it seems a shame to miss the islands there when the run to Cartegena from anywhere on the way would be downhill.

We know little about the Caribbean, having arrived from Brazil last year. So what I said will be limited to Tobago and Trinni.

Tobago - Absolutely great place. We made landfall in Charlottesville and bay hopped down the north coast to the closest Bay to Scarborough called Pigeon point. There were brand new moorings laid at Pigeon and no one had figured out how to charge anything for them yet.

Diving near Charlottesville is reasonably priced and pretty good. Depending on ones confidence level there are operators of all levels of qualification. We found a guy we liked who wasn't a big PADI type and went diving with him. Since either of us could have "led" the dive ourselves, we actually were able to convince him to go to some more exciting spots. His big job was knowing where the downdrafts were and other such hazards and, of course, supplying the boat to watch the bubbles and pick ups up from wherever we surfaced.

This island was quite good and we did not feel uncomfortable anywhere we went. It is said that Scarborough can be a bit dicey in the wrong places at night, but most people are on board or have a rental or taxi if out late -- so no problem.

The other place we are familiar with is Trinni itself - Chagaramus Bay. This place is a heaven after 3 years away from any decent chandler. You want it, but walk a few blocks down the main road and buy it at one of a number of good stores with all the trimmings of a West Marine! Yahoo.

There are tons of boats hauled out on the hard in the yards here, many with people living on them. I hear it was packed a few years ago, but the economy has caused the numbers to dwindle. Prices for moorage at a dock are reasonable and a ball in the harbor is about $5.00 USD a day if you find an open one. (Back down hard on these puppies. I saw one broken shackle from the mooring come up with the drifting boat.) Anchoring is free, but deep.

The scenery is nice. I mean, a bunch of boats around doesn't really bother a sailor. The steep jungle covered hills are cool. Transportation to and from Port of Spain is very reasonable and we found a rental car for $10.00 USD a day. (Of course we had to fix a few things as they broke, but . . .)

Safety: Again, lots of people worry about personal safety and there are horror stories to be heard. There is some petty theft, but we never locked Scotty Ann. We didn't worry about it too much and just limited what we had to steal. It was never necessary. We never felt uncomfortable anywhere. Again, there are a few places in Port of Spain to watch your back, and occasion isolated incidents in Chagaramus after dark, but you will really be unlikely to be walking around late at night somewhere you have not already become familiar with. Cabs are inexpensive and the mini-buses are quite save. So are the route taxis.

I don't know what you have heard about Trinni, but Cartegena doesn't have the best possible reputation in the cruisers community for personal safety either. We felt much more threatened in Rio and some other places back along the line. Chagaramus is fine for us. So don't dismiss Trinni out of hand.

Keep in touch. Maybe we can have a pastry and coffee in Martinique or something. We figure that we are unexpectedly in the Caribbean and might as well have a look around.

Cheers