Grenada to Columbia

We left StGeorge harbour in Grenada bound for the Dutch Antilles. Bonnaire was 430 miles away. The trade winds were steady until our third night when the wind built up to 30-35 knots and quite a big sea got up. We hadn't predicted this from the GRIB files a few days previously and we hadn't been getting any weather on the SSB radio due to lack of reception.  On attempting to furl away the genoa I managed to get the up haul from the spinnaker pole caught inside the genoa which wrapped up so it was impossible to unfurl it. 

Colin went forward to have a look which was very difficult at night in a big breaking sea, with a lot of noise from the sail flogging. Eventually we did manage to furl the genoa but with a twist in the middle section that meant the middle of the sail was still flogging. For some reason the spinnaker pole would not go back up its runner so I tied it down to the foredeck at the pulpit. We settled down for the night under reefed main along and a slightly flogging foresail still belting along at 6-7 knots. Because of the big sea the Duogen propellor got caught under the Aries wind vane and had to be pulled up . Malcolm and Andrew got up in the middle of the commotion and felt they were in a madhouse.

We were relieved to pull into Kralenddijk , harbour Bonnaire where we sailed under the lee of a cruise ship and managed to unravel the foresail quite easily in the reduced wind. We picked up our mooring and surveyed the damage. Only a couple of broken battens on the main and a foresail that was intact, a tribute to Jeckells the sailmakers and Steve and his lads from the Boatshed in Port Dinorwic who had told me I needed a tough sail.

Bonnaire is very well run as part of Metropolitan Holland. It survives on tourism and boasts unparalleled diving as it is surrounded by a coral reef. We picked up moorings opposite the centre of town. Anchoring is forbidden because of the coral. We headed in on the dinghy and had a beer and lunch at Karens bar. It was interesting to be addressed in Dutch, although being Dutch they immediately switched into perfect English. 

View of Karen's bar from our mooring

Is he a Mod or a Rocker?

What, no leathers?

Colin claimed this was a short walk!

Stragglers..... near mutiny in the midday sun!

Blow hole

Flamingos, spot the dots!

We hired scooters one day and toured the island. The soil of the interior is pretty stony with dried out coral supporting short scrubby thorn and acacia trees with loads of different cacti. The land has been overgrazed by goats with tree felling reducing any canopy further.  In the North of the island there is a conservation park . We went on a walk for two hours in the middle of the day passing ancient stone walls made from broken off coral. Because of the sharp edges of the coral it holds together rather better than the stone we use in North Wales.















We saw blow holes where the sea came through a gap in the coral and sent a spout of water through a hole in the ground, and found some flamingos wading around feeding in a shallow inlet. There were lots of lizards and iguanas some of whom were quite tame. One even gave Malcolm a lick, he must have mistaken him for a large fly!

In the south of the island lie enormous salt pans that stretch for miles . Water is evaporated off sea water by a combination of heat and wind , then great machines go in and scrape of the salt which is stacked  in great salt mountains prior to shipping. In the days of slavery, slaves were kept in tiny huts near the salt pans and they worked in blistering heat scraping the salt of the beds.

The story of the slave huts

a few of the slave huts remain as a reminder

Mountains of salt

Malcolm gets up close

Are they related?

We set off for Santa Marta in Columbia , a journey of some 450 nautical miles on Wednesday 22 January. We started slowly because we were in the lee of Bonnaire, but have been in 20-25 knot trade winds for a day. As we are going almost dead downwind the motion is quite rolly which makes cooking difficult , however tomorrow Friday we should be able to gybe onto port tack and head down the Colombian coast for Santa Marta where the wind will be 30knots according to the GRIB files. So far an enormous fish broke the rod holder and pulled off the trace, we were buzzed by a coastguard plane presumably looking for drug smugglers, and Andrew our electronics wunderkind has fixed the speaker switch so we can watch the hobbit film in the cockpit after dinner at night. The Duogen propellor is charging well which means we no longer have to run the engine to charge the batteries at night .

Approaching Santa Marta in 35 knots of wind!
Sierra Nevada in the far distance.

We reached Santa Marta on Saturday afternoon. We were treated to a magnificent view of the Sierra Nevada from the sea with snow  clad peaks rising above the clouds to 12,000 feet poking through the clouds. The wind also funnels off this northern edge of the Andes giving us a bit of a roller coaster ride with winds gusting to 35 knots on the approach to Santa Marta. We tied up on a Saturday and although the office was closed the security guys shook us all by the hand, showed us around and arranged an agent. Everyone here smiles, helps us patiently with our minimal Spanish, and appear genuinely happy.

