Still in Antigua!
Sitting at anchor in Freeman’s Bay, I thought I should post an update… Next week should see the Bimini installed on the boat, and then we will be heading south. I will try to get my second Covid vaccination before I leave. Next Monday it’s 7 weeks since my first; although the standard interval here is 12 weeks, apparently it’s possible to get it early. This will really help: Grenada has a standard 7-day quarantine, but if you’ve had the two shots this falls to 48 hours – basically a PCR test on arrival, with the result within 48 hours.
Freeman’s Bay is an ideal spot. The bay, with English Harbour behind it, is beautiful, surrounded by high hills – above us is Shirley Heights, which is 450 feet (almost 140 metres) above sea level. The bay is good for swimming, in the deeper water around the boat (3.5 to 4 metres) and off Galleon’s Beach. There’s plenty of wildlife: large sea turtles, stingrays, large and small fish, even an occasional dolphin. Lots of birds too, including pelicans, which when taking off from the water look like the flying boats of old! It’s good for snorkelling, especially along the reef that is about 25 metres from Manuka and which protects the bay from the swell coming in from the sea.
So it’s a great natural environment. Plus there is a good social atmosphere between the dozen or so yachts anchored here. And it’s easy to dinghy over to Nelson’s Dockyard, from where it is under 10 minutes walk to a small supermarket and several restaurants.
Regarding people, there can be amazing coincidences… One night I was having dinner with several people and sitting next to an English woman. As talk turned to our families, we discovered that our daughters both work for the charity WaterAid in London! And a few days ago a yacht anchored close to me. It bore the legend Brisbane, Australia. Nothing strange about that… but it then turned out that the husband and wife are not really Australians – they had only been there for about 12 years. Like me, they are from Durban… there cannot be many of us sailing the Caribbean! They are sailing with their 2 kids, a girl of 14 and a boy of 10. This must be quite a challenge, keeping the kids amused and interested in the cruising life. Certainly a great education, visiting countries that many people haven’t even heard of, dealing with wind, sea and sun.
I have been happy to spend time sitting here, swimming, walking, reading and socialising. I think it has been useful, helping me to get out of the mindset that “I must move on”. In normal life you always have limited time. You are on holiday for a week, if lucky two weeks, and there’s always the feeling that you mustn’t waste time, which flies so quickly. Here I have had time. After a life spent rushing around, this has been strange. Hopefully I am getting used to it, and hopefully it will prove good for me…
Hello Hans,
Apologies for the long silence from the Jones clan, but great to read to your accounts of your peregrinations in the islands, and to view the magnificent picture gallery. I was interested in your comments about the tourism investment stance of Antigua & Barbuda. It’s also become one of the more popular “flags of convenience” or “open registries” for shipowners seeking lower-cost alternatives (mainly lower manning costs) to flying the national flag on their vessels. Very popular with German shipowners, and the A&B flag often to be seen in Durban harbour.
We’ve also had our first vaccine dose, of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, with the second dose scheduled for 1 July. Couldn’t come soon enough, as SA is now firmly on the upswing phase of a third wave, and with somewhat tighter restrictions announced by the headmaster on national television last night.
Stay well,
Trevor
Thanks Trevor! I didn’t know that Antigua & Barbuda had become a common flag of convenience for shipowners. Interesting. The economy needs all the help it can get: it is very dependent on tourism. Too dependent I’d say – it really needs to be diversified somewhat. I would imagine that there’s quite a bit of competition in the flag of convenience market?
But it is a truly great place to be. And very welcoming – you get told that if you want to stay beyond your 90 days, just come back and they’ll give you another 90! Most countries would be very unhappy if you tried to stay beyond the standard limit. I am just waiting for my new Bimini to be installed, probably this Friday, and then I will head south. We are officially in hurricane season (from June 1st), but so far no sign of one! Really just a case of watching the weather reports – if one was coming you would typically get 3-5 days’ notice, enough time to set full sail and run south! I could make Grenada in 48 hours, especially if I sailed on the windward side of the islands. Best regards!