St Martin and St Barts

The overnight trip from the BVIs to St. Martin was lumpy, but we made the 14 hour trip and timed it perfectly to go through the 8:15 AM bridge opening into the Lagoon. They charge boats for anchoring in Marigot Bay, but there are no fees to anchor inside the Lagoon which is very calm. We slipped into the lagoon (briefly touching the mud on the way in) and anchored below the Witches Tit. This rock mountain entertained us as we watched wild goats climb up and down the shear rock cliffs at dusk and dawn.

St Martin was sighted by Christopher Columbus in 1493 and claimed for Spain. Later it was the Dutch who occupied the island in 1631 and set about exploiting its salt deposits. The Spanish retook the island in 1633, but continued to be harassed by the Dutch. The Spanish finally relinquished St. Martin to the French and Dutch, who divided it amongst themselves in 1648. We cleared into the French side since it was much cheaper, but we were free to move around both sides of the island.

We grabbed a few boating items here at the two major outfitters and enjoyed the French cuisine. We had 3 foot long freshly-baked baguettes each day and sampled a few of the pastry shops. We headed north to Grand Case on our last night, an area known for its fine French restaurants, and we blew the budget for one special dinner. Appetizers of Foie gras and escargot, followed by lobster bisque, duck breast in mango sauce, roast lamb and a chocolate soufflé will be fondly remembered by this crew.

It was a short 3 hour hop down to St. Barts. Discovered in 1493 by Christopher Columbus who named it for his brother Bartolomeo, St. Barthelemy was first settled by the French in 1648. In 1784, the French sold the island to Sweden, who renamed the largest town Gustavia, after the Swedish King GUSTAV III, and made it a free port; the island prospered as a trade and supply center during the colonial wars of the 18th century. France repurchased the island in 1878 and placed it under the administration of Guadeloupe. St. Barthelemy retained its free port status along with various Swedish appellations such as Swedish street and town names, and the three-crown symbol on the coat of arms. In 2003, the populace of the island voted to secede from Guadeloupe and in 2007, the island became a French overseas collectivity.

Its capital is Gustavia, which is also its main harbor. I handled the typical Customs and Immigration duties and discovered from the Port Captain that it was relatively inexpensive to grab bow and stern moorings in the main harbor. It was a bit of a challenge to maneuver and grab the mooring without assistance, but we handled it pretty well. This spot positioned us yards from all the nice shops and restaurants and was very calm for restful sleeping. We attended the church services on Sunday morning (this time in Portuguese) and enjoyed the nice French beaches where clothing is optional :) We caught up to friends Mary and John aboard Navigator and we enjoyed the day at Shell beach.

This island is very clean and has become the playground for the rich and famous. The prices of everything reflect that so we are eating on the boat and enjoying the beaches and walks through the town.

Tom