Bad Boy Dinghy Ride

ATTENTION: Don't try this at home! 

Earthling under full sail from Antigua to Guadeloupe. The trolling line got caught on the dinghy and George bravely or stupidly had to go aboard and untangle the line while under way. A true dinghy cowboy!

Farewell Antigua

Yacht Racing in Antigua

The last couple of days in Antigua ended with an anchorage in Falmouth Harbour, next to our friends on Equinox. It feels great to come across friends in different part of the Caribbean. We originally met Ron and Karyn in Turks and Caicos. Then, after six months we saw them in St. Croix, and now our paths have crossed again in Falmouth Harbour, Antigua. It’s also so exciting to hear friends calling you on the radio out of the blue. Our last night in Antigua, we heard Unicorn calling us, whom we met in Conception Island in the Bahamas almost a year ago. Håkan and Anna Karin, aboard Unicorn, sailed in from Dominica, going north-bound and we are going south-bound to Guadeloupe. We were going to be in the same place for less than 12 hours, so we had to get together. There was a full house aboard Earthling the last night in Antigua.

Full House Aboard Earthling

Our overall experience in Antigua was great except for one occurrence! A negative experience that is worth sharing with other cruisers who might visit Antigua. Our port of entry in Antigua was Jolly Harbour and the custom officers were very helpful and nice, which I wrote about in “Welcoming Antigua”. It cost $30EC ($11US) to check in and according to the official at Jolly Harbour, there would not be any other fees to checkout! Since we had to sail south to Guadeloupe, it was most convenient to check out from English Harbour by Nelson’s Dock. Our friends on Zero to Cruising told us that they had to pay $70EC ($26US) to checkout, which sounded like a lot. I remember reading and hearing horror stories about the immigration at English Harbour. But we didn’t have a choice and I was hoping for the best. At the counter in front of the Port Authority, I asked the lady who was checking us out, if there was going to be any charge to check out, she replied: “yes, but a very minimum charge, so I can get paid at the end of the week, you will be surprised”. Indeed, I was surprised when I had to pay a total of $117EC($43US) to check out! I know that it would not cost that much at Jolly Harbour. At English and Falmouth, they charge boaters for anchoring, garbage and some other fees even if you come here to just check in or out. I would not do any immigration process at English Harbour next time I visit Antigua!

Antigua is the center for many yacht races and sailing mega yachts in the Caribbean. You see many beautiful, sleek, and fast racing yachts here. There are races taking place here quite often. Right before we left, there was a race that went from Antigua, around Guadeloupe, to and around Saba back to Antigua, a total of 600 miles. The Antigua race week is at the end of April and sail boats come from all over the world during that time. We could crew on a friend’s race boat if we chose to come back to Antigua during that time.

View from Shirley Heights

One of the highlights in Falmouth and English Harbour is to go up to Shirley Heights. You get one of the best views over the harbours at sunset. On Sundays, there is a steel drum band playing, there are food stands and hundreds of yachters and tourists  watching the sunset. We enjoyed this with our friends on Equinox and Zero to Cruising. 
Right now we are anchored in Anse Deshaies (pronounced Day-ay), Guadeloupe. Once again back to good wine, baguettes, and cheese, we are in France!!                   

Love from Deshaies

Rocks and Reefs

Photo taken from Chris Doyle's Leeward Islands

A few weeks before Earthling sailed to Antigua, I went over the charts and saw a beautiful land, shaped with many nice coves and protected anchorages. At that time, we were anchored in an uncomfortable rolly anchorage somewhere else and could not wait to be in a calm and comfortable place. It has been 20 days since we got here to Antigua and we have almost sailed around the island and anchored in various places. Almost everywhere we anchored has been comfortable.

Right now we are in Nonsuch bay and this anchorage definitely exceeded my expectations. There is no land in front of us but we are protected by natural break walls, reefs.  As you surf in on the north entrance of Nonsuch bay on 8-10 ft swells, you see them breaking over a long line of reefs. Behind the reefs, the water is almost flat. This bay is very large and there is room for thousands of boats to anchor. In addition, there are mooring balls available free of charge.

