It was an early start today with a visit to Fort Napoleon, above beautiful Les Saintes Bay on the island of Terre-de-Haut in the Iles des Saintes. The bay is well protected from the prevailing trade winds, and is a haven for yachts and water activities of all kinds. Our historian Tom Heffernan was on hand to provide learned insight into the history of the fort and of the island itself. Many guests wandered the narrow main street of the quaint French town at Anse Mire beach, exploring the small shops selling local products and perhaps enjoying a cafe au lait with a fresh croissant. After lunch back on the ship we were able to set the sails for a few hours to enjoy what makes being on Sea Cloud so very special — sailing under wind power — as we headed to our next Caribbean island destination.
2/22/2024
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Sea Cloud
St. Lucia
We dropped anchor in Soufriere Bay beneath the majestic Pitons. Both Pitons (“Gros” – 2600’ & “Petit” 2500’) are designated world heritage sites and are sentinels guarding the entrance to Soufriere Bay. Our excursion began inside the caldera where the hot sulfuric gasses and molten waters and rock are still quite active. St. Lucia is 238 square miles with a population of 180 thousand and is the birthplace of two Nobel Laureates. The official language is English, but everyone speaks the vernacular Creole French. Our next stop was the Diamond Botanical Gardens. Plants of every sort abound in profusion. The bamboo, the national plant of St. Lucia, can grow 8 inches a day and reach 30 feet. Our next stop was Hummingbird Beach. The snorkeling was good and is set against the sheer rock cliffs which contains the famous bat cave. We also enjoyed the hospitality and refreshing cold drinks at the Hummingbird Beach Club. Today’s lunch was a delight: pasta swirled inside a 100-kilo wheel of reggiano parmigiano cheese until fully coated. At night, our captain gave us a wonderful farewell toast to send us off safely to our homes. We boarded Sea Cloud as strangers and left as mates.
