THE CARIBBEAN . A RUM DRINKER'S PARADISE .

Born in Addington Hospital right across the road from the beaches in Durban , then as a young kid growing up on the coast and being involved in ocean related activities from an early age , arriving in my late teens and sampling alcohol for the first time rum seemed the appropriate spirit to me and soon Squadron became my tipple of choice at parties . That probably accounted for a bit of “ pirate “ behaviour at times but we all survived . Many decades later when socializing with family or friends , nothing quite beats a good ole Captain and Coke .

So here we are today cruising on our yacht in the Caribbean , the Rum Capital of the World . Rum is the most popular drink by far on every island that we have visited and there have been many . Every beach bar and restaurant offer a wide range of rum punches or just your standard rum and coke or as we have noticed ginger ale is also very popular as a mixer .

Martinique in particular has many rum distilleries but the Habitation Clement Distillery is very impressive . Maison Clement has forged its reputation on it's famous old rums that lie in wooden barrels patiently maturing over decades in warehouses on the estate . I spotted a 1952 vintage of this famous rum selling for 1250 euros , definitely not the bottle you would haul out to share with your mates over a braai . Rum is definitely not only the tipple of the sailor but it is widely enjoyed by connoisseurs all over the world . Granted a lot of islands that we have visited and l am thinking of some in the Indian Ocean right now , you could most definitely launch a rocket with them but here in the Caribbean there are some seriously smooth variations that are only affordable to the most distinguished palates with deep pockets . It almost seems a shame to put a mixer in them . These distilleries at the upper end offer tastings without mixers to enable you to choose the rum that tickles your fancy . We met a tour guide the other day who specializes in rum tours and he claims that he regularly has to assist his clients out of his vehicle and into their hotels as a result of over-indulging at these tastings .

It happened to me in Madagascar while trying to purchase two bottles of vanilla rum . The little Chinese guy behind the counter must have mis-interpreted my “ Please may l have two bottles of vanilla rum “ for “ l am not leaving until l have sampled every rum you stock “ . He insisted that protocol requires you to taste a rum before you buy so every time after sampling a particular rum l would give him the thumbs up , meaning this one is great only to have him whip another bottle off the shelf and pour another taster .

With each tasting being the equivalent of a double tot we worked out later that l must have had at least 12 singles in quick succession , all neat out of the bottle at 9.00am in the morning . Personally l think this rum salesman had a warped sense of humour and got a real kick out of watching me outside his shop trying to work out in what direction l had come . It was a long walk back to the boat through the appropriately named town of Hellville .

Getting back to Habitation Clement , this historic distillery is set on the most magnificent property . A 250 year old Creole plantation home is now a listed building and it's design lends itself to life in the tropics with plenty of airflow through louvred windows and being perched on the top of a hill the consistent trade winds keep the interior nice and cool . An interesting feature is that the kitchen is a separate outbuilding and not part of the main house .

The original garden has now been incorporated into a 16 hectare estate . Beautiful old trees provide plenty of shade and now there is a palm grove with numerous different species of palms along with 300 species of tropical plants .

Having served an apprenticeship as a fitter/machinist in a sugar mill on the KZN South Coast , walking about in the old distillery brought back memories of those days in the seventies working in the mill albeit this plant was on a much smaller scale and the final product is a high quality rum and not a pocket of sugar .

After a very informative visit to this famous distillery , l now have a much clearer understanding of what it takes to produce my tipple of choice , hic , excuse me . 

THE CARIBBEAN . RUM CAPITAL OF THE WORLD .

A LIFETIME'S SUPPLY OF THE FINEST AGED RUM .

WHEN YOUR RUM COMES PACKAGED LIKE THIS YOU KNOW YOU ARE IN FOR A PRETTY PENNY .

THE HISTORIC RUM DISTILLERY .

WEIGHING EACH BARREL OF RUM .

LOOKING OVER THIS PLANT BROUGHT BACK MEMORIES OF MY APPRENTICE DAYS AT A SOUTH COAST SUGAR MILL . 

STEAM DRIVEN PLANTS HEAT THE AMBIENT TEMPERATURE AND WHEN IT IS ALREADY IN THE THIRTIES IT MUST HAVE BEEN HELL WORKING IN THE MILL .

