Early in the day
I didn’t sleep all that well and woke early. I didn’t have much left in the cottage, although I did have the remains of a case of beer and lots of smaller items in the fridge to contend with.
I used the last time with internet connectivity to fill out my electronic departure form; although I’d been warned that the computer in the office is often down and you have to fill in the information manually (on 5 different forms). After packing and cleaning up a bit, I departed and headed downhill to Hillsborough and from there to Tyrell Bay.
The wind had freshened overnight and Zanshin was on the lee side of the dock and being pushed away from it. I could barely get the boat close enough to clamber aboard and I wasn’t sure how I was going to leave the dock singlehanded.
I loaded my items aboard Zanshin and then got my passport and documents together for the trip to the Customs and Immigration office. I was second in line and was processed relatively quickly (for the Caribbean) when my turn came. I submitted my forms and was pleasantly surprised that they didn’t charge me the monthly “cruising permit”. Even though I’d just been put into the water and was leaving the same day, I’d been told that often they charge for the cruising permit. So after paying my 60XCD departure fees I was ready to depart.
Back aboard at 09:30 I fought to get the bimini top attached so that I’d have some shade. The wind was gusty and it took me until 12:00 to complete a task that should have taken 15 minutes at most.
Noon
At noon I drove to the grocery store, where at 12:30 Delon and I exchanged my cash payment for my use of his rental car. I picked up some final supplies and returned to the docks. I worked at getting my dock lines reattached to that both ends came back to the boat, but this proved very difficult in conditions. The wind was coming at 90° to the dock. In the end I realized I should just wait for someone to come by and ask for their assistance.
Soon two fellow sailors did show up and in short order I was off the dock and and getting my fenders and dock lines stowed while in the protected marina basin. Once that I was completed, I negotiated the narrow but deep channel and was soon in open water. I set my sails and turned off the engine – what a pleasure to be on the water again.
Sailing
I’d programmed my route from Carriacou to Sint Maarten into the chartplotter with a total distance of 360NM (666Km) as the crow flies. The winds were predicted to be quite light in parts, but I found them to be a bit stronger than predicted and my first couple of hours were exhilarating. I was doing 9-10 knots with a reef in both sails. Although the wind didn’t seem that strong, it must have been the clean hull and prop plus not towing a dinghy that gave me the extra speed. If this continued for 24 hours I might get a 200NM day; which is a big achievement in sailing.
Nighttime
After dark I had my first issues. I’d threaded the genoa sheet through the wrong pulley and when I tightened it there was a line override. This wasn’t good – it was dark, and I could see clouds upwind that promised strong winds and I needed to put a reef in the sail quickly. I found a strong line and proceed to tie a rolling hitch to it. I would then take this line around the winch and to another winch so that I could tighten it and relieve the pressure on overridden line. Just as I was completing tying the hitch, a gust of wind added some force to the genoa sheet and the override popped out (almost taking my hand with it…). Problem solved.
There was no other traffic in sight or visible on the AIS or radar, so I set my alarm to hourly intervals for my night watch. I’d try to sleep and just as I was getting there, the alarm would go off and I do my horizon scan and then the AIS/Radar and also check below to make sure everything was still in order. Then another round of sleep. I saw no traffic and since I was sailing offshore I was about 30 miles or so away from the islands and couldn’t see anything but water and stars around me.