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Caribbean

FOB is on the next leg of her adventure! Read more
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  • Trip start
    July 13, 2022
    SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    FOB is the one with the widest girth! 😂

    The southern most island country

    July 14, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We’re moored in Trinidad, which is nearly as hot and humid as Suriname, but the shore power is working so we have aircon! Yippee! There’s a very large yachting community here and lots of socialising. Looking forward to exploring!Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    We're the blue dot, the earthquake is the red one. 😬

    Feeling unstable

    July 15, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago ⋅ 🌧 25 °C

    Two things. Firstly, there was an M5.4 earthquake in Guiria, Venezuela, which is just over the bay. Luckily no damage reported, but a bit too close for my liking. Secondly, I stuck my finger into the microwave plug socket and got a huge shock. I didn’t actually stick it in, but I touched the plug prong before it was out of the socket, which resulted in a strangulated scream. Anyway, it was a good excuse for losing at cards that evening. 😂
    Shake, shake, shock, shock. 💥    Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    Blue and Gold Macaws
    Blue and Gold MacawsSnowy EgretAvid twitchers!An old pier at La BreaSaheena - made with dasheen leaves (similar to spinach) and fried into crispy deliciousnessShort-tailed Hawk being bombed by a Tropical KingbirdBarred AntshrikeThe very lush and green Trinidadian countrysideSaffron FinchThe height of cooperation! 🤣

    Birdy num-num

    July 21, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We started at 4.45am (out of my comfort zone 😂) and travelled from the north to the south of Trinidad, looking for birds. And boy did we find them! We saw over 50 different birds, from the striking macaws to the common mockingbirds. We had a wonderful guide, Roger Neckles, who is a passionate birder and photographer, and there were often cars jamming up behind us because we suddenly had to STOP to see a new species. (The drivers were always very patient and there was never any hooting or swearing. 😊) Craig was in his element, and we also had some street food along the way, so I was in mine too! 😋. Roger’s camera lens was ⬅️this➡️ long and mine wasn’t, so all of these bird pictures were taken by him on this trip. Interesting fact: Maccaws have short necks and cannot bend their heads far enough to clean their own butts, so they help each other out! 🤣 (See the last pic!)Read more

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    Blue Grotto pool
    Blue Grotto poolSpider the ferrymanA very large sinkholeAnd down we go!2Can you see 'The Last Supper'?A large kapok tree

    Mites and tites

    July 27, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Our ferryman, Spider, sped us across the bay at a rapid rate of knots 😳 to Gaspar Grande Island, where we went to visit the Gasparee Caves. A short hike up a steep hill and we were at the entrance to the limestone caves. In the distance we could see a shadow of Venezuela, but it’s best to keep your eyes on the ground, as all around are huge sinkholes that you really don’t want to become too familiar with. But once in the caves, they allow rays of light to filter through and highlight the beautiful stalagmites and stalactites, and the translucent ‘Blue Grotto’ pool. We descended about 100 feet, clinging onto the rails of the metal stairway, with the odd fruit bat flying around. But it was all worth it when we saw the fascinating structures that have formed over thousands of years. Quite awesome. (In fact, we were advised that when we looked up in awe, we should keep our mouths closed in case some bat doodoo made its way in! 🤣)Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    Raw cacao beans
    Raw cacao beansOne of our street food stopsCoconut rollBrazil nut pod - can hold up to 25 nutsI just love the accent!Pork and pig tail with garlic sauce2Some local Angostura rum 🤪It's a thingOne of the beautiful spots we stopped at to eat and eat!12 hours later and we were glutted! 😂

