Getting Off the Beaten Track in the Windward Islands
 reproduced courtesy of imray, laurie, norie, and wilson ltd. (www.imray.com) |
The next day, go around the corner to Anse de Sables (see Street's Guide, pages 64-65), another harbor where eyeball navigation is required. I've never visited this anchorage, but I've flown over it many times and visited it twice by car; it looks like a very worthwhile stop. Anchored in the lee of the Maria Islands, you'll find crystal-clear water, no bugs, and, to leeward, 3 miles of white-sand beach on St. Lucia. The only habitation here is a small restaurant and a windsurfing school.
From Anse de Sables, head south to windward of St. Vincent. The course, about 200 degrees magnetic, guarantees you a glorious 40-mile reach down the east coast to the south end of St. Vincent. Here you have to decide whether to bear off and run almost dead downwind the 8 miles to the entrance of Bequia's Admiralty Bay or continue reaching for 9 miles to the uninhabited island of Baliceaux.
Baliceaux is 1.5 miles long and seldom visited by yachts. Anchor near the northwest end or go south and anchor in Landing Bay; be careful to sail around the reefs to the west.
If you leave Baliceaux at the civilized hour of 1100 for the 5-mile sail to Mustique, you'll arrive at 1200, just when boats are departing, and you'll have your pick of moorings. After you tire of Mustique, it's a downhill slide to Bequia.
After decades of cruising and exploring, I continue to find that there are anchorages that still resemble the Caribbean as it was when I first arrived in the West Indies 50 years ago. You just have to be willing to get off the beaten track.
Don Street is available as a rock, tide, and wind guide in the Caribbean. For more information, visit his website (www.street-iolaire.com). Street will give presentations at the 2008 Newport Boat Show in Rhode Island and at the 2008 U.S. Sailboat Show in Annapolis.
