And they are at the gate!

The races were fun!  I ended up even for the day, having picked a few winners and a few losers. Barry was ahead for the day until the last race when he put his money on what he thought was the correct horse but he made a mistake.  The horse he thought he had bet on won but when he went to collect his winnings he realized he had made a mistake. The racetrack is celebrating it 200th anniversary so it felt like we were following in the steps of centuries of Mauritians when we were placing our bets.  The turf looked like it was in great shape, and we had great fun joining in all the hooting and hollering at the finish line!

We have been busy since then, we took the boat about 15 km north to a spot called Riviere Noire, where we had great access to the National Park.

The boat is anchored in the bay furthest from the camera.

We climbed the tallest mountain in Mauritius at 823m. While going up this peak we had to use chains and ropes to help us up and down some of the steepest parts.  On the windward side of the mountain it was very mucky and our shoes became covered in slimy mud. I felt at times as if I was hauling around twice the weight of my ordinary shoes.  The footing was a bit treacherous in the greasy conditions and Barry and I were glad we had sturdy walking sticks.  On another day we hiked down the front of different peak for a great day's outing. Once we got to the bottom of the mountain, it was another 6 and 1/2 km to get back to the boat.  There never seemed to be much traffic on the road and we able to catch a ride.  It was a very boring, long bit of  walking at the end of a enjoyable mountain hike. 

We were on the boat and one of our fellow cruisers spotted a very weird looking roof on shore.  There is an endangered species of bird on the island called a pink pigeon.  He was sure he looking at a roof that shaped like pigeon.  One day we went out walking to clear up the mystery of the unusual roof.  We tried to get in a gated community, but the guard that was there to keep out the riff raff took look and denied us entry.  We walked along and down the road we saw a tour bus, sure enough it was stopped before the building that had the bird roof.  It turned out to be a dove and it was on a church, just when you thought you had seen everything!!!!

Here is a video that Barry took on the top of the hill overlooking Port Louis, Mauritius.  It gives you a good perspective of what the island looks like. The suburbs of  Port Louis go on for miles, it is amazing that a tiny island in the middle of the Indian Ocean would have so much population. Historically, Mauritius or Isle de France was a stopover to reprovision and get fresh water for sailing ships rounding the Cape of Good Hope before heading to India.  The islands symbol is the dodo bird which became extinct in the 1600's shortly after European's landed.  Their demise was precipitated by the introduction of non-native species such as rats which ate their eggs as well as humans which ate their approximately 22 kg bodies.

The other day we took a tour of the southern part of the island. We engaged a local taxi driver and his car to conduct the four of us (the crew of Cat's-Paw IV and Tagish) around. We headed to Curepipe, a town where we visited a carpet store.

 As we sat enjoyed a cup of tea, they explained how the cashmere carpets were made, the emphasis being that the carpets were hand knotted.  They were stunning, the salesman showed us how each knot was made and he explained that a 30 year veteran would trim the carpet with sheers by hand when the knotting was finished.  He said they were magic carpets and rotated it under the light, the difference in shading was magnificent as they moved the carpet. I managed to resist buying one, but wonder if I will be sorry one day.

Our next stop was at model ship building factory. A couple of ladies were threading the rigging on the 3 masted ships. It was amazing to me that they could figure out where everything went.  One fellow had small .05 cm. sq. pieces of wood that he was sandpapering, they would be the ports for the canons, one ship we saw had 3 decks of canons on the ship.  They had all the famous ships from years gone by including a model of the Bluenose, I was impressed.

We headed out to southeast side of the island and visited the site of the first European settlement on the island, the Portuguese discovered Mauritius but the Dutch were the first to name and settle the island. The Dutch had a hard time with plagues and cyclones and were unable to maintain a lasted settlement.  

The French took over and colonized the island with slaves from Africa and introduced sugar cane.  The  British attacked and took over the island in 1835, they abolished slavery and indentured servants from India were brought in to continue to harvest the sugar cane.  The British were very benevolent conquerors, allowing the islanders to maintain their language and religion to this day the dominant language in French but English is learned at school and most officials, thankfully, are bilingual.  

Our tour continued with the natural beauty of the island.  We stopped to see a natural bridge made of volcanic rock.  The bridge was on the sea shore with waves pounding through the opening under the bridge, it was quite spectacular.  Standing on that bridge you could feel and see and hear the power of the waves. I was glad to be over top rather than underneath them. 

Our next stop was at a valley that bisected the island.  It was quite a deep rift and there was a long waterfall spilling down one side.  The mist gives this picture such a haunting feeling.  

Our next stop was at an unique spot.  It was called the coloured earth, apparently the basalt in the area had broken down and given it's colour to the dirt.  No vegetation would grow so the grains of dirt would blow around and form these fabulously coloured mounds.  I haven't seen anything else quite like it in our travels.  

