Sailor-girl

This is for my Mum.

The other day Andre and I were sitting having sun downers at Englishmans Harbour in Antigua. A little girl came running past in a white sailor dress with blue trim and a big square sailors collar at the back coming over her shoulders and ending in a bow in the front. She must have been about 4 years old.

As I saw her I got this incredibly clear flashback of myself at about the same age in a dress just like that. I remember being so proud of the collar and how it hung over my back. I thought I looked beautiful in it; it was one of my favorites.

I just had to have a photograph to send my Mum to ask if she remembered.

I went over and asked who “Sailor-girl’s” Mummy was and explained to her my flashback asking if I could take a photo. I said I would be happy to take it from the back if she preferred. She said she didn’t mind at all and I didn’t have to take it from the back, but she would have to ask Phoebe.

She called her over and introduced us and I went down on my haunches to say hello. She told her I had had a dress just like hers and could I take a photo to show my Mummy.

Phoebe screwed up her little face in thought, looked at me carefully then sighed, shrugged her shoulders and said “Ok!”

I asked her to stand a little sideways looking at her Mummy so I could see the collar. She did so. I aimed my camera and as I was about to take the photo, I said right…..

She gave me this long “cheeeeeeeeeeeeese”.

Her Mum and I had a giggle and she apologised for the grimace caused by the “cheeeeeeeeeeeeese”.

It was just so cute I had to share it with you all.

This is Phoebe – sailor girl.

Guadeloupe – Caribbean Butterfly

Guadeloupe’s two main islands are shaped like the wings of a butterfly and joined together by mangrove swamps. Grande-Terre, is the eastern wing and Basse-Terre the west.

Guadeloupe was ‘discovered’ by Columbus on November 14^th, 1493. It was inhabited by Caribs who called it Karukera (Island of Beautiful Waters). The Spanish made two attempts to settle here in the early 1500’s but were driven off by fierce Carib resistance. Finally in 1604 they abandoned their claim to the island leaving it to the Caribs,

In 1635 the French set sail to establish the first European settlement on Guadeloupe. They landed on the shores of Basse-Terre, drove the Caribs off the island and by 1674 a slavery based plantation system was well established. The British invaded Guadeloupe several times and developed the port of Pointe-a-Pitre.

In 1763 British occupation was ended with the signing of the treaty of Paris where they relinquished French claims in Canada for the return of Guadeloupe. During the chaos of the French revolution the British, once again, invaded. In response France sent soldiers under the command of a black nationalist, Victor Hugues. He freed and armed the Guadeloupe slaves. On the day the British withdrew, Hugues went on the rampage and killed 300 royalists many of them plantation owners. It marked the start of a reign of terror. Hugues was responsible for the deaths of more than 1000 colonists and as a consequence of his attacks on US ships; the USA declared war on France.

We arrived at Pointe-a-Pitre, which from the sea looks pretty uninviting; a concrete jungle of high-rises and traffic. This hides a centre city of old colonial buildings and palm-fringed streets. Pointe-a-Pitre was formed in 1654 by a Dutch Jew named Peter. He had been exiled from Brazil and began a fish market on an undeveloped harbour-side jut of land. It became known as Peter’s Point and eventually grew into the settlement of Pointe-a-Pitre.

Our destination was the dive shop ‘Nitrogen’, the only one in the area that services dive equipment. We had not had the opportunity to service our equipment in over a year and it was beginning to show with minor problems. We loaded the whole lot up and took the dinghy into the marina. Once again we had a mild language problem, asking in French brought us no closer to our destination. Finally we found a couple who spoke some English and seemed to be divers as they knew exactly what we were asking about. They gave us directions but explained it was a half day holiday so everything was closed. Muttering and cursing we went back to the boat, we could have stayed a day longer in The Saintes. We had also hoped to have the equipment back by the next day so we could make our date at Pigeon Island for Andre’s birthday.

