ARC Arrives - Caribbean Compass
ARC Arrives - Caribbean Compass ARC Arrives - Caribbean Compass
JANUARY 2008 CARIBBEAN COMPASS PAGE 6 —Continued from previous page Many cruisers will remember Paco, who headed a sought-after team of yacht spray-painters in Marina Amerigo Vespuccio in the 1980s. Paco went on to become vice president of the Venezuelan television station Televisora de Oriente. Venezuela Turns Back the Clock On December 9th, clocks in Venezuela were turned back 30 minutes in a measure intended to optimize use of daylight hours. The change occurred at 3:00AM, putting Venezuela four and a half hours behind Greenwich Mean Time — a unique time zone for the Americas. St. Croix’s ‘Best’ Lighted Boat Parade Ellen Sanpere reports: Originally scheduled for December 8th, the St. Croix Lighted Light ’em up! Each year the lights get brighter at St. Croix’s Annual Lighted Boat Parade Boat Parade 2007 was postponed for two weeks due to high winds and seas. On December 22nd, the weather was perfect, the moon was nearly full and so was the Christiansted boardwalk. Festivities started around 4:00PM with Gentlemen of Jones caroling and a jazz band playing. Santa and several helpers were sighted handing out candy canes. The Hovensa oil refinery provided fireworks from Gallows Bay as the boats paraded twice through Christiansted Harbor. Many spectators said this boat parade was the best one yet! Pirate Ship Discovered in Dominican Republic Julia Bartlett reports: The announcement was made in early December that Captain William Kidd’s last prize, the 500-tonne Quedagh Merchant, has been found — amazingly lying in only ten feet of clear Caribbean water near Catalina Island, off the south coast of the Dominican Republic. According to National Geographic News, Charles Beeker, an archaeologist at Indiana University who made the discovery, said he’s convinced the wreck is Kidd’s ship. But he said it will take about two years of excavation to confirm the vessel’s identity. It seems that the wreck has not been looted and so it is hoped that it will provide some fascinating glimpses into Kidd’s story. Kidd was born in Scotland in 1645. He was engaged by the British government as a privateer to help combat piracy in 1696. He sailed from London as captain of the Adventure Galley and took the Armenian ship, the Quedagh Merchant, in the waters of the Indian Ocean after becoming famous as the Scourge of Madagascar. In 1699 he was in the Caribbean when he heard that a blanket royal pardon had been granted for all pirates — except for William Kidd. The story goes that he left his prize in the care of his men and set off to clear his name. After he left, the men looted and set fire to the ship. He failed to clear his name, although now there’s some dispute about whether or not he was guilty. He was hanged at Execution Dock in London on May 23, 1701 and the British made an example of him by dipping his body in tar and leaving it to swing for two years as a deterrent to any thinking to follow in his swashbuckling wake. The Dominican Government have invited archaeologists from the University of Indiana to research the site. The plan is to eventually turn the site into an underwater reserve where amateurs can explore the wreck once researchers have finished. So all ye yachties, keep ye wits about ye when snorkelling the vast and terrible waters of the Caribees. Who knows what other treasures lie hidden just beneath its surface? Two Yachts Robbed at Chateaubelair, St. Vincent Two instances of armed robberies aboard yachts anchored at Chateaubelair on the north leeward coast of St. Vincent were reported last month: one during the night of Thursday, December 13th, and one exactly a week later on the night of the 20th. In both cases the intruders were reportedly armed with cutlasses (machetes) and/or knives. The incidents were reported to local law-enforcement authorities. The newspaper Searchlight quoted Chairman of the North Leeward Tourism Association, Clem Derrick, as saying, “This is a serious blow to an already fragile industry.” Area Parliamentary Representative Jerrol Thompson told Searchlight that he is hoping to have community meetings to sensitize residents about the importance of the yachting industry. The victims of the first robbery were taken to lunch and dinner by Derrick, and community members contributed money to help make up what was stolen. Investigations are being carried out by the Serious Crimes Unit of St. Vincent & the Grenadines. Coconut Telegraph Net Rose Hansmeyer and Tom McMaster report: The Coconut Telegraph Net has been active for about a year and is intended to keep cruisers connected and to share information. It meets every morning at 0800 hours on 4060 USB using 4030 as an alternate frequency. —Continued on next page
