Judy and Ivor - Exposed

New crew, Judy & Ivor, arrived at the airport on Sunday May 3 to a blanket of hot tropical air - cold, brown Calgary a faint memory. Immediately Ali, the taxi driver, offered to drive us up and across the entire island of St Lucia for a good price.

He bought us a cold Piton beer made locally. We stopped at Dennery for a kingfish kabob en-route to Rodney Bay, in the northwest corner of St Lucia. When we arrived, there were Griff and Cheryl, relaxed and on island time, reading and patiently waiting for the Albertan landlubbers who had been delayed an hour in a long airport line up.

The dinghy was full but we made it in one trip …. At last seeing “Mystic Journey” with our own eyes. We have been reading the yacht blog and understand that this dream week is the result of a lot of hard work on the part of Cheryl & Griff. Operating a yacht is not just throwing up the sails and cruising along, so it is with great appreciation that we have come to witness things first hand.

What a different experience … Judy’s first time on a yacht and there they were, eating bbq'd steaks on the aft deck of Mystic Journey!!

Great first day just swimming and lying on the deck ….Judy prefers the starboard side especially once she learned how sailors feed the fishes from “the head”. Sun was present despite the cloud cover and we soon had a pink hue to our faces and necks.

Off to Pigeon Island where they were preparing for the Island Jazz Festival bands this weekend. No need to pay admission - just lie in bed and listen to the music waft across the water under a moon lit sky. Life does not get any better than this!!

Later on we all enjoyed a meal, Dorado fish with beans and rice, at Jambe de Bois restaurant overlooking the bay and the twinkling lights of the town.

The next day after the crew hiked up to the top of the fort lookout, Griff and Cheryl battoned down the hatches and pulled out of the bay. It was amazing to watch the team work of the two Prairie cruisers as they set the sails. Off we went at about 6-7 knots with some nice winds. The Captain and Ship’s Surgeon turned the helm over to the Englishman who managed to get us to Marigot Harbor where we were immediately swarmed by Rastafarians selling carved manta rays and necklaces, t-shirts and fruit. Once we were attached to the mooring ball and had supper the estrogen team beat the testosterone team at cribbage (correction - Ivor and Griff’s version – the testosterone team, being the gentlemen that they are, allowed the ladies to come from behind and win).

The estrogen team leader, Judy, was like one of those gofers in Chucky cheese that you bonk on the head with a bat and they pop up somewhere else…Whack A Mole … with excitement but not a competitive bone in her humble body according to Griff!! (Me thinks he has had too much sun on his solar panel and it is shorting his wiring!!)

Next morning Judy reported for duty early to prepare for sailing. The Captain’s first orders were to clean the heads. “Neyt” said the Russian sailor!!! The mutiny had begun!! Of course Captain Whack a Mole and her English crewman saved the day and got us into The Pitons despite a minor squall and very little wind.

Next enter Captain Bob on his water taxi …totally looking for some gullible new cruisers to take to the cleaners …… off to Soufriere … He charged too much to take Ivor and I to town and drive to a couple of spots: his driver did not even get out to open the door for the new Captain … wish I was a Pirate so I could hang him from the gallows. Amidst the rain we walked inside a volcanic crater and saw iron mud boiling and folks covering themselves in black iron mud for the sake of their health!! (Too much liquid sun here) However it keeps their botanical gardens magical; St Lucia grows amazing flowers. Imagine seeing cashews growing no wonder they are so expensive!! Tried soursop fruit and yummy passion fruit, Cheryl did her magic in the kitchen with mangos and chicken.

We have been here for 5 days and have had more rain than we care for. Today is our driest day so we were enjoying the break and all set off to climb the Piton. Well we were dry until we got into the dinghy and Griff opened up the throttle and took us full speed into a howling wind…….it was as if someone was standing there throwing buckets of water at us…..in moments we were drenched and our feet were in a puddle of water. Just another memorable moment to go along with so many, like Cheryl’s homemade bread, brownies and great meals, the wonderful hospitality and the great teamwork that Cheryl & Griff display whether operating the yacht or just putting their heads together over a crossword puzzle.

We had a memorable week sailing down island and being with the cruisers was absolutely fabulous……….a huge thank you for the opportunity and the generous hospitality.
Bon voyage………Judy & Ivor