For more info, Contact Bob 650 363 1390 or e-mail us
The Boats
Our group will use a Moorings 443 foot Beneteau sloops and 40' and 42' catamarans. The monohull has 3 double cabins and the cats each have 4 double cabins plus a single bunk in each hull. The boats come equipped with full galley facilities including refrigeration and propane stove with oven. Each boat also comes with a transom charcoal barbecue grill.
Dining
Spinnaker is supplying each boat with "Easy on the Cook"
provisioning package. This will provide food for breakfasts, lunches, and
snacks every day and one dinner to be cooked aboard the boat. The food order
is customized for each boat. Members will get together to fill out order forms
to indicate preferences.
Activities in the Leeward Islands
Few parts of the Caribbean offer as much variety as the Leeward
Islands. The territories of The French Caribbean, Dutch Antilles, and British
West Indies are all included in our cruising area of St. Martin/St. Maarten,
St. Barts and Anguilla.
The French territory of St. Barts (St. Barthelemy) is the most sophisticated with many high quality restaurants and shops. St. Barts also has uncrowded beaches and places to snorkel and dive. Motorscooters are a popular way to get around and are available for rent.
Nearby, St. Martin (referring to the northern French half) while the Dutch southern part is St. Maarten and includes Philipsburg and Simson Bay which is the center of yachting for the area. Marigot in St. Martin is a free port known for its shopping.
British Anguilla is a somewhat sleepy West Indian Island with
a wonderful system of national parks that are ideal for snorkeling, diving
and enjoying nature. There is nowhere else where cruisers can enjoy such a
great variety of atmospheres in a one week charter.
Bareboat Charter Certification
Certification is available to Basic Coastal Cruising graduates who have
acted as skipper at least 3 times. It's important each student gets used to
the responsibility of skippering a boat before Bareboat Charter certification
is attempted. The cost is $315.00 extra for text book, certification
fee and instruction. Bareboat charter graduates can do their own bareboat
cruising in The Caribbean or other locations around the world.
Cruise Meeting - April 4,
2009
A meeting for the Leeward Islands cruisers to get to know each other will
take place on the evening of February 16. We'll also wrap up our food and
beverage orders then. (There's nothing like making a joint beverage order
to help people get to know each other.) There will also be a chance to see
slides and share experiences with each other.
Payments:
$100 non refundable deposit
$600 due January 1, 2009
$600 due February 15, 2009
Balance due April 1, 2009
Boats,
provisions and 1 night hotel are included. Airfare is not included, but we can
help you get flights.
Suggested Itinerary SFO or SJC Thursday evening, June 18. Arrive St Maarten at 2:15pm Friday after connecting in Miami. Taxi to the Moorings charter base at Oyster Pond. We'll get checked out and board the boats. Saturday: After breakfast, sail to Road Bay for customs and immigration in Anguilla, British West Indies. Anguilla is a peaceful island with many fine restaurants and wonderful diving and snorkeling. Sunday: Relocate to Crocus Bay for snorkeling & or diving. Little Bay, a national park has mooring buoys for day use. Have dinner ashore, a short walk after beaching the dinghy. Monday: Sail back to St. Martin and anchor at Grand Case for wonderful dining ashore. Tuesday: Sail to Columbier Bay, St Barts. Swim and relax and have dinner on the boat. Wednesday: Relocate to Gustavia for shopping, diving, dining, etc. Motorscooter and rental cars are available, making for easy exploration of the island. Thursday: There's a wonderful crepe shop for breakfast in Gustavia. Three's plenty more to do here during the day. Friday: Sail for St. Martin to either Orient Bay or Philipsburg on the Dutch side. Caution- Orient Bay is a clothing optional resort area. Saturday: Return to Oyster Pond to check the boat back in to the Moorings by around 11:00a.m. Taxi to Marigot to spend the night at The Beach Plaza Hotel, just a short walk to the town of Marigot, one of the hot spots for shopping and dining. Sunday: It's a short trip from the hotel to the airport, American Airlines flight#748 leaves at 8:55 a.m. and connects in Miami to arrive in San Francisco at 6:25 p.m. on flight #1455 |
The Island of St. Martin/ St. Maarten, is located in an area of the Caribbean known as the Leeward Antilles or Leeward Islands. Only about 100 miles east of The Virgin Islands, this area is known for fresh breezes and a wonderful contrast between the various nearby islands.
If you have your own group and can act as skipper, you may charter your own boat to join the flotilla instead of joining individually or as a couple. This way you can choose the size of boat and other options. Contact Bob at Spinnaker Sailing for information about cost and availability for doing your own boat. You can also book your own private cruise through Spinnaker Sailing for charters with Sunsail, Footloose, or The Moorings.
St. Martin is two countries in one island. Half is Dutch (St. Maarten) dating back to the 17th century. The Dutch capital, Philipsburg, has friendly taverns on the waterfront. The other half (St. Martin) is French and is very picturesque with excellent food, bargain shopping for imports direct from Europe and sidewalk cafés in Marigot, the French capital. St. Barts is quite chic, with numerous interesting shops and restaurants in the capital city of Gustavia. There's also motorscooter rentals making it easy to get around the rest of the island. The other island is Anguilla which is English and less developed but has excellent diving and snorkeling in its underwater national parks.
Spinnaker Sailing provides bareboats and crewed yachts at these and other locations in the South Pacific, Caribbean, Mediterranean and Indian Ocean. Join us on any of our group cruises or let us help you book your own private cruise with Sunsail, Footloose, or The Moorings.
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