Friday, June 24, 2022
Bonjour!
After four days at sea, we arrived in Martinique yesterday! And what a reward it was to drop anchor next to this beautiful island! We have officially cleared in through the officials and, being a French island, we are in the land of cheese, meats, wine, croissants, and baguettes with a slight Caribbean twist. We couldn't have a more positive first impression of Fort-de-France, Martinique. On the boat you can hear the soft chime of church bells. Views from the boat include a town full of parks, a market, and a beautiful library. To one side sits Fort Saint-Louis separated from town by a public beach lined with palm trees. While construction on the fort began in the 1600s, it is still active today as a naval base. The language barrier is new for us. We can generally muddle through Spanish just fine thanks to a few classes in high school and college, but French is new for the both of us. Let's just say, Google Translate has been a new best friend.
The passage was one of the best we've had so far. Blue skies and calm seas. We were able to sail from St. Croix to Martinique on a single tack nearly following our rhumb line. Our only disappointment is that we caught plenty of sargassum rather than fish. Bo was a champion sailor. He took the whole experience in stride. He tolerated his life jacket for the entirety of the trip, slept off the parts of the passage that had more of a heel, and played tug-of-war in the cockpit during the calmer moments. He thankfully did not get sea sick and managed to eat & drink just fine. He even trusted us enough to walk up to the bow while on a leash to do his business underway; requiring us to hove-to only once when it was slightly more sporty conditions.
Here are a few pictures from the passage and around town.
We don't have any new videos as of right now, but here is a link to all the previous videos we've made in case you aren't caught up yet!
Our plan is to enjoy this island and keep our eyes on the storm brewing in the Atlantic. As of now, it looks like it'll stay mostly south of us, though causing a bit of a blow to come through here in Martinique in 4 days or so. We are scoping out potential anchorages nearby that will offer as much protection as possible and formulating a plan as it gets closer. We will keep you all updated as we learn more.
Thanks to everyone that has reached out about the storm. Keep your fingers crossed it is only a Tropical Depression and at most a Tropical Storm. As of now, they are predicting it to accumulate hurricane strength winds, so we are thinking of those that'll be in it's path. Stay safe everyone.
Much love,
Keith & Becca
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