Sailing Wild Horses
  • Home
  • Crew
  • Blog
  • Our Boat
  • Projects
  • Contact

Sharing our journey

Community is the Backbone

5/26/2023

 
Picture
Wild Horses is over 20 years old now and with constant moving (and bouncing through waves and swells), new problems seem to come out of the woodwork far too often.  Most times these are small issues and quicky fixed.  Other times, not so much.  In St. Thomas, USVI, we took a mental inventory of the current woes of Wild Horses. 
  • A dinghy motor with start-up gremlins
  • A defunct in-line engine blower (used to cool the engine room)
  • Some sea water found in our engine compartment
  • Our engine zinc depleting at a very advanced rate (a sign of stray electrical current somewhere in the boat)
  • Rainwater coming through the overhead hatch in our v-berth cabin (where we sleep)
  • An anchor light that blinks instead of being steadily bright

Yeesh. We knew some of these issues could only be fixed once we could get to a proper marine store in St. Martin.  But, for many of the problems, we still had to troubleshoot the cause.  Time to call in our boat buddies!  Dave (Indigo Lady) is a retired physics teacher and Barry (Caretta) is an electrician by trade.  Talk about a dream team!  Slowly but surely Dave, Barry and Mike worked together to resolve most of our boat issues. 
​
Their successes include:
  • While in St. John USVI, Dave traced our dinghy gremlins to a defunct fuel line ball.  Barry had a spare one, so Mike and Dave were able to get the dinghy back up and running in no time
  • The rainwater coming through the hatch was simply a few screws that needed to be tightened.  This was an easy diagnosis and fix for Mike
  • The seawater in our engine compartment was also an easy diagnosis, thanks to Dave.  He methodically worked through the variables until, a-ha!  It was a tiny crack in our engine muffler.  Barry had some top-notch heavy-duty epoxy that would most certainly do the trick of sealing the crack.  We will buy a spare muffler but, in the interim, this is a solid fix to a very salty problem!
  • And, while Dave expertly epoxied our muffler, Barry went ahead and installed our brand new in-line engine blower.  Amazing!!
Picture
Dave, Mike and Barry (deep in the locker), working on fixing Wild Horses
Picture
Dave talking through the symptoms he was seeing
Picture
The cracked muffler
Picture
And after a day of fixing Wild Horses, everyone went out for a much needed drink
Picture
And great music
Picture
And yummy desserts!
The biggest issue, and the most challenging for our dream team, was finding the stray electrical current that was depleting our engine zinc. The solution to these types of issues is usually found using a process of elimination.  With a multi-meter, you test wire after wire, connection after connection, until you finally find the stray current.  Yikes!  There are a lot of wires on Wild Horses – this could take awhile.  Thankfully, Mike had a good starting point.  We had been having a weird buzzing noise with our water temperature alarm since the Bahamas. Could that be part of the problem?  The guys set to work, poring over the electrical schematic for Wild Horses and getting their hands into the circuitry with multi-meters and jumper cables. Watching these guys work the problem was incredible.  And, after six hours + missing lunch + many litres of sweat (it was hot!) + a hundred or so engine tests, they found the problem.  Let me yell that from the mountaintops - they found the problem!  Or, rather, the TWO problems.  Problem #1 was a faulty trip breaker and, very close beside it, was problem #2, a burnt connection wire. The burned wire was likely a second victim of our engine issue back in Canada.  Wow.  I mean, wow. 

These guys are incredible and forever in our debt. While thanking them, their response was “but this is what boaters do, help each other” and it is true.  Our community is always there for each other.  Always.  And that is what makes this community so special.  We just happen to have a few of the star players in this community as great friends 😉. 

