Bequia Island, Grenadine Islands

Anchored at Tony Gibbons Beach
Admiralty Bay
Bequia Island
Grenadine Islands
Caribbean Sea
13'00.1N/61'14.5W
369nm from SV Christa...

Happy Super Bowl America!! Team Sandpiper has been anchored in Admiralty Bay for the last week. During this time we have completed a few boat projects and got checked in with customs and immigration.

One of the projects was the yet again repair of our troubled outboard motor. This motor has given us much grief during the past 6 months, seeming to fail when the wind is the strongest and night is darkest. When heading into town, upwind, we would paddle until another dinghy would motor by and we would stick out our thumb to get a tow into town. Late at night we had resorted to looking for the drunkest person in the bar when we were ready to go back to the boat and ask them for a tow home, then seeing them in town the next day with little memory of ever meeting us or remembering that they had towed us home. This technique works for our benefit because we can get multiple tows from them and every time they will think it’s the first time they helped us.

We carried the outboard to ‘Fix-It Man’, a retired Ferrari race car mechanic who now fixes yacht engines here in Bequia with his trusty helper Elvis. Elvis got straight to work replacing the spark wire. For now she seems to be running smoothly.

The harbor here in Admiralty Bay is crowded with many cruising yachts, charter boats, mega yachts, and ferries. All along the shoreline are small restaurants and bars that seem to be owned not by locals, but ex-pats whom have made Bequia their new home. On a recommendation we had dinner at Mac’s Pizzeria where we had a very nice dinner and Amy bought me my newest favorite dinghy item, a ball cap that has LED lights in the bill! Its quite sweet as it lights up the dark sidewalks as we walk around and is great for a light in the dinghy to get us home.

We got ashore yesterday (Sunday) and made our way to Tommy Cantina where we had seats reserved to watch the Super Bowl. The bar/restaurant is right along the shoreline where we watched the Super Bowl and the sunset at the same time. The sound of the blender making margaritas overpowered the sound of the game. Not sure what happened with the band ‘Journey’ while we have been gone. Maybe it is a sign of the state of the economy in America, but it appears that Steve Perry, the lead singer, had his job outsourced to a small Asian guy.

We watched commercials for things we have never seen, movies we have never heard of, and TV shows that were unknown. Seems like we are not missing to much.

Team Sandpiper’s current plans are to get Sandpiper ready to leave tomorrow morning for a 36-mile sail to Tobago Cays. This should be a nice trip and we cannot remember the last time we had a trip this short.

For extra reading assignment check out our last posting in the Presidio Yacht Club’s latest issue of the online ‘Porthole’ [click here to read PDF document]. Also check out the “Barbados Rum Report” below.

More Down Island,
Tom and Amy