Sailing Sandstar: August 2018

Our group - SV SandStar, SV Soulstice, SV Frenchie and SV Space Between

By Kathy

To end our summer in Grenada we took a tour of the island with Cutty. We have seen a lot of the island over the last few months but we had heard that his tour was not to be missed. The first time we heard about him was in George Town from other cruisers who had visited Grenada and then once we got here other people talked about his tours. This is not a flashy touristy operation….it is a local guy, a van, and a cell phone. He pretty much does all of his business by word of mouth and I think he keeps pretty busy.

We started the day at 8:30 from the marina with SV Soulstice, SV Frenchie and SV Space Between. There was 14 of us in all – 8 adults and 6 kiddos. The Soulstice and Frenchie crew were friends from our time in George Town, Bahamas so it was great to see them again.

We are ready to go!

Our plans for the day was to see the waterfalls, play with a monkey, eat some chocolate, drink some rum, and lime at the beach. You could quickly tell as the tour started out that Cutty has a love for the flora and fauna of the island. He is a pretty soft spoken guy so he had a microphone in his van to tell us all about the fruits and edibles as we drove by them. He stopped several times on the side of the road to pick leaves to smell and fruit to eat. Cutty even stopped and picked some sugar apples for me to take home after I asked him several questions about the fruit and told him it was one of my favorites. He showed us beautiful tropical flowers in the rainforest and told us all about the varieties of mangos (I had no idea there were so many) and all of the varieties of avocados. We always had to guess what he was showing us before he would tell us what it was. We even had a quiz on how to tell a goat from a sheep. I knew that Grenada had a lot to offer but I really had no idea how much until you drive around with somebody who really knows the island.

One of many stops on the side of the road. Cutty is taking some bark from a cinnamon tree so we could smell it.

Here are some highlights from our stops:

Fort Fredrick

This was a French built fort that sits high above St. George. I will admit we drove by it the week before and I had no idea it was there. It gave us a stunning 360 degree view of the island. The kids had fun in an underground barrack – lots of screaming and running in the dark.

This was a really cool fort. I can't believe we drove by it and missed it.

Sam working on his photography skills

We are high above St. George - Photo by Sam

Photo By Sam

Heading down into the barrack.

Oh no...Jack can't get out!

Just a great picture of Emma!

Annandale Falls

We were very excited to visit the Annandale Falls. We have been to several around the island but had somehow missed going to this one. You pass the entrance as you approach the Grand Etang forest and the falls are surrounded by lush vegetation and some beautiful rock formations. Some of us took a quick dip in the water and Cutty helped the jumpers jump in from a rock above the pool.

Sam jumping - He never misses a chance to jump into the water.

The rock formation next to the falls was very cool.

Dan and Barrett (SV Soulstice)

Emma striking a pose.

Grand Etang Forest

Monkeys, monkeys, monkeys…..that was my wish list for this stop. We had stopped here a few times when we had our rental car but never saw the monkeys in the trees. We made a quick stop on the side of the road for a small mango. Cutty just put it in the car and told us not to eat it but he didn’t say what it was for. When we reached the entrance to the lake we started down the road driving very slowing looking in the trees. We spotted a monkey and another group walking down the road had spotted him too. We had a mango and they had bananas. The monkey wanted nothing to do with bananas!! I was shocked but he loved the mango. You will see from the pictures that we got way more than just a look with this monkey.

This was so cool!!

I have no words.....

Dan's turn...The monkey is following the mango on top of his head.

This was SOOO cool!

Grenada Chocolate Factory

This was our third visit to a local chocolate factory and every single one was different and the chocolate in each one tastes very different. This was the smallest chocolate factory that we visited and it is amazing that they package so many bars in this tiny building in the middle of a neighborhood. The kids are well versed in chocolate factories and quickly made it to the sample table and picked out their favorites to take with them.

It kind of makes you want to dip your finger into it!

Everyone's favorite part - The tasting!

Sam's Willy Wonka Moment!

Enjoying our chocolate purchases. We were so hungry when we arrived!!

Jack found this big guy outside.

