Windward Voyage: February 2017

Allan & Ursula Ward: Port Owen, Cape West Coast, South Africa.

Shearwater 39:

- L.O.A. 43ft (13.22m)

- L.O.D. 39ft (12m)

- L.W.L. 34ft (10.3m)

- BEAM 13ft(3.9m)

- DRAFT 6ft(1.8m)

HOW IT ALL BEGAN .

I placed my order on Nebe Boats on the 19/10/1992 for what was initially planned to be a complete factory built yacht that l would sail home to Durban from Capetown once she was completed. Unfortunately due to the demise of Nebe Boats in the early days of her construction it did not turn out that way, so l decided to truck her home to Ramsgate on the KZN South Coast to finish building her in our garden at home.

For many years we could proudly boast that we had the most expensive piece of garden furniture in town, but at the time l had no idea of how massive this project would turn out to be. As anyone who has built a blue water cruiser will tell you, particularly if she is kitted out with all the systems and the equipment that a modern cruiser has onboard these days, it is a daunting task . Looking at the positive aspects of this project, l know the boat intimately in that l designed and installed the systems, so from a repair and maintenance perspective l have no issues carrying out the work that is necessary from time to time.

The big day arrived on the 29/8/2008 when we craned her out of the garden onto a rig to truck her through to Durban for launching . What followed was three months of preparations to ready her for the maiden voyage to our home port in Port Owen on the Cape West Coast.

We had a fast passage down the South African East Coast including a storm off the notorious Wild Coast and arrived in Port Owen in dense fog. Windward had passed her first test with flying colours and since then we have enjoyed some great sailing on the West Coast.

The master plan has always been to go cruising, so our plans are to leave for Brazil via Luderitz and St Helena Island at the end of February 2014. So far everything is on track although the “To Do“ list still grows each day.

The purpose of this blog is to record our adventure for ourselves, family and friends. Although it will probably end up being a brief summary of events while we are cruising, we hope you will enjoy and share some of our experiences with us.

LIVING THE DREAM .

Saturday, February 25, 2017

MUSTIQUE . WHERE THE RICH & FAMOUS HANG OUT .

The one thing that l really enjoy about the Caribbean is that there is always a breeze and the sailing is fantastic . The easterly trades blow consistently around 15 – 20kns occasionally gusting up to 25kns and all this amounts to exhilarating passages , every sailor's joy .

Our passage up to Mustique was no different and we made good time with Windward and her blemish free bottom trucking along in excess of 7kns all the way . There was a distinct African vibe offshore with accompanying yachts Madiba off our port beam and Zanzibar taking up the rear . Common amongst cruisers is the absolute denial that we are competitive but it just takes another yacht or two to be on similar courses and the game is on .

Getting back to the beautiful private island of Mustique , made famous by the likes of Mick Jagger , David Bowie , Bryan Adams , members of the Royal family and a host of celebrities and wealthy dudes , who now own about 100 large homes mainly situated on the northern half of the island . The guy who owns Adidas/Puma owns what appears up on the hill to be a small hotel with a view of the Grenadines before him . Britain's late Princess Margaret put this small private island on the map when the original owner Colin Tennant gave her a 10 acre plot of land as a wedding present . Lord Glenconner ( Colin Tennant ) purchased the entire 1400 acre island in 1958 for $67500 and set about developing the copra , cotton and sugarcane but today after selling off the island to private buyers they have restricted any further development which has turned the place into a glamorous hideaway . Although private and exclusive we were given a special tour of the island by a lovely lady we met while clearing in at the airport . She manages a private villa along with staff and she explained how the island caters to guests who rent these private villas when the owners are away . She drove us around the island to some of the most pristine beaches in the world , one in particular called Macaroni Beach is rated as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world . On the windward side of the island one magnificent beach is where Mick Jagger , Bryan Adams and Tomy Hilfiger have homes , all side by side . What is really appealing about this island is that much of the land has been left wild with some beautiful trails and most of the transport around the island are golf carts and mules , a similar but more robust type of vehicle .

The main spot for socializing is the famous Basil's Bar right on the water's edge which hosts the equally famous Mustique Blues Festival which sadly we missed by a couple of weeks . This event is held during the first two weeks of February and has become a major drawcard featuring musos from all over the world .