The next morning bright and early we took the equipment in and explained we had to leave Guadeloupe that evening and could he have it all done. To his credit he agreed we could pick it up at 17h00 just before they closed. Birthday shopping was on the cards and we caught a bus into town and then to a huge shopping complex called Carrefour. Despite a store the size of a large Pick and Pay called Decathlon that sells only sports equipment I could not find items on the birthday list. How frustrating! Back to the marina we collected our gear and found a birthday item in the nearby chandlery so I could relax, a little.

We had two options to get to Pigeon Island, either take the river Salee that divides the wings of the island or go around the Southern Point and up the other side. Although the river was tempting we had heard there were cases of running aground and also the bridges to pass through opened at 0430 and 0500 daily, only. So if we missed one, we were stuck and we had a party to get to. J

Birthday Boy!

So we sailed South and around the point anchoring off of Marina Rivierre Sens for the night. The next morning Sunday was Andre’s birthday and he wanted to skype his Mum. We took the dinghy into town to find everywhere closed. Restaurant le Sens was busy opening and we asked the waitress / manager (all in French of course) if they had wifi and did they serve coffee? She said she could make us coffee in 10 mins or so but that she didn’t have the password to get into the wifi. Our sad faces prompted her to call her boss to try and get it but had no luck. I then explained it was Andre’s birthday and he wanted to speak to his mother in Africa. She wished him and told us not to move to sit and wait she would sort it out. She then sent one of the other workers to her home, which seemed to be close by, to fetch her own computer with her dongle (internet connection) for us to use. Thank you Emillia. This was all done, by the way, in broken French and a smattering of Portuguese, she was Spanish speaking.

Tallies, Jeanne and Birthday Boy.

Having chatted to Maggie, we set off for Pigeon Point and who should be passing out to sea but Johan (Tallies) and Jeanne on Southern Blue. They had a date for a braai on a boat for someone’s birthday. J

We had a wonderful evening, chicken on the braai, rum and lime in the glasses and lots of laughs. Thanks to Tallies and Jeanne for helping make a great birthday evening.

Monday was snorkel day. Pigeon Island is home to the Jacques Cousteau underwater marine park. We took the dinghy over early anchored it in the shallows and took to the water. WOW!!! This is the most amazing dive / snorkel site in the Caribbean. It is like diving in an aquarium. The fish have no fear and swim lazily beneath you watching you watching them. Huge Queen Trigger fish, schools of Black Durgon, Spotted Drumfish in their black and white, Spotted Morey Eels peeking from crevices in the corals. The triangular shaped Smooth and Spotted Trunkfish, The Smooth black with white spots and the Spotted one, white with black spots are one of my favourite. The shy spotted Porcupinefish with his huge eyes pause to watch you swim over. Schools of the white and yellow Sergeant Major fish part to let you join them as you swim through. I love becoming part of a school, you dive down and swim into the middle of the school it opens to let you in and then closes around you, close enough to touch but with a wiggle of their tail they keep out of your reach. Stoplight Parrotfish compete with the Triggerfish for tasty bit of coral to chew on. Underwater you can hear the crunch of their jaws and they gnaw on the coral heads. Another of my favourites is the Peacock Flounder. This fish is almost completely flat, when lying still on the bottom it blends in perfectly, projecting from its top surface is a fin and eyes. It looks as if it is a fish lying on its side and will get depth when it turns upright, but of course it doesn't.

This says nothing of the coral gardens, Sea Fans, Sea Rods, Sea Plumes, Sponges, Brain corals and the pot shaped “Touch-me-nots” vie for place around a statue of Jacques Cousteau. It is said divers who touch the statues head have good luck and good diving the rest of their underwater lives. We should have lots. J

We had decided with the snorkelling so good we had to scuba. The next morning bright and early we lifted anchor and motored to the Island. Only about 10 mins from where we had been anchored but with scuba gear it is easier to take the mother-ship. Geared up and ready we entered the water, only to discover that the high pressure pipe from the tank to my BC (Buoyancy control jacket) looked as if someone had attacked it with a pin and was leaking air at an alarming rate. Dive had to be abandoned. Frustration reigns. It was over an hours ride on three busses to get back to Pointe-a-Pitre to Nitrogen who had serviced the equipment. We had no choice, there are no other service shops on the island and we had paid a small fortune for the service. We moved the boat back to our original anchorage, had a quick shower and we hit the road.

