Antigua and Sint Maarten

The main reason for going to Antigua was for Jeremy to see a dentist. His crown came out again and he had another broken tooth. It’s 152 nautical miles from St Pierre, Martinique to Jolly Harbour, Antigua. We weighed anchor at 0550, soon after first light, on Friday 28^th April. There was a great deal of weed to go through. We’re told it’s called sargasm (not sure about the spelling!). Anyway, we had to reverse many times to shake it off the propeller. We sailed for only four and a half hours; the rest of the time we motorsailed in light winds.

Ti Punch in St Pierre's Market

As we approached Antigua in the afternoon of Saturday 29^th April, there were many yachts, catamarans and power boats to avoid, some enjoying day trips, others resting at anchor. After taking down our sails, we identified the buoys leading into Jolly Harbour. There was no response to our VHF call to the Port Authority on channel 16. Jolly Harbour Marina answered our call straight away on channel 68. We asked permission to enter the harbour and clear in with Customs. We were told to continue straight in and tie up at the Customs dock in front of a yellow building. Unfortunately, there was a yacht tied up at the dock, so we had to gill about for about 45 minutes until it departed.

 

Jolly Harbour Customs Dock

At the Customs building, which also houses Immigration and the Port Authority, we had to wash our hands and wear face masks, even though most of the form filling was completed outside. Then we had to set up a new account on an outdoor computer. Our details had been kept from our last visit in 2014, but our home address, passport numbers and boat registration all had to be updated. We saw all the officials and Jeremy paid 31USD to the Port Authority.

 

We anchored in quite shallow water outside Jolly Harbour. After a swim and a hairwash, we took the dinghy into the harbour and enjoyed dinner at Al Porto restaurant, which was located next door to the Customs building. We found out that Monday 1^st May was a public holiday for Labour Day; no chance of contacting a dentist until Tuesday.

Dinner at Al Porto, Jolly Harbour

Budget Marine have a number of chandlery stores throughout the Caribbean. There was one in Jolly Harbour which we thought might be open the next day, Sunday. It wasn’t. Fortunately, the large supermarket was open and we were able to buy a whole roast chicken and other provisions. Back on Sal Darago, we weighed anchor and motored north to Deep Bay, where clearer water meant we could snorkel. It felt like a day off to us, so we made the most of it. Next to us there was a catamaran registered in Santa Cruz, California. We stopped by in our dinghy for a chat on our return from snorkelling. In the evening, Jeremy and I had a candlelit supper in our cockpit and watched the sun set and the moon rise. We still pinch ourselves to make sure we are really experiencing these rare moments.

Deep Bay, Antigua

On Labour Day, we motored round to St John’s, the capital of Antigua and the home of many dentists. It had been difficult to choose one, as our phones no longer worked for calls or data. We had spent 45 Euros plus tax each on SIM cards in Martinique with the assurance that they would work in all the islands. What they meant was all the FRENCH islands! The first dentist we tried the next day, called Island Smile, which had good reviews, very kindly accepted Jeremy and dealt with his dental problems efficiently. The dentist’s husband, Mr Foster, chatted to us for quite a while, making us feel at ease. Thank you, Island Smile, for treating Jeremy even though your list was full for the day.

 

Lunch at Hemingways, St John's, Antigua

After a delicious lunch in Hemingways (apparently Ernest H. visited here), we returned to SD. We were about to weigh anchor when a large RIB approached from Dawn, a big ship tied up in the harbour. On board was Morgan from Hesketh Bank. He remembered Sal Darago leaving Douglas Marine at Hesketh Bank, Lancashire, in 2008, when he was a teenager. We chatted for a while about our old boatyard and caught up with each other’s news. We were amazed and astonished that we should be recognised in Antigua by someone from Hesketh Bank, but we’re so glad Morgan stopped by.

 

At our anchorage, we shared with cruise ships and...

