We came across some really interesting cacti and other protected plants. We found hidden coves that were really pretty and watched a pelican diving for fish. It was a great walk but really too hot to continue. We decided that we all needed a sugar hit so Ian called into a snack van and bought us coke and chips that seemed to revive our energy. We still had about 1 hour left to walk up a steep hill but luckily a Radisson bus came to our rescue and gave us all a lift home. Phew early night and lots of drinks to rehydrate.

Dangerous Coastline

Ian came across a surfboard and thought it would be really cool if he tried to ride it but it crumpled in his hands as soon as he picked it up. Would save a lot of embarrasment. Unfortunately on our walk we came across a yacht that didn't make it. Just a gentle reminder to respect the sea. The area seemed to be suffering from the effects of the last hurricane with lots of corals and debris washed up along the coastline.

Land Based Activities

On Thursday, December 30 we were still land lubbers tucked safely away from the northerly swells and wind in the Radisson Marina. We decided to head off on a hike of the headland which took around 4 hours. It was quite interesting with unusual vegetation and animals spotted along the way. We were starting to go a bit land crazy but it would be foolish to head out to sea in the unusual weather conditions that we were experiencing. Bev and Ian decided to step out onto the headland to do some kind of weird flying impression but I stayed on the path with Joanne. Anyway it made for a good photo The bottom photo shows Ian and I overlooking the bay where we swim every day. That morning it was so rough that we were pushing weed and debri out of the way in order to swim.

Bad Weather Still

Wednesday December 29, 2010. Our hopes of sailing off to St. Barts failed as the weather was still unfavourable and a lot of yachts had come into the marina for shelter. We had a down time day catching a snooze here and there and also a swim amongst all the stirring sand and debri. In the evening we went for sundowners at Warren’s and Judy’s. They were a lovely couple that owned a Najad called La Contenda which had different connotations depending on which language you were translating it into. We had a tour of their boat and some beverages including rum punch and finished off the evening with one of Joanne’s home cooked thai curries and more beverages.

Joanne's 'Free Lay'

Back in Grand Case after an adventurous day out we were admiring the clothes stores and our eyes caught the red umbrellas at the Rainbow Bar on the beach. One of the French bar staff who was incidently quite cute asked Joanne if she would like a free lay on one of the deck chairs. What he meant was that she could lie down there without having to buy a drink but it all got mixed in translation. Anyway if it wasn't for the fact that we had to hand the hire car back in an hour I think she would have taken him up on the offer!

Pic Paradis

After shopping we took the hire car on an adventurous ride up to Pic Paradis mountain at a height of approximately 400 metres. It was a bit hairy ride up but the views were breathtaking and the nature abounded. After driving to the top we discovered that we had about a 100 metre walk up to the top. The creatures we spotted along the way were very interesting and slowed the walk down so we could catch our breath. On the way back down Ian spotted a large green iguana but it was so shy that after 20 minutes of watching it with our cameras at the ready all we got to take a photo of was it's claw! Better luck next time I guess.

Grand Case Interesting Scenes

The four of us continued walking down the Grand Case High Street and took some interesting photos of shop fronts and the bay. The following photos are a selection from the colourful mix of shops and restaurants.

Bad Weather

On Tuesday December 28 bad weather was forecast from the north so unfortunately we were unable to sail. The weather forecast for the next few days was not favourable for venturing out of the marina with 2 to 3 metre swells and 20 knots of wind. When we looked out across the bay the water was calm and the sun shining but we decided to be cautious and stay in the marina at least until after New Years Eve. We still had a hire car so went on an interesting day trip to Grand Case shopping street and Joanne really seemed to enjoy her first day on land in St. Maarten. Girls love to shop and it was a good compromise with even Ian enjoying the outing in Grand Case. It was a bit like Noosa high street but with more seaside bars. Ian found his ideal ladies clothing store which had an awesome view of Grand Case Bay through the shop window.

Joanne arrives

We picked up Joanne from the Air France flight and managed to get a photo of her plane coming in to land. She was looking forward to the adventure. We got back to Faraway late afternoon and decided to head out to dinner at the Radisson Restaurant. It was very nice food and a very pleasant atmosphere listening to the waves roll in. We got an early night in preparation for a busy sailing week.

Boxing Day

We woke up to a very rolly boxing day morning. We pulled up anchor and headed 20 minutes around the bay to Radisson Marina for shelter. It was a pretty tricky mooring but Ian managed to reverse in like a pro and Bev and I fixed the lines. We had a well deserved swim then sorted out lunch. Ian tidied up the boat and I battled again with the washing machine and booked a hire car so we could pick up Joanne from the airport the next day. It was very hot and steamy. We finished the day with a sundowners and ordered a pizza to eat on deck with a bottle of wine. We were all tired and got an early night. This photo is taken in a sheltered bay called Coconut Grove.