The town is a busy working city. If you ask the way people go out of their way to help you. Prices are very reasonable , Malcolm and I got a haircut for about £4 each, and the beef is to die for.  

As you go further West the cruising community comes into its own. We know everyone on our pontoon and met everyone else at a pot luck supper on Monday night. Mike and Ineka ( an English couple) like it so much they have been here for months. 

Simon Bolivar

The main square is dominated by a statue of Simon Bolivar the liberator of many countries in South America from the Spanish yoke at the turn of the century. On the same square lies the museum which tells the story of the South American Indian tribes who were displaced by the conquistadors from the coast and moved into the mountains rejecting all contact with the Spanish and maintaining their own languages and culture, oblivious to the outside world to this day. Their skills in working gold to make religious artefacts is legendary and recently a whole lost Indian city has been discovered.

On Tuesday we took a communal taxi called a collectivo an hour into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada to a place called Minca. We walked through Santa Martas main market to pick up the taxi. There were stalls for everything. If your fan,fridge,generator anything else breaks down in Columbia you don't get a new one but take it to one of these guys who either cannibalise old ones or make new parts or electrical windings in small workshops on the street. The collectivo was an old Nissan Patrol jeep . We picked up tax less fuel from behind a small store on the way . 

Its all about beans, Victoria coffee plantation

air is heated to assist the drying process

Two old beans ready for the sack!

On arrival in Minca we transferred to the back of motorbikes for a run up to the Victoria coffee plantation. This place was built by an Englishman in the late 19th century, and is now owned by a German. All the machines were water powered with elaborate fans and pulleys probably similar to water powered mills in Lancashire. They even had a small hydroelectric plant which supplied electricity to 20 homes on the mountain. The machinery is so sophisticated it takes just two men to run the plant when everything is in full swing. The pickers arrive when the coffee beans are ready to be plucked from 70 hectare and then sent down pipes from high on the mountain. They can earn about35 US dollars a day. After fermenting,removing the husks and roasting we tasted a grade 1 cup of coffee. As Malcolm said it tasted just like coffee!

water driven turbine

bathing in the river falls

Snow chilled waters

Sunset viewed from our hostel

our dorm in Minca

best not to overdo it

The rejects from HMS Tenby!

On the way back down we took a stroll to a waterfall where it was incredibly refreshing to swim in the pool and get showered by cold water straight from the top of the Andes. We stayed in a backpackers hostel called Casa lomo which you reached by climbing a steep path and as you puffed into view you were greeted by a man holding a glass of iced water. That evening we watched the sun go down over the  mountains had a communal meal with our fellow guests and retired to a room full of hammocks covered by mosquito nets. 45 years ago Malcolm and I slept next to each other in hammocks as sea cadets in the mess deck of HMS Tenby. At the time he got me into hot water by nudging my hammock into my neighbours a big thug. I regret to say he was still up to his old tricks

In the morning Colin and I set off on a farm visit to see Miguel and his family. It's a walk of some3 kilometres and we were guided up by Mannie his son. It's an exhausting climb and the path to the farm is so steep not even a mule can get up. It was sobering to realise the family made the trip up and down every day without thinking about it. On the way we met Mannies mother who looked incredibly fit after 10 children. Who needs gyms when you've got a mountain to climb.

Miguel farmed on 7.5 Hectares. He had a few hens , turkeys and goats. However his main income was from the coffee plants supplemented by bananas, papayas, cocoa, avocados and Mangos. His family had built the house from tropical hardwood that they had felled and  sawed with the aid of a chain saw and a small saw bench. He cooked on a fire covered with a clay and reinforced mesh top. Although he had electricity he had virtually no machinery as the place was too steep. No car or motorbike, no tractor or harvesting machinery. Coffee beans were pounded with a large pestle and mortar to open the husks and the husks were shredded off with a bicycle powered shredding wheel. Miguel was obviously happy and content with his lot 

but it gave a whole new dimension to the phrase "earning a hard living"

Miguel prepares our lunch

grinding coffee beans

Farmers need to stick together!

busy in the kitchen

walking back from the farm past bamboo

..and having a root around!

