Sunday 12th April. A quiet day on Petronella. Alacazam set off early and I slowly recovered from the flu. In the afternoon we went to the Internet cafe for soursop smoothies (a greenish fruit that looks interesting but is not actually very nice in smoothies!) and emails.
John catching up with the e-mails.
Then in the evening it was the Sunday PAYS...that's Portsmouth Association of Yacht Services...BBQ. PAYS was set up about twenty years ago, when Dominica was almost off limits to yachts due to the violence and thefts in the anchorages there and has revolutionised the welcome we get. Now the boat boys are friendly and well organised and it feels a very safe country.
The idea of the BBQ is that the yachties each pay 50$EC, about £12, for fish and jerk chicken, salad, rice, as much strong rum punch as you can stomach and a mind blowingly loud 70s disco. The boat boys put on the BBQ, do the DJ ing and generally enjoy the music. Lots of Rastas with their small children, about 80 yachties and a good evening. It's a great way to meet the local community and the money goes into helping the boat boys provide a good service. And you meet fellow yachties too.
The idea of the BBQ is that the yachties each pay 50$EC, about £12, for fish and jerk chicken, salad, rice, as much strong rum punch as you can stomach and a mind blowingly loud 70s disco. The boat boys put on the BBQ, do the DJ ing and generally enjoy the music. Lots of Rastas with their small children, about 80 yachties and a good evening. It's a great way to meet the local community and the money goes into helping the boat boys provide a good service. And you meet fellow yachties too.
Next day we were on the lookout for Carpe Diem. We usually track them on AIS but could see no sign of them then suddenly the boat was on the screen 2 miles away and there they were. Jack and Fizzy waving with Ben and Lucy, the Labradors, barking a welcome. They anchored in front of us and we dinghied across to say hello. Great to see them again. We haven't stopped talking since!
Tuesday morning we were up at dawn and Martin rowed us up the Indian River in his pirogue. It was used as a location in Pirates of the Caribbean and some of the set is still there, along with later additions of skeletons and pirates hanging from the trees. Bizarre!
A house used in Pirates of the Caribbean
We asked Martin if he was an extra in the film. He said they only wanted ugly blokes with one leg or one arm so he didn't get chosen! Lots of land crabs and herons in the roots of the huge trees along the banks. Looked for boa constrictors but didn't see any!
The Indian River
Wednesday we hired a car and toured the north of Dominica with Jack and Fizzy. First stop Syndicate Falls. A 20 minute hike in through incredible scenery to an impressive waterfall in the rain forest with a less impressive barbed wire fence at the base to stop you swimming there.
Fizzy at Syndicate Falls
But further down was a deep pool which we all decided was a great place to skinny dip. Then on to the Carib reserve to learn about the Kalinago, the tribe which colonised Dominica before the Europeans arrived. Three thousand of them still live on tribal land in the north east of the country and keep their traditional way of life. A bit touristy but interesting, especially the history. The Europeans didn't come out of this with much integrity.
Friday the four of us plus the dogs walked Section 13 of the national Dominican trail. Again the scenery was amazing. The walk goes along the side of the hills so you look down into tree filled valleys or to the sea. Lots of fruit trees growing wild so we made a good lunch with wind fallen mangoes and grapefruits. And because we were in the rain forest it was cool. On the walk we met Simon, a fellow walker who turned out to be from a gaff rigged Wylo yacht called Island Swift near us in the anchorage and later we met his wife JoJo and boys Finbar and Lockie.
Then Saturday it was market day again and I made the most of it, stocking up for the next week. In the afternoon our friends Graham and Joan on Karma put a BBQ on on the beach and around 20 of us got together to watch the sun go down and eat BBQed fish.
BBQ on Portsmouth Beach
We loved Portsmouth and had a great two weeks there exploring the north of the country. But time to move south and on Monday we sailed down to Roseau, the capital of Dominica. Picked up a mooring buoy owned by a character by the name of Sea Cat who organised a trip to the Boiling Lake for us and Jack and Fizzy the next day. Another great day out. This time we had a guide. Kenny. Tall thin with a degree in mechanical engineering from Woking! He told us you don't get rain in Dominica, just liquid sunshine!
The walk was up a volcano to a lake which was so hot it was boiling, hence the Boiling Lake. You hike up through rain forest until you get to the active volcanic stuff: sulphur vents, bubbling pools of mud and hot streams in the evocatively named Valley of Desolation. Pretty dramatic scenery.
Valley of Desolation
The track is generally good but muddy with a couple of scrambles but nothing we couldn't cope with. We were very lucky and had no liquid sunshine on our trip but it was still quite slippery.
Then 3 1/2 hours in we arrived at the Boiling Lake. A steamy pool of muddy water at a rolling boil. Only two in the world. Quite amazing.
The Boiling Lake, boiling!
We had lunch there and Fizzy climbed down to verify that indeed the water was boiling. On the way back we soaked for a while in hot water pools in the river by the track.The first hot bath we've had since November! Then a final swim in a canyon at the bottom of the trail before returning to the bus.
On the way back to the anchorage we saw an agouti. A rare rodent about the size of a rabbit. We spent most of our time in Les Saintes looking for one without success. So they DO exist Mary and Dick. You were right!
We loved Portsmouth and had a great two weeks there exploring the north of the country. But time to move south and on Monday we sailed down to Roseau, the capital of Dominica. Picked up a mooring buoy owned by a character by the name of Sea Cat who organised a trip to the Boiling Lake for us and Jack and Fizzy the next day. Another great day out. This time we had a guide. Kenny. Tall thin with a degree in mechanical engineering from Woking! He told us you don't get rain in Dominica, just liquid sunshine!
The walk was up a volcano to a lake which was so hot it was boiling, hence the Boiling Lake. You hike up through rain forest until you get to the active volcanic stuff: sulphur vents, bubbling pools of mud and hot streams in the evocatively named Valley of Desolation. Pretty dramatic scenery.
Valley of Desolation
The track is generally good but muddy with a couple of scrambles but nothing we couldn't cope with. We were very lucky and had no liquid sunshine on our trip but it was still quite slippery.
Then 3 1/2 hours in we arrived at the Boiling Lake. A steamy pool of muddy water at a rolling boil. Only two in the world. Quite amazing.
The Boiling Lake, boiling!
We had lunch there and Fizzy climbed down to verify that indeed the water was boiling. On the way back we soaked for a while in hot water pools in the river by the track.The first hot bath we've had since November! Then a final swim in a canyon at the bottom of the trail before returning to the bus.
On the way back to the anchorage we saw an agouti. A rare rodent about the size of a rabbit. We spent most of our time in Les Saintes looking for one without success. So they DO exist Mary and Dick. You were right!
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