2013-05-12

Although the wind died to nothing overnight there was a bit of current that put the boat sideways to the wind and the slight roll occasionally hit a harmonic period that made the boat roll heavily; that wasn’t an issue but the looseness in the rudder made a very loud clunking sound that vibrated the bulkhead behind my bed each time the boat rolled and that caused a bit of sleeplessness. I woke up around 6AM and managed to get going around 7AM, motoring through The Narrows between St. Kitts and Nevis in light conditions – which was good since at times there were less than 10 feet left under my keel in the shallow waters there. The rest of the trip went well with speeds between 3 and 8 knots depending upon the time of day and the wind direction veered and backed during the course of the passage as well; at times I thought I might have to turn on the engine in order to make St. Barths before dark, and then it looked like I could make Grand Case in St. Martin way before dark – in the end it was Grand Case just after sunset, but I know that anchorage well and it is very easy to anchor far outside in only 20 feet or less of water in very good holding. I managed to get the dinghy put together quickly, showered and headed ashore for a bit of food and drink at Calmos Cafe to the accompaniment of a excellent guitarist with drums and bass guitar playing counterpoint.