BEING A FITTER/MACHINIST BY TRADE THIS OLD LATHE WAS REALLY INTERESTING .

I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW HOW OLD THIS LATHE IS .

SOLID OVER-ENGINEERED EQUIPMENT STILL IN GOOD NICK TODAY .

MONSTER VATS FULL OF RUM .

THIS IS WHERE THE REAL OLD MATURED RUM IS STORED FOR WHICH THIS DISTILLERY IS FAMOUS FOR .

SOME WOULD CALL THIS THE SCRAPYARD , WHEREAS OTHERS MIGHT SEE IT AS ART .

THE GIRLS CHECKING OUT THE MASTER BEDROOM IN THIS HISTORIC HOME .

STILL THE MASTER BEDROOM .

THE DAYS WHEN THE RADIO WAS KING AND TV WAS UNHEARD OF .

THE DINING ROOM IN THE DAYS WHEN DINNER TALK WAS THE SOCIAL TIME OF THE DAY .

THE OLD CREOLE PLANTATION HOUSE .

I WASN'T JOKING WHEN I SAID THERE WAS A BOTTLE OF RUM SELLING FOR 1250 EUROS .EISH.

MARTINIQUE . PARIS IN THE TROPICS .

Our sail up from St Lucia to Martinique turned out to be our gentlest inter-island passage of the season to-date . Having ripped the tendon on my bicep during the storm off Mustique it was a relief for me not having to face some physical sailing and straining my arm and for most of the crossing we had 15kns of wind slightly forward of the beam and with a full main and genoa we held 7kns of boatspeed until the wind started to die just short of the south coast of Martinique .

To avoid arriving in the dark off St Anne we fired up our Perkins and motor-sailed the last few miles dropping anchor right behind our good friends Jim & Carol onboard Nepenthe . We were welcomed to dinner and spent the evening catching up on all the happenings since we last sailed off in different directions from Union Island in the Grenadines .

The next morning while having our first cup of coffee we switched on our FM radio and we may as well have been in the heart of Paris going on what we were hearing over the radio . The one thing about the French is that they don't short change themselves at all when it comes to living in one of France's offshore territories . Excellent French food not to mention French music and fashion make the island a paradise for Francophiles . The one advantage they have over their counterparts back on mainland France is the tropical climate along with some magnificent beaches .

" Joie de vivre “ is the credo in this French enclave .

Carol had been planning our island tour long in advance but this time our best option was to hire a car and conduct our own tour with me as the designated driver and Carol the navigator and tour guide . We hired a neat little Citroen and set off for the famous rum distillery Habitation Clement which is renowned for their old matured rums . Rum is my favourite tipple and by the end of our visit l was a lot clearer on what goes into producing the Caribbean's most popular drink. In the tasting room l spotted a 1952 vintage selling for 1250 euros .

Apart from the distillery the Creole plantation home which is now 250 years old and is also a listed heritage building was very impressive , set in a magnificent old garden which forms part of a 16 hectare estate . Part of the estate includes an amazing palm grove with a huge variety of different palm species .

The next part of our tour was a tortuous drive up through the rain forests past the pitons along the windiest road l have ever driven on . Steep inclines and tight turns best describes the mountain road we took finally arriving in St Pierre on the north-west coast .

The Mont Pelee eruption and the devastation it caused is clearly visible throughout the town with the remaining ruins that survived the disaster incorporated into the current structures . A museum tells the story that unfolded on that fateful day in 1902 in the Caribbean's most developed city at the time .

Martinique is the largest of the Windward Islands and it is also the island where Empress Josephine , Napoleon's first wife and impressionist painter Paul Gauguin called home .

But it is most famous for Mont Pelee , one of the tallest volcanoes in the Caribbean which erupted in 1902 killing some 30,000 people in just two minutes .

While passage planning to St Pierre l noticed that the chart showed numerous wrecks littered all over the anchorage which pricked my interest as to what had caused so many ships to go down in such a concentrated area . After a bit of research l discovered that most of these ships were casualties of the eruption of Mont Pelee . All in all , twelve ships were lost in one day .

The rise and fall of St Pierre is one of the most remarkable stories in Caribbean history . Martinique's modern history began here in 1635 . By the turn of the 20^th century St Pierre was a flourishing city of 30,000 people . It was the most modern town in the Caribbean with electricity , telephones and a tram As many as 30 ships at a time stood at anchor taking on rum,sugar,coffee and cocoa .

