home and syms head was completly red rore. The scalp had never been exposed to sun light before and it was like someone had cracked an egg over his head, it was all dripping with puss. NICE!!
The next couple if days it was flaking and falling everywhere. Check this out



The next day we had a brillant sail and made our way to a next island of St Lucia which was about 30 miles away. The weather was sunny with no squalls but windy enough for us to fly down the coast making wicked time averaging about 7 odd knots.
We drop the hook in Rodney Bay late afternoon where we meet up with Aliisa and our long lost matey Simon off Doris who we have not seen since Cape Verdes!!

More Martinique

Finally we arrive in the calm, still, dreamy anchorage of St Pierre and by god it felt good to get there. We managed to arrive just before sun fall and we drop the anchor and sym goes ashore to see if there is anything open.
The strike that was in Guadeloupe when we were then had now spread to Martinique. Typical French. They obviously did not care that we needed to stock up on cheese and wine. It’s been ages since our wine stocks have run out and im sure all this rum we have been consuming in Dominica is not too good for us. We had been informed my Aliisa who were a few days in front of us that there was not much open and the shelves half empty but hero boy Sym manages to find a local shop and gets a few bottles of vino to chill out. What a hero, if any a time did we fancy a drink it was then.
The next day we sailed down the coast to the anchorage further south called Fort De France. Again a really windy sail of about 35 knots but the sea was fine cos we were in the lee of the island. Dreamy compared to the day before. When we arrived we decided to stay for a couple of days cos we did not have to be in st Lucias for a week.
We decided that it was about time to give Sym a trim as his hair was so long, he had not had it cut since Menna did it in Lanzarote. Instead of fussing around we went straight in and gave him a Bruce Willis grade 0 all over. He looked like such a hooligan, it was horrible.

Martinique

We have friends arriving in St Lucia on the 27th February so we decided that it was getting time to move on further south so we set our course to head for Martinique.
We checked the weather before we left and it was the usual trade winds with some squalls but nothing too alarming.....
Well it turned out to be completly horrendous and was by far the worst sail in all my life. Intially I was so frightened i nearly started to cry. ( Umm lots of help am, well done). I had to think of sweet thoughts and try to block the black skies and confused seas out of my mind. Thank god Sym was there, he was great and helmed her the whole trip.
The wind was around 50 knots and the sea state was awful as soon as we got around the headland. We were in a massive violent squall which lasted the best part of our sail. Thank god it was only a short day sail. Anyway we survived and Quartermoon handled absolutley great.Looking back it was a really good heavy weather experience and next time ill be way more confident cos everything was fine really, but i do hope that im never caught in weather that bad again, expecailly for no longer than a day. At least next time i wont poop it so bad.
Sorry guys no pictures this time cos i did not fancy coming down below and rooting round the find the bloody camera. Way to much more important crap going on !!

More Dominica

The next day we all decide to get up very early (which I know everyone back home is going to laugh at the sheer cheek of it) but 8 am is extremely early for my life now. I usually get up about 10 ish which suits me just fine.
Anyway Sym decides not to come because at Trafalgar falls he hurt his knee and throughout the night has swollen up really badly so he decided a morning of trecking in the rainforest would not be a great idea.
We drive for an hour and then go for a 40 min hike through the rainforest to Chauffeur Lake which was really beautiful. We found a really deep pool where you could dive in but the current was so strong I was swimming flat out and was not moving an inch! I must admit I wish I went there before Trafalgar Falls it was not half as great - not even in the same league!
We left to hike back about 11 ish cos we had to take the car back to the hire shop by mid day. The guy from the shop was really cool; he got out some rum and coke and gave us all a drink while we were doing the paperwork. How sweet is that!

The following day we all meet up mid afternoon and have a bbq on the beach which was fantastic. We made some Caribbean style rice and everyone bought chickens (the only meat readily available) and lots of rum punch. Sym, Marcus and Paul all played their guitars on the beach which for Sym was a milestone, because for the past 5 years he’s been saying he can’t wait to play my guitar on a sandy beach in the Caribbean. He felt really cool bless him!!

The last few days have been pretty chilled out cos both Veracity and Aliisa have gone so we thought it was a good time to re coop and give our livers a rest.

As im writing this Sym has just arrived back from the shop in shock. Check this out: on his way in there was a man who stopped and asked him for money which Sym said no politely and went into the shop. Next thing he can hear shouting and swearing and the man was in the shop, and behind the counter was a little old nanna about 70 ish. Anyway Sym starts to sweat cos he’s shouting at her saying he is going to throttle here so obviously he is going to have to help! There is one other man ion the shop that picks up a mop from the shelf for protection while he and sym move like thieves in the night to see what’s going on. All of a sudden the little old lady disappears and comes back and chucks acid in his face!!! OMG!! he starts going crazy and rubbing his face screaming and the old lady disappears again and comes back with a machetti for Christ sake! Sym is shitting himself thinking this is getting a tadge out of hand and the old lady runs after him hitting him on the back with the blunt end thank god. But then goes out back again and comes back with a sharp one screaming to the guy to get back and finish this. Some how we think the old frail nanna did not really need protecting after all. Sym waited in the shop for 5 mins before legging it back to the boat!! How crazy is that and yet all the people we have met are so friendly.

