We arrived in Les Saintes last night. It was a really sweet sail that began with 40+ miles of broad reaching from Antigua at 8-9kts. Then a mix of motoring and flat water sailing down the west coast (lee side) of Guadeloupe, then two hours of hard on the wind in 20-25kts with the wind coming directly from our destination. We departed at dawn (6:30 - local sunrise) and arrived about 5:00, just before sunset, to cover the 76 miles of total distance. We're anchored a couple of hundred yards off the little town of Bourg de Saintes and I can see our anchor on the bottom in 33' of water. We slept last night with a gentle cool breeze coming through the hatch above our heads, the first time we've felt that since last May. And this morning we were treated to a rainbow diving into the water at our favorite snorkeling spot at Pain de Sucre. It's good to be off the dock!
We felt like we needed to get clear of Antigua, but she clung on to us to the last. Coming out of the Dockyard Marina, where we were med moored while the port quarter was repaired, the anchor was caught on a chain on the bottom (apparently a frequent occurrence) which required about 30minutes of fancy maneuvering to get New Morning spun around and pulling the anchor in the opposite direction before we finally came free.
Now we're trying to finalize a major change in our schedule which will slow down the trip. Stay tuned for details.