River’s Rum

I wrote a whole blog post on this distillery earlier in the summer but I will say after the second tasting I was able to actually drink the sample. Cutty gave us a tip to chase it with a drink of water. Still…..this tiny amount of rum (about an ounce) was still very tough to swallow.

Slightly skeptical if this is going to be a good idea.

It wasn't great but I drank it this time around.

Bathway Beach – LUNCH STOP!!!

We took our tour on a Sunday so that made this stop a great experience to see all of the locals liming at the beach. It is the furthest point we can go on the island from downtown and one of our favorites. We have been here a couple of times for turtle watching and hashing. The atmosphere is just fun and relaxing. We ate fish and chips for lunch and the kids got to swim and sword fight on the beach.

The kids needed to burn off some energy after the bus ride.

How could this possibly go wrong here??

Or here???

Emma taking a little break and reading her Twilight book.

On the drive back we drove down the runway of the old airport, stopped the pick some carambola off a tree, and made a quick stop at small fruit stand. We arrived back at the marina at 6:30PM!!!! What a fun day!

By Kathy:

So you read about our first eventful hash where we lost the kids. Since then we try to hash every Saturday with this fun group that is made up of locals, cruisers, students and expats. It is hard not to have fun with the hash harriers. Each hash has been in a different part of the island and each location had very different scenery. Part of the charm of hashing is that you have to commit to spend your entire Saturday afternoon and sometimes evening, make a BIG effort to get there, you get to enjoy hiking all over the island and you learn to lime with the locals.

Here are some highlights from the rest of our hashes this summer. Each section is titled with the location, a little bit about the hash and A LOT of pictures. We always try to take some pictures of the start/end location, the trail, and anything in between:

Gouvyave

This was our second hash and we took the trip up to Gouvyave on the hash bus. This was about an hour drive north from downtown and our first trip on the bus. They usually have two buses (the bus drivers are hashers too) that take people to the hash every week. We learned very quickly that the bus is packed to over capacity. It was ok on the way up but after the beer shower and hiking for two hours it was a bit smelly on the way back.

The hasher bus. You can barely see Jack and Sam. There are about 20 people on this bus that I think was made for 16. Jack ended up falling asleep on the lady next to him.

The Gouvyave hash was absolutely beautiful and took us through a Grenadian rainforest. Of course, it did not go off without a hitch. It rained on the way to the hash which had the "hare" running around and altering the trail because of the mud. Well....because of the altering of the signs and paper piles it was a little confusing and half of us went on the runner's trail backwards. In the end it was a blessing since the runners trail was really where the scenic views were but we were the last hashers to arrive back at the start. But...remember what I said about any reason to party. Well, since half of us went on the trail backwards they "punished" the poor hare at the end during the celebration.

Emma is ready to hash! Notice all of the kids have their own backpacks this week.

A little pre-hash coconut water! $1EC = about $.37US

Sam quenching his thirst and hydrating.

Everybody under strict orders to stay with us!

So....we have all of our kids and we adopted another one along the way when he got separated from his mom. Happens to the best of us!

We love the scenery on the hashes.

This is why we were happy to be on the runner's trail. Even if it was by accident.

There are a couple of veteran hashers who take pictures every week. This one was taken by the Pink Panther.

This is what happened to the hare after the hash because of the confusion on the trail.

Having fun relaxing after some BBQ, beer, and sodas.

BBC Beach – Bastille Day Hash

This hash was on one of our favorite beaches in Grenada. This is considered a close hash that is near downtown so there were a lot of people who came out to have some fun. BBC beach is in a nice little cove with almond trees for shade and a small inflatable park so we have spent a few afternoons here this summer. The hashers are always looking for a reason to celebrate so they called this the Bastille Day Hash. Grenada is not a French island so it truly was just a reason to party. We were told to try to wear red, white & blue and the French hashers had to sing the national anthem before the hash. Again, you never know what to expect from each location. We hiked along the beach and then took a turn up a mountain and climbed to the top and walked the ridge to the next harbor and then back down walking through a very cool yoga resort. We are pretty sure there was not a lot of peace and mediation going on when we walked through with 7 kids.

