Highlights from Antigua

We arrived in Falmouth Harbor, Antigua after noon on 12/4 to a harbor filled with boats, big and small and lots of Salty Dawgs among them. Caught up with Bill and Maureen, whom we originally met on the Salty Dawg Rally in 2019, on their newly painted Kalunamoo.

The next morning, we dinghied in past the really big boats (300 ft. plus) that were in town for the Charter Boat Show and went ashore for breakfast at the Skullduggery. We washed our egg sandwiches down with a Trump Punch (because we couldn’t resist). Walking in to Nelson’s Dockyard National Park, a stronghold for the English in the 1780’s, we showed our crew the Copper & Lumber Pub and the stone wall docks, among the other historic places.

That evening, the town was all lit up for Christmas and these colorfully dressed young ladies (ages 6 to 15) were strutting about on 2 to 4 foot stilts to entertain the boaters.

On 12/6, I got to join the Salty Dawgs ladies drinking espresso martinis, eating a fabulous seafood salad and luxuriating in the infinity pool at The English Harbor Inn on Gideon Beach.

Christian, one of our crew from the trip down, and his girlfriend rented a sweet cottage on Falmouth Harbor and invited the gang over for cocktails before our final crew dinner. We had drinks on their back porch before walking to the Island Fusion Cafe next door. I’m not usually big on ordering things with eyes and tails but my curried wahoo was totally worth it!

One evening, Andrew and I treated ourselves to sharing the mussels and spiny lobster at Abracadabra, an Italian restaurant just outside of English Harbor, that is run by an energetic Italian couple with their 20 year old chef. The bread served with the mussels was to die for and the lobster was exquisite!

The next day, we reunited with our friend Antony from Dominica. He was our guide there in 2019 and we spent a lot of time with him then. He moved to Antigua and found out we were coming back so we made a point of re-connecting. Antony is always willing to work and helped us get our topsides cleaned once we moved the boat to English Harbor.

Early the next morning, the Salty Dawg community helped a disabled Dawg Med moor (back into the stone wall) without his steering. A half dozen dinghies pushed and pulled until they arrived uneventfully right next to us.

One night, a group of Salty Dawgs got together at The Antigua Yacht Club for all you can eat sushi. The restaurant serve us everything on the menu in these large wooden boats that kept coming as long as we wanted more.

One day, Andrew and I hiked over to Pigeon Beach to have lunch with a friend we met in St. Lucia in 2020. Greg, pictured below with his partner, Diane, was quarantined on the dock in Rodney Bay, along with us and a dozen other boats for three months, before we could get a charter flight to fly off the island.

On 12/13, Andrew and I sailed around the south end of Antigua to Green Island, buddy boating with our friends, Chris & Kelly on Fayaway. We dropped our hook on the leeward side of the reef that protects the anchorage from ocean waves and provides a huge playground for windsurfers. Around the corner, in Rickets Bay, the snorkeling was decent but the Bay itself was too full to anchor. We took a dinghy tour around NonSuch Bay to get a close up view of the fancy resorts that surround it.

The following day, more Salty Dawgs arrived in the harbor and we took the dinghies over to NonSuch Bay Resort for a late lunch with crew from s/v’s Fayaway, Dream Weaver, Lily Pad and Act Three. We enjoyed the spectacular view from the infinity pool as well as the creative drinks, tasty duck and fabulous company!

On 12/17, we left for Carlisle Bay on the western side of Antigua. It is a pretty anchorage with an award winning resort dotting the shoreline with beach chairs and bungalows. The bay was busy with vacationers on kayaks, paddle bikes, sailboats, snorkelers and a speedboat flinging kids around in a blowup couch. We walked through the lush resort and out to the bluff for a tasty lunch of fresh fish at Karpagio. From our perch, we could see our friends on s/v Valianna, with her distinctive double foiling masts, sail in from the north.

