Martinique - Dominica - Antigua

Well, whats been going on lately? Well Quatermoon (Sym & Amy) Kindly agreed to sail to Martinique with us (Kat & I) to finally get my windows all fixed (after they began falling out across the Atlantic) as this is the only place we could find the required SikaFlex 295 UV silicon adhesive.

We were anchored in Le Marin for about 6 days in all as the windows were a complete nightmare to remove and we ended up having to use guitar strings (primarily the B string if anyone is interested) to cut through the original silicon. On a positive note, we did get to spend some amazing nights with Sym & Amy – once again proving they are second to none when it comes to hospitality!!!

It looks like the UV primer failed causing the windows the ‘delaminate’ from their bond with the coach roof. This is apparently a known problem with Hanse yachts in warm climates. Fortunately, Hanse have been superb in handling the fault and covered the cost of getting them fixed. Any other Hanse owners having to rectify the same problem, I would suggest that you arrange for new windows and simply smash out the originals as this will save you the pain of cutting them out inch by inch using steel wire as we did.

It’s amazing that we didn’t cause more damage to the window frames, wooden surrounds or the glass itself, a testament to Sym’s workmanship and diligence. If anyone requires any boat maintenance done while in the Caribbean don’t hesitate to get in contact with Sym on Quatermoon. Sym can be contacted via their blogspot.

With the work on the windows finally complete (thank god) and the water quality in Le Marin being poor for swimming, we decided to spend a day in in St Annes anchorage (just outside Le Marin). We spent the evening aboard Quatermoon having a BBQ and fishing.

The next day, I finished a few minor jobs on Doris, changed the Genoa for the Self Tacking Jib, tightened the rigging (Intermediates and lowers - again) and spliced 20m of 16mm warp onto my anchor chain so it can pass through the windlass, no more manual ‘faffing’ around joining warp to chain manually. With my new waterproof windows and other jobs complete, we could finally think about the beat north and with only a few days remaining we had to get to Antigua for Kat to catch her flight home.

We said a final farewell to Sym & Amy and set sail for Dominica (~80nm). Good luck guys and thanks for every thing! Keep me posted with your plans etc. Sym if you need any help building the Cat – gimme a shout!

The sail went smoothly with no major problems but we did have a choppy sea state and squally conditions. I had to use the 3rd reef a few times to ensure a bearable ride across the Martinique – Dominica channel. Upon reaching the lee of Dominica the wind dropped off until the engine was required, an excuse to play the stereo loud and help me stay awake after sailing all night.

We arrived at the Portsmouth Bay anchorage around 10am to find Otahi (James & Freya). After a quick ‘Hi & Gbye’ while we dropped the hook, they headed off on a days excursion around the island leaving Kat and I to get some sleep.

Our original plan was to snatch a few hours sleep before setting straight off for Antigua, but soon decided to stay overnight and leave late morning the next day. That afternoon James & Freya came over bringing Rum and fresh coconuts from their excursion and we caught up on what’s been going on etc. They too were leaving the next morning for Antigua.

The next morning we woke up early and went ashore with Freya to avoid having to blow up the dinghy. I had to buy a Machete (everyone else has) or Cutlass as they are known locally – each (I bought two) costing $20ec (about £5). I also purchased a whole bunch (as in off the tree – about 30) of Bananas and some other supplies. On our return to Doris, Otahi set sail about an hour ahead of us while Kat and I made ready. Kat doing the huge pile of washing up and me cleaning the Bananas in dilute bleach to kill any nasties such as Cockroach eggs that I might bring aboard.

After cleaning off a ton of weed from the anchor chain we were soon playing ‘catch up’ with Otahi. It’s a shame that we didn’t have more time to spend in Dominica as it looks amazing and the people seem really friendly. The whole place had a good vibe. Unfortunately, due to the windows taking a lot longer to fix than we anticipated we have to push on to Antigua.

Caribbean sailing can be summarized as:

Fluky wind shifts around the island headlands – beware of accidental gybes.
No wind close inshore in the lee of the land – but beware of squalls coming down the mountains as they travel fast.
Wind acceleration and steep swell in the channels between the islands – reef early before entering the channels.