We started this hash from BBC beach.

On-On down to Grand Anse Beach. What it doesn't show is that to get from one beach to the next was a hill climb.

One right turn off the beach and we are now going up the surrounding mountain.

You always meet a few friends along the way.

The view of Prickly Bay from the top of the mountain.

Emma and Jack making their way down the trail.

A group shot from the top!

You usually pass by houses along the way. This one had some kids who wanted to play with Emma.

We rounded the mountain and now we can see BBC Beach and the hash party at the other end....now we just need to find a way down.

The hash sign for "You are almost to the finish"

Bathway Beach

This was our second trip out to Bathway Beach but our first one in daylight. The last time we were here we were watching the nesting Leatherback Turtles. This is probably the furthest hash you could go to from downtown. It was a good 2 hour bus ride. Again, each location is so different. In Bathway we did not get the rainforest or just the beach. We were pleasantly surprised by a beautiful hike through the rolling pasture mountains and finishing along the beach. The views were amazing!

This hash started with another packed bus.

But since its was a 2 hour drive they decided to put us in another bus to space everyone out. We just had to wait on the side of the busy road for the bus to arrive.

After the 2 hour drive we were ready for some pre-hash BBQ

BBQ chicken is a very common meal here in Grenada.

The girls are ready!

The start of the hash. Everyone is usually bunched together at the beginning and then we space out.

This hash took us through some rolling hills pastures. Sam decided to go off trail.

Stunning views of the lake.

You always meet new friends.

Amazing views!

Heading back down towards the beach.

Oh no...false trail alert. Now we have to pick a direction and hope it is right.

Our last trek down before hitting the beach.

But wait...we meet another friend. He was actually right on the trail.

Walking along Bathway Beach

Heading into the finish.

Jack chillin' with a granola bar.

Enjoying some food and drinks waiting for the ending ceremony.

This was our hare for this hash. They did this to him to celebrate his first hash that he setup.

We are tired and ready to head back...

The Port

This was our Carnival weekend hash that started out at the port in downtown St. George. It was literally in the port. We were surrounded by cargo containers. We took off from the port and climbed the mountain from the botanical gardens to the prison. It was a pretty vertical hike so it was hard to take pictures while we were climbing. The walk down was easier since it was on a road but I must have looked pretty tired because one of the buses asked if I wanted a ride down the hill. After filling up on BBQ and drinks we headed to the stadium for the Panorama concert that you read about in the last blog post. It was an exhausting but very fun afternoon and evening.

This hash started right in the port. You can see the shipping containers surrounding us. We didn't know what to expect from this hash!

On-On down the main road heading to the botanical gardens.

Heading up through the gardens.

The start of the trail. It was such a vertical trail up through the trees I didn't get any pictures because you had to hold on to trees and vines with both hands.

Made it to the top with a great view. The building to our left is Her Majesty's Prison.

A view of St. George's - The area in between the water and the soccer field is the port.

Emma is still smiling!

Sam ordering his own BBQ chicken. Harder than it looks..... you can't see it from the picture but the speakers are set up right next to the grills so the Soca music was blasting!

He was hungry!

When beer is literally cheaper than water....Dan went up to buy 1 and the guy sold him three for the price of 1. The price of one was $1.85US.

Mt. Rodney – our last hash for the season!!

We took a very LONG bus ride up to Mt. Rodney on the very northern tip of Grenada. It was about a 2 hr bus ride but we had the crew from SV Love & Luck with us so we had a good time chatting along the way. I know I sound like a broken record but it is amazing the areas you get to see by doing the hashes! We never would have ventured to the tippy top of the island on our own. The starting point was a fun beach bar and we quickly went into the rainforest. This one might go down in the books as our favorite for the season.

The new shoe ceremony before the hash at this colorful beach bar called - D Real Bamboo Bar.

Getting the food ready for the end of the hash. He is making the national dish called Oil Down. If you look closely you will see he is using tire rims. No high-tech cooking gadgets here!