Date: 5 March 2015 Position: Long Bay, Virgin Gorda, BVI 18:29.906N 64:24.795W Having cleared into St Barts, and after a quick provisioning shop in the French supermarket for foie gras, confit of duck, numerous pates, salamis and cheeses, we immediately…

The DS had told me that when she arrived in Antigua she wanted to spend at least a couple of days winding down before the stress-inducing trauma of sailing with the reckless Upstairs Skipper in the mountainous seas and storm…

In my last blog I was showing off about all the fancy yachts in Antigua, but the one vessel that completely blew my mind was much, much smaller. I was down below, slaving away as usual, when I heard a…

Whilst I was working hard getting Mina2 ready for her Downstairs Skipper, I wasn’t short of distractions. When Mina2 was just a twinkle in my eye, I had always fondly imagined that my magnificent yacht would be at least one…

Most long-term cruisers are married couples. They arrive together to re-commission their boat, sharing the numerous tasks to get their craft ship-shape and Bristol fashion before setting off on their cruise together. Not so on Mina2. “I will join you…

We had just two more shortish passages before our final leg into Antigua. First stop was in the delightful little archipelago of islands at the bottom of Guadeloupe called Les Saintes. Once again we were in France. We went ashore…