Upon reaching the north of Guadeloupe we had witnessed all of the above and just as the winds were rising again (25kn) the jib furler decided to jam. With the steep swell (1.5m) in the channel and the rising winds it was exciting stuff as I held on for dear life on the rising and falling bow, trying to free the furling line that had buried itself under pressure of sailing with the sail reefed.

I ‘hove to’ with the mainsheet loosened and the wheel hard over to weather and the jib flogging. After nearly an hour I managed to unthread and rewind the furling line enough to get the sail refurled. Unfortunately the flogging caused the Lewmar block on the Self Tacking traveler to fail so I rigged it using a single block at the traveler and tied the end of the sheet to the clew. This works fine but is harder to sheet in but a lot easier to furl. While I was wrestling the furling gear, Kat made her first call to ‘none friends’ using the VHF. A cruise liner was passing a little too close for comfort on our starboard side and Kat made sure he knew we were not making way and to give us a wide berth while we sorted out our problems. Not ‘our’ problems you understand, that’s going to take a lot longer!

We finally got underway again and the seas got bigger and bigger (3m) as we entered the Guadaloupe – Antigua channel. We were making a bearable 4-5kts under 2nd reefed mainsail and ½ jib but every now and again the boat would launch itself of off the crest of a wave resulting in a horrendous sounding slam. I also needed to get an hours sleep feeling exhausted after sorting out the headsail. I reefed right down (3rd reef mainsail and 1/3 jib) and things got a lot more gentle as we ploughed on at about 3kts). After about an hour and a half I awoke to find it just getting light and Kat singing and dancing in the cockpit. A year ago in Brighton the same condition would have her in tears!

The winds had dropped off slightly and I went back to the 2nd reef and we continued pointing as high as we could in order to hit our intended destination of English Harbour. Not much else to report on this passage except that the boat pretty much took care of us and sailed herself flawlessly. We ended up with about 5nm of XTE (down wind) and this last 5 miles seemed to take forever! I tried to tack several times but soon had the engine on and motor-sailed into the relentless steep swell.

Approaching Falmouth and English Harbour was like a weekend in the Solent with yachts everywhere! We made our approach wide to avoid a race and finally entered the Pillars of Hercules to get the mainsail down. Otahi had called us a few hours before explaining that the anchorage was ‘tight’ and that it had taken them six attempts to get the anchor to bite avoiding rock.

After trying several likely looking areas, we finally settled on a spot right next to Otahi, a little too close for comfort (they are made of steel and Doris is ‘plastic) but we were too tired to care.

We tidied the boat and pumped up the dinghy before hoping over to Otahi for coffee and scones – all very civilized. Marcus (of Veracity fame) had come over as well and we grilled him on his latest and greatest. He has been in Antigua for some time and is working and has almost become a ‘local’.

With Kat flying home the next day, we decided to decline the invite for food on Veracity that evening and spend the evening together. We went ashore after a short sleep and found a Pizza place for dinner. We ate until we couldn’t breathe and then tiredness kicked in so it was back to the boat for an early night.

We woke up and Kat sorted out all her packing before we went ashore to officially ‘check in’. What can I say. Antigua has the most long winded pointless bureaucratic system I have ever had the misfortune of witnessing. Not to mention the asshole behind the desk who can barely be bothered to talk. I am sorry Sir could you mumble that again please?!?!?

With formalities complete and Kat removed from the ‘Doris Crew List’, James, Freya, Kat and I went for a bite to eat. By this time it was just after midday and Kat had arranged for a taxi to the airport at 3pm. There was just enough time to get her last minute stuff packed and before I knew it I was giving her a hug and saying farewell. Kat thanks for making my trip to the Caribbean so amazing it wouldn’t compare if you hadn’t been around for the last 2 months to share it with me.

The time is now 6pm and Kat has been gone 3 hours and it’s only just occurred to me that I haven’t been alone in the Caribbean before.

So … Once again Doris is Single Handed and it’s going to be a long month ahead while I wait for May to begin my passage back across the Atlantic.

Anyways, you guys are now bang up to date!