Mauritius

We moved down to Grand Riviere Noir about two weeks ago and have been up to no good as per usual.

 Kathy adjusting the gun on top of a restored Martello Tower

 This boat broke its moorings and hit Sal Darago at night. No damage thank goodness.

 Kathy on top of the unrestored Martello Tower at the other side of the bay.

 Kathy and Jeremy on top of the highest peak in Mauritius - still smiling.

 Coming down there were some fairly steep parts.

 Sugar cane is still big here. It is cut by hand, left to dry and then stacked like a haystack.

Our anchorage at Grand Riviere Noir

Passage to Mauritius

 Street scene, Port Louis

 View of the harbour entrance from the Citadel

St James Anglican Cathedral

We arrived safely in Port Louis, Mauritius on Tuesday 3^rd July after a 3 day passage from Rodrigues. The sea was described as “slight” when we left, almost unheard of for this time of year. We unfurled our genoa for the downwind sail and made 3 knots. Lighter winds followed so we hoisted our ghoster and goosewinged with both sails poled out. Our speed increased by half a knot. Overnight we replaced the ghoster with our no.2 jib and kept this sail pattern all the way. A ship going our way passed within a mile of us, which appears very close at night, so I shone our spotlight at it. After 2 hours it crossed our bows and disappeared over the horizon.

After a day and a half the wind picked up a bit. Our Hydrovane wind pilot steered a straighter course and better progress was made. Sometimes an uncomfortable swell hit us on our port side, but mostly we had a good passage, the chilly nights being lit by the almost full moon. We saw about 5 or 6 ships over the 3 days. Long trousers, jumpers and socks were needed at night.

Our arrival outside the harbour at Port Louis was met by silence as Jeremy hailed Port Control on VHF 16. Eventually, they answered on VHF 14 and we were allowed to enter once a container ship had left. We followed an inbound container ship, turned away to the old port and tied up to the Customs wharf, which is on the opposite side of the harbour from the yacht marina. After a short wait an Immigration officer arrived. Only the Health Officer boarded us and was very quick. Jeremy filled in about 11 pages of forms for Customs and finally filled in more forms for the Coastguard. The whole process took about 2 hours. We were not asked to pay any charges as we had come from Rodrigues. Our friends from “Cat’s Paw IV” met us at the Customs wharf and brought us a baguette and a papaya. Thanks Ann and Barry, once again. Then they met us again at the yacht marina and took our lines.

We have toilets and hot showers nearby and 24 hour security. There are no pontoons so yachts have to raft up when it gets busy. We’ve rafted up so that our cable can reach the electricity point. Drinking water is nearby. The cost for this is 300 rupees (£7) a day. So far we’ve found 2 supermarkets (Shoprite and Winners) lots of cafes/restaurants, 2 cathedrals and an amazing fort built by the British called the Citadel or Fort Adelaide. Soon we’ll be moving south to Riviere Noir, where there’s a national park and some walking trails. Au revoir for now.