St. Maarten

The sail from Saba to St. Martin was our slowest yet, with almost no wind. We actually had to motor the last 10 of the 24 miles because we had no wind. We didn’t plan it but we arrived in the midst of the Heineken Regatta. The Regatta was actually suffering from a lack of wind as well but we were treated to quite a spinnaker show. Unfortunately the organizers actually had to cancel the last day due to lack of wind.

St. Maarten has to be home to a large number of the world’s super yachts. We are anchored in the lagoon and there are probably more than 50 super yachts moored near us. A super yacht used to be any yacht over 100’ but is now a yacht over 150’. All of this show of money is beyond our comprehension.

We managed to get one more swim in with Donna before sending her off home. It was great having her here. We weren’t able to convince her to stay longer as Basil was running out of steak and kidney pies. Donna is a girl after my own heart; she loves to swim, snorkel, hike and explore the islands. She taught us a number of new card games and we spent many happy hours together.

We are here in St. Maarten to have our port engine looked at, as well as to pick up much needed marine supplies (new lines, batteries, etc…). We hope to have the mechanic here tomorrow to give us the prognosis.