Tobago

The island of Tobago lies to the east of the north-south line of the traditional routes for the eastern Caribbean cruisers as such it can be a difficult beat to windward. Therefore most cruising boats do not venture here which is quite a shame for such a beautiful tropical island but the upside is you have it mostly to yourself. Tobago therefore is much less developed than its neighboring islands of Trinidad, Grenada and Barbados with smaller villages and towns and fewer resorts and tourist attractions. The locals are very friendly and were very helpful to us for directions and information when we needed it. We were also invited fishing with Joe a local fisherman in Charlotteville which Devin did on a few occasions which was a wonderful way to develop understanding between locals and cruisers about each other.

Devin fishing with Joe

Charlotteville is a wide bay with plenty of room to anchor however there are areas of fishing zones for pirogues that use the shallow water by the pier so we anchored in 40' which is normal, keeping out of the shallow water to allow locals to use their seine nets to fish as well. We visited Pirates Bay a few times with our friends to enjoy the beach and snorkeling as well as the fresh water stream to wash off the salt water. Snorkeling is fairly average in both Pirates Bay and Booby island but in both cases we enjoyed nearby beaches to spend an afternoon exploring as well. We all took some exercise and mango collecting opportunities on the nice walk out of town to Fort Cambleton which overlooks Booby Island and the Man of War bay for some nice pictures as well.

Fort Cambelton

Charlotteville

The south coast of Tobago is exposed to the tradewinds and Atlantic swells so after reviewing Doyle's guide we opted to visit a few towns by bus instead of anchoring there. The buses in Tobago are not as reliable as you might hope but they do support the local school kids and commuting workers so it seems buses early morning and later afternoon do run but the midday buses are less reliable so we had some periods of long waiting during that time.

We took a bus to Roxborough which is the nearest town with a bank and gas station for both gas and diesel as Charlotteville gas station is currently closed which was a huge shame as it would have been really easy to dinghy to the beach in front of it. There is a nice bakery, fruit and vegetable stall, pharmacy and general stores. The highlight here is through the town past the gas station to Argyle where there is a large 174' waterfall on the Argyle estate, but we were not that interested in the muddy walk and having to get on a bus afterwards that dirty. 

We all took the bus to Speyside which is a very small village spread along the coast with a few very small resorts catering to the dive sites around Little Tobago. We stopped at Jemma's Treetops restaurant, a tour guide favorite, where we had a wonderful meal with lovely views of the bay and islands. Jemma's does not have a liquor license so only juices, soda and water are sold, we also found no diet soda is available as in most of Tobago. It is a very local menu with a few choices of main course as well as desserts served family style and we had a wonderful lunch. 

Lunch at Jemmas

We also ventured as a group to Scarborough which is the capital of Tobago and a large town spread out over the bay, the ferry from Trinidad docks here so the island's only other Customs and Immigration district is located here at the docks. As it is the other end of the bus route and for 8$TT each way it is a very nice way to see the south coast of Tobago. We got off the bus early to visit Fort King George which overlooks Scarborough from the nicely tended grounds of the fort. Some restoration of the fort has kept it in good order and a small museum is open for visitors so it's a must see. It's a good walk up to the fort and then back to the center of Scarborough and the dock area so we got in some exercise too. The town is busy with lots of local and US chain restaurants that you see so often. There are a few shopping malls and several supermarkets but everything is a little spread out so we had to walk quite a bit.

Fort King George

The cannons

The Museum

The next stop along the north coast was Bloody Bay, it is a small bay with room for 3-4 boats and no dinghy dock. However we found several fishing pirogues moored here and seine netting from the beach. So after attempting to anchor here we gave up and all moved to Englishman's Bay.

Englishman's Bay is a postcard perfect beach and a good anchorage with no moored boats and no pier or dinghy dock. It is very protected in the bay despite 20 plus knots of trade winds outside the bay. The highlight here was Eula's restaurant on the beach which has a local menu of very reasonable price with cold beverages and beer. The snorkeling again was average around the eastern edge of the bay, fish are plentiful with very large schools of small fish inhabiting the shelter of the rocks. The swell does wrap into the bay if the wind is from the east or anything north of that, so we had a slight roll at anchor and few spills landing the dinghy. 

