Slow Cruise

Saint Pierre was out entry port into Martinique.
At some point the town was flourishing and was the capital of Martinique, until Mount Pelee volcano erupted in 1902, destroying the city and burning all of its residents except two.
Now it is a quiet town trying to attract tourists on its history.

Fort-de-France is a major metropolitan city and the capital of Martinique, with the lively and vibrant atmosphere. Lots of souvenir and tourist shops.

Our daughter had joined us to cruise around Martinique for a week. We had a good quality family time - sailing around, visiting shore towns and villages, tasting local cuisine, swimming at the beaches and hiking.

And, as the tourist brochure said - in Martinique, all roads lead to... rum.

Trois Ilets is a scenic and somewhat of the beaten track place in the large Fort-de-France Bay. The picturesque town and three small islands are set in the quiet mangrove area.

Anse Mitan is a lovely touristy town with a pleasant Creole Village district. Its attractive beaches with picturesque views were especially memorable.

During our cruise along Martinique shores, we visited these two neighboring bays and their villages few times. We anchored in Grande Anse D'Arlet and walked around the hill to (Petit) Anse D'Arlet.

These are use-to-be tiny fisherman villages, now are pleasant and fairly quiet places for visiting tourists.

Ste. Anne is a pretty seaside town, with sleepy vacation atmosphere. The town is small, with some grocery sores, restaurants and shops, but the nearby beach is magnificent and popular.

We spend a good day here, enjoying waterfront, wondering town streets, and having refreshing swim at the beach in the afternoon.

One day we wanted to get away from the crowds and decided to sail to a small secluded beach nearby, Anse Caritan.
The place had a wooded hiking trail along the Martinique shore, with funny hermit crabs crawling along the way.
We have also seen some of the most dramatic sunsets here, overlooking Martinique and the Diamond Rock.

I don't think I have seen that many boats in one place - there must be thousands of them in Le Marin.

They are drawn here by protected and comfortable bay, multitude of marine related services, large marina and boatyard, plenty of stores to provision and shop, as well as bars and restaurants.

There are two unique adjoined bays in the Caribbean - divided by a hill, one is of black sand, and another is of white sand. Nature made it this way.

We anchored in Anse Noire and walked over to Anse Dufours. Both beaches were inviting and offered calm enjoyable swimming. Glad we came here.

On the way from Martinique to St. Lucia, we had a sail malfunction - the stainless steel genoa clew ring broke off in a strong wind gust. Could not fix it underway, had to motorsail to finish the passage.

Rodney Bay is a place popular with tourists, boaters and locals. The beach is pretty, with too many resorts. There is a protected lagoon inside the bay, with marina and access to Rodney Bay Village, decent stores, marine services and chandleries.

We liked a small fruits and vegetables boat which patrols the bay with fresh produce at reasonable prices. It looked like from the Waterworld movie. We had a chance to try some of the tastiest tropical fruits.

While staying at Rodney Bay, we visited Pigeon Island Park - a historical place with ruins, Fort Rodney, trails and spectacular views of the bay from hill tops.
The hike to the top was a bit challenging on the hot day, but views from there made it well worth it. We needed some exercise anyway.

On the way down, we had cooling drinks with lunch at a pleasant waterside cafe.
Refreshing swim at the park's beach finished out trip.

Marigot Bay is a postcard perfect bay in St. Lucia. Although there is quite a bit of development and the area is busy.

There is a nice high end resort at Marigot Bay Village - we just walked around it.

Mango trees are everywhere here, and you can pickup great tasting mangos under those trees. I got a full bag, more that we can eat.

We climbed up the hill to see a local village - somewhat rough place, some beggary, it wasn't pleasant - we quickly turned back.

One day local fisherman caught some fish for us and we cooked a nice seafood dinner.
Another night we tried Indian food at the Indian restaurant. Liked it.

The Pitons is an iconic image of St. Lucia. They are even on the country's flag. Huge and magnificent, they are towering over the deep blue water.

We picked up a mooring just between these two Pitons - Gros Piton (2619 ft) and Petit Piton (2460 ft). Stayed a day here, enjoying the views and swimming off the yacht stern platform.

Local merchants come over to sell their wares - we bought nice fresh tuna and vegetables from them.

Can't beat the view.

The next day we moved to a mooring near the town of Soufriere. There we wondered local streets, had a lunch at the waterfront restaurant, checked out with customs.

While in Soufriere, we also visited the historical Diamond Botanical Gardens. Quite pretty place.