St. Kitts and Nevis
     
     Subject: Log February 19 2000
     Date: Sat, 26 Feb 2000 23:16:08 -0500
     
     From: W2LSI@cho.win-net.org
     To: rudys03@ibm.net
     
     
     Today we left Saba to make the trip to St. Kitts (St. Christopher). The weather
     forecast was for East to Northeast winds around 20 knots with a 6-8 ft sea.
     Everything was fine except that the winds were out of the East Southeast. With a
     Northeast wind we could sail but with the ESE wind all we did was motor with the
     staysail up for balance. It was almost 30 miles with the wind on our nose....almost
     8 hours.
     
     In St. Kitts we opted for a marina as the anchorage, as was suggested in our
     cruising guide. It was a small marina in the middle of the main town on St. Kitts.
     The marina was recovering from significant damage sustained from the hurricanes
     this summer. There was almost nothing on the waterfront.
     
     The town was noisy and a little dirty. We took a tour around the island and found
     that most of the island was the same. There is a narrow gauge railroad to move
     sugarcane from the fields to the port. It is still in use but in dire need of repair.
     Sugarcane is no longer a cash crop. The government subsidizes what is grown to
     break even. Sugarcane is good for the island because it does hold the soil in place.
     We also stopped at an incredible Fort on top of a large hill. It is known as the
     Gibraltar of the Caribbean. It took 100 years to complete the Fort. Parts of it are
     restored and more will come in the future.
     
     On the second night the politicians held a rally right next to the marina. There was
     music, speeches, food, fireworks and noise till 4:00 AM. The speakers were so
     loud I am surprised you didn't hear them in Poughkeepsie! The fireworks were right
     over the marina. The wind was strong enough to blow the fallout just West of us.
     I literally opened my stern hatch and watched them explode directly overhead from
     my bed....at 12:00 AM. Modern technology is still a bit away from here. The
     fireworks
     were all timed and lit by hand....not even any music. They would light a fuse and
     duck!
     
     We stayed 2 days. I don't think we will return to St. Kitts.
     
     Our trip to Nevis was only a couple of hours in calm water....with the wind still on
     our nose....against the forecast again. 
     
     We anchored along a white sand beach 3 miles long. It was quiet and nice. Nevis
     is a small island just South of St. Kitts. Significant destruction from the hurricanes
     is also evident. The Four Seasons Resort sustained enough damage to be closed for
     a full year while they rebuild. They are still using 9 holes of their golf course
     though. This island is populated by several large sugar cane estates that have been
     restored in grand manner. There are now hotels and resorts that offer fine quiet
     vacations a bit away from the sea. We stopped at most of these resorts on our tour
     of the island. They are beautiful and would be worthy of a week's stay for fine
     dining and accommodations. 
     
     The island was less crowded than St. Kitts and better maintained. The taxi driver
     was even trying to encourage us to buy land and settle on Nevis. I think we would
     return to Nevis if it is on our route North next year or whenever.
     
     Here we also caught up with Shawn and Jon on Sasse Too. They left St. Martin a
     few days ahead of us. We have stayed in touch via Single Side Band(SSB), a long
     distance marine radio with worldwide communication capability. After our tour we
     met them at the beach bar and had a couple of the local specials together....stinger
     bees. They didn't hurt much but they did make our knees a little loose!