tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54210033799272857462024-03-05T18:21:01.980-05:00s/v CallistoDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.comBlogger132125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-36254346114417735962019-01-08T14:19:00.001-05:002019-01-08T14:19:23.678-05:00Happy New Year
Happy New Year
We hope everyone is having a great start to 2019. Callisto and crew spent Christmas on St. Lucia. We were able to meet up with Marsha and Bob Perry on Crusader. Marsha and Bob are people we met in St.Lucia and now that we have moved to Maryland, we also see them in the summer. We were invited for Christmas Eve dinner aboard Sequoia, Outbound hull number 5 in Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-31212734427141568752018-12-23T15:48:00.001-05:002018-12-23T15:48:08.068-05:00Saint Vincent
In our first visit to the Grenadines, more than 15 years
ago, we did a crewed charter that started in St. Vincent. There is an interesting story at the start of
that trip. We had a few hours between
arriving at the airport and being picked up by our charter crew. We decided to take a taxi tour of the island,
and were extremely impressed by the scenery.
At one point, our Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-1246985370948397532018-12-16T20:32:00.002-05:002018-12-17T05:30:15.120-05:00back on the water!
Callisto is in the water and we
are aboard....It feels great to be back in the Eastern Caribbean. Some
may say we are in a bit of a rut, continuing with the same pattern each year,
but we like it.
We spent very little time in Grenada once we launched. The weather has
been very good for comfortable sailing, not too much wind, small waves and the
rain squalls have all happened afterDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-42743147790235784842018-04-24T15:51:00.000-04:002018-04-24T15:51:00.974-04:00Drone!Our Swiss friends Veronika and Martin visited us in February. We spent most of the 12 days they were with us on Dominica, which is an island they had never visited before.
Martin owns a quite sophisticated drone, one that is small enough to easily transport. It takes terrific photos and videos. I was impressed at the specs: it can travel as far as 7 kilometers from the Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-18047340877291217642018-02-28T12:29:00.000-05:002018-02-28T12:29:27.193-05:00More About Dominica
We arrived
in Dominica nearly three weeks ago, and with the exception of a couple of days
at Iles des Saintes have been on a mooring in Portsmouth. We have made several more taxi tours of the
island, and continued to learn about the impact of Hurricane Maria.
The damage
to vegetation and habitations varied quite a bit from place to place, with the
Southeastern part of the island hit Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-3845880355451010742018-02-10T09:11:00.001-05:002018-02-10T09:11:56.148-05:00Dominica
We are on
the island of Dominica for the first time since it experienced the
devastating Hurricane Maria in September 2017.
Maria was the first Category 5 hurricane to ever strike Dominica, and
caused catastrophic damage.
With
sustained winds of 160mph, and frequent gusts above 200mph, Maria stripped the
leaves from virtually every tree. The
high winds also took off most or all ofDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-89099206010134896122018-01-31T08:33:00.000-05:002018-01-31T08:33:12.542-05:00Soufriere, St. Lucia
One of the
most beautiful places we visit while cruising is the town of Soufriere on St.
Lucia. The town itself is very vibrant
and busy, with lots of older, traditionally-built buildings. The area around town is just gorgeous, with
the two Piton mountains dominating the view.
For some
years we have used the services of a young man named Jarvin when we come to
Soufriere. Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-15733472714820240542018-01-15T12:14:00.001-05:002018-01-15T12:14:29.002-05:00Cruising at Last
Our cruising
schedule got changed this year, because Life interfered. Last June, we decided to move back to the
United States from Switzerland. We had
done some house-hunting in the area near Annapolis, Maryland, and found a house
we liked and could afford there.
Annapolis is one of the major sailing destinations in the world, has a
moderate climate, and happens to be only 45 Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-87528685024234381012018-01-01T10:31:00.000-05:002018-01-01T10:31:24.327-05:00Baby, it's cold outside!
Fortunately for us, we'll soon be in sunny and warm Grenada. Callisto will have a bit of a new look this sailing season. We've added davits (lifting system) and as a consequence, the stainless steel around the cockpit has also changed.
We have an ambitious itinerary planned, but of course, wind, weather and personal safety will determine our actual dates of departures Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-15328080031451684882017-03-16T09:06:00.000-04:002017-03-16T09:06:23.206-04:00Making a List, Checking it Twice...We have only two more passages this season. We're currently on Bequia, in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and will soon move down to Carriacou, which is part of Grenada. We have a dive scheduled there, and then down to Prickly Bay to prepare for haul-out.