In the family room there was a large electric fridge. We asked how they managed to get it up the mountain we had struggled to climb. Four of his sons had done it by strapping it onto poles and carrying it on their backs ! After lunch we watched Columbian bull fighting on the family TV. As well as the gauchos on horseback in the ring there were numerous DIY bullfighters on foot who were quite frequently gored and then trampled by the bull. Life is cheap in South America. 

DHL were not willing to deliver but Miguels sons were

On  30 January , we took a four hour bus ride down to the ancient walled city of Cartagena . We stayed in a place just outside the walls and strolled in the afternoon sunshine through the wall down colonial streets overlooked by beautiful wooden balconies to the palace of the inquisitions opposite the cathedral. Here we had an in depth explanation of the methods used during the Spanish Inquisition .  All it took was for someone who didn't like you to shove an anonymous accusation through a window and they would come and get you. The rack, thumbscrew, garrotting and even more horrible methods were used to extract your confession after which you were killed slowly. All your property and land then passed to the Church. Almost nobody went in there and came out innocent. The Conquistadors and the Cardinals worked hand in hand in ensuring gods holy work was done. Protestants Jews and Muslims all got the treatment although they were occasionally allowed to convert. If you were epileptic you were spread on a wheel and beaten to get the devil out, a universally fatal procedure. It was no wonder that the Creoles( (South American born Europeans) revolted under Simon Bolivar to create a republic and throw off their Spanish oppressors,and their religious policed state.

Cartagena

nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!

The great Cervantes who wrote Don Quixote in Cartagena

Prior to the walls a series of English and French fleets had sacked the city. Drake, Hawkins and Henry Morgan the Welsh " privateer " to name but a few. Drake was the most notorious wreaking havoc on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of theSpanish Main . He sailed through the straights of Magellan  north of Tierra del Fuego to get into the pacific and took the Spaniards completely by surprise. His fleet eventually departed sailing on through the pacific and around the Cape of Good hope to reach England. All the ships were ballasted with Spanish Gold. Queen Elizabeth took a half share which was equivalent to one third of England's GDP at the time. Contrary to popular legend she got the French Ambassador to knight Drake on the deck of the Golden Hind just to ensure the French weren't going to gang up with the Spaniards.

The city also boasts a magnificent gold museum which demonstrates the remarkably rich and sophisticated culture of the South American Indians . They panned gold from the river beds and wrought it into delicate artefacts often using the lost wax technique which consisted of pouring molten gold into a cast of clay and beeswax often carved into a mesh pattern synonymous with their belief that we humans are mere specks floating along in the weave of life. Their agriculture was also sophisticated as they diverted the rivers into narrow channels surrounding large beds on which they grew their crops.

Floral balconies

Cathedral in the distance

The anonymous window where denunciations were posted on horseback

Happiness to guilt in one easy lesson!

We returned to Santa Marta to a storm and have delayed our departure for 24 hours to allow the wind to ease. Next stop Colon Panama where Peter Quilliam will be waiting for us

Location of Santa Marta marina.
At the next stop we will see a rather large canal.

Eastern Caribbean: St Lucia to Grenada

It was great to see everyone at home over Christmas. On  3 January I took the big bird back from Gatwick and arrived at St Lucia that had suffered a tropical downpour on Christmas Eve. The flash floods had caused landslides with 5 people losing their lives. Colin said it was just like standing in a waterfall. The dinghy completely filled with water in 15 minutes. The main road back from the airport was full of diversions around river beds that had completely swept whole sections of road away.

When it rains it pours!

We spent a couple of days installing the water maker , new regulator and getting water out of the outboard carburettor before we were joined by Andrew and Deidre Wiggin and my old school pal Malcomb Waite. We sailed up to Rodney Bay the next day. Re provisioned and said good bye to Clive and Judith and family . Grandson Luke now 6 months old and a bonny lad had come out with Carina and David on the same flight and had been a star.

Our first night was spent anchored at Soufriere where we cleared customs , and marvelled at the Piton Mountains towering above us. 

Soufriere Bay, under the Pitons

Deidre and Malcolm give sailing the thumbs up

We set off for Bequia at first light and once we were out of the lee of St Lucia got the full force of a 25 knot breeze and Atlantic swell. There were a few queasy stomachs on passage. But we made good time and arrived in Admiralty Bay , port Elizabeth , Bequia as dusk fell.  The anchorage was prone to marked shoaling and we almost ran aground at one point but settled down for dinner on board.