And, yes, if you were keeping track, our anchor light issue remains unresolved, but we will get to it.  It is just lower on the priority scale.  Until fixed, we will just keep our eye on “blinky”.
Picture
Wiring schematic
Picture
Dave and Barry working the problem
Picture
Dave and Barry testing the bundles of wires
Picture
In the middle of it all we had a man overboard (that is cow in the water)
Picture
Mike to the rescue!
Even with all the boat fixes, we are still having a grand time and fitting in some pretty cool adventures.  This past week, Lisa on Indigo Lady arranged for us to go to a pirate-themed Escape Room in Sint Maarten (Dutch side of St. Martin).  Finding the activity was easy, but she also made sure that Ocean could come along.  So cool!!  This complicated things though – Lisa then also had to figure out how to get all of us plus Ocean from our anchorage in Marigot Bay to the Dutch Blonde Beach Bar (home of the Escape Room) in Philipsburg, a 20-minute drive by car, which we don’t have.  Dog-less people have lots of options, of course.  There are buses and taxis that run regularly between St. Martin and Sint Maarten.  The solution for us?  The owner of the Dutch Blond Beach Bar, Sunil Vaswani, offered his services!  For just $40, he would come and pick us up (and Ocean) at Marigot Bay and return us at the end of our day.  What???  I have to attribute this amazing opportunity to Lisa’s exceptional people skills converging with a restaurant owner who aimed to please.  Incredible!
​
And the car ride to and from the Escape Room wasn’t just a car ride.  No, it was a guided tour of Sint Maarten provided by Sunil himself.  Not only did he point out various landmarks but we learned about the economy, culture, history and geography of the island.  Oh, and then there was the Escape Room.  This was a challenging puzzle for the six of us.  The concept was that we were captured by Blackbeard and had to escape the room using only the clues around us, many of which were in secured boxes that we had to figure out how to unlock.  It was a fun and exciting 60 minutes.  We failed to escape but we were super close.  Perhaps we would have been successful if Ocean had used her search and rescue talents instead of sleeping through the activity!
Picture
The whole crew on the way to Sint Maarten
Picture
Ocean watching the view from her back seat of the van
Picture
A beautiful (but stormy) view
Picture
The view from the Dutch Blond Beach Bar
Picture
Ocean waiting for the Escape Room to begin
Picture
Yummy tacos after our failed escape
Picture
Even better! Yummy shots after our failed escape
This week has been jam-packed and we have thoroughly enjoyed St. Martin.  Still, we have to keep moving.  A few days ago we decided to move along to the Grand Case anchorage, a little north of Marigot Bay.  And today, Friday, we arrived at St. Barts, another French island.  We are happy to be on the move!
Picture
Wonderful French bakeries
Picture
Iguanas on shore
Picture
Dinghy parking at the dinghy dock restaurant
Picture
On our way to Grand Case
Picture
The town of Grand Case was beautiful
Picture
Victoria on the trampoline of Indigo Lady after a fantastic day of snorkeling
Picture
Arriving at St. Barts
We keep heading south.! Check out where we are today by clicking the link below.
Button Text

Bonjour St. Martin!