Eula's

Englishman's Bay

We walked over the hill to Parlatuvier Bay which is a small village with a few variety stores and bars serving food as well. The redeeming feature is a 3 tiered waterfall called "Top Rivers Falls", just 5-10 minutes from the pier and dinghy dock.

A local fisherman pointed out the concrete path from the beach up to Glasgow's bar at Paradise Point which affords fabulous views of the harbor and a nice short cut returning to Englishman's bay. 

Top Rivers Falls

Parlatuvier 

Our next stop was Castara Bay, a lovely village nestled in the hills with easy beach access but no pier or dinghy dock so a beach landing was the only option. The village appears to be a very touristy with several villas and one prominent resort therefore there are a lot of bars and even a coffee shop in town most with wifi we could use. 

Castara

We went to another scenic waterfall within a 15 minute walk from the beach, behind Cheno's coffee shop where we found a happy combination of beer and ice-cream in one place! It is a delightful walk and very refreshing to bathe in the outfall pool in this tranquil setting.

Paradise is Beer and Ice Cream

The next stop along the coast was the town of Plymouth & Great Courland Bay, the pier is unfortunately condemned and in any case was too high for dinghy access so we landed the dingoes on the beach. The area around Plymouth is generally much flatter than the other harbors visited so walking around town was very easy. 

We walked to the Adventure Farm and Nature Reserve which is about 30 minutes or 1 mile from the pier. The reserve is very popular with bird watchers and many humming birds are fed regularly so they arrive at the ringing of the bell. There are several acres of grounds to walk around but they were a little disappointing as the ground was so dry this year due to a late rainy season start.

The feeders on the balcony

Feeding the fish in the pond

Moving on again we stopped at Mount Irvine Bay, which is a delightful bay with a few moorings near the north east by a public beach and the beach facilities there. We took a short 1 mile walk to the north to a small shopping area around a green triangle with pizza take away, grocery as well as a few bars and one restaurant. The walk also passes some local vendors selling roti which was so good we had to go again! 

Local selling roti - delicious

Our last stop in Tobago was at Store Bay / Milford Bay which is at the west end of The island and are near the only airport and therefore have more tourist activities and hotels as a result. There are 12 free mooring balls in the bay and like other visitors we used them in the 50' deep anchorage as it was so convenient.

We had a lovely day out to Buccoo Bay park and reef by local tour boat from Store Bay as no motorized craft are allowed inside the reef areas. We took a glass bottom boat tour leaving at 10am for the reef and stopped there for nearly an hour including a snorkel for 30 minutes. We then stopped at the Nylon Pool to bathe in the 2-3' deep water and use the coarse coral sand to exfoliate our skin. We had opted for an extension to the morning tour for a stop over at No Man's Land with our own packed lunch and coolers for a lazy beach day.

Waiting for the boat tour

Entrance to the park

There was a Dragon Boat festival on while we were at Store Bay and we walked to Pigeon Point park as it was free entrance during the festival. It is a delightful park and worth the effort to walk to for the nice sand beaches and small variety of restaurants/bars. 

The dragon

The dragon boats

We checked out by taking the bus to Scarborough and clearing out with immigration and customs for Trinidad. It was another chance to find a great roti, so we discovered Rena's Roti shop which had fantastic made to order roti's.

The sail to Chaguaramas, Trinidad was an easy day sail with easy downwind sailing and a push from the current to help too. 

Martinique to Tabago

We left Iles de Saints for St Pierre on Martinique a fairly long day passing Dominica on the leeward side. We arrived about an hour before sunset and settled nicely behind Nauti Dog with Out of Africa behind us an hour later. It was just a stop to break up the trip and we left the next day for Fort de France for a few days of relaxation and shopping. As usual John and Jo called for a Braii (BBQ) on the beach but his time there was no fire allowed so we just took appetizers and drinks.
We took a walk with Chester and Karen around town while Michael went for a spare part by bus. Amazingly folks seem to react in totally different ways when they see a large dog, either scared to death or needing to pet and cuddle him! It made for a very interesting morning walk and a little fun too.

