March 14 – Cruisers Tools and Dropped Anchor

Anse d’Arlet is a snorkeling paradise. Because of it, it is hard to find a place to drop anchor. We’ve read in some articles and Facebook (FB) posts that anchoring is not allowed at all, others say that it’s allowed only in specific areas; and when we got there, boats were anchored everywhere. I also searched in many websites to find the answer to “May we anchor at Anse d’Arlet? If yes, where exactly? So, I asked the questions on the FB Martinique Cruisers website. I guy promptly replied with a link to a website showing a map of the cove with colour-coded areas for anchoring. My questions triggered a lot of conversation among other cruisers on the subject of anchoring in Martinique. Cruisers group sites are a great tool to learn about everything sailing. To conclude, we did snorkel but didn’t stay more than one night. We sailed on to Rodney Bay, St. Lucia for a few days.

Another tool for cruisers in many locations is the Cruisers Net. Every weekday morning at a specific time on a specific radio channel, cruisers have a chance to share information. A “host” starts the talk with information such as weather forecast and upcoming events. Then, cruisers have a chance to sell and buy among themselves. Local commerce may advertise their sales, restaurants their menu du jour. Through the St. Lucia Cruisers Net as we were approaching the island, while I was having a nap, Frank heard that the Cruising Women Weekly Lunch was held at a local restaurant an hour after we planned to drop anchor. I met 8 very interesting women for a 2-hour lunch. When you’re on a sailboat for 6 months, it feels really good to have a chance to share a meal with many women. As we have a lot in common, shyness melts away very quickly. The subjects that are taboo: boat parts and boat maintenance. (When men are together, that’s all they talk about! LOL!)

Did you know that it can be challenging to find our boat at night? When we go ashore for dinner, we always come back to Komeekha in the dark as the sun always set at around 18h00. Imagine us leaving shore in our little dinghie, facing little white lights in a pitch black background. We only see the boats that are nearby. All the little lights are anchor lights on top of masts. They all look the same, except some are yellowish and others are bluish white. There are a few tricks to find Komeekha. 1) We note the names of the boats around ours; 2) We triangulated with 2 points ashore; 3) We added a blue light (or any other colour than white) on our deck. Even with these 3 tricks, it happens that we - and others - will argue about the location of our boat as we zigzag through the bay. Proof that we’re not alone: we can see some dinghies passing by Komeekha a couple of times before they arrive home. It’s really funny.

Time for a hair cut. Even though we could find a barber and a hair salon at every anchorage, Frank and I cut each other’s hair. Well, Frank cuts his own then he cuts mine. For Frank, it’s easy: one length from his chin, through his cheeks, all over his head. I’m only there to shave his nape and make sure he didn’t miss a spot ... he always does. Frank started to cut my hair a few years ago. At the beginning, it was all the same length. There isn’t much styling to this method. He then learned to layer the edges. What a difference! Even my hair styler back home was impressed!

We’re slowly making our way South to Grenada for the end of the season. We already booked our haul-out with Spice Island Marina – May 2^nd. I bought my plane ticket to Toronto for May 4^th, Frank for May 11^th. We booked our usual AirBnb near the marina from May 1^st to 11^th.

We sailed for 16 hours from Rodney Bay, St. Lucia to Bequia. The winds were adequate, waves were normal (1.5 metres). Between St. Lucia and St. Vincent, we suddenly heard BANG ... BANG ... BABANG. The anchor had dropped a couple of feet, banging on the bow!!!! All the expletives that I won’t write came out of our mouths as I quickly put my life jacket and rushed as fast as I can on a bucking Komeekha to raise the anchor back in its well. After getting it back in, Frank secured it with a rope. In these waves, that’s all we could do for now. When we arrived in Bequia, in the dark, I couldn’t lower the anchor using the windlass. The windlass was broken. We swapped places: I steered Komeekha, keeping away from the other anchored boats, while Frank lowered our 45 lbs anchor and 125 feet of chain by hand. That’s a lot of physical work and restrained emotions in an intense half hour after a long day. A good conversation and a dram of rum helped us return our equanimity. That was 2 days ago. As of now, the windlass remote can’t be repaired. We’re waiting for the supplier to find one replacement.

An ongoing adventure! ....

(It’s a long one. You may want to pace yourself.  I’m sorry. There’s so much to tell you!)