Bequia is a lovely island the locals have mixed with Scottish émigrés , Whalers from New Bedford , and retired sailors who have swallowed the hook and decided to settle there. Everyone is cheerful and there was a distinct lack of hustling as with no International Airport the islanders just got on with their lives. 

There is a strong boatbuilding and whaling tradition here. The islanders are still allowed a quota of four whales a year but rarely reach it. Spotters on the mountain see whales and VHF radio the boats which are traditional skiffs. The whale has to be harpooned by hand and the harpoonist aims for the heart at which time the boat is at considerable risk. If the whale dives he can take a boat with him unless they are fast enough to cut the line. If a whale is landed he is towed to a small island where there is general rejoicing. I felt quite relieved that the great humpback whales we saw on passage to Bequia were well out of range of the spotters.
We went around the island in a  converted pickup where our friend  and taxi driver Steve pointed out sweet pea trees , golden apples , mangos , grape fruits all of which we scrumped as we went round . The breadfruit trees were bought back from polynesia by Captain Bligh of the Bounty .The beaches were beautiful and everyone would have been quite happy to have stayed for longer.  On Thursday 9th we said goodbye to Deidre who set off on the ferry for the delights of a good bed and sauna back in Rodney bay before flying home. 

Kika at anchor, Admiralty Bay, Bequia

With Admiralty Bay in the background

Our driver Steve adds to the windfalls. We live off  grapefruit for the week.

The east coast of Bequia

We sailed for Tobago Cays a beautiful reef where you are surrounded by ocean. It's no wonder one of the anchorages was called "worlds end". It was quite windy so we anchored up between two small islands, went snorkelling off the beach which was just like being in an aquarium and eschewed the delights of fried lobster on the island for a delicious stir fry aboard cooked by Andrew .

At anchor Tobago Cays

Tobago Cays

On Saturday we sailed into Clifton on Union Island so we could clear out at the airport and then set off for Grenada in very pleasant 15 -20 knot trade winds. 

Going ashore, Union Island

We stock up with fruit from Jenny's and she gives us a bottle of her homemade spicy hot sauce 

and relax over a breakfast in style

We arrived at St George's harbour as the light faded and were guided to our stern to mooring at the Grenada yacht club by a gentleman called Godfrey who appeared out of nowhere. The yacht club was half the price of the expensive new Camper and Nicholson marina just built across the bay , with a well appointed bar and excellent pool table. Who could ask for more!
Sunday saw Kikas crew at the Anglican Church at 7.30 am in town. The original cathedral had blown down in hurricane Ivan in 2004 so the congregation had taken over a local school. All the ladies were beautifully turned out in bonnets and blue capes for the mothers union . The altar was decorated with Bouganvillias and other colourful Grenadian flowers . The vicar , choir and congregation set about the service with gusto. The singing was marvellous and two hours later after having shaken everyone's hand we emerged into the morning sunshine.

We repaired to the boat where we have been gradually whitling down the snag list. Andrew and Malcolm found a snapped off connection in the innards of the Duogen which is now charging - hurrah! Colin  repaired a broken chain on the auto helm , we cleared the bilge pump , got the fridge controller going thanks to a phone call with my pal Gareth Davies at home and patched up the dinghy.

We took a taxi tour of the island on Monday. Grenada has a fairly turbulent recent political past. In the early eighties the prime minister Maurice Bishop gave Ronald Reagan nightmares by inviting in the Cubans and extending the islands runways.  He was replaced in a coup by a hard line deputy and a bloodthirsty militia called the people's liberation army(PLA). When the people heard about it they walked up en masse to Fort George overlooking the city together with Maurice Bishop who had told them to come unarmed. They were attacked by an armoured car surrounded in the fort and then systematically executed together with Maurice Bishop. Our taxi driver Edgar was there and managed to escape by jumping off the castle walls and into some rubbish.  He was very lucky that day.  The whole island was held under curfew on pain of death for the next 5 days , so when the Americans invaded they were welcomed with open arms by the Grenadians. The ringleaders were rounded up,  "tied up like crabs" and tried , and a more conservative democratic president was installed with American approval. If only Afghanistan had gone so well . 

