Bridgetown

Due to mischievously dragging her anchor in the middle of the night Hocus Pocus was in a slightly different place than originally, however it did mean we were closer to shore and the marina facilities.

We had already had one trip into Bridgetown but as we were on a mission so to speak we didn't really have the opportunity to explore as we would have liked. We decided to return and have a good look around at a later date.

That evening we went ashore to eat at the yacht club restaurant, which turned out not to serve food on a Sunday or Monday. So we adjourned a little way down the beach to the Fish Pot restaurant where despite not having booked we were found a table.

The food was very acceptable and after eating we moved down the social scale to the tin hut of Braddys Bar where we had a few beers with rum chasers. Unfortunately this turned into a bit of a "session" and most of the following day was lost to history.

A sober night allowed us an early start to catch a bus back into Bridgetown. As Dave was looking for a courtesey flag for St Lucia we had to find a chandlers, which we did, it's near the immigration office and the Jolley Roger party boat. It's very comprehensive and carries a good selection of essential spares. We continued to explore the harbour area and were surprised to discover an old acquaintance, the Swedish yacht " Archipelago" who we had met in the Canaries and Mindelo. I chatted with the son of the owner and discovered they had taken 15 days to cross from Mindelo.

She was berthed in the inner harbour which is adjacent to Independence Park, a very pleasant green area in the centre of the town. We were under the impression that yachts were not welcome in the harbour it being reserved for commercial boats., in this we were wrong, a quick chat with the harbourmaster revealed that given a minimum stay of three nights they would raise the bridge and for the princely sum of $50 a night you can stay in the heart of Bridgetown.

There is easy access to the main shopping areas including the covered and open markets. The quality of the produce is excellent. Also the fruit and vegetable stalls that for some reason are sited outside the bus station.

There are bars and tourist shops by the outer harbour. This is also where you book your game fishing trips if you fancy being Ernest Hemingway for a day.

On a sunny day it is really a very pleasant part of town.

On returning to Hocus Pocus we were all very tired and no one needed much persuading to give the yacht club another try. It turned out to be very good indeed. There was some live entertainment in the shape of a four piece band and the food was first rate.

Our table was next to the sunken bar which itself was next to the swimming pool. To be honest the swimming pool seemed superfluous given that the sea was just a step of the decking.

The floodlights under the surface illuminated the many fish swimming around the marina.

Here is a photo of the yacht club in daylight.

our table is just under the conspicuous tower in the photo. Nice eh?