It was a nice break from a constant moving boat to rent a car and spend a couple of days on land. Anse Mitan, being a touristic town in Martinique, there are a few car rental companies we could choose from. Budget Rental Car had a white Nissan Picanto – the most common on this island – available to us from February 27^th to March 1^st. There’s enough leg room at the front; but it’s a knee squeeze at the back. When we saw a white Picanto, we knew it’s someone like us who did not drive very fast and may lead us through the wrong street if we decide to follow them to a popular spot.

The day before our adventure, ferries started a strike. This meant that the main roads would be a parking lot during rush hours; so we heard from the Budget Rental lady. So when we left, we didn’t expect to get anywhere very quickly; and we were ok with it. We were on vacation after all! It’s true, there was traffic; but when you have lived in Toronto, Martinique’s parking-lot-like “traffic” is fluid.

Our general direction was towards Presqu’ile de la Caravelle where we were planning a small hike on that first day. Going eastbound, we drove towards and stopped at Habitation Clement, a rum distillery. We had been told that it had 160 hectares of sugar cane, banana trees and parkland. We had visited a few rum distilleries this winter; and so far this is the second one that we felt was quite impressive. (The first one was River Antoine Estate in Grenada).

Its founder – Homere Clement – was born in 1852 at Trinite, Martinique, only 4 years after the abolition of slavery. He was the grand-son of an indentured slave. After an education in France, he comes back to Martinique and buys a repossessed estate called L’Acajou in 1887, now Habitation Clement. The need for alcohol during WW1 encourages Homere to start a distillery. His son Charles takes over the entreprise when Homere dies in 1923, modernizes it, and launches worldwide. After three generations, the distillery is sold to Bernard and Yves Hayot in 1986 who continue its development.

We walked through the estate following a map: sugar cane, banana tree, the old distillery, parkland dotted with modern sculptures. The period of a sugar cane from seed to production is 1.5 to 2 years. As it grows, the sugar cane looks like tall grass, then stalk (like corn), then cane – 2-6 metres. Banana trees (among other crop options) are used during the sugar cane fallow period. Last fall, I explained that for most crops (maybe all of them), a farmer need to periodically plant something else to replenish its soil of nutrients that sugar cane has been depleting.

It was very interesting to look at the modern sculptures in the parkland section of the estate. I don’t know much about art but I especially enjoyed pieces from Vladimir Skoda, Herve Beuze, and Luz Severino. We also saw a variety of trees: rubber, fig, and many types of palm trees. We also saw bamboo. These are quite impressive by their height (approx. 90 feet), their growth speed (1-4 inches per day), its ecological benefit (100-400 tons of carbon absorption per hectare), and multiple uses (culinary, fuel, construction, paper, textile).

After a delicious picnic at a rest stop (baguette, brie cheese, saucisson and white wine), we park the car at the end of the presqu’ile for our walk to a fort, a weather station and a 360 degree platform on top of the hill. The walk was easy with some steep sections. We had shade most of the way. The trail was large enough for a small car. The small fort was closed. The weather station was established in 1939. A 2-week rotation of men lived in it to monitor and report major weather events, such as hurricanes. They would hike from the nearby village (12 kms) with their heavy load of food, water and books. The view on the 360 platform was breathtaking! We could see Trinite and other little bays, azure ocean water, water crashing on the shores, sailboats in quiet bays, hills, blue sky. WOW!

We slowly made our way to our AirBnb on a hill near Sainte-Marie. In inland Martinique, most roads are everything but straight: up and down, right and left, u-shape, z-shape. Even though the speed limit was 40 km/h, we couldn’t do 30! But all so worth it! We’ve done a lot of AirBnb in many countries. This one was a new design for us: our bedroom and bathroom were of course inside; but the kitchen and table were outside as part of our balcony, overlooking a valley of palm trees and few residences. Our host lives upstairs.

The following morning, over coffee and patisseries, our hostess suggested with visit Tombolo before our intended visit of Coeur Bouliki. A tombolo is a strip of sand connecting two land expanses. In Martinique, this 200-metre causeway connects Ile Sainte-Marie to Martinique. Created by ocean currents and tides, it is only visible from January to April. The ocean water on both side was quiet turbulent due to the strong winds on that day (swimming is prohibited). Sainte-Marie island, on which there is an old Jesuit church, is a nature reserve.

