Sunny, hot, nice wind. I think this is what gets sailors into trouble – you see the same thing every day, expect the same thing every day, then one day it is not the same thing and you get a rude awakening.
We’re up pretty early as we want to do a walk around the windward side of Mayreau before it gets too hot. Ella told us there is a path that leads to a nice beach where “The Ranch” restaurant can be found.
Off we go, we find the path and start out. It’s a really nice jaunt with great views. We should have brought a garbage bag to pick up the plastic bottles though. Such a shame.
It’s a great long beach at the other end, about half an hour’s walk. Windfacing and reefy so probably good for snorkeling tho not great for lazing around in the surf. The Ranch is a cool spot and we arrive just as they open. “Two smoothies please”. OMG that’s good. We sit out on their cabana on the edge of the ocean in the shade and the breeze. Very nice.
Definitely will add this to the TTD on Mayreau. Next time we’ll come in the afternoon, have a rum smoothie, stay for dinner and have them drive us back.
On the way back we pass the salt pond where they mine salt – it’s a natural brackish pond between two seas – Atlantic on the east, Caribbean on the west. Not much to look at but I took a picture anyway. We walk back into the little town, back up the big hill where the view from the church is spectacular, then back down again.
It’s about noon so we have a bite to eat and then Christy wants to clean the dinghy. It is embarrassingly barnacle encrusted, including the motor. The motor doesn’t go down like it’s supposed to when you lift it up to clear the beach and it’s so full of barnacles that I have cut my hands a few times manually dropping it. We motor to shore where Eric and a local, Freddy, help us haul it up on the beach in the shade. G-D thing weighs a ton. Christy and I can’t haul it off the beach alone so have been anchoring instead.
Freddy is great, you can tell he just wants to work and get a few bucks for helping. Soon enough his “cousin” – everyone’s a cousin around here – shows up who is a drunk, drug addict or both. He is pretty annoying and Freddy clearly doesn’t like him but he’s working like a dog so we let him stay. Takes about an hour to get 99% of the barnacles off. Old dinghy hasn’t looked that good in years I’ll bet. I bet Christy that Freddy’s cousin has drunk the EC$20 we gave him before we get back to the boat. Gave Freddy a bit more and he was happy.
We head back to the boat to relax and clean up but Christy has two tumbles getting off the dinghy (revenge?) mangles her toenail and hurts her leg. Generally there is one injury per day per person but she wins MIP today. She plays nurse on herself, then we go visit Eric and Ella on their cat next door for a few beers.
We know they are at least partly awake but when Christy finds out they are completely awake well watch out. Great conversation then back to Milu for sleepy sleepy.