July 3rd – July 9th
We have made it to Grenada. This will be where we will spend much of the hurricane season. We are anchored on the west side of Hog Island just off a little beach with a very rustic Tiki bar called Rogers’ Beach Bar. We have been here now for a week and have met a wonderful community of cruisers from all over the world. Grenada reminds me a little of Georgetown in the Bahamas. There are lots of creative individuals who offer a variety of classes from Watercolor to jewelry making. There are also plenty of activities such as: Potlucks, Movie Night, Book & DVD Swaps, Shopping Trips, Wine Tasting, and Island Tours, that are organized by and for the cruisers on a regular basis. There is a Cruisers Net that is broadcast on VHF Ch 68 M-Sat mornings at 7:30 am. It’s provides general information, weather reports, businesses announcements, addresses problems and questions, community events, and allows people to trade or sell their “Treasures of the Bilge”. Clarks Court Marina, near Hog Island, has quite a few amenities available to cruisers and also offers a number of opportunities for the cruising community to get together, however their costs are a bit on the high side. We attended a 4th of July BBQ there. We have been busy orienting ourselves with the local back roads, i.e. getting lost. We walked from Martins Marina in Hartman Bay over to Prickly Bay as the waves and currents were too rough to dingy over. We attempted to follow the verbal instructions given to us by the security guard, which ended with his saying “You can’t miss it!”, but as always we confused our lefts and rights and our little walk turned into a major hike. We covered a good 8 miles. Half of which I carried a 20lb alternator in my backpack that we were taking to the repair shop. But even getting lost has its advantages. We meandered through numerous neighborhoods. We met and talked with some delightful and kind people and as always made some new friends. As we were wandering through one of the less affluent neighborhoods, we passed a small roadside stand and were engulfed in a delicious aroma. It made us do a U turn as we were weak with hunger. (Dramatic Music Playing). The sign outside the stand proclaimed “ORIGINAL Jamaican Jerk Chicken”. We stepped up to the ramshackle counter and ordered up a portion to share. It is pretty obvious that they don’t get a lot of tourist foot traffic in the area we were in. The owner looked us over, paused… and said to us: “You know dis be Jerk Chicken?” We said yes we knew Jerk Chicken and YES that IS what we wanted. Our mouths and eyes watered as we enjoyed this wonderfully spicy, cooked to perfection delicacy. He then was kind enough to put us back on the right, albeit not often traveled, trail back to the Marina where we started from. The route he gave us took us through a Forest Preserve/ Dove Sanctuary. We made our way along a dirt road that wound through the hills and down to the bay where our adventure had begun. It was a lovely but brisk walk, Mike’s normal pace, as the mosquitoes are out in force right now, being the rainy season. (Note to self….always pack insect repellent for future short walks). It was a welcome relief to climb back aboard Mighty Mouse and soak our dogs over the side of the boat as we made our way back to DD.
Living the Dream 