ep58 - Sailing Nevis - Hallberg-Rassy 54 Cloudy Bay - Jan 2019

Nevis is our overall favorite of ALL Caribbean islands.

s/v Cloudy Bay (Hallberg-Rassy 54) motors the short distance from St.Kitts to anchor off Pinney’s Beach on Nevis, where we gradually fall in love with what becomes our favorite island in the Caribbean.
We explore Nevis for 9 days, 5 of them with a car. Surprisingly, we find so many things to see and do on this charming island. There are many old plantation estates, some in ruins and some famously restored into boutique hotels. Montpellier Inn is where Horatio Nelson married his Nevisian bride Fanny Nesbit in 1787; The Nesbit estate where Fanny was born and raised; Hermitage estate still has its original wooden house from the 1600s and Golden Rock estate is beautifully presented in lush tropical gardens high on the side of the volcano.
We trekked 2 hikes. One up the very steep incline to the volcano peak, climbing hand over hand up ropes most of the way and the other to the island’s water source deep in the natural rain forest. Following each hike we relaxed in the famous (very) hot baths that have been visited for centuries, famous for the healing powers of the high mineral content water.
Around the island there are many superb restaurants and bars. We ate in a few: Thai Oasis in the Botanical Gardens, authentic Indian in the Mount Nevis hotel, Turtle Time on Pinney’s beach. The only large resort is The Four Seasons, but it’s very tastefully done, merging into its surroundings on the lee side.
Charlestown is the main town. It is a collection of period buildings all authentically kept in neat and tidy narrow streets. Beyond the physical beauty of the island, the highlight is the people who live here. Both the resident expats and the locals are extremely friendly and warmly welcome you. Clearly, it’s a nice place to be and live. 8-17 January 2019