—Continued from previous page Up until now it has been spread by word of mouth and approximately 30 cruisers may check in from throughout the Caribbean and the Bahamas. Cruisers Site-ings • The Wikisailing Webmaster reports: Wikisailing is a cruising guide on the web. Anybody can add a report on a marina, harbour, beach or anchorage. Digital photos are also welcome. Visit www.wikisailing.com and don’t hesitate to share your experience at sea. • Bob Bitchin reports: The sailing magazine Latitudes & Attitudes is now available free, on-line, each month. The beta version is up now at www.seafaring.com. Boatbuilding in Barbados A handsome 29-metre steel schooner is being built on the shores of the Carlisle Bay anchorage in Barbados. Word from our correspondent in the island, Norman Faria, is that the Barbadian owner is planning to try his hand at inter-regional cargo and passenger service with it. From the design board of Thomas Colvin (born 1925, Chicago), the hull clearly resembles 19th and 20th century working craft of the US Eastern Seaboard. That boatbuilding culture also influenced shipwrights in the Eastern Caribbean island chain up until the 1970s when the “schooner trade” came to an end with the introduction of fully motorised vessels. (See Douglas Pyle’s book Clean Sweet Wind, ISBN 0-07-052679-6, available from www.books.mcgraw-hill.com.) The gaff rig schooner will have steel masts but no bowsprit and a big cargo hold amidships. Compass will keep readers abreast of this commendable project as work progresses, including news of the eagerly awaited launching day. Welcome Aboard! In this issue of Compass, we welcome new advertisers Captain Gourmet of Union Island, page 41; Douglas’ Yacht Services of Martinique, page 7; and Sugar Mill Cottages of Antigua, page 49. Also see our brand-new Caribbean Marketplace ads starting on page 52. Good to have you with us! JANUARY 2008 CARIBBEAN COMPASS PAGE 7
- Page 1 and 2: TIM WRIGHT / PHOTOACTION.COM JANUAR
- Page 3 and 4: JANUARY 2008 CARIBBEAN COMPASS PAGE
- Page 5: Info & Updates APIS Suspended Much
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- Page 11 and 12: SELECTED CARIBBEAN SHORTWAVE WEATHE
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- Page 19 and 20: The Search for Arnolf — Lost and
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- Page 27 and 28: See our Yearly Calendar of Events a
- Page 29 and 30: See our Yearly Calendar of Events a
- Page 31 and 32: COASTAL HIKING by Jo-Anne Nina Sewl
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- Page 35 and 36: Compass Cruising Crossword 4 7 8 9
- Page 37 and 38: TURTLE JUMP-UP by Tina Dreffin It w
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- Page 41 and 42: HEALTHY PAK-CHOY Among the lettuce,
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- Page 47 and 48: parlumps marooned DOLLY’S ANSWER
- Page 49 and 50: WHAT’S ON MY MIND Being Unprepare
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- Page 53 and 54: Caribbean Compass Market Place Cari
- Page 55 and 56: I J M U I D E N • S O U T H A M P
—Continued from previous page<br />
Up until now it has been spread by word of mouth and approximately 30 cruisers<br />
may check in from throughout the <strong>Caribbean</strong> and the Bahamas.<br />
Cruisers Site-ings<br />
• The Wikisailing Webmaster reports: Wikisailing is a cruising guide on the web.<br />
Anybody can add a report on a marina, harbour, beach or anchorage. Digital photos<br />
are also welcome. Visit www.wikisailing.com and don’t hesitate to share your<br />
experience at sea.<br />
• Bob Bitchin reports: The sailing magazine Latitudes & Attitudes is now available<br />
free, on-line, each month. The beta version is up now at www.seafaring.com.<br />
Boatbuilding in Barbados<br />
A handsome 29-metre steel schooner is being built on the shores of the Carlisle<br />
Bay anchorage in Barbados. Word from our correspondent in the island, Norman<br />
Faria, is that the Barbadian owner is planning to try his hand at inter-regional cargo<br />
and passenger service with it.<br />
From the design board of Thomas Colvin (born 1925, Chicago), the hull clearly<br />
resembles 19th and 20th century working craft of the US Eastern Seaboard. That<br />
boatbuilding culture also influenced shipwrights in the Eastern <strong>Caribbean</strong> island<br />
chain up until the 1970s when the “schooner trade” came to an end with the introduction<br />
of fully motorised vessels. (See Douglas Pyle’s book Clean Sweet Wind, ISBN<br />
0-07-052679-6, available from www.books.mcgraw-hill.com.)<br />
The gaff rig schooner will have steel masts but no bowsprit and a big cargo hold<br />
amidships. <strong>Compass</strong> will keep readers abreast of this commendable project as work<br />
progresses, including news of the eagerly awaited launching day.<br />
Welcome Aboard!<br />
In this issue of <strong>Compass</strong>, we welcome new advertisers Captain Gourmet of Union<br />
Island, page 41; Douglas’ Yacht Services of Martinique, page 7; and Sugar Mill<br />
Cottages of Antigua, page 49. Also see our brand-new <strong>Caribbean</strong> Marketplace ads<br />
starting on page 52. Good to have you with us!<br />
JANUARY 2008 CARIBBEAN COMPASS PAGE 7
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