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Sabine - (118) ARC daily blog update - Tuesday 13 December 2022



Hello interweb friends, Captain Stape on sail boat Sabine right here in the Rodney Bay marina in St. Lucia! (///incidentally.dumping.tightness) spoiler alert: we’re here! We made it!!

Last night as it became dark, we could easily see the glow of lights of Barbados as we passed the island around 35nm away.

Richard was contemplating life whilst sitting outside he got up to get a drink. At that moment a small fish jumped into the boat and landed exactly where Richard had been sitting just a few seconds previously. Lucky escape Richard! The fish was picked up and returned to the waves.

Kia made himself a cigarette - he has paper and he has the remains (butts) of smoked cigarettes in his ash tray. When he made the one cigarette he then smoked it. His comments: ‘Not very enjoyable. Tastes like an ashtray. Marlboro Grey!’ Never mind, not long now Kia, not long now.

One more night of a lumpy bumpy ride - Miss Atlantic has not relented, and isn’t going to start to now.

Tuesday morning, and John tells me of an incident with an unwanted guest overnight. Something slippery and slimy and smelly. A fish had managed to jump up and in through the open top cabin hatch and land on John’s bed. Bleurgh! That’s what he’s blaming the smell on, anyway. I think he was hoping it was a mermaid!

Outside we can clearly see St. Lucia and Martinique. We’re very nearly there now! Kia has a craving for, so Richard makes porridge for everyone. With lashings of maple syrup, of course!

It’s a cloudy day today, and it’s a shame as we were hoping for some sun to shine when we arrive.

As we approach the island there’s a debate over correct pronounciation of ‘bouy’ - ‘booeey’, or ‘boy’. What do my interweb friends think?

Indiana John hoists the St. Lucia courtesy flag.

We round the northern most top of the island, heading into Rodney Bay. There’s wind, some tacking, some more tacking, and… we cross the finish line! 23 days, 4 hours and 1 minute. I haven’t calculated the mileage yet, but with a slight detour to try and avoid winds either too strong, or non-existent, I think it’s around 3000nm.

Hurrah! We’re here! The sails go away, the motor is started, and fenders are inflated as we motor into the marina. When we dock (in the ‘super yacht’ area, so plenty of room), we’re presented with some fruit and rum punch. I enjoy the punch! The fruit I’ll try later, right now it’s all about the punch.

We’re here, my interweb friends, we’ve made it! And it was quite a journey! Everyone here is so welcoming. We had our friends from Navasanna meet us as we docked - it was good to see them and we hope to meet up for dinner soon and share some wild tales. And when we went to the various offices for all the paperwork, Kia sported and then purchased some cigarettes - he’s now very happy!

And Richard’s deck shoes made it without falling apart.

And that’s about it from me, my interweb friends. I hope you’ve enjoyed sharing this journey with us. I think we enjoyed it *most* of the time…

This is Capt. Stape signing off and having a well earned sleep! Ciao ciao squawk!

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