Over the rainbow

It’s been a busy month of extensively not sailing anywhere but there has been plenty to keep us on our toes! With Chris in Europe for 2 months there have been periods with a serious lack of adult company. Being back on board by 6pm with 2 energetic kids chatting Pokemon and diffusing sibling tiffs can be pretty lonely and wearing at times with no one to chew the cud with or vent to! A visit from an old school friend Jules and her family nicely broke the spell.

We threw ourselves into island exploration in Martinique. We saw salt petrifications, botanical gardens, banana plantations, rhum factories, they went on dolphin hunts, we fished, oppie sailed, swam, jumped, swam some more & snorkelled on reefs all whilst trying not to delay the healing of a fractured arm for Lucas (5) and not loose anyone overboard. The kids took to boat-life really well & save for the communicable disease we left them with & the general pain in the arse this continues to cause we hope they enjoyed their holiday as much as we loved having them!!

We also tried to hunt out a waterfalls in Didier with 2 other kid boats and it pretty much summed up our life as cruisers! We went searching for an area of natural beauty with tit bits of information on direction, challenges we’d face and stories of what awaited us.

The not insurmountable route took us in a different direction than planned, we clambered with young kids through the riverbed over boulders and down slippery paths, we took risks that some of the group found questionable & the weather didn’t tow the line. Everyone ended up soaked and we didn’t find exactly what we thought we would but the journey with a great group of friends chalked up a great experience. In true goal-orientated fashion we returned for another crack of the whip the following week with “Party of 5” to find the elusive falls! This time a stunning nearly 10km hike through dense foliage & past sheer drops awaited & the kids pushed each other on without a murmur of complaint. This time we found a waterfalls but still not “the one”…did it matter? Not a scrap. We loved the journey with both its frustrations, it’s ups & downs & general ability to make us sweat & feel alive. Everyone was equally as pleased to get out of my hire car!

We’ve then unexpectedly been in kid-boat heaven, seeing old friends & meeting new great families, who may have questionable DJ skills but are a lot of fun. Having 5 other kidboats in close proximity is pretty much like kid crack, but unlike crack it keeps everyone happy and with positive mental health. From renaming ceromonies and 90s disco on “Roam” to hikes to Salinas and days in the waterpark everyone has been kept thoroughly entertained.

S/v “Roam” was officially renamed this week in St.Anne. I was mildly concerned that a key feature of renaming a boat had been missed. It’s commonly known that someone should pee in the bilges upon renaming. Fortunately a small blonde child was slightly too short to reach the heads quickly so kindly obliged & wee’d in the bilges…”Roam”will be forever grateful I’m sure.

Daddy is now back onboard which caused squeals of excitement from us all! We are back to family boatlife and what we signed up for. Our trip is now back underway.

We suddenly jumped into a frenzy of boat-work to get the boat ready for a 3-day (500nm) sail to the ABCs. We were shoehorning this much anticipated trip into a weather window whilst Chris was back for 7 days. The day before departure, I was out for a run with a bit of time to think/take advice, then Chris & I actually had 5 mins for a conversation! After 7 weeks of not sailing the boat or checking the systems we were pedal to metal to get things sorted, right the wrongs I’d been left in charge of! A much more chilled option was a leisurely sail through the grenadines where we knew there will be a highway of kid boats fleeing the hurricane belt to the relative safety of Grenada and some chance to do a bit of kitesurfing.

So not too many goodbyes needed. We did have to say goodbye one particular boat of stars who I’m going to miss anchoring right next to after 8 months. I’m positive they will enjoy the peace and quiet without me bothering them every 5 minutes like an over-excited puppy who hasn’t had human contact. So long “Nomadica” we’ll miss you lots.

This morning we got up with the sparrows and had left Martinique by 530am. Friends on “Entelechy” are on our starboard hip. Technically we’re just ghosting them as we only have a AIS receiver & they can’t see us. We’re running the stinky sargasso seaweed gauntlet and after 5 back downs to clear weed and a sneaky squall that woke us up we’re on the move.

We’re heading past St.Lucia and St.Vincent to Bequia in 15-20knts of breeze. The gennaker has been out for half of the day but progress has been slowed by a tonne of head on current. We hope to throw down the hook into Bequia this evening.