CARRIACOU to GRENADA

Tyrrel Bay is a well protected bay at the South end of Carriacou and even has free wifi although a donation to the local children's charity is appreciated. However despite being anchored well away from shore it got very buggy one evening when the sun went down. Thinking back I can only remember one other night since Benner Bay in the USVI when the bugs were a problem. A lot of 40% Deet bug spray solved the problem but it pushed me into heading down to Grenada. Another reason was that I am almost out of water and although I can fill up here the water is from local inhabitants cisterns. Who knows how many dead birds/bats/crabs/lizards are sharing the cisterns with water destined for visiting yotties.

It was a beam reach all the way to Georgetown but the frequent rain showers meant that the wind was up and down and I lost count of the times I rolled the headsail away as a precaution against a wind squall.

Navigation is a little trickier than most inter island passages out here as the currents are particularly strong 3 knots + in places and it is always rough as you approach Kick em Jenny [the Island] while making sure you avoid Kick em Jenny [the undersea volcano]. I got closer to the volcano than I had intended as the cross current seemed very strong as I approached it but according to the GPS I just skirted the exclusion zone unlike the Sunsail charter cat that sailed straight through the centre of the zone.

Mind you since the first known above water event in 1939 there has only been one other case of an eruption above the surface. Although the lava/rock flows extend for 15 kms from the underwater dome site so something is going on down there.


I nosed into the beautiful harbor of St Georges and was looking forward to a quiet night at anchor in the inner lagoon but was disappointed.






A new marina has filled the protected inner lagoon with piers [ mostly unoccupied ] and anchoring is forbidden? Or at least strongly discouraged. Mind you no one has got this guy to move yet!

So I had to anchor outside and it was fortunate that there was not much of a swell running but every now and then a big sideways one would set the boat rolling. It was bad enough to keep the gimbals unlocked on the stove and the fiddles in place.

I checked my mail and did a big shop as the supermarket comes with its own dinghy dock so no transport problems!




Today I filled up with inexpensive water at the Grenada Yacht Club and as there was no wind, motored round to Prickly Bay on the South coast of Grenada. It is pretty nice here looking around and it is clear that a lot of money has been spent on landscaping.

I have always stayed at Hog Island before but I need access to the big ships chandler at Spice Island Boatyard for some bits and pieces.

There are lots of liveaboards here, spread out across half a dozen well protected anchorages on the South Coast so there will be stuff to do for the next couple of months of hurricane watching times.

Speaking of hurricanes there have been reports of hurricane strength winds in Wales and Scotland in the last few days with damaged and beached boats. Even the golf at St Andrews was not spared with play suspended when the balls were getting blown across the greens.