The next day, after a frittata made from an assortment of leftovers that we shared on board Valianna, Andrew and I left for Jolly Harbor, arriving around noon. Here we are prepping the boat for our two week holiday back in the USA, where we hope to see many of our truly missed friends & family! 

Happy Holidays everyone!!

Part 3 - How to sail from Hampton, Va to Antigua in 18 days ( when it should only take 11)!

Day 12 - On 11/28 we got up at 05:30 to start the coffee and prepare for departure at sunrise. Anchor was up at 06:30 and we called Bermuda Radio for clearance to leave. Unfortunately, we were told to hold our position in order to let a cruise liner come through the cut. After about one hour, we were given clearance to proceed out of the harbor. We had great sailing all day; 20-25 knots with gusts to 30, out of the SW eventually lightening to 10-15 knots. Seas were 5-10 initially but also calmed to 3-4 ft… basically, champagne sailing at an averaging of 8.5 knots! For dinner, Joe cooked up Chicken Paprika, a Hungarian specialty made with onions, peppers, chicken and an entire bottle of paprika!!

Day 13 - Sailing most of the day, except a few hours when the wind dropped out. Just missed a big fish for dinner. Settled for five alarm chili!

Day 14 - Still sailing. We got a new weather router who said we could “slow down if we wanted to”… we were well ahead of the storms he was routing us around. We spent the prior evening dodging rain squalls and rolling the jib in and out when it starting flogging in the doldrums between squalls, but generally cruising along at an average of 7.5 knots. Lost another lure trying to fish that day but eventually the ‘fish on’ fire drill led to a nice mahi that Andrew cooked up for dinner.

Day 15 - Woke up to a sunny, warm breezy day. I tried my hand at a Joe special breakfast of leftovers cooked up with eggs in a frittata and after breakfast afterwards we dug the spinnaker out of the forepeak. The wind kept clocking and we kept falling off so much that by the time we got it up, we were headed to Cuba! After 15-20 minutes, it seemed the sail was working well so Andrew and I went down for a nap. Not much later, we heard the crew saying “that’s 15, 16, 17 knots… it’s going higher!” This was our cue to pop up and douse. It was probably gusting 20 by the time we got the chute down, which is on the edge for that sail. Just as Andrew returned to his nap, his phone pinged. It was our friend (and former boat owner, Scott, who follows us via Tracker when we are on voyage) with a text that said “You had better slow down, you’re gonna break something! You must have the spinnaker out!!”. Later that day, we slowed down enough to catch another mahi which Christian filleted, having made a study of Andrew’s technique.

Day 16 - Crew got our brand new staysail out and working well. Around 08:30, we had a fish on and Andrew and Christian brought in an 18-20 inch King Mackeral. Sounds like ceviche and fish sandwiches for dinner! Sailed all day and all night, averaging 6-7.5 knots in 12-18 of breeze.

Day 17 - Chute is up again at 08:40 and we have 185 miles to go to Antigua. Cooking along at 7.5 knots (max 9) when ‘POW’, the chute was in the water! With all hands on deck, we recovered the shrimped sail and gear to discover that the halyard had parted about 1 foot from the head. Must be something chaffing at the top of the mast. Guess we have our first boat project for when we arrive.

Day 18 - Motored sailed all night. At 06:00, I rushed out of the companion way to save Christian from getting thrown over board by a giant flounder that he was trying to reel in. Fortunately, it was just a dream and all was well but it inspired him to try for a fishing trifecta: mahi, mackeral and tuna. One hour later, he reeled in a small tuna, just right for sushi rolls. Joe made one final breakfast special and we cleaned up for our arrival in Antigua.

We pulled into Falmouth Harbor around 2pm on December 4th, after leaving Hampton, Va on November 17th, sailing to Bermuda in 5 days, hanging out there for 6 more and finally arriving Antigua after 7 days… and that’s how you do it in 18!! Thanks to our crew for an awesome voyage!!!

