Turks and Caicos
Of the Turks and Caicos islands we saw (Provo, East Caicos, Grand Turk, and Big Sand Cay), we loved Provo the most. There were fireworks on the resort beaches most nights; a great wine bar overlooking the sea; the Tiki Hut marina bar, with lots of vegetarian options; a great happy hour at The Shark Bite; a worthy hitchhike to Horse Eye Jacks, a great restaurant in Blue Hills; rugby on the beach; stores to buy clothes; decent-priced groceries; a phenomenal beach; great snorkeling; clear water; and a strong Internet signal for watching TV on our laptop. After asking around, we discovered that more than half the island’s residents were expats (foreigners), many working, so it was clearly an island with potential. Provo was an island we considered living on.
What we saw of Grand Turk made us realize that the island was too quiet and seemed to cater solely to cruise-ship passengers. It didn’t seem like a place to live. We couldn’t speak for the other islands that make up the Turks and Caicos archipelago, but we heard that they were populated mainly by people who commuted to Provo or Grand Turk for jobs and shopping/socializing outings. We’d rather just live on Provo.
Dominican Republic
Many cruisers chose to move ashore permanently, liking not only the Dominican Republic (on Hispaniola), but Luperon. Many lots were for sale with views of the ocean for a fraction of what you’d pay elsewhere. Those relocating would have boaters around them (active and former) and laid-back Dominicans, so would enjoy the vibe that they were likely looking for when they left home. The town is ever-growing with gringos and their tastes, which is both good and bad, I suppose. Restaurant choices are increasing, as is entertainment.
The Dominican people were great, but we decided against the Dominican Republic as a possible home for several reasons. The island was too big and too hectic (roads, cities). Salaries might have been a problem, and we weren’t happy about the rampant bribery.
You’ll note we didn’t visit Haiti to the west. Our boat insurance wouldn’t cover a stop there, and people who went via bus said that anarchy ruled at the border. We decided to pass and were worried that Haiti’s problems might someday become the Dominican Republic’s.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico was an obvious fallback as a place to live, since we were citizens there and wouldn’t need tourist or work permits to stay. But Puerto Rico wasn’t our first choice. It was too big, too hectic, too car oriented, and had too much fast food and too much concrete. Language was a problem here and there, as well. However, if we “had” to, we would appreciate the hiking in El Yunque rain forest, exploring all the little towns in “the country,” choosing a different beach every weekend, sitting in the street cafes in Old San Juan, getting to the States easily, and having access to stuff. Yes, it would be doable.
Virgin Islands
SPANISH VIRGIN ISLANDS
Culebra was quaint and very much our style. We liked the fact that we could easily catch a ferry to the main island of Puerto Rico and provision cheaply, but then come back “home” and relish the serenity of the small island. The small size meant that work could be an issue though. Vieques was bigger and developing a tourism industry, but since we didn’t visit the island, we weren’t sure of its feasibility.
U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS
The U.S. Virgin Islands (USVIs) were a no before we even went there, and our minds didn’t change after the trip. I had done a lot of research on the USVIs before we bought the boat, thinking we could just move there. The more research I did, though, the more I felt that St. Thomas had too many racial and financial issues, was too reliant on the tourism industry, and didn’t have enough affordable housing nor any that allowed pets. Once we got there, I thought the place was too crowded and too loud, and I didn’t feel safe (or wanted) there.
We didn’t get to St. Croix (about 45 miles south of St. Thomas), but it didn’t sound much better.
St. John would be too expensive, and people already living there gave newcomers a hard time. Finding jobs on the island sounded impossible, and living quarters even more so. Out.
BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS
The BVIs were nice but too small. We had heard that trying to get a work permit in the BVIs, assuming you could find work, would be near impossible. I was happy to be able to just spend time with family while we were there.
St. Martin/St. Maarten
We didn’t completely write off St. Martin but weren’t drawn to it either. The island vibe was different from that on all the other places we visited. Until then, we had mainly been surrounded by Canadian, American, and British citizens, both sailors and islanders. On St. Martin, that changed. There was a “cosmopolitan” vibe. There were both Dutch and French influences, and megayachts sailed across oceans bringing their own dynamic. Europeans and others who flocked to the island to vacation or work added further to the mix. We were hobnobbing with the jet set and by the time we got there were starting to feel like salty adventurers ourselves. Yes, it took that long.
We would have eaten well there, and we liked having two countries on one island. There was a lot of construction, so employment was possible, and there were plenty of apartments to rent. The cost of living was doable, it was easy to have things sent to us there, it wasn’t difficult to get to and from the States, and there was a good transportation (bus) system. What we didn’t like was the traffic, especially around the two drawbridges.
St. Barths
St. Barths would be too expensive to even consider, not speaking French would be a problem in a myriad of ways, and I don’t think that snails are a food.
