10 DAYS BY LAND AFTER 10 DAYS BY SEA

If you've been following along as of late, you will know that the reason I am taking a trip to the Caribbean this week is that I won 10 days on a charter sailboat.  I wrote about how I won it a couple of months back, when it happened.

Usually when I take a trip it is months in the planning.  This one was so unexpected and has happened so fast it is the reason, I think, that I still don't quite believe I am going.  It isn't anything I had thought I could do any time soon, maybe ever, and certainly not this year.

By now I should have long lists of what to take, where to go, what to see; an itinerary of exactly what to do each day (which is not set in stone so that I can take advantage of opportunities as they arise).  I should have packed at least once to do a test on what size luggage to use and how much it is weighing in at.

I've done none of that.

I did make a list in 2011 after my month in the BVI of what I took and what I should have taken on that trip, and I have it on my laptop so that I can access it when I need it again.  It will require some modification for sailing and for taking liquids as I will be checking luggage this time, so I won't have to buy all my toiletries there.

I have a phone number of a good taxi driver, thanks to Mike Sweeney of Zero to Cruising, as they spend hurricane season in Grenada each year so know a lot about the island and the people.

Today I spent considerable time reading up on Trip Advisor and Grenada tourism sites for recommended restaurants, beaches etc. and started that list.

The one thing I did do a while back is research a place to stay for the second half of my trip, the land-based 10 days that I will spend on Grenada.  Again, turning to Trip Advisor and internet searches, I found a lot of nice hotels, most out of my price range.  I did find a few that pleased my budgetary sensibilities but was not sure of the establishment and many seemed very bare bones and in the thick of town or way out in the boonies.  So again I turned to Mike and he recommended a place called Siesta Hotel.  I had seen that one in my searches and it was on my short list.  They also had a very attractive deal whereby if you pay for the entire stay at booking, you get 25% off their already reasonable price - a price which did not have any tax or gratuities added.  Every other hotel had another 25% tacked ON to cover that.  So all things considered, I went ahead and booked with them and paid up-front.

It's a smaller hotel (just as I like) with a lovely pool and only a 5 minute walk through the grounds to the beach, which I am pretty sure I will be able to see from my room.  All in at $725 for 10 nights including the exchange rate on my credit card, I consider that a great deal.

Entrance to Siesta Hotel where I will be staying

The rooms overlooking the pool

The restaurant, right by the pool

I don't anticipate spending a whole lot of days at the pool, maybe one or two.  I intend to get out and explore, find some gorgeous beaches, and meet some great people.  One thing I did read about, that I intend to attend is Gouyave Fish Friday.  You can read about it here.

MY BACKYARD

I recently read a short guide book written by my friend, Mike Sweeney of Zero to Cruising, about hikes he and his wife have gone on in the various Caribbean islands.  Although I felt that most of the ones that are in the book would be way too hard for me and that I am too out of shape to hike at all, I was inspired to get out and do some exploring in my own 'back yard'.

Since my move to North Vancouver last year, I have sharply felt the disadvantages of living so high up the mountain; far more rainy than in Langley, temperature regularly 10 degrees colder than 2 minutes down the road, in the snow line, in the CLOUDS - foggy a lot up here, lots of tree canopy so not much sunshine, mould growing in all the crevices of my car due to all the rain and said tree canopy... I could go on and on. But what I haven't really even thought about much is the advantages.  One of the obvious ones is that I am now a short drive from my new granddaughter and thus get to see her a lot more often than if I lived over an hour's drive away (and lately I am getting to see her almost every weekday).  One of the not-so-obvious advantages, to me anyhow, is that there are some amazing trails to either walk or hike in these mountains.  I am not at all inclined to 'hike'.  But a nice walk is something I can really get into so, with Mike and Rebecca in mind, I set off to explore my backyard a bit.

Down my street is this gorgeous red maple.

I loved the raindrops on the leaves.

At the end of my street, these stairs lead down to the road that will take me to the headwaters.

This is my house, buried in the trees, looking up from the road that runs behind it.

The asphalt on this road reminded me of Tortola; not in the best condition but at least there are no killer hills!

