After picking up our new dinghy we sailed around Point Saline to Prickly Bay and discovered an active community of liveaboards and cruisers. We made many new friends, some transient cruisers like us, and others who never leave Grenada. After spending nearly three weeks in Grenada, we could understand how easy it would be to simply stay. The south coast of Grenada has several protected bays dotted with marinas and restaurants, chandlery, sail loft, mini markets and beaches. There are social activities nearly every day. The bus is convenient for getting into town or exploring the island's interior. One day we rode seven different local buses to visit Grenville, the second largest city on the island, and the Belmont Estate, where the Grenada Chocolate Factory is located. On our last Friday in Grenada we hired a taxi along with seven other cruisers and went to Gouyave for their weekly street festival called Fish Friday.

Soon after we arrived in Prickly Bay we got involved with the situation of a fellow cruiser who had been in the hospital for over 12 weeks. Until we visited, he had not even sat up in bed in over 6 weeks. I wrote out an exercise plan for his physical therapy and encouraged other cruisers to help him get moving with the goal to leave the hospital in two weeks. One cruiser who happened to be an ICU in a former life really took on the situation as a personal challenge and the patient was discharged home in a wheelchair within 10 days.

We contacted Mike of Palm Tree Marine for help with our dirty fuel problem, and he suggested we bring Gaiamar to Le Phare Bleu Marina where his business is located. We arrived intending to stay three nights, but ended up staying an entire week to enjoy the amenities of the resort. We cooled off in the freshwater pool nearly every day, and enjoyed taking showers on the restored lightship tied to the dock opposite us. We explored Clarkes Court Bay and Mount Hartman Bay by dinghy, and on Sunday afternoon we enjoyed the beach BBQ at Roger's beach bar on Hog Island.

It was getting time to leave Grenada, so we sailed back to St. Georges to separate ourselves from the cruiser community. We took a couple from southern Illiinois along for the day sail, and I think we have created a couple of new sailors. It was a perfect day for a sail, with 15-20 knots in calm seas on the leeward side of the island. After the anchor was set, we dinghied in to the lagoon where we had a delightful meal of local foods at Patrick's Restaurant. Patrick is no longer alive, but his cook Karen now owns the restaurant. Where else can you taste samples of dishes like green banana salad, green papaya in cheese sauce, fried breadfruit and oil down without committing to a full portion? We each had our favorite dishes and resolved to learn how to make them using local ingredients.

We are now at the Grenada Yacht Club, fuel and water tanks full, ready for the next phase of our journey, a three day passage to Culebra in the Spanish Virgin Islands, across 425 miles of the East Caribbean Sea.