From the Big City to the Little Island

We finally got the boat ready to leave the safety of Clarke’s Court Marina on Grenada. It is always with a little trepidation that you leave the safety of a secure marina. We went around to the western side of Grenada on January 6th and made a stop at St. George’s. We stayed there on our way to put the boat up last summer. There are great mooring balls right outside the entrance to the port. It is always exciting visiting a new place, but there is some comfort in knowing where you are going, having been there.

St. George’s is the capital of Grenada and like a thriving metropolis compared to other places we had been. It is hustle and bustle with ferries coming and going. There were a number of cruise ships that came and went. When we were in St. George’s we were able to figure out the bus system that went all over the island. It costs $3 EC (Eastern Caribbean Dollars) which is about $.40 cents in US for a one way trip. They have regular bus stops, but if you are walking along and you need the bus, they will pull over and pick you up. We were able to make a grocery run and pick up some boat supplies using the bus system. The people on the bus are very polite and make room for everyone. There is not set schedule as the buses make continuous circle routes that all lead back to St. George’s. Pretty good system.

Outside of St. George’s is a cool dive and snorkel site, Molinere Underwater Sculpture Park, Jason deCaires Taylor’s underwater garden, one of Nat Geo’s 25 Wonders of the World. We used Dive Grenada and they were amazing as we were both a little nervous since it had been a year since we last dove. We got picked up, no problem and met our dive master Zane. He gave us the dive profile which was a pretty tame dive, even for us. The dive started at about 20 feet and went down to 32 feet. It was a beautiful dive with amazing coral and cool statues. I started counting the number of statues, but lost count at 26 and there are 75 total. We were both wearing our wetsuits and needed a lot more weight to get to the bottom.

It was time to leave the hustle and bustle of St. George’s and head north. Our next stop was Tyrell Bay on Carriacou. Carriacou is about 30 nautical miles from St. George’s. Carriacou is part of Grenada, so no worry about clearing out of customs. We motor sailed in the lee of Grenada on pretty flat seas. Once we cleared Grenada, the wind picked up and the seas picked up. The wind was pretty steady at 16 knots and the seas were about 4 feet. Great sailing conditions.

One of the areas that we passed was a submerged active volcano called Kick ‘em Jenny. There is an exclusion zone around the volcano, that you must not pass through. There are stories of boats getting too close to the volcano and losing their buoyancy and sinking. I guess it has something to do with the volcanic gases and the buoyancy of the water. Made it past Kick ‘em Jenny and didn’t sink.

We had been to Tyrell Bay before, so we had that familiar feeling again. We knew where to anchor and the areas to avoid. Tyrell Bay has a nice marina and haul-out facility. Many boats choose Tyrell Bay to go on-the-hard for hurricane season, as it is cheaper and closer than going to Grenada mainland. Last time we were in Tyrell Bay, we found some really good restaurants. The first was a curry restaurant called Gallery Bistro run by a British couple, Ann and John. Their food was fantastic, and I am not a huge curry fan. The second was Paradise Beach Club. It is owned by a US expatriate, Allison. When Margie called to make reservations for dinner, she answered the phone, Hello Margie, as she had her phone number saved. Allison has an amazing sense of hospitality and how to make you feel welcome.

We learned the bus system on Carriacou, and made our way exploring the island for areas we missed last time. The bus system on Carriacou is a little more expensive $3.50 EC one way.

Last time we were on Carriacou, a couple we met said we needed to stop at Sandy Island. Sandy Island is a spit of land around the corner from Tyrell Bay. They have a number of mooring balls available. We made our way to Sandy Island using the motor, which took about 45 minutes. We learned that arriving somewhere around 9am to 10am gives you the best shot of getting a mooring ball or anchor spot. We had our choice.

We asked someone about the quality of the moorings and they stated that they wouldn’t use them. They looked fine to me, but I am not an expert. I put on my dive gear and put a safety line to a chain that was wrapped around the cement block on the sand. Really unnecessary, as there were larger boats that used the moorings with no problem. Oh well, piece of mind and I got to use one of the air tanks that we purchased, that were sitting there unused. Sandy Island has the clearest and most beautiful water we have seen. The reef is spectacular and full of fish. We will go back. The other cool thing about Sandy Island, is that Allison will send a boat to pick you up to dine at Paradise Beach Club.

It has been an amazing trip this far. Until next time.

Big City of St. George’s, Grenada

St. George’s Saturday Market

Tyrell Bay Boat Yard - We sailed on Turquoise Dreams in 2009 with the boys on a Tradewinds Trip

Ann from Gallery Bistro in Tyrell Bay. John was in the kitchen preparing our meal.

Hillsborough, Carriacou is the main village. Made a little stop at Kayak Kafe for lunch. right next door is the Bread Basket where Val from New Jersey baked the best banana bread.

Hiked to this wonderful beach. There was no one around.

Sandy Island. The one time we wish we had a real camera. No way we can capture the beauty. Fish galore.

I peddled Margie over to the island to watch the sunset and it’s a miracle we both didn’t fall in.

Last photo before we left Sandy Island.