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Sailing to Sandy Island |
| We boarded at Anse Marcel at about 8:30AM and sailed out of the harbor as we enjoyed coffee and a lovely fruit platter. Our route would take us out into the Angulla Channel and downwind in a generally westward direction until we could round Anguilla's southwestern point. We then sailed around the the island and headed east along the northern coast. A bit before noon we dropped anchor at Sandy Ground, a mere spit of land, no bigger than a few football fields and almost as flat, a scant two feet above sea level. We toured the island, swam, snorkeled, and sun-bathed with the aid of a few libations. We then headed further west and dropped anchor at Little Bay, a fish sanctuary. We had a wonderful lunch there and late in the afternoon we reversed course, returning to Anse Marcel at sunset. The panoramic shot below is Anse Marcel's fine harbor featuring the Radisson Hotel. |
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On the left is a shot of the fruit platter that greeted our arrival. Below is a shot that shows the lighter colored water in the harbor. On the right is a finely polished conch.
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Above is a panoramic shot of Cap Juluca. We stayed here in 2006 and produced this write-up. Cap Juluca is along the southern coast of Anguilla, close to the western point.
Below is Cove Castles. We've never stayed here, but it certainly is stunning and we've heard great things about it. Cove Castles is also on the southern coast but almost on the western point. |
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On the left is a colorful sailboat that flitted between Flagship and SXM as we sailed in the channel. The mountains in the background include Pic Paradis, SXM's highest peak at 424 meters, almost 1400 feet. On the right is a Frankenpalm, a cell phone tower disguised as a giant palm tree. When they build them in New England we call them Frankenpines. Obviously, they have to be taller than anything nearby, so despite the "disguise" they are easy to spot. |
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Above is a panoramic shot of Sandy Island. There is a small utility building and a slightly larger bar/restaurant that only opens by prior arrangements.
Below is Sandy Island in the foreground and much of the north shore of Anguilla in the background, including Road Bay, the center of activity, such as it is, on Anguilla. |
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Above left is the fine charcuterie we enjoyed when we got back to the boat after exploring Sandy Island.
Above center and right are views of the cliffs at Little Bay on the north side of Anguilla. The easiest way to visit is by boat, but there is parking above and there is a rope that you can use to rappel to the beach. Bear in mind that it may be harder to pull yourself back up to the top. The snorkeling is great and as you can see, even on one of the best days of the season, there were few visitors. |
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Above left is the fine lunch featuring grilled chicken and merguez that we enjoyed while loafing at Little Bay. No paper plates and plastic forks on this trip. But what did you expect? Alain and Zuzu ran one of the best restaurants in Grand Case and still are involved in Palm Beach Restaurant, one of the best on Orient Beach. We finished the day with a wonderful chocolate cake with fruit, whipped cream, and creme anglais. As we headed east in the Anguilla Channel we got to watch a fabulous sunset off the stern. It was a full and wonderful day on the water with great food and wine. Check out their website to make a reservation. |
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