We then moved on to Coeur Bouliki in the middle of the island among steep hills and waterfalls. This park with its usual picnic tables and many hiking trails has a creek passing through it. It’s fresh and cool water cascades through round rocks which makes it fun and refreshing to sit in the middle of it. As it is shallow and safe, many children have a grand time playing, squealing, splashing in it. After a short walk, a picnic lunch and a dip, we were off again.

We had to go back to Komeekha before day’s end in order to recharge the batteries.  So we took advantage of having a car to stock up in huge stores (like supercentres in Canada) for the remaining of our sailing season. As we’re planning to leave Martinique in a few days, we want to get the good stuff (cheeses, delis and wines mostly) of a French island before we sail South to less fortunate ones.

Upon our return, our friends on Andromeda and Mordicus were very happy to see us again. We spent the following couple of days hiking and dining with them. Today, Mordicus is leaving, sailing around the corner to Le Marin to pickup friends from Quebec for a 10-day vacation. Tomorrow, Andromeda is leaving for Dominica and Guadeloupe. An us, for Anses d’Arlet where we'll snorkel with the turtles, then on to St. Lucia.

Talk about a small world: looking at our friend Benoit’s Facebook picture, I saw that a Pascale Couturier had sent a “thumbs up” for it. After verifying the links, I confirm that it is my cousin who lives near Ottawa. Last night, during aperos, Benoit explained that Dominique and he met Pascale and her husband at the Annapolis boat show at a gin booth. Amazing!

February 23

Most anchorages on the West side of Caribbean Islands have boats within 20 metres of each other – it can be crowded. Sometimes, a boat ahead of another will float on top of its neighbour’s anchor.  It's not a problem until the anchor's owner wants to leave and the "floater" is absent.  When the wind is strong enough, all boats face in the same direction. So, distances between boats don’t vary much. However, when the wind is almost non-existent such as in the early morning, each boat will face in a different direction. If boats are too close to each other, early mornings might find boats “kissing” if owners don’t pay attention or are still in bed, a bit unnerving. This was the situation at Fort-de-France during Carnival.

The bay of Fort-de-France has many coves: Fort-de-France, Le Lamentin, Trois Ilets, Mitan, Riviere-Salee, Anse a l’Ane. They are all connected by small ferries for pedestrians only. After the happy chaos of Fort-de-France Carnival and the busy anchorage of its city, the calm and quiet waters near Riviere Salee were a welcome break to our senses and nerves.

At Riviere Salee, a very large anchorage, there was only one boat. We were able to drop our anchor at least 300 metres from it. We could finally feel alone, no one could see us in our cockpit. Finally, clothes were optional. LOL! We spent 4 days reading, cooking, swimming, playing mind games and other games ... We visited a mangrove that led us to a tiny marina from which we walked to Ducos for provisioning.

We have our little routines now: coffee for me first thing in the morning, reading until we have a late breakfast, then whatever activity we decide upon, happy hour and dinner in the cockpit. Come to think of it, we very rarely eat in the boat, always in the cockpit where a gentle breeze passes through. The lower sun can be brutal mid- to late afternoon. We pin a beach towel on the side to protect us. At the stern, we hung a small mesh “hammock” in which ripening fruits and vegetables swing, such as papaya, avocados, bananas, pineapples, christophines. We usually start the engine before bedtime to recharge the batteries when the sun and wind are not enough. We are now in the dry season of the Caribbeans: barely any rain (or short spurts of it), very little wind, lower temperatures (25-26 degrees Celsius instead of 28-30).

After spending another 3 days at Trois Ilets, we are now at Anse Mitan. It is touristic (many restaurants, small hotels, beach wear boutiques), a beautiful beach, surrounded by many hills. There’s a cute plaza where restaurants, bistros, cafes and boutiques are. We had dinner at a restaurant in the middle of the plaza where tables and palm trees surrounded a fountain – very romantic.  Anse Mitan has been very busy because local kids have been on vacation for the past two weeks.  A few powerboats passing by with kids on floating seats having the time of the lives.  We know we can hear them!  All will be quiet again on Monday when kids are back to school.  Oh, and apparently ferries are going on strike.  This means bottleneck traffic in the area.

