My Latest Hang Out

Check out this cool little beach bar down by the airport. One of the wonderful side benefits of my running habit is that I get out and about to areas one normally wouldn't just saunder into. Of course this can work both ways, but in this instance it lead me right to one of the cooler places I have discovered. It really goes against the grain as this beach bar abuts the airport. I wasn't able to get a photo, but just picture a 747 landing gear scraping the tops of the trees and you'll get a feel for said proximity. Why would a bar thrive in such an area? I have no idea and I would never have found it except I'm always looking for roads that are flat with minimum traffic for safety sake. So on one of my runs, I was in a mini shanty town when I discovered this thriving Danish community. The place was packed, they severe excellent food and beverage and provide chairs and tables. In fact you may have noticed that the bar is actually an old broken down bus. Furthermore they have wifi! If you look closely to the right you can see the little yellow structure that is the home to the young Danish folks who own the establishment. I like it!

So as you can see, I have not left St Martin yet. My weather window changed slightly. The weather was pretty good for a run south, but the wind came around just south of east. This likely would have meant more motor sailing at least for a portion of the trip. I would have taken the opportunity, but it looks like waiting 5 or 6 days is the better choice. Seems a cold front will penetrate very far south and bring the wind right around to the north east. Beautiful. I just hoping we can keep the wind near 15 knots so I don't have to ride a bucking bronco south. So at this moment, I'm planning on leaving Thursday morning bound for Guadeloupe.

Capt Chris

Still at the Beach in St Maarten

View from my perch...

Maltese Falcon

As I was approaching the beach the other day for yet another day of operations under the palms I had a sharp intake of air as I noticed the Maltese Falcon. I had followed the construction of this yacht in Latitude38 which is a San Francisco Bay area sailing rag. Its owner, Tom Perkins is a Bay Area guy and very well known Venture Capitalist. Maltese Falcon is an engineering marvel. Perkins who has an engineering degree from MIT had the ship built in Turkey. She is 289 feet with 3 free standing masts that rotate and carries more than 27,000 square feet of sail area. If my memory services correctly, the ships size was limited so Perkins could get the ship under the Golden Gate Bridge. Anyway, please take a second and click on the yachts homepage as it is amazing.

How time flies. I've been in St Martin almost ten days now. I have done little touring around the island as the traffic seems horrendous. So a trip to the next town over, Phillipsburg would be an all day saga. I am a simple chap and everything I desire is right here in Simpson Bay. I have been enjoying the really good cafe's and amazingly enough the prices are reasonable. Substantially less than St Thomas. Although I am paying a $30.00 a week anchoring fee on the Dutch side of the Lagoon. If I were to move to the French side which is really two football fields away, I would pay a $8 fee and that is it. So why not move? Well if I were staying I surely would move. But my anchor is so well dug in now that the peace of mind is worth it to me. Plus when the wind is cranking a dingy ride back to the French side would be a little more than damp.

I am eyeing the weather closely and think I will set sail this Saturday morning if the forecast holds. I believe I will sail on a close reach in 15 knots and under for about 24 hours to the NW coast of Guadeloupe. Depending on actual conditions I could make Antigua, not likely unless the wind is north of east. If Guadeloupe is a stretch and I'm getting headed, I'll ease the sheets and make for St Kitts and Nevis. But I hope to make Guadeloupe, get some rest and then head to the Isle Des Saints just off the south coast of Guadeloupe. So that is it from my side of the planet!

Capt Chris

Nice Picture of Christa at Anchor in St Thomas

A fellow sailor shot this picture of Christa while swing on the hook at Water Island and forwarded it to me. What a great shot! Thanks Glenn!

Capt Chris

Man is it Windy!

Capt Chris, 80 degree's and windy!
St Maarten Leeward Islands

Thus far my initial impression of St Martin it is a very busy place. Some folks can't stand a place like this. I prefer both really. When I get sick of the chaos I move to a more tranquil setting. I will try and give you a accurate impression. First off the airport flight path goes right over the anchorage. So thundering aircraft take off with full thrust to clear the mountain to the east. Could rattle someone. I happen to love planes so it doesn't bother me and I love watching the Gulfstream GV's take off. The island has two sides, one French and One Dutch with separate everything. Including governments, language and regulations. The fee schedule is different as well. The French side you pay an 8 dollar entrance fee and that is it. This is why the French side of the lagoon has many more cruisers. The Dutch side charges $30 a week to anchor. The lagoon is ringed with marina complexes that mostly cater to the mega yachts that cram this island. Along with all the wealth comes the casinos, shops and cafe's that are very very nice and is something I have really missed.