Our lady friend explained how fortunate we were to see the current Basil's Bar as this rustic eatery is about to be demolished after existing for 40 years and will be replaced with a new building apparently because the current structure is falling apart . She believes that this legendary bar will never be the same again and that it will be the end of an era . We managed to time our visit to attend the final “ Jump Up “ which Basil is famous for where they serve a buffet dinner while live music sees you through the night . They charge $10US to sit at the bar but if you pay $100US for the buffet , they will waiver the cover charge . Great deal( joke ). I suppose if you are an aging rock star , supermodel or the like that would be small change .

The Cotton House , Mustique's grand hotel was once an 18^th century cotton warehouse but today is a super luxury resort with only the best on offer even offering 11 kinds of pillows to choose from . Only upon request will a TV or DVD be installed in your accommodation , the whole idea is to maintain perfect peace and tranquility . After experiencing a charter boat full of party goers who were all totally out of it , singing and seeing who could whistle the loudest throughout the night , the Cotton House became an attractive option .

We really enjoyed Mustique for it's quaint Caribbean charm and brightly coloured buildings . The tennis club and horse riding facilities are immaculate along with it's little airport where the rich and famous fly in to be collected by their staff driving golf carts and mules . Even the police station and school have the same characteristics and with it's unique tropical ambiance , Mustique wouldn't be too difficult to call home . Although walking around exploring the island , every entrance leading up to a large villa is clearly signed “ Private Property “ and apparently at times particularly with visiting royalty certain parts of the island are restricted to keep the paparazzi out . We don't keep up with the celebrity who's who so we have no idea who we passed while wandering around the island .

Last but not least , we had a little interaction with nature again . After stepping out of the shower and into the saloon l noticed our fruit basket was under attack .

We had a fruit bat sitting on a paw paw just about to feast on it . We have a special folding net cover to protect the fruit from insects ( not bats ) and after closing it this poor bat spent three hours flying around inside our boat trying to work out how to get inside to the fruit .

Before getting into bed l left a lone apple in the cockpit to hopefully satisfy our little friend and the next morning the apple had disappeared but he/she had left a couple of droppings on our settee to remind us of its visit .

MUSTIQUE . A GLAMOROUS HIDEAWAY FOR THE RICH & FAMOUS .

CLASSIC CLOSE-HAULED CARIBBEAN SAILING AT IT'S BEST .

I CAN ONLY PRESUME THAT THE ATTACHMENT ON THIS BOAT IS A WATERSLIDE FOR IT'S GUESTS .

BASIL , THE OWNER OF THE FAMOUS BAR .

THIS HOME ABOVE THE ANCHORAGE IS SOMEONE'S HOLIDAY PAD .

BASIL'S BAR . NOTHING MUCH TO LOOK AT BUT COUNTLESS CELEBRITIES HAVE PARTIED THE NIGHT AWAY AT THIS RUSTIC BAR .

AFTER A LONG LUNCH YOU CAN TENSION UP A BIT WITH A SWIM OUTSIDE THE BAR .

THE FIRST MATE FOUND LOITERING OUTSIDE BASIL'S BOUTIQUE .

GREAT PLACE TO CHILL UNDER THE UMBRELLAS SIPPING ON A STARFRUIT SMOOTHIE .

THE WATERFRONT VEGE/FRUIT SHOP .

CUSTOMS & IMMIGRATION ARE SITUATED AT THE AIRPORT .

THE MUSTIQUE PRIMARY SCHOOL .
TALK ABOUT PERSONALIZED TUITION .

THE MUSTIQUE PRE-PRIMARY SCHOOL .

BRITANNIA BAY , THE ONLY ANCHORAGE ON THE ISLAND .

THE INTER-ISLAND FERRIES .
THE LIFE-BLOOD OF THE CARIBBEAN ISLANDS .
THIS ONE WAS FORCED TO PUT TO SEA WHEN ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE IN THE ANCHORAGE .

END OF AN ERA .
THE FINAL " JUMP UP " PARTY AT BASIL'S BAR .

MUSTIQUE HAS SOME MAGNIFICENT BEACHES .

THE HUMPING TORTOISES .
A LOCAL RESIDENT ARTIST'S CONTRIBUTION TO THE ISLAND .

MACARONI BEACH .
RATED AS ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BEACHES IN THE WORLD .

POSING ON MACARONI BEACH .

