Dominica to Guadeloupe, April 2021

Dominica

I owe my readers an explanation of what I was doing on the catamaran. The thing was that I signed up to be a crew member to reposition her from the Caribbean to Europe. Actually, there were 2 boats in Martinique that had to be moved; both belonged to the same company owned by Konstantin and his family.

One boat was a catamaran, the other was a monohull yacht. Either had 4 cabins and could fit up to 8 people if they shared cabins. The route was going to be along the Lesser Antilles, then across the Atlantic to the Azores and from there to Gibraltar. An estimated duration of the repositioning was 6 weeks. The plan was for both boats sail together for safety reasons.

The cost of being a crew member was €1500 plus expenses like food, fresh water, and fuel, equally divided between all participants except the skipper. Yes, you read this correctly. We were paying for the pleasure of moving the boat.

Konstantin posted on Facebook that he was looking for crews for both boats. His post said that he would interview applicants and choose experienced mariners. I had no previous experience, none whatsoever; I never even was on a yacht and did not know how they looked inside. I did cross the Atlantic Ocean on a cruise ship in 2018. I also traveled from Russia to Australia by a cargo ship in 1992. However, both times the vessels were huge, with many other people on board; I had a cozy cabin with an ensuite bathroom. Cabins on a small yacht probably were different, and my role would not be a passenger.

I had been following Konstantin on Facebook for a few months and got interested in his trips. His posts were always straight to the point, they sounded honest, and the life on a boat appeared to be full of adventure.

Such a trip would be way out of my comfort zone but this did not stop me from applying. I could not resist the enduring allure of the sea. That’s why I sent Konstantin a message and warned him that I was an absolute novice.

He replied that the absence of experience was not a problem; he would teach me everything. I had a video call with Konstantin and his wife Tanya who managed the company’s finances to discuss the particulars. It was not them interviewing me but the other way around ‒ me asking them questions.

I was especially worried about being seasick all the time. After the boat left the last of the Caribbean islands we could be at sea for weeks. I did not want to be a suffering wreck and a burden to the crew until we reached the Azores where I could get off the boat.

Tanya waived off my concerns.

‘Take Dramamine, in 3 days your body will adjust and you will be fine’, she said.

Perhaps, I would. But in case I wouldn’t, I wanted to have a chance to opt out before we began the Atlantic crossing. Surely, sailing in the Caribbean would be enough for me to figure out if I should continue or not. So, we agreed that I would pay the deposit of €500 for 2 weeks in advance and the balance later when I knew that I would go to the Azores.

Very carefully, I broke the news about the boat trip to my friends and relatives. They are used to hear all sorts of unexpected things from me but this time, they were seriously concerned. They said goodbyes to me as if they were not going to see me again.

‘Are you not worried?’ asked one of them.

No, I was not worried ‒ I was terrified, scared out of my wits; I could not sleep at night but I was going anyway. It is hard to explain what was driving me ‒ the desire to test myself in a totally new environment or something else, I really don’t know. But I packed my backpack carefully choosing every item and flew to Dominica. There I was now, on board on The Elli Di.

Guadeloupe was visible from Dominica. Since it was so close and we were going to be at Guadeloupe in a matter of hours, I decided not to take Dramamine right away but rather let my body cope with motion sickness naturally.

The sea was moderately rough; I had nausea almost immediately after we left Dominica.  I knew that fresh air and fixing gaze on something stable help to fight it. So, I settled myself on the deck and stared at the land slowly disappearing behind the horizon. The others ‒ Konstantin, Anna and Dmitry who joined the crew in Martinique ‒ watched me sympathetically. They were experienced mariners and moved around with ease.

Dmitry cooked dinner: chicken with green beans. I could hardly force myself to swallow a few bits although it tasted good. Anna washed the dishes, Konstantin navigated the boat. I sat still glued to my seat on the deck until it grew dark and cold feeling useless and miserable.

Only when the boat dropped anchor at one of Guadeloupe islands, I was able to detach myself from the seat. It was late enough to go to sleep. I went down to my cabin, opened the portholes and lay in bed. It was comfortable; I relaxed and the nausea subsided. The boat gently rocked and I fell asleep.

Guadeloupe