The volcano gave some warning signs that trouble was brewing . Minor rumblings began early in April and on the 23^rd April a sizable eruption occurred covering the town in ash . People started pouring in from outlying villages . On the 2^nd May a major eruption occurred covering the city with enough ash to kill birds and animals . Later on the same day Pierre Laveniere the owner of an estate to the south of St Pierre went to inspect his crops with a party of workers and they were all swept away by a vast avalanche of boiling volcanic mud .

Then on the 5^th May it was the turn of one of the richest estates in the area known as the Guerin Estate . A massive torrent of volcanic effluent including mud,lava,super-heated gasses and rocks estimated to be a quarter mile wide and a 100ft high completely buried the estate killing the family and many workers .

The end came on the 8^th May at 8.02am when the side of the volcano facing St Pierre glowed red and with two thunderous explosions Mont Pelee split in half creating a giant fireball of super-heated gas that flowed down over the city releasing energy 40 times greater than the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima . Toxic gases and lava heated to 3600 degrees F raced down the mountain at 250mph completely vapourizing everything in its path including 30,000 people in less than two minutes .

Twelve ships were completely destroyed at anchor and the only survivor turned out to be a prisoner who was locked away in an underground stone cell proving the point that on occasions crime does pay , maybe not in cash . The poor guy being the sole survivor and having lived through this massive human tragedy later hit the road and joined the Barnum & Bailey Circus as a sideshow attraction .

Many ruins still remain today and a museum depicts that era and the tragedy itself . Standing in the town and looking up at the volcano l tried to picture the scene on that fateful day in St Pierre . Fortunately for those who were there, the end came quickly .

Having read up a lot on this event it is fascinating how money and politics played a role in this tragedy which led to the unnecessary deaths of thousands of lives .

Another great story is the one about HMS Diamond Rock which in fact is a rock commissioned as a ship because at the time the British were a little short on ships . In 1804 , Napoleon was in control of Europe but the British had naval supremacy and largely controlled the Caribbean .

Diamond Rock was perfectly situated on the south coast of Martinique and after the arduous task of scaling this steep sided rock infested with snakes , the British had equipped this pinnacle with cannons and enough supplies and water for a full complement of men .

For some 18 months HMS Diamond Rock was a very unpleasant surprise for any unsuspecting French ship sailing to Martinique via it's south coast . Napoleon threw his toys out of the cot . The French got wind of the fact that the British were getting cabin fever on their isolated rock and they arranged for barrels of rum to drift up onto the rock . The French easily overpowered the inebriated British sailors taking control and liberating the rock .

While in Martinique we based ourselves in the St Anne anchorage but decided to overnight anchored off St Pierre on route to Dominica . After a decent broad reach all the way up Martinique's west coast we dropped the pick right opposite the famous ruins on the waterfront . The wrecks of the ships that were destroyed in the eruption were all around us and l tried to imagine what those sailors must have seen minutes before they were vapourized .

On the day of our tour while we were in the museum we were told that Mont Pelee's peak is very seldom seen as it is always shrouded in cloud but guess what , on our last day in Martinique while slowly motoring out of the anchorage at first light , the cloud cleared exposing the entire peak not once but on four separate occasions over a period of half an hour before the cloud rolled over once again .

What a way to end our stay on this beautiful island . We felt very privileged .     

MARTINIQUE . ISLE OF FLOWERS .

TSUNAMI WARNING PROCEDURE .
MY FRENCH IS NOT THAT GREAT SO THE WAY I READ THIS IS YOU FIND A TABLE , CRAWL UNDER IT WITH YOUR BUTT FACING THE WAVE AND PRAY .

THE VILLAGE SQUARE IN SAINT ANNE .

THE VERY ORNATE CEMETERY IN SAINT ANNE . 

BRIGHTLY PAINTED QUAINT BUILDINGS OFF THE SQUARE .

A TRADITIONAL YOLE .
THESE BOATS ARE INCREDIBILITY FAST WITH MOST OF THE CREW HIKED OUT ON BOARDS .

A BEACH MASSAGE PARLOUR .

MARTINIQUE IS NOT SHORT ON BEAUTIFUL BEACHES .

