Friends, Fish and Frigate Birds

Grenada was hidden under a cloud of misty rain when we started our sail north.   The weather forecast predicted thunderstorms for the next couple of days so it was a good time to be heading offshore in the hope we could avoid some of the wet weather!  

We had a lovely sail, making good speed as we passed one small island country after another – St Vincents and Grenadines, St Lucia, Martinique, Dominica, Guadaloupe, Montserat passing closer to the northern most islands which shed large wind shadows across our path.   We looked hungrily at the islands we were passing, longing to stop and explore but knowing we will be able to give them justice on the return trip south.   For now we were on a schedule (the worst thing to have on a boat!) and we continued on our 350 NM sail north to Antigua where we were meeting our friend Suzanne in a few days.  

Before we left Grenada our good friends on Ruffian had given us a fishing line and lures as a thoughtful and kind parting gift.   Each morning we put out the line hoping this would be the day we would catch and land a prized fish.   On day two, that wish became a reality when we managed to land a beautiful Mahi Mahi.    As Steve slowly reeled in the line, we could see a large fish jumping off the waves behind us, flashing blue and green.   With hook, cloth, bucket and rum ready Steve hauled the large fish onto the boat, pouring rum into its gills to sedate it as the stunning (and stunned) fish made a final attempt to free itself.   We looked in awe at this amazing gift from the sea – yellow, blue and green with a massive head and big mouth.   Mahi Mahi (or Dorado/dolphin fish as we later found out) is, in our humble opinion, one of the best fish to catch – not only are they a beautiful fish to look at, they have very few bones and the ones they have our large and they are easy to fillet…. and they are delicious to eat.   We feasted on fresh fish for three days, the final day sharing a meal with four other friends.

We arrived in Jolly Harbour, Antigua in the early afternoon, marvelling at the turquoise waters as we negotiated a shallow entrance into the harbour, spotting a number of large turtles as we wound our way towards the anchorage.   We dropped the hook close to the main channel that led to Jolly Harbour, deciding to wait until the morning to check in.    It was now Monday and Suzanne was arriving on Wednesday evening, giving us time to sort ourselves and the boat out before she arrived.

The next morning we took the dinghy about a mile up the channel and completed the check-in process which was quick and painless as we had already completed and submitted an on-line ESea immigration form prior to leaving Granada and were able to show negative Covid RAT results.  Armed with a SIM card, fresh fruit and vegetables and a cruising permit, we returned to Cerulean in time for sundowners and a shared dinner with friends we had last seen in The Canaries.   We all enjoyed the last of the beautiful Mahi Mahi as we watched the sun go down over the different shades of blue in the bay – a perfect welcome to Antigua!  

Suzanne arrived the next evening and, even though she was tired from the long flight, we celebrated until late sitting up on deck drinking cocktails, catching up and opening all the wonderful packages she had kindly agreed to bring with her!!!    Together we explored the island over the next few days, gently acclimatising Suz to the heat and slow pace of the Caribbean.   We booked a day tour with the same taxi driver (Justin) who had collected Suz from the airport and he treated us to a fun day which seemed to involve quite a bit of rum at various locations.   He even stopped at his house and collected some rum punch he had prepared earlier and proceeded to share it around in the cab while driving us to the next destination!   We visited Betty’s Hope Historic Sugar Plantation which now stands as a relic to the former sugar industry that once defined Antigua.   These plantations housed hundreds of slaves, brought over from Africa and whose ancestors now call this island paradise home.    It was an odd feeling, knowing we had travel the same route as a lot of the slaves who were captured in West Africa, bundled into large ships and brought to the West Indies.  There are lots of reminders of Antigua’s past scattered around the island from Windmills which crushed the sugarcane, to the ruins of the old sugar processing factory and large “Coppers” used to boil down the cane and extract the sugar.   We visited a number of the 365 white sand beaches that attract holidaymakers from all over the world as the warm, turquoise waters invite you in to cool off from the hot sun.    Justin took us to a place where locals get their lunch – a small cabin on a grass verge, serving excellent local food with fresh produce. 

