Terre-de-Haut

We are not in Terre Haute, Indiana for all those Hoosier followers, but and island called Terre-de-Haut. The last few days we have been on a mooring ball off Îlet à Cabrit which is an uninhabited island across the harbor from Terre-de-Haut. Collectively these and nearby islands are known as Îles des Saintes which are part of Guadeloupe. These islands are the first place we have been on Renegade which we have never visited before. The history of these islands is very unusual compared to the rest of the Caribbean in that they could not be farmed, therefore slaves were never brought here so they were colonized by fishermen from the northern coast of France. Family fishing in small boats with nets is a very active form of commerce here and apparently the locals are known throughout the Caribbean for their fishing skills. Ferry boats transport tourists from Guadeloupe all day long to visit the quaint village and have lunch or dinner. There are many casual restaurants but we have learned unless you have a lunch or dinner reservation, you will not get a table. There are no cars on the island so people get around on scooters, electric bikes, and golf carts. There are many cruisers in transit and the use of mooring balls is required in the anchorages. The balls have no pennant line and you have to place your lines through a 1 foot stand up iron ring circle. All the cruisers hate the moorings because the rings put big scratches and dents on the bow. Jim was very disappointed the mooring dinged up the new paint job so he placed a big PFD on the ring to show it who was boss. We plan on staying here a few more days and will post some updates.