Newhaven Yacht Club
Mark Wade's Atlantic crossing in Kittiwake - Extracted from news sent back by Mark
April 2007
Kittiwake’s Atlantic Islands Adventure continued ...
Cruising the Windward, Leeward and British Virgin Islands
Sun soaked islands, white beaches, tossing palm trees and turquoise water, Pusser’s rum cocktails on bleached decking at sunset and spicy chicken rotis for lunch – yes it is all true! Just as the guide books promise. We have enjoyed all of this and so much more while cruising the Windward, Leeward and British Virgin Islands of the eastern Caribbean. From Bequia (Lat.13N: Lon. 61.15) in the south and Anegada (Lat.18.4N: Lon 63) to the north we have visited ten countries, 17 islands and travelled 750 nautical miles in the past three months.
The experience has been a kaleidoscope of images, scents and sounds, languages and currencies, squalls and calms, land and sea in this tropical ‘paradise’. A collision of cultures, the struggles of empires, the race for trade, the horrors of slavery, the waning of importance and the onset of tourism have all played a part in creating the amazing diversity that is the Caribbean of today.
It is truly a sailor’s paradise with warm trade winds for much of the year giving dependable 10-25 knots, most of the time from the NE/E/SE. To the windward of the archipelago there is challenging sailing in deep ocean swells. In the lee of the islands there are calm seas and gentle breezes enlivened by gusts that come dashing down the valleys and around headlands. Motor sailing is the norm when in the lee or when having to race for an anchorage before darkness falls with equatorial suddenness.
Going south down the Windward Islands it is usually a gentle sail on a broad reach until the open passages between islands then a quartering, surging run in deep swells till the lee of the next island. Going north it is often a motor sail in light headwinds before a crashing thrash of a beat into ocean swells for a few hours over open water. Between the islands a strong westerly-setting current makes it crucial to head up 20 or so degrees to make the rum line.
It is not always fine. Our trip down to St Vincent and Bequia was done in thick sea mist and constant rain with visibility down to 100m. It was not till we broke out of low cloud around Kingston Bay in the south that we saw the coast and then had a mad dash in gale force winds to sweep down into Port Elizabeth, Admiralty Bay on Bequia. Poor holding on old coral and hard sand made for an uneasy night. The anchor alarm went off at about 04:00 and James, my son, and I collided at the chart plotter having both woken from deep sleep at different ends of Kittiwake. We deployed the Fortress kedge anchor from the dinghy and made good till light. A dive on the anchors the next morning showed how difficult it had been to get a grip. We moved closer to Prince Margaret’s Beach and found soft sand and good holding.
Experiences like this taught us so much on how to handle the conditions. Each island and every day has brought a different challenge or technique to be mastered improving our boat handling and seamanship. Don’t think for a moment that you can truly relax on the water even on apparently the most gentle of days or nights. Squalls can come up suddenly darkening the sky and bringing driving rain, white crested waves and gale force winds that test any holding or set of sail. Heavy swells created by distant storms can well up unexpectedly from any angle making otherwise ‘protected anchorages’ horribly uncomfortable and some times untenable.
After having completed the Atlantic crossing in December we took a break back in the UK during January, returning by air in February. We were based in Rodney Bay, St Lucia during February and March cruising locally with a variety of friends and family. St Lucia proved to be a good choice for a base with good air links to the UK and a wealth of interest to be enjoyed from land or sea. The highlight literally was climbing the Petit Piton one of the two volcanic peaks that epitomises the drama and beauty of St Lucia. We set off from the beach at 07:00 and with our guide Edgar we achieved the almost vertical scramble through thick vegetation to the summit at 2450 feet in near record time of 100 minutes. The view from the top was spectacular. Looking down on Kittiwake anchored in Soufriere Bay below she looked toy-like – a mere speck on the water. Much the same view that Superman had as he flew between the peaks in Superman 2! The islands are often featured in films and while on St Vincent we had dinner in a restaurant built in the abandoned film set of Pirates of the Caribbean 1 in Wallilabou Bay. No sign of Keira Knightly unfortunately. On Dominica a local guide rowed us up Indian River, a hauntingly beautiful creek used by Carib Indians in the past that also featured in Pirates of the Caribbean 2.
The contrast in cultures and geography of the islands is a constant source of delight – and sometimes frustration. We liked Martinique with its very French pain de chocolat, Sauvignon Blanc and wretched loos. It was so like being in the south of France it took a double take to see the distant fields of green were sugar cane and the trees palms. It is in fact a department of France and benefits from much inward investment and EU money. One heart warming moment was watching a mixed rugby game (highly unusual in the Caribbean) of girls and boys, black and white playing together under the supervision of a keen French trainer. The prop forwards were the most decorative I have ever seen.