The English cricket team were touring The West Indies so we bought tickets for the first day of a Test Match at Sir Vivien Richards Stadium.   We joined Traci and Andrew, our friends on Yacht Walkabout, and had a lovely day catching up with cricket going on in the background!   Towards the end the Barmy Army found their voice and added real atmosphere to the occasion.

While in Falmouth Harbour we met up with my niece’s husband, Errol, who is captain of a visiting Superyacht.   The marina was filled with enormous Superyachts from all over the World and we watched in awe as these impressive displays of wealth manoeuvred into spaces I would not be comfortable taking Cerulean!!!    Errol invited us on board “Sorceress” a 31m carbon fibre, racing Superyacht.   Some of the rigging alone cost in excess of GBP300k!    She was beautiful and it was hard to jump in our small dinghy and return to our superyacht after that!!

Our next anchorage was Rickett Bay on Green Island, a lovely quiet area which is only accessible by boat and protected from the swell by a large reef.   As we negotiated a sand bar on the approach into the anchorage, a group of dolphins played in our bow wave which was a perfect welcome to the beautiful surrounds and a great first sighting in The Caribbean waters for Suz.   We spent the next few days relaxing in the pretty small bay, watching the colour of the water change as the weather turned from sunshine to showers, wind to calm.  Turtles popped up in the blue waters, stretched their necks out so they could look around and slowly sunk down again into the clear sea.   Other boats jostled their way into the anchorage until the bay was filled with a multinational selection of yachts all sheltering from the strong easterly Trade Winds that blow constantly at this time of the year.  As the other boats left, we stayed for another night, enjoying a perfect day where we shared the bay with only one other boat which meant the turtles surfaced more often and we were treated to constant visits as they grew in confidence.

The wind had been blowing constantly with gusts of over 30knots and we sheltered in the small bay, waiting for a lull.   The forecast showed constant wind from the East but not quite as strong as it had been, so we made a dash across the shallow entrance and headed for Barbuda, a small island 30NM northwest of Antigua.   The island is very low lying and surrounded by golden beaches which, until a few years ago, provided luxury get-aways for the wealthy tourists, however Hurricane Irma devastated the small island community in 2017 and has not yet recovered from the destruction left in its wake.    Hotels are being rebuilt but for the moment these are few and far between, so the small island paradise is visited mostly only by sailors and, because of its location, not too many venture further north than Antigua.    

As we sailed, the wind increased in strength and Suz, instead of being treated to a beautiful leisurely sail in tropical blue waters, endured a bouncy, fast and exciting dash until we anchored off the lagoon which the main town sits on.  Along the way we put out the fishing line, hoping to catch another Mahi Mahi but instead caught three Barracuda with very big and sharp teeth, so were thrown back before they could do any damage!   Later we were told the local fishermen consider Barracuda a delicacy, so regretted throwing them back when we could have donated them to locals.

The lagoon at Codrington had been completely cut off from the sea by a thin sand bar, but Hurricane Irma opened up a narrow entrance so dinghies can now access the town from the sea.   However, the wind was howling across the shallow lagoon, whipping up the water and making it impossible for us to take our small dinghy with three adults safely to town.   We were anchored off a long, empty beautiful beach but the breaking surf on the white sands was a deterrent to launching the dinghy and ourselves into the waves as disaster was bound to unfold as we neared the beach!   Instead, we called Pat, who owns a water taxi, which arrived 2hrs late, and sped us to Codrington across the windy lagoon so we could explore the town and get some much needed fresh supplies.   As we wandered the streets, we met some of the friendly locals who left us with smiles on our faces as we learned a little about life living on a small island, totally dependent on tourists but with few visitors over the last 24 months.   Several of the houses and buildings had not been rebuilt and there were gaps where houses once stood leaving an impression of a smile with teeth missing!    As we walked along the streets a man on a new looking tricycle approached us, asking if we were lost.   His name was Toomba and he entertained us with stories and answered our questions as he walked with us through town, acknowledging everyone who passed along the way.   He introduced us to his sister who presented us with a hand of delicious Ladyfinger bananas after we had admired some growing nearby.   Donkeys, goats and horses roamed, unfenced around the rutted streets, wandering into unfenced gardens or down driveways.   We loved it!

