Calypso Cruising - verse

Calypso Cruising

Ever thought of a second honeymoon
Sandy cays and minimal stress?
The Windward Isles is a place to try
It worked well for us,I confess

At Barbados tie up at Port St Charles
Disguised as a super yacht
Have a leisurely lunch at the yacht club
With a couple of rums (thanks to Scott)

Get the gas bottle filled,fix the rigging
Try the cafe "feet in the sand"
On the east coast search out Atlantis
Go calypso style,unplanned

Then sail off downwind to Grenada
Take a mooring in Prickly Bay
Don red ,yellow and green with the locals
To enjoy Independence Day

But as for the courtesy flag at the mast
Buy another one if you can
For it rained on the water-based hand painted one
And all of the colours ran

After quite a hard beat up to Carriacou
Dodge the wreck in Tyrell Bay
Take the local "bus" to Hillsborough
With its colourful fares on the way

Though the Petit St Vincent resort has rules
It seems like the place to be
But the dinghy ride in is rough and wet
So we change our clothes under a tree

The boat boys working at Union
Believe in free enterprise
Need a mooring,some gas or your outboard fixed?
It gets done but the fee`s no surprise

We are sitting out here by the Thompson reef
The sky is a dark,heavy grey
With buckets of rain to wash down the boat
Good for reading and writing today

Like to snorkel then sit looking over the reef?
You should sail to Tobago Cays
But the best thing here is the turtles which
Let you swim with them as they graze

It´s a short sail from here across to Mayreau
And its semi circular bay
Mayreau Magic at Dennis`s Hideaway
Is a good way to end the day

Mustique was a bit of a struggle to reach
With the wind blowing north of east
But we anchor close in away from the swell
Then had Basil`s buffet feast

We follow it up on his dance floor
And then tour the island next day
Macaroni beach on the eastern side
Lunch at Cotton House beach cafe

Bequia didn`t quite live up to Mustique
But we anchored in Margaret Bay
And ate well at the beach front restaurant there
Before setting off early next day

We were blessed:the wind came around to the east
We reached at speeds of 8 knots
Across to St Lucia`s Deux Pitons
(Another good dancing spot)

Immigration says:"Where is your visa
You can`t get one in Soufriere
You`ll have to go off to the airport
Perhaps they will give you one there"

We tie to a buoy in Marigot Bay
Just in from the sandy spit
It`s idyllic picture postcard stuff
A good place just to look and sit

At Rodney Bay our neighbour is Gary (Thai Mai)
A 50 foot cat from Freo
We do some boat jobs and enjoy ourselves
Entertained by Helen and Theo

Try some very good food at Cap Maison
Cable car past the ficus trees
Watch the hummingbirds pick at the nectar
Zip-line back through the canopy

We slog our way up to Martinique
With the Gobat`s on board as our crew
We have trouble getting our mainsail down
The way the north easter blew

There are beaches and birds at Santa Anne
In the north there is Mount Pelee
There`s the rainforest walk from Grand Riviere
Chez Tante Arlette`s where to stay

Our last Windward stop is at Anse Mitans
Just south of Les Trois Islets
Where the Fleur de Sel`s exquisite food
Despatches us on our way.

March 2011