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Larry's LogOur first day in Deshaies (pronounced DAY- HAY) was pretty uneventful until that evening. We had arrived at around 1:30 and just relaxed. Diane had recovered from her mal-de-mer but she still didn't feel too well and neither did I. I had developed a terrible headache, probably from a combination of not sleeping well, getting up early, not having breakfast and a really uncomfortable passage. After I had set the anchor and put on the snubber and safety line. I just sat for a while. After a bit, I got the energy to flake the mainsail and put the cover on it. Its very important to cover the sails as the Sun's UV can really damage the cloth and stitches. I took some ibuprophen and started to feel better. We had a simple dinner and I hoisted the dinghy a bit, since it was still on deck, to allow us to get some breeze into the forward cabin. We wanted to get to sleep early since we had gotten up so early that day. Unfortunately, our neighbors on the boat in front of us had a different idea. They had a party with very loud French music (they were from Montreal, Canada). After waiting until almost midnight for them to quiet down a bit, Diane got up and took a flashlight to get their attention (just calling to them would have been useless). After she got their attention, she asked, nicely, to lower the music since she wasn't feeling well. To my amazement, they did! We then got to sleep. The next day was a Sunday, and we knew customs wouldn't be open so we had planned to just go to shore and perhaps get some fresh bakery products. I had hoisted the Q flag and read in the guidebook that this procedure was acceptable. Unfortunately, we didn't get off the boat all day. The wind blew steadily at about 25 - 30 knots with gusts up to 40. That made it very difficult even to get the dinghy launched, or do most anything on deck. I had to tie the dinghy on again just to make sure it would fly up and off the deck. Wind like that becomes very annoying and unpleasant because of the constant noise. I occupied myself though with further log updates while Diane inventoried our stock of provisions. After she finished that, I started to install an engine blower that I had purchased before we left and was just tired of looking at. Late in the afternoon, Diane called me up into the cockpit to see one of the "sights." A boat was coming in to anchor and was dropping the hook near us. In itself, this is not a big event except this time the person anchoring was a very pretty girl who also happened to be topless. Maybe I'll like Guadeloupe after all. The next day, Monday, we got the dinghy launched as the wind had calmed down considerably. As we were applying a name to the dink, DEZ, another dinghy came over. They were from a boat we had met when we first came into Antigua. Ripple had done the same overnight sail from St. Martin to Antigua we did. We had a nice conversation and found out that they had already been down to St. Lucia in the time we had taken to see just Antigua. They were also heading back north to St. Martin to meet some friends due in on Thursday. They had come in the day before (in all that wind) and weren't even staying Monday night in Deshaies. They were going to shore to clear in and out, buy some bread and rum (they were collecting a bottle from each island) and going back to Antigua. Some people go through the islands quickly for a variety of reasons. Some only have a short time and some feel they have to keep moving and see as much as possible. Some experienced cruisers advised us, and I've come to agree, that the best way to do this is slowly. Take time to see each island and experience what's there. Of course, there are constraints to this like money and what you're willing to do, like an 8 hour hike into the rainforest might be a bit much. But on the whole we are here to relax and enjoy the islands. If we have to skip some places to get south before for hurricane season, that's OK. We can always see them on the way back north again. We had just launched the dinghy when the folks from Ripple were on their way back. They said that there wasn't anyone in Customs but there were some forms you could fill in. They said they didn't bother since they were leaving anyway. We wished them a safe trip and off they went. About 15 minutes later, we went to shore to find customs also and perhaps buy some fresh bread. We walked up the short hill with another cruiser from Trinidad who had just happened to be at the dock at the same time. This time the Customs man was in, we filled in the form and he stamped it and our passports. Very painless and quick. Walking back to town, we stopped in a boulangerie (bakery) and got a delicious smoked baguette, recommended by the guidebook. Very good with the brie and other cheese we bought at the little supermarket we found later. We went back to the boat and Diane had a quick swim. We saw the turtle again (we saw him (her?) yesterday as well) and had a nice dinner. The next day, Tuesday, we went into town to take some pictures and so walked around a bit. We went back to the boat for lunch and then more re-organization of stores and supplies. While I did that, Diane worked on her logs. The night is very quiet and still. Not much wind and as the sun goes down, we sip our Ti Punches (1 part rum, 1 part sugar syrup and 2 parts lime juice, a national drink of Guadeloupe (of sorts)). Very pleasant. Wednesday was very different. We had decided to go down to Basse Terre and since we would pass it on the way, stop at Pigeon Island to snorkel. We did get up early, went into town and got some croissants and a baguette. The wind was from a different direction that morning, southwest. Strange. Anyway, we upped anchor and motored out of Deshaies. The wind continued very light from the southwest and we motored to Pigeon Island. This spot is popular with scuba divers as the water is very clear and there are nice reefs and fish. Its also part of the Cousteau National Marine Park and there is no anchoring allowed; there are mooring buoys. The guidebook says that white buoys are for transients and red are for dive boats. We see a couple of red buoys on the north side of the island but they are very close to the rocks, and we're not supposed to pick those up anyway. We go around to the east side, and find four white and blue moorings; a chartered catamaran already occupies one. We decide to pick one up and after one unsuccessful try, we get it. The water is indeed incredibly clear. I can see the bottom from 40 feet, and at 17 feet where the mooring is, I can make out the chain going down and where the mooring is actually located. I can also see the coral formations on the bottom. |