We left Oyster Pond headed SE to Gustavia, St Barts (busy). ENE 15-20k winds.

Next night Anse Du Columbier, St. Barts (very quiet). ENE 15-20k winds.

Then NW about 30nm to Road Bay, Anguilla via the lee (west) side of St. Martin and NE to windward in the Anguillita Channel (north side of Anguilla) in 25-35k NE winds. That was a lot of wind, and those conditions prevailed for the remainder of our trip. We were double reefed on the reach up to Anguilla and then furled the genoa and main as we rounded the western end of the island and headed straight into the wind in the Anguillita Channel. Apparent winds were about 40k during gusts, and it was a choppy ride. The Lavezzi doesn't point high but it's better than most skeg keel cruising cats, and never pounded the bridgedeck. I was impressed with the Lavezzi for that, but there was another cat in view that tacked to windward in those conditions and still got to Road Bay before us. It was an Outremer, I would estimate close to 50' LOA, and it appeared to be sailed by owners.

Road Bay is quiet and beautiful. Wished we could see more of Anguilla but the best snorkeling sites are reefs and islands NW of the Anguilla main island and dangerous to approach on the strong NW wind conditions. We were told on check-in that the Anguilla authorities closed Dog Island and Prickly Pear (presumably due to conditions). Next morning we went to Marigot on the French side of St. Martin. Excellent dinner ashore at Tropicana restaurant (top rated by TripAdvisor, and it lived up to its reputation). Marigot is a real mix, and we walked quite a bit to get the local flavor.

From Marigot we had wanted to head NE over the top of the island and work our way back via Grand Case, Anse Marcel, Ile Tintamarre and Ilet Pinel, but we opted for comfort instead and worked our way back to Oyster Pond via the Dutch side. We stopped at Simpson Bay (very seedy) anchored out and dinghied inside, and then next day sailed SE to the southern tip of St. Maartin, then beat NE through some rough seas and scary rock outcroppings on the SE side until we made the Oyster Pond entrance. Spent Friday night at the dock at Oyster Pond and took a borrowed car to Grand Case where we ate outstanding Italian food at Piazza Pascal http://www.piazzapascal.com/ .

Last night we stopped for Chinese food on the way back from the airport, and my wife opened her fortune cookie to find the following message. Isn't life wonderful?