Tracking Nikita

We have added a link to YOTREPS under the Favorite Links section on the right hand side of the blog, titled "Nikita's Location".

Using this link should take you to a google map with our latest position report on it. We thought we would try this out as we begin to prepare for some of the longer legs of our cruise in the next months.

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com

Midnight Run

We were comfortably enjoying the Hawksnest anchorage on St. John Island. A northerly flow set up as predicted but other than some chop, no issues. Then at sundown the wind died. Then a couple of hours later the roll started. How the waves found there way in there I have no idea, and they probably never will again. It got crazy, the final straw was when the binoculars got launched out of the cockpit into the salon. At that point it was safer to leave the anchorage, taking our chances with all the mooring balls, fish traps and the large reef just offshore from the anchorage. We threw off the mooring lines, tied the dinghy as well as we could and went slow at about 3 knots trying best to spot all the obstacles. we moved around the corner to the Francis bay area, a trip of about 3 miles, but then we were in a calm anchorage again, collapsing into our bunks for the night.

We are now anchored in Charlotte Amalie, watching the massive cruise ships come and go. The largest in the world, the Oasis of the Seas, a mere 220 feet TALL, 180 Feet Wide and who knows how long. It has only about 3 ports it can enter in the Caribbean because of its size.

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com

Night Swimming

So with reluctant hearts and minds we left Saba and turned northwest to the British Virgin Islands. The route takes you across the Anegada passage, a notoriously rough stretch of water. We did not classically plan this passage as to weather, deciding that we would go when we felt we had to leave Saba and not before. Well ultimately waiting about 3 more days for better weather would have been ideal, but as I mentioned in the previous post, the anchorages in Saba were just to rough.

As we set out the winds were rather light, less than 10 knots, so we were flying our full canvas an putting right along. The north swell was running and I saw at least 15 feet in the highest, but were not breaking so just pushed us up and down.

The the sun went down. About 8:30 pm the wind really picked up, so we started to shorten sail, but it was already 25 knots and rising in a squall. We lost one jib sheet overboard so had to furl the jib all the way in to retrieve it. With deeply reefed sails we set in for a long windy and rainy night. The seas continued to grow out of the east to compliment the north swell making things very rough.

About 3:00 am Rae Ann was trying to sleep in the aft bunks with the kids and had opened a window on the lee side. Well we got slammed hard by a breaking north swell, I heard it coming and saw some of the white water but with is so dark because of the squalls it was more a sense than anything. We took on a lot of water and were knocked way over. Then the girls were screaming, as gallons upon gallons of water poured in through the open window.

We are safely in the BVI's, drying out, and vowing never to open hatches again.

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com

Saba

We ventured to the little visited (relative term here) island of Saba. It is an old volcano having last erupted 5,000 years ago. The island is small with about 1,500 people living on it, 400 of whom are students in the medical school. There are no beaches and other than the recently constructed small boat harbor on the southern end. Until the southern harbor was built access to the island was via a stone stairway carved into one of the cliffs. Larger vessels would anchor offshore, send in their tenders that would come within 50 feet or so of shore and then people standing in the water would hand goods to land and then carry them up the staircase that rises about 1,500 feet.

The anchorages around Saba are nearly all untenable and unfortunately we had a north swell running during our visit of about 8 feet which made the calmest anchorage on the north west side more like a roller coaster as we hung on to our bunks to stay in them. The first day there we did an island tour visiting all the different villages and getting a bit of history on the island. On the second day we hiked to the top of Mt. Scenery, about 3,000 feet, which happens to be the highest peak in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The buildings on the island are all picture postcard perfect with red roofs, white washed buildings and green/or blue trim. Extremely friendly people and the cheapest food and drink we have found in the Caribbean.

The roughness of the anchorages chased us away though, but with a great couple of days on an unforgettable island.

A sad note on departing was another family tried to land at the aforementioned old staircase but because of the north swell running were upended with the father/husband hitting his head and being seriously injured, ultimately requiring a medical flight out to St. Martin. We do not know the outcome as we left the same day as the accident but are wishing them well.

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com

Barracuda

Well the fishing as been active, but all Barracuda. The last one we caught had to weigh 10 pounds if not more. The one previous to that had its tail bitten off by something larger as we reeled it in. We throw these guys back because of the risk of cigatura, though some people do eat them.

We finally left Antigua moving over to St. Barts. St. Barts is a very neat island, though with somewhat exposed anchorages. The main (and really only) town of Gustavia is very fun, with great eating and drinking spots in a great setting along the three sides of the port.

Rae Ann has been working on here swimming. Having returned to the boat in the dinghy from running an errand she went to stop the dinghy engine pulling the key and watching it fly overboard. It began to sink very quickly and as the water in Falmouth was none to clear she went in after it fully clothed. Jake, Isabelle and I were completely unaware until Rae Ann appears in the salon dripping wet. She retrieved the key though.

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com