GUADELOUPE

We sailed from St-Pierre, Martinique to the Island of Marie Galante off the mainland of Guadeloupe, taking us exactly 12 hours.  If it wasn’t for the several squalls, we would have had a fantastic sail.  The squalls screwed up the wind strength and direction.  Along with the current, we had a hard time making it to Grand Bourg Harbor thus we had to use our motor. 

We visited this island mostly by car.  It’s a small island so in a day, we drove all around the island and visited some sites along the way.  Our first stop was the Domaine de Bellevue Rum distillery.  It was kind of early in the morning but yet we couldn’t help but stop by the tasting counter and purchase some Rum agricole. 

NOTICE THE 59% ALCOHOL CONTENT

Anse Canot has a beautiful, mostly private anchorage with a nice beach.  It was one of the beaches without sargassum seaweed.  This seaweed was particularly thick around Marie Galante unfortunately.  It stinks but mostly it’s a nuisance for fishermen and tourists on beaches. 

My favorite site on Marie Galante is a natural round sinkhole with a 200 foot high rim and an arch at the bottom open to the sea.  It is named ‘Gueule Grand Gouffre’.

Gueule Grand Gouffre

We stopped by the town of Capesterre.  It was run down and had much sargassum seaweed so walking along the seashore wasn’t pleasant due to the smell.  Hopefully, the seaweed will subside soon.  The town of Saint-Louis was also run down.  Marie Galante used to produce much agriculture and sold their produce on the mainline.  Nowadays, it’s a sleepy island in which tourists come by ferry from the mainland to visit for a day. 

SARGASSUM WEED

We had a fun sail from Marie Galante to St-Francois.  We landed a Mahi Mahi and made a fish chowder.  We shared our meal with friends Vince and Ralph as they shared their Wahoo with us a few days prior.  Their Wahoo measure 59 inches.  They were so kind as to give us some of their fish for later.  Thanks Vince & Ralph !

The tiny airport in St-Francois is extremely close to the shore.  All day long, you can see skydivers, gyrocopters and many small handmade planes.  Around the marina are some very nice shops and several restaurant/bars where you can people watch.

At Iles de Gosier we anchored between the island and the mainland.  The island is quite small but very quaint with a working lighthouse and snack bar.  We snorkeled and saw a large octopus which we watched for quite some time.  It slowly swam over rocks and coral and every time it moved, we saw its camouflage change with its environment.  Of course, I did not have my camera with me.

ILES A GOSIER

From Iles de Gosier we dignied 3 miles into Point a Pitre, the major city in Guadeloupe.  The dinghy dock was right across from the fishermen’s market and La Darse fruit and vegetable market. 

We visited the Victor Schoelcher museum.  From 1829 to 1830, he visited slave plantations in the south of the United States and during a stopover in Cuba, he discovered the cruel reality of slavery.  When we returned home, he began his career as an abolitionist writer.  He adhered also to the young French Society for the Abolition of the Slavery.  For almost 20 years, Schoelcher devoted his life and fortune to the abolition of slavery in the French colonies.  He campaigned relentlessly, which contributed to the French decree abolishing slavery on the 27^th of April, 1848.

“A two storey limestone building was built for the museum and was inaugurated on July 21^st, 1887.  It was one of the first museums to open its doors from France overseas"

We anchored at Iles a Cabrit which is part of Iles Des Saintes.  It is an uninhabited island with over 100 sheeps and goats.  Having sundowners on the beach was difficult as the chickens would peck all around us hoping to get some of our appetizers.  

There are a couple of wonderful hiking trails on the island with views from each side of the island.  Napoleon had built a fort on this island for his wife called Fort Josephine.

ILES DES SAINTES

We anchored in Deshaies only to provision and clear out of the country since we’ve been here before.  See previous blog on Guadeloupe from April 2015.  We did however dinghy over to Pigeon Island to snorkel at one of Jacques Cousteau’s underwater park.

HINTS FOR CRUISERS:

Grand Bourg, Marie Galante:

Anchorage:  There is only room for about 4-5 boats near the docks.  Chris Doyle says you can tie up to the docks for free but there isn’t any room as many local boats are already there along with fishing boats with their fishing lines on the dock.  Don’t count on getting a spot there.  Also, you may need to put a stern line out as it’s a tight anchorage. DO NOT anchor near the ferries.  It is very protected in a northern swell.

Buses:  From Grand Bourg, buses go to Capesterre and St-Louis every 20 minutes in the morning but good luck waiting for one in the afternoon to get back to Grand Bourg.  They have no schedule.  They basically leave St-Louis and Capesterre towards Grand Bourg to make the last ferry.

Customs:  Pass the tourist office until the road curves to the right.  The customs office is the pink building with white doors in the left hand corner before the road curves to the right.  There are no signs at all.  Use the door on the right side of the building.  Ph # is:  0590 97 54 49.  Cel phone # 0690 83 33 10.

Car Rental:  There are several car rentals along the ferry docks.  ~ 35Euros per day.  You can tour the whole island in one day.

Provisioning:  Le Carrefour is one street up from the docks on the right.  They sell ice for 3.50 Euros.

Ice:  Le Carrefour and the gas station.

