February 8 – Nevis to Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten
The crew catapulted out of bed just past 5am, detached from the squeaky mooring ball and departed from the pretty Nevis shoreline before sunrise. We passed Booby Island – yep, go ahead and check Google Earth – and set our course for our Dutch destination. [The island is split between the Netherlands (Sint Maarten) and France (Saint Martin), making it the smallest area in the world divided into two countries’ dependencies. The border is essentially theoretical, but we did see some currency and nationality distinctions.]
Canaan and Emylee took hour long shifts on the helm to give ‘Otto’ (HoG’s Auto Pilot) a day off. We also took nap shifts, and played more trivia (“Can you name the four noble gases?”) The highlight of the day was mahi sandwiches for lunch- not an easy galley task on starboard tack.
Canaan on the helm
It was a long sail, but it would’ve been a longer day had there been no wind. We were fortunate to have steady gusts of 16-18 kts carrying us through a consistent 7 -8 kt boat speed. Captain Carl had anticipated the trip taking 10 hours; but we arrived much earlier than expected. Sails were dropped and we motored into Simpson Bay in time for the for 3pm drawbridge. The heavy air traffic of the nearby Princess Juliana International Airport may have distracted some of the crew during that time…
Drawbridge is up!
As we passed through the bridge, some onlookers called out to us by name. Our friends Missy and Eric had spotted our blue boat while lounging on the beach and walked down to greet us. What a surprise!
The crew was certainly glad to have showers after the 68 NM crossing, and Canaan’s mahi tacos later on proved to be one of the most memorable dinners of the entire trip.
February 9 – Layover in Simpson Bay, St. Maarten
Ahh- finally a day of rest and relaxation. But nope! We had to complete yet another ‘To Do’ list per Captain SAL… although, by now we’ve all come to expect this of a layover day. So, a cup of coffee and we were off to the Customs Office in the dinghy to check into Sint Maarten. Once formalities were complete, a visit to the chandlery was absolutely positively necessary. After all, there might be something there that the boat needs.
A morning of failed attempts to text and call our friends Missy and Eric finally gave way. We met them at the local Zee Best Café to have a late breakfast, and made plans to reconvene after the To-Do List was complete. Kathie, Em, and Canaan spent a good two hours provisioning and hauling groceries to the boat, while Carl worked on a multitude of interior boat tasks. Together, the crew changed the headsail from the ‘cocktail jib’ to the larger genoa in preparation for our downwind sail to the BVIs.
Finally, it was time to get out of the heat and reward ourselves with a visit with Missy and Eric. Their condo at the ‘Flamingo Resort’ offered a break from saltwater with a swimming pool, real showers, and: good internet!
Sunset from Flamingo Resort
We owe a big thanks to Missy and Eric, along with his mom Beth and their aunt Judy. We finished the day by all going to Skip Jacks where we were treated to a wonderful dinner. Em and Canaan shared a Caribbean lobster- it was a show!
Those suckers aren’t from Maine
February 10 – Leaving Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten
Our trip to clear-out at customs yielded some great info for our anchoring-angst. Kathie’s friendly chat about anchoring strategies with a fellow dinghy tender (Nadim made it clear that we were about 60 meters shy of anchor chain. This was confirmed by a call to our friend Carl Phillips at Southerly. Luckily Sint Maarten’s has an excellent chandlery where we purchased 60 meters of CALIBRATED anchor chain (which almost sank the dinghy getting it back across the harbor to Heart of Gold). Eric and Missy arrived a bit early for a planned sail out of the harbor. We put Eric to work helping to install the new chain, and we were all set to go for the 4pm outbound bridge opening. We still had 45 minutes of dancing about with at least a dozen yachts also waiting for the bridge to open. When the time came a 100 ft mega sailboat barged into the lead position. Little HoG had no recourse but to fall in behind.
Out of the harbor we had a wonderful little sail up to Philipsburg and back with Eric at the helm – coached by Captain Carl. Missy also enjoyed the ride. We anchored easily just outside the bridge with our new chain. We delivered Eric and Missy back to shore via Miss Piggy (our dinghy) – and – settled in for dinner and a quick snooze before we left for our 12 hour overnight sail to the British Virgin Islands. The overnight sail was a must because we only have 11 hours of daylight which is insufficient to make a daytime transit and arrive in Virgin Gorda with enough light to negotiate the harbor. It is the safe thing to do, friends and family.
Travel Log 