Kelly Standing on the Devil's Bridge

Now that the outboard is working, exploring has less limitations. Yesterday, we took the dinghy to Devil’s Bridge on the north east side of Nonsuch bay. This is a place worth seeing. It’s a 25ft cliff where the rock on one side is divided from the other and the swells go underneath, like a bridge. According to Devon, a local we met there; in the old days, slaves tried to flee from the island and would come here, where they realized there was no more land and would fall off into the sea from the crashing waves. Which is how they got the name Devil’s Bridge.


Antigua’s northern and eastern coast is lined by reefs. Some of the channels bringing you through these reefs can be tricky and thrilling. On our way from Jumby Bay by Long Island to Nonsuch Bay we went through Bird Island Channel. Imagine, you are in 30-40ft of water and suddenly it drops down to 10ft and you have coral heads sticking out of the water a few feet from you. Now, the swells are coming against you, lifting you up and down and at one point the depth shows a foot below keel! That is nerve racking. I would not recommend this channel if you are on a larger boat and draw more than 6ft. I don’t know if I dare going through it again!!
  
Our visit in Antigua will last a few more days and the next Island waiting for us is Guadeloupe.

Love from Rocks and Reefs


Check out the photo album of Antigua on Earthling's fb page

Sweet Tooth

It was about time to do some provisioning. Provisioning; stocking up food on a boat for a longer period of time. We do large provisioning every 4-6 weeks on Earthling. Last time we provision was in St. Croix, 7 weeks ago. Many items like Mayo and vegetable oil lasted until a few days ago. The fridge and the pantry were almost empty. We came here for this purpose. St. John is the capital of Antigua and most trades happen here. There are many small shops and street vendors. Cruise lines come in and out of this port everyday. Tourists are swarming the streets of St. John during the day and after sunset there are pretty much only locals.

The closest anchorage is right by the Cruise line dock. We pushed it a little further and came inside the bay right near the city in 8-10 ft of water. It can’t be more protected than this, the water is as flat as glass even though it’s blowing 15 mph.
We bought groceries from 2 super markets here in St. John. Bargain center is walking distance from town and First Choice is about $1US ($2.25 Eastern Caribbean) bus ride and 10 min away. Prices on both of the stores are similar, but there is more selection at First Choice, like cheese and lunch meat. In the middle of town, there is also a Fish and Meat Market, but make sure you get there early in the morning for the freshest meat and fish.


Local Vegetable Market

Most vegetables aboard are purchased at the local farmer’s market. Almost all the vegetables are grown locally and many of them I’ve never cooked with before. I’m getting creative making dishes with these island grown vegetables, such as Eddoes, Yams, and Christophines.  Check out the Earthling Menu to see what we cook aboard!        

Furthermore, I was not expecting to see a Middle Eastern Rasta mon. In St. John many store fronts and businesses are owned by Syrians and Palestinians and many of them are run/operated by the second generation. We met a few of them and they were so excited to have us visiting their Island. They were all very helpful and even gave us deals on some items purchased from their stores. A few of them have brought to our attention that we have nothing to worry about here in St. John. If there is anything we need help with, we should not hesitate to ask them. Who knew there would be a Middle Eastern spirit here in Antigua.


The Caribbean Islands have been known for their sugar cane production. You see sugar mill ruins in almost every Island. There is no sugar cane mass production and export any more. However, you still see people sucking on and chewing sugar cane. If you have a sweet tooth, like me, this is the best natural snack you can have. A few days ago in Hermitage Bay, we were walking on a muddy road and a pick-up truck stopped and offered us ride. We didn’t take advantage of the offer since we were not going that far. The following day we came across the same pick up truck in St. John. The gentleman was shaving sugar cane skins and selling them on the road side. We were excited to see him and bought some of the sweet sticks. The sugar cane has a fiber in them that you can’t eat but you can chew and suck out the sweet juice, then spit out the fibers. Since we’ve had this sweet snack aboard, we have been sucking more than ever and I have cured some of my sugar fix!
         
