Marigot Bay, St. Martin, Jan 30-31, 2006

Sailboat | Voyages | Log

The French are More Civilized Karen on Full Circle in Marigot Bay We are directly in front of our favorite restaurant That is Full Circle with the anchor light Marigot feels like the French Riviera The draw bridge from Marigot Bay into Simpson Bay Lagoon A French Patiserie You don't see these in Safeway We had hoped to sail the boat over to Oyster Pond on the windward side of the island, but the winds were gusting to 30 knots and it was just too dangerous to sail through the reefs on the windward side of the island in these high winds. We will wait until Tuesday. Ted leaves tomorrow and Karen and I will take the Full Circle into Captain Oliver’s in Oyster Pond. The winds did not abate as forecast. We delay our departure from Marigot for another day. We spent the morning in Marigot eating and shopping. After breakfast together, we each went our separate ways, following different agendas. I was in search of marinas, weather information, courtesy flags, and boat gear. A courtesy flag is a small flag from the country you are visiting, that you fly on the starboard side of the boat. I met with some success at a Handyman center and an office supply store. I am always fascinated by the unique variations on tools and gizmos that I find in foreign countries. As I walk around the city of Marigot, I am taken aback by the contrast between shops selling Hermes bags and filth in the streets. After spending time on beautiful beaches, it is always hard to reconcile the poverty and trash one often encounters in the towns. All in all, Marigot is a beautiful city and a giant improvement over Simpson Bay. After lunch at Café Saint Germain, I used the dinghy to take Ted and his gear into the taxi stand in Marigot so he could catch a ride to the airport. While it was sad to see the last of my crew depart, but it was also a relief to be alone with Karen again. Our Caribbean adventure officially began Tuesday afternoon, our first time alone on the boat. We used the dinghy to motor across Simpson Bay Lagoon to purchase some boat gear at Budget Marine. The Porte-Bote dinghy and the 5hp Nissan outboard are proving to be troupers. After returning from Budget Marine, we needed to prepare for tomorrows departure to Captain Oliver’s Marina in Oyster Pond. We did not want to tow the dinghy and motor through heavy seas, so we needed to store them on the boat. We used a specially designed block and tackle to hoist the outboard motor to a storage mount on the stern pulpit. We used the spinnaker halyard to hoist the dinghy from the water and lay it upside down on the deck. To accomplish this, we ran the halyard through a pulley at the foot of the mast and led the line to the electric windlass. This made the job child’s play. Rather than a muscle job, we turned it into one of finesse. On a sailboat, one tries to use mechanical advantage whenever possible. Tomorrow we sail for Oyster Pond, same island, same country. Our goal is to get into a marina where we can clean, repair, and provision the boat. There is much to do, and St. Martin, with its excellent stores, is a good place to do it. Previous | Next