THERE MUST BE SOME INTERESTING JAM SESSIONS THAT TAKE PLACE IN THIS BAY .
ON THE LEFT IS MICK JAGGER'S SPOT AND ON THE RIGHT IS BRYAN ADAMS .

TOMMY HILFIGER'S BEACH HOUSE .

Wednesday, February 1, 2017

LAID BACK IN TOBAGO CAYS .

Our first sight of Tobago Cays was from the anchorage off Clifton on Union Island but during the day all you see are the islands in the far distance . The first night in Clifton l happened to glance in the direction of Tobago Cays and noticed a string of lights where the Cays should have been which confused me as we are totally aware that these pristine islands are uninhabited . Suddenly the penny dropped and l realized that the lights were in fact anchor lights from yachts anchored in the marine reserve and there were plenty of them . My heart sank as l had visions of yachts packed like sardines in the anchorage . Fortunately as we motored through the cut between Petit Rameau and Petit Bateau and headed to the anchorage off Jamesby the place although it was busy did not feel overcrowded , but if l had a choice l would prefer to have wound the clock back a few decades to the days before it became so popular .

We have sailed in some unbelievably clean waters in the past in places like the Seychelles and the Maldives , but our first night anchored in the Tobago Cays l experienced something quite unique for the first time .

It was a magnificent evening with a full moon above us and a flat calm sea . We were sitting up on the foredeck looking out over the anchorage , savouring the moment when l happened to peer over the side of the boat and noticed that the seabed was clearly visible with patches of sea grass dotted around on a clear white sandy bottom .

The next thing l noticed was that our anchor chain was also clearly visible lying in 8 metres of water and although our anchor was too far ahead to see , we could clearly see a fairly decent length of chain leading off from the bow roller in the direction of the anchor .

This might not blow every one's bush hat off but in most cases you do not see much of your anchor chain beyond 10 metres from the bow roller in broad daylight , net alone in the middle of the night . The clarity of the water in the Tobago Cays is quite phenomenal and sitting in the cockpit staring over the side , one can easily spot fish and turtles swimming by .

The Tobago Cays Marine Park lies in the St Vincent Grenadines and its outstanding natural beauty along with the biodiversity found here makes it truly unique . It encompasses nine islands of which five are uninhabited . It is strictly controlled regarding where you can anchor and there are specific rules that need to be adhered to relating to the discharging of sewage only into blackwater tanks , no fishing of any sort and obviously no removal of coral , shells or plant life not even sand . The park covers a total area of 66 square km which includes a large sand bottomed lagoon enclosed by the 4km long Horseshoe Reef . Surrounding the islands are a series of beaches and reefs including Egg Reef and Worlds End Reef on the eastern side of the Cays with Mayreau Gardens to the west . In addition to its coral reefs Tobago Cays has a mangrove on Petit Rameau , a salt pond in Mayreau and a number of sea grass beds collectively supporting fish , turtles , iguanas and a variety of seabirds .

There is a turtle reserve around the beach of Baradal Cay where you can snorkel with them , but no touching or interfering with them in anyway whatsoever .

Catholic Island to the north is a designated seabird reserve where the same rules apply .

Unfortunately the downside is that we are not the only boat that finds this park so appealing and the anchorage is pretty crowded although today many of the boats have sailed . With the popularity of the Cays there are many boat vendors who rock up selling their wares from fresh bread , banana bread , fish and many other food products but the big special is the beach barbecues where you go ashore and sample the lobster with an assortment of local foods . If you are too lazy to launch your dinghy these guys will pick you up and drop you off back at your boat when the party is over . Bear in mind that at the end of the day in the dark they all return to Union Island in small powerboats which is around 5nm away . The following day they all return freshly stocked for another day of trading with the cruisers .

We are members of the OCC ( Ocean Cruising Club ) and we fly our burgee with pride . We were spotted by fellow OCC members and invited aboard to meet and share experiences . To be able to join this exclusive club one of the qualifying requirements is being the skipper of a boat and sailing a passage of 1000nm minimum uninterrupted port to port . The result is that when you get to meet OCC members they usually are seasoned circumnavigators with a ton of stories to tell .

After 5 days of exploring , snorkeling and generally relaxing we upped anchor and started our passage back to Grenada to deliver our daughter back to the airport so that she could return to the real world in Capetown , South Africa . We are surely going to miss having her onboard and sharing this cruising life with us .

There is always a next time .