5/20/2023

 
Picture
This week was another jam-packed week of moving the boat, exploring islands, hanging out with friends and, of course, eating some great food!
​
Last Friday, Wild Horses, Indigo Lady and Caretta moved along to St. John, our last island in the USVI.  It was a short one-hour trip from our St. Thomas anchorage where our friends on Bitty Rose were still anchored.  We had a great reunion with Kate and Clay the night before, having last seen them way back in Puerto Rico.  This is an interesting part of cruising – you meet people, hang out, say good-bye but you know that you will likely meet up once again at another anchorage, another island, or another country even.  A few cruisers call this “bungee boating.”  It totally fits!
Picture
Kate and Clay on their flybridge (Bitty Rose)
Picture
Mike enjoying our reunion with Bitty Rose
Picture
Our boat buddies Andrea, Barry, Lisa and Dave on the flybridge of Bitty Rose
​We were looking forward to our visit to St. John as the majority of the island is a national park.  A little remoteness, trail walks, and snorkelling sounded wonderful.  Arriving in Cruz Bay, St. John, it quickly became clear that the harbour anchorage was extremely full and extremely busy with ferries and tour boats.  Hmmm, not really the tranquil setting we were expecting.  No worries!  We just moved a little more north to Caneel Bay, an anchorage that gave us dinghy access to the town of Cruz Bay but the quietness of the park. Each boat picked up a mooring ball ($26 USD a night), and then we launched our dinghies and headed into town for lunch. ​The town of Cruz Bay is hopping. The busy ferry from St. Thomas brings tourists, vacationers and locals back and forth.  The shops and restaurants are full and there is constant activity on the streets.  It was a fun place to just take in the island vibe.
Picture
Motoring along from St. Thomas to St. John
Picture
Cruz Bay
Picture
The Cruz Bay Harbour
Picture
The dinghy dock in Cruz Bay
Picture
Ocean checking out the free range chickens during our lunch
Picture
Sunset at Caneel Bay
​On our way back to our boats, we were pleasantly surprised to see that our friends Matt and Lisa (and pup Rex) on Bye Felicia had also just arrived.  Ocean was very happy to see her boyfriend Rex again!  After a quick greeting, all four boats made plans to meet up for a drink on Indigo Lady in the evening.   
Picture
Rex reuniting with Ocean during a quick stop at Bye Felicia
Picture
Matt and Lisa from Bye Felicia arriving at Indigo Lady
Picture
Rex and Ocean - together again!
Picture
Two very happy puppies!
​Thanks to Indigo Lady, we also fit in some snorkelling off Mingo Cay. 
Picture
Mike snorkelling
Picture
Dave getting ready to do some diving
Picture
Ocean swimming off of Indigo Lady
Picture
A mountain goat watches our snorkelling activities
We knew our time in St. John would be a little short-lived though.  A weather window to head to St. Martin had opened up for the following week and all three boats agreed that we should take advantage.  Our weather router, Chris Parker, was giving this window the thumbs up but saying it would close tight by the end of the week, meaning we could be waiting several weeks for another opportunity to make the 93 nautical mile journey to St. Martin.  On Monday morning we got into our dinghies and headed into Cruz Bay once again, this time to get our USVI departure papers. We were heading to St. Martin the following morning.
Picture
Dave treated us to some of his delicious pizza on one of our last nights in Caneel Bay
Picture
Our last sunrise in Caneel Bay
Picture
Headed back to our boats with our departure papers
With departure papers in hand, we moved our boats to our staging anchorage at Coral Harbor, just 10 nautical miles away.  This is a big anchorage with access to town and, even more important, home to “Lime Out VI”, a floating taco stand!  Yum!  We treated ourselves to three large and savoury tacos – ceviche for me, surf and turf for Mike and a third, blackened tuna, to share between the two of us.  Truly the best tacos we have ever had!
Picture
On our way to Coral Harbour
Picture
Lime Out VI
Picture
Taking the dinghies to pick up some awesome tacos
Picture
Diners sit in "lily pads" to enjoy their tacos
Picture
Yummy!!!
The next morning, we prepared Wild Horses for our 10am departure. But, uh-oh, in checking the engine room Mike found water under our propellor shaft.  Yikes!  It wasn’t enough water to stop us in our tracks but it was concerning.  I mopped up the mess, knowing that I would have to do this repeatedly while underway for the whole 24 hours to St. Martin.  Ugh.
​
Of course, once again, the wind was directly on the nose so we had to motor along, first past the end of the USVI and then by the British Virgin Islands (BVIs). The day was starting to bleed away and the last of the BVIs were still in sight when a couple of seabirds (Boobies) landed on our bimini top and decided to hitch a ride to St. Martin.  They were an entertaining pair of stowaways and, thankfully, also considerate enough to miss our dinghy when “doing their business”.  Outside of the Boobies and my hourly mop up of sea water from under the engine, our trip went very smoothly.  Neither of us completely enjoy overnight sails but this was an easy 21-hour motorboat ride.  
Picture
Motoring past the BVIs
Picture
Mike is ready for our overnight motor boat ride
Picture
The sun setting, with no land in sight
Picture
Our first view of the Boobies, sitting atop our bimini
Picture
Our stowaways!
We arrived at the beautiful island of St. Martin (French side)/Sint Maarten (Dutch side) at 0700 and by 0815 we were checked into the country.  We had purposefully chosen the French side of the island due to the informality of their Customs and Immigration, especially for our pup Ocean. No pet import permit or fees here!  In fact, she laid beside us during the check in process.  There wasn’t even a space on the form to declare we had a dog.  Easy!
​
We will spend at least a week here, enjoying all that St. Martin/Sint Maarten (commonly referred to as “SXM”) has to offer. French wine, food and friendly locals.  This is going to be fun!  And, yes, we will also need to trouble shoot that pesky water under the engine issue.  But first, we will enjoy some brunch in town and then back to the boat to catch up on our sleep.  
Picture
The island is shared by the French and the Dutch
Picture
Mike is tired but happy as we take the dinghy to check into St. Martin
Picture
The canal taking us to our check in marina in Marigot Bay
Picture
Ile Marine, the marina where we checked into St. Martin
Picture
Checked in and on our way to breakfast
Picture
Decadent Eggs Benedict for breakfast!
Picture
Our French courtesy flag
We are still on the move.  Click the link below to find out where we are today!
Where we are now