We finally got back at about 18h30 and as we passed Southern Blue on our way back to the boat they hailed us to join them for a drink and dinner. Life savers; we were tired and cooking was the last thing on my mind. Relaxing with good friends helped the frustrations of the day pass and we turned in early.

Southern Blue was leaving the following morning back to Dominica where they were collecting friends flying in from South Africa. We bid them a sad farewell and then moved the boat back to the mooring at Pigeon Island.

Rubbing Jacques head for luck.

Kitted up and ready to dive we submerged only to discover my DV (Demand valve you breathe through when underwater) was leaking water, so I was breathing over a puddle of water. There was no way I was giving up again and no way we were going back to Nitrogen so I completed the dive using my emergency DV. What an incredible experience. The diving was awesome. We did some underwater Salaam’s to Jacques and gave his head a good rub to ensure our diving troubles were a thing of the past. Andre did a MacGyver on my DV between dives and it was good for the second dive.

Diving done we decided we would move to the next anchorage being Dashies (pronounced Day-ay: go figure; I told you French was a weird language, I mean how the hell do you get Day-ay out of Dashies??)

As we approached Dashies we were hailed on channel 16 on the VHR radio. Our German friends Peter and Helga on Twiga had heard we were on our way into Dashies and invited us for dinner with them. A super evening, but after two dives and a long day we decided it was time to go home when I started falling asleep at the table. Sorry Peter and Helga. L J

The next morning we found a local dive shop with an owner who could speak English! So we explained the problem with my DV and he volunteered to send it to Point Pitre with his colleague. So luckily now our dive equipment is all good!

A hike described as “a cool, shady scramble” up the Dashies River appealed to us and we set off early. We are not sure about their description; it appears deceivingly flat as you wander along the banks of the river. Frequently the bank disappears under water and rocks and you are forced to climb over them. Just over an hours and halfs hike you come to a bend in the river where the road joins the river. Thirty minutes further up the river disappears into a giant cave like gully. At the back of the “cave” the water runs over a huge rock cascading into a shallow pool. After that walk we had no choice but to take full advantage and submerge and cool down before enjoying the lunch we had brought with. The path back along very steep roads took about 20 minutes and gave us an idea of how high we had climbed.

The next day was R & R. We walked to Grande Anse beach where we tanned and swam, reading our books and chilling. We were not keen to walk all the way back but discovered we had missed the last bus. No problem hitch-hiking has always been my last resort and we caught a lift from a young Frenchman visiting from Paris.

Another two days on anchor catching up on boat chores and filling our water tanks and Antigua was calling. 

Isle Des Saintes – Fabulously French

A change of heart?  Absolutely! This is a French charm at its best.

Terra d’en Haut is 10 km off of Guadeloupe and is the largest island in the Isle Des Saintes group of eight small islands that make up Des Saintes. It also has the only village in the Saintes; Bourg des Saintes. As the island was too hilly and dry for sugar plantations, slavery never took hold here and the islands still trace their roots to the seafaring Norman and Breton colonists. Many locals have fair skin and red or blonde hair. It is unhurried and feels like a slice of France has been transported to the Caribbean.

All the inhabitants of African descent have arrived fairly recently as by choice. The difference between French and English Islands was pointed out in one of the guide books: New inhabitants of English colonised islands were encouraged, if not forced, to keep their distance from the native people. They didn’t learn their culture or language. They didn’t mix with them and usually lived in a fenced village away from them. In contrast the French were encouraged to live with the locals and form relationships, as a result there are not only many more mixed race people on the French islands but there is also an absence of any atmosphere between the races. (Ja nee!)

