Rosie & Tuppergal's Caribbean Trip 2017

[rv7boy]

Going to Granada today. Scoot, you and Cookie are laying good tracks on both APRS and SPOT. I prefer to watch APRS because for many points it shows speed, heading and altitude in addition to time although SPOT is definitely more reliable.
UPDATE at 13:35 CDT...Looks like Alpha flight just landed while Charlie Flight is near Martinique. Weather radar looks better than it did Monday for your location.

[hibeam]

Flew to Nevis for gas. (None in St Kitts). Then flew to Grenada. Along the way we flew around Mount Serout that experienced a volcanic eruption (I think in 2001) that virtually made the island uninhabitable. We could smell the sulphur that still emanates from the volcano. We flew past Dominica where we stayed in 2015, Martinique, St Lucia, then landed at Grenada. Tomorrow, many of us will take the guided tour of the island and start scuba diving on Saturday.
I am trying figure out how to upload pics from my iPad but no joy yet. Later

[scard]

...AND Rosie had more alternator issues today... I think Gene meant "Montserrat".

The pictures are piling up, but the motivation is declining, as we are deep into island time mon'! We'll see what TC comes up with in the next 24hrs, if any.

[flynwest]

Ah I remember island time. Hope you all have a great time. Diane and I will be joining you guys on the next one. Scot do you think we should get a go fund me account for Rosie so he can get a real alternator.

[Michael White]

Originally Posted by scard

...AND Rosie had more alternator issues today...

It must be a Bermuda Triangle thing...he never seems to have alternator issues when he's not in the Caribbean.

Is there an "auto rough" for alternators?

[tcard]

The banana pancakes weren't nearly as good because they gave me COCONUT pancakes since that is what Scott ordered. Grrrr. Nine RVers were off to check out the diving. We sat for a while watching a very entertaining side show on the small pier by the resort. There were several shore excursions launching from the pier by the hotel and watching the comedy show of trying to herd those unfamiliar with moving from a solid object to a moving one proved to be worthy of a lazy day in the islands.

We did some reseach and decided to go to Ottley's for lunch and walk their trail through the rainforest. We checked the website and CLOSED for renovations. Well, that plan hit a brick wall. We weren't the only ones. Victoria had been wanting to ride the island train, which is sometimes closed on Monday and sometimes Wednesday. Guess which day it was closed this week. Oh well, welcome to the way planning can go in the islands.

Plan B - grab a cab, stop at the Timothy Hill overlook, and then on to the the other side of the hill for lunch.

Atlantic on the west and Caribbean on the right. Nevis is the big hill in the back. We'll make a stop there for fuel before making our way to Grenda.




Atlantic side




Tunnel through Timothy Hill



A rocky view with Nevis in the back again.




We made our way to Shipwreck Beach bar which had some good recommendations. I can see it being a good place for a drink as the sun sets, but stay away from the food. Definitely bottom of the barrel so far on this trip.

At the other end of the bay, we were sure the busy beach must have been a decent sized resort. There were people swarming like ants in and out of the water. When we got there we realized there were no rooms to be seen. It was a mass of cruise ship passengers invading the beach. It was definitely time to return to the quiet beach that was almost all ours just on the other side of the hill.

Resort dive location for those that came off the cruise ship. I'm pretty sure Rosie would say, 'why bother?'




Umbrellas in a perfect row covering a good swath of the sand.




More people, water sports, and trash on the beach.




Back to the room for a change of clothes and time to visit the water. Scott and I floated for about an hour in the water - one of our favorite things to do in the buoyant salt water.

Then off to the room to clean up and start packing for the morning. It's time to make our way to Grenada. We gathered again to share stories from the day in the bright sun and stiff breeze.

[tcard]

Red Snapper steamed in banana leaves with veggies and rice




Cleo - thanks for taking care of us the last few nights!




Our home to explore the island of St. Kitts




A picture can't do this sunset justice.

[Vlad]

Thank you for write up Tanya. I know it's not easy to find time and good connection while in resting mode. Much easier while traveling. Looking forward to more stories.

[tcard]

The troops gathered for breakfast, while fending off a very aggressive bird looking for eggs. We saw some bacon and pancakes on the ground, but no, that wasn't what it wanted. As soon as Opie left his seat, the bird hopped over for some eggs with hot sauce! I wonder if it got a tummy ache.

The side show on the pier was beginning again, but we didn't get to sit and watch this time. It was time to catch the bus to the airport at 30 minute intervals. Alpha flight missed their time hack by 20 minutes, so we were all pushed back as we had to wait for the taxi to come back because there weren't any others in the area big enough to accommodate our flights.

Ready to go



It took the usual hour plus to go to pay fees, then to immigration, customs, and back to pass through immigration to security. We were surprised we had to do the immigration and customs dance since St. Kitts and Nevis are techically one country. I was expecting flight plans, which we didn't need. Once again, never quite as planned, but all good. Back for the hike down the ramp to the row of RVs sitting there waiting to take us on the next step of our adventure.

Crew waiting for pilots to get all the paperwork done.


We did a quick sight-seeing trip on the Atlantic side of the island. Turn northbound out of St. Kitts after an eastbound departure, U-turn at the north end of the island, call approach and let them know we've made the turn, a run southbound, call approach and let them know we're about to be abeam of the runway (they don't have radar out here), and then off to Nevis for a quick turn and fuel.

St. Kitts ramp. No place to tie-down, just chocks for stabilization.


Rosie making the long walk across the ramp.


Bravo flight is all geared up and ready to go.






Bye St. Kitts. Thanks for having us.


Sightseeing northbound on the Atlatic coast.

[tcard]

Time to turn around.




And back the other way.


Time to cross over the island at a low point.


Just a 2 mile open water trip to Nevis.


After a whopping 15 minutes on the hobbs to the fuel stop.




Thanks Omel for getting us in and out so fast. If you're in the area, she will take great care of you.