    A taste of Trini

    August 3, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago ⋅ 🌧 24 °C

    Well, it wasn’t a taste, it was 57 tastes! We travelled for 12 hours around the island, sampling street food from every other vendor. My idea of heaven! 😆 Trinidadian food is influenced by African, Indian Chinese, Creole and European cuisines, so you have everything from rotis to stews to salt fish and curries. The most unusual dish we tasted was cow heel soup - which is exactly what it says. 😱 (Can’t say it was my favourite. 😬 My favourite is still Saheena, made from a type of spinach leaf with a crunchy split pea crumb.) We also cracked open cocoa pods and Brazil nut pods, ate some unusual fruits (chennets and rambutan - both reminded me of litchis), various pastries - many of which involved coconut, and we ended with home-made ice cream. And, of course, a shot of the local rum! We was stuffed! 🐷😆 We got to see a lot more of the island, including many off-the-beaten track areas, and our guide, Jesse James (not the outlaw 😄), was so entertaining and a wealth of knowledge. Now does anyone know how to fix a bathroom scale?😔Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    Black eagles waiting for a hatchling snack2ChillingOur hotel for the nightBreakfast with a viewThere were beautiful wooden carvings all around the hotel. This was my bedside table.

    Up to the north

    August 5, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    We hired a car for a few days and drove up to the north of Trinidad to Grande Riviere, hoping to see some turtle hatchlings. It’s the tail end of the leatherback laying season, but now the hatchlings are emerging. And we got lucky. We went for a walk along the beach in the late afternoon and came across a local who had gathered about 70 hatchlings. He kept them safely away from the exposed shoreline because the frigate birds and black vultures circle around, and they love a little hatchling snack. He apparently does this every day out of the kindness of his heart. We saw a couple more babies emerge and, once it was a bit darker, the little darlings were released. The hatchlings raced frantically (some quite clumsily) towards the surf and were swallowed up by the waves. It takes your breath away.Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    Dasheen leaves
    Dasheen leavesTeam effort 😁Pasting the split pea mixture onto the dasheen leavesSobers gave us a surprise visit 😊1Rolled and cut - ready for frying😋😋😋Jim and Stephanie 👉🏻1Love the name! 😂1And there you have it! 👍🏻😁What the sahiena should look like!

    Sahiena

    August 9, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Stephanie and I agreed that sahiena was our favourite local dish, so she suggested that we try to make some. Our biggest hurdle was finding some dasheen leaves, but one of the locals, Sobers (pronounced Soobers) was very enthusiastic about this idea and pointed us in the right direction. He also helped me find some tamarind sauce to go with it. We found the rest of the ingredients (split peas, turmeric, garlic etc), poured the G&T’s, and we were off. Jim and Craig were the (unfocused 😄) photographers, and Sobers even made a surprise visit to see how we were doing. He had earlier given us a tub of geera neck to try (which was so kind of him), but he wasn’t quite sure about my green split peas - they should have been the yellow ones, but never mind. We blitzed and mixed and spread the paste over the dasheen leaves, rolled and cut them, and then Stephanie brought her A-game along with the frying. So they weren’t exactly like the ones we had tasted on the side of the road, but they were recognisable as sahiena, and a lot of fun was had in the making. Sobers arrived the next day for his share, and gave us his verdict. Basically a thumbs up for the novices! 😁Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    That plank! 🙈
    That plank! 🙈Sunrise on our first sail aloneEast of the oil rig please 😁Prickly Bay, Grenada

    Getting to Grenada

    August 18, 2022, Caribbean Sea ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    We left Trinidad on Wednesday afternoon, after spending over a month there. We had a great time, saw some amazing things and met some wonderful people. Leaving the mooring was a bit stressful, but I was happy to say goodbye to the plank I had to walk across every day to get ashore! 🙈 The sail to Scotland Bay around the corner was fine, and apart from an early-evening party boat, we basically had it to ourselves. We anchored there overnight and left at 3am because the trip to Grenada is about 15 hours long and we wanted to arrive before dark. There was a very strong current pushing us west and we were told to keep east of the oil rig so that we weren’t catapulted past Grenada, but this meant that we spent a lot of the trip with our nose into the swells. Not pleasant! It was our first sail without crew and I’ve got to say I was a bit anxious. 😬 Luckily it went smoothly, and when we arrived in Grenada, Tony was there to show us where to anchor. We are now in Prickly Bay and ready for the next leg. By the way, you must say Gra-nay-da, because Gra-nah-da is in Spain! Ok? 😁Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    Where will those legs go?
    Where will those legs go?It wasn't really possible to sit up straight 😂2

