19 March 2003
Life doesn't get much better than this. We're anchored in Falmouth Harbour, Antigua, watching Montserrat the active volcano to our right and having some of the most gorgeous yachts in the world on our left, and of course the sandy white beach infront of us! Antigua is the most welcoming Island and its now only 5 weeks until the first of our Antigua Week Crew arrive. The buzz here has already started.....
On Valentine's Day we handed over the keys for Disco Inferno 1, she's actually still here in Antigua but they are coming to pick her up this weekend and take her to her new home in Marigot, St Lucia. She is looking stunning and her new owners thoroughly enjoyed their first outting in her although the wind was too strong to battle down to St Lucia in 48 hours. Her name is Doubloon II so next year we'll be looking for her in the results of the regattas!
The following 3 weeks whizzed past, most of which were spent in Jolly Harbour due to the strong Southerly winds. The more time we spend there, the more we love it. While there we watched the start of the America's Cup and made some good friends in the Steely Bar/BBR Sportive as many hours were spent there waiting for the racing to start. After the 1st race, we called Nick FB to let him know the result and all the excitment, unfortunately it was about 3am UK time and we woke him, strangley enough he left his phone turned off on the other race nights!!!
Serendip arrived in Antigua Yacht Club Marina on the 26th February. We met them on their arrival and headed to the Last Lemming for a few beers, then round to Trappas for some dinner. It was great to see them and catch up on the stories from the Grenadines. We were leaving the following day for St Barts and were meeting Serendip in St Martin for the Heineken Regatta.
Our sail to St Barts was fantastic, we left early so we would arrive in daylight, we had bacon sandwiches once underway and George led the way. We put the fishing line out about 10am when we felt we'd be capable to land one in case we got a bite. By 4pm we were coming close to land and Matt had taken my sunglasses off to clean because he couldn't beleive I could see and we were giving each other a bit of chat, when I realised I could hear a knocking noise. I turned to see our wooden fishing line handle jumping up and down on the teak deck as the fish was giving it one huge fight. I tried to pull him in but it was going to be a big battle so Matt took over while I ran around preparing his death. When down on the swim platform we realised we had caught a beautiful blue fish, he was heading for the cooker!!! He had a fast death, thank goodness, George was steering through the lobster pots and we didn't have time to play the game of the fish not dying again. Minus head, tail and guts we cut him in two and put him into the cool box, it weighed a ton! Our first Wahoo. We ate a filet for dinner that night and were left with 8 LARGE steaks and the other filet.
On Saturday morning we went to clear into customs, it was nice to stay dry while in the dinghy as in Burn Rubber Baby it was always a wet one! St Barts was as beautiful as we had remembered and we looked forward to exploring later that afternoon. Being French most shops shut for lunch which is good as it means its not too hot when wandering round late afternoon. First stop the Quiksilver shop! We wandered the streets looking in windows and sometimes daring to look at price tags, certainly a place for the rich!
We arrived in St Martin on the Monday, we got our jobs done on Disco which are best to do there as its a tax free island. We were on the dock with Formula One Sailing, Lime Yachting and a heap of brand new Swans that were preparing for the racing.
Racing on Serendip was great, we made new friends and played in amongst the best of the fleet. We came 5th overall which was a great result, it was a competitive class and we gave it our best. Some of the locals congratulated us on the fine sailing they had seen from us and were really impressed with the performance the prima gave. A big pat on the back to crew was certainly in order. So it was beers all round...... The party in Marigot was again the best of the regatta and Philipsburg was much more organised this year and made a good night out.
After a weekend of early starts, Monday was our lie in and was definately deserved we left the lagoon through the 5.30 bridge and came in for a few final beers in the Soggy Dollar before heading to bed early for another dawn start. We arrived in Jolly Harbour 14 hours later and was the best upwind sail I think I've ever had, Matt helmed most of it as he was loving it so much. Going into Jolly and being greeted by the staff and other regulars felt fantastic and they were all keen to hear our stories. We stopped there for 2 nights before heading round to Falmouth, which is where we've been this last week.
We've met back up with some of the crew that raced Heineken on Serendip with us, Ross & Rich the crew of Liara a 65footer, and Neil, Franchesca & Matt from Which Dr who were also in StMartin. The sky has been so clear that our evening entertainment has been watching lava flowing from Montserrat from the anchorage, and St Patrick's Day on Monday night was fantastic, with plenty of beer and dancing!
Now two days after the big night our hangovers are almost cured and we're heading to Guadeloupe for the weekend for a little cruising before heading to the North Sails Loft to get the remaining sails repaired in time for Antigua week. Then we're racing back here so Matt can watch the new James Bond Movie in the Dry Dock.
News that Spring has reached England has come in by the bucket load, hope you've all got your shorts out!! We'll continue with the factor 45+ for the time being......
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