St. Lucia

We had a wonderful sail from St. Vincent into St. Lucia, arriving at Soufriere in the rain with Kyeta and Equinox. We tied up to the mooring balls beneath Petit Piton, with a line to shore, with the help of the many, many boat boys, all with their hand out for helping or trying to sell you something. Memory and Columbine pulled in later that day, making for a full house.
It was a beautiful anchorage and we had one of the best meals at Harmony Restaurant, right beneath the Pitons. Did lots of exploring, seeing the waterfall, springs, botanical gardens and the town. St. Lucia had a bad reputation with cruisers because of crime, and they really seem to be doing something about it. The only bad thing we can say about it is the boat boys, or the men and boys that hang out at the dinghy dock, wanting to help tie up your dinghy - for cash!
Spent a night at Anse Cochon, where we did some snorkelling, and then a couple of days at Marigot. Marigot, while beautiful, is not a good anchorage and we'll skip that next time. We left Marigot, under full sail, on our way to Pigeon Island in Rodney Bay, where Dennis caught a small shark and I put letters on the mast saying, 'Yes, reef!!'
We spent a relaxing couple of weeks off Pigeon Island, swimming, hiking and exploring. Rick, of Memory, offered to be our driver on an island tour, so we all split the cost of the van and had a great day with Rick and Carey (Memory), Moira and Dick (Equinox) and Ann and Denny (Kyeta). St. Lucia is a beautiful island and the roads are probably some of the best we've seen - well, except for the curves!
Well, the winds and waves look good, so it's off to Martinique! ~~~~_/)~~~~