The next day, the same again however the rocket launched and we took photos and a video. The sound was the most exciting. This time though, as soon as the rocket was out of sight we headed back to the anchorage just before dark. My reasoning....when a penalty is taken, the moment the ball is kicked, the players on the outside of the box are allowed to approach the goal!!
The next day we visited Isle Royale (largest Island) and had a look around the old French prison colony. Very interesting! We thought that a French prison would be quite cushy, but no, it was very very harsh regime indeed. I was shocked that the French would treat their own countrymen so cruelly, especially after the revolution.
The anchorage is beautiful. Sitting quietly on Artemis of an evening, the sound of the monkeys and other wildlife on the island, coupled with the islands' generator going on & off and the sound of our very own fridge, we were very much reminded of the 'Lost' tv series.
There was a hotel and restaurant, no shop or supply of potable water on the islands. We had a visit from Tony, a tour boat operator whilst his customers were exploring the island. Nice guy! He offered to bring us supplies from the mainland if we needed anything. Next morning, a baguette, cheese, eggs and a bottle of wine were waiting for us. Thanks Tony!
At anchor was a South African couple we had met in Brazil and a English couple, James & Fiona S/V Awelina of Sweden, whom we had met previously in Cape Verde. We had arranged to go over for a drink a day or so later but the weather turned squally. We called over that we would take a rain check. Glad we did as the wind and sea state increased dramatically. Yachts were dragging anchor and changing position to get in the lee of Isle St. Joseph. A large freighter came to shelter behind the islands...our new neighbor. We kept watch that night but our anchor never shifted. In the morning things were no better and Awelina motored by to tell us they were going up river to Kourou. We decided to follow suit and quickly weighed anchor to get there before the tide changed. We just made it!
The river anchorage gave very good holding and water was easy to get from the local pontoon.
James & Fiona hired a car and we had a couple of days out visiting Cayenne as well as shopping for supplies and spares.
Kourou had plenty of shops (mostly Chinese) but also the French favorite, Super U supermarket (ours as well).
After nearly 2 weeks on the river, in calmer weather, we headed back to the Isle du Salut to continue our exploring and wait for wind to continue our journey. We explored Isle St. Joseph and viewed Isle du Diable from there as it is quite inaccessible. They had previously been a cable car arrangement from Isle Royale years ago, but no more. It is said that the dead bodies of prisoners were fed to the Sharks. Tony said it was ok to swim as the Sharks wouldn't be interested in us. We did but stayed close to the boat.
Cemetery St. Joseph for staff not prisoners
The Prison corridor
