Lap of Luxury

We came into Rodney Bay on the island of Saint Lucia, planning to take a slip in the marina for several days.  Iolair has not been tied to a dock in many months, much less a floating dock with water, electricity, laundry and trash services, and.......... a Thai restaurant overlooking the marina! The boat sat perfectly still and the air conditioning was turned on for the first time since November. There is not much breeze in a marina. We took advantage of a good chandlery and hardware store. Three days of boat chores were scratched off the list.

Iolair is pretty much self-sufficient off the grid, but we do need freshwater from friendly land-lubbers every few weeks. Hopefully, in the near future, we'll be able to add a water collection system to take advantage of regular rains. Diesel is another story. The other day we topped off our tanks for the first time since November. We sail everywhere and rarely need to use the motor. Solar provides us all the electricity we need day to day. So far we have not missed a watermaker or generator to support our needs, but for a few days in St. Lucia, we had unlimited hot showers - actually felt a bit guilty.

St. Lucia is the iconic Caribbean. The beaches are whiter, the pitons along the coast are taller, the sunsets are more colorful, and the protected narrow coves were filmed for "Pirates of the Caribbean." Locals come by boat selling fish, fruit, art, and souvenirs. Our floating fleet of friendships continues moving southward. We run into people we know on most of our layover stops, although everyone has different plans for the hurricane season. During the storm season, Grenda, Trinidad, and Bonaire are popular hangouts.

The cruising guide warns sailors of increased thefts and robberies in the southern Windward Islands. We added some extra locks and security on board. That said, we have really enjoyed our stops along St. Lucia and the locals have been very nice. We plan to skip St. Vincent altogether due to security concerns. We will instead sail around to Bequia and begin to explore the Grenadines.

Two booze cruise party cats came into the bay this afternoon. Their sound systems pumped 'jump up' music for hours. They sailed out with the sunset and upset a noisy flock of seagulls which can't seem to settle down. I tried to clean up the fishing tackle in hopes of a strike on the way to Bequia. Kelly made a fresh coconut pie. Next time she bakes it I think I'll sneak a couple of shots of rum into the mix.

Tonight we roll in the swell next to Petit Piton, and I'm going to have a second piece of that pie. Tomorrow we sail 10 hours to Bequia.