Site Seeing Part 2

After Trafalgar falls we all decide to go into Roseau and go and get something to eat. We found a place on the outskirts of town in a little shac and the food was cheap and delicious, perfect.
Next Daniels whats us to take a quick trip to the national park where there is a sulphur river. Daniel claims that people come from all over the world to drink water from this river for some medical reasons. Anyway we all try a bit and it tasted like water with lime juice in it, weird, sym and I could not figure out whether we actually liked it or not.
We had to move on wuickly from this place because Daniel wanted to take us down to the southern tip called Scotts Head before it got dark. So Marcus nailed it all the way doinf a good job of not getting us killed. The road was full of looneys trying to get us killed. We finally make it and it was well worth the trip.

We climb up to the top and make it there just before sunset and to get some wicked pictures. We end up chatting to a sweet guy who lived in London for 25 years but decided to move back home and biuld a house here because he was sick of the cold.
We spend a few hours here before driving back to Portsmouth. What a brillant day!!

Site seeing, part 1

The next day we hire our mini bus and head south of the island for Trafalgar Falls which is a couple of hours drive. We all arrive about mid day and a cruise ship has just arrived at the same time so the place was packed with Americans. The guides said that usually the place was so quiet and empty so i guess it was bad timing.

Anyway this place was amazing. We all climbed down a load of rocks, which was quite dangerous to be perfectly honest. There is no way we would of been allowed to do this back home because of Health and Safety. If you fell off you could so easily die. Sym fell down a slippery rock and twisted his knee quite badly. Im sure he is accident prone cos he tends to injure himself on a regular basis.

We arrive in the ice cold pool beneath a smaller waterfall and right next to it was another hot spring, which was so lush cos when you got to cold you could just jump into the hot one. All we needed was sparkling wine and someone feeding us grapes and it would of been paradise. Me and Sym could not help but laugh the whole time we were in there cos Jess felt that this amazing experience was being ruined because: there were a load of Americans pissed off their heads, drinking cans of Heiniken, smoking and flicking their fag buts in the water. NICE!!! We all could not believe it. Im not being one of those annoying ex smokers who preaches, but come on theres a certain time and a place. Check out the picture with the girl in the strippy bikini!!It was like something from Jerry Springer.

Next we climbed up to the main larger waterfall and swam in the pool underneath it which was great. It was so massive that being underneath was like being in a hurricane,the power of the water was immense, it was nuts.There was also 360 degree rainbows wherever you looked.This has been my highlight of the whole of the 7 months travelling so far. It was lush!!!!!!

Hot Springs in Rainforest

After a evening on Quartermoon with Aliisa we notice our other friends Jess and Marcus have turned up on their boat veracity a purple lugger, they introduce us to a german couple aboard a aluminium cat and we get invited over for a few drinks that evening. We have been talking some time about selling Quartermoon to buy a cat and after a night aboard Baju Sym has already decided he wants to sell Quartermoon and build another boat in Australia. So who knows where we will be in a year or so
After we all leave the boat ( a bit drunk) there is a medical school party going on in the club the purple turtle just off the beach so me, Sym, Marcus and Jess end up in there dancing with no shoes on( i cut my feet on glass three times - not impressed). At 2 am I decide to tie the tender around my waist and we all swim back to the boat. Brillant Night!

Jess's dad used to live in Dominika for many years and so told us of a place to go into the rainforest where there are natural hot springs, so the next day (slightly rough)we put on our walking shoes and go treking into the forest. We follow Marcus's informative map which looks like it has been drawn by a three year old!
Thankfully Daniel a local builder sees us and kindly takes us through the forest to the hot springs. On the way he uses he machetti to cut down fruit from the trees for us to try, so we get coco fruits,coconuts and sym picks his own grapefruit and bananas!It was absolutely amazing. After about half an hour we arrive and all go for a dip in these natural hot springs. It was brillant, first time ive had a bath in seven months, i just wish i bought some shampoo with me! Everyone was really chuffed as it was completly off the tourist track and without Daniels help we would not of found it in a million years. We decide that the following day we will hire a mini bus for us all and do more site seeing with the company of Daniel and his friend!
Dominika is the best place we ve been so far!!

Portsmouth Harbour, Dominika

It took a the whole of the afternoon to sail down to Dominika with yet again quite strong winds. There was a bit of entertainment on the radio on the trip with a french women and captain of a large cargo vessel having a massive arguement on channel 16. From what we could gather the ship did not give the sailing vessel right away and they got really close. She went crazy at him and starting calling him a rubbish sailor and a fecking idiot! She was nuts!

