Bequia is the most civilized island in The Grenadines with shops and restaurants on the water's edge in the main harbor, Port Elizabeth in Admiralty Bay. Water taxi operators greet each arriving boat to assist with mooring buoys and offer the usual services such as bread, ice and taxi service. Daffodil Marine Services will answer a VHF call and come out to your boat to bring ice, water for the tanks and even pick up laundry to be cleaned, folded and brought back in a matter of hours. I think it's a good idea to accept a mooring buoy. The cost is only $15 to $20 (U.S.) and it's likely to be in a better place than where you might find to anchor. It's also easier getting along with the water taxi operators (often called boat boys) when they see you are spending into the local economy. One of our boats anchored away from the others and found upon returning from dinner ashore that the boat had been entered and relieved of a couple hundred dollars in cash. Compared to B.V.I., security is a greater issue down island. It's important to lock shut all hatches when leaving and even lock the dinghy and its engine with the cables and locks provided. Violent crimes are uncommon. Burglary can generally be avoided by making sure all the hatches are properly latched and anchoring or mooring in the vicinity of other cruisers instead of in isolated areas. In the morning it was time for the sail to The Tobago Cays. The passage (past Mustique and Canouan) of about 26 miles was a reach with 20 or so knots of wind. How sweet it is with the temperature in the mid 80's and the water a deep clear blue. We let Paul do most of the driving so he could get used to a 46 foot boat. Later in the week he would have to demonstrate proficiency in steering, man overboard drills, anchoring, navigation and use of systems to complete the on the water requirements for his certification. His prerequisite courses were completed at Spinnaker Sailing prior to the trip. The front door to the Tobago Cays is entered from just north of Mayreau Island along a range marked by the towers located on two of the little Cays, Petit Rameau and Petit Bateau. After following the range for over a mile, you pass between the two cays to anchor in the lee of Horseshoe Reef. There are no stores, restaurants, or any establishments ashore here, only 4 uninhabited cays. The anchorage is protected by Horseshoe Reef from the seas generated by the easterly trade winds. Water taxis provide the only services; bringing out bread, ice, freshly caught fish, tee-shirts, etc. They can also provide a fish barbecue on the beach of one of the cays for you. Diving services are also available and can be contacted via VHF. This is a place to enjoy nature. The snorkeling on Horseshoe Reef is fantastic. There are dinghy buoys over the reef so snorkelers don't damage the reef with their dinghy anchors. We got into the water as soon as we could after settling into the anchorage. The coral was in good shape with lots and lots of small fish. While snorkeling, Melinda saw a black tip shark and tried to call our attention to it but we were only paying attention to our own discoveries and missed the shark. We stayed in Tobago Cays two nights and had a fish barbecue on the beach organized by one of the water taxi operators. It was overpriced and we had to bring our own plates and silverware but it was fun getting all of us ashore together from the 4 boats. The barbecued fish was plentiful and very good. They provided potato salad, rice and beer to go with it. I don't even want to tell you what we paid but I will say: Be sure you know what you're going to get when negotiating a price with any of the water taxi operators. We slipped out the southern Back door of the Tobago Cays the next day to head directly to Clifton Harbor in Union Island. Unless you're familiar with the area, this should only be done when the sun is high because the gap through the reef isn't marked. We probably wouldn't have gone that way ourselves except for having seen the area the day before by dive boat. |
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