THAT LITTLE CORNER OF PARADISE ........

And out of nowhere this morning came this launch towing a couple of dinghies and right in front of us proceeded to install a series of moorings .............. AND JUST LIKE THAT, PARADISE AND FREEDOM HAS BEEN USURPED IN THE NAME OF PROGRESS AND MAKING MONEY ...... The best we could do was to sit and watch how they did it ........... Certainly was a very professional operation ........ More about that later ..... The launch Captain said the project had been funded by a grant from the EU and the project was under the jurisdiction of the Antigua Department of Fisheries, ......... And that yes, eventually you will have to pay to pick up a mooring ......... Now up until this morning, our entertainment had been to see the aerobatics of the Danish single-handed sailor who said he sailed 3000 miles to come here for kiteboarding ..........



There are resorts all round the bay and their guests, together with numerous yachts, arrive all day long to swim and snorkel in this beautiful water .........



So here is how these moorings are put in ............ The launch has a separate engine onboard driving a hydraulic pump with hoses connected to that reddish-rusty hydraulic motor suspended over the stern of the vessel........ That long galvanised almost horizontal square rod you see has a welded sand screw on one end, and a galvanised loose shackle at the other end ......... Are we good so far? .......O.K. ..... The attached sand screw, together with the hydraulic motor are now lowered to the sandy bottom, using that little derrick on the back of the launch, and a diver with his own air supply coming from a little compressor in his dinghy, goes down there and by openiig the hydraulic valve, sets the motor in motion and that screws the square rod into the sandy bottom for about nine feet .......... That 'anchor' is not coming out ....... That underwater red-rusty motor is powered by hydraulic oil flowing under pressure through the orange hoses ......



To stop the whole pump from spinning around underwater by itself, the diver grabs hold of a long extension on the motor and plants his feet firmly on the bottom ......... Meantime the surface crew drop a float with a long chain into the water and the diver attaches it to the shackle while he is down there ........... Hopefully those shackles are seized with stainless steel wire, and not just finger-tightened ................. I said " HOPE SO " .....



I was trying to concentrate on what tools and seizing wire the diver took down there with him, but I kept being distracted .............. That happens a lot ....... After five days in this beautiful corner of 'paradise' we finally made our move to leave ...... It will be so different when we return, for already the moorings are being taken up as though they were always there ......



Back to English Harbour..... Back to Pandanus palms and burnt-orange bouganvillea, back to an artist and a potter, and a traditionally built Antiguan sloop .....




And before the sun sets on yet another incredible sky and another beautiful day comes to an end, we visit the wood carver who produces a phenominal range of large mahogany carvings, with suitably large tags attached ............ And there is progress too, with the main mast for that 1928 schooner "ASTOR" in the ANTIGUA Shipyard ........... The split piece has been removed, and a new piece called 'a dutchman' is to be added with epoxy glue ............. So again we say " HOPE SO " ... For the stress on this mast with its huge gaff sail is enormous ............