Antigua & Barbuda

03.22.2011 - 04.06.2011

Locations: English Harbour, Falmouth Harbour, Deep Bay, Great Bird Island & Jolly Harbour (Antigua), Coco Point, Low Bay & Codrington (Barbuda)
Highlights: Whale & Dolphin spotting, Historic English Harbour, Yachts, Coconut & Fruit Gathering, Lobster & Macaroni and Cheese, Conch Catching/Cleaning, Maui Maui Catch, Best Beach Ever, Frigate Bird Tour

Description of Highlights:
•Whale & Dolphin Spotting – My watch (Joe) began at 5am, as dawn began to break I put out the fishing lines and noticed two dolphins swimming off the port side. To the west the Island of Montserrat was lit up by the rising sun and two whales breached the surface several times.

•Historic English Harbour – We sailed into English Harbour and were amazed to see all the beautifully preserved buildings. It was a quaint harbor with many ships and lots of history.

•Yachts – While anchored in English & Falmouth Harbour we saw so many amazing Super Yachts. Probably the most impressive was the “Maltese Falcon,” a $130million dollar sail boat…..if you can call it that as it is so big and advanced that you can run it with the push of a button.

•Coconut & Fruit Gathering – Joe & Emil rowed (Dinghy engine decided not to work) to an abandoned part of Falmouth Harbour and gathered up Coconuts (Green & Brown), Mangos & a Papaya! We all took turns learning how to properly open the coconuts and are now all well versed with using the Machete!

•Lobster & Macaroni and Cheese – The Swedes had never had Mac & Cheese so we decided that we should make it a first class dinner and enjoy it with 8 lobster tails that Joe caught fresh in Deep bay. Another almost free meal!

•Conch Catching/Cleaning – The sea continued to provide food for our enjoyment and we gathered and cleaned 8 conchs. The gathering was really simple but I cannot say the same for the cleaning. It was extremely time consuming and really messy….think of a giant snail and all of the slime.

•Maui Maui Catch – Our first edible catch of the trip! We finally landed this 20lb beauty on our crossing from Great Bird Island over to Coco Point, Barbuda. We had Maui four ways (Sashimi, Baked, Ceviche & Dried) not bad for no refrigeration!

•Best Beach Ever – Coco Point was about 7 miles of white sand and no people. The sand was so fine it was almost like powdered sugar. We couldn’t get over how nice it felt to walk on and spent a lot of time enjoying such a rare find.

•Frigate Bird Tour – This tour was second only to the Galapagos Island in the sheer number of birds. There were thousands and it was really interesting to see the mating rituals and the baby birds.