Edgar showing his escape from death

Our tour of the island took us through the great tropical forest of the grand etang where we saw every type of tree imaginable and enjoyed the humid cool air at 2000 feet above sea level where there were large fresh water lakes created by the craters of extinct volcanoes.  We also worked out how nutmeg,mace, chocolate ,cinnamon and coffee arrived from tree to kitchen shelf

Spice Girl ! the secrets of the spice islands explained

We visited the River Antoine Estate where they make 80% rum too powerful to take on any aeroplane. Sugar cane is harvested by hand and then fed into great crushing rollers powered by a huge waterwheel built in 1785 . The liquor is drained off, heated , fermented and then distilled to make rum. These days the estate is owned by a consortium of local Grenadians and cane harvesters work from 6am to 11 am when they stop because of the heat. However in the days of slavery things were very different. Slaves worked all day in backbreaking heat, when they became too old they moved into the masters house to serve, but when they were really old they were thrown out onto the street with no support as they had no economic value. Women who became pregnant we beaten often to death and if any man or woman appeared to develop a close relationship one of them was transferred to another plantation. Sometimes people escaped into the interior but were often hunted down and there is a cliff on the North of the island called Sauteurs Bay where the Caribs jumped off the edge of a cliff rather than face re-enslavement.

We are now planning to sail straight to Bonaire in the Dutch ABC islands. The situation regarding drug trafficking and piracy has got worse in Venezuela which has become the new Columbia. Apparently even off duty members of the Guardia National are involved so the advice is to by pass it and go to Columbia instead.

River Antoine Rum, made the traditional way

Water wheel, installed 1785

crushing the sugar cane

Sugar cane lifted by belt to the press

Andrew rebalances after a dose of 80% proof

After our visit the bottles look a bit tired

St Lucia

Rodney Bay was a great relaxed place to hang out for a while. The bars and restaurants were full of crews swapping stories.  A boat labelled " Mr Sparkle" with a smiling owner took our washing . Local bananas , mangos and melons arrived in similar fashion at a reasonable price after protracted negotiations with the first mate.

For the first couple of days , we concentrated on repairs. I took off part of the water maker after a very helpful phone call with Jim Donaldson of Mactra who agreed with our diagnosis of a bust spool valve and offered to fix it over Christmas . So Joe took it back to the Uk .  Louise Colin and Nick took off the mainsail, taped up the chafed bits and put more protection on the rear spreaders. the Duogen appears to be a regulator problem again and none of us including a very helpful Peter at Eclectic Energy can work out why it keeps blowing

The evening of the 12 th December was the final farewell party before we were kicked off our berths to go to Marigot Bay .It was a fairly boozy affair , as the drink was free but the food ran out. Everyone danced to a steel band that was really revving up and the celebrations continued back in the bars of Rodney bay well into the night. A fleet with a few sore heads cruised the 10 miles down to Marigot Bay the next day. Suzanne from Germany came with us and enjoyed the sail. 

The A (Atlantic) Team in Marigot Bay

Suzanne with bubbles

Joe enjoying a final taste of life in the slow lane

We said goodbye to Joe who had managed to squeeze in a weeks skiing with the family before Christmas before going back to work for the Sheiks in the sandpit in Quatar- the rest of us can't keep up with life in the fast lane.

Marigot bay is a beautiful  inlet . There is an outer anchorage with a beach lined with palm trees and an inner bay surrounded by mangrove trees with laid moorings. Dr Doodditle was filmed here and listening to the sounds of the tropical forest surrounding us the animals are still talking about it.   The cove is lined with a variety of restaurants all of which can be visited by dinghy and the dockside cafe even has a fast Internet connection that works!
The bay is also a well known hurricane hole. With winds of 125 knots outside yachts are tied up to the mangrove trees with maximum wind speeds of 50knots in the bay.

Marigot Bay

We returned by local bus to Rodney bay to meet up with Mary Burrows our ex chief executive who was renting a house with two old friends, Katherine and Judith
They had timed their visit to coincide with Kikas and Sephinas arrival. After a welcome beer and a shower at Mary's place we proceeded to the infamous local " jump up" at Gros Islet just north of Rodney Bay.

A drink or two in the bar and soon we were...........

