Ceiling And Visibility Unlimited

3-6
I drove off the anchor and Cale helped the kids run the anchor. We were able to put the sails up almost right away. We were going really good and then when we got behind the volcano the wind just completely died for about 30 minutes and we motored. We were able to get going again with great wind and made great time, going about 7 to 10 knots. The seaside on Dominica is very pretty, steep cliffs and very dramatic. We got a mooring ball with the help of a boat boy with Seacat named Mr. Beans. He got us set up with a couple tours the next couple of days. We are excited to see the island. It sounds like there is a lot here. Cale went to check us in. It’s quite easy in Dominica. You check in and out at the same time and they just give you 2 weeks. It will be nice to not have to check out when it’s time to go. The kids tried to swim off the boat but quickly came out screaming due to jelly fish stings. There is not really a good beach here. The kids got a little bored for the first time in a long while and eventually came up with a making some kind of challenge which eventually had me taking them to shore to gather some rocks and sticks. Cale spent the majority of the evening tackling the new toilet pipes. He is replacing the lines in Kira and Cole’s bathrooms. We are hoping that will eliminate the stink that comes from those heads. We helped as much as possible but it’s a tight space. We cleaned the bathrooms really good after. Hopefully, the problem is solved. A boat called Tiger Lily came by. They are a family of 4 from Sweden. They are 7 months into their year of sailing here and then back to Sweden. They have 2 boys our boy’s ages. We are hoping to meet up with them soon and let the boys play.

3-7 We met Stowe (stowaway) aka Armstrong at the dingy dock at 9am. We really didn’t know exactly what to expect. He first took us to town near where the cruise ships come in to let Nina and Jackie check in and get cash from the atm. We walked around the few food vendors that were open. We then drove up, up, up. We ended up over 2,700 feet. The views were absolutely amazing. So green, so lush, so steep. The roads were actually quite nice because they widen them for a geothermal energy factory they built. There is a big pipe, covered in wood to keep it looking natural, that runs from the water fall/ lake down the mountain. There are some tight turns and steep terrain. Our guide got out several times and had us taste, smell, and learn about various plants, seeds, nuts they grow here. The lemongrass or he called it cannabis smelt so good. My other favorite was the cocoa seeds. They tasted like a slimy jolly rancher. I couldn’t believe it was cocoa. If you bite into it, its bitter and that’s the cocoa that they dry, roast, and grind up. We tried some and it was really good. Passion fruit was also really good, with mixed with a little sugar. The flesh is seedy and gooey, but has a good sour flavor. Our first stop was the National Park fresh water lake. We bought our park passes then started our hike. From the building, we went right up and around and came back on the road. It was quite steep, but had nice big steps. It was really amazing. You walk right along a ridge and feel like your on the spine of a dinosaur going up, then back down, then up again. We were all pretty hot and excited to jump in some water and cool off. Little did we know how cold our next stop would be.

The next venture might have been my most favorite thing we have done so far. The first thing we did was jump between these really tight rocks into the water. It was the scariest jump I’ve ever done. In fact, both Kira and I both jumped to far and almost hit the other side. I wasn’t a fan of dropping, not jumping. It felt really weird, but below there is an overhang and its a tight space. I wouldn’t do it a 2nd time. Then, we got to swim up the steep canyons. It’s hard to describe how beautiful, calm, unique, and awesome this was. The only down size was that the water was very cold! Stowe caught us a crawdad,, he called they crayfish. He said they only swim in fresh water that they can live in so they know the water on the island is fresh and safe to swim in if there are crawdads.

We stopped for lunch at a place with beautiful views. We pre-ordered so we didn’t have to wait for our food quite as long as normal. Our last stop was Trafalgar falls. They were stunning. We walked all the way up to them and even got in the waterfall of them. There are hot pools that run down next to it. They were so amazing. It falls down off little drops and was the first and best hot shower I’ve had in awhile. It was very slippery walking up and down the waterfall, so you had to step carefully.
We drove by a place to see parrots on our way home. There was a park where people were out playing cricket and other games and hanging out. We saw a bus that was a gift from Canada and before it could be used it got smashed by a tree from a hurricane David in 1979. We made another stop to see the sunset at an awesome overlook and we think we saw a tiny bit of a green flash. We made a quick stop at a market and then back to the boat. A perfect, exhausting, but wonderful day.
Here are a few random facts from Stowe. Dominica is 70-80% catholic.
The make smoothies our of breadfruit but need to make sure its when its ripe. Drove by and old historic area where they sold the slaves and hung many of them. All 9 of the volcanos on the island are active. One of the tallest peaks is 4,006 feet and is named Macaque, which is monkey in creole. The tallest peak is Mourne Diablotin at 4,747 the 2nd tallest in the lesser antilles. It was named diablotin, which means devil because of the birds that live up there who make wierd noises. Bay oil leaf to make disinfectant and according to him cured people from COVID. As a side note, Stowe is a bit hard to understand and his most used phrase is a “ya man.”