Late afternoon we arrive in the Portsmouth harbour which is absoultely beautiful.We are welcomed by Lauri and Annina who chilled some sparkling wine in the fridge. We all go out for a lovely meal in big pappas which was very expensive, but the food was great and very traditional with loads of rice, hot chicken, fried bananas and beans. Delicious. The next day Annina and Lauri arranged with Albert the local boat boy ( who looked the spit of Welsey Snipes)a trip up the Indian River.
This place was brillant, the guide rowed us through the river for the whole morning in the little boat and we stopped off in some amazing places where the second pirates of the Caribbean was filmed.The scence was where the crew of Black Pearl is rowing up the river at night to see the witch doctor lady. We also got to see an Iguana. At the end of the river we stopped in a little bar in the rainforest where sym bought some sugar cane and coconuts. On the way back the tour guide decided give us a test to see if we were listening to what he was talking about. I kept my head down!!
Later that afternoon we all went into the main street in town where the start of the carnival began and watched the contestants for Miss Dominika!

Les Saintes 2

The next morning we motor up to the larger island of Ilet a Cabrit which only takes about 10 minutes. It was only a short stop cos we were leaving for Dominika the next day and we needed to clear out in town.
The town was fantastic. So pretty and full of cute looking bars and restaurants it would of been silly not to have a few drinks. Sym yet again ordered me a foul drink called Ti Punch, which he assured my was rum with fruit juice, it turns out to be a quarter of a pint of pure filthy strong rum with a lime and a spoonful of sugar. It took Sym four bottles of coke to wash it down.
We bought loads of french cheese from the supermarket and went back to Quartermoon and had some more rum and a party. Sym decided his hair was getting too long and decided to style it like Michael Douglas( as per photo)
As you can imagine the next day we head off to Dominka slightly hungover to meet our friends Aliisa

Les Saintes

After leaving Guadeloupe we sailed 15 miles to Les Saintes which was a right beat to in strong winds where we were sailing 35 to 40 degrees to the apparent wind. On the short hop we again realised the pros and cons to having a catamaran when the charter cat that left before us had to tack twice across the channel to get to the same destination as us. We tacked once and got there way before him. The con side being where they were sunbathing out on the foredeck, we were soaking wet and healing like a bitch!!
Anyway we arrive and drop anchor on a small uninhabited island. As usual we dived straight in and saw another sea turtle. They are by far my favourites and it's so cool to swim right by the side of them. The next day we take the dingy ashore and go for a walk on the island which is beautiful. We saw a few humming birds which was cool, but they broke us down cos trying to get a picture was impossible they were so quick. There were loads of wild goats on the island and Sym tryed to get close to feed the baby and the dad was not having any of it. He followed Sym around for ages staring him out getting ready to charge. I just eased back slowly bricking it!!Did not realise that a goat could be so intimidating. The island were meant to be full with Iguanas but we were gutted we did not get to see them.

Guadeloupe Two

The following day we took the tender over to the island to go snorkelling but this time it was really windy and the tender ride was bloody scary. I thought I was going to fall out. After a few hours on the island the wind picks up and gets much worse about 35 knots. There were loads of kayakers on the island stranded cos they did not want to risk going back in such bad weather. I cant say I blame them. We decided to make a go for it cos we thought this wind might be in all night. The ride back made the first one feel like a ride on a calm lake. We were bouncing up and down about 2 metres in the air off the waves and every time we landed I thought I was going to break my back. Anyway we survived. That night the wind in the anchorage hit 40 knots and three boats dragged at anchor, so it was not the most restful night sleep in the world.

The following day we pop to the supermarket to go and get some food and discover there is a strike on. One French guy we met told us that the strike would be on for another week, it had started a few days before but we were too busy having fun to notice. Everything was closed because they wanted the prices on fuel food etc to be cut down to the same prices as France in Europe. He explained the wages are far lower but the cost of living is so high people cant afford to live there.
Great we thought, typical French were so inconsiderate we had totally run out of cat litter and food and we can’t do anything about it for a week. That afternoon we went on the hunt for a substitute for litter and ended up taking some rubble from a builders type place. Anyway it was an emergency and the cats appreciated it!!

That afternoon we sail on a few miles down the coast to another wicked anchorage called Petite Anse. It was much smaller than the last few and by evening we ended up being the only boat there which was well tasty. We decided to sleep out on deck for the night which was cool still we had a squall at 3am and it starting peeing it down.

After a couple of days we decide to sail 15 miles to Basse Terre the main town, hoping that it would have somewhere open. We anchored up in our first rolly anchorage in months and went for a wonder around the town. Well it was nuts there, it was like a ghost town, everything was shut and the only people on the streets were tramps, drunks and weird people with only one leg. It was really rough with graffiti all over the walls and burnt out cars. We did not feel entirely safe so after finding a supermarket open with the shelves mostly empty, we bought what was available and made a quick escape back to the boat.
We moored our dingy up in the marina which was bazaar place as well. There we four half sunken boats and some rocks in the middle of the entrance on the way into the marina which had not been moved since the hurricane which hit last October. I was soooo glad we did not go into the marina cos we would have smashed our rudder and keel up on the way in no doubt.
As you can imagine we did not stay here to long and the next morning we head south for the small French islands Les Saints.