2026-04-19 Bouillante and Les Saintes in Guadeloupe

We went ashore in Malendure, Guadeloupe to get groceries in the morning, but of course on any French island it is hard to pass up a boulangerie without getting something yummy to eat.

The "dingy dock" in Malendure is just large rocks you climb on- avoiding crabs and lizards

Yummy treats from the boulangerie

We got our groceries and motored the short 2 miles further south with Jason and Monica on our buddy boat Breathe to Bouillante.   Bouillante means boiling in French, and the town is named such due to the hot water flowing down the rivers.  Bouillante is home to a geothermal plant, and the excess hot water is sent out to the ocean.  The beach right by the discharge of hot water is popular spot to hang out.   We found the water very warm, almost too hot in spots, but mostly the sulfur smell from the natural volcanic based hot water was a bit offputting.  We did snorkel off Point de L. Ermitage, which was just a so-so snorkel.

Ilet Nicolas off of Point de l'Ermitage

Only one nice Elkhorn coral, the rest were dead

Monica enjoying the snorkel.

Monday we set out with Breathe to Les Saintes.  Thought it was going to be a bit smoother of a trip, but was actually quite lumpy and unpleasant for most of it.   We arrived in the afternoon in Les Saintes and took a mooring at Ilet a Cabrit (Goat Island)

Tuesday we went ashore and took a nice hike on the trails around the island. This small island has been a fort, a lookout, a small resort, and now just ruins.

Like how this tree is affixed to the wall of the ruins

Ruins of old cistern.  Roof was water catchment, and inside is still holding water

Nice view from the top looking SE toward Terre-de-Haut

Monica found a couple goat skulls on a wall in old building

Charm on the mooring

Jason and Dean taking a break at the top of the hill.

After our hike and lunch, we went for a snorkel on the NW corner of the island. It was a good snorkel with quite a few healthy corals, and interesting structures, but not a lot of fish. We did get to see a couple of octopus thanks to Jason and Monica sharp eyes.

Octopus

Wednesday morning we moved over to a mooring off of Terre-de-Haut, and went into town for a walk around, and picked up some fresh veggies at the store.  The Les Saintes are very much a tourist attraction and the main town of Terre-de-Haut is set up for tourists with many restaurants, gift shops and such.

Monica and Kris strolling the main street

Lots of scooters and golf carts in the streets

Thursday we did our big hike of a little over 5 miles, from the town dinghy dock up to the top of Chameau Hill at 1,299 feet in elevation.  We took the trail up, which is steep but scenic, and then took the road down.

Goats relaxing at the start of the trailhead

Jason, Monica and Dean on the trail

The trail got quite steep with some large boulders to navigate 

Nice view from the top of the hill

Kris taking a rest in the shade of the ruins - it was at least 10 degrees cooler inside

Ruins at the top of the hill.

After the hike we were all hungry, so stopped for a nice lunch in town before heading back to the boats.

The weary hikers enjoying a break, waiting for lunch

Of course, what could be better than an ice cream after lunch

Raspberry ice cream - yummy

Friday morning we went for a short hike up to Fort Napoleon.  Originally Fort Louis, and destroyed by the British in built in 1779.  Renamed in 1805,and destroyed by the British in 1809.  Rebuilt again in 1816 to 1840, and in 1842 improved more, and completed in 1867.  Never used as a fort, but was a penitentiary for a time.   Neat to walk around with pretty gardens.

Entrance to Fort 

Nice views from the top

Fort and some of the garden area

Pretty flowers on the walk

Back to boats, and then we moved moorings again over to another spot in Les Saintes - Pain de Surcre.  Went for a snorkel and had a nice snorkel, lots more fish and another octopus.

Saturday was a bit cloudy so we just stayed on board, did laundry and relaxed.   We did rescue a kayak that had gotten loose from someone, and the owner did come looking and retrieved it, so we did our good deed for the day.

Today perhaps more snorkeling - we will see what the weather holds.

2026-04-12 Hiking on Antigua, and a nice sail to Guadeloupe

We moved from Jolly Harbor anchorage to Falmouth Harbor.  We wanted to see some of the classic yachts that had been arriving for the upcoming races.  Had a very lumpy trip into 20 knot winds, but only for about 4 miles, so not bad to get from Jolly Harbor to Falmouth.   The rest of the day after moving was cleaning some salt water off the boat, and relaxing.  