We headed home after looking at a possible anchorage about 20 km down the island.  I think we might head there next week.  I went on another big hike up a hill called the Corps de Garde, it was a great day.  Barry figured his ankle might not like the climb so he stayed on the boat. We managed to extend our visa today.  It was the most bureaucratic experience we have had in awhile, having to provide proof of our finances as well as copies of all the documents we were given when entering the country, custom and health clearances. (I do not think these are computerized so not easily accessed.) It took us a very long and boring 2 hours of sitting around to meet all their requirements.  Horse racing is quite a tradition on the island so on Saturday we are heading off to the races. I don't think I have ever laid a bet at a race track so this may be a first!

 HAPPY CANADA DAY 

There are three Canadian boats in the harbour and we are planning a pot luck for later in the day.  I have made a potato salad and will bring burgers and buns so we can have a little taste of home on July 1st in the middle of the Indian Ocean.  I hope all of you at home have great weather to celebrate our nation's birthday. 

Port Louis, Mauritius, looking over the harbour

Development along the waterfront

We are in Mauritius now.  It is an island which is home to about 1.4 million people.  While Mauritius was home for the descendants of African slaves and the population was 90 % black, the people here are a mixture of the offspring of African slaves and indentured servants that were brought over from India to pick the sugar cane after the slaves were freed in the early 1800's. The Indian descendants seem to be in the majority here in the capital of Port Louis.

  Mauritius has more wealth than Rodrigues and there is an economic base here, clothing is manufactured as well as a booming IT industry and lots of tourism.  There seems to be the remains of a sugar cane industry as well as the production of alcohol.  We are moored at a marina tied up to our buddies Tagish, because there is no more room at the dock.  We have access to electricity, water and best of all HOT showers. 

                                        

Buildings in the older section of town, close to China town. 

As you can see there is a huge variety of architecture in the city, from very old fashioned structures to the latest in sky scrapers.  It is all in the space of a few blocks and give the city a very unique feel. The town in surrounded by large hills and mountains and has a great natural harbour.  We went hiking up one of the big peaks just to the east of town. 

La Pousse or The Thumb, our destination.

The crew of Tagish and Barry and I took a 45 minute bus ride to the other side of the mountain and set off for the summit.  It was a glorious day, it took us about 1 and 1/2 to get up and about 2 hours to get down, as we walked all the way back into town. We met this fellow on the way up, he was on his way to market from his garden, he has fresh cilantro and green onions in his basket.  It was an easy walk through cane fields at first and then the trail became rocky and steeper up through the trees on the mountain side. Some of the footing was tricky because in the trees the soil was still wet and it was very slimy and my shoes would slip and slide. 

The last bit was very steep, and you wouldn't have wanted to slip off the edge.  There were fantastic views from the top and you could almost see clear around the island. Barry could see the boats in a harbour over 15 kilometers away. 

     

Yesterday we walked up to Fort Adelaide built in the 1830's but never really used in war. It was a much shorter walk but quite steep and I was out of breath by the time we reached the fort. Once again it had great views of the city and the harbour.  The picture at the top is actually taken from the fort.  

Notice La Pousse in the background, that really was quite a hike!

Can you make out the date on the cannon?

PROOF

Well I managed to get up on the board when Barry was in the vicinity so we have proof positive that I actually can do it.  The day was really blustery and I had a few very good face plants after being pulled half out of the water.  Some days I think I have more guts than brains. On this day the owner said we will try it out but if I felt it is too much for me we would cut the session short. The guy in the boat called it off after only a half an hour on the water.  Both of the other people that I started learning with gave up. The fellow in his late forties gave up before he even got up on the board, he was taking on too much water, the girl in her early thirties, gave up after being dragged around under water for awhile, what can I say, they are wimps. I may give it one more try before we leave, I know I am almost of the verge of really getting it and going for long runs.  

We are hoping to leave this weekend for Mauritius, there is a good weather window and who knows when the next one will be. It really blows here and it is supposed to calm t 15 knots for a few days.  It is only a 3 day sail to Mauritius so the window does not need to be very big. 

 We have finished all 8 named hikes on the island.  We had wonderful time doing them and I figure with all that upping and downing I am in better shape than I have been for quite a long time.  This picture shows the area for kite surfing, the breaking waves are on the reef, so the whole inside of the area is free of waves and perfect for kite surfing.  

This is one of the lovely small coves that we came across on our walk that went along the sea shore. The sand is fine and soft, the water warm and protected in the cove and you can watch the surf endlessly.  This is the closest the reef gets to the shore along here and those waves were 2 1/2 to 3 meters, the power in them was absolutely awesome. 

One of the only staircases we have encountered on our walks, it is down to a very popular beach.         

We rented a motorbike for a day and tootled around most of the roads on the island we had not been on before. At one point we came to the end of the pavement and a very bumpy, dirt track lead down the mountain. Barry had great fun negotiating down the hill and commented that this was the way to get down a mountain, never mind all that hiking nonsense.  

A new church on the west end of the island, close to the water.

A cathedral built in 1939, the largest in the Indian Ocean. 

                            

This is the view we had on our second last hike.  We threaded around the left side of the hill and then picked our way through a rocky path to the water side.  We have been treated to spectacular views like this on most of our hikes. There is very little industry on Rodrigues. There are lots of small farm plots where market gardening takes place, they plant lots of green beans, onions and corn. The other main thing that seems to employ people are cottage crafts.  There are all sorts of jams, pickles, and chutneys available in the main market in Port Mathurin and there are road side stalls everywhere you look. There are also a great deal of woven baskets, hats and containers that is another main craft. The other areas of employment are bus driver or conducter, school teacher and street or sidewalk sweeper.  This is the cleanest country we have been to since leaving Australia.  The other main occupation is fishing, but they catch more octopus and calamari on the reef than actual fish. 

