Backing down your boat is a necessary skill in European countries

Most marinas in these parts don’t let you lie alongside a dock, you toss your anchor out and back in a narrow slot between two other boats, or there is a mess of buoys/moorings and you somehow put a line on one as you back past, which is snubbed up just before you crash into the dock.

The Maggie B doesn’t have a bow thruster and I simply don’t know yet her characteristics backing down at full speed (speed is your friend?). Also, while we have a big rudder and the propeller plays right on it, she is 62 feet long and 35 tons and sort of hard to spin. It looks as if I’ll have to find some peaceful spot with a few buoys and practice my reverse skills. Any joke about French tanks having only reverse gears is inappropriate.

Location: 14°28.06 N; 60° 52.02 W
Wednesday 21:00, 05.17.2006

Today we moved from the bay of Fort de France about 20 miles down the coast of Martinique to the charmingly named “Cul de Sac des Marins.” Our coordinates are 14° 28.06 N, 60° 52.02 W. This is certainly the sailing center of Martinique, if not the Caribbean. There was just a forest of masts as we came in. It is a big charter center, but still there must have been at least 500 sailboats. Falmouth in Antigua is empty in comparison and wasn’t this full even during race week.

We somehow ripped out a cringle on our fore sail during the sail from Antigua to Guadalupe. North Sails has representatives everywhere and had a guy on the dock here to evaluate the problem, pick up the sail (actually it took four of us to lift it) and it will be on a plane to Guadalupe tomorrow and back fixed by Saturday. Just in time for a promised Northerly (yes, sometimes it blows from the north here) to take us to Barbados.

Lots of boat work in the next few days and then on to Barbados!

All is well.