The Bromptons have not been ashore for a month or so, not since we left the BVI’s. The Islands we have been visiting since have not been very cycle-friendly, that is until we reached St. Kitt’s and Nevis.

On the southern part of St. Kitt’s we found a lovely new road, that was flat and freshly asphalted, and that took us around a salt pond and all the way to the coffee shop at the newly developing super-yacht docks at Christophe Harbour.

 Nevis was even better. Shaped like a sombrero, it has lower, flatter land all around Mount Nevis, and our cruising guide said it was possible to cycle around the whole island in half a day. So we loaded the bikes into the dinghy and went ashore for some exploring. The first hour was not as flat as they had led us to believe, we gained some 250 metres of altitude, which in this heat, was quite challenging. Our reward at the top was a delicious lunch at Golden Rock, a former sugar-cane plantation turned restaurant. The plantation manor, built in the early 1800’s, and the grounds around it, have been beautifully restored. We ate in the shade on a patio surrounded by manicured lawns and gardens, with a spectacular view all the way down to the sea. The food and service were great too.

Full and refreshed, we set off for the downhill part of the ride, through picturesque villages, with views of the sea all the way. We were delighted to see our first wind farm. And of course we had to check out the airport, but it was nothing special – a great long runway with no hills, or big drops off to the sea, or any other thrilling features.

That’s not to say that the ride back was dull or without adventure. Matthew’s Brompton provided enough entertainment, requiring repair to a punctured rear tire no less than 5 times! He had to keep adding patches on patches, since we discovered a serious omission in our repair kit, no spare tube. 

Repair number five finally held till we got back to the boat. It must have been because of all the assistance we received from some local school children. Thanks, kids.

 

 

The island of Saint Barthélemy is only 12 miles from St Martin and whilst St Martin is the winter base for many superyachts, St Barts is where the owners come to play.

Each island we visit has its own character, St Bart’s is at the European end of the spectrum.  Mainly white, wealthy and cosmopolitan, St Bart’s could be a French island in the Med. 

We arrived on January 5^th with the idea that the boats attending the big New Year’s celebrations would have started to leave.  The superyacht marinas in St Maarten, just about empty on New Year’s Eve, were filling up by the day we left.

The short sail to St Bart’s was complicated by the Causeway Bridge breaking down and blocking our planned departure through Simpson Bay on the Dutch side.  This delayed our departure to the afternoon bridge opening on the French side. We arrived at Ile Fourchue just a couple of miles off St Bart’s, just at sunset.

 We picked up a mooring ball for the night before heading into the main port at Gustavia the next day.

We bumped into Peter and Patty from Serendipitous in the port office.  Jimmy Buffett’s Cheese Burger in Paradise was written at Le Select in Gustavia, so we naturally all headed there for lunch. 

 

That evening we moved the boat to Anse du Grand Colombier in the north of St Bart’s, a lovely anchorage, quiet, with great hikes to a lovely café with good coffee, fresh pastries and baguettes, we may have done that hike twice.

Bas and Agnes on TiSento hosted Ingomar, Serendipitous and Kinship for a sundowner, it was great to catch up with everyone.

A few days later we went back to the main port of Gustavia, where we rented a car for a day trip around the island. This is not our normal way of getting around, but we have found these really hilly islands with their tiny, twisty roads quite unsuitable for cycling. We had seen several of these funny-looking open, miniature jeep-like electric cars on the road, and really wanted to drive one. They are called a Moke – see :

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini_Moke

The rental place only had gasoline models available, so we took it anyway and headed off to explore the island, and have a picnic at a scenic lookout. Wow, what a beautiful island…and clearly one with lots of money! It has some spectacular scenery, and a beach around every bend. Tourism seems to have developed in a moderate way so they are not all spoiled by huge hotels and crowds. The super-yacht crowds come with their own hotels, and obviously spend lots of money ashore supporting the local economy. In turn, they seem to take real pride in making their island look nice. The waterfront is well done up, the towns are clean and well-maintained.

The rental Moke was a disappointment – it was a 2016 version made in China and drove terribly and with less than 2000 km on the clock it seemed to be about to fall apart at any second. That said, it was still lots of fun to zoom around in an open car on those crazy roads with spectacular views at every turn.

We went out to the airport to watch the planes, and what a hoot that was!  Another crazy Caribbean airport with a very short runway and a killer approach, coming in low right over our heads as we stood on the roadside watching. Check out the video we shot:

The takeoffs are almost as hairy.

We had a great time in St Barts, next we head off to St Kitts as we wend our way south.

Once I saw the Shard’s Distant Shores episode on Saba, it has been on my bucket list of places to go.  This time of year, there is too much wave action in the anchorages to be comfortable so we decided to fly.

Saba is a rock in the sea, small in every dimension other than up.  Until you see it in person it is hard to comprehend.  Approaching in the plane you see a 2855 ft mountain raising in front of you as you fly at just 2000ft from St Martin.  Flying in a Twin Otter, the landing into the worlds shortest commercial runway was anticlimactic, the pilots do this many times a week and have it all under control, we exited the runway having used less than 200 meters of the 400 meter runway.  For reference, a US aircraft carrier’s flight deck is about 330 meters. 

 Our taxi, piloted by Donna, headed up The Road, that is its name, for there is only one road that goes between the villages, winding our way up the hill from the airport to Hells Gate and then on to Windwardside.  The office for our accommodation,  El Momo Cottages was 46 steps up from the road where Donna dropped us off.  We were booked in to the “Cottage in the Sky” that was a further 120 steps up the hill.  We got lots of exercise on this trip.

 

We arrived on Christmas eve so we explored Windwardside to find restaurants that would be open over the holidays and we made a reservation for Christmas day. 

On Christmas day we climbed Mount Scenery, 1064 steps and about 1700 ft from Windwardside to the summit.

 

The track is well built and other than the amount of climbing is an easy hike.  The views from the top are amazing.

Saba is very green, rain forest covers much of the island.

 

At the top, a cockerel seems to have taken to sharing visitor’s picnics.

 

We had a great dinner that night at Chez Bubba, we bumped into a couple we met at the top of Mount Scenery and we had a great night.  The food and service were excellent. 

 

Saba is a place of simple names, Windward side is the second largest community on the island and is located on the windward side.  The Bottom is the largest settlement, and on Boxing Day we walked “The Road” to explore it.

The Road clings to the edge of the hills with spectacular views, arriving high over The Bottom.

 The Bottom has sea access with a small harbour to the south and “The Ladder” to the west.

 

The Ladder was the way all people and goods came before the harbour was built.  Today, cruisers use The Ladder to access the island from moorings in Ladder Bay.  The Ladder is actually stone steps that lead about 800 ft up from the bay to the bottom.

 The Bottom is home government offices, the hospital and to the medical school that provides a lot of income for the island.

The flight back to St Martin was just as memorable, the pilots use every inch of the runway, coming close to the edge of a large drop into the ocean.

Landing, we had a great view of the bar where we took the photo of the Airbus A340 landing.

We had a great time in Saba and if we have a chance we hope to come back with the boat in the spring.