Our return to Grenada was defined by heat. It was like a heavy, clammy blanket descending over us as we exited the airport, more heavily laden than when we left. In addition to some boat stuff, I brought back a bicycle from the US, as I was missing exercise. Also, it was reported that the next few islands have good biking. We got a brief reprieve from the heat during our taxi ride back to the boatyard, and then we were in it. We were hoping to have done some of our work before we flew back, but due to delays with the lift that hadn’t happened. So we were working. We had to do bottom paint, PropSpeed, anodes and put the boat back together. We managed it in four days, and soon were back in the water, motoring up to our old anchorage at Calivigny Island.

After the stress and dislocation of our month back in the USA, it was nice to return home. We settled in, went foiling, and swam in the ocean. After several days we set sail back north, towards Ronde Island, where we had been once before for one night. This time we resolved to stay a little longer, and appreciate the isolation and lack of hustle and bustle. The sail was upwind, but late in the day the wind shifted a bit south and we were able to fly the last 10 miles. Dropping anchor in clear, deep water onto sand was a breath of fresh air. We stayed for 10 days. Each night there was at least one other boat, and early on one of them was Looking Glass, belonging to our friend Alex. We hung out with him and his friend for an evening before it was time for him to head back to the main island for some work. We stayed, swimming, walking on the little beach, reading books and watching movies. We ate food and focused on doing not really much at all. Before too long it was the 8th of August, and we headed back towards St George for their big party.

The big party did not appeal to us, and we quickly checked out of the country after enduring an evening of noise. Maybe when we weren’t so old and crotchety we might have enjoyed it more. As things stand I enjoyed the sound of the wind in the rig and the water rushing by under the hulls as Grenada disappeared over the horizon. It was ok, but I felt like we were treading water there, always looking forward to something that was going to happen.

Well, now it was happening and we were sailing for Bonaire, expecting the voyage to take two days. Conditions were persistently light, and we were about twelve hours over that estimate, but the sailing was stress free and easy. Except for the huge sargassum patch I hit in the middle of the night which caused all kinds of chaos, including a broken preventer. Oh well.

The last 5 or so hours the sailing became more engaging, with some nice surfs down waves, and consistent wind. As we rounded the light in the darkening sunset the waves dropped and our angle to the wind became more favorable. We were able to sail at a sustained 16 knots up into the bay behind Bonaire. My favorite kind of sailing, feeling like we are standing still while rocketing along, the rig loaded and the hull turning that load into forward momentum. We love this boat.

Bonaire has a strict ‘no anchoring’ policy, so we had to pick up a mooring. We chose one of the only open ones and got ourselves tied down. Then to bed, as it was late. The next morning we woke up in downtown Kralendijk. We were about 20 meters off of the shore, and there was an interesting swimming pool contraption directly to our side. We went in, and got all checked in before riding the dingy over to the marina and paying our dues for a month at the mooring.

Our month was excellent. Bonaire has great biking, which I checked out. Kate also found some great trails to run, and was able to access them by riding the onewheel. We took a scuba diving course and a freediving class. The freediving grabbed me more, from a sport point of view, but the scuba diving was spectacular, diving underneath the salt pier an excellent highlight of our time on Bonaire. On the weekend there was a little art cafe that opened and we went there many times to buy apple cake and coffee.

Early in our stay we got new neighbors, a couple on a Bali 5.6, Island Kisses. They owned the boat for charters, and were babysitting it while the captain and mate took a vacation. We socialized a few times, and they fed us a delicious dinner, and taught us a new card game. Meeting new friends is a fun part of sailing around, even if after your time in one place you will head in completely separate directions.

The one downside of Bonaire was the heat and it made us nervous about the remainder of the season in the Caribbean. Conversation turned again to installing air conditioning on the boat. At one point we were one hundred percent going to do it. Then we backed off. As of now, we still are not fully committed. In Bonaire we dealt with the heat by going into Luciano’s, a coffee/ gelato shop. They kept the air conditioning at a nice comfortable 18 degrees, and we would usually spend an hour plus per day enjoying the cool air.

Our month in Bonaire went quickly, and we would have stayed longer if it weren’t for the nightly mooring fee, which was adding up quickly. Before we knew it, it was time to go, and we tossed up the spinnaker for a quick downwind run to Klein Curaçao, a mere 30 miles downwind. It had been some time since we had flown our spinnaker, a huge symmetrical downwind sail. We fly it without the main, and it pulls the boat along at about half of the wind speed, directly downwind. When our destination is directly downwind, we make good time. Rounding the corner of Klein Curaçao we doused the spinnaker and motored up to the edge of the low, reefy island. Dropping anchor in shallow sand we fell back onto the chain. Our anchor was in two meters of water, while we were floating over 40 meters, a fun combination for snorkeling and freediving, especially when considering the gin clear water. Around midnight we were awakened by violent rocking, which persisted until we left early the next morning. The rolly nature of the anchorage was to plague us repeatedly during our stay on Curacao, making an otherwise idyllic spot untenable much of the time.

From Klein Curacao we floated downwind to Willemstad, and tied up at the marina. The entrance to the bay was dramatic, and luckily for us the famous swinging bridge was out of commission, making it easy to sail through town. We spent 5 nights at the marina, dealing with renewing passports, buying our anchorage permits, and resuppling. From there we sailed a few miles back to windward, and into Spanish Waters, where we were to spend much of the following month. Luckily there was plenty of good foiling to be had in the bay, and it was adjacent to a nice network of singletrack trails for running and biking. We were a little nervous about Spanish Waters, and Curacao in general, as the cruising community often talks bad about it. We had a great time, and while it isn’t necessarily a destination for us, it was a great spot to spend a month, and get some business done.