Hello there from Carriacou!

After being anchored at Hog Island for almost five months we were in need of a change and devised a plan to head north, first to Carriacou and then on the St. Vincent and the Grenadines for a couple of months before the hurricane season sets in again. We arrived in Carriacou and were just about to push the button to apply for a quarantine mooring in St. Vincent when Mt. Soufriere blew.

The volcano has been erupting for the last three weeks with lava and pyroclastic flows spreading over the northern end of the island and ash shooting miles up into the sky. Five cruise ships arrived to evacuate about 16,000 people and distributed them amongst the nearby islands. St. Vincent is 40NM from here but when the wind blew from the northeast we were inundated with ash, coating everything from the deck to the top of the mast. Cleaning up was dirty work, especially the halyards but luckily we had a short, sharp shower a few days later which washed most of the ash off the shrouds.

We enjoy life in Carriacou, it’s quite different from it’s big sister island Grenada. Being smaller and less mountainous it is much drier with scrubby bush and dry grass rather than the rich rainforest of Grenada. Life is unhurried; the bus runs slowly scattering goats and sheep from the road and the driver stops frequently to deliver groceries or takes kids into school, or sometimes just for a chat with the driver of a bus coming in the opposite direction.

Eventually it reaches Hillsborough, the main town which has three or four streets of shops as well as a post office, a police station and immigration office where we need to go for visa renewals. Shopping involves scouring a handful of hardware stores and “variety” shops and you may find what you’re looking for or something that will make do. There are a couple of small supermarkets and lots of colourful stalls selling fruit and veggies, a shopping trip is always an adventure.

Before we left Grenada there was a spate of dinghy thefts in the Woburn area. After jamming at Nimrods Rum Shop one night we got back to the boat at about 10pm and, feeling a bit lazy, we locked the dinghy alongside the boat instead of hauling it like we usually do. The next morning we heard on the VHF radio net that a friend, Matthew, had had his dinghy and outboard stolen from the dock near Nimrods. A couple of hours later we noticed that our spare outboard which was usually secured on the transom of Distant Drummer was gone. Thieves had boarded our boat and stolen the motor from the deck right above our heads – we heard nothing.

We went to the police station with Matthew to make statements. Once we were finished another officer showed us into a back room where lay three outboard engines that had been recovered that morning. One of them was ours – we couldn’t believe our eyes. They had recovered our property before we even reported it missing! Apparently the Police often listen the cruisers VHF radio net and on this occasion took action when they heard about the thefts. It cheered us up no end. Unfortunately they have to hold our outboard as evidence until the investigation is finished and the guys that stole it have been tried. It could take months but luckily we will still be here for a while longer.

There are plenty of boats in Carriacou so our social life is quite busy, visiting friends for sundowners or dinner on board and there are several restaurants to choose from in Tyrell Bay and Hillsborough. For such a small island there is a vibrant music scene with local bands playing most evenings. On Tuesdays a group of musicians get together for a jam and Wednesday night is a treat with Zulu and the drummer boys beating out a rhythms on the djembe drums.

I joined a hike across the island the other day. We started on the east coast at Tibeau Bay, the location of one of the oldest cemeteries on the island.  The graves date back to the 1700’s but coastal erosion due to sand mining on the beach has caused many of them to be washed into the sea. The shoreline is scattered with tombs but many more headstones stand above the tide line as a poignant reminder of the history of plantations and slavery on the island.

One of the great things about Carriacou, maybe because it has so little rainfall, is the amazingly clear water. Several deserted islands have small coves where just occasionally we might be anchored on our own. We have loved exploring some stunning reefs which are swarming with fish, lobster and octopus amongst the beautiful coral. We also had fun snorkelling on the hull of the tug boat in Tyrell Bay. It was very strange to see angelfish swimming upside down, presumably they mistake the coral growing on the hull for the sea bottom – hilarious!

Well that’s about it from us. I hope that lockdowns are easing up wherever you are and soon you will be able to enjoy the freedom that we are so lucky to have here.

Suzy and Neil xx