The passage to Les Saints was fast with 30 knots of wind and a 2.5 meter swell…we still managed a little water into the cockpit. We left Dominica at 07:00 and arrived at 10:30. We did a “drive by” through the town moorings only to discover that they were all occupied. As strong winds were forecast for the next couple of days it appeared that everyone was staying. The authorities had laid moorings and anchoring in the proximity was either prohibited or in deeper water further out. We anchored a distance from town past the fishing harbour and ferry terminal. Isabelle and Gilbert (Vent d’ailleurs) arrived shortly after. Gilbert and Simon went ashore to check-in. I was on cockpit cleaning duties to remove the salt spray.

Other friends Marie Claire and Jean-Roc (Teiva) decided to pick up a mooring behind a nearby island (Ilet a Cabrit). When Si and Gilbert returned, Gilbert called and asked them if there were any moorings available. As luck would have it there were four. We both immediately lifted our anchors and headed across the bay. Just as we turned the corner, another two boats had spotted the available moorings…the race was on! Fortunately there were mooring buoys for all. This was a great bay, very protected and only a 1nm dingy ride to town…great if you didn’t mind getting a little wet along the way. That afternoon we went ashore our island and climbed the hill to an old fort. Apart from the original fort and a few old buildings, there were plenty of goats, chickens and a few cats. Not to mention a great view!

Our stay at Les Saints was very social catching up with friends. Our first night we had dinner on board Teiva. The next day we caught up with Cathy and Rob on BnG. We wanted to rent a golf cart however everything was taken as there was a cruise ship in town. As we had time J we decided to come back to Aura for a snorkel around the reef. Unfortunately the afternoon turned overcast so our snorkelling was replaced with a fun afternoon that included lunch, Mexican Trains (domino type game), followed by dinner. We had a great afternoon with lots of laughs.

The following morning we arrived in town (Terre de Haut) early and successfully hired a golf cart. Simon and I sat in the back facing outwards as Rob drove. This is France so it is Left Hand Drive. It was entertaining watching Simon cringe and get anxious as he was at the mercy of another. In his defence, it did appear that we were very close to the road edge and from the back, it felt like we were going a lot faster than we were.

We had a great day exploring the island. Plenty of beaches but most of them were on the Atlantic side and not suitable for swimming. We took the cart up the hill to visit Napoleons Fort and walked through the museum. We headed back to town and enjoyed hamburgers for lunch before heading to the Baie De Pompierre for a swim. It is a well-protected swimming beach that has lovely coral to snorkel on as well as the odd goat looking for a feed. We said goodbye to BnG as they were heading to Dominica for the Yachty Appreciation week. We hope to catch up with them again in Saint Martin.

Golf Cart Selfie

That evening we had Dee and Steve from La Mischief join us for dinner. I slow cooked my favourite pork ribs that Si finished off on the BBQ accompanied by corn, chips and salad. It was great seeing them again as not sure when we will next catch-up. Possibly in the Bahamas as we head north.

We decided to spend an extra day at Goat Island (Ilet a Cabrit) so we could both relax and catch up on a few cleaning jobs. That evening we headed over to Vent d’ailleurs for drinks and a lovely unexpected meal. We had spent the last month cruising together so it was a very sad farewell. They have become very dear to us and shared many wonderful times together. They are spending time in Guadeloupe and Antigua as they have friends flying in from France so not sure when we will be catching up next.

We departed early the next morning as we planned to spend a couple of nights in Deshaies, a northern village in Guadeloupe. It was approximately 40nm with varied wind as we sailed up the lee of the island. We arrived at around 2pm. It was blowing 30nm straight off the mountains so it took us a couple of attempts at anchoring before we were happy with where we sat. As we had a big few days saying goodbye to friends, we had agreed that an alcohol free day was in order. No sooner had we got settled that a couple from the catamaran in front of us pop over to say hello. They bought their own travellers (rum punch) and had already had a few. Annie and Eric (El Gato) are from San Diego and a great couple. They had been to a lot of the islands that we are heading so they had plenty of great recommendations. We had started getting close to the catamaran on our starboard side so we re-anchored. We asked them to come back over to discuss their travels but they only agreed if we would have a drink with them. Si and I agreed as it was only one drink. It was great meeting them and they left early for dinner and we had an early night. So much for our AFD….

The next morning we woke up fresh. Annie and Eric popped over and invited us for a delicious breakfast of croissants, fruit and coffee. We then headed into town to check out, fill our outboard fuel tank (bad move) and do some provisioning. We finally got back to the boat as Paul and Kirsten (Kerpa) anchored in front of us. We went over to say hi and have a couple of welcome drinks. On the way over, the outboard started misbehaving and would not start…bad fuel or did we fill it up with the incorrect fuel type? Shortly after rowing over to Kerpa, there was a wind shift with the wind coming from the west (very unusual as the trade winds come from a NE to E direction). This meant that all the boats starting turning with some coming very close to boats near them. We watched the drama as it unfolded until we noticed that the catamaran that the previous day we had moved away from, was getting close again within a couple of feet of Aura’s bow. Fortunately we were just next door so Si rowed across and let out some anchor chain. Another friendly yacht Juffa also helped by using their dingy to push the catamaran away. Paul and Kirsten joined us for lunch as we needed to stay on Aura to ensure that we were well clear of the catamaran.

That evening we were invited by our Kiwi friends, Kerrie and John (Lurata) for a roast lamb dinner. I was in charge of the roast vegies. Just as I was preparing the vegetables, an Australian couple from Yass popped over to say hello. They own a lovely 55 foot Oyster. They left and we headed over to Lurata for a great night and the best lamb roast. Kerrie even made gravy…it has been awhileJ. They are also good friends of Joanie and Bob that we met in Cartagena …small world. So after our very big day and a scrumptious dinner, we got to bed about 9.30pm. It was such a busy time in Deshaies we didn’t take any photos. The next morning we were off to Antigua.