Something that I have also missed is all the cruisers that I pretty much have been separated from since I stopped in Puerto Rico almost a year ago. Other than a handful of boats I haven't seen a whole lot of people on the move. But now in St Martin, the whole anchorage is cruisers. As an American I clearly am in the minority. Boats from all over the globe abound. I checked into the morning radio net this morning which I haven't done since Luperon Dominican Republic. Here is a typical broadcast. A net person greets all the boats on Ch 14 and asks for any emergency traffic. Then he or she reads the weather. All new arrivals or departures chime in with commentary and questions and then it is onto safety and security issues. Then a radio swap meet takes place. Boat X is looking for part Y and boat Charlie may have a outboard for sale. Those folks move to a working channel to make a deal. Then announcements of activities such as drunken bashes, yoga and library hours. By this time folks have "net fatigue" and any long winded people are being cursed unbeknown to them. And that is a typical net broadcast. It is the best way to get information about everything.

Now I know I do an awful lot of complaining about the wind and for non sailors it can be confusing. But I just would like enough wind from the correct direction when I need. That happens rarely. If you were to log onto Windfinder.com and check out the wind in the Caribbean basin you would understand. The whole Caribbean is really really windy. The anchorage here in St Martin is totally enclose so no swells of any sort will get through. But the wind is in the mid 20 knot range with occasional gusts that come powering out of the mountains. The bottom is mud and grass and other than the older couple who dragged yesterday, no other boats have moved. The longer Christa is exposed to these gusts without movement the more confident I become. But I like most people I worry about dragging. About 4 this morning a squall came through and with it an extra 10 knots of wind piled onto the gradient wind. Cumulative wind was about 35 knots. I was up checking my bearings and relative position to other vessels. I was proud to see several other boats with cabin lights on checking things out. One boat dragging can create chaos.

So today will be some more exploring around the island. I plan on working on my resume to drop off at one of the yacht crew agencies. Back in St Thomas I met a mega yacht skipper who has been in the business for 30 years. He invited me over to the big ship for some training on my resume. I learned a great deal from him about the industry and what I may be qualified to do. So I am may be interested in being hired on a yacht as part of a delivery crew. Generally these monsters will head across the Atlantic to the Med in May or June. Many ships give there crews vacation time during the transit and hire delivery crews. So we'll shall see. I am not hell bent on working on one of these yachts but I certainly would do it given the right circumstance. Plus it could be a hoot.

Capt Chris

Bound For St Martin Leeward Islands

Currently in the Anegada Pass

With the weather window holding and with great anticipation I weighted anchor and departed St Thomas this morning just after 7am. Once again with heavy heart I had to leave Wandering Dolphin waving. They did video my departure and maybe they have uploaded the clip. Check out Wandering Dolphins blog under my sidelinks. So the first 3 hours of the trip were more than I had anticipated. 15 knots straight on the nose with a 4 to 6 foot chop. I hate punching into slop, so I tacked back and forth and by the time I was south of St John the wind as predicted eased right up to about 8 knots out of the southeast. Today has been downright beautiful. Crystal clear skies with light winds and a sea that is smoothing out the further east I go. I motored sailed along the south coast of the British Virgin Islands and left Virgin Gorda to port and now am on a rum line for Simpson Bay on the Dutch side of St Martin. Doesn't look like I'm be getting much sailing in. Winds are forecast to stay light all night. At present Christa is motor sailing between 4 and 5 knots. The Yanmar is running perfectly and all systems are G. I anticipate to be near the south coast of St Martin between 8 am and noon time. Late tomorrow afternoon the cold front will be approaching with 10 to 15 knots SW breeze which would be a perfect broad reach. However once the front passes the winds will clock to the NNE at 16 to 22 knots with a 9 to 11 foot sea rapidly following. That would be nearly straight downwind which is a real pain and the wind velocity predictions have varied amongst several sources. So I think instead of soldiering on to Antigua I'll make a stop. So I have a couple of other sailboats on the horizon and I would think a gaggle of boats will take advantage of the current calm conditions to move east. I'm getting close to being done with easting. Bout time, I've been easting since September of 2007!

Capt Chris

New Canvas!