Fort de France

After a few days to get stocked up on French provisions we left for St Lucia and the lovely Rodney Bay. It’s a favorite stop for many cruisers and us included. We enjoyed the bar and food in the marina and being able to get a little free wifi as well as catching up with other cruisers. It was good to see David and Libby again, with their dog Brody but sadly ran out of time to have happy hour with them as we were preparing for our overnight sail and leaving very early the next morning.

David, Libby & Brody

The next morning we were up at 6am to leave St Lucia on the leeward side and make the gap into the Atlantic between St Lucia and St Vincent. It is a 172nm trip so we figure 30-36 hours depending on currents. Well the current was pretty strong and we made it in 34 hours to Charlottelville, Tabago and before Immigration and Customs closed thankfully.

Charlotteville

Admin building for Customs & Immigration

We really like the little village here, its very laid back and quiet with fishing being the mainstay of the locals. There are only a few shops and bars and 3 restaurants we could find. But hey that’s more than a few places and plenty to explore. Our first meal out was at Gail’s on the waterfront, excellent local food and a great place to meet folks as several tourists came in for dinner too and we had some interesting conversations on how we came to be here.

Dinner out

Excellent food

Gail & Devin

Our first outing was to Pirates bay by foot, a nice 30 minutes walk from the town dock along a trail and steep path down between lush vegetation. The beach is stunning and has a stream of fresh water running onto it to rinse off with after swimming. As we had walked we didn’t have our swim suits so vowed to return in the dinghy. There is a beach bar built by a local who comes in the afternoon to sell beers, but otherwise it’s pretty and secluded.

Pirates bay from the trail

Steep steps to the beach

Wonderful soft sand beach

.. and a beach bar

We couldn’t get the ATM to accept our card so we decided on a trip to Roxborough to see the bank and get some local currency (TT dollars). We had a small challenge getting the local bus as we didn’t know you need tickets in advance as the driver doesn’t take cash. The Post Office/Store was not yet open, even though it was supposed to be, but a local sold us two 4TT tickets so we could catch the 8am bus, so off to Roxborough we go. The town a set along the sea front on the Atlantic side, so it was quiet a lot of wind and surf from the easterly trade winds. The town is also quiet spread out on this single road over a few miles. We walked from one end through to Argyle at the far end, about 5 miles. We passed the entrance to Argyle falls, the largest waterfall on the island, but having no hiking boots we chose to avoid the muddy trails.

Roxborough beach front

The quaint bakery - yum!

The view from a sea side seat

The Argyle river

We did find a the bank and again the ATM didn’t take our card but the bank was open so we went in and got the cash. Strangely they told us the ATM didn’t accept debit cards? We then bough some produce and walked back to a local Roti shop for some lunch which we ate sitting on the sea wall looking at the Atlantic Ocean.

Argyle fish market

Wax Apples growing 

The pink pollen from the wax apple tree

We then decided it was time to start our boat projects as we need to haul out shortly and some prep work could save yard time. So Devin stripped the teak varnish off the toe rails over the next few days and Liz cleaned the boat lockers and interior while double checking our inventory as well. But of course we can’t work all day in the heat so we dinghed over to Pirates bay and snorkeled the rocks, some nice schools of fish but a little disappointing on the color of the corals. The next trip was to walk 30 minutes to Fort Cambelton for the views and then a short walk around town. On the last day we dinghied to Booby Rock and snorkeled the surrounding area, even better fish here with two huge Queen Angel fish but again disappointing coral and mostly rocks. So our chores were broken up with walks and snorkeling to keep us sane.

Charlotteville harbor

Fort Campbleton

A great view in the shade too!

Colourful houses

..and nice gardens

Well this morning our friends on NautiDog and Pipe Muh Bligh arrived after an overnight sail in to Charlotteville so when they are rested we will start touring the rest of Tabago.

We hope everyone's summer is getting off to a great start.

Iles des Saintes - Terre-de-Haut

During our last days at Falmouth harbor we had a BBQ on the beach with the cruisers who were still waiting for the end of race week. It was a great night with Steve from s/v Music playing guitar and singing for us.

Steve from s/v Music

A great beach BBQ

We took our last walk into St John to visit the museum and do a last minute shop.