We arrived and moored at 15h00 just off of the town and rushed into customs to check in as Doyle guide had said they closed at 17h00. The officials casually pointed us to the local internet café and said we had to go do it on computer as we had for the other French Islands. NO mess no fuss! The other three boats had arrived shortly after us and anchored. A quick stroll through town and back to the boats as we had been invited to the Friday night Braai (A tradition between the South African boats, Southern Blue, Quest, Ocean Spice and us)

We had no sooner settled back on the boats when the customs officer (the internet man) came around on his dinghy and told the others who had anchored to take a mooring buoy or move on! So much for our braai L. Southern Blue took a buoy next to us and Ocean Spice and Quest moved to the nearby anchorage of Pain des Sucre. Close but not close enough to dinghy back after a late night braai. Instead Johan and Jeanne from Southern Blue joined us for an evening stroll around town and a pizza dinner at the local pizzeria.  We had fun trying to decipher what the French menu meant. One thing about the Frenchies here, they all try to understand my horribly broken French; try to speak English and even helped me pronounce some words and taught me some new ones. Viola! J Nope not even swear words! Well I have used them and not been slapped and they have not fallen about laughing so I guess they taught me correctly.

That evening a beach potjie had been organised by John and Joanne on the mono-hull “Out of Africa”. They are from Simonstown and are also cruising. There we met some more of our neighbors.

One of which is Tom and Lilly Service from the sailing vessel “Tiger Lilly”. Tom is a retired Naval Officer and Lilly was the first American woman Triathlon champion. What a delightful couple. Tom is so knowledgeable. We spent some time with him giving us information on cruising the inland waterways on the East coast of the USA and Chesapeake Bay. (Our plans for next season). He is so interesting and a delight to listen to with a wealth of information to share. Lilly has a limitless supply of energy and keeps him on his toes; he calls her his ‘Monster’. We got along very well I really enjoyed her company. She is very competitive and thought she had found someone who could compete on her daily expeditions but I am no match for her, she is so fit. Every morning before breakfast she walks up the highest peak on the island to the lookout point as easily as we get out of bed. Sorry Lilly I was unable to challenge you on our climb. (More about that later)

Our next hike took us through the village. Quaint little houses, most of which are beautifully maintained and have obviously been passed down through the generations. The one house right over the water has been built in the shape of a ship. Its lowest level touches the sea and the front is shaped and painted like the bow of a ship. From the sea you have to look carefully to realise it is not a large cruiser docked there but a house. It currently is the home and practice of the local Doctor. The road winds its way through the village and up the hill to Fort Napoleon built in 1867. This is one of the three forts on the island. The whole area has been beautifully restored. The top half is a garden of cactus and succulents. The iguanas here are very “tame” having been spoilt by tourists passing on their lunch. I will load a video of me feeding one. J Views from the top are awesome.

 

 

After a fascinating evening with Tom learning about sailing the inland waterways, he and Lilly invited us to join them for a hike the next morning, up the highest peak on the island, Le Chameau. Here are the remains of the lookout tower for the forts. From this point you can see right across the Island. On spotting incoming ships the lookout would signal to the forts to prepare. From this vantage point you can see Dominica and it was on this stretch of ocean between the two islands were the Battle of Trafalgar took place. Lilly said we would take the easy way up and come down the road which was more difficult. Her path, through the bush, was an hour walk uphill. The trail was marked by someone coming downhill and so the paint marks are all behind rocks and trees on the way up making it a bit of a hide and seek game too. But Lilly led us to the top. That girl is amazing I swear she didn’t even raise her pulse rate, no laboured breathing like the rest of us; she never even broke a sweat. The rest of us, Johan and Jeanne from Southern Blue and Andre and I, were breathing like we had run a marathon looked like we had showered. It was worth it the view from the top was spectacular. As Lilly had promised the walk down was easier but we were so glad we had not walked up that way. It is 1000ft elevation and the road up is even steeper than the path we took. Back in the village Lilly had not had enough exercise and suggest we walk to the beach on the other side of the island. The beach looks more like a lagoon with a narrow entrance to the sea. Rows of coconut trees along the beach provide shade and we all sat catching our breath.

