The Grenadines November - December 2022  We arrived in Grenada on November 5.  We left California with a heavy heart; we decided to leave our dog, Sushi, home with our son and his wife, Armand and Natsuki.  Sushi had been with us on our travels since she was a puppy.  We miss her terribly, but she will be well taken care of.  We stayed two nights at Secret Habor Hotel and Marina, where we honeymooned 27 years ago.  The property has been renovated and it's just as lovely as we remembered. 

The Grenadines is a small chain of islands that lie between St. Vincent and Grenada.  They include :  Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Union Island, Petit St. Vincent, Palm Island and Mayreau in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, plus Petite Martinique and Carriacou in Grenada.  There are a couple of uninhabited islands as well.

Shortly after our arrival on the boat, we got sick from a cold or flu.  It has taken us a week to recover, but it hasn't stopped all the work we need to do to get ready.  Our boat watcher, Patrick, did a great job of keeping an eye on our boat while we were gone, as well as keeping the decks clean and occasionally cleaning the keel.  Our marina, Port St. Louis, is a large and comfortable marina.  We have occassionally seen some large yachts arrive for a short time.  The latest arrival is EOS, a three masted Bermuda rigged schooner, and is one of the largest sailing yachts in the world (305 ft).  It is owned by Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg.  Port St. Louis is the only marina in the area that can accommodate this size of  yacht.  They have one side tie slip that is large enough.  It's quite an impressive sight!

We visited the main town, St. George's, and had rum punch at the Nutmeg restaurant where we visited 27 years ago.  For lunch, we visited the Beach Club at the Calabash Resort.  The food is excellent; there's a small beach with views of Prickly Bay filled with boats.

We visited the Nutmeg restaurant in St. George's where we had our first Grenadian rum punch 27 years ago.  Here, they grate nutmeg and put on top of the drink.  Grenada is the world's second supplier of nutmeg, holding 20% of the market.

We took a five day trip to visit some of the southern islands of the Grenadines before our friends, Colleen and Bill, arrive the following week.  It gave us an idea of where to take them during their one week stay.  We left the day after they arrived in Grenada and headed to Sandy Island, Carriacou. 

We were lucky to find a mooring ball, and we spent the afternoon swimming and snorkeling.  For dinner, the boat from Paradise Beach Club on the mainland picked us up.  The menu was limited with 4 items to choose from.  Unfortunately, the food wasn't good, and the chicken was dry and tough. 

Afterwards, we visited the Tobago Cays marine park.  Luckily it's just before the busy season, and there weren't too many boats.  We had a mooring at Petit Bateau, and the snorkeling was quite good.  We took our dinghy to see the turtles at Baradel island; there were plenty to see.  We weren't in the mood for going for the beach bbq each evening prepared by several locals.  Instead, we had Carlos (one of the boat guys) bring us two large, grilled lobsters.  He split each one which was plenty for the four of us.  I made some side dishes, and we enjoyed a delicious meal on the boat. 

We visited Mayreau for one day and had lunch at the Ranch Escapade.  The location was terrific with a view of the Tobago Cays.  However, the food was disappointing, but the rum punch was good!

The weather was misty and cloudy, so we decided to return to Grenada to sightsee.  Upon arrival, we had dinner at Laluna; the ambience was beautiful!

We rented a car and drove to Concord Falls, a waterfall that did not require any hiking to access.  It's one of Grenada's smallest fall, but it was picturesque nevertheless.

Our next stop was River Antoine Estate Rum Distillery.  It was established in 1785, making it Grenada's oldest distillery, and it features 250 year old equipment.  Every process is done by hand, including the loading and processing of the sugar cane.  The water used in the production is from a nearby river.  We had visited River 27 years ago, and it has not changed except for addition of the tasting room.

Our tour guide:

We had lunch at Sail's restaurant located in St. George's harbor; It's across from our marina, so we took our dinghy to get there.  The food and ambience were terrific!

Colleen and Bill's trip has come to an end.  We had lunch at the Beach Club restaurant at the Calabash Hotel prior to their flight.  On the grounds of the property, I found a calabash.  It's edible, and it also makes gourds like the one below which is then painted.  It's functional as a serving bowl and pretty too.

Colleen and Bill's visit has come to an end.  We enjoyed having them aboard and sharing our cruising lifestyle....cheers!

Home    Back   Next Page