Anguilla
We really liked Anguilla. Many people think the island is too quiet and topically uninteresting, but we were okay with the island’s blandness, so to speak. Maybe we were sold because of the beaches. We’re beach people and the beaches were top-notch. It was also nice not to have beach shack bars everywhere blaring music. The island was clean. But Anguilla was expensive, so any possibility of staying would depend on job availability and pay. On such a small island, neither was guaranteed or even likely. There didn’t seem to be a lot of rentals either, so where would we live? A possibility but doubtful.
Saba
Saba is a great place to visit, with steep hiking and cute, clean towns. But it was too small and had no jobs for us. We were sure we’d go stir-crazy there over time.
Statia
We liked visiting this island. It had great hiking, with trails just the right length, although I wouldn’t recommend exploring them all in one day. The locals were friendly, which reminded us of another favorite—Long Island, Bahamas. Car drivers waved on their way past. People on the street said Good Morning or Good Afternoon.
Could we live there? Nah. Like Saba, the island was too small, we would likely go loopy there, and we weren’t fond of oil-industry-related stuff.
St. Kitts and Nevis
We loved St. Kitts. Why? The island was just the right size and ran the gamut, having beautiful beaches on one end (with sand from white to tan to black) and rain forests on the other. St. Kitts still had a lot of open spaces and decent roads to get to them, and was gorgeous. Everywhere we went, we could see both the ocean and the Caribbean Sea, something most islands couldn’t boast. Nevis, with its plantations, beaches, and view of Montserrat’s volcano, would come as a bonus island when we wanted a change of scenery (we thought Nevis would be too small to live on).
There was a good racial mix on St. Kitts, with no obvious animosity. There was a hodgepodge of nationalities: Brits, Canadians, Taiwanese (who installed a lot of infrastructure and were helping agriculturally too), Indians, Guyanese, Trinidadians, students from all over, and obviously Kittitians. It was quite the melting pot. We liked that.
With a university on-island (several actually), there were apartments. And with several developments in the planning stages, there were job possibilities as well. St. Kitts had it all.
Antigua and Barbuda
We didn’t actively write Antigua off our list, but we didn’t put it
on there either. Granted, it was hard to beat the high we had coming off St. Kitts. Antigua was rather flat and didn’t seem to have the kind of hiking we wanted (despite the hash group). The island seemed like a place to go, not a place to live. We liked it there, it had nice beaches, some of the harbors were fun—particularly the historical Falmouth and English harbors—and the grocery stores were well stocked. But the island seemed a bit blah and wasn’t calling out to us.
Barbuda was calling out to us. We loved that laid-back island so much that we tried to figure out how to stay there. Maybe we could run a bar or do boaters’ laundry. Nope, locals only, but had that island been any closer, we would have gone there once a month just to stare at the incredible water and beaches.
Montserrat
Montserrat was beautiful and had friendly people, but the threat of another volcano eruption was a deterrent. Not that they were allowing people to move to the island anyway.
Guadeloupe
Not knowing French would have been an issue there had we liked it, but it turned out to be a nonissue. We felt that, overall, Guadeloupe was depressing. The interior was pretty with all the waterfalls, and the houses from a distance looked very islandy with their red tiled roofs. Then you’d get closer to those houses and find them uncared for and crumbling. Add to the shoddy houses the graffiti in the major towns and the industrial feel of many places, and we didn’t feel the warmth we had enjoyed on other islands. Our friends on S/V Merengue had a great time when they hitchhiked and were picked up by a friendly and knowledgeable driver who showed them “his” island, so who knows which version you’ll see.
Iles des Saintes
Iles des Saintes where old-world Europe meets the Caribbean. What a great combination. One of the islands had wind turbines, showing that they were into clean energy, which we appreciated. But it would have been impossible to work there as Americans; neither of us picks up languages easily, so we would have struggled to learn French. And stocking up on groceries would have meant a trip to Guadeloupe, which we didn’t like. We would visit Les Saintes again and again, though, and highly recommend that you do too.
Dominica
What a great place! The island was beautiful and had a good bus system (if a bit kamikaze-like). The produce was delicious. It had enough hiking to keep us busy for years. The people were friendly and welcoming … to a point. Tourists still seemed to be an oddity, so there was an element of curiosity that manifested itself in unwanted and sometimes uncomfortable attention. The choice of housing seemed to be resorts, mansions, or huts, so there would have been no place for us to stay. Employment was also unlikely. Boo. Well, maybe we’ll retire there someday.
Martinique
By the time we got to Martinique, we had already determined that we wouldn’t be able to live on a French-speaking island. Nor could we afford to live in the land of the euro. Although we didn’t see much of Martinique, we felt that the island was bigger than what we were looking for.