Warning:  This Boat Stops for Pizza!

5/11/2023

 
Picture
We had arrived in St. Thomas, USVI last Saturday and we were ready to explore. The very next morning (Sunday), we left our first anchorage on the far eastern shore of St. Thomas and headed for Charlotte Amalie, a very busy harbour that welcomes cruisers, local boaters and is also a port of call for many big cruise ships.  We anchored just off the cruise ship dock, which happened to be empty that night. This was a very rare day in Charlotte Amalie!  Instead of sharing the town with a thousand or so tourists, it would just be us, our buddy boats and a handful of other liveaboard cruisers.    
Picture
Entering the Charlotte Amalie Harbour
Picture
Rounding the final corner to our anchoring spot
​What was up next on our agenda?  A tour around town and a lovely lunch with our boat buddies. We walked to the tourist area and picked up a few fun things like water shoes and a dog collar for Ocean.  
Picture
Victoria and Ocean walking along the harbourfront in Charlotte Amalie
Picture
Pretty streets
Picture
Mike walking through the gorgeous alleyways
Picture
Lunch on the rooftop! Bumpa's was delicious!
Picture
Ocean's new collar
It was an extremely hot day so we were relieved that most of the shops had air-conditioning and Ocean was extra happy they allowed dogs!  They even let her ride on the open-air town bus 😊.
Picture
Ocean cooling off in the town fountain
Picture
Waiting for the open-air bus
Picture
Our buddies riding on the open-air bus. Ocean is just in front of their knees!
Picture
Charlotte Amalie at night
Although Charlotte Amalie was interesting, we were all craving a bit of remoteness and the chance to do some snorkelling.  Early on Monday morning, Wild Horses, Caretta and Indigo Lady weighed anchor and headed off for Christmas Cove.

