Guadeloupe to Antigua
     
     Subject: Log 02/22/00
     Date: Tue, 29 Feb 2000 11:16:07 -0500
     
     From: W2LSI@cho.win-net.org
     To: rudys03@ibm.net
     
     
     We finally had a forecast of East Southeast winds so we didn't stay in Guadeloupe
     long. In fact, we never even got off of the boat! We left at 8:00 AM the next
     morning for a trip North to Antigua. Going to Guadeloupe was a bit out of the way
     but going to Antigua first would have been another 12 hours or so going directly
     into the wind. We might have been able to get there from St. Barth's but then we
     would have missed all the islands in between. From Guadeloupe the usual Trade
     Winds would mean an easy sail. To Antigua we went.
     
     We left before Sasse Too. I at least wanted a head start so I could do what had to
     be done to stay ahead. Actually I did tell them we were leaving at 8:00 AM and
     they chose to leave a little later. It would be a beam reach for 37 miles to English
     Harbor, Antigua. The winds were supposed to be 10-15 with 4-6 ft. seas. The
     direction was right anyway! We had 15-25 knots steady all day with some BIG
     seas. I am sure some were in excess of 10 ft. All in all though it was a great sail!
     The engine got a rest and we averaged almost 8 knots sailing. I used the staysail
     and the main. If Jon did start to catch us I would have put up the big jib, but in
     winds over 20 it can be a big problem if anything happens. We didn't have to
     worry. Sasse Too put up all their sail and still couldn't catch us. At one point Faith
     was sunbathing on the aft cushion in the cockpit and got drenched by a wave. She
     really got soaked and she was very surprised. When we arrived at English Harbor
     we had the luxury of anchoring in the inner harbor in the last available spot. They
     had to stay outside. It was a little quieter by us, but they had clearer water. We also
     got there early enough to clear customs the day we arrived. It felt good to get
     even.......
     
     We spent several days in English Harbor. It is surrounded by Nelson's Dock Yard.
     Nelson's and the area around it are a National Park. There are tours going through
     here every day to see the restored facilities of a Dock Yard that was key to
     International Trade 200 to 300 years ago. The old buildings are still in use today.
     There are many boats from all over the world anchored and docked in English
     Harbor. There was even a boat from Salt Point, NY. Nobody was around to meet
     though. We had a great dinner at a local Italian restaurant. Faith had Black Pasta,
     colored by the ink of a squid, calamari. I had roast suckling pig. It was a great
     meal!
     
     I took a bus to the capital, St. John's, to get my computer fixed. Finding the
     problem was easy. Getting parts is another story.....maybe only ten days of waiting.
     St. Johns is a busy bustling city which seemed dirty and not very pretty. The
     interior of Antigua showed signs of being a poor island while the coast boasted
     many large private homes and resorts. Antigua was most recently an English island,
     but today it and Barbuda are an independent country.
     
     We left English Harbor on Saturday, 2/26. We went to the West coast to a place
     called Jolly Harbor. It is actually a Village/Marina/Condominium complex built
     around a series of canals dredged from mangroves. It was well protected and very
     quiet. Most of the shops were closed because it was near 5:00 P.M., but there did
     seem to be much to offer, including a casino.
     
     From there we continued along the West and North Coasts. We stayed in a bay
     called Jumby Bay on Long Island. The island is occupied by a luxury resort which
     looked great from the boat and it is surrounded by many coral reefs for snorkeling.
     The water was cloudy the day we were there so we didn't see much.
     
     The next day we headed back to the West Coast to a place called Deep Bay that
     looked nice and it is near St. Johns to do some provisioning. We are also planning
     to meet Jim Sutherland and Marilyn tomorrow, 2/29. They plan to be with us for
     a week or so to catch up on the warm weather that has been lacking in the
     Northeast this time of year.
     
     We are only 1650 miles from NY!!!