St-Francois:

Anchorage:  Good and large

Iles de Gosiers:

Laundry:  From the dinghy dock, walk past the park and when you hit the first major street, turn left.  Walk about 3 minutes and the laverie is on the right side.  It has 4, 8kg washers (5 euros) and one 14kg washer (8.50 euros).  The 2 very large dryers are 1 Euro for 10 minutes.

Pointe a Pitre:

Grocery:  It has a Super U and Economax along with several smaller grocery stores.  You may also choose to buy fresh produce and fish at the markets (they close at 14hrs).

GUADELOUPE, FRENCH ANTILLES and ILES DES SAINTES

You can't beat the French islands for fresh, hot baguettes, great wine and since I can speak French, I love being able to talk to the locals. 

DESHAIES: In the French Islands, they typically have shops or restaurants where you can clear in.  They have a little counter with a computer and a printer.  All you have to do is fill in a form, print it and give it to the store owner to stamp it.  They may charge you one to five Euros for the use of their printer or it's free.  It's the fastest, easiest, cheapest place to clear in.  The French Islands ROCK !

CLOTHES SHOP CALLED 'LE PELICAN' WHERE YOU CAN CLEAR IN & OUT

'Sauce Chien' is often served in restaurants especially in Guadeloupe and Martinique.  'Sauce Chien', simply translated means Dog Sauce.  It's named for the fierce bite of its peppers.  Serve it with grilled fish, shrimp or lobster. It accompanies most meals and works well on vegetables and starches. 

SAMPLE RECIPE:  www.boatus.com/cooking/blog_view.asp?BID=273

We hiked up the Deshaies river bed with our friends Gigi & Bob on s/v Pinnacle.  This hike did not have a developed hiking path so we had to bushwhack a bit but it wasn't too bad.  We followed the river bed jumping from one boulder to the other.  Along the way we saw lots of wild heliconias. 

After socking in some water, we took the road to go back.  We met a man along the road who gave us some fruit from his garden.  He wanted us to guess what kind of fruit it was and none of us were correct.  He said it was apricot but we never saw apricot like that, nor did it taste like apricot.  Still, it was delicious. 

He so wanted us to go back and have some Ti-Punch with him later that night.  Ti-Punch literally means 'Small punch'.  It is a rum based mixed drink that is especially popular in the French islands.  The rum however, needs to be 'Rhum Agricole' which is the French term for cane juice rum, a style of rum originally distilled in the French Caribbean islands from freshly squeezed sugar cane juice rather than molasses.  It's quite potent.

SUSAN & GIGI WITH WILD HELICONIAS



BOULDER HOPPING ALONG THE RIVER BED

THERE'S ALWAYS A PLACE TO COOL DOWN

A LOCAL GIVING US FRUIT WHICH HE SAID WERE APRICOTS

Wild Heliconias everywhere !





We visited, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful botanical gardens I've ever seen, and i've seen many.  They also have parrots.  You can walk there from the anchorage or call the gardens, and they'll pick you up at the end of town.  They charge 15 Euros.  Call 'Le Jardin Botanique at 0590-28-43-02.

PARROTS AT THE BOTANICAL GARDENS

If there's a volcano, we must hike it.  We rented a car (39,70 Euros/day) with Gigi & Bob to hike the Soufrière volcano.  It was about a 1.5 hour drive on windy roads to the town of Saint-Claude near the volcano.  I'm very glad we got a small car because the roads near the volcano are very steep and narrow.  I wished I had parked lower down because the walk up to the trail head isn't far away.  This hike was loads of fun and beautiful.  It only took us about 4 hours to get up.  There is also a natural hot springs at the trailhead which we used upon our return.  There are no changing rooms nor showers but heck, what do you expect for free !!!

NEAR THE VOLCANO



SOUFRIÈRE VOLCANO CRATER



VOLCANO CRATER

THE SULPHUR SMELL WAS EXTREMELY STRONG

PIGEON ISLAND:  We anchored off of Malendure beach, near Pigeon Island because we wanted to snorkel the famous Jacques Cousteau underwater park.  The park is a protected area and no anchoring is allowed.   I would definitely recommend it even though the anchorage is a bit rolly. It truly was a beautiful place to snorkel with lots of fish and huge barracuda.  There are moorings for dinghies.

ILES DES SAINTES:  Iles des Sainte is a cute little town with lots of little shops and great grocery stores.  We hiked 'Le Chameau', a very steep hike from the dinghy dock.  Great views from up there as it's over 1,000 feet high. 

VIEW FROM 'LE CHAMEAU'

If you like Forts, Fort Napoleon is a very nicely kept fort with English literature.  The grounds are beautifully maintained.  Even if you don't like forts, I think this one is worth seeing.





FORT NAPOLEAN



VIEW FROM FORT NAPOLEON WITH ALPENGLOW 

ART IN THE FORT


















Hints for Cruisers:
1 - You can anchor a Pain a Sucre and dinghy to Deshaies.  It's a very nice anchorage.
2 - For laundry servicers, go to LSM "Les Saintes Mulitservice" on the 2nd floor in Deshaies.  10 Euros for a load (wash & dry), extra to fold but she didn't charge me.
3 - Immigration/Customs in Deshaies is also at the LSM office.