Since our first year cruising, we have made it a practice to create a "Lay-up to-do list" at the end of each season. There Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-59339017843788394262017-03-01T08:39:00.000-05:002017-03-01T08:39:05.776-05:00Watch Your Step!<!--[if gte mso 9]>
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Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-55642296401685502662017-02-23T15:15:00.001-05:002017-02-23T15:21:52.201-05:00Betrayed by the Tradewinds<!--[if gte mso 9]>
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Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-80174767494208696272017-01-28T14:14:00.001-05:002017-01-28T14:14:45.653-05:00AntiguaThe last time we were in Antigua was in March of 2013. Not too much has changed, the superyachts in Falmouth Harbor and English Harbor are interesting to look at, and cause some excitement when they actually leave the dock and go sailing. There are some sailing races originating in Antigua that draw all kinds of racers from the sleek and new to the old wooden classics.
This Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-28068192243854065172017-01-18T15:35:00.002-05:002017-01-18T16:10:55.921-05:00Guadeloupe<!--[if gte mso 9]>
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Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-64073643294396945862017-01-06T14:45:00.001-05:002017-01-06T14:45:57.516-05:00Sari Sari FallsWe are on the island of Dominica, which is one our favorite places to hike. This is a truly beautiful and largely untouched place. It is extremely mountainous, with hardly any flat land to support agriculture. It is said that Dominica has 365 rivers, and I believe it. Many of these rivers have exquisite waterfalls.
Some really beautiful waterfalls are spoiled by hordes ofDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-87603341513939863582016-12-20T12:55:00.001-05:002016-12-20T12:55:47.408-05:00Big Dogs Arrive<!--[if gte mso 9]>
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Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-31043859777311836772016-12-18T10:40:00.003-05:002016-12-18T10:40:28.078-05:00Holiday Colors!Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-65665992650008482342016-11-29T10:52:00.002-05:002016-11-29T10:55:37.874-05:00Servicing the WinchesThere are two boat chores that I dread, even though David is the one doing most of the work...first is lubicrating the heads, second is servicing the winches.
I like the phrase servicing the winches, since changing just one letter conjures up a completely different task....
We have six winches on Callisto, plus a windlass. A winch is a device that uses gears to multiply force. Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-17658686733524150542016-11-19T10:41:00.000-05:002016-11-19T11:46:11.132-05:00Grenada to Carriacou<!--[if !mso]>
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Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-68926348882489770042016-02-26T20:32:00.000-05:002016-02-28T06:58:54.802-05:00Potpourri
We have been so remiss in posting to our blog, so tonight I have decided to offer just a glimpse in some of our recent experiences.
Location--St. Lucia
Topic-Local music, local charities
It's Friday night!
Country western, reggae, hip hop, merengue steeldrums, what more....at least 4 different dj's in action as we sit on a mooring ball not 100 feet from shore. Why country western? Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-45346534787784533922016-01-18T06:11:00.001-05:002016-01-18T06:11:12.930-05:00Nevis and an Overnight Passage
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We simply
love the island of Nevis. It is one of
two islands that together make up the Nation of St. Kitts and Nevis. They couldn’t be Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-85108772836189368122016-01-04T14:00:00.000-05:002016-01-04T14:00:05.151-05:00Moving on and close callsLocation--Grand Case, St. Martin
Just 30 minutes from Marigot Bay, we arrived on the afternoon of Jan 2nd. Lots of boats were finishing their holidays, so the harbour was fairly full. It's a great town, full of excellent restaurants, beach bars, rib joints, all the way to gourmet.
When we anchor or pick up a mooring, we (meaning David) puts on his goggles, and snorkels to inspectGretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-68072180189478929612015-12-31T11:23:00.001-05:002015-12-31T11:26:12.269-05:00It's New Year's Eve in St. MartinWe have had quite a go of it in 2015...hopefully the weather will calm down just a bit so that our journeys to the next islands are not so boisterous.
While we were in Virgin Gorda, we met up with three other Outbound yachts, the broker from Barrington RI and the owner of the Outbound company. It was the first time we have seen another Outbound in the same harbor since 2010. Quite a Gretchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10587836427407686597noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5421003379927285746.post-2314766428492981402015-12-22T12:52:00.000-05:002015-12-22T12:52:06.638-05:00HAPPY HOLIDAYS ALLThis post is short and sweet
We have had a great time in both the US and British Virgin Islands. At the moment we are in the North Sound on Virgin Gorda, waiting for cooperative winds and waves to make our way overnight to St. Martin. We have spent a lot of time away from the interweb...and also out of cell phone range. Hiking, snorkeling and of course, going through the boat Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02167853931127184984noreply@blogger.com2