We moved anchorages to Cocoa Point off the pristine Princess Diana Beach in the south of the island.   The beach was renamed in 2011 as Princess Di holidayed here many times and had a special connection with the island.   Large turtles welcomed us as we dropped the anchor and a sting ray darted under the boat.  We jumped into the warm, blue waters and cooled off.   Later we dinghied to the beach and feasted on fresh barbecued Lobster which we had ordered earlier.   We brought our own cutlery, plates and salads but the Rum Punch, sunset and atmosphere was provided!   It was a perfect night, apart from our exit which resulted in me being dumped in the surf as I tried launching the dinghy after having too many strong Rum Punches!!    

On our last morning Steve and I jumped in the clear water for one last swim before leaving Barbuda.   As I snorkelled around the boat I spotted a shark cruising around which resulted in Steve staying in the water on his own! 

We had a lovely sail back to Codrington, arriving just as a squall hit followed by drenching rain as we dropped the anchor in front of a destroyed resort on the end of the entrance into the lagoon.   Next morning Pat came to collect us in his powerful dinghy to take us to see the Frigate Bird sanctuary.    Barbuda has the largest Frigate bird colony in the western hemisphere with birds flying between the Caribbean and Galapagos islands during the varying mating seasons.   Even though these magnificent birds are seabirds, there feathers are not waterproof and they cannot land in the water, so all of our sightings to date had been watching them sore high above us with their impressive 2.4m wingspan.  We skimmed across the choppy lagoon waters heading north with no Frigate birds in sight.   Beach soon gave way to low mangroves and we continued bouncing at full speed across the shallow water.   All of a sudden, we turned a corner, and the sky was full of birds.   It was crazy – Frigate birds were all around, and above us noisily circling their crowded nesting area.   Young grey chicks sat alone in their nest, peering out, looking like Rod Hulls Emu as the inquisitive birds squawked at us with Pat edging his dinghy closer and closer to them.    We were mesmorised by the scene that was unfolding in front of us.   Huge birds flew overhead while others perched in the top of the low mangrove trees.   Some of the male birds had bright red throats which they puffed out like a balloon to attract females.  The gular sac takes 20 minutes to inflate so the males need to be pretty sure they’ll attract a mate before going to all that effort!   It was quite late in the breeding season so, sadly, the few males we saw with puffed out throats were the ones the females did not find attractive, and they made for a desperate sight as they stood out amongst the hundreds of nests containing a singular grey fluffy chick!  

It was time to leave and explore another Caribbean island.   Suz was only with us for another 2 weeks, so we needed to keep moving.  We had dinner and left as the sun was setting, picking our way through the maze of reefs that surround Barbuda.    It had been a special visit to Antigua and Barbuda, creating wonderful memories with Suz and continuing to wonder at the resilience of people who suffered huge trauma and loss with the devastating hurricane a few years ago, but are coming out the other side smiling and feeling positive.    I was not expecting Antigua to be as raw and relatively uncommercialised as it is.   It is a haven for Super Yachts, so I had expected it to be full of shopping malls and expensive restaurants to cater for the wealthy, but was pleasantly surprised by the lack of high-rises and unique character that remains on the islands.  In our opinion, Barbuda is the jewel in the crown – a gift that kept giving as its beautiful secrets were slowly shown to us.   The wind direction will make it hard for us to return but our experiences and people we met while in Antigua and Barbuda will stay with us for a lifetime.