Now that we’ve relaxed for a week, we’re ready for some fun again. Two couples will be joining us in the next few days: On Sunday Jocelyn and Natalie on Mordicus, and on Tuesday Benoit and Dominique on Andromeda. We introduced the two couples from the Lac Megantic region in Quebec when we were all in Bequia a few weeks ago. From Bequia, Mordicus sailed South to Carriacou for repairs then on to Grenada. We and Andromeda sailed North to Ste. Lucia then Martinique. Andromeda spent the last couple of weeks with friends in Sainte-Anne Bay while we partied in Fort-de-France. It’ll be fun to spend time with these four good friends this week.

Also, we are renting a car from Tuesday (the 27^th) to Friday. We’re going to hike near Trinite, on the Atlantic side of Martinique. We’ll stay in an AirBnb for one night near Trinite. On our return trip, we want to stop at Coeur Bouliki, 1500 acres of forest through which a shallow river and falls welcome bathers among its rocks – a perfect place for a picnic. Even though we’ll return on the 28^th to charge Komeekha’s batteries, we’ll head out again by car with Jocelyn and Natalie for a hike near Le Diamant (to be confirmed). The six of us will probably go for another hike nearby on Friday. I’ll have a lot to tell you upon our return.  The ferries strike will slow us down;  but hey, we're retired, no rush getting anywhere.  Life is good.

February 15

Happy chaos is how a friend of mine described carnival days in a city in the Tropics. It’s the best term I would also use for Martinique’s 4-day carnival. Each day has a parade starting at around 16:00, until about 20:00. Kids are on vacation for 2 weeks. And stores are only open until 13:30. Because of internet bandwidth limitations, we will wait until we go home to post pictures on the website. We’re sorry you can’t see many of them now.

Day 1 is Fat Sunday. The queens are introduced (each surrounding community has one, there’s also a mini-queen who’s about 8 years old). Walkers are proudly showing off their elaborate costumes. King Vaval – the carnival’s mascot – is also introduced. King Vaval is in Martinique a half crocodile, half whale. Vaval rides on a platform in the parades.

Day 2 is Fat Monday – Burlesque Weddings. Men dress as women, women as men. Men in Martinique have no qualms wearing 3-inch platform shoes, fishnet stockings, g-strings and not much else.

Day 3 is Fat Tuesday. Black and Red are the prevalent colours. The carnival is historically a festivity of the devil and hell. This day and parade are the busiest, loudest, longest and wildest.

Day 4 is Ash Wednesday. Last day. Black and White are the prevalent colours. The festivities end by burning King Vaval on a pyre.

There are many components in the daily parades that I’d like to cover, not in any particular order. Many components are unique to Martinique.

The “Bwadjaks”

A few creative guys had painted carnival-themed and very colourful designs on their low-riding, old-but-renewed cars. They are very loud due to their perforated exhaust pipe which makes a booming sound. When many of them start, the din sounds like fireworks. Bwadjaks start the fun in surrounding communities a week before carnival. They are part of the daily parades. On their roofs and crammed inside, a few revelers enjoy the ride.

The Walkers (“Groupes a Pied)

The parade is mostly composed of costumed people walking in groups. Some of the costumes are quite elaborate, some are symbolic. For example, the Red Devils, the Neg Gwo Siwo (people covered in molasses representing slaves on the run), Marian’ Lapofig (costume made of dried leaves from banana trees), The Touloulous (women in elegant dresses and head gear with a masque representing the bourgeoisie), The Malpwops (people dressed with very little or nothing at all).

The Music

The music bands play local music and sounds with handmade or brass instruments, drums and conchs. Handmade instruments are often made of coconuts or bamboo. The music is rhythmic, easy to get hooked and start dancing alongside. A few trucks had big loudspeakers and a DJ playing contemporary music for the young revelers. It is sometimes so loud it feels like I had a boombox in my body vibrating from my toes to my head. Also, some parents of babies and toddlers put earphones over their child’s ears. Everybody sing and dance to the music.

The Floats

We saw very few floats besides King Vaval’s and the queens. Most of the participants’ time and effort are spent on costumes and music with its choreography.

Carnival in Martinique is a must-see. The festive and exciting atmosphere is contagious. It represents Martinique’s culture and tradition. It is an opportunity to see the creativity and gaiety of its people.

This morning, we moved on to a bay nearby called Baie de Genipa near the community of Ducos. There are mangrove and not much else. Finally, we found a bay with only one boat (2000 feet from us)! The calm water and quiet is a balm to our senses after 4 days of Martinique Carnival.

Bonne Fete, David!