Yes, the mountain is not always friendly.

Lynn Valley Creek comes into view.

The water is high and moving really fast.

Down some more steps to take me off of the road and onto a trail.

I leave the trail to get closer to the water.

I am not much of a 'bush-wacker' but will brave any spiderwebs to get a bit closer.

I can't believe the volume of water rushing down-stream; no wonder I can hear it from my house.

Same spot as above, just looking to the left.

I get back on the trail and continue on my way; this boardwalk is over a shallow rivulet of water headed to the creek.

Oops.  Better stay on trail from now on.

Because, yes, it really is steep!

The entrance to the park.

Standing here looking at the trails, I was really thinking about Mike and Rebecca and how much they would love it here.

Standing on a small bridge, overlooking the creek running down-stream.

The churning waters under the bridge.

I think I just found a perfect spot to come and read in the summer.

The view from the bench.  Without the clouds I am betting it is amazing.

Unfortunately there is no sound, thanks to my iPhone mike not working.

So now I am wondering if Mike and Rebecca might be interested in a 'house swap' some time in the future?  That way they can explore even more trails and waterfalls in Beautiful British Columbia, and I can lie on the trampoline of their boat and pretend I am sailing the Caribbean!  ;-)

Here is a link to Mike's Book.  It really is a great read, even if you aren't planning on hiking the Caribbean any time soon.   If you are, I consider it a must-have.

                                                                       

WHAT DOES IT TAKE? (guest post)

A few days ago I got the bright idea of having someone do a guest post on my blog and immediately Mike Sweeney came to mind. I have been reading his very informative and entertaining blog, Zero to Cruising, for over a year. He is living my dream life. Reading the process, from start to present, of how he turned his dream into a reality resulted in much admiration. And envy. So here, in a nutshell, is how he did it. Be prepared to be inspired. And should it whet your appetite for more, be sure to visit his blog and start from the very beginning.

"I wish I could do that" is the oft-heard battle cry of those who dream of selling out and sailing off into the sunset but, nonetheless, remain landlocked. What is it that allows some people to take that leap of faith and move forward with their dreams while others allow time to pass them by and their dreams to collect dust? As one of those in the first category, Sandra thought that perhaps I could shed some light on this subject, although I'm not so sure that I can. For my wife Rebecca and me, it really wasn't all that difficult.

Don't get me wrong, it was challenging in the physical sense. We had all the standard encumbrances that most people use as excuses (or 'reasons' if you prefer). We had a house, which represented a good chunk of our financial assets and which, of course, we needed to sell. No question, people often find this a tricky issue and will frequently quote their particular community's depressed real estate market as backup for this defense. And of course, our house was filled with all kinds of 'stuff'. You know, the kind of stuff that would definitely not fit on a little boat. Yes, we had to sell all that too. In this case, we found internet services such as Kijiji and Craig's List to be invaluable. Note that neither the house nor the objects within it will sell unless you actually put them on the market!

Of much greater difficulty was the sale of our business, my life blood for well over two decades. Ours was a business with a very strong personality component, making for an especially tricky transition to new owners. With time and patience though, a deal was struck that left all parties involved happy. Again, if we had not been actively seeking a buyer, we would still be back on land working instead of cruising the Caribbean as we are now.

What of family? No, we did not have young children in school although with the number of kids we have seen happily living and traveling on boats, I am convinced that this would not have been an issue even if we had. Our daughter is independent and living on her own and both she, and the remainder of our families, were very supportive of our dreams to cruise south.

What about experience? Certainly you must be a licensed Captain with thousands of miles of blue-water sailing under your belt before you go cruising, right? Well, no. The truth is that, at the time we set in motion our plan to go cruising, neither my wife nor I had ANY sailing experience. We did ultimately take a short 10-day course, which we found extremely helpful, but many others have cast off without even that small bit of instruction.

Oh yes, a boat - you will probably want one of those, but finding a seaworthy vessel is the easy part. There are thousands for sale in every costal city on the globe. Fire up your computer and do some research and you'll no doubt be able to come up with a short-list of your needs and desires. Enjoy this process but don't get too wrapped up in trying to find the 'perfect boat' because no such thing exists. They say that all boats are compromises and this, we have found, is true.

