Point-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe

Our time with Chilor was coming to an end, and we wanted to get closer to the airport so we could see him off. We took an entire day to sail from Bouillante, in the middle of the west coast of Basse-Terre Island, to Point-à-Pitre, on Guadeloupe’s island of Grande-Terre. Our time on the water was met with a mix of calm seas and light wind, to choppy seas and gusts up to 24 knots once we got out of the leeward side of the island. We had our sails up for much of the day and were enjoying the last sail of Chilor’s visit on Hope.

The anchorage at Point-à-Pitre Harbor was crowded when we got there, and the only spots available to drop the hook were in 50+ feet of water. That’s too deep for us, so we made our way across the channel from the marina to Ilet a Cochons anchorage. Much of this large area is now a mooring field, but we were able to find a spot to anchor and get a decent amount of protection from the southeasterly winds that were upon us for the next couple of nights.

It was less than a five-minute dinghy ride to Marina Bas-du-Fort. We tied up our dinghy at the free dock and made our way to the main office, Capitainerie. Not only were we going to be seeing Chilor off, but we were going to be leaving Guadeloupe as well, on our way to Dominica and Martinique, so we needed to check out of the country at the customs office. Since we arrived on a Friday late afternoon, the customs computer was already closed, so we had to go back the next day.

There is a comprehensive list of taxi drivers and car rental facilities posted outside the marina. We were able to call one of the English-speaking taxi drivers and quickly arrange for Chilor to be picked up at the marina entrance the following afternoon to take him to the airport!

The amenities around the marina are great, with a Carrefour Express grocery store, chandleries, marine services, restaurants, and boutiques, all within walking distance. Since Mother’s Day was around the corner, Chilor wanted to go shopping to find his mom a couple of gifts to bring back from the Caribbean. I enjoyed browsing the boutiques with him. He found some nice presents and a couple of t-shirts as well.

We wanted to get dinner, but it was only around 5:30pm, and none of the restaurants were open. We’ve learned that restaurants on the French islands are usually only open for dinner from 7-9pm. We made a reservation for 7pm at Quai Quest, a lovely little restaurant right on the water at the marina. We decided to go back to the boat for an hour, then back to the marina for dinner when the restaurant opened. We usually don’t go out to eat that late, but since it was Chilor’s last evening with us, we wanted to make it special.

The next day, we went to Capitainerie at the Marina again to check-out with customs. They are closed on Sundays, and since we were planning on leaving Sunday morning, we needed to clear out of the country on Saturday. It was another simple process that only took five minutes and cost ten Euros. When we exited the building, a bride-to-be and her friends approached Kory to see if he would help the bride with part of a scavenger hunt they were having for their bachelorette party. She needed 2 Euros. All Kory had was 10 Euros, so he gave that to her and congratulated her. As soon as she received the 10 Euros, the entire bridal party screamed with excitement. I guess this exceeded their expectations, and they asked to take pictures with us. Thankfully, a few of the ladies understood some English so we could communicate with them.

After congratulating the bride-to-be, we made our way back to Quai Quest to have lunch, prior to getting Chilor to his taxi. We enjoyed our meal so much the night before that we decided to have lunch at the same place. We all had the Texas Burger (on a French island), and it was great!

We walked to the main gate at the marina where Chilor was going to meet his taxi driver. While we were waiting, I made a quick run into Carrefour Express to get some much needed produce. Then we sadly said our “adieus” to Chilor. We were so thankful to have him onboard as crew for ten days. He picks things up very quickly, is highly skilled, and has great character. We enjoyed spending time with him, getting to know him better, and making great memories. God bless you, Chilor! Until we meet again!