CHECKING ON WINDWARD OUT IN THE ANCHORAGE .

SAINT ANNE'S LITTLE WATERFRONT .

HABITATION CLEMENT .
FAMOUS FOR THEIR OLD MATURE RUM .

THE CREOLE PLANTATION HOUSE .
NOW 250 YEARS OLD IS SET IN A MAGNIFICENT 16 HECTARE ESTATE WHICH INCLUDES A PALM GROVE .

SAINT PIERRE WITH THE ANCHORAGE RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE RUINS .
THE VIEW AT NIGHT FROM THE BOAT WAS AWESOME .

THE REMAINING RUINS OF THE ONCE IMPRESSIVE THEATRE THAT WAS DESTROYED BY MONT PELEE'S ERUPTION .

THIS PRISONER WAS THE ONLY SURVIVOR OUT OF 30,000 PEOPLE .
CRIME CAN PAY .

LURKING BEHIND THIS CLOUD IS THE VOLCANO THAT CAUSED THE MASSIVE DESTRUCTION OF SAINT PIERRE .

GOING BACK IN TIME .
WE CAME ACROSS THIS PARK FULL OF AIRSTREAM CAMPERS .

THE VIEW OF THE ANCHORAGE OFF SAINT ANNE .

HMS DIAMOND ROCK .
ANY UNSUSPECTING FRENCH SHIP WOULD TAKE A POUNDING IF IT STRAYED TOO CLOSE .

A RARE GLIMPSE OF MONT PELEE'S PEAK AS WE SAILED AWAY .
WHAT A STROKE OF LUCK .

ST LUCIA . HELEN OF THE WEST INDIES .

Well it has now been confirmed , the weather has gone mad . This being our first full season in the Caribbean , who were we to judge but the strange weather started showing itself while we were in Grenada over Xmas and then again when we returned after sailing to the Grenadines to drop our daughter off at the airport. Officially the rainy season was over but we continued to get frequent rain squalls which even had the local Grenadians totally baffled . The positive feature was that our boat was regularly rinsed down keeping the salt off our topsides and deck gear .

During our inter-island crossings of which we have now done quite a number back and forth , the weather has been boisterous to say the least with our weatherman Chris Parker mostly referring to the conditions as “brisk & salty“ or “very brisk & very salty“. One charter skipper with many years of Caribbean sailing experience under his belt stated that this “ Christmas Winds “ season was the roughest that he had ever seen and referred to the inter-island passages and l quote “ like a washing machine on rinse cycle “ . This strange weather of strong winds and big seas is a hot topic amongst locals and cruisers alike .

Our 62nm passage from Bequia to Marigot Bay , St Lucia was no different particularly the crossing from the northern end of St Vincent to the south coast of St Lucia with the wind hard on the nose , blowing 20-25kns gusting to 30kn and a fairly decent swell to boot . Thankfully our boat goes well to wind but we have seen some cats really struggling , motor sailing into these confused seas . Chris Parker's description of “ very brisk & very salty “ was very apt but we made it in good time and Windward with her new genoa performed really well albeit she was covered in crusted salt when we arrived at the entrance to Marigot Bay . Having woken up at 3.00am and setting sail soon after our first cup of coffee , we were knackered that evening and after an early dinner at the Bayside Restaurant we hit the sack .

Our first glimpse of St Lucia while still well south at sea was awesome . The majestic , spectacular Pitons rose out of the sea in dramatic fashion . This pair of volcanic spires namely Gros Piton and Petit Piton received global recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and are the island's most iconic natural wonders .

Gros Piton stands at 786m and has a 3km diameter base and Petit Piton is 739m high with a smaller base of 1km diameter . With its steeper sides Petit Piton appears much taller than it's bigger sister but these two eroded remnants of lava domes provide a distinctive landmark for seafarers . While gazing at these natural marvels l couldn't help thinking about how many sailors had seen this sight centuries before me and were just as grateful for having seen them in all their glory . The pics l took with our little Canon do them no justice at all .

