The last four weeks have seen a whirlwind of activity on Kincsem.  I arrived at Grenada on November 14 with a to do list a mile long, both for me and for several service providers:  SIMS, the boat yard, Turbulence, the rigging shop and others.   Kincsem survived hurricane Beryl in June completely unscathed but nonetheless, there was a lot to accomplish before she was ready for the World ARC in January.  

When I arrived, one week before the scheduled launch date, much of the work to be done by SIMS and other service providers had not even begun.  Worse, two days before launch the SIMS team had not started to polish and hull and deck – a job that typically takes at least three days!  Not unusual in the boating industry, but still a bit disconcerting.   But then I’m a semi-professional “baby sitter”, very experienced and skillful in cajoling reluctant service providers into action!    So all got done eventually, but it required a five day stay at the SIMS dock after launch to permit the work to be finished.   

Jonny, the SIMS foreman, steering the launch cart around other boats with Kincsem on it

At the SIMS dock; note no sails ….

I had my own to do list, of course.  I wanted to take a scuba course and get PADI qualified as an open water diver.  Done!  

Waiting for my first dive lesson at Scuba West Indies

And then there was the long list of boat work I needed to tackle myself.  For example, when I left the boat all sails and running rigging was taken off and all moveable parts on deck were taken off and stowed below.  I was very happy that my friend Iain Wright arrived a few days after me to help me getting Kincsem ready and sail her to Martinique for more Amel spa treatment.  

One serious problem emerged quickly:  I had ordered new sails from Incidences Sails in France and before I left Grenada in May, I had asked a local sailmaker to take away the old sails and dispose of them: big mistake!  Even though the new sails were paid for in June and supposed to get to Grenada no later than October, they had not arrived at SIMS when I got there mid November – in fact, the ship on which they were loaded had not even arrived in Grenada!    But as luck would have it the local sailmaker had been unsuccessful selling the old sails and delivered them back to the boat!   As I am writing this on December 15, the new sails have finally arrived in Grenada and are in the hands of the SIMS shipping agent after spending 3 full weeks in the port waiting for customs to empty the container.  They are scheduled to arrive in Martinique by air freight on December 23 and supposed to be installed by the local Incidences loft before we all get back to the boat on January 3 …….  

In spite of all the hard work Iain and I did since arriving on the boat, there are still some additional, significant items on the to do list before the start of the World ARC on January 11, including the following:

·       The water maker didn’t survive the layup well – the membranes need to be replaced.   Charles Egbert in ST Lucia has agreed to do this on January 7 when we arrive in St Lucia.   He worked on the water maker last year after the ARC and did a good job on time.  So fingers crossed!  

·       The primary autopilot acted up during the sail from Grenada to Martinique – the seals in its hydraulic ram need replacing.  Pochon in Le Marin are on the case!

·       Amel is servicing all the furling gear for mainsail and mizzen – no problems expected here!

·       Amel is reinforcing the fiberglass stringers for the davits – again, they have done this before on an Amel 55 and know how to do it.  

Well, I’m quite confident that all of this will happen in a timely manner and Kincsem will be ready come the start of WARC on January 11.  

All the challenges with the boat notwithstanding, Iain and I had a great sail from Grenada to Martinique. We were curious how the islands we were going to visit had faired in hurricane Beryl which scored a direct hit on Carriacou and Union Island.  Our first stop was Sandy Island off Carriacou where we had stopped in May before Beryl.  Luckily, the island is still there albeit with a lot less vegetation than before.   

Sandy Island before Beryl 

and now

We even had dinner ashore at a restaurant that was completely rebuilt since Beryl – the owner said it was the first restaurant on Carriacou to open again.   The customs office at Tyrrel Bay on Carriacou survived the hurricane well – although the umbrellas on the tables outside have lost their tops!  

Union Island, where we checked into St Vincent and the Grenadines, is quite another story.  It seems time has stood still for long since Beryl and recovery is still very much at the beginning.  A lot of roofs are still missing and only one store is open in Clifton – without refrigeration and without any bread on sale.  Some people still live in tents.   Where all the fruit stands were in May there is now a big field of grass.

Clifton town square before Beryl

Clifton now

We had a great time in Tobago Cays which seemed largely unchanged.  The snorkeling is still awesome with turtles, rays and thousands of fish on display.  Mandy Man’s lobster barbeque has opened again, although Mandy Man’s boat now is much smaller then in May.  

Kincsem at anchor in Tobago Cays

Bequia was again our favorite like in May.  There is little evidence of Beryl’s destruction and the islanders seem cheerful and are back to work.  We climbed Mt Peggy in the early morning – a challenging climb as much of it is straight up a steep river bed.  We were rewarded with the best views of the island.   

Amazing views of Bequia from the top of Mt Peggy

Some wildlife we encountered on the way to the top!

A little restaurant next to the ferry dock in Bequia

We also met another WARC boat – the Amel 50 Pelican with owners Dave and Susan from Boston.  They plan to do the entire rally without stopping with varying crews – 15 months around the world – while we intend to break from the rally in Fiji in July of 2025 to visit New Zealand.   

We bypassed St Vincent and from Bequia sailed directly to Marigot Bay, St Lucia.  Marigot Bay is as pretty as ever although the moorings are in disrepair.  Nothing to do with Beryl, I think, but we anchored safely outside the inner harbor.   Regular readers of this blog will recall the challenging customs officer we encountered in May.  I encountered a different officer but he was also challenging.  If you check into St Lucia and leave within 24 hours as we had planned, one is supposed to be able to check in and out at the same time.  So I told the officer that this was my plan to which he replied sternly: “I will be the judge of that”!   The selection criteria for customs officers in Marigot Bay seem to include an offensive personality and the ability to forego any smile for hours!    Well, in the end I got my stamps and off we were for Martinique!  

Marigot Bay from the customs dock; Kincsem anchored outside is just visible

Here we are overtaking another Amel 55 – Tatiana from Russia; his sail trim is terrible and he has too little sail up; he did not respond to our VHF calls

The Le Marin marina is always a good place to be.  For one, there is  the bakery for fantastic baguettes and croissants and several great French restaurants, all right at the harbor.   And then one always meets other Amel 55 owners.  This time, among a sea of older Amels, there was Dan Simoncini’s Amel 55 Santo, just in from crossing the Atlantic.  I have communicated with Dan a lot in the Amel 55 owners group over the years and it was great to meet in person.  It was also interesting to see all the modifications he’s done on his boat.  And the Amel 50 Pelican came in as well – everyone is getting work done by Amel like we are.   The hiking was a bit challenging though – we couldn’t get to the lookout point Iain had scoped out on the first try and Iain tried again by himself using a different route only to find that the lookout was closed in the early morning!      

After a few days in Le Marin, I’m now back at home in Marin County/San Francisco for the holidays.  I will be back to the boat on January 3 for the great adventure!  Stay tuned!