There are worse places to be stuck...

At anchor in English Harbor, Antigua. Our boat is on the far left.


We are currently sitting at anchor in English Harbor with some of the engine apart just waiting for the arrival of the local diesel mechanic. Yes, yet another boat repair. I have always heard that the definition of cruising is really fixing boats in exotic places....and it's true. I'm not complaining - there are definitely worse places to be stuck, in fact it's simply beautiful here. I know I said that the last place we were was my favorite, but now this one is. I just hope we can get to Guadeloupe before our friends Liz and Ritchie do.

We were packed up with everything battened down and ready to sail for Guadeloupe early Thursday morning when a last minute alternator adjustment caused a major bolt to break off. Getting a new one isn't a problem. The problem is that half of the old one is still stuck in the engine head and that's not something we're set up to fix. The mechanic was supposed to have come yesterday, but got too busy (this also happens to be Race Week in Antigua which is the biggest race series of the year here) so Ron is picking him up at his dock any moment and hopefully we can get the problem resolved and be on our way while the weather and seas are still favorable. In the meantime, this is really not a bad place to be stuck. English Harbor has some fascinating history and ruins to explore and we have taken advantage of the down time to do just that.

In 1723, the British discovered that this harbor provided both perfect shelter from hurricanes and immediate access to the trade winds on the major routes. Work began on the dockyard and it became Britain's main naval station in the Lesser Antilles. Lord Nelson was stationed here under the command of Sir Richard Hughes (who had blinded himself in one eye chasing a cockroach with a fork). Nelson later took over as naval commander. He wasn't overly popular with the locals because of the way he enforced the Navigation Act, meaning he kept the port closed to all trade except British ships. The dockyard is now known as Nelson's Dockyard in deference to Britain's favorite hero. Today, the harbor is managed by Nelson's Dockyard National Park which is part of the national parks authority. Many of the buildings remain today as they were almost 300 years ago and some have been restored, and each of them is functional, albeit in a different capacity. The buildings now house everything a cruiser could need here from Customs and Immigration, to a terrific bakery, to shops, pubs, restaurants, sail makers, riggers and shipwrights and a great historical museum. All of them are wonderful to explore, each with their own short labeled history in front of them. It's amazing to walk through these buildings and imagine what life would have been like here during the time of the British Navy...and even better to be here today.

 
One of the main buildings at Nelson's Dockyard dating back to the 1700's

 
"Mom, why are those bananas hanging on that tree?" A perfect lesson opportunity while we wait for dad to finish clearing us into Antigua.

 
A stroll through Nelson's Dockyard in beautiful English Harbour.

 


The lookout at the fort at the entrance to the harbor. There are still cannons mounted here and I guess if you weren't a British ship, you were a target.


The Lookout from on top. The old buildings to the left are empty today, but at one time stored weapons and armory.



The view from the lookout. You can see some of the race boats in the distance that have just left the harbor for the day's race.