Getting Tired of Endless Vacation In Paradise (NOT!)

Carla has written quite a bit on our day-to-day activities, so I thought I would add a few of my observations.  What’s it like spending day after day basking in tropical paradise.  As Tim put it, it’s just “Surreal”.  The last four months has seemed like a year, not because we weren’t having fun, but because of the numerous sites and experiences, and because we’ve been able to just sit and do nothing for hours.  As someone else said, paradise isn’t a location, it’s a frame of mind, but the location sure helps to set the frame of mind.

Our decision to turn back at Guadeloupe was a tough one.  We’ve spent a lot of time and money preparing to go to South America, but neither of us were looking forward to spending a couple days at sea.  As I watched weather forecasts for all of the Caribbean, high winds and rough seas were the norm for the area we would have to transit.  Although the threat of pirates off the Venezuelan coast was a real one, several cruisers merely advised us to remain a good distance off the coast and travel with a “buddy boat”.  In the end, the plan just didn’t suit our style of cruising:  moderate winds, calm seas, cool nights, piracy-free waters, and a worthwhile destination. 

When we hit the British Virgin Islands previously, we were between weather windows and felt like we only had about three days.  We made a whirlwind pass at all the touristy destinations, and thus weren’t really impressed.  After reading a magazine article about secluded beaches, magnificent snorkeling, and picturesque settings, we just had to give the BVI’s another opportunity to impress.  Impressing it is.  While we were in the Leewards, a much-needed rain fell on most of the islands, and now the vegetation has regained its visual appeal.  We’ve learned how to anchor stern-to, meaning that we drop the anchor from the bow, back toward the shore, and tie a long line from the back of the boat to the shore.  Now we’re nestled with the cockpit just 200’ feet from a steep tree-covered hill in 10’ of clear water over a sandy bottom, and within snorkeling distance of beautiful corral on both sides of the boat.  We were the only boat in Long Bay, Virgin Gorda, and the white sand beach was ours alone.  Today, we’re the only boat in this lovely bay.  I think we’re liking the BVI’s.

In the Caribbean, one of our favorite pastimes is watching goats.  It seemed like they were following us from island to island.  Carla feels sorry for them, as when they “Bahhhh”, they sound like a kid (baby goat) that’s been left behind or is stuck on a rock ledge.  While we were anchored in the Lagoon at St. Martin, I watched as several goats traversed what appeared to be sheer vertical cliffs of a rock called “Witches Tit”.  It was obvious that they didn’t need anyone’s help.  We were snorkeling in Colombier Bay, St. Barts when I heard a muffled “Bahhhh”.  When I raised my ears out of the water, my suspicion was confirmed.  Those goats had followed us to yet another island.  They’ve pretty much followed us to every island.  I think I’m beginning to hear them in my sleep.

St. Martin was a very interesting place.  We chose to stay in the Lagoon due to forecasted heavy winds and seas, and slept peacefully for several nights as a result of that decision.  Being in the Lagoon places one within an easy dinghy ride of numerous restaurants, high-end shops, and numerous marine service and supply companies.  You boat owners out there, imagine what it would be like to be a 5-minute dinghy ride from two marine stores larger than West Marine, a sail loft, a full-service stainless fabricator, a custom mattress manufacturer, and navigational and communications electronics experts, all with their own dinghy docks.  And there are even more restaurants on the water that also have their own dinghy docks.  Although the water isn’t very clear or clean in the lagoon, I saw a couple cruisers diving under their boats, and kids in the sailing school were in the water.  It probably isn’t much worse than some of the harbors on the east coast of the U.S.  There were several derelict boats in the Lagoon, but there were scores more nice cruising boats and many mega-yachts.  Oh, and did Carla mention that she took the luxury of paying someone else to do the laundry?

Speaking of sailing schools, Carla was laughing out loud when one of the small sailboats “tumped over” and the two boys were trying to upright it.  I didn’t feel sorry for them because they were having the time of their life.  I saw one boat with four local boys go over several times.  Each time they were laughing and cutting up, having a blast in that Lagoon full of “nasty” water.  We’ve also been in the midst of sailboat races, sometimes while on a mooring or at anchor, and one time when we accidentally cruised through one.  In my defense, I thought they had finished racing and were heading in to the harbor.  How did we fare?  As well as a cruising Hunter 410 could, I guess.

We brought brand new dive equipment that hadn’t even gotten wet until today.  There has been such great snorkeling right off the boat that we just haven’t had the desire to anchor or moor at one of the rolly dive locations and wrestle with the gear.  Since there is excellent snorkeling AND diving right off the back of the boat here, we thought this would be a good opportunity to break out the gear.  Here's a short video of a rare sighting.  By the way, Carla was ALMOST able to climb back into D-Time by herself yesterday.  That’s a major step toward REALLY being independent. 