3-8
Day 2 of exploring the South of Dominica from Roseau. We started at 9 again. We were all a little slower to get going today. Our first stop was snorkeling at volcano bubble sparkling or champagne reef. It was cool to see the bubbles coming up. We had 2 masks (Cole and Kelsey’s) left on our friends boat, so Kelsey didn’t have a good mask. Cale and I took turns letting her use ours. Next stop was about a 45 minute drive to Emerald Pools. It was really pretty, very refreshing water. The water coming down from the falls was crazy powerful. We drove about an hour to Carib or Kalinago territory. They were called Kalinago people, but Europeans called them Carib. They also painted them as a cannibalistic, violent society that wiped out the Arawak people that were also on the islands. The Kalinago say that wasn’t the case and they were just made to seem that way so the Europeans could justify wiping them out. . It’s one of the only areas they survived because it’s so rugged here they were able to hide. There are about 3,000 left. All the land is communal and they have to be full Kalinago or raised there to buy it. They don’t live traditionally anymore, but had display showing what it was like.
The coast and area there was beautiful. We were all pretty tired driving back. The island is so pretty. Hold fast 2 boys came over after dinner and watch Napoleon Dynamite which I don’t think they understood.
3-9
We left Roseau around 9. Before we left we checked in with Nina and Iain and gave them our old radar and some of our extra towels for their guests they have coming. It’s weird to be saying goodbye and that it could be for a long time. They have to get their engine looked at before they know if they will come up to Portsmouth. We discovered last night that Dominica is a very popular whale watching place. We decided to try and find them on our way out. We followed some watching boats out but we just weren’t quite fast enough. Several times just as we got close, they dove and the boats dispersed. We tried and tried. We did get close enough once so see a big one dive down. We are hoping we still might see them when we leave here in a couple days. We got to the mooring at Portsmouth at 1:30. Our boat boy is Alexis. He got us set up with a tour to see the 2 rivers tomorrow at 8. Kira worked on homework. Cale, Kelaey and Cole took the dinghy to check out snorkeling spots. We worked on cleaning the boat. I made dinner and worked on re-stringing the trampoline. It was a pretty laid back evening, which was needed after our 2 busy days in south Dominica.

3-10
Alexis with Pays picked us up at 8 for an Indian river tour. He used paddles to slowly move us up the beautiful river. It is the only place like is on Dominica where fresh and ocean water meet. There was a lot of wildlife, and bird, very old trees. Sadly, a lot of the river is still recovering from Hurricane Maria in 2017. We went up a small tributary where they built the place used as Calypso’s house in the pirates movie. Our guide said during the filming they would bring them up in their boats in all their make-up and ready to film. We saw a lot of crabs that lived at the base of the trees. Several white heron birds. At the end, before we turned back around, there is a small restaurant. We had some bay leaf tea that is made from bay leaves and ginger. It was very good. We got back to the boat at around 10. Cale and I then had to lift out the washing machine from Cole’s room. It was heavy! We went after that to shore in Portsmouth to walk around and get lunch. We were approached by several people for food and money. They weren’t super pushy, but it was very sad. We got lunch, roti, at Rays roti. A family owned place for 20 plus years. It was really fresh, tasty roti.
We walked back to the Purple Turtle where the dinghy was and waited to meet Carol to buy the washer. They started talking about being from South Africa and living in BVI and sure enough they knew Mike and Muffy. Carol had even chartered on our boat. Small world! They are retired from cruising and live on Dominica full time. It was a bit tricky getting the washer off the boat. We used the sugar scoops and had the dinghy tied back there really tight. It went pretty smoothly. We just lifted it from the dinghy onto the dock. We got a lot of strange looks. We lost some money on the whole debacle but I’m just glad it’s done and we can move on. So is Cole, as it’s been taking up space in his room for a while now.
We got some bad news with Kira and school. We found out she has to take at least 6 credits to be eligible to play sports. We worked through that for a while, trying to game plan. We went on an exploration trip to try and surf. We found some big waves, but they weren’t really surfable. We came back to the boat and about sunset tried to snorkel. There was too much swell at the north west side so we snorkeled a few minutes near the fort dock. I didn’t get in, but Cale said there was some interesting fish to see.
We worked on getting the kids registered for school. We have an early morning. Heading out at 5 for Guadaloupe.