 

 

 

From the lookout point we had seen a coral reef right in the middle of the bay and we decided then we wanted to snorkel there. The next day we together with Tom and Lilly, Johan and Jeanne and John and Joanne took the dinghy over, anchored and snorkelled. We were lucky you see Morey eels, Parrot fish, and many other reef fish. The visibility was great and it averaged about 5 meters depth so everyone could enjoy the views below.

We had planned to leave the next day and as we were getting ready to set off Tom and Lilly insisted we come over for a quick coffee before we left. Three hours later we were still sitting chatting. So much for leaving that day! That evening it was drinks and snacks on Tiger Lilly and we bid them a sad farewell the next morning with a promise to meet again. They are traveling south as we go north.

The next morning we set sail for Pointe-a-Pitre, the Capital of Guadeloupe.

Dominica – Caribbean Garden of Eden!

They say if Christopher Columbus came back today the only island he would recognise would be Dominica! Talk about unspoiled natural splendour, perfectly beautiful. It was the last of the Caribbean Islands to be colonised. The Caribs who settled here in the 14^th century, called the island Waitikubuli which means “tall is her body”. Columbus changed the name to Dominica which is Sunday in Italian, the day of the week he discovered it. Sunday 3 November 1493.

I don’t know about you, but then someone says “Caribbean Island” the picture that is conjured up in my mind is white beaches, slight dunes with coconut palms, clear water and small bikinis. (J That’s Andre’s bit) Many Caribbean Islands are something quite different and it’s always a surprise to discover it. Dominica is a prime example; mountains, rainforests, waterfalls, gorges and black volcanic beaches. It is an absolute unspoiled “Garden of Eden”.  

We must confess that was not our first impression! On approach we were met by a “boat boy” from Sea Cat’s,  he suggested we use one of his mooring buoys as the water was too deep to anchor. We followed him to one which was about 50 meters from what looked like a “favela” (shanty town); a bad, run down looking shanty town. But he assured us we were safe there. We had to take his word for it, but locked up more diligently that night, taking in snorkel gear and anything collectable on the deck.

As it turns out he was right; the Dominicans are friendly, sociable people, they know their main resource is tourism and the beauty, safety and friendliness of the island; and they live it!!

The next day we took our dinghy to the nearest jetty, locked it on and went into town. The owner of the jetty assured us we did not need to lock it on but we told him our insurance insisted on it, he laughed and said no problem. It turns out he was right, Dominica is awesome.

Roseau is the capital of Dominica. A walk into town brought us to the Fort Hotel. They have renovated and turned the old fort of Roseau into a hotel. It is beautifully done with flower gardens and balconies extending out over the sea. Town itself is a mix of authentic old Caribbean buildings and newer blocks. The cobblestone plaza and small arcade at the old Market has been the centre of action in Roseau for over 300 years. It has been the site of political meetings, farmers markets, executions and the slave market. These days it is a souvenir market.

As most of the attractions are in the middle of the Island, we booked the car to be collected at 0800 the next morning.

We woke to cloudy skies and rain showers (here they call rain liquid sunshine) so we took a taxi into town only to be told he couldn’t give us a car as they had run out of petrol on the island and no one could fill up. What a disappointment! A few enquiries revealed that there were still taxi’s running quite near to Trafalgar falls. The falls tumble off of the top of the mountain crashing onto the rocks below surrounded by lush rainforest. Passing through the entrance a short walk takes one to a wooden viewing platform. From there you can see Mother falls on the left and Father falls to the right. This is where all the cruise ship tourists stop and take photos. (It was cruise ship in town day) Just a little further along the path is a sign stating “go further at your own risk as river is prone to flash floods”. Perfect it meant there was no one else there. We climbed over the rocks to the base of the falls. The water runs over the rocks and forms small pools which run one into the next. Among these cold pools from the waterfall warm sulphur water springs bubble out of the rocks. So one pool is cold and right next to it a warm water spring, the two run together and a warm pool is formed. It was too much to resist, we stripped off and climbed into the warm pool ducking in under the hot waterfall then cooling off in the cold one. Wonderful; our own “private” spa.

