SV PasoDoble: Xmas and Cocktails ……

It was just as described on our itinerary – festive days loaded with cocktails of all sorts, served at the most beautiful places. After a long passage across the Atlantic this was exactly what we needed. But before we get to the details of all the places here is the crew for this section; from Germany arrived Alexandra [who celebrated her 18^th birthday on PasoDoble] together with Mechthild and Ralph, Eve who made the epic trip from Australia and on the final part of his trip - Karsten

The first few days we were anchored in Carlisle Bay, Bridgetown, where we celebrated Xmas in a fancy beach restaurant. After another noisy night listening to music from the beach club we left our first Caribbean destination of Barbados for Grenada. We set off on a south-westerly course with a north-easterly wind, giving us 29 hours of easy sailing with light swell and no seasick casualties. Our first port was Le Phare Bleu marina on the south west coast, where we cleared in with customs and immigration. Whoever has been sailing in the Caribbean knows what this bureaucracy entails; the paper trail is never ending and the time and money involved could be let’s say …. much better spent diving or sipping cocktails. But then, it is part-and-parcel of this Caribbean experience. While moored safely at Le Phare Bleu we went on an educational island tour with Cutty, our very knowledgeable local guide. He introduced us to what Grenada is known for – spices and tropical fruits. The most famous is nutmeg and mace, then there is turmeric, pepper, cocoa and sorrel, only to mention a few. Being a volcanic island the soil is rich and fertile and everything grows in abundance and LARGE in size, i.e. passion fruit

After our noisy Xmas experience we decided to spend New Year’s Eve on a more quiet note and anchored in Dragon Bay, a sleepy little cove just north of the capitol St. George’s. Perfect is the way to describe it. After some snorkeling and a nice dinner on board we sat around and star gazed into 2012, some didn’t even make it to midnight

On New Year’s Day we were headed for Carriacou. This trip was a little more animated; with a 25 kn wind and right on the nose we made slow progress on our way north. As we passed a rocky out crop on the way we suddenly hit a nasty swell; later on we found out that this is why the rocky island is called ‘Kick ‘em Jenny’. The arrival was sweet, though. Our destination was Sandy Island, a coral atoll about 100m long and 10m wide and offering some amazing snorkeling. A short dinghy ride away across to the main island of Carriacou we found a great beach bar for an afternoon cocktail session

Next was PSV, or Petit St. Vincent; our first stop in the island nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Of course more time was spent on clearing out of one and into the next country. I will not write more about PSV, but let the pictures do the talking. Although this island is privately owned, yachts are still welcome and respecting the privacy of the resort guests one can still walk around it on the beaches, as they are still public, at least to high water line. Karsten’s fishing skills failed us and we had to buy some snapper from a very industrious Caribbean vendor. The result was a team effort of first cocktails followed by BBQ snapper with fresh salads and ….. more cocktails

Last stop for this 2 week trip was Union Island, a short and very pleasant 2 hour sail west. The harbour of Clifton is protected by a coral reef with a smaller reef at its centre, making this lagoon a well-frequented and bustling destination. Happy Island Bar is in the midst of the lagoon, built by Janti on a pile of conge shells and a favourite yachties hang-out for a sunset cocktail – say no more …….