    Intro to Grenada

    August 22, 2022 in Grenada ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    We needed to check in at customs and immigration and Tony said he had the use of a car for a week and kindly offered to take us into St George’s. Well, did we have a ride! It turned out to be a very mini Mini Minor - the cutest thing ever - and four of us piled in. I’m still not sure how we did it. 😁 Everyone we drove past either looked, smiled, hooted, waved, aah’ed, pointed, or asked if they could buy it. The boys still think that the pretty girls were smiling at them. Shame. Anyway, after checking in, we went shopping near the Carenage Harbour and this involved walking through the Sendall Tunnel. Large trucks hurtle through here and you have to plaster yourself against the wall and pull your tummy in - some of us more than others! The chances of being wiped out by a side mirror were quite high. 🙈 On the way back we stopped at the West Indies Beer Company so that we could cool down, if you know what I mean. The most economic way to drink beer here is to order a bucket of six beers, so the boys had to do that. Faye and I were a little more abstemious. 😜 In the evening, there was a braai on the beach (95% South African) and it was good to meet some new yachties - a very social bunch! 😊Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    The SistersChilling 😊

    Foblet failure

    September 3, 2022 in Grenada ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Claire, Mary and Steve have arrived in Grenada and it’s just wonderful to have them here. 😊 🥳 We stopped at Ronde Island on our way to Carriacou. It’s about a four and a half hour sail north of Grenada. There are two big rocks close by called The Sisters (so appropriate under the circumstances 😁) and they are good for snorkelling. So they all set off in Foblet (the dinghy), but there was a hitch… 🙈Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    Some interesting wiring going on there!2You might need to zoom in to see if you can spot the runway.

    Hillsborough, Carriacou

    September 22, 2022 in Grenada ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    We went for a walk through the quaint little town of Hillsborough, Carriacou. It’s the main town on this Grenadian island and only has a population of about 1000 people. The small airport is about a kilometre away, and the first time I saw a plane come in to land, I thought that there would be drama for sure! 🙈😁Read more

  • SailingFOBCaribbeanSailingFOB
    Four of us squashed into the back of a taxi! 😂
    Four of us squashed into the back of a taxi! 😂These poisonous trees are found all over the islands! 😳1Jars of piña coladas! 😍1Claire contemplating cocoa beans!River Antione rum distillery - water powered and potent! 😂Mopion Island in the Grenadines - the smallest island ever!

    Family Fun

    October 4, 2022 in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    Claire, Mary and Steve came to stay with us on the boat. Claire for two weeks and Mary and Steve for five weeks. We had the most wonderful time: we island hopped to Ronde Island, Carriacou, Petite Martinique, Petit St Vincent, Union Island, Tobago Cays in the Grenadines, and not to forget Mopion island, the smallest island we’ve ever seen! 😁. We snorkelled up a storm and had many piña coladas with our toes in the sand; we ate delicious lobster and sampled the local food in the beach restaurants; we watched birds diving into bait balls and turtles peeping their heads above the water, and experienced some of the most spectacular sunsets ever! When we returned to Prickly Bay, we explored Grenada from north to South: we visited a cocoa plantation, a volcanic lake, a waterfall, a very organic rum distillery, ate fried chicken on the beach and drove through the beautiful scenic landscape, most of which is covered with lush forests. Apart from the heat and humidity (which forced us to have daily lunchtime G&T’s 😜) we really had a very special and unforgettable time together. 💕Read more

    Trip end
    October 18, 2022