We have been in Prickly Bay for nearly three weeks. Whilst the Bay is a bit rolly we have anchored over on the East just outside the marina and it has not been too bad. It has been an eventful few weeks. There is an active social scene here and a very effective Net which transmits on VHF channel 66 six days a week at 07.30 . This gives our a lot of very useful information about what is going on and you can ask about any parts and services that you might require. It provides a good introduction to Grenada.
John and I have got into Grenadian Train Dominoes and play a couple of times a week over a beer. I know a lot of it is luck but I have to say I have consistently found myself at the bottom of the pile every game! They also have a Trivia night which has helped us to keep the grey matter active! Whilst I have been here I have been taking a diving course. I have not found it easy and have struggled with my neutral buoyancy being a swimmer I like to splash about but this is a no no when diving but I have got better and my diving instructor at ScubaTech has shown infinite patience with me. It is not easy to take up something like this when you are knocking on for sixty but I will persevere .
Every Friday night in the North of the Island in Gouyave they have what is called a fish Friday. The streets are opened up with lots of street vendors selling all types of fish dishes. There was a steel band and some drummers playing and the atmosphere was great. In Gouyave there are also a number of rum shops where the locals drink and you can share a bottle of rum with friends for 20ec just over 4 pounds ... Good value and needless to say John loved the place!
They also have a Hash every Saturday. The location is different every week and as Hash virgins John and I completed a course in the hills in St.Davids. It was not easy ...it had been raining and following the paper trail up very steep muddy hills through the rainforest was a challenge but with the prospect of a barbecue and three beers for ten ec when we finished the course....we managed ! There was a good mix of locals and yachties and and I would say that at least one hundred people took part, some running,some like us walking.
We have had one drama whilst on anchor here early one morning whilst listening to the Cruisers Net there was a call for help as a boat was sinking. John went over to help with a generator to run an electric pump when he got there he discovered that the boat in question was another Maramu. The boat had been left and a guy called Michael was looking after it. When John got there the boat was full of water and for those that know our boat the water was up to the third draw in the galley. The engine room was flooded and John was able to help guys locate the sea cocks. The boat, Mariposa,is hull 52, orion1 is hull 42 so everything about the boat is more or less the same. It seems that whilst the sea cock in the engine room appeared closed it had not closed properly and the raw water filter also had a crack in it so sea water had slowly been filling up the boat. The guys working on the boat managed to empty her of sea water and that afternoon she was towed into the yard to go onto the hard and await instructions from the new owner. The boat had just been sold .... The new owner will need to do a lot of work now..what a shock for the poor guy when he arrives!
Every Friday night in the North of the Island in Gouyave they have what is called a fish Friday. The streets are opened up with lots of street vendors selling all types of fish dishes. There was a steel band and some drummers playing and the atmosphere was great. In Gouyave there are also a number of rum shops where the locals drink and you can share a bottle of rum with friends for 20ec just over 4 pounds ... Good value and needless to say John loved the place!
We have had one drama whilst on anchor here early one morning whilst listening to the Cruisers Net there was a call for help as a boat was sinking. John went over to help with a generator to run an electric pump when he got there he discovered that the boat in question was another Maramu. The boat had been left and a guy called Michael was looking after it. When John got there the boat was full of water and for those that know our boat the water was up to the third draw in the galley. The engine room was flooded and John was able to help guys locate the sea cocks. The boat, Mariposa,is hull 52, orion1 is hull 42 so everything about the boat is more or less the same. It seems that whilst the sea cock in the engine room appeared closed it had not closed properly and the raw water filter also had a crack in it so sea water had slowly been filling up the boat. The guys working on the boat managed to empty her of sea water and that afternoon she was towed into the yard to go onto the hard and await instructions from the new owner. The boat had just been sold .... The new owner will need to do a lot of work now..what a shock for the poor guy when he arrives!
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