The New Year (January 1-3, 2015)

You can just barely see the road that zigzags up the mountain

You can just barely see the road that zigzags up the mountain

It’s New Year’s Day and I would love to stay in this anchorage (I’ve named it One Boat Bay) but it’s Malachi’s birthday and we promised him fresh fish for dinner (this is not as simple as it sounds as there is surprisingly little fish available. The reef fish have something called ciguatera which affects the nervous system and can be fatal to humans]. We head to East End Bay where the guide book says there is a fish market – the first we’ve heard of so far.

Coconuts ...

Coconuts …

It’s late afternoon and there is no one at Harbourview Marina so we tie up to the T-dock. We find out the next day that the marina is under construction but they agree to let us pay for two nights (We need sleep. The first night at anchor is never that restful because you just don’t know if it will hold and we were woken up at midnight two nights ago after almost being rammed by a catamaran).

... and passion fruit ...

… and passion fruit …

The fish market is closed so we go back the next day. We find out that it imports its fish and only sells wholesale to restaurants. We do, however, find some frozen fish and that is good enough. We do laundry and re-provision. In the morning, we hike all the way up to the top of the hill. It is a veritable ‘what’s what’ in terms of tropical fruit. After another hike, we decide to leave Friday morning because there is not much rest to be had here. A huge New Year’s Day party went on most of the night and there is not much protection from the winds so we are concerned about the lines chafing.

... and bananas ...

… and bananas …

We have not yet explored Peter Island and decide to head there.

... and papayas and soursop and sugar apples.

… and papayas and soursop and sugar apples.