Saint-Martin and the passage back to Martinique

Our boxes of stuff were spread over two locations, both of which are in the Dutch part of Sint Maarten. From Marigot Bay, which belongs to the French part of Saint-Martin, it is a short 15-minute boat ride with our dinghy to Simpson Bay Lagoon. Fully packed we went back to the boat like canned sardines and, due to the waves sailing against the wind, we arrived at the boat soaked. Unpacking all the boxes gives us an early Sinterklaas feeling and there is something for everyone. The pepernoten and liquorice are not missing. We won’t be staying long in Saint Martin. This Monday, fingers crossed, they will start working with our new diesel tank in Martinique.

We make another nice trip to Fort Louis. Fort Louis, located here in Marigot, was built in 1789 under the governor of Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy. The purpose of this fortress was to defend the settlement and warehouses of the port of Marigot against British and Dutch pirates where the products harvested by the inhabitants were stored (rum, salt, coffee and sugar cane). Nowadays it is deserted, but you can enjoy a beautiful 360-degree view. From the Fort Louis Marina and Simpson Bay to Nettle Bay and then Anguilla in the distance. You can even see planes landing at the airfield on the Dutch side. Rajesh made a beautiful time-lapse of a sunset here, at Fort Louis.

Thursday morning at 8:00 am we motor out of Marigot Bay and we start our sailing trip back to Martinique. Now also we have between 16-23 knots of wind and the boat is pushed at an angle of 30 degrees by the waves. Before we started our adventure, we were advised by several friends and acquaintances not to go on this adventure, because sailing is dangerous and what if you end up in a big storm and your boat sinks? Of course, we also know that sailing involves risks, but don’t you run that risk when you get into your car or an airplane? After all, the biggest dangers during sailing are things like getting caught in a hurricane, strong winds, big waves or if your boat gets damaged and there is a leak. When you ensure that you are well prepared for emergencies, make good route planning and check the weather conditions several times a day, you minimize the risks. That way most sailors will never experience these conditions. During a passage you can free your mind and I regularly think back to these advises and understand that it is very difficult to explain the fascination with sailing to someone who has never been on a sailboat. Because yes, a sailboat is sometimes quite uncomfortable. The waves rock the boat back and forth, you can get seasick or feel uncomfortable, the wind is constantly blowing around your ears, you depend on the weather conditions. The beautiful moments you get in return weigh more heavily for us, the sun, blue skies, the wild animals you can encounter along the way, such as whales, dolphins, turtles and many beautiful tropical fish, the vast sea, the people you meet along the way, the countries and cultures you get to know and the sunrise and sunset you are crowned with every day. I am suddenly pulled out of my thoughts.

The fishing rod starts to rattle and Jeroen runs forward. Jeroen fights for 20 minutes to reel in the fish. Jeroen thinks it is a tuna, a mahi-mahi or a barracuda fight for less time and eventually bounce on the waterline, Jeroen explains. The fish manages to escape just in front of the boat. That is good luck for the fish and a downer for us. The fishing rod is out again. As soon as Sint Maarten is behind us, it is quiet again on the water. We sail between the islands of St Barth and Nevis and see no one else. Only the blue sea where we spend hours looking for whales and dolphins. We do not encounter them in this passage. We do have a bite again with the fishing rod and after 3 minutes of fighting the fish manages to escape again. Jeroen indicates that it is a good fitness exercise! We all read a lot on board. Devouring one book after another. Then we have a bite for the 3rd time and we catch a barracuda. Unfortunately, we cannot eat these because of the poison Ciguatera with which they can be infected. You cannot eat the barracudas in the Caribbean from the island of Guadeloupe to the North. The barracudas and other tropical fish there eat certain algae that contain this poison. The algae are not harmful to the fish. They store the toxin in their body. If we were to eat the poisoned barracuda, those toxins could have serious consequences for us. Consequences can be; nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. After that, paralysis symptoms can occur, because the poison affects your nervous system. Ultimately, there are about 50-70 people per year who die from eating a poisoned fish with Ciguatera. Reasons enough not to risk it no matter how delicious they look! We sail calmly on and we hardly have to change anything on the course or the sails. We prepare a chickpea curry with rice for the evening and enjoy our evening meal again during a beautiful sunset.