...........talking to the animals on the way to Jump Up

 A jump up is a huge street party at which you can buy rum punches and drinks of every colour, food from fish and meat barbecues and the centre is reserved for a stage with huge speakers blaring out reggae and hip hop to which everyone dances. The bass was turned up so loud you could feel it hitting your chest and not fail to feel the rhythm , surprisingly with relatively little treble it didn't appear to hurt the ears, Mary, friends and Kika's crew were soon in the groove, jumpin' around.  The atmosphere was good humoured , however lounging around the edge of the crowd there were a few ladies of the night plying for trade surrounded by a number of hard faced men who didn't look as though they had just come for the music. We got the cue and disappeared just after midnight when the mood music changes.

We stopped using taxis and got into using the local bus system which consists of frequent privately owned minibuses which are full of people and you just hold out your hand and stop. There are two advantages. Travelling at a fraction of the cost of a taxi and getting to know people.  St Lucia was colonised successively by the French and British with the British finally winning out and sending the French off to sulk in nearby Martinique. In order to try and fend off the Brits the French even freed a number of slaves and armed them on a pragmatic you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours principle. Unfortunately the strategy failed. British ships landed in the deep pools off the Piton mountains near Soufriere and re enslaved them in 1819 . It wasn't until emancipation in 1829 that they became free again. Around Souffriere the locals have long memories.  Local Creole is spoken all over the Caribbean. It is a mixture of African dialects ,French , and some English. It was a means off communicating that the colonial oppressor would not understand and with slight variations can be understood in both English and French speaking Islands.  The local economy used to be based on sugar cane which declined together with the plantations to be replaced by banana trees. Sadly South America has taken over as the cheapest exporter of cheap bananas and the island is now heavily dependant on tourism, although bananas remain the main crop. My Rastafarian pal on the bus who hawked stuff on the beach explained. "When America hurts man, I feel the pain. Folks just ain't got spare cash no more."


We returned to Rodney Bay via Castries for Clive's arrival. Castries is full of cruise ships and hustlers offering lightning tours of the island. Once you get beyond them and the posh cruise ship shops the local market sells most things including a great collection of spices, straight from the queen of the spice islands. We found a lady who gave us a good reduction on some presents who told us we had been sent from heaven as trade had been disastrous recently, and she was now looking forward to Christmas.

Sephina arrived at 7 pm on 17th December. Clive managed to blague a berth on the luxury yacht India pontoon by insisting the posh cats could not disembark on a stern to mooring. Mary lead the cheering in party (she used to be the top cheerleader for her school baseball team) and raced us onto the posh pontoon, where we all had an ARC rum punch together. Sephina had had a tough trip. 

All six crew members were given a noisy reception on arrival in Rodney Bay

The last few days had been rough with winds in excess of 30 knots and Clive had wondered at points why he was putting his wife and family through it. They were all delighted to have survived it and excited to arrive and it was great to see them. Dave Gozzard on Gozzwos arrived a couple of days later with a broken spinnaker pole and water maker but seemed very chilled out as did his wife Alicia who enjoyed herself.

Colin and I retuned to Marigot Bay getting a ride from Castries from a bus driver who lived in the bay. As it was his last drive he lit up a 'phat' spiff of the local "ganja" after offering us some.  He also offered to arrange for us to go and see some local girls, but was only dissuaded when we told him we had women back at the boat "Respect man." He had worked out that Marijuana made him do everything better including driving. We didn't entirely agree as his eyes widened and the roadside ditches appeared rather close . We were relieved to emerge safe and sound at Marigot Bay.

We went down to Souffriere and climbed Gros Piton the next day. It is a steep 960 metres of extinct volcano. It took around 4 hours to get up and down a very rocky track with the skipper trailing along at the back. We were charged 30 US dollars each to have a guide (compulsory) and the whole experience was an exercise in masochism with all our legs turned to jelly by the time we reached the bottom. The view at the top was limited due to the arrival of a squall. Rather like North Wales on a wet day. 

The Pitons

We reach the summit. On top of the world, but not feeling it.

Back in Marigot Bay the luxury yachts with huge crews have been loading up with supplies as the owners arrive for Christmas cruises. We said goodbye to Louise and Nick and as I write this Colin is remaining in Marigot Bay for Christmas with Sephina and its crew for company . He also volunteered to fit new batteries to Kika after Christmas while I go home for a week. I am currently sitting in an aircraft on 24 December that has spent two hours waiting on the Tarmac after arriving at Gatwick airport with no stand available as the airport is suffering from power cuts and complete disruption due to last nightsstorms and flooding. It's great to be back home!
.

During the skipper's absence the first mate organises refit of Kika!