Sunday, August 24, 2008

Trip to Guayave

What have we been up to since our last update? The days go by so quickly and sometimes we can't even remember what we've done. That's what boat life is like. The smallest chores seem to take forever. The quite moments seem to slip by too quickly.
Last Wednesday we decided to go to Clark's Court Bay Marina for Burger Night. Clark's Court Bay is another anchorage just a short distance from here. We thought we'd check it out by land first, maybe meet a few new people and hopefully get a good burger. Our first 2 attempts at finding a good cheeseburger in Grenada left us disappointed so we were on a mission! The result was not bad. We'll go back again.
We had a van full of cruisers, or as we are referred to in these British islands, Yachties. Our taxi driver dropped us back at the De' Big Fish Restaurant dinghy dock where several of us decided it was still early and we needed dessert. Here we are getting ready to dig into apple pie with ice cream and a four layer chocolate mousse cake. Yum!!!
As usual, Jim couldn't wait for the picture to be taken. He wanted to dig right in!
(Sophie & Natalie - he just wanted a little of each)
Friday night was our trip to Gouyave, a small town on the west coast which is known as the fishing capital of Grenada. Every Friday night the town holds a fish fry, a combination street festival and feeding frenzy.
Vendors set up stalls along 2 streets and cook up all kinds of wonderful dishes. You can get yellow-fin tuna kabobs, red snapper steamed with vegetables over a fire, fried fish of all kinds, shrimp kabobs, stir-fried shrimp with chinese noodles and cabbage, and more. We wandered the street sampling the incredible fare. Then suddenly there appeared a wonderful surprise. Clarke's Court Rum was doing a free tasting!!!
Here's Derek (Idyll Island) and Jim getting an introduction to the Clarke's Court family of rums. I think it's funny how they pretend they don't know much about rum so they can taste a little longer. Steel drum music on the street. The party was just getting going when our bus arrived to take us back to Prickly Bay. It ended much too quickly. We will go back again!
How do you relax after a night of rum tasting? You grab a noodle and your fins and float in the warm waters of the Caribbean. Aahhhhhhh....... Yesterday was another hash. This was the worst yet! I've done 3 and only one was good! The common denominator in the 2 bad hashes, MUD! When we left for the hash in the afternoon it was hot and sunny. A few minutes into the hash it was pouring rain. I should have turned around then. When will I learn? The trail was immediately turned to mud. We climbed up into the hills through beautiful countryside with stunning vistas, if you could see them through the downpour. Then the wind started. We were sheltered in the forested area but when you broke out of the trees on the hilltops you were immediately slammed by the wind. It felt like sleet! We later heard that this squall had wind speeds of 45 knots. Jim was out front with the runners and I, as usual was in the back. I clawed my way up and down the muddy, slippery, squishy trail hanging on to any bush or tree that would help me keep from falling. But progress in these conditions was slow and I soon became concerned that we might not make it off the trail before dark. I was walking with Larry & Debbie from the S/V Debonair, fellow mid-westerners from St. Paul, Minnesota. We were feeling our way down the last big hill in the dark. At least at this point we could abandon the trail and head for the main road, a much safer way back toward home. It was exhausting, much too long (about 3 1/2 hrs) and at times a little frightening. No more hashes for me unless it hasn't rained for days! Check out the pictures on Jacumba's blog.