Arriving at our approach waypoint off Marigot Bay our first sight of the place was quite deceiving in that there is a lot more of the bay tucked away than initially meets the eye . The bay lined with mangroves is completely sheltered and is famous as a hurricane hole . A palm fringed narrow sandspit juts out creating a narrow entrance to the marina and mooring field which is all part and parcel of the ultra-luxury 5 Star Capella Marigot Bay Resort . The bonus is that with our yacht berthed in their marina we got the full use of all the resort's facilities and if your pocket is deep enough you could easily get hung up here for a while sipping complimentary fruit punches while lazing at one of the three pools in the resort or attending free yoga and pilates classes each morning before breakfast . Cool spot no doubt .

We enjoyed a unique dining experience at the Rainforest Hideaway waterfront restaurant where we contributed to relieving a huge problem by ordering Lionfish which are decimating the local indigenous reef fish . This fish species which has no natural predators is flourishing here in the Caribbean but the more we eat them the bigger the demand and local fisherman will be encouraged to target them in their catches . Fortunately they are slow moving and easy to catch.

Marigot Bay is idyllic and made for cruisers with it's perfect backdrop of mangroves lying at the foot of steep surrounding hills providing perfect protection. Legend has it that a British Admiral hid his fleet in the secluded bay from the pursuing French fleet of warships by getting his crew to tie palm fronds up in the rigging as camouflage to disguise his ships . Apparently the French sailed by without spotting them , smart move .

After a relaxing time spent in Marigot Bay we sailed north to Rodney Bay where we had arranged to collect out UK Transit Visas . Obtaining these visas became a major issue but that story could be a post on it's own . Fortunately perseverance paid off and they were finally delivered to our boat . Three months of frustration and aggravation to enable us to sit at Heathrow Airport for a couple of hours waiting for our connecting flight back home to Capetown in June .

While in Rodney Bay we met Naitram who took us on a tour of his island . Fellow cruisers Tony and Connie joined us for the day visiting St Lucia's sites including the Diamond Botanical Gardens and the active volcano which falls within the Soufriere Volcanic Centre . The iconic Pitons are St Lucia's famous landmarks .

While visiting the Sulphur Springs our chatty guide told us of a tour guide who while walking amongst these bubbling springs fell in but fortunately although badly burnt survived to become a celebrity guide telling people about his experience of being boiled alive .

St Lucia is home to lush tropical rainforests , beautiful beaches and volcanic mountains . Much of the island is still undeveloped which endows it with it's natural beauty .

Now with our passports stowed onboard we were ready to sail to Martinique , a totally different French experience .

ST LUCIA . THE HORNED ISLAND .

ONCE AGAIN IT WAS A HARD BEAT UP TO ST LUCIA WITH OUR NEW GENOA DOING US PROUD.

THE PITONS .
THE ICONIC FIRST SIGHTING OF ST LUCIA .

THE HUGE RODNEY BAY MARINA .
230 BERTHS WITH EVERY FACILITY YOU COULD IMAGINE .

GIN PALACES LINED UP IN MARIGOT BAY .

GREAT DINGHY DOCK RIGHT OPPOSITE THE PUB .

THE ULTRA LUXURY CAPELLA MARIGOT BAY RESORT .
THEY SERVED US COMPLIMENTARY COCKTAILS WHILE WE RELAXED AT THE POOL .

THE PERFECT HURRICANE HOLE .

THE ENTRANCE LEADING INTO MARIGOT BAY .

A REGULAR VISITOR TO OUR BOAT .

A CLASSIC WINDJAMMER .

THE STERN-TO DOCK IN THE MARINA .

TAMING THE RAW POWER OF OUR 2HP HONDA OUTBOARD .

DOOLITTLE'S RESTAURANT & BAR .
SCENES FROM DR DOOLITTLE WERE SHOT HERE .

WINDWARD HANGING OUT WITH THE SUPER YACHTS .

THE FRUIT & VEGGIE GUY DELIVERS TO THE BOATS IN RODNEY BAY .

CASTRIES HARBOUR COMPLETE WITH TWO CRUISE SHIPS .

TONY & CONNIE OUR CRUISING MATES WITH THE PITONS IN THE BACKGROUND .

THE BEAUTIFUL TROPICAL PLANTS FOUND IN THE BOTANICAL GARDENS IN SOUFRIERE .

DITTO .
NOTE THE JADE VINE ON THE RIGHT IN FULL FLOWER .

THE HOT WATER SPRINGS .
TOO HOT TO BATH IN .

THE BOILING SULPHUR SPRINGS IN THE SOUFRIERE VOLCANO .