The Cosmos Adventure - News

George Hotz Report - Caribbean3

Cosmos

4/6/03:

We finally, reluctantly, sailed out of English Harbor. As we did so, Bill Whiteford filmed Cosmos from a high perch overlooking the harbor entrance, while Captain Grandpa Joe and I tacked Cosmos back and forth a couple of times. We left Bill, waving in the distance, as Cosmos sailed up the coast of Antigua to Jolly Harbor. Bill returned to his home in Maryland, also reluctantly, I think. Cosmos raced up to Jolly Harbor with a strong following breeze in her sails and ocean rollers to surf down, as they nudged her along. Chris and Dave Lang may not have enjoyed that passage as much as Captain Grandpa Joe and I did; they were more concerned with acquiring their Sea Legs.

Jolly Harbor appears to be a complex of condominiums, shopping mall, marina, canals, and sea walls still developing, and expanding, to occupy the acreage created by the dredging of the canal system and waterfront. There was a lot of boat traffic, tourists, and vacationers, throughout the harbor, availing themselves of the services, attractions, and facilities as they came into existence in this new, jolly, harbor.

We left Jolly Harbor yesterday morning and entered Heritage Bay, just a couple of miles away. This bay consists of several beaches, rocky areas, and the water is a beautiful turquoise. We anchored in a small alcove with a beach from which we collected lots of shells. Today we are going to Deep Bay, only a couple of miles up the coast.

 In Deep Bay we snorkeled at the site of a sunken, small ship, and the crew hiked along the beach and rocks.

4/8/03:

Yesterday, our second day in Deep Bay, we took a short taxi ride to St. John to walk around the town, shop, and check out with Customs and Immigration. However, they wanted Cosmos to actually be in St. John when being checked out. This hasn't always been necessary in the past. So, we rushed back to Deep Bay after lunch, prepared Cosmos to get under way. and headed up to St. John. We tied Cosmos to the Customs and Immigration's own dock, Captain Grandpa Joe checked out with them, and they never even looked at the boat.

The seas were knocking Cosmos against the dock, so we moved away and anchored, then had dinner, aboard. As the sun set, two huge cruise liners ghosted out of the harbor, and Cosmos followed them out as she began her overnight passage to Gustavia, on the island of St. Barthelemy.

 Cosmos arrived at St. Barts in time for breakfast after a slow night of motoring the 73 miles with no wind. We spent the day in Gustavia and really enjoyed it. It is very French, very attractive, very clean, and very expensive. The pretty boats and pretty girls are abundant.

Because of all this moving around we're doing;  jumping from bay to bay, town to town, island to island, and not staying in one place more than a day or two, we are getting a lot of exercise. Getting Cosmos ready to move usually involves stowing the dinghy and it's equipment; dismantling and stowing the wind generator; clearing the decks and cockpit of personal items and unnecessary gear; checking all hatches, lockers, drawers, and cabinets for being secure; weighing and stowing the anchor; and if there is enough wind, raising the sails. Of coarse, entering a port, or anchorage, requires that we follow the reverse process. All of this, along with whatever we do while we are visiting each location, has increased our level of activity, and this is a good thing.

4/9/03:

Early this morning we weighed anchor in Gustavia harbor and sailed the few miles up the coast of St. Barts to Anse De Colombier. This is a fine, beached, bay and an excellent anchorage. It was owned at one time by the Rockefellers who built a home here. It is very popular; judging from the quantity of boats here, today. There are many different types and sizes of vessels here, so we are enjoying looking at the boats as well as exploring the beach and snorkeling in the bay. The afternoon has been cooled by several rain showers, and this evening the showers have been quite heavy. So, here we sit, enduring Happy Hour in the Cosmos saloon, listening to Zamfir's pan flute and rain on the deck, while Captain Grandpa Joe's sister, Chris, fixes a salad in the galley. I am about to set up the BBQ in the cockpit and get the burgers started.

4/12/03:

 Cosmos is at Sint Maarten, now; this is the Dutch half of the island. Yesterday we entered the Simpson Bay Lagoon when the draw bridge opened up at 0930. Now I think that this may be the boat capitol of the world; instead of Cape Town, or  Annapolis. I am sure of one thing, though, and that is that, here, we have one of the finest marine chandlers in the world ( boat stuff store). Yesterday, Captain Grandpa Joe's son, Aaron Dorr, and Rachel Diment, arrived; and today , Chris and Dave Lang will be leaving.

