Monday 16 June 2014

18/2014 More Grenada

Hi from Clare,                                              Friday 13th June 2014

A TOUCH OF PARADISE
So here we sit at anchor in "paradise" on Friday 13th and appropriately for the date, it's a grey day. The sunny skies have vanished and we are left with rain, wind and humidity.
Prickly Bay

We spent a few wonderful days at Port Egmont (our hurricane hole) enjoying the peace and quiet. It was lovely to have early morning coffee in the cockpit listening to the birds. We enjoyed walks around the hills amongst some very attractive holiday homes. We learnt from a local chap that the homes are owned by Europeans who spend six months of the year here to escape their cold winter. We encountered some large watch dogs ready to defend their property; we just hoped the fences were in good condition.
Prickly Bay


WHAT MAKES THE WORLD GO AROUND
We returned to Clarke's Court Bay for provisions and tried to find a comfortable spot to settle. We found that when out of the wind the boat rolled and when in the wind, although the boat was still the wind howling through the rigging drove us crazy.

 
Houses around Prickly Bay

We have now moved a short distance to Hog Island which has better protection but no facilities. If necessary we can dinghy to the various marinas in the surrounding bays, but for most of the time we are on the boat and not getting much exercise.
Eye Candy alone in Port Egmont


On the beach at Hog Island
We are waiting for a break in the weather so we can go to Bonaire but we are not in a hurry as we hear on the radio that Bonaire also has windy conditions. I don't know who writes the brochures, but it's all lies I tell you, it's all lies.


Apart from the fact that we are not doing much, we are both well and happy.
Love Candy xx

At 1:19 AM10/06/2014 (utc) our position was 11°59.63'N 061°45.71'W

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Saturday 7 June 2014

17/2014 Grenada

Hi from Clare,                            6th June 2014

We left Trinidad on 26th May and had a very bumpy twelve hour sail to Grenada. However it was worth the discomfort as we just wanted to escape Trinidad and forget the five weeks of work and upheaval.

THE CIVILIZED WORLD
It was a relief to arrive in Prickly Bay Grenada and drop the anchor in clean aqua water. The sun was shining, the sky was blue and we welcomed the cooling sea breeze. The real estate around the bay is very upmarket and attractive. There is also a huge development for the ever expanding Grenada University. The shopping is good with quality marine stores, hardware and supermarkets. It was a pleasure to stroll around IGA and purchase quality product. The Grenadian people are very friendly and helpful and we feel safe here.

THE CRUISING WORLD
The cruisers are well catered for with tours of the island and regular shopping trips. We have access to manyactivities like yoga, water aerobics, bingo, dominoes and chess, cooking classes, film nights, boat jumbles, happy hours and dinner specials. There is also a very active daily radio net that transmits and includes marinas and the cruising community at anchor throughout the whole of Grenada.

THE WEEK THAT WAS
We have time now to sit back and enjoy ourselves reading, relaxing and swimming. The daily temperature is around 30 degrees and 26 degrees at night. The water temperature is currently 29 degrees.The weather all week has been fairly windy and so in search of shelter we moved a few miles from Prickly Bay to Hartman Bay and then a few more miles to Clarke's Court Bay. Yesterday, after finding these bays still too windy we moved to Port Egmont on the southern end of Grenada. To get here we came in from the sea to the end of a deep bay and then around a dog leg into Port Egmont.This little enclosed bay is said to be the best hurricane hole in the eastern Caribbean. We are in flat water and life is a lot more peaceful without the sound of wind howling through the rigging. We are the only boat here as the location is a bit isolated. This morning we walked up over the hill to Le Phare Bleu Hotel Resort and Marina. We had coffee on the verandah of the restaurant overlooking a beautifully manicured tropical garden and the aqua water of the bay.

SO WHAT'S NEXT
We have a very poor internet access and so I will not be able to send any photos. We will stay here for a few days until the wind drops. We are in no hurry to leave Grenada. We are both well and at peace with the world.
Love Candy xx

At 2:48 AM30/05/2014 (utc) our position was 11°59.63'N 061°45.71'W

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