The passage from Puerto Rico to the Dominican Republic is known to be rough.  Steve planned a route across the Mona passage and picked a day to sail when the wind was low and the waves were short.  We made the passage safely and arrived in Cap Canna marina before the sun went down.  Before getting off of the boat, we had to wait for both customs and border control and the Dominican Republic’s navy to board our vessel and clear us into the country. A visit from the navy is required in every port.

This marina was beautiful.  It had canals throughout it, winding docks, and buildings housing villas on both sides.  It is mainly used for fishing boats, but there were a couple of other sailboats tied off where we were.  Many foreigners have purchased villas in the marina, as it is its own, contained complex with restaurants, shops, and a beach.  Many had golf carts that they drove around the complex.  After spending two nights in Cap Canna, we headed north on an overnight sail to Marina Puerto Bahia in Samana Bay. 

While sailing along the southern side of Puerto Rico, we saw this blimp. It is used for some sort of scientific study.

Obviously I am not a videographer. However, if you have the patience to play this for 1:44 minutes, you’ll see two dolphins jumping out of the water.

The next day we sailed to Vieques, Puerto Rico.  We couldn’t believe how uncrowded the waters were in the Spanish islands compared to the other islands in the Caribbean.  The water here was clear too.  We would have liked to have gone into town, but we didn’t have the time and I was still not feeling well.

The next day we sailed to Puerto Rico and anchored west of Ponce.  Along the way a large pod of dolphins frolicked alongside the boat.  Seeing them always makes us smile.  It is amazing how they can stay inches off of the front of the boat and not get hit.  The anchorage we settled in for the evening was quite muddy and when I pulled the anchor up, mud got everywhere.  After spending the night, we continued west to Puerto Real and entered the marina there.  I was still struggling with Covid, but was on the mend.  We were able to explore Puerto Real a little, as we rented a car to go grocery shopping.  They even had a Walmart in Puerto Real where we were able to purchase some items at reasonable prices.  (It was unbelievable how crowded Walmart was.)  The roads in this area were quite good, as was the signage.  In fact, we remarked at how modern this part of Puerto Rico looked. 

We spent two nights in the marina and then left late in the afternoon to anchor in the bay.  We wanted to be able to leave around 6:30a the next morning, as we had a long sail to the Dominican Republic.  There were supposedly manatees in the bay, but we didn’t see them.

2.7.25

We arrived in Antigua later than in previous years, after the start of the new year.  The boat was in fairly good condition because Steve and I spent five days during the Thanksgiving week putting her back together after being on the hard for hurricane season.  So, we spent one night in a rented house, prepared the boat for sailing, washed the boat, and splashed the next day.  We also provisioned the boat while we had a rental car.

After a couple of nights in the Jolly Harbour Marina, we set sail for St. Kitts.  We had a good weather window and left earlier than expected.  It was an uneventful day’s sail to St. Kitts.  We stayed in a bay that we have stayed in before, outside of the marina, because it is usually calm.  The next day we sailed overnight to St. John’s and ended up anchoring in Rendezvous Bay.  This is a beautiful bay with some white sandy beaches lining it and clear, turquoise water beneath us.  Since we arrived around 8a, we were able to relax the entire day.  I (Christine) came down with Covid and Steve was kind enough to do the majority of the sailing for the next week or so while I tried to recover.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t feeling up to taking a lot of pictures or documenting our journey in the moment.

On April 5 we motored to North Sound Marine and were hauled out.  Steve navigated the slip perfectly and we didn’t scrape the sides at all.  This slip is challenging because of the cross-winds blowing the boat to one side.  Anyways, we hauled out smoothly and started the final preparations for leaving the boat on the hard until next winter. 

This marina is nice in that it has a cement bottom.  This year it was easier to obtain water and electricity, as they have been upgrading the facility. 

This marina is located in the northern part of Antigua, which is not very built up.  We stay in an Air B & B that is in the area.  It has a washing machine, which is so nice.  I am was able to get all of our linens and clothes washed and put away.  (Unfortunately, we have to hang dry the laundry at the house, but it works out OK.)  This location also requires us to rent a car to get back and forth to the boat.  Since we have hauled out in this marina before, we know where the amenities are located and it all works well. 

