365 Beaches!

Antigua boasts 365+ beaches, and we got to view all of them during a one day sail around the island on a catamaran Circumnavigation tour. Some of these beauties can only be reached by boat, others are jostling with tourists at all-inclusive resorts.

Some of the best, like Pigeon and Half Moon Bay, enjoyed National Park status and were less developed. By law, all beaches here are publicly accessible, so well-developed waterfront property may be gated but it is never entirely off-limits.

Pigeon Beach was just a ten minute walk around the corner and down the hill. It was never too crowded and had some coral to check out while snorkeling. And shade!

Our most memorable sunsets were viewed here on the west horizon.

One day I indulged in a massage from someone who had set up a table. The smell of coconut oil and the sound of the waves made it totally rejuvenating.

Goats wandered along the shore here, munching on green scrub leaves.

Our best meal of the trip was at Catherine's Café Plage, located only a few steps from the waves. I wandered in for a banana daiquiri and we ended up staying the day, making good use of the chaise lounges and then sitting at a table for a delicious lunch (I had grilled wahoo on sweet potato mousse with a lime emulsion; Rob had a perfectly cooked steak).

Because it was so close, this was the first and last beach we visited, time especially savoured before a late afternoon flight returned us to a cold and snowy Toronto. 

Half Moon Bay was about a half hour drive away, but well worth the trip.

The sea water was frothy on the sandy shore and such a beautiful blue torquoise. Heaven!

Located on the windward side of the island, there was a

 much stronger surf and some rugged terrain. We took the time to explore the limestone cliffs around the corner. There were fewer people here, but it wasn't totally isolated, either.

Up the road a bit was a shack to grab a cold beer and a light lunch.

 
Galleon Beach was a walk to Nelson Dockyards and then a quick water taxi away. As we were paying the driver, he noticed the colour of Canadian money and asked which city we were from. Toronto turned out to be where Akeem has worked the past three summers, one of them at Bluffer's Park Marina. What are the odds? I would never have expected someone running the water taxi in Antigua to be summering in Toronto, much less working in the marina where we fill up our boat with diesel.

 

Also on the way over, we chatted with our fellow passenger and found out he was the Head Chef at the beach bar. Self-taught and making his way up through the ranks, he was working 14 hour days and splitting his time between a couple of restaurants. Funnily enough we also caught the boat back with him, so were able to tell him the lobster roll and Shawn Burger he recommended were both delicious. 

Akeem took us by the Pillars of Hercules on the return trip. Limestone sculpted smoothly by the sea and wind. An impressive entrance to English Harbour.

Bird spotting

Zenaida Dove

We didn't really set out to do any bird watching in Antigua, but it was fun to spot them along our travels.

Every morning we woke to bird song and when we had our coffee on the balcony, some of them would flit right up onto the table. The bullfinches were especially bold, and eventually trained us to lay out crumbs for them along the railing.

Lesser Antillian Bullfinch

I thought the little bright yellow birds were goldfinches or warblers, but later discovered they were more aptly named bananaquits. Both the bullfinches and bananaquits would sit on the rim of the citronella candles and dip their beaks into the wax... maybe using it to help fortify their nests.

Frigates, brown pelicans, terns and gulls could usually be seen gliding on thermals or plunging into the Bay.

On the beaches, we'd watch the seabirds for hours. The pelicans were often in pairs, taking turns diving. The frigates had forked tails and actually never dove into the water, but skimmed along the surface to catch their prey with talons. I'm pretty sure I saw a pomarine skua when we were at Half Moon Bay.

In the shade under mangroves, purple-throated hummingbirds would dart about the green leaves, and Carib grackles would squawk at us perched in branches, peering down with yellow eyes and cocking their heads side to side.

Driving along the roads, we'd see roosters and chickens roaming about freely, and once saw a white bird hitching a ride on the back of a donkey - likely a cattle egret.

Caribbean Sea

Arrived home with Antigua stamped in my passport. I absolutely loved the trip! To think I may never have visited the island if I hadn't seen the photo of the view from the balcony on Home Away.

