Saint Lucia

15^th January to 16^th January 2014

We left Bequia at 6h00 the morning.  We passed a beautiful passenger ship going into a bay.

About midday we hooked a billfish. This time it was my turn to bring her in. It was an Atlantic White Marlin. I was thrilled that we were able to release her in the open sea after a few photos.

Facts of Wikipedia:

“St Lucia is one of the Windward Islands; it was named after Saint Lucy of Syracuse by the French, the first European colonizers. They signed a treaty with the native Caribbean peoples in 1660. England took control of the island from 1663 to 1667; in ensuing years, it was at war with France 14 times and rule of the island changed frequently (7 times French and British each). In 1814, the British took definitive control of the island. Because it switched so often between British and French control, Saint Lucia was also known as the "Helen of the West Indies."

The French pirate Francois El Clerc (also known as Jambe de Bois, due to his wooden leg) frequented Saint Lucia in the 1550s. It was not until years later, around 1600, that the first European camp was started by the Dutch, at what is now Vieux Fort. In 1605, an English vessel called the Olive Branch was blown off-course on its way to Guyana, and the 67 colonists started a settlement on Saint Lucia. After five weeks, only 19 survived, due to disease and conflict with the Caribbeans, so they fled the island. The French officially claimed the island in 1635 but it was the English who started the next European settlement in 1639.”

We arrived at Rodney Bay at 18h00 that evening. Rodney Bay Lagoon is a large and protected area for anchoring on the Northwest side of St Lucia.

We cleared Customs and Immigration with a three day in-and-out clearance.

The rest of the day was spent in the two shopping malls enjoying the Clothing shops, household goods, arts and crafts, as well as a pharmacy. We found a large supermarket and were able to buy some of the stuff we could not find previously.

That evening we invited Allen and Marita of Alleycat for dinner on Vagabund.

The day of the attack we left Rodney Bay (St Lucia) to Martinique. The attack was in Vieux Fort in the Southern part of the island.

Our hearts go out to his surviving wife Margaret.

More details of the St Lucia attack from BBC.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-25832068

Also have a look on www.noonsite.com for info on sailor security reports.