Christmas Evening

After a walk around the island we headed back to the yacht for sundowners and Christmas dinner cooked by Bev. It was a lovely day finished by a great evening as we opened some presents that we had brought from Saudi. The best one in Ian's opinion was the head lamp from Mick Mack in Saudi. He was wearing it around and blinding us with it for quite some time that night. After a few wines we retreated to bed. Ian slept on deck in fear that we might shift position into a neighbouring catamaran. I clung to our bed below as it was pretty rolly during the night. When we woke up early in the morning we beat a hasty retreat back to the marina as the weather had turned for the worst.

Chirstmas Day

We woke up to a lovely Christmas morning and decided to sail up north east to Tintamare island. Ian managed to wear his santa hat until it was lost overboard to the sea. The Tintamare island area is a marine park and we wanted to do some snorkelling and relax for Christmas. There were 2 turtles that kept popping up near our yacht but every time I got in the water to photograph them they disappeared. The weather proved to be good as well and in the late afternoon we explored the island and found some interesting creatures.

Return to Grand Case

We woke up in Lagoonies Marina with a sore head feeling worse for wear after a big night out at a steakhouse on Papalona Marina. We had to prepare Faraway for sail as all our maintenance jobs were done and we wanted to be out on the water for Christmas. I had to feed the fish first over the back of the stern. Bit unfair to be 'sea sick' before even getting out on the water. We prepared Faraway and pottered out of the Marina to the fuel dock at around 9:30am. Unfortunately we didn’t get in the fuel dock until around 10:30am and the Dutch bridge opened at 11:00am for only 20 minutes. It was touch and go but we made it even after the guy on the bridge changed the lights to red. We watched all the super yachts in the Marina head out to sea and could only wonder about their owners and passengers and where they came from. We let the sails out and headed up towards Grand Case to moor for Christmas Eve. It was great to be sailing and we got Faraway up to 6.4 knots which was pretty good given the conditions. Luckily the wind was blowing the other direction that night and we couldn't hear the music this time and got a good nights sleep.

Dutch Bridge at Sunset

On Thursday, December 23 we spent another busy day in Lagoonies Marina doing all the washing and test riding the new tender ‘Puffin 2’ with an outboard motor thank god for that. Bev and Ian went and stocked up on food supplies for Christmas. After all the hard days work we packed up and went over in the new tender to the Dutch bridge to watch all the super yachts coming in. It was a memorable experience with the boat crew from Highlander doing a special dance in their sock filled speedos. I guess good crew like that are hard to find these days. Quite a memorable occasion and we also watched a beautiful sunset after the impromptu show.

Lagoonies Marina and Repairs

We stayed at the marina for 3 nights instead of one. Repairs seem to take much longer than expected in any country. Anyway we also managed to pick up our new dinghy and named her 'Puffin 2'. I've never been good at rowing and amused the guys on shore as I tried to get the little beast to actually row forward. We met some nice people in the marina and went out to the cafe every night for dinner as we were too exhausted to cook after buying and fitting parts for most of the day.

French Bridge

We left Grand Case and moored off Marigot in Simpson Bay waiting for the French road bridge to open. When our slot finally came the radio went dead and we just steamed through anyway. A catamaran was in front of us and we followed it into the lagoon. Our plan was to moor at Lagoonies Marina for the engine repair. As we approached the marina the water depths got very shallow. At one point we were down to 0.1 of a metre clearance and panic set in. The port and starboard buoy markers were random and very difficult to follow. As the radio wasn't working I made a frantic mobile phone call to the marina to ask which side of the red buoys we were meant to be on. Luckily the guy called Bernard who was very helpful told us to put them to starboard and we slowly got more depth. We had just enough draft to reverse onto the berth and let the wind blow us in.

Engine Troubles

On Tuesday we woke up to a beautiful morning in Grand Case with a rainbow across the horizon. Went for a quick swim then prepared Faraway for a sail down to Marigot to get the engine fixed. We had to go to Ance Marsel (Radisson Marina) first to clear out of the French side. This proved tricky as we couldn’t turn the engine off and had to anchor in the bay while Ian took the ships papers and our passports in for clearance. There were some tense moments as the engine chugged along and we watched our position to make sure we weren't shifting anchor. Little did we know but the tension was about to get a whole lot worse.

Grand Case Bay

On Monday December 20 after collecting Bev and her lost bags we skipped our morning swim in favour of chores like getting the gas bottles filled, booking a marina slot at Lagoonies and shopping for 4 days supplies. Late afternoon Bev helped us slip the lines and we headed around the bay to moor off Grand Case. The bay was beautiful and lined with French colourful French restaurants. The mooring was perfect until they set off the nightclub around 10pm on shore. The music carried across the bay and didn’t finish until about 2:30am. We didn’t get a wink of sleep as it was so loud.