Anguilla to St. Martin/Maarten to Statia to Nevis

We spent our last day (Jan 25) on Anguilla in the Marine Park at Sandy Island. We checked out of the island at Customs and got the one day cruising permit for $56 US. We motored for the 15 minute ride to the island and picked up one of the Park moorings. We took our dinghy through the reef to this little island, and beached it on the white sand. It didn't take long to be gliding through the water on our first snorkelling expedition.

Prior to going to Sandy Island

Sandy Island

Initially, the reef was a bit of a coral graveyard with lots of broken and bleached coral. 

Bleached and broken coral

Ready for action

As we moved on, we saw some healthier coral and lots of fish including parrot fish, trunk fish, tangs, trumpet fish and grunts.  We also saw fan and brain coral. 

Trunk fish (we think)

West Indian sea eggs (sea urchin)

At one point, Simon and John were crowded together looking below. I could hear Simon yelling through his snorkel, "I see a shark!" Now, anyone who knows Simon is aware that he is capable of pulling your leg. It wasn't until John started nodding rapidly, that I took a second look. It was hard to see at first, but there was a small nurse shark nestled in some rocks. Simon called Wavey over, and we all watched it as Simon got some photos. 

Nurse shark ( we think)

After a day in the water, we left for St. Martin; a 10 miles jaunt. We arrived as the sun was setting and anchored in Marigot Bay on the French side of the island.  We anchored just behind our friends on So Blessed. We were also shouting distance from Avenger, a lovely schooner from Lunenberg whose skipper we met in Anguilla.

Anchored in Marigot Bay

St. Martin (on the French side), or St. Maarten (on the Dutch side) is a popular place for sailors, and there are more cruising boats here than we can count. It is a duty-free island, so lots of people come here to shop (and eat). 

Market in Marigot

Spice market

Mahi mahi for sale in fish market

Lunch in Cafe de Paris

So good

The tourist guide tells the story of how this island came to be divided. After the Spanish abandoned their garrison in 1648, French and Dutch settlers, who lived hidden on the other side of the island, were called by their governments to take it over. Each country chose a person to walk. Each stood back to back and started to walk in the opposite direction along the shore until they met up again on the other side of the island. The boundary was drawn up based on the amount of ground covered. The French ended up with a larger portion, which could have been attributed to his consumption of wine along the way; the Dutchman may have been slowed down by his choice of gin. So the story goes.

The anchorage was a little rolly for the first few days, so some of the projects we intended to tackle got delayed again. We are still carrying around a huge roll of Sunbrella to make cockpit cushions and an awning, which will have to be made somewhere else. When things settled down a few days ago, John did some maintenance engine work. Simon kept the dinghy clean by scrubbing the bottom and bailing it after rain showers that seem to pass from time to time. 

We also rigged up a water collection hose which seems to keep our freshwater shower sprayer full. (We use a 10L pressurized garden sprayer to rinse off saltwater, or to have cockpit showers.)

Simon had time to get his ya-yas out sailing and rowing around the anchorage. Someone even recognized him on the street and yelled out to him while making rowing motions.

Otherwise our time here was focused on socializing, provisioning, seeing the sights, and squeezing in some Bomeschool. The kids had more playdates with Melea on So Blessed, including a hike up to Fort Louis here in Marigot. 

Dinghy dock with Fort Louis in the background

View of Marigot and Simpson Bay from the Fort

View of anchorage from Fort

Melea and Simon at the top

Wavey on her way to the top of the flagpole

Simon scaling up the flagpole 

Melea, Jeff and Shara at the top

Provisioning has been amazing with French supermarkets close by stocked with cheeses, inexpensive wine, and an abundance of fruits and vegetables brought in by neighbouring islands.  A lovely couple buzzes by in their dinghy every morning at 0730 with warm baguettes, croissants and pain au chocolates.  The kids began each day waving them down and devouring fresh French treats.

