GRANDE ANSE d'ARLET

After a great few days in St Annes we headed out for the easy sail to one of my favourite anchorages, Grand Anse d'Arlet. En route we passed Diamond Rock and I got to tell Jan the story of the British sailors who had landed cannon powder shot and supplies then somehow got them up the near vertical sides on to the top where they set up a battery and created a “stone frigate” which was a thorn in the French side for 17 months.

We arrived and I was horrified to see a cruise ship and a case of white acne in the anchorage. However the cruise ship left and so far the mooring balls are free but it does not bode well for the future.

We had a couple of days rain and the cabin roof leak which I had fixed returned. Now it is not a big leak but it does leak right in the middle of my bed! I will goop it up but need to think of a better solution. The problem is that there is movement in the area and it shears any sealant I use. I think I need some lateral thinking.

After two days rain the battery was low and I fired up the engine to charge it but there was no output. The usual suspect is the belt but I fitted a new one but still no go. A prolonged faultfinding session finally tracked down a broken wire inside the insulation with nothing visible from the outside. So we have charging again.

One of the attractions here is the excellent snorkeling, again we will let the pics speak for themselves.

The last pic was included even though it is less clear than the others because it shows two lionfish. Jan over two days has spotted 4 of these fish which are a serious threat to the reef ecosystem. They have no natural enemies out here in the Caribbean and are themselves voracious predators.

We treated ourselves to a Sunday lunch out today.

A really nice place with 'pieds dans mer'.

BTW this place has some really

BIG BUGS!