Passages are all different and being prepared for each one is essential for a good crossing. Our trip from Grenada to Trinidad was well planned and we were ready for the 85nm passage. Meals was prepped ahead of time; the interior was secured and organized. We spent days watching the wind and weather and were confident the crossing would be good – if we actually got the prediction. Well you probably guessed that as has happened all season – the prediction wasn’t totally correct.
We dropped our mooring ball in Mount Hartman Bay at 2 pm on April 9th. First stop was the marina fuel dock to get about 20 G of diesel. This was our first delay!! The marina was getting a delivery of fuel so we had to wait for the diesel to settle (after being stirred up from the new stuff). It took until 3:30 pm to get our fuel and leave the dock! We wanted to be underway by 3 so this was not the best way to start our 16 – 18 hour crossing. As we left the bay, we got all sail up and were sailing well by the time we got away from Grenada. The open water between Grenada and Trinidad has some strong west currents. We benefited from the Grenada end current because it was south west which added about 1kt to our speed!! Our course was 170° to compensate for the west current (no one wants to end up in Venezuela!!). Unfortunately the predicted east wind was more south so we couldn’t sail on our course. We started to drift away from our course which we figured we’d just make up with the motor at some point. We were able to sail and with the added current speed, we were averaging 6 knots for the first few hours.
Our 170° course would take us east of the Bocas Del Dragon – the river on the west side of Trinidad that we would take to get to our destination. The course would also take us between 2 oil rigs about 25nm north of Trinidad. We were told by other sailors that if you aim to go between these 2 rigs, you’ll be in a good place to turn west after them and make it to the boca. So that’s what we did and as the wind / current changed over the night, we made our way back on course and passed about 2 nm east of the most westerly rig. We were lucky to be able to sail until 1 am. After that point we motor-sail until we were about 3 nm away from Bocas Del Dragon. The wind totally died at that point so we just motors the remaining 7 – 8 nm to Chaguaramas (our destination).
First views of Trinidad were surprising – the north west coast was lush, rugged and mostly uninhabited. It was stunningly beautiful with rock cliffs and lots of hazy moisture in the air. As we motored through the Boca, we saw caves and a few small bays. The south end of the river had many really nice looking homes – could be resorts. It didn’t take long for us to make it to Chaguaramas Bay – arriving at 8:15 am. This spot is the centre for cruising in Trinidad. There are several marinas and storage yards here. It’s also where you need to clear into Trinidad (that process was crazy but I’ll save that story for my next post). This is our hurricane storage spot for this summer.
We are currently anchored at the last bit of Trinidad before you reach Venezuela – Chacachacare Island. This island was once a leprosy colony but now it’s a quiet spot for cruisers. We’ll be here until Monday when we’ll head to Crew’s Inn Resort and Marina back in Chaguaramas and start the process of getting the boat ready for storage!
Crimson Kathryn and her crew 