We’re up at a reasonable time and starting our chores for today. We need to clean the boat as it’s pretty grody and a few other chores as well.
I change a couple of the rope management devices in the cockpit, we wanted to lengthen the ropes a bit as they are a tad short. Break two of them naturally. Hopefully we can find replacements or a cheap alternative for the six hooks. I also attach our new anti-chafe guards to the mooring lines. I can see white paint on one pair of lines already where they are rubbing against the hull. The guards appear to work great, we’ll see if they last.
Christy and I do a pile of cleaning and maintenance. I do a bunch of engine checks and change the alternator belt, the old one had stretched too much and was starting to look a bit ragged. Gotta order maintenance parts for next week. We seem to go through an alternator belt every 4 months or so.
I clean the windows with soft rags and … WD40! Recommended by Michael’s guys and I was a bit nervous about it but it seems to work great. It’s a big job as the windows are filthy but they look great afterwards.
Around 1 pm we’re done and both dirty. Swim and clean off in the clear waters of Young’s Cut. Then we dinghy over to Young Island Resort, literally a rock throw from the boat. We snoop around a bit and have a cold drink at the bar. The bartender is indifferent but it’s a nice enough place. I notice that on April 1st next week the daily price goes from US$696 to US$484.
Soon enough it’s 2 pm and time to go across to Mangoz where we’re going to meet Liz, on her way here with Jimmy Tango from the airport.
Mangoz is a very cool restaurant bar right on the cut. I order wings and fries which are very good while we wait. Another soda water for me, that’s two so far today on top of coffee and other water.
Christy is texting with Liz and it looks like she will be here around 3 pm which is excellent as we are trying to get to Bequia tonight and we really can’t leave after 4:30 pm. She arrives a few minutes later than we expect but right around 3:15 pm or so. We dinghy across to Milu and quickly get ready to leave. Christy and I got the boat ready earlier so it is mostly a matter of bringing up the dinghy, securing a few things and letting go.
New chafe straps come off just as I planned so happy there. By 3:55 pm we are off the mooring, 5 minutes ahead of schedule! We bring the sails up outside of the island and make about 4.5 – 5 kts all the way across in a very pleasant 12-15 kts of wind so it is quite comfortable, especially compared to yesterday.
Cruise on into Admiralty Bay with sails up and then bring them down and motor over towards Princess Margaret Beach, Christy’s favourite anchorage. It’s nearing 6:00 pm and while we would like to look around for a great spot, it is fairly busy and we settle on a good one. We don’t have time to shop around as the sun goes down fast. Anchor down just after 6 pm. Pretty good.
We get settled and then dinghy off to the floating barge, can’t remember what it’s called. Music is actually fun there tonight, not the blaring gangster Caribbean rap they seem to like. Not too busy for a Saturday night, we have one beverage and then on to Jack’s for dinner.
Quiet there too and we’re lucky enough they stayed open as they were about to close because it is dead. Ava serves us and entertains us too with her 22 year old story. She likes to party and when she delivers my second club soda asks “How can you drink that?” We laugh, I admit it’s biggest drawback is how boring it is. In addition to the floating bar, I’ve had about 5 of them this afternoon.
Ava wants us to go to a party downtown but thankfully Liz is tired, like me, and so we head back to Milu. If it was up to Christy, I think we would have gone to the club party.