Monday was Easter Monday, and lots of things were closed, so we decided it would be a good day for a hike up Monks Hill on the north side of Falmouth Harbor with Breathe.   Great Fort George on Monk’s Hill was Antigua and Barbuda’s largest colonial fortification.   We took the easy way up, with road for about half, then the trail to the top at 784 ft. Beautiful views of Falmouth Harbor.

Hot and sweaty and windy at the top 

Dean posing at the old archway.

Falmouth Harbor

While at the top another person hiked up.  We said our hellos and admired the view, and as we got ready to leave he decided to show us the alternate trail down, that he had taken up.   Best part of cruising sometimes is the people you meet, and this was a good example.   Iwandy hikes the hill regularly, doing trail maintenance as well, and carried his machete with him.  He took us to the alternate trail, and led the way, which we were glad for, as it was confusing.  Very nice guy, and enjoyable to talk with.   It was a good 4-mile hike.

Iwandy and Monica on the trail

The next day our legs needed a break, so we did a slower day, and visited a mushroom farm with Breathe.  Harbor mushrooms have been around for about 8 years, and Jamie took us through his process.   He has two shipping containers in his backyard he uses to grow mushrooms, and sells them to local restaurants.  He explained the entire process, and we bought some pink oyster and phoenix mushrooms from him.

Thanks to Jason for the photos.

Jamie showing us the mushrooms and explaining how they are grown

Walking through the humidity and temperature controlled container

After the tour we walked to a local restaurant for a nice lunch out, and then back to the boats.

Wednesday was time for another hike, so we walked over to English Harbor with Breathe via the Middle Ground trail.  This hike was 4 miles, but only 531' in height.   Nice views again, and the end of the trail was in English Harbor and Nelsons Dockyard - a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Nelsons dockyard was OK, but we were able to see some of the classic sailing yachts that had arrived for the upcoming races, which was great.

Antigua is a dryer place, not as tropical as other Caribbean islands, and lots of cactus on the hike

Overlooking English harbor

Ruins of Fort Berkley at the entrance to English Harbor

Classic yacht in the marina at English Harbor

Thursday we took another hike with Breathe, and this time went so we could see the start of the races.  Antigua hosts several boat races during the year, and one of them is the Antigua Racing Cup, followed by the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta.  This was a 5-mile hike, going to 1066 ft in height.  Lots of up and down, but had a great view for the start of the race.

A helicopter was flying around taking photos of the race boats as well.   Check out Jason and Monica's Facebook page of April 9th for some really cool photos.  

Racing

After watching the start of the race, we continued along the trail, which got very steep in places, and we were all hot and tired when we finally got to the top.

Along the trail

At the top is Shirley Heights, and there is a bar and part-time restaurant.  We all got cool drinks and sat down and rested for a bit, and had snacks we had brought.  It was a much-needed rest.

Made it to the top

Kitty at the restaurant hoping for a handout.

Outdoor seating at Shirley Heights restaurant.

After the rest, the trail was easy going back - mostly downhill

Dean, Jason and Monica, getting ready to head back down.  Falmouth harbor in the background, where the boats are.

Monica on the trail back down.

Both Kris and Dean suffered shoe failures, as the soles started coming off during the hike, but we made it back to the boat without complete failure, so all was good.   

Friday was the last day of east winds, before they turned more southerly, so after our hike, we went and checked out, and then Friday morning set sail for Guadeloupe.

Had a nice sail, with winds 12 to 20 knots, and not too bad of seas.   

Took a photo of Breathe as we sailed past them.  

We were disappointed that our first planned stop in Guadeloupe at Deshaies did not work out, the anchorage was pretty full, and only anchoring in over 50' of water was available, plus a pretty good swell was working its way into the anchorage, so we went on further to Malendure.

Saturday was a boat day for us, and a shoe repair day.

Deans shoes had not completely separated, he had to pry them apart, but the sewing holding the flip-flop straps was gone, so he had to resew that.

Kris's shoes just came unglued, so not as bad.  We got the shoes apart, cleaned, sewed and glued back up.  We will see how they work after the glue is fully cured.

Will continue a bit further south today to another anchorage.