Going to Blazes

A Little Digression

Stage 1 Leewards - Bequia to Montserrat: 1-3 Jun 09

Sailing past Martinique & St Pierre

After visiting town (Port Elizabeth on Bequia) to purchase some fresh veggies (and yet more boat bits) we felt sufficiently rested (brave even) to head off on our next leg, which had been planned to end at Deshaies in Guadeloupe. The GS got out her french phrase book in anticipation of ordering decent coffee, lemon tarts and baguettes.....

Admired evening sunsets on the way

Off the Pitons (St Lucia) in the dark, a dolphin broke our otherwise uneventful trip north with a fantastic acrobatic display. He leapt at least 3 or 4 times out over waves close beside us in a short race. Can we please take him home???

And didn't stop at Dominique for obvious
reasons. Cruise Ships in town!

Thanks to excellent progress/wind gods etc (or perhaps GS’s lack of time/space skills) the Motley’s made Deshaies in the early hours of the morning. Remembering the minefield of fishing nets that lined the coastline and bay, WJ3's nose was turned further north toward Montserrat.

Yikes! Isn’t that an active volcano?

 

From: Tony Gibsons, Bequia Lat/Long: 13 00N  61 51W  Date/Time: 1/6/09: 1100

To: Little Bay, Montserrat  Lat/Long: 16 48N  62 12W  Date/Time: 3/6/09: 0830
Time Taken: 257nm (52hrs)  Distance (this year): 414nm (83hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 1263nm  (261hrs)   Fastest Speed: Not noted**
Weather: Winds ESE 14-16kts; some squalls of Martinique 22kts; 5-8ft waves; E swell;
(**Lots of commercial traffic past Guadeloupe to keep us on our toes.  Slow going to Montserrat with winds dying off.)