The trip to our anchorage was a bit sportier than we had hoped for.  The wind was a few knots stronger than expected and right at our nose, so no sailing for us. Making things even more uncomfortable was the high waves and ocean swell. The forecast was for 1-foot seas and we were definitely getting 4-5 feet, right at our bow.  It was a one-hour hobby horse extravaganza.   
​
Arriving at our anchorage, right off the coast of Great St. James Island, we knew it was all worthwhile.  Pretty sandy shorelines, lots of rock outcroppings for snorkelling and that bright blue clear water that we love so much. We were wowed.
Picture
Christmas Cove, St.Thomas, USVI
Picture
Beautiful water
Picture
Sunset at Christmas Cove
Oh, and the pizza!  Incredible!!  Huh?  Well, let me back up a bit.
​
First, you have to know that we are pizza-loving people to the extreme. Actually, that is a massive understatement.  We are pizza-fanatics!  Back home, during our land life, we would have pizza at least once a week. And we love all kinds of pizza – New York style, deep dish, artisan, homemade.  Truly, we rarely meet a pizza we don’t like.  Since leaving Canada last September, we have devoured many a pizza.  For us, cruising is eating pizza in exotic locations! 😉
Picture
Homemade pizza on the boat at Trident Yacht Club
Picture
Takeout pizza in Wrightsville Beach, NC
Picture
Yummy pizza on the patio in Annapolis, Maryland
Picture
Pizza in Georgetown with our boat buddy Steve from Lola
Picture
Delicious pizza in San Juan, PR after a big day exploring El Yunque National Park
​Second, we love new, unique and interesting stuff. I mean, that is part of the reason why we are living on our boat!  And, when those two loves come together in one place?  Well, you get The Pizza Pi, a real-life floating pizza boat!  Right in our anchorage!  Oh my!  Later than evening the motley crews of Wild Horses, Caretta and Indigo Lady enjoyed a fun evening of pizza, beer and “guess that tune” (supplied by Barry’s uber-eclectic playlist) aboard Indigo Lady.  Lots of laughs and full bellies!
Picture
The Pizza Pi pizza parlour
Picture
Inside of the Pizza Pi boat
Picture
Mike, Barry and Dave picking up our three pizzas for dinner
Picture
Pizza dinner on Indigo lady - Yum!!
​We finished off our time at Christmas Cove catching up on boat chores and letting Ocean get in some much-needed time swimming off the boat.  Also, on the agenda was getting Ocean to the nearby veterinarian at Canines, Cats and Critters.  She needed a booster for a few of her vaccinations and also to get an up-to-date international Health certificate for our trip to St. Martin.  It looks like a weather widow may be opening up early next week to make the 93 nm hop further south to our first French island so we want to be ready.  
Picture
Ocean enjoying a swim off the stern of Wild Horses
Picture
Ocean balancing her toy on her nose
Picture
A little horse play with the swim toy
Picture
The vet office in St. Thomas - Canines, Cats & Critters
Picture
Mike and Ocean waiting for her appointment
Picture
Ocean's vet was wonderful (center of pic)
Picture
Ocean telling our boat buddies all about her appointment
But before we head to St. Martin, we have one more island in the USVI to explore – beautiful St. John.  We weighed anchor this morning and made the short trip over there for the weekend. More exploring ahead!!😊
Yes, we keep moving along!  See where we are today by clicking the link below!
Where we are now

Ocean Play:  From Culebra to the USVI

5/6/2023

 
Picture
Picture
Picture
We arrived at the island of Culebra last Monday and loved it immediately. It is beautifully green with perfect sandy beaches littering the coastlines. The coral reefs around this island are known to be some of the healthiest in the area so our plan was to start the day outside of the main town and get snorkeling. 