We stopped for coffee to allow a huge downpour to pass and then set off on foot to the next attraction. One thing about the Caribbean, they say if you don’t like the weather wait half an hour!, We get drenched in a shower and before the next shower starts you have dried off already.

Wotten Waven is a rural village basically surrounded by sulphur springs. The walk up to Wotten Waven is along a shady road edged with rainforest you pass by the local’s houses and the school. It is less touristy than other towns as the road between Roseau and Trafalgar falls has only recently been built to pass by Wotten Waven, so in effect it is still to be discovered by the cruise ship crowd.

A bill board advertised, Tikiwa Spa; Hot Sulphur baths, mud pools, waterfall and rum tasting in natural gardens. This appealed to us and we set off to find it. A long steep climb brought us to the entrance. It is private property where the enterprising owner has set up a spa using the natural flow of the sulphur springs and river water. They have channelled the water through bamboo poles from the source to old iron ball foot bath tubs. The poles run overhead and gravity drops the water in a small shower into the four baths. Nearby they have built a deeper big pool to wallow in. From one of the overhead bamboo runs icy water to cool off under. We wallowed in the hot water taking advantage seeing we have not been in a hot bath for over a year! But nope no soap allowed L

We thought we were in for a long walk back but as we left the spa a bus passed us and promised to come back and fetch us, which he did. Back in town we heard there was still no petrol and wouldn’t be for at least two days.

A short snorkel when we arrived had convinced us diving was a must. The next two days we joined Action divers, as diving without a guide is not allowed in Dominica, we did four dives.

We dived Scots Bay, on the southern point of the island. A pretty dive; with lots of coral and reef fish. The next dive was Caribs leap. This is at the base of a sheer mountain cliff. The Carib men were allowed to have more than one wife, but the women not. If the men suspected or caught a wife being unfaithful he would throw her off of this cliff. The dive site displayed none of its historical dramas.

Swiss cheese, the third site was on the ocean side of Scots head. The wind was howling, gusting over 40 knots. The crew and Captain of the dive boat did an excellent job securing us to the buoy and we descended into the still, magical world underwater. The name is derived from the holes, caves and pinnacles formed by the water currents. It looks like the holy surface of Swiss cheese. By the time we surfaced the wind had increased and attached to the new buoy at our next dive site soon had the 70 foot catamaran dragging the huge mooring block with us out to sea. The Captain started the motors, turned the boat around and dragged it back into the shallows before they cut us loose. That dive site was not to be and we moved to the calmer more protected site called Champagne. Here hot water springs bubble out under the sea causing champagne like bubbles above. The sea water over the springs is warm.

When we got back from our dives on the first day we were delighted to discover, Ocean Spice, Southern Blue and Quest had arrived. There were now four South African Catamarans in the Bay.  We told them of our plans to hire a car and Johan and Jeanne on Southern Blue elected to join us. Ocean Spice and Quest had decided they wanted to do the Trafalgar falls we had done on our first venture into the mountains.

 

 

MIddleham falls and Titou Gorge were on our agenda for the day. Driving narrow roads through spectacular rainforest brought us to the start of the hike to the falls. All along the way the roads are beautifully kept with painted tires planted with indigenous shrubs along the verge where they have been forced to cut back the rainforest to allow clear access to the roads. The Dominican’s are warm and  friendly, always willing to chat and help, waving friendly greetings as we pass.