Devin outside the museum in St John

A throw back to British rule

The arrival of our great friends Steve and Joy on s/v Ocean Angel was fantastic and we got to spend a night together at the red hat party finale were we actually redeemed our tokens for red Mount Gay Race Week Hats. It was a well attended event with so many determined collectors and free rum drinks from mount gay as well as a steel pan band.We also had 2 sun downer sessions with Steve and Joy so it was a great few days of catching up.

Devin, Joy & Steve

The steel pan band

We of course had one more walk to complete before leaving as well, so we joined Hakan and Anna for a walk around the southern point of Falmouth Harbor. It was a energetic hike with s few stops to see an old abandoned house and scare the bats in residence. We also stopped to see a horse farm and the ponies they ride around Falmouth.

From the south of Falmouth Harbor

A small pony

We left Antigua for Deshaies to check into Guadeloupe for week or two. We toured the familiar town of Deshaies a bit before moving on to Pigeon Island about 10 miles south in a contrarian breeze.
We arrived with Nauti Dog who have been here before so they showed us the ropes entering the very small harbor and dinghy dock to visit the two supermarkets here. Then we snorkeled the northern edge of the anchorage and found lots of nice coral and lots of fish. Michael and Karen found lots of large turtles too! Michael and Devin scuba dove Pigeon Island going down to 120’ and enjoying the fish, lobster and coral of this wonderful national park dive site. Our last night here was very eventful with winds in the anchorage rising to over 40 knots and several boats dragging and colliding. No damage to Moosetracks or Nauti Dog but a very sleepless night on anchor watch.
We arrived at Les Saints after a brisk sail from Pigeon Island were we had E winds at around 30 knots and gusts much higher then sailed south into SW winds from 4-15 knots then rounding Guadeloupe we entered 30 knots from E and crossed tight on the wind to Les Saints. We anchored by Pain de Sucre in a lovely little bay that is very protected and calm, so all is well. There are a lot of cruisers here as the southern migration is well on its way. So many of our friends are here and as they no many walks on the islands here we get together for our initiation into Les Saints hiking. Our friends Hakan and Anna on s/v Unicorn led our first hike to the hills behind le Borg and lovely views over the island to the Atlantic.

Our first walk

Great views over teh Atlantic

A nice beach on our return

Stopping at the local grocery store

Our next hike is led by John and Jo from s/v Out of Africa to the steep hill behind Pain de Sucre and the lookout ruins on the summit. It was a strenuous route up but in the shade of small trees so quite cool for the summer heat.

Great views again

The Sahara dust is showing more this week

Inside the summit tower

View of Le Bourg

Note the airstrip

Out of Africa are also famous for their beach BBQ’s so we enjoyed a few lovely evenings on the beach with friends from other boats here.

On the beach, Devin, Liz & David (Seas the Moment)

We had a nice sun set on the hill behind the anchorage with John, Jo, David and Becky enjoying the short walk and the views over Les Saints.


The small shrine

A huge surprise was the party called on Seas the Moment, we turned up to find it was a birthday celebration for Devin as Karen and heard he was 55 this week. It was a fantastic night with great company and wonderful music to dance the night away to. Yes their catamaran has a large salon were we could dance a little and so we did.

Devin on s/v Seas the Moment

We had another walk up to Fort Napoleon on the hill overlooking the channel to Guadeloupe. It is in very good condition and well maintained. There is a lovely garden of cactus and local plants as well as a museum of the islands history. A had a very worthwhile few hours exploring this lovely site.

The lookout on the way to Fort Napoleon

Jo, Becky, Claudia &Liz

Fort Napoleon entrance and mote

The museum inside

The cactus garden

View from the walls

The courtyard

The battery

Nice views

You can walk 360 degrees of wall

Museum models

Nice artworks too

Kitchen utensils

The fort kitchen

The walk back through main street

After a day of rest with water aerobics, we had another walk on Ilet de Cabrit to Fort Josephine, unfortunately this fort is in ruins and is only inhabited by goats and their farmers. We took pity on the goats and filled their water troughs for them as the heat was evaporating the water in there. The views from here were again wonderful.

An interesting tree growth

Inside fort Josephine

Filling the water troughs

A lot of the fort is in ruins

Devin, Cluadia, David,Ralph, Becky and Michael

Well that's it from Iles de Saintes, we have had a fabulous time here again with lots of our cruising friends coming and going to make the stay so much more fun.

We hope all our friends are well and happy.