Passion fruit that So Blessed gave us from their garden in St. Croix

It smells soooo wonderful

Huge avocadoes!

One avocado was more than we could eat for one meal!

Beans and rice with homemade tortillas and lots of avocado

John (the master Pineapple Carver) teaching Wavey to make pineapple boats

Bomeschool snack

On Sunday, January 29th, we hopped on the bus and headed to Philipsburg, the capital city of St. Maarten. This is a major cruise ship port that bustles on days when there is a ship in. Along the beach, a boardwalk lined with restaurants and shops extends a few blocks back from the beach. We poked in the shops, had a lovely lunch, and topped it off with some fantastic gelato.

Stealing Wifi at the fancy Holland Hotel

Walking along the boardwalk

Lunch: Creole shrimp, peas and rice and fried plantains at the Lazy Lizard

Fresh fish sticks!

Coco drinks hacked on site

We opted for gelato instead

Ciao!

Philipsburg waterfront

Beach view

On our last day in St. Martin, we took the dinghy through the Simpson Bay Lagoon to travel to the Dutch side. We found a great supermarket and bought yet more food. 

All of us loaded in the dinghy with the causeway stretching across the Lagoon in the background

Heading home after shopping

Wavey at the helm

On February 1st, we waved goodbye to our friends and headed out for the Dutch island of St. Eustatius (otherwise known as Statia.)  We had a boisterous sail all day and wormed our way into a packed anchorage in the dark.  Statia is a lovely island with great snorkelling, diving, and hiking. We got settled in our first day and prepared for a long day of hiking the following day.  It was good to get off the boat, as this anchorage is known to have a swell that leaves all the boats rolling relentlessly, day and night.

Gallows Bay, Statia

Park office for marine park and hiking trails

Statia is a charming island that is rich in history. It is home to a volcano called, The Quill that erupted hundreds of years ago and is now extinct. The volcano has left a rich and fertile forest that you can climb up 600 metres and down almost 300 metres into the crater. We took most of the day to do the 4-5 hour hike, starting right from the port. 

The Quill

Unfortunately, in the first few minutes as she was walking along the sidewalk, Wavey wiped out on the road and sustained some nasty bruises and scrapes to her face, shoulder and knee. Luckily, I had the first aid kit and we fixed her up by the side of the road.  She decided that she was good-to-go and hiked up and down the crater like she was born there.  (She now plans to avoid sidewalks whenever possible and stick to the nature paths.)

Ice pack to her bruised head

Road rash

Simon commented that this was the longest hike we have ever done.  It was a thrilling adventure seeing the forest vegetation, the hermit crabs, the red bellied racer snakes, and climbing down into the amazing crater.

Hermit crabs venture down to the sea to gather a new shell every year. We saw them rolling down the volcano.
They make a sound like, "Ow, ow, ow, ow."

This rooster followed us up the path and we shared our lunch once we got to the top. Crazy bird!

This video shows us going down into the crater. Thank goodness for the rope!

Silk Cotton tree in the crater

Amazing tree roots

In the crater

Our third day in Statia was a little more relaxed.  We spent the afternoon rowing the dinghy to shore and (conveniently) beaching it next to a little shop that sold ice cream.  From the beach, we spent hours snorkelling along the shore over an old sea wall littered with cannons and old anchors. The water was teeming with marine life including fish and green turtles (we saw three!) Simon also saw a stingray that was resting below in the shade of our boat. Majestic! (Photos will come soon -- need to be downloaded.)

Today, we sailed all day and arrived in Nevis just after sunset. We picked up a mooring on Pinney's Beach, which is one of my most favourite places in the world.  We are leaving first thing tomorrow morning for Montserrat to spend time with Jean, a family friend who has graciously invited us to visit her for a few days. We promise we will be back here later in the winter to hang out on the beach.

We are very excited to visit Montserrat and learn more about volcanoes, and spend some time visiting onshore!