So far we’ve really been fortunate to have good weather for our long passages.  Being a weather forecaster in the Caribbean would be easy:  Sunny with a high of 87 and a low of 77 and a 20 percent chance of isolated showers.  When I left my job, a co-worker wished us fair winds and calm seas.  Well, a sailor really wants 10-15 knots of wind off the beam, or side, of the boat.  Our passage back to the BVI’s from St. Martin started out with favorable winds, but then went to almost directly behind us.  Even in 3’-5’ seas C-Time does a lot of rolling with a wind off the stern, so we jibed (same as tacking except the wind is to your back) as long as the wind held up.  There’s nothing quite like going in a direction for an hour that doesn’t get you any closer to your destination.  Interestingly we haven’t experienced the “doldrums” yet (no wind).  You know, when you were on the cruise ship and you looked down at the perfectly calm water and said, “We could sail in that”.  I’ll never forget the time we were on the Bahamas Bank and I unfurled both sails for the first time since we left Miami.  We were cruising along nicely at about 7 knots with about 15 degrees of heel.  Carla was hanging on for dear life and said, “I don’t like this!”  EXCUSE ME?  We just embarked on the beginning of a cruising lifestyle aboard our own sailing yacht and you don’t like SAILING?

Probably one of the most disappointing parts of the trip so far has been the lack of interaction with other cruisers.  We’ve made some good friends so far and have really enjoyed our time with them, but it sometimes seems like the only way to meet others is to go to one of the local hangouts.  Since we’re on a tight budget, and because it’s expensive to hang out at a bar or restaurant, we miss out on that social scene.  I was watching a guy in the water off the back of his boat wresting with his steering windvane and figured he could use some help, so I grabbed a hammer, jumped into D-Time, and headed over to their boat.  He was grateful for the help, even though I really didn’t contribute much, and invited us over later.  The next day, they were headed one way and we were headed the other, but hopefully we’ll run into them again.  The French seem to enjoy the company of other Frenchies, and the Canadians (there are a LOT of them) look to meet other Canadians.  Maybe as we get back in the VI’s and Bahamas we’ll have more opportunity to socialize.  We’re looking forward to meeting up with Marshall and Ann in the Bahamas.  Marshall has followed our every move and has made numerous useful suggestions through the blog.

One of my friends at work commented that we should go back to St. Barts because “it’s fantastic”.   Colombier Bay is at St. Barts, and we took advantage of their free moorings for several nights.  This is another one of those places where you have clear water, good snorkeling all around, a sandy beach, and hiking trails, all at one location.   That kind of place is a bit difficult to find, and you want to stay there as long as it takes to get tired of it.  The shopping, you know all the high-end clothing lines, wasn’t for me, but the airplanes nearly clipping the ridge and dropping to the runway below made my day.

We’ve been pleasantly surprised by the lack of insects and the comfortable temperatures.  As mentioned above, we’ve had a breeze blowing almost constantly.  We’ve kept all the hatches open for most all the time and have kept cool.  We haven’t used hatch screens and the screen enclosure has stayed in its storage closet.  Wet swim suits and towels dry quickly in the wind and sun, and it’s easy to get burned from the sun when you don’t feel hot.  Now that we’re into the “off season” for the Caribbean, we’ll probably start feeling more of the sun’s energy and less wind.  For that reason, I made some sun shades that will help keep the afternoon sun out of the cockpit.

Boredom fighting is a great problem to solve.  There are probably a lot of people who wish they could experience it for just a few moments.  I thought we would have a difficult time dealing with the sudden change in tempo, but the extra time we have to just sit still is welcome.  Before siesta, I’ll sit in the cockpit and watch clouds pass overhead, boats sailing at anchor, dinghies going hither and yon, and waves crashing on shore.  After siesta, I’ll sit in the cockpit and watch clouds pass overhead, boats sailing at anchor, dinghies going yon and hither, and waves crashing on shore.  Though this might sound boring to some, I love that quiet time recognized as “siesta”.  Some of the islands close most businesses from about noon to 3:00 or 4:00 in the afternoon.  Ahhhh, siesta.  Oh, I almost forgot to mention binoculars.  They are great for bringing the action, or lack of action, up close.  Did you know it can take nearly a half hour to scan one hillside for goats?  We use them so much that they stay in the cockpit, for looking at boat names and how boats are rigged, watching sea turtles poke their heads out of the water like a submarine’s periscope, and watching sailboat races.

It’s now time to take my bowl of cereal to the cockpit to watch the goats climb the treacherous rocks.  Can you tell from the picture that one of them is a “kid”?  It’s bahhhhing its head off.  I have to convince Carla that I don’t need to take D-Time to shore and help the little fella.  So much time and so little to do.  Yep, I like this endless vacation in paradise.