"But I'm not a millionaire. I could never afford such a lifestyle." I can assure any of you reading this that my wife and I are far from wealthy and, to be completely honest, we have nowhere near enough money to support ourselves forever. Is this really a valid excuse though? Do you have enough money to support yourself indefinitely on land if you were to stop working today? I would suspect not, and we are no different in this respect except for two significant things; the first is that the sailing/cruising lifestyle is, by its nature, one of minimalism. Most people find that the expenses they incur while traveling - to some of the most beautiful places on Earth I should add - are a small fraction of what they used to spend just to subsist on land. The second is the crucial one though: confidence. In our case, we firmly believe that when the time comes for us to go back to work, or to earn some money, we'll be able to do so. And we'll be able to do it when and where we choose. This last ingredient, confidence - or faith if you prefer, is what prevents most people from taking that all-important initial step which would turn their dreams into a reality. Many will say that they're simply working towards their goals, on their 10-15 year plan, but I suspect that the vast majority will never reach the point where they cut the dock lines.

If there is one bit of information that I can share which will hopefully push some people from the dreamer category into the cruiser category, it's that out there on the water today, enjoying all the amazing benefits that the cruising lifestyle provides, is every conceivable type of person you can imagine. There are men and women, some who are wealthily while others would be considered poor, some with big boats and others with tiny craft, some with plenty of experience and others who, like us when we started, are complete newbies. Some people are out there traveling on their own while others have their entire family on board with them. You'll find some young, fit people and countless others who are at or beyond retirement age. The point is that if they can do it - if WE can do it, so can you. Believe this, really believe it and you'll have taken that first key step into making your dream of sailing off into the sunset a reality.

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Mike Sweeney and his wife Rebecca are full-time cruisers, currently exploring the Caribbean on their catamaran. They departed Canada in the summer of 2010 after divesting themselves of virtually all of their land-based possessions. You can read a step-by-step account of how, in two years, they went from being self-employed martial arts school owners, with absolutely zero sailing experience, to live-aboard cruisers on www.ZeroToCruising.com.

MEETING GOOD FRIENDS FOR THE FIRST TIME IS FABULOUS

Even more seagrass was dumped on the beach after the storm came through yesterday afternoon and last night. Linda Soares, the other sibling that runs Neptune's Treasure, knowing I wasn't very happy that my beautiful beach (yes, I think of it as 'my' beach now) has been so ruined, sent me a photo of what it looked like after hurricane Earl had passed through.

The beach now.

The beach after Earl - the guys are rebuilding the dock that blew away. All docks on the island except for the big gov't dock blew away.

Here is a video of Earl while it was raging at Neptune's Treasure.

I lay down for a nap at about 11:30 because my eyes won't stay open while I am trying to read. I wake up an hour later and check my FaceBook page and there's a post from a couple who's blog I have been following for two years. They have arrived in Anegada on their PDQ catamaran, Zero to Cruising, and hope to meet me. As I have been following their travels, in the past month or so it seemed to me that we might end up in the BVI's together. Sure enough, we arrived at almost the same time. They have been over at Jost Van Dyke and Virgin Gorda and Tortola for the past couple of weeks. I jump up from the computer and go outside and try to spot their boat but can't be sure which is theirs. I head into the bar at Neptune's and ask to use the radio. I hail them and they reply. I am so excited. They are going to have some lunch and then come over to the dock in their dinghy. I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas morning for the half hour or so that I have to wait before they arrive. I keep my eye out as I sit and try to read a book on the porch of my room, and when I see two people get into a dinghy and start to head over, I hurry to the dock to greet them and it's like meeting old friends.

Zero to Cruising is the second boat from the right.

Rebecca and Mike, in the flesh - finally!

I arrange for us to have dinner together with Gary and Beth, as I think they will all get along really well. We have a wonderful time together and I have to say, today has just made this trip even more fabulous than it already has been.

Gary and Beth.

Me (looking like crap), Rebecca and Mike.

They wrote about meeting me on their blog today. If you like, you can read about it HERE.