Big Dogs Arrive

The marina in Marigot Bay is getting more and more crowded as the holiday approaches.  In the past couple of days, three very large sailing vessels became our neighbors on the dock.

First to arrive was the sloop, s/v Ghost.  Our navigation instruments receive signals from the Automatic Identification System required of all large vessels.  This tells us, among other things, some basic information about the boat. We learned from the AIS that Ghost is 33 meters long and 7 meters wide (that’s 108 feet x 23 feet). That seemed pretty big to us.

The following day s/v SPIIP came into the marina.  She is sloop rigged, and even bigger:  the AIS reports she is 34 meters long and 9 meters wide (that’s 111 feet x 30 feet). 

Later in the day, the ketch-rigged s/v Rosehearty cruised slowly into the bay.  Rosehearty is 56 meters long and 10 meters wide (184 feet x 33 ft).  She is simply enormous.  Watching her dock, I would estimate that there were at least 8 crew on deck.  No telling how many were below during the maneuver. According to her website, you can charter her for $225,000 per week.  Not including fuel or booze.

Well, our homey 14 meters is plenty for the two of us and some occasional guests. It is interesting, though, that the basic process for tying up stern-to the dock is exactly the same for our boat and the behemoths.