But, small glitch in our plan. Mike had tweaked his back earlier in the morning, just before we weighed anchor. Ugh. He could move around but it was limited.  Snorkeling would have to wait. So, onto Plan B!  Our buddy boats went on to the chosen snorkeling site while Wild Horses continued for another hour to the main town’s huge lagoon. Here Mike could rest and our buddies would catch up to us the next day. Perfect!
​
Downtown Culebra is very walkable, with lots of restaurants, cafes, and stores. Even a really great gelato cart with beautifully served gelato.  Passion fruit and cherry with a twist of coconut.  Yum!
Picture
Welcome to the island of Culebra!
Picture
Hector El Protector guides the mainland ferry into Culebra
Picture
A view of the Culebra waterfront, from our anchorage
Picture
Waiting out a squall along with a few chickens
Picture
The small boat canal in Culebra
Picture
This puppy came out to guard his small stretch of land along the canal
Picture
Dinghy parking at the town gas station
Picture
Tasty and pretty gelato!
Our boat buddies arrived the next day and we quickly made plans for exploring Culebra, visiting the nearby smaller island of Culebrita and also for doing some snorkelling and diving in the area. Mike’s back was healed and we were ready to have some fun. Our friends Dave and Lisa on Indigo Lady offered to play chauffeur for our three-boat play dates (Wild Horses, Caretta and Indigo Lady).  Awesome! Indigo Lady is a beautiful boat. Dave and Lisa purchased it as a sailing catamaran several years ago but quickly converted it to be solar electric powered.  It does not disappoint!  On the few days we were on the boat, it was moved entirely on solar.  Incredible!  You can see more about the conversion of Indigo Lady here.
Picture
Indigo Lady
Picture
Solar panels cover her roof
Picture
Lots of space in the cockpit for chatting with friends
Picture
Ocean and Victoria sit on the stern walkway on Indigo Lady
​Our first adventure was to take Indigo Lady to Culebrita. This island is home to incredible walking trails, beautiful natural baths and, oh my gosh, also to a hoard of bees! Thousands of them to be exact. The area is suffering from a lack of rain so these poor bees were looking for any and all sources of fresh water. For those that know our pup Ocean, well, this is a problem. She loves to eat bees.  Yes, you heard that correctly.  She actively hunts them down.  Now, with hoards of them in the picture, it was just too much for her and she did get the bitter end of a few of them.  Getting stung didn’t deter her though! With a swollen nose and jowl, she kept right at it. For the rest of us, the bees weren’t an issue.  They only wanted the fresh water and we had beers in hand (and not water) so they left us alone!
Picture
Swimming always provides some relief from the heat
Picture
Culebrita is littered with walking trails
Picture
The Culebrita lagoon
Picture
Ocean looking out towards the baths
Picture
Ocean hunting bees aboard Indigo Lady
​On Thursday, we rented golf carts so we could see more of the island of Culebra. Caretta and Indigo Lady climbed into one cart and Wild Horses took the other.  It was an awesome day of touring the island, including an incredible day at Flamenco Beach, one of the world's most beautiful; beaches.  
Picture
Our rented golf cart
Picture
A view of our golf cart on the move with Ocean in the back
Picture
Ocean looking back towards our friends, from her perch at the back of our golf cart
Picture
Walking along Flamenco Beach
Picture
Ocean loved the beach!
Picture
An old tank used for bombing practice during WWII and for Vietnam
Picture
Another tank, deserted by the US military and used for bombing practice
Picture
Ocean and Barry enjoying a moment on the swing outside of the La Cocina restaurant
​Friday we continued the adventure!  We set off on Indigo Lady once again and headed around the north west shore of Culebra to explore one of the many island dive sites. Dave and Lisa launched their Hookah dive system (surfaced supplied air system), Andrea and Barry jumped in with their dive tanks, and Mike and I slipped below the waterline with our snorkel masks and fins.  And Ocean you ask?  Well, she did her exploring in her birthday suit with just a simple life jacket on.  Four ways into the water and we were all plenty happy with it all!
Picture
A dive site on the western edge of Culebra
Picture
Dave gets out the Hookah
Picture
Barry getting suited up to dive while Andrea waits in the water
Picture
Mike headed off to snorkel the coral reef
Picture
Ocean swimming off the back of Indigo Lady
Picture
Barry holding a lobster with eggs on her belly. Of course the lobster had to be put back!
​Whew, what a jam-packed three days of exploring the Spanish Virgin Islands!! But all good things must come to an end, but only so you can enjoy other good things!  And that is exactly what we did.  On Saturday we all weighed anchor and headed off to St. Thomas in the USVI (United States Virgin Islands).  We will explore the islands of St. Thomas and St. John as we look for a good weather window for heading to St. Martin.  More fun awaits us! 😊
Picture
Wild Horses sailing along to the USVI
Picture
Mike at the helm
Picture
Our first anchorage was right beside the St. Thomas airport!
Picture
Flying the USVI courtesy flag
Want to find out which island we are exploring today? Click the link below!
Where we are now
    Where are we now?

    Author

    Victoria is a hiker, dog-lover, blog writer and planner extraordinaire.  Oh, yeah and she is kind of fond of living on a boat.

    Categories

    All
    Bahamas
    Boat Work
    Caribbean
    Chesapeake
    Dog
    DR
    ICW
    Leaving Canada
    NY And Delaware
    NYS Canals
    Puerto Rico
    Thousand Islands
    USVI

    Archives

    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
Photo used under Creative Commons from davidweedallphotography
  • Home
  • Crew
  • Blog
  • Our Boat
  • Projects
  • Contact