...a very sad looking "Born Free" yacht

We returned to Deep Bay for the night. Quite early on Wednesday morning, Jeremy hoisted our canvas mast steps up and climbed up to check all the rigging. To his dismay, he found the three starboard side shrouds (stainless steel wires that hold the mast in place) had broken or loose wires in them. They would need to be replaced. (Later we decided all the shrouds should be replaced.) A search of our cruising guide told us the best rigging company was FKG Rigging in Sint Maarten. We had planned to miss Sint Maarten and sail direct to the British Virgin Islands. Often, plans have to change. A course was plotted to Sint Maarten, 97 miles away.

First, we had to return to Jolly Harbour to the fuel dock to fill up with diesel and water. Then we anchored outside the harbour and took the dinghy to the marina office to swap our books. Next we went to Joseph’s for a local lunch, bought a few items in the supermarket, and cleared Customs, Immigration and the Port Authority. Jeremy paid a departure fee of 8USD. He used the Wifi from the restaurant next door, to send an email to FKG rigging.

We returned to SD, hoisted the dinghy on to the roof, made sandwiches and weighed anchor. It was 1725 and sunset was at 1811. We motorsailed all night arriving at Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten, at 1055 on Thursday 4^th May. We anchored close to the channel that leads to a lifting bridge. Beyond the bridge is the large Simpson Bay lagoon. We launched the dinghy and went ashore to check in with the usual officials. The Port Authority charged 27USD. This included one week’s anchorage in Simpson Bay lagoon and bridge opening fees. MacDonalds was next door to Customs and an obvious place for lunch and free WiFi. I managed to download a Kindle book, which I had been trying to do for nearly a month. Afterwards, we took the dinghy across the lagoon to FKG Rigging. Veronika was very helpful. Although the riggers were very busy, they could make up new shrouds for us, if we took down the damaged ones and brought them to the company. We were relieved and thankful.

 

The south, Dutch end of Simpson Lagoon, Sint Maarten

Back at SD outside in the anchorage, we had time for a cooling swim and wash before the bridge opened at 1700. Once in the lagoon, we anchored where we had been advised to go by FKG. The depth was only 1.2m below our keels. Jeremy hoisted the mast steps and removed two lower shrouds after supporting the mast with lines. We had late sundowners in our cockpit followed by a sandwich supper in our hot saloon.

 

Jeremy at the masthead

Yesterday, we had a lie in until 0630. We took the dinghy to FKG and left the two shrouds with them. Some of the parts had to be machined to fit SD, but we were told the new ones would probably be ready by the end of the day. Wonderful! Off we went to the dinghy dock outside Island Water World chandlery, stopping at the fuel berth for 5 litres of petrol for the outboard. We walked a mile to Carrefour supermarket for fresh fruit, Camembert and ham. Jeremy bought several items for SD in Island Water World.

Dinghying back from "France"

 

After a short stop at SD to unload, we took the dinghy across the lagoon to “France” to have lunch. (The island is half Dutch and half French.) Jeremy’s phone worked in St Martin. Veronika emailed to say the new shrouds were ready. Brilliant! After lunch, we went to the Digicel shop, where my phone was supposedly fixed. However, it doesn’t work in Sint Maarten. Jeremy’s does. We returned to SD (a half hour trip in the dinghy), collected some items to exchange in Island Water World and set off for their dinghy dock. Afterwards, we went to FKG and collected two new shrouds. The cost for the four lower shrouds was 895 USD. 

 

Dinghy Dock sailors' bar

After a quick, cooling swim, Jeremy went up the mast steps and fitted the two new starboard lower shrouds. I helped “on the ground”, so to speak, but actually, on the roof of SD. It was dark when we finished. Today, Jeremy fitted the remaining two lower shrouds on the port side. He has removed the long starboard shroud with a little bit of
help from me. We were up at 0530 before the wind began to blow. After a morning of Blog for me and fitting new gear for Jeremy, we had a pub lunch at the Dinghy Dock.