Boats! It wasn't just beaches and warm weather I was craving, but boats. Big boats, small boats, dinghies, motor boats. Just looking at them. And our balcony offered the pleasure.

I didn't have any idea of the scale of those vessels from the photo and was surprised at just how 'super' the super yachts were. Most at least 10 times bigger than our cozy 30' Yondering. Locals told us the Robert DeNiro and Pierce Brosnan keep boats at Falmouth, but we didn't catch a glimpse of them, although Rob was pretty sure he saw Mark Wahlberg on the dock kicking back a beer with crew.

We'd look out from our balcony over Falmouth at night and google some of the yachts: 6 staterooms, "sleeps 12" (with a crew of 30).  The majority of the boats sat in their slips with a skeleton crew, being buffed and shined during the day and guarded at night. It is not uncommon to dock your multi-million dollar toy at Falmouth harbour for refurbishing, because the island is well known for its artisans' quality wood varnishing and bright work.

Renting one of the super yachts costs upwards of $250,000 a week. One night we watched guests on Illusion being served their dinner while they viewed You Tube snippets of concerts projected on a massively huge screen. It seemed like many a summer night spent on Yondering... but with much much bigger speakers and much much bigger screen and a chef and wait staff.

Getting a job on one of these is many a young persons' dream. There were posters on the community board, warning "friends don't let friends work for free," but that likely doesn't stop everyone from offering their services gratis. I asked a young waiter in a beach bar who had an Australian accent what had brought him to Antigua, and it was the dream of working on a super yacht and seeing the world. He'd been trying to find a way in for about 3 weeks so ended up taking the beach job in the meantime as a practical necessity. Shawn was a 24 year old citizen who had worked his way up to Head Chef at a couple of local restaurants, but he would quickly hand in his notice when offered a gig on a super yacht. Rob and I were approached a couple of times by 20-somethings willing to crew on 30' - 50' vessels, just to head north or south to continue their travels.

Lots of "yachties", people with boats of more modest dimensions, who were living onboard and making their way around the world. I chatted with someone at Nelson Dockyards who'd been sailing his 45' boat down from Boston to overwinter in the West Indies for the last 10 years. We also spoke with someone with a Bronx accent at Pigeon Beach who had anchored his 30' boat just a swim from shore. He'd been moored in Antigua for about 4 years, having sailed full-time for the past 16. He'd lived the dream, and was coming to terms that this could be his last season. Although he'd seen a lot and didn't have any regrets, he was looking forward to having a fridge with a freezer and an endless supply of drinking water by just turning a tap.


The last full day of our vacation, we jumped on a Wadadli Cat for a Circumnavigation tour around the island. I started in the trampoline, that bit of netting at the bow, and laid belly-down for the roller coaster ride on the Atlantic. We were heading straight into the waves and bouncing up and down, the ocean spray crashing over the sides of the boat. How could a 30 footer make it? I guess, by not crashing headlong and taking more deliberate tacks.

The Circumnav tour took us through many of the sites we'd enjoyed in our week-long stay, including our own Falmouth Harbour. Everyone oo-ed and aw-ed at the sites of the super yachts and it made me appreciate our nightly view all the more.

We also stepped into the Antigua Yacht Club and saw many Canadian burgees, including Queen City, Mimico and Ashbridge's Bay. Too bad we didn't bring along a BPYC burgee for an exchange.  Maybe next time!

Antigua!

It has been a long time since we took a winter vacation. I was looking at Aruba or Costa Rica for places to rent and came across one I really liked. It looked different from the others, with a view that overlooked sailboats in a harbour. I sent it off to Rob, saying this is the place I want to stay! Good thing he realized it was in another country altogether before we got the plane tickets!

Still not sure if it is properly pronounced  An-tee-ga or An-tee-gwa. Googling shows both pronunciations, but also reveals the Ant-tee-gwa in Guatamala Mexico. Guess we should double-check those plane tickets after all. Natives call it something entirely different: Waladli or Wadadli.

Temperatures should be high 70s for our visit. Warm but not sweltering. 365 different beaches to explore. We are thinking of renting a car to visit as many as we can, even though driving happens on the opposite side we're used to. Who knows, we may even make it out on a sailboat.