Middleham fall is one of the highest waterfalls in Dominica. The hour walk through the rainforest is incredibly beautiful. There are more than 60 species of trees including the huge Chataignier, this trees sends out surface supports making “walls” extending from the base of the tree at about 7 – 8 feet high and about half a foot thick, sloping down until they disappear into the ground. The long steep walk there and back was worth it, the falls cascade over the mountain crashing into the rock below where it has formed a natural pool.

 

Our next stop was Titou Gorge. Parts of the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean” was shot in this gorge. The rock has been worn out by the water over the centuries and a gorge about 3 meters across and about 30 meters high. You enter the water at a small pool they have built then swim up the gorge. The current of water gets stronger and stronger the nearer you get to the source. The depth does vary as you go and there are places we could stand and take a breath.  Although the gorge went up beyond the falls we were unable to get through the current. The swim is awe inspiring and a little eerie.

  

After the swim in the cool fresh water we all voted for a visit to the Sulphur Spa’s. This time we chose “Screw Spa”. The land owner Mr Screw (Seriously, that is apparently his name) has developed his land around the hot springs. They flow into 5 different pools; the first one is very hot and right next to it the cold water has been channelled to a cooling off pool. As the hot water fills and overflows to the next pool it cools until the last pool is just a little cooler than body temp. We all wallowed in each pool then made out way back to the hot one cooling down in the cold one before we set off back home.

 The next morning all four yachts set off north to Portsmouth.

Dominica is known for its “Yacht Helpers”. In Roseau we had used the services of Sea Cat, it was his moorings we had tied onto and used his dinghy dock and water. We were still a mile out when the first yacht helper approached us in Portsmouth. The yacht helpers provide all services for the yachts they will get you fruit, bread and ice. Take your laundry to be done, act as a water taxi, find a technician or any other service you may need. They act together in a group called PAYS: the group provided security, help maintain the dinghy docks and generally try to make sure your stay is as easy as possible. PAYS members primary business is tours, river and mountain. They also have restaurants and taxi’s and a dive shop ashore.

They are qualified guides and we booked a tour up the Indian River. The eight of us from the four SA boats were picked up at 07h00 the next morning. Our guide was Eddison Laville a senior member of PAYS. As Murphy would have it was overcast and pouring with rain when we boarded his boat. The short trip to the mouth of the river was very wet, once we reach the river he cut his engines (no engines allowed on the river) and rowed. The river is very beautiful, the trees forming an arched canopy above. The movie scene of the old witch doctor in Pirates of the Caribbean was shot here and Eddison took us to the site. They apparently booked out the whole area for a couple of weeks while it was being shot. He told us most of the actors hired local houses. They were down to earth and friendly with no airs with the exception of Johnny Depp. He had an attitude of note and demanded to be treated like some sort of god! Where the river becomes too shallow to continue we stopped at the Jungle Bar and sat in the sun warming up drinking their tea and eating our sarmies.

 

The next day, Sunday PAYS has their weekly beach braai. All the yachties are invited, you pay EC50.00 per person and eat and drink as much as you like. It sounded like a good excuse for a party so we with Southern Blue and Quest took advantage. We took dinghy across to the beach, dumped our shoes, jackets and bags at one of the tables and stood nearby chatting, dancing and drinking. I suddenly noticed Andre’s new hiking sandals were no longer next to mine. A quick search and we realized they were stolen. I quickly informed Eddison and Jeff, the president of PAYS. In no time the police had arrived and half the PAYS members were questioning and searching. They assured us they would get them back. Jeff said they knew who the suspects were and they were now being watched by the police. If and when they eventually wore them they would be arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. They took it very seriously and said they had decided no locals allowed at the beach braai’s. We were impressed but didn’t hold much hope as we were leaving soon and if they found them we figured we would have moved on. To our surprise two days later they arrived at our boat with the shoes, they said they found them on a bench at the braai area. We figured the thief had either borrowed them for a function (hahaha) or had got scared as the police were taking it very seriously, and put them back. Well done Dominica, we salute you and your people.

The next day we waved a sad goodbye to Dominica, definitely an island we could have got stuck on.