In Reunion

In order to check out of Mauritius you have to take your boat to the Customs berth in Port Louis and see Immigration, Customs and the Harbourmaster. We tied up to the Customs berth at 8.00am and learned that a ship with 150 passengers was being checked in by the Immigration Officer so we might have a long wait. Almost 2 hours later the Immigration Officer arrived, our passports were stamped, the other officials were seen and we were allowed to leave.

Large rig outside Port Louis, Mauritius

It’s only a 24 hour crossing but it wasn’t long before the swell began to hit us on the port side and it was quite big and steep with some breaking waves on top. Jeremy’s tummy was unsettled and I avoided going down below as much as possible, except to sleep. Sal Darago sailed beautifully with one reef in the mainsail and a tiny genoa with the strong wind behind the beam. The lovely lady in the red dress, aka Hydrovane, steered without flinching except in the occasional 30 knot gusts.

Sal Darago snug against Le Hnoss, Le Port, Reunion.

We’re in Port des Galets, Reunion. We tried various channels on VHF to announce our arrival and soon realised it is unusual here to ask permission to enter the port. Just go into the marina, which is a sharp turn to starboard once you have entered the port following the leading marks or lights. Next find the marina manager (maître de port) and ask where you should tie up. He gives you the forms to fill in for Immigration and Customs and arranges for them to visit. Two officers came to our boat and did not want to board. They took our forms, stamped our passports and left, all within 5 minutes. There was nothing to pay. 

Le Petit Marche, St Denis.

Everyone here is helpful and relaxed. The nearby town, unimaginatively named Le Port, has shops, supermarkets and bakeries about 15 minutes’ walk away. There is a bus stop near the harbour. Expect almost everything to be expensive and you won’t be disappointed. You are now in France. As befits an island in paradise most shops and businesses close at lunchtime on Friday until 2.00pm on Monday. We’ll tell you the saga of how we were fixed up with WiFi in the next blog.