Ahhhh Saint Barthelemy

Ahhhh Saint Barthelemy

Our next stop was Saint Barthelemy, better known as St Barts. We spent a night off Ile Fourchue a private island whose waters are part of the St Barts marine park.  Moorings there are free and limited access to shore for hiking is possible.  Steve also checked out the likely reef but found it damaged by the hurricanes of 2017.  

St Barts has a reputation for being a playground of the rich and is indeed a luxury shopping paradise, but yet we found it welcoming and a great people watching feast.  From our anchorage in the outer harbor we watched the Big Boy yachts, smaller sailing vessels and the occasional cruise ship. Being a French Island, things to eat were delicious and readily available plus the clearing in process organized and efficient.  We did pay a fee to anchor in the harbor area, but this small fee was well worth the access to the sights as well as the abundant and well-maintained dinghy docks. 

Even though the island was hit hard by the hurricanes of 2017, little evidence remains.  The main city of Gustavia which clusters around the harbor is fully recovered with fresh paint and new red roofs. A walking tour brochure was provided for our enjoyment and edification. We made almost all the stops but detoured from the last – the lighthouse – in favor of a breakfast stop at the boulangerie. Since hills were involved in our walk, we felt the indulgence had been earned. 

Before leaving St Barts we moved the boat to the lovely bay Columbier at the north end for another night on a park mooring.  Again, Steve was disappointed in the coral, but we met a German couple who came to visit since they had seen on our blog that we had done the loop. We spent an afternoon brainstorming loop options for them with their 7-foot draft sailing vessel.  They also shared their adventures in the Caribbean over the last few months – plus their journey across the Atlantic! Given their level of advanced planning and experience, they will surely have a great loop trip as well. On to the volcano islands.