Finally the wind is behind us. Cruising along a 5.5 kn. on a broad reach under genoa alone it was a beautiful morning sail. It was a little tricky getting away from the dock in Blue Lagoon but we made it and now we were on open water: destination Admiralty Bay on Bequia.

I should clarify earlier comments about sailing this cat. While I personally don’t like the way it is set up to handle the sails, once the sails are set it sails very well. Even with just the genoa up it scoots along pretty well.

Anchoring in Admiralty Bay proved tricky. We tried 3 times on the north side of the bay but couldn’t get the anchor to catch. We then tried the shallower water on the south side of the bay off Tony Gibbons Beach and on the second attempt there we finally dug in. A snorkel trip over the anchor confirmed that it was set nicely. This part of the bay proved to be a better choice as the water was calmer and there was less garbage floating around.

After lunch, while everyone else seemed to be having a siesta, I took the dinghy in to Port Elizabeth at the head of the bay. The town is the only one on the island and was quite busy – almost too busy after the idyllic life we’d been experiencing for the past week and a half. There were lots of shops, grocery stores, a couple of ATM’s, fruit stands, etc. all within a short walk of the main dock.

By the time I returned to the boat everyone was up. Actually Rick got a bit of a scare when he saw the dinghy gone, fearing it had gone walk-about again until he realized I was also gone.

While Rick and Linda took the dinghy into town Susan and Deana went for a swim. I had reported seeing the odd jellyfish when I had snorkelled over the anchor in the morning and they weren’t in the water long before they felt something stinging them. Their swim was cut short.

Another sunset, another rum, and a barbecued chicken dinner ended another great day.