Capt Chris, 80's, winds ENE 10 to 19 knots
02/13/2009, Honeymoon Beach Water Island St Thomas USVI

Check out Christa's belated Christmas presents! Hale and Susan from SV Cayuga finished up said project this morning. My is Christa happy. You can see that I have a new mainsail cover made with "Christa" stitched in with 7 inch letters and I've now changed most of the outside canvas to white. Also that is new dodger canvas as well. Notice the canvas spray shield just forward of the stern anchor. Since Christa is a wet sailing boat this will help protect me more in the cockpit while beating to windward. Not that I plan on ever doing that again. But just in case. You may also note I fashioned up a piece of mahagony, sanded it and put multiple coats of Cetol that soaked right into the wood. You can see it is used as a fuel jug rack. While at sea and hard on the wind with water gushing down the side of the boat the last thing one would want is fuel jugs breaking loose.

So the lastest sailing plan is still up in the air. Although I will be moving. My latest plan is to wait and depart early Monday morning. The winds are going to be very light and variable to 10 knots. Where I land is unknown and I really won't make the call until I'm at sea. I am giving serious thought to motoring the 125 nm toward St Maartin arriving sometime on Tuesday morning. If the forecast holds, the winds should be clocking to the north. If this occurs and the timing is right I would then broach reach another 100 nm to Jolly Harbor Antigua. However, all of this is up in the air and is incumbant on how tired I get and the conditions. The forecast really appears to be wonderful and now it really is just a matter of timing the clocking of the wind. Mid week next week a large north swell will be spilling into the Caribbean basin which limits some of the places I can safely put into. If I were to bet, I would say Christa and company will make either Antigua or The Saints just south of Guadeloupe in the Leeward Islands.

More later as the forecast becomes solid....well as solid as weather forecast go.

Could Have A Weather Window on the Horizon

Capt Chris, winds NE 24 KTS GUSTING HIGHER
02/11/2009, Honeymoon Beach Water Island St Thomas USVI

I'm watching the weather closely as a major pattern change envelops the Caribbean basin. This week the trades are cranking driving ENE winds at 25 knots and 13 foot ENE swell are being generated. I'm happy to be safely anchored here in Honey Moon Bay. But toward the weekend the trades are going to start easing and the wind may come around to the north north east to 10 knots throughout the entire Caribbean. It is amazing to watch the GRIB FILES display the predicted changing conditions as the computer models chew on the latest runs. I am excited.

So at this early juncture I tenatively will be leaving the Virgin Islands on Sunday with a forecast of northeast wind 8 to 13 knots. The plan is to put Christa on a comfortable sailing course with the wind about 60 degrees off the port bow and sail toward the southern Caribbean. Where I make landfall will depend on the weather conditions I experience. Generally I think I may make landfall somewhere near Dominica in 3 days. But if I run into any dead calms, which is possible, i could simply motor east toward the closest island. In any event I really am looking forward to doing some open ocean passagemaking. I'll blog as the weather conditions become clearer so I can make a good choice in terms of departure time and date.

Later,

Capt Chris

An Oldie But A Goodie

Capt Chris, 80's, winds East 10 to 19 knots, 82 degrees and sunny
02/05/2009, St Thomas USVI

Here is an old shot of Christa rafted to Sandpiper in Horseshoe Cove San Francisco Bay circa 2000. Now many of you know about Tom and Amy aboard Sandpiper from reading there cool blog. Team Sandpiper and Team Christa have some history. Tom and I originally met at the docks pictured here at the Presidio Yacht Club in 1999. Tom was living aboard Sandpiper and I had just bought Christa the year before and moved aboard. Tom and I were basically in the same situation, same age, pretty much same everything. If fact Tom and I had several conversations before it was ever revealed that we were both in the Coast Guard and of the same paygrade and rating! And then a few years down the track we ended up on the same ship, the USCGC Morgenthau , leading two separate divisions but sharing the same stateroom. Crazy coincidence. In the same month, July 2005 Tom retired and I put Christa on a truck and off she went to the east coast via the Rockies. Tom and Amy bailed not long after, headed south to Mexico and then westabout. They are now in the southern Carribean and I am very much looking forward to the reunion. So anyway Tom and I both could write a book about the adventures that took place in that little cove under the Golden Gate Bridge over the years we lived their. Hell maybe some day we will!

Capt Chris

Last Nights Sunset As Viewed From Christa

Capt Chris, SE 10 KNOTS, SUNNY, 82 DEGREES
01/31/2009, Honeymoon Beach Water Island St Thomas USVI

I snapped this gem last night!

Enjoy!

Capt Chris