Life Beyond the Rally

Having completed our around the world rally celebrations, we needed to start our next adventure. Many of our companion boats would be heading back to Europe, but we had decided that we weren’t ready for that and would stay on the west side of the Atlantic for a little longer. Our first challenge would be to learn to live on the boat, rather than travelling quickly as part of a rally.

Our first priority to was to ensure that our food stores were well stocked. So, it was a quick 25nm sail to Martinique for a visit to Carrefour for essentials like cheese, pate and, of course, french bread.

Suitably restocked, we continued north. The wind was as expected, Force 4 (11-16 knots) from the east, so this meant a motor past Martinique and Dominica with brisk sailing between the islands. Twenty four hours and 125nm later, we were anchoring just outside the boundaries to Pigeon Island, Jacques Cousteau Marine Park on the west coast of Guadeloupe.

Although the rally was over and Tony and Katy, on board our buddy boat, Tam Lin, were planning to head back to the UK, our paths were still similar and, of course, we all wanted to re-dive this superb marine park. So, a stop here was a must for both boats.

Whilst anchored here, Martin and Tony took the opportunity to night dive on the Fran Jack wreck. This 45m (135 feet) freighter was  sunk in 1996.  It has been stripped and lies flat on its keel on a sandy bottom in depth of 23m (77 feet). I am not keen on night dives, so opted for gin and tonic with Katy instead.

The car park was fenced off and full of lights, cameras and large trucks. We were close enough to catch a glimpse of the actors filming on the police station veranda, but the highlight of the morning was getting the chance to meet DI Mervin Wilson in person. Actor Don Gilet was just leaving to get something to eat, but got the driver to stop, so we could have a photo …such a lovely man!

We had a hire car to head to other locations from the series:

A lunch stop at the Langley Resort Fort Royal. This resort is used as a base for many of the crew during filming, but it has also been the set for several murders…none while we were there, luckily.

On our road trip, we were also lucky enough to see the Shack where the resident detective lives. Last time we visited Guadeloupe, it had not been there, as  it is taken down between filming to protect it from the elements. Situated on  a popular beach with several beachside restaurants, clever filing makes it appear isolated.