Mixed Seafood on Iles de Saintes

Upsetting Wind Gods: 14 Aug 08

Ilet Pigeon Costeau Marine Reserve

After the peace and quiet of Deshaies, our next stop was to be Ilet Pigeon, a famed dive site and part of the Jacques Cousteau Marine Reserve. 

Unfortunately we nosed out of Deshaies into a fresh SW breeze.  What did we do to upset the wind gods, mmm? The anchorage opposite Ilet Pigeon was too exposed and four dive boats huddled in the only patch of calm water on the north side of the island. It would be like diving in Pitt Street, but full of Frenchies! 

Go Girl!

Keep moving down to the next anchorage, Anse de la Barque - nope…too exposed! So the crew rallied and prepared to make landfall in the Iles de Saintes, some 25 miles south of Guadeloupe. Our journey was only broken by the zing of our lure. 

The galley slave sought help from the Cap’n to haul in a 20lb barracuda. Having subdued him with a sip of Pernod (the Cap’n wasn’t wasting his good rum), our informative guide books listed barracuda as primary offender on the ciguatera list (damn!). Big Mistake 1 and NO fish dinner tonight again!! We kept him, thinking perhaps the locals might not be too concerned about toxic algae or at least need some lobster pot bait - Big Mistake 2. Isles des Saintes is a holiday destination for well-off Guadeloupians; a French Riviera in miniature. And of course, we expertly timed our arrival mid-Assumption Day long weekend. 

Pain du Sucre anchorage

Our anchorage, the least busy, off Pain de Sucre was filled with noisy party goers, mostly in powerful, big, pointy, hot water boats. All driven at high speed by alfa males through anchored craft and swimmers!! (Note to self: check French for “you crazy idiot” or perhaps something a little stronger?). 

Despite all this surrounding mayhem, we seemed to be destined to attract the crabs! Yes again, another visit from our efficient customs officers. 

Wakeboarding near Le Patè

The small settlement of Bourg de Saintes was jam-packed with visitors, arriving on huge ferries. With only a few shops and restaurants open, the crowds milled restlessly, up and down narrow streets in the heat. A temporary stadium had been set up with plenty of Heineken beer tents for the evening’s entertainment but at midday it was just too hot…. The boys walked over to the nearest beach, where boats had been recently banned due to pollution. It was now a temporary campsite, but with no toilets in sight, the boys beat a hasty retreat from this smelly paradise. “Besides it had no surf!” sighed a sadly deprived Boy Wonder.

Sunset over Iles de Saintes

As the weekend progressed, crowds continued to pour in. Fort Napoleon, built in 1867 was closed for the duration and by Saturday we couldn’t even buy a fresh baguette. Not that we could have anyway as we didn’t have any Euros and of course the only bank in town didn’t open until Tuesday. Also, Bourg de Saintes' one ATM wasn’t keen to give up its store of cash to us foreigners (with our greenbacks & English language)…. Frustrated, we upped anchor and actually backtracked north (5 hours!); to Pointe-a-Pitre, an airport, a UPS office, a working ATM and to wait for our rudder.

From: Deshaies, Guadeloupe  Lat/Long: 16 18N  61 45W  Date/Time: 14/8/08: 1020

To:  Bourge des Saintes           Lat/Long: 15 52N  61 35W  Date/Time: 14/8/08: 1700
Time Taken: 30nm (6.5hrs) Distance (this year): 373nm (81hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 373nm  (81hrs)   Fastest Speed: 5.8kt set by Hollywood
Weather: Fresh Trade Winds SW 12-15kts; 2-4ft swell; 0.5kt W current