Sint Maarten/St. Bart's

After our overnight sail we decided that rather than anchoring in Simpson Bay which was quite rolly we would go into Simpson Bay Lagoon for our stay in Sint Maarten. In order to enter the lagoon we had to wait until the drawbridge was raised. This happens three times during the day for outgoing and then for incoming traffic. The day we arrived happened to be the final day of the Heineken Regatta. The lagoon was filled with boats. Griff said it was like pulling your RV into a WalMart parking lot to stay. The shore of the lagoon had stores and restaurants around it and little else. We decided to stay in the lagoon while we did a few more repairs on the boat because it was easier to access the stores we needed there.

After finishing most of the things that needed doing to the boat we moved out of the lagoon to Big Bay which is where Phillipsburg, the capital, is situated. Sint Maarten is certainly the place to buy boat parts but not overly small yacht friendly, Phillipsburg was interesting. We did some shopping in the open air market and a lot of walking around the shopping district. There was a big sandy beach, but when the cruise ships were in it was pretty full. We were able to swim around the boat.

When we cleared customs in Simpson Bay there was a sign saying that the authorities were being strict about lifejackets and all around white lights for dinghies. When we cleared out in Phillipsburg we found out how strict they were. One fellow was telling us how he got stopped one evening because he didn’t have the white light in his dinghy. He was fined $250, the dinghy was hauled out and put on a hoist and he was a guest in the jail for the night. I am absolutely positive if it had been a tender from one of the many, many, many mega-yachts in the harbour, it would not have happened. We were lucky then because we spent a lot of time in our dinghy while in the lagoon and did not have any lifejackets or light with us. Mind you we did not use the dinghy after dark there.

From Sint Maartens we had planned on going to Saba which is another island in the Netherland Antilles, but changed our minds and went to St. Bart’s, a French island. We stayed there for one night and then headed for St. Kitts which is where we are as I am writing this. St Barts is apparently where lots of big-wigs and movie stars go but we didn’t find the people particularly friendly. Again, this is a mega-yacht island .









The sail from St.Barts to St Kitts was absolutely fabulous – just like you imagine sailing should be. We had the wind on a broad reach – for the non-sailors that is a wind that is coming from behind. Probably 90% of our sailing since we got here we have had the wind on our port bow, just enough of a direction that it was a constant battle to keep the wind working for us. Today the swells were helping the wind and we were able to use all three sails. GREAT!!! The colour of the water was amazing - I hope the picture does it justice. The blue was vibrant!!


Cheryl handled the only off moment like a seasoned salt. There was a squall that passed in front of us and we had thought we lucked in. Well, although the rain was gone, we were suddenly sailing in 25-28 knot winds nearly off our beam. As I said, Cheryl took it all in stride.
In St. Bart’s we met up with a couple from Toronto who we had talked with in Virgin Gorda and they are also here in St. Kitts. As well, we met another couple from Toronto who are anchored next to us. Tomorrow the six of us are going to go on a tour of the island. From what we saw of the island sailing down the west side, it is the prettiest one we have seen so far – all green with sugar cane and rain forest. We are looking forward to the tour tomorrow.