Cruising with Edi 2013

After arriving in Trinidad  in 

Wereda in the Coral Cove Marina

mid January of 2013 I had to 
hurry up to get Wereda ready 
for a planned cruise up the 
island chain that was to begin 
right after my friend from 
Austria, Edi with his son 
Philipp were to join Wereda 

Hotel District, Port of Spain, Trinidad

on February 14. Their flight 
back home is from Beef Island, BVI on March 1st.  So we have only 14 days to complete the trip 
and see as much as possible

2013 Trinidad Carnival

on the way. 
Wereda went back in the water 
on Feb.7 and only remaining tasks were to prepare berths for them, fuel up, provision and replace a plastic fuel tank on my Mercury outboard with a new one that Edi was bringing with him. 

In the meantime, the 2013      

Edi and Philipp arrived at Port of Spain, Trinidad

Carnival grand parade was 
coming up and I wasn't planning on missing it. To see my Carnival video click here: 
CARNIVAL TRINI 2013.

Edi and Philipp arrived as 
scheduled and on the same day 

Out of the Bocas da Dragon on the way to Grenada

we left Chaguaramas, cleared Bocas de Dragon and set sails for Grenada.
Early morning on 
February 15, we picked up the 
mooring ball at the Grand Anse 
Bay outside of St Georges, 
Grenada and not far from the 
s/v Alma Mia hoping to touch 

St George's, Grenada

base with my friends Dennis and Angelica. 
We went  ashore to obtain a 
clearance and to tour the town. 
We had a nice early dinner at a 

With Dennis and Angelica in Grenada

seafood restaurant in the 
Carenage. Next morning as we were sitting down for breakfast, Dennis and Angelica dinghied over to say hi.
We could not stay in Grenada
much longer so we set sails for   

Carriacou. By the evening after  
passing the Sandy Island we 
dropped the anchor in  the 
Hillsborough Bay. We spent a nice evening ashore but in the 

Wereda in Hillsborough Bay, Carriacou

morning, after clearing out we 
set sails for the Union Island.
The anchorage in Clifton was 
quite crowded so after some
haggling about the price, we 

Anchorage in Clifton, Union Island

picked up a mooring ball and 
settled down for the night. I had 
a tentative agreement with 
Pawel Jasica of the s/v Seaquel 
that we might stop here on our
way north. So it did not take 
Pawel very long to find Wereda. We have also run into another Polish sailor here, Jacek Reszke, who runs private charter sails on his cat, the Shanties. 

Pawel visiting  Wereda, Union Island

Our next intended stop was to be 
Bequia. But my guests requested that we stop in St Martin instead, so they could meet with Philipp's friend and a sailing instructor from Austria. 
To allow for a meaningful time

Downtown Clifton, Union Island

in St Martin and in the BVI, Wereda set sails on 
February 19 for a non-stop jump
from the Union Island to St Martin. 
In the morning of February 21 we arrived in Marigot, St Martin and pulled into the dock at the Marina Fort Luis instead

Passing Montserrat on the way to St Martin

of anchoring, for the 
convenience and also to fix the dinghy floor that came unglued.
The guys rented a car to tour
the island and I remained on Wereda to work on the dinghy.

Just docked at Marina Fort Luis, Marigot

Philipp received  great news 
from home that he passed an 
important milestone exam at his 
med school so Edi invited us to 
a lobster dinner to celebrate. 
Next day we went to the Dutch
side to meet with the Philip's 
friend and on the 23rd we left

Leaving St Martin for the BVI

Marigot and sailed to the BVI.

It turned out to be a one of the most leisurely overnight sails. By early morning we were positioned to enter Sir Francis Drake Channel via the Stoney Bay passage. 
It is a bit tricky because 

of the barely visible rocks to 

your port as you round the 

Philipp on the Midnight watch

headland. In about an hour we were safely docked at the Virgin
Gorda Yacht Harbour. After clearing in it was time to explore the island. We went to the Baths using the local transportation. 

The Baths,Virgin Gorda

Sailing from Norman to Beef Island

Celebrating arrival at  Trellis Bay, Beef Island, BVI

We had a great time swimming and exploring the "cave path" and the Devil's Grotto. Before we knew it was time to head back up the trail to the restaurant where a dinner was awaiting us. Next day, I have noticed that there was another S-2 boat in the marina. The occupants turned out to be the Russians and they told us that they were very sick with the ciguatera poisoning from eating an infected barracuda they caught some days earlier. That of course did not stop anyone from having a few shots of vodka right there, and later on on the Wereda. Following day we sailed to the Bight Bay on the Norman Island. I think everyone enjoyed the clear water snorkeling there and Philipp went on a hike around the local hills. We also got a bit plastered having ingested too much of a certain orange juice drink judging by 

At the W. Wagner's commemorative plaque

a dried out orange pulp over the port side, the next morning. Our time in the BVI was coming to a close and on February 28th we sailed to the Beef Island to be ready for Edi and Philipp to catch their plane home. While on our way, as the Old Cranky was engaged for upcoming maneuvering, we heard a loud noise from below and upon checking the engine I saw oil gushing from under the third cylinder head cover. We've made to the anchorage at Trellis Bay, Beef Island and the engine situation had to wait after my guests departed the next day. Meantime we visited W. Wagner's commemorative plaque on the Bellamy cay. Also we enjoyed bohemian atmosphere on shore while killing a few drinks at the Da Loose Mongoose. Next morning, March 1st, Edi and Philipp boarded the plane taking them back to the wintery Austria. I had to get busy to have the engine working again before my sailing to St Thomas where on March 8th I would be picking up Ginger flying in from Houston.

For video from this segment please click here: VIDEO

For more pictures from this trip click HERE