The sails are reefed again for the evening and our watch schedule starts at 20:00. We sail all night at a comfortable 6.5 knots and little happens to all three of us. We read a lot or look quietly over the water surface and at the beautiful starry sky. At sunrise, we are at the height of Guadeloupe and the journey is going very well. We have breakfast together and chat a lot about how quiet it is on the water. Hurricane season is officially over and you would expect to see more boats sailing north. Then the fishing rod starts to rattle and we have a bite with the fishing rod, Jeroen thinks he has another tuna, but this fish is also luckier and escapes. We reel the line all the way in and check if there is anything wrong with the hook in the bait, but can’t find anything. Unfortunately, no sashimi for tonight!

We discuss with each other what we are going to do. Even now we know for sure that we will arrive in the dark. We have two options. To stop a little earlier in Fort de France, where we know it well and is often quiet with boats. Or sail on to Le Marin Sainte Anne where it is very busy at this time of year and it is more difficult to find a good place to anchor between all the boats in the dark. We decide to focus on Fort de France. Everyone comes back on board at their own pace and we all enjoy the time we have been given in our own way. Indian Dahl, rice and an omelette is our dinner and our watch schedule starts a little earlier from 6pm and we change every 2 hours. We arrive in Fort de France between 03:00 and 04:00 on Saturday morning. As a result, we are all in the cockpit from 2.45 am and all three of us keep watch. It is going very well and there are only 6 boats anchored in the bay at Fort de France. At 03:30 we can all go to bed and soon we were all deep asleep. That morning we were abruptly awakened at 07:00 by a small boat. We have to be gone in an hour or so. The entire bay at Fort de France is closed to all ships due to a jet ski competition. Now we understand why it was so quiet. At 8:00 am we raise the anchor again and sail calmly on to Le Marin. Here we arrive at 11 am and we are behind the boat of our friends from sailboat Mabul. We haven’t seen each other since Carriacou! We check in at Customs and Immigration in Sainte Anne and then take the necessary extra hours of rest.

On the beach, in addition to Alex and Karin from sailboat Mabul, we also meet Horst, who sails solo on a catamaran, and Suzi, Emmanuel and their two daughters Roxanne and Candice from sailboat Take 5. We take a long walk on the beach and then decide to go together to a bar and have a drink. This soon becomes something to eat and when the live music starts, we danced the whole evening. We enjoyed! Karin, Alex and the three of us are invited to the sailboat Take 5 the next day.

Everyone brings something to eat and drink. It will be an unforgettable evening, where they will be treated to a live concert by mother and daughter Candice. Roxanne and Candice are temporarily on board for the holidays and their brother will also be on board next week. On Monday 5 December, we sail to the port of Le Marin where Jeroen and Rajesh, after consultation with the laser of the new diesel tank, dismantle the old diesel tank and demolish it from the boat. Now they have to wait for the new diesel tank to fit and see if anything needs to be adjusted. While Jeroen and Rajesh are busy with that, I’ve been busy unpacking and installing my new sewing machine.

I have no experience behind a sewing machine, but by watching various YouTube videos you can quickly learn a lot. Thursday the diesel tank was ready to be installed by Jeroen and Rajesh and I made new cushion covers for our cushions in the cockpit. After we tested everything on Saturday and checked that we have no leaks and that everything is OK, we cleaned the boat thoroughly and that afternoon we went to the bar to watch France – England together with the family of Take 5. Sunday, we sailed from the harbour to Saint Anne.

Here we wait for the Alex and Karin. Alex’s birthday is Tuesday and we celebrate this together and then we sail with them to Saint-Pierre.