Part 2 - How to to sail from Hampton, Va to Antigua in 18 days when it should only take ~ 11)

Day 6 - By 1am on Nov. 22nd, we were securely anchored in St. George’s Harbor in Bermuda. We slept in late that morning and used the rotting bananas to make pancakes. After breakfast, we launched the dinghy and headed to town for our first drinks in 5 days (such hardships, I know)! Enjoyed watching the World Cup and drinking Rum Swizzles at White Horse Pub and later in the day, eating the veggie curry & octopus at The Wharf.

Day 7 - Our weather router said we had a window to leave that afternoon. We went to provision and then joined Chris & Kelly (from Fayaway) for fish sandwiches (served on raisin bread… yum)! We were waiting for a custom report from the weather router before making specific departure plans but when it didn’t come by 5pm when Customs closes for departures, we decided to have dinner on board. Joe made some excellent sausage w/ grits & broccoli. It was great to have the help with cooking especially from such a creative chef! Anyway, after dinner we finally got an email from our weather guy that said we should leave by sundown, no later! Unfortunately, that was a few hours ago.

Day 8 - Thanksgiving Day! We slept late, showered, swam, walked around St. George’s, saw the oldest church in the hemisphere, hiked to Gates Fort and had another great lunch on shore at Wahoo. Later that evening, we had Skype calls with family and turkey burgers w/ cranberries and sweet potatoes for Thanksgiving dinner.

Day 9 - Joe made his second ‘special’ breakfast comprised of every leftover in the refrigerator including onions, rice, chicken, sausage, peppers, cheese, mushrooms, etc. After filling our tummies, we set out for a hike to Tobacco Bay, a beautiful swimming hole unfortunately with a bar on premises. We spent the entire afternoon into the evening supporting the local bar tender and creating what some remember as “Tobacco Bay night” (others don’t remember it at all)!!

Day 10 - We recovered from Day 9!

Day 11 - The breeze is filling in, the Optis are out to race and it looks like we will have a weather window tomorrow so we had one final on shore dinner with Chris & Kelly as well as the good folks from Carlina, who turned out to be from the vessel we called ‘the stalker boat’ on the Chesapeake Bay! Sounds like we’ll all be heading off early tomorrow.

To be continued…

Part 1 - How to sail from Hampton, Va to Antigua in 18 days (when it should only take ~ 11)

When it should only take 10-11 days (for our boat) to sail from Hampton, Va to Antigua, one might wonder how it could take 18 days. Well, here’s our story:

After waiting for a weather window for over two weeks in Hampton, and losing our initial crew for the Salty Dawg Rally to Antigua, on Nov 15th our new crew arrived with a thirst to go sailing! Joe, a referral from a good sailing friend, is a licensed captain from Baltimore. We knew he was going to provide entertainment when moved into his bunk and set up Christmas lights. Christian (another referral from a sailing friend) & his girlfriend, Meredith, drove Joe down from Annapolis. We re-re-reprovisioned and prepared for a weather window on Nov 17th. 

Day One (11/17) - When departure day finally arrived, our weather forecaster had completely changed the expected forecast but we were ready to go regardless. The question was, which direction? Should we dive south to get behind the oncoming low or should we beeline to Bermuda to get ahead of it or something in between?? We headed out early that morning and figured we would make decisions as the weather developed. Wind was 12-16 knots, seas were 3-5 ft as we headed out of the Chesapeake with our new friends Chris & Kelly on Fayaway, buddy boating on a similar course. Another boat hailed us both (presumably just to chat!) multiple times as we proceeded into the night. At one point the other boat hailed us as “Bellepheron”, apparently knowing something about our boats namesake. Turns out, he was a professor of military history and familiar with “Billy Ruffian” being the British nickname for the captured French warship (“Bellepheron”), on which the British delivered Napoleon bound for St. Helena.

Day Two - We were in the Gulf Stream, mostly motor sailing. Seas were calm with 5-6 foot swells. This mornings’ priority was fishing with our Dolphin Delight lure. Andrew reeled in a small dorado by 10am and we enjoyed fish sandwiches that afternoon. We continued motor sailing that day and thru the night until we had to douse sails to stop the slapping main with light & inconsistent wind directly behind us.