Love from Sweet Tooth

Welcoming Antigua

Jolly Harbour

When you sail to a new country, your first step ashore should be towards Customs and Immigration, where you have to check-in. This is very important, especially in the current and former British Islands. You have to fly a Quarantine-flag (yellow flag) on the starboard side of your vessel every time you enter a country. Which lets people know your vessel has not cleared customs. In some countries like Antigua and Barbuda, it is recommended that you even fly the courtesy flag under the Q-flag. A courtesy flag is the country’s flag and you fly it out of respect to the country your are visiting. Antigua is known to be strict about their check-in laws, so make sure you have all documentation needed when you come here. Our experience with Immigration, Customs, and Port Authority here in Antigua could have been worse but it turned out quite pleasant. They all treated us warmly and we even got to stay on their dock overnight.
We entered Jolly Harbour anchorage at night, after a 16 hour passage from Nevis, but it is an open and clear cove which made it easy to come into. Otherwise, I dislike very much coming into new anchorages after dark. Jolly Harbour is well protected and it’s a port of entry. Many regattas are organized here and there is a strip of shops, many restaurants, bars, a supermarket, a boatyard, and a Budget Marine. We only purchased  some cheese and bread at the supermarket since prices were on the higher end for us. When entering Jolly Harbour it has a familiar feel to Florida, with all the houses right by the water along with docks for their boats.

Kelly, Amber, and Isabella

We have already gotten to know some friendly, generous locals in this area. The other day, we met Amber at her bar/restaurant “Miracles” right outside Jolly Harbor on the main road. After a cold refreshing Wadaldi (locally brewed beer), we were ready to go back to Earthling to make dinner, but Amber insisted that we stayed and invited us for another cold one. After discussing our passion for cooking, she offered to make one of her special dishes for us and we had to accept the offer. It makes me somewhat emotional to meet all these beautiful people around us.

It’s official, we are finally out of any alcoholic beverages, no rum or beer. We are debating if we should quit drinking, since that comes high on the expenditure sheet at the end of each month! Or maybe we make drinking a special occasion like we do with red meat!?
Love from Antigua  

Donyaye Kuchak

The stay in St. Kitts and Nevis lasted 11 days and we had a great experience. All locals that we crossed paths with were nice and hospitable. They took care of us like we were one of them. Ultimately all humans are the same, we come from the same source and are returning to the same place. Helping and loving one another is one of our basic purposes in life.
Finding good calm anchorages can become difficult sometimes. Pinney’s Beach in Nevis is open, big and a relatively protected anchorage from swells. There are 30 moorings available free of charge for visiting yachts. The charge is included in the check  in with port authority, and only costs $3. Pinney’s beach stretches a few miles long and you rarely see anybody on it. Mostly yachties and guests from the four seasons resort are the only people enjoying it. The locals don’t lay down or sunbathe on the beach, they hang out at the beach bars and drink Skol (beer made in Kitts and Nevis). That’s how we met Chevy at Chevy’s bar and Pat at Pat’s bar along with their patrons. I certainly enjoy getting to know new people from different countries and cultures. We meet locals that have never been outside their own little island.

Von, Kelly & I by Pat's beach b

Many have only been as far as the closest neighboring island. Some have lived in different places like the U.K or the U.S. Most show an interest to know where we are from. That can mean a few different things, like, what was the last port, or where did the sailing journey start,  or where do “I” as a person come from? So I answer, with the places we have been, that I sailed from Chicago and my Persian-Swedish-American background. By this time we have covered half of the world and it all sounds like a dream! We come from worlds so diverse and far from each other but beyond everything, we are all Earthlings.
The cruising community is so small sometimes. If you’ve been in the Caribbean for a year or so, the chances of running into the same cruisers is very high. Especially when we do our best to exchange boat cards and/or emails. When we were in the rolly anchorage by Port Zante in Basseterre, a dinghy from a nearby cruiser stopped by. They remembered seeing us in George Town, Bahamas last year! Mike introduced himself and what a small world, he is on the catamaran “Zero To Cruising”. We have been following their blog since before we met and have many common “cruising” friends.
Currently, we are anchored in Hermitage Bay, in Antigua and just a couple hundred yards from us is Zero to Cruising. Last night we had drinks aboard ZTC and tonight Mike and Rebecca will join us for dinner on Earthling. Our dinner recipe will be posted in the Earthling Menu tomorrow.
So far Antigua looks like another piece of paradise and we can’t wait to explore it further in the next couple of weeks.

Love from Donyaye Kuchak

Donyaye Kuchak Farsi translation to English Small World
See photos of St. Kitts and Nevis on earthling sailors fb page