Barbados

tropical beach
Originally uploaded by rosailither.

We’ve been here a week now and yes, the beaches really are like you see in the travel brochures. Miles and miles of powdery white sand and turquoise sea… We sat at a beach bar yesterday that was so close to the sea that the water came lapping over our toes as we supped the local ‘Banks’ beer.
The weather was a bit disappointing when we arrived, big black rainclouds kept coming over to give us torrential downpours. This may sound a bit like British weather except that in between rain showers it’s HOT! It’s now settled down to steady blue skies again.
We both had a craving for a steak when we arrived but found the shops don’t sell it here, all we could find was chicken, New Zealand lamb and various parts of pig (tails, trotters, ears). Luckily, the pubs here cater for tourists so we were able to indulge in steak ‘n’ chips one night.
The local food is very tasty, the norm is a ‘buffet’ of ready-prepared food. You take your choice between fried chicken wings, lamb stew or flying fish sandwiches, all served with peas and rice, macaroni pie or noodles and a side salad.
There is a steady stream of cruise ships in the harbour and you are constantly asked ‘Are you from the ship?’ ‘Do you want a taxi?’ Which is quite tempting after trying the local buses, these drive flat-out and crank up the reggae until your eardrums are pounding. But they will take you anywhere on the island for $1.50 (approx 30p)!
Our three crew took lodgings ashore when we arrived and have now flown back home. We too are ready to move on again, next stop Tobago.

Atlantic crossing

Ernie
Originally uploaded by rosailither.

We arrived in Barbados on the afternoon of Friday 20th January to complete our Atlantic crossing after 24 days, 7 ½ hours at sea and a grand total of 2833.5 nautical miles from La Gomera.

We had been told to expect various things during the passage:
- it’s wonderful
- it’s boring
- it’s easy
- the wind never blows more than a Force 4 or less than a Force 4
- but you’ll roll like a pig

The reality was all these things and more.
The wind was stronger than anticipated, averaging Force 5-6, but always from behind. Our square sail worked brilliantly and pulled us along at an average speed of 5 ½ knots. We had our fair share of sunshine, blue skies and little fluffy trade wind clouds but also a lot of grey skies, rain showers and gusty squalls.

The boat did roll constantly but not as violently as we’d imagined. Although we got used to the motion and managed to bake bread at sea and cook a hot meal every night, it was incredibly tiring. Even a simple job like making a cup of tea required a monumental effort and just sitting still made all your muscles work.

It was boring in one manner but there were always things to do – preparing food, washing dishes, plotting the daily run, adjusting the ropes and checking for chafe. Or simply sitting reading or watching the waves and the sky. There were always flying fish around the boat (and they really do fly) and we were joined for several days by a beautiful blue-and-yellow dorado who seemed a slow swimmer until he was chasing the flying fish. We also saw two sperm whales proceeding in the opposite direction some 300 feet away from the boat.

We’d been told that ‘you won’t see another boat out there’, but we were still surprised by the emptiness of the ocean. The sight of a ship on the horizon a few days out was the highlight of the day.

We listened in to a daily ‘radio net’ where a group of boats all check in with their positions and share weather reports. Although we couldn’t join in and speak (we only had a receiver not a transmitter), it was reassuring to know that we weren’t the only boat out there.

Two weeks out, we heard a report that one of these boats had lost its rudder. They were two days ahead of us and not far off our course so we headed towards them. By the time we reached them, they had made several attempts to rig a jury rudder, but with little success – they could only head northwest at 1 ½ knots (this 1000 miles from shore).

They gladly accepted our offer of a tow and we initially made a good start towing them under sail. However, the towed boat fishtailed wildly from side-to-side in the big waves and the towrope kept chafing badly. It needed constant supervision and had to keep being reattached or repositioned every few hours, day and night.

Despite everybody’s best efforts, it proved impossible to beat the chafe problem and the constant effort was leading to exhaustion. On the second day, after a long night of stop-start towing, the tow rope parted for the last time and the captain made the tough decision to abandon ship.

Several hours and five perilous trips in the dinghy later, the three crew and several bags of belongings were safely transferred onto our trawler and we continued on towards Barbados. Despite the sad circumstances, our three new crew were good company and, thanks to all the fresh food they brought with them, we ate like kings.

A couple of days later, we were joined by yet another crew member - ‘Ernie’ the egret, who appeared on our handrails some 400 miles out to sea. He seemed in a poor condition, but perked up after a good rest and a hearty diet of flying fish (several of which appeared on deck each morning). At first he was very wary of us but his confidence grew to such an extent that early one morning we found him exploring below decks! His antics kept us amused during his 3-day stay (see he can ride a bicycle!) and we were all rather sad to see him fly ashore as we neared Barbados.

The sight of land was wonderful after so long at sea and to finally drop the anchor and stop rolling seems the height of luxury. The water in the anchorage is crystal clear, we can see colourful buildings, palm trees and beautiful white sandy beaches. Time to go ashore and explore…