Day Three - The guys changed to shorts and I finally took my long underwear off. Based on the latest weather reports, it looks like we are headed to Bermuda. We developed a new & exciting product for sailors that have trouble balancing a drip coffee funnel on top of their thermos offshore. It comes in your choice of 1 of 3 bright colors (pink, green and yellow) and is made of high quality, bendable cutting boards and twisty ties. You can put your orders in at BillyRuffnSailing.com. 

Day Four - It’s raining but eventually all sails are up and these enormous porpoises came by to play. We were still sailing around dinner time, when the boat that was chatting us up on the Chesapeake, hailed us again. Joe, our boisterous crew member, responded with his best Pepe le Pew imitation. The hailing boat responded in fluent French. These are the things you do to entertain yourself offshore!

Day Five (Nov 21) - The Sturgeon that I take for sea-sickness was working well but bringing on it’s full effects. I entertained the crew recounting my great dreams; this mornings’ was about doing a Ted Talk with Michelle Obama in which we were demonstrating the flying angel (you might recall the child’s game of balancing on your parents feet while they flew you over their heads). With 98 miles to go (for Bermuda), we shook out the reefs and sailed all day, arriving at Customs around midnight. The friendly agent greeted us (delirious sailors) with a cheery “Good afternoon”. Having no idea what day or time it was, we responded in kind and from that moment on, no matter what time of that day it was in Bermuda, we greeted everyone with a cheery “Good afternoon”!!

To be continued (in Bermuda)…

Antigua? Not yet!

On October 24th, we left our cozy mooring off Jan & Neil’s place in Annapolis to head for Hampton, Va., where the 2022 Salty Dawg rally to the Caribbean would begin. Dave, one of our crew for the rally, joined us down the Chesapeake to get familiar with the boat. We leisurely motor-sailed south, stopping each night for R & R. One of our stops was at Tides Inn in Irvington, Va, a little out of our way but an excellent restaurant and chance to take a night off from cooking. 

We arrived in Hampton on Oct. 28th, started prepping for our voyage and enjoying the company of new & old friends. The Salty Dawgs sponsored a pig roast barbecue, weather briefings, a Coast Guard demonstration and other informational seminars, while we also enjoyed our Philadelphia sports team successes, watching the TV’s at the Bluewater Marina bar & restaurant.

Nov. 1st, the day we all expected to depart, came and went with no weather window in site. Boats started losing crew and eating their provisions while the Dawgs did their best to rally with a Cruisers Net, Happy Hour jams and yoga classes to keep spirits up!

We hung out with old friends (Mike & Mary on Dream Weaver and Carl & Val on Valiana) and enjoyed making new friends (Colin & Karen). We walked a lot, sampled a number of local restaurants & brew pubs; particularly liking Mango Mango, Bull Island Tavern and the Barking Dog. We visited Ft. Monroe (the largest fort in the U.S. apparently), witnessed a Cross Fit competition at Oozlefinch Brewery and listened to weather discussions every other day, while consuming the local ciders and hoping for the next weather window.

Finally, on Nov. 12th, it looked like we were going to have our opportunity! It was going to be a salty sail but crew started arriving back in town, re-provisioning was done, the boat was filled with water & fuel, I did last minute laundry and even started my sea-sickness meds. All we needed was for our crew to arrive! We had lost one, but Dave was still committed and although he’d gone home, he was on his way flying back. Most of the Salty Dawgs had left when Dave came down the dock, but with bad news! Unfortunately, his wife had a medical issue and (of course) he had to pick up his stuff and jump right back on a train north!!

This leaves us with no crew and no known weather window but perhaps the opportunity to make new friends! We’ve already found a few other Salty Dawgs with various reasons for not being able to go. We have a bead on some crew possibilities and we will start the preparation process all over again! Hopefully, the third time is the charm!!