4/13/03:

 Today, Captain Grandpa Joe's daughter, Daphney, and her husband, Mike McKay, arrived. Cosmos is full of youthful energy. Aaron, Rachel, Mike, and Daphney are jumping in and out of the dinghy all afternoon as they explore the beach, get groceries, and visit the nearby town of Merrigot that is at the other end of this Simpson Bay Lagoon. Captain Grandpa Joe and I have been doing halyard repairs and we mounted, and wired, a cockpit light.

4/15/03:

Today was another whirlwind day for the crew of Cosmos. We left Simpson Bay Lagoon and through the drawbridge to anchor in Simpson Bay. Then, Captain Grandpa Joe went to Customs and Immigration to check out , while the crew did more grocery shopping. After this, we left St Maarten and sailed overnight to Road Town, Tortola, of the British Virgin Islands.  In Road Town, we shopped, drank lunch, checked in with Customs and Immigration, and left the harbor to find a quiet anchorage. On the way, we found an unused mooring at a dive site called Alice in Wonderland, at Ginger Island, and we stopped here for a swim and to do some snorkeling. We moved out of there after only an hour, or so, because it was a rolly little bay with too much boat motion for relaxing. So now, cosmos lies to a mooring in Manchioneel  Bay at Coopers Island. This is a quiet anchorage with lots of moorings, a lovely beach, and some snorkeling sites that we will check out tomorrow. We've just finished our BBQ'd steaks with salad and potatoes; the dishes are done; and the young folks have dinghied to the beach club for a nightcap.

4/19/03:

From Manchioneel Bay we sailed a short distance to the dive site of the sunken ship RMS Rhone, on the 16th. A couple of hours snorkeling over the ship, we sailed Cosmos another three hours to Sopers Hole, Tortola, BVI. Here, the crew rented an SUV and drove through Tortola, from end to end, in constant rain. We all enjoyed the scenery, shopping, eating and drinking.

It was just yesterday that Mike and Daphney McKay, and Rachel Diment, left Cosmos; leaving Aaron Dorr, Captain Joe, and me, to sail Cosmos to Cruz Bay, St. John, USVI. Last night we celebrated our return to the U.S. with champagne and pizza for dinner. This afternoon, Aaron Dorr left Cosmos as he rode off toward St. Thomas on one of the ferry boats that roar in and out of this harbor all day long.

 Since Cosmos arrived in the Caribbean, Emily Dorr, Bill Whiteford, Dave and Chris Lang, Aaron Dorr, Rachel Diment, and Mike and Daphney McKay, have crewed and cruised the islands with us. I sure enjoyed having them aboard and hope that their visit was all that they hoped it would be. Tomorrow, Captain Grandpa Joe and I will sail Cosmos, alone, to St. Thomas. This will be the last island that Cosmos will visit in the Caribbean.

4/20/03:

 This morning, Captain Grandpa Joe and I motored Cosmos out of Cruz Bay with no wind to sail. We won't miss the buzzing and biting  mosquitoes, or the buzzing ferry boats that create large wakes throughout the harbor as they haul people, vehicles, and goods, to and fro, all day long. On our way to St. Thomas, we anchored Cosmos in a quiet bay at St. James Island and did some boat chores and ate lunch. Captain Joe did a lot of hull cleaning below the water lines, and I flushed the watermaker and stowed the Super Snorkel. By the time we left, the little bay was not quiet anymore, Several families and their boats had anchored around us and were water skiing, dinghy sailing, snorkeling, swimming, drinking, and generally having a fine time. We suddenly realized that this was Easter Sunday, and a long weekend for everyone.

 We continued our passage to St. Thomas with no wind, and as we entered the harbor at Charlotte Amalie, I was saddened to see the deteriorated condition of the waterfront. I was last here, 20 years ago, and at that time, this area was flourishing. Now, the hotel and marina that I visited are closed and structurally failing, other businesses are shut down, and the whole harbor is struggling through this lack of tourism. In spite of this, it is a lovely, protected, large harbor. I am sure that it will flourish again, when the economy turns up and terrorism turns down.

 Tomorrow, we will go into town to grocery shop, check our Email, visit the boat stuff stores, and meet Bob Olsen at the airport. Bob will crew on Cosmos  from here to the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, U.S.A.

George