If you saw our ‘Prep for Antigua’ trip video, then you knew we were on our way for a Caribbean adventure, and this week, we share the details. Honestly, I didn’t get as much video of everything I wanted, and my video taping skills are still in development, but you can see some highlights of the fun–and watch my hair slowly fade from bright purple to white! 🙂
Here’s the run down of our visit (see pics below for a visual recap!):
We left on a Friday evening and layed over in Toronto, Canada. The hotel, we stayed at (The Sandman) had amazing Gin & Tonics, but there must have been some sort of drum convention that night…all I heard most of the night was ‘thump-thump-a-thump, thump’. We stayed here on the layover on the way home, too, though, and I slept like a baby. Overall, nice layover.
Leaving home for Antigua |
|
Sandman HotelOur first night in Antigua was in Jolly Harbour, where we met part of the crew we’d be sailing with, Michael, the Captain, and his wife Cindy–the Admiral. We pretty much just picked up the boat, settled-in and had a lovely dinner at Melini’s Restaurant. Most restaurants had at least one vegan option, most had vegetarian…I did eat some cheese a couple of times 🙂
On our second and third nights, we stayed in English Harbour, where we met up with the rest of our crew – Jason and Janelle. We had some anchoring challenges in the crowded bay, but after multiple tries, we were secure and ready to head to shore to find the legendary Shirley Heights. You’ll have to watch the video to get the full Shirley Heights experience…but we’ll just say it involved an unplanned, uphill evening hike through the woods.
Our second day in English Harbor had us exploring Nelson’s Dockyard area–lots of shops and stuff to see. We closed out our time there at Pillars Restaurant, again, there’s glimpses of it in the video.
Shirley Heights – English Harbour, Antigua |
Shirley Heights – English Harbour, Antigua |
 English Harbour, Antigua |
English Harbour, Antigua |
Pillars Restaurant |
On the third day in paradise, we headed over to Nonsuch Bay on choppy seas. Choppy enough seas that I experienced my first bout with sea sickness, literally vomiting over the edge of the boat–fun times. I wasn’t the only one feeling queasy, but I was the only one to loose my cookies. It sucked but learned from it. Plus, I had Dramamine that I started taking and some Bonine from Cindy, so I was sickness-free the rest of the trip and will now ALWAYS have my motion sickness meds along!
After we hit Nonsuch and anchored, I started prepping food…we were a bit low, so the rest of the crew headed in to make a provisioning run and secure reservations for dinner the next night. You can see some of the highlights from here in the video, including one of the games Jason and Janelle taught us…it’s called spoons. We also snorkeled and saw lots of kit surfers. On our second day here we moved Ayers Creek to be closer to Nonsuch Bay resort, where we ate that evening.
Nonsuch Bay, Antigua |
Nonsuch Bay, Antigua |
A game of spoons in |
Nonsuch Bay Resort, Antigua |
Nonsuch Bay Resort, Antigua |
Nonsuch Bay Resort, Antigua |
Nonsuch Bay Resort, Antigua |
Nonsuch Bay, Antigua |
|
Nonsuch Bay, Antigua |
|
Falmouth Harbour was our next destination. One of our tasks while here was to get gas for the dingy and Steffan and I were on it. We did not know, however, that Thursday was a holiday due to the election that occurred during our stay. We got some hot tips from locals on where we might get gas despite the holiday, but still ended up empty-handed. Luckily, we had enough to make it through ’til the next day…plus we scored some fresh eggplant from a local farmer’s booth. We also did some venturing around shops and ended up eating at a restaurant called Cloggy’s with good food (including vegan/vegetarian options) and a beautiful view.
Falmouth Harbour, Antigua |
Falmouth Harbour, Antigua |
Skullduggery Cafe |
Falmouth Harbour, Antigua |
Cloggy’s |
Cloggy’s |
By the time we headed up to Deep Bay, it was the following Saturday and our holiday was quickly approaching its end. But, we took advantage of every last bit of sun. We all snorkeled over the sunken ship that lives in Deep Bay and it was pretty cool. A bit eerie at first, but my favorite snorkeling of the trip. Steffan and Jason also did some on shore hiking, in the pics below you might be able to see them (my photography from the boat to shore was less than stellar). We also grilled the eggplant, along with other veggies on the boats rear propane stove – which you briefly see in the video.
Deep Bay, Antigua |
Deep Bay, Antigua |
Deep Bay, Antigua |
|
Dickenson Bay was our final stop before heading back to the frozen tundra. It had a beautiful beach, which we took full relaxation advantage of. We had some drinks at Tony’s…Tony is awesome btw…got some last minute souvenirs and closed out the holiday with the best meal of the trip at Stella’s Ristorante. Although the bit of parmesan made it only vegetarian, it was my favorite meal of the trip. We took a taxi there–a tight ride, lap sitting was involved–but the view and food was worth the squeezed in ride.
To get the feel of Dickenson Bay, and the vibe we hope to channel as we venture toward boat living, check our final shots in the video as Steffan recalls why he’s jealous of himself 🙂
Stella’s Ristorante |
Dickenson Bay, Antigua |
Dickenson Bay, Antigua |
Tony’s Dickenson Bay, Antigua |
Tony’s, Dickenson Bay, Antigua |
Dickenson Bay, Antigua |
We hope you enjoy our adventure and would love your feedback. Let us know what you want to see from us and we’ll do our best make it happen. Also, subscribe to our YouTube channel so you get the latest and greatest…we’re going to post a 3D video tour of the boat we were on soon, so subscribe so you don’t miss it!
Happy Living!
Kelly (& Steffan)