St Lucia by contrast was scenically stunning but is spoilt by man, scruffy and careworn wherever present – BUT very much St Lucian doing their own thing and making a real go of it. No EU subsidies or even UK support since independence. A country where whites are the visiting minority in contrast to the French islands where they dominate.
The brooding beauty of impoverished St Vincent and Dominica contrasts with the wealth and Americanisation of the British Virgins Islands – US dollars, US street signs and intrusive vocals. The shared island of Sint Maarten/Saint Martin divided into its Dutch and French halves was pure hedonism – tax free shopping, casinos, golf courses, beach bars, nudist beaches and adult entertainment set in a jewel of an island. Its compensating features are the beautiful lagoons, marinas and safe anchorages.
The most arresting island we visited was Montserrat – paradise in limbo. Sailing up the south west coast out of Guadeloupe on a perfect afternoon we skirted the two mile maritime exclusion zone to come close up on the old capital of Plymouth. A haunting vision of apocalypse. A modern day Pompeii – ash coated, desolate, deserted. Pyroclastic flows of ash from a series of eruptions over the past 12 years have left half of the island a ‘no go’ zone. That afternoon the air was clear and the ash cloud was hanging horizontal on a rare southerly zephyr above the forbidding peak with Antigua low on the horizon to the north east. We spent a day on this most enigmatic of islands. The north end, recently populated with hurriedly erected housing and dispersed civil amenities, was home to the remaining four thousand souls of the pre-eruption 13 thousand. The most moving sight was to see communities divided. On one side of the road perfectly tended houses and gardens were being lived in while on the other side their neighbouring houses were off limits – empty like the Marie Celeste until such time as the vulcanologists deem it safe to return.
All of the islands are volcanic except for Barbados to the east, which is in fact the most northerly tip of the Andes, and Anegada of the BVIs, a stunning coral island. Here flamingos outnumber the 200 people. Pure white sands, turquoise water and amazing snorkelling off coral reefs combined as an experience to be savoured. St Kitts now a popular destination for cruise ships was a British base of consequence. We visited the stunning fort and military complex on Brimstone Hill that epitomised the power and influence of Britain in the region during the 18th and 19th centuries. Even so the fortunes of nations changed regularly during the struggle for empire and command of the lucrative sugar industry. For example, St Lucia had 14 changes of sovereignty before Britain finally secured control in 1814. In 1967 St Lucia became an associate state of the Commonwealth and independent in 1979.
Throughout our travels the Caribbean people have been consistently delightful - warm, friendly and laid back. If you want something done in a hurry and you make this clear – forget it! ‘Tomorrow, maybe, sometime, perhaps’ is the response. The more urgency you convey the more the reluctance to action. But smile, relax, joke and above all remember their first name and magically things begin to happen. Even better, ask for their advice on who can do a good job on say a sail repair, rigging check or engine service and suddenly you are into a network of professional competence that surprises and delights.
The most irksome feature of the diversity of the islands is the bureaucracy. The regulations involved with Customs, Immigration and often the port authorities is a real bind every time you enter or leave a country. Each has its own peculiarities and forms. Sometimes the offices are in the same building but sometimes they can be in quite differentparts of the town requiring time and patience. While it is easy to see why regulations are important the inconsistencies, confusion, occasionally rude and officious officials and arbitrary taxes and fees can leave you fuming.
The greatest delight has been the sailing in warm winds. Even when it rains and blows it is still 25c - what a difference to the English Channel. Diving off the back of the boat, long night passages, deserted anchorages and gentle coastal cruising along stunning green cloaked peaks have all been wonderful. The highlight for James has been his triumph in landing a three foot long Barracuda and a 65lb beauty of a four foot Dorado. We ate delicious meals off this for three days.
But the ‘holiday’ is over. Kittiwake is now berthed in Jolly Harbour Marina on Antigua and our thoughts are focussed on the final preparations for the return trip. Kittiwake will be one of 20 or so yachts taking part in the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) Europe 2007. We leave on 10th May for Bermuda and then the Azores before heading north then north east to UK waters.
James and I are looking forward to welcoming Andy Browning and Ian Robertson of NYC for the trip. Graham Irving will be joining in the Azores to make if five up for the last stretch. We plan to put into Falmouth before returning to Newhaven late June/early July. Kittiwake is ready now for the final test, the Atlantic return, when Kittiwake’s Atlantic Islands Adventure continues.
More of that in future NYC News.
Mark Wade
Kittiwake
Page last updated: 10/12/2007 12:47:04 AM