We try to get to the boat around 6:30a so that we can work before it gets too hot.  Then, we run errands and return to the house to eat lunch and do laundry.  We return to the boat in the late afternoon and work until dinner time, again, once it has cooled down.  This year we had a week to prepare the boat in the marina as well as four days on the hard so we left Spring Tradition in the best shape ever for the off season.

On 4/4/24 we motored up to North Sound and anchored in the same place as before, to the right of Rabbit Island.  This is a good place to anchor because snorkeling is accessible off of the back of the boat. 

I really like this area because we are able to observe a pelican nest.  We’ve been watching a baby pelican grow over the past weeks, which has been quite interesting.  At first, we only saw a small white, round, tennis ball-like object above the nest’s edges.  As the baby pelican grew, it started popping its head up over the side.  By the time we left, the baby pelican was venturing into the water below the nest.  During the morning and late afternoon, momma and poppa pelican were either in the nest or perched on a branch below.  If the baby started squawking and momma and poppa were not there, they would quickly return.  Other birds would circle in the area in the morning and afternoon.  Sometimes several pelicans stood watch over the nest during these times.  I’m assuming that they were protecting the baby from the circling birds above.  Apparently, “It takes a village” also applies to pelicans. 

We ended up staying in the same anchorage for four nights.  Even though the swells shifted, the wind was very slow so we essentially floated around our anchor.  This was a good place to anchor because we could swim to snorkeling right off of the back of our boat.  The water was really clear the day that it rained (3/26/24).  However, it clouded up on the 27^th.  By the 27^th, there were probably a dozen boats in the area, which is a little odd.  We didn’t think much of it though.  Spending three and a half days in this area was incredibly peaceful.  This is one of our favorite anchorages in Antigua. 

On 3/27/24, we both went snorkeling around Lobster island.  I now know what “coral-bleached” coral looks like.  Last year the coral in this area was incredibly healthy and there were many fish swimming around.  This time, the coral looked faded out, like it was covered with white bleach.

On 3/28/24, we sailed back to Jolly Harbour and entered the marina. As we arrived at Jolly Harbour, we realized why so many boats were in North Sound. The swells were heading right into Jolly Beach, making the anchorage choppy and cloudy.  

Sadly, our season is coming to an end.  We will spend the next week breaking down the boat and preparing it to sit on the hard until next January. 

Unfortunately, the wind and swells shifted to the south east, which was making the anchorage feel a little uncomfortable.  We decided to head back to our original anchorage to see if it was better there.  It was not, so we tried to drop our anchor next to a destroyed hotel, which appeared to receive some protection from the swells.  Unfortunately, that area was not very calm either so around 11:30a Steve decided that we should head back to Antigua.  I took some seasickness medicine immediately and my stomach was fine.  Unfortunately, even though the Bonine says it is non-drowsy, and I only took half a tablet, it knocked me out and I slept through most of the ride. 

We had to watch out for reefs as we neared the North Sound, but once through them, we were in familiar waters and knew exactly where to go to anchor.  Steve looked at the anchorage near Bird Island and then veered off to between Rabbit and Lobster islands.  We are the only boat here, which is a little unusual.  However, the water is calm and the wind is light and steady.  We are enjoying it while it lasts.  The winds are predicted to shift and we may need to move the boat to find a more protected area. 

Even though I had my polarizing sunglasses on and was standing at the front of the boat, it was hard to see the tall coral reefs off of Coco Point until we were on top of them.  We were incredibly lucky that we didn’t hit any of them.  We found a nice place to anchor and enjoyed the sunny afternoon.  The water was fairly clear and a large turtle would pop up for air relatively close to our boat.  The bottom was sandy, which made the water appear turquoise.  After snorkeling, Steve decided that he wanted to move the boat closer to shore.  The anchor chain was in a good place.  However, there was a rock close by and he didn’t want the boat to swing and have the chain get caught under the rock.

The last time we were at Coco Point, there was a hotel on the point and the K club was abandoned.  Quite a bit of construction has taken place and most of the point was built up.  It was unclear to us if the construction in the picture was part of the hotel or another development.  Princess Di beach in this area is still beautiful and most of it remained natural and undeveloped.