Bonaire - here we come

Friday 14^th October 2022, was the day that we finally left Grenada. The sun was shining and the wind was blowing Force 4 (11-16 knots). The sea was calm with very little swell and it was a perfect sail for the first leg of our journey.

PredictWind was telling us that the winds would be similar to this for our passage and it should take us 3.5/4 days. As this would get us into Bonaire a few days earlier than our marina booking, we decided to take a quick 10nm sail up to Chatham Bay in Union Island. This is in St Vincent and the Grenadines, so officially we should have checked in. However, SVG allows boats to overnight at anchor on route to somewhere else. It was a lovely choice – a pleasant snorkel, a sunset and a good night’s sleep before setting off the next day.

Saturday 15^th October saw another blue sky with winds of 7/8knots, so off we went, heading north west to make the most of the easterly wind and north westerly current. We managed a steady sail of 5 knots under the genoa and a prevented main.

By 6pm, we had made good progress and, as the sun set, we had our final glimpses of land. Ahead of us lay the ocean and Bonaire.

The first night at sea after a while at anchor is always challenging. We need time to get used to the motion of the boat and also adapt our time clocks to our night watch pattern. This passage was no exception. The wind and swell direction meant a rolly night with the sails banging, so neither of us got much sleep.

Day 3 (Monday 17^th) saw the winds back up to Force 3 (7-10 knots) and more 5 knot sailing with genoa and prevented main.  Monday also saw us reach our half way point to Bonaire. How time flies!

By this stage in the passage, we had settled comfortably into our night watches. Before setting sail on Escapade, night watches were something that I had been nervous about, especially as I am not keen on the dark. It has quickly become one of my favourite times of the day. If the sky is clear and the sea is calm, it is amazing to observe the millions of stars in the sky, including the Milky Way.  There are also lights in the water. There are microscopic creatures that create bioluminescence which causes the water to sparkle as much as the night sky. The wonders of the universe are humbling to see.

Tuesday 18^th was day 4 and the wind picked up to Force 4 (11-16 knots), knocking our speed up to over 6 knots. We were positively racing along! It was also a busy day for sail changes, as we needed to gybe several times to begin heading south west to Bonaire.

During passages I like to observe the sea and sky around me and on this passage I focused more on the changing sky. I have never really studied the variety of clouds or understood what they tell us. It was fascinating to study them. This has become another thing on my Google list for when we arrive within internet signal again.

Finally, we arrived and moored at Harbour Village Marina. Our log told us that we had travelled 500nm in 4 days and 2 hours. Time for a beer…