St. Lucia
We didn’t spend enough time there to have an educated opinion about St. Lucia. We didn’t even see The Pitons, other than sailing past them, although they looked majestic. We had planned to sail back and spend more time there but never did. My mother was married there, and many people have told us how beautiful it is and how much there is to do, so we concluded it would be like Dominica—beautiful, but more a place to visit or retire.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
We loved the Grenadines so much that we thought about chartering Jacumba down there, but I didn’t think we could make enough money to cover our loan payment, insurance, and repairs (plus all the costs of becoming charterable). More important, despite the great time we had there, we were burned out. The thought of spending another three years on any boat doing anything full time was not something we were up for.
Carriacou
Carriacou was pretty but too sleepy for us, and it wouldn’t have had any jobs for us either. It wasn’t a bad place to consider for retirement, though, especially being so close to our beloved Grenadines.
Grenada
Grenada reminded us of Antigua or St. Martin. It was nice, but it wasn’t calling out to us. The bus system was excellent. We met a lot of people hashing with the Hash House Harriers chapter there. We loved that we would be near The Grenadines and could mooch off all the boaters who came through once we sold Jacumba. With several universities, Grenada had lots of apartments, so housing wouldn’t have been a problem. Employment? Shrug.
So why didn’t we like it? Grenada was too big and somewhat industrial. Islanders were rather clipped, not just to us but to one another. The island didn’t have the friendly feeling we had experienced on other islands. We wanted something smaller and with less concrete.
So that’s how we ended up on St. Kitts. The Turks and Caicos would have been our runners-up if our first choice hadn’t worked out even better than we had planned—much like our entire sailing adventure!
Acknowledgments
First, I want to thank my mother, Anne, and my late grandmother, Erna, who infused in me a desire to read at an early age, sparking a curiosity and thirst for knowledge that I hope to never lose. My mom’s strength gave me confidence, and our trips together inspired my dreams to travel. My dad’s enthusiasm for my unconventional and untraditional lifestyle inspired me to keep going even when I was sometimes less than enthusiastic about my choices. I’d also like to thank my Aunt Ann and Uncle Sam for a great Thanksgiving on Tortola, while we were in the neighborhood, and my Aunt Reedi in Illinois for praying her little heart out for us.
Many boaters crossed our paths, but Amanda and Kevin (formerly of Solstice) deserve a special shout for being our mentors even before they realized their role. On the other side of the coin, we appreciated Carla and Dan on Alegria who at one point informed us that we were their mentors. What an ego booster! J.D., Melissa, Chuck, and Jen, you get kudos for moving on board and sailing with us for a spell. Stephen and Estelle (formerly of Siyaya) get a rum toast for helping us in the very beginning when we were truly clueless.
Add all the boaters who became pals over the whole adventure, from Jamie and Robbie (S/V Kawshek), Banff (formerly of Blue Magic), Brad (Mothra), Joe and Becky (Half Moon), Hans and Kristen (formerly on Whisper), Jim and Wendy (Merengue), Anne and Steve (Fine Line), Dave and Booker (Tortuguita), Astrid and Paul (formerly of M/V Horizons), and many others we met along the way. We realize how fortunate we’ve been.
Once I got it in my noggin’ to share this insanity with others, I dragged friends and published authors into the mix and want to thank Greg Brown, Susan Budde, and Scott Welty for their encouragement. I will be forever indebted to McGraw-Hill’s International Marine division for understanding what this book could become and offering me a chance to make it even better. It requires a big team to put such a production together and I thank them all; however, my editor, Molly Mulhern, a fellow boater and author, gets the biggest round of applause for having to endure my stubborn pirate streak. Molly, you’re a saint.
Of course, I’ve saved the best for last—my first mate, Michael Puceta. I doubt that Michael would ever have imagined this life for himself, but he’s always been willing to come along for the ride. Thanks, Mikey.
Index
Abacos, 35, 53–68, 70–76, 79–87
Alcohol, 63, 75, 157
Allans-Pensacola Cay, 47
Allen’s Cay, 90, 91
Alternator voltage regulator, 99, 103
Anchoring, 29, 54–56, 80, 117, 119–20, 148, 154–55, 243
alone, 209–10
as an art, 56
anchor light, 232
anchor rode, 137, 244
anchor signs, 109
anchor windlass, 89, 169
anchor windlass breaker, 131
anchor windlass switch, 142
chain, 154, 210, 224, 241
dinghies, 57
diving, 132
dragging, 132, 151, 169–70, 177
entwine
d anchors, 170
investigating spots from shore, 163, 169
kellet bag, 246–47
keys in ignition, 169, 177
parking issues, 270
using two anchors, 55–56
weight of anchor, 70
Anemometer, 14
Anguilla, 151, 157, 282
Annapolis boat shows, 12
Antigua, 165–73, 186–89, 283
ATMs, 195, 269
Bahamas, 35–68, 279–80. See also specific locations
costs, 72
customs, 45
map, 45
preparations, 35–36
Bahamas Family Regatta, 99
Barbuda, 231–32, 283
Batteries, 28, 37, 83
Beam reach, 85
Bequia, 191, 192, 200–202, 203–4, 220
A Sail of Two Idiots Page 37