Octopus or ourite (in French) drying on the beach

                             

This is one of my favourite houses on the island. I am not sure why but if the houses are painted and not left in their original cement block colour they are bright and beautiful.  The combination of lilac, bright canary yellow and peach is not something you would typically see in North America. WHY NOT?  These are such happy startling colours, if I ever own another home I am going to paint it like this.  

I have recently added 3 new boat blogs to our list of friends to follow.  Tagish, a Canadian boat, with Brian and Dorothy were with us in Sri Lanka, Chagos and Rodrigues.  They have just recently sailed to Mauritius.  Sal Darago with Kathy and Jeremy are a British boat. They sailed from Thailand down the west coast of Sumatra to Cocos Keeling and then here.  Harmonie are ahead of us.  They were in Sri Lanka and Chagos with us then sailed directly to Mauritius. They have completed their Indian Ocean journey and are in South Africa. Reading their blog gave us an idea of the trials we have to look forward to crossing the Alguhas current that runs down the east coast of South Africa.  It is always interesting to read how others are doing and their take on the same experiences we are having. 

Heading out all geared up

Almost up out of the water

Working hard to try and get up, board is facing the wrong way!!!

Taking on water

 Here are some decent actions shots, Barry took them from the chase boat.  During the lessons, we would fly the kites downwind and then the instructor would come back and fly your kite back upwind or you would just drag it back upwind in the water, very tiring. Today we went on a down wind jaunt.  They took us in a boat about 5 km upwind and then we flew (well I was mostly dragged) back down wind to the home beach.  At the end of the third lesson I felt like I was getting the hang of it.  I had some decent runs on the board and I felt like I was making progress.  Today there was less wind and I had a bigger kite which was slower to react. I was dragged around a lot, I swallowed a lot of water and  I only had one half decent little run on the board.  I was so frustrated and tired at the end of the lesson, golly, gosh, shucks, darn!

We asked if Barry could come along in the boat and the instructor was lucky to have him.  He was in the water holding the kite when the lines got mixed up, he drove the boat, he grabbed my board when  I lost it and was dragged downwind too far away to pick it up.  He was a marvel.  At the end of the downwind run, the instructor told me to drop the kite and he took the boat out in front of me in anticipation of picking up the kite, wrong move.  I was tired and was trying to figure out what he wanted and took my eyes of the kite, it got inverted and crashed right into the boat.  It just BARELY missed Barry and the instructor, I could have decapitated them, it was kind of unsafe of him to get the boat in a position where the kite would hit it when it came down.  I am glad it did not hit anyone.  

I can do some more downwind runs, I don't really need more lessons, just practice.  It would be nice to have a chase boat along to get you out of trouble.  I guess I could just go out and walk back upwind as well, that would be a lot less expensive. I got some money back on my taxes, so perhaps I will pay for a couple more downwind runs, we'll see.  We are waiting to get some mail from Canada and once it comes we will look for a window to go to Mauritius. 

Stretching up to get her neck scratched

Another hiking shot through eucalyptus trees

Well I am finally getting my kite surfing fix! The last 2 days the wind has been humming away at over     20 knots and I have been getting hauled around the water at great rate. Let me set the scene for you.  The beach is on the windward side of the island, it is about a kilometer long and the reef is about 500 to 700 meters away. That means there is a huge space where the kiting is ideal, no waves, shallow water and lots of room.  The other day I saw 12 kites out there and there was room for twice that many.  The first lesson I got to do some body dragging, lying on your stomach in the water and flying the kite back and forth so it drags you around.  I have learned to let go when I get in trouble rather than haul down like we used to do in kite skiing, when you do that on this kite it powers it up and you get yanked out of the water.  I had a few face plants and swallowed some sea water, but no damage.  At the end of the lesson, we got to try and get up on the board, now that is a challenge.  The second lesson was all about getting up on the board.  I managed for about 10 meters and was just getting the hang of it when the lesson was over.  Lesson # 3 is scheduled for today and the wind is blowing so it should be on.  Hopefully I can co-ordinate the kite and the board and get he feel of the board under me.  Wish me luck.  

A herd of turtles

Hopefully I will get some kite surfing pics. Even if it is just the area, it is great.                                      

                                                   

Looking down at the anchorage. 

We have been living the quiet life here in Rodrigues.  We have been actively exploring the hilly island, having taken 5 of the 8 hiking trails with plans to do all 8 before we leave. The topography consists of hilly ridges and valleys. The island was almost completely denuded at one time, now the valleys have pockets of forests with introduced trees such as eucalyptus and thorny acacias. Some slopes are barren with cattle roaming about and we felt as if we were strolling across a Saskatchewan landscape. We were making our way down a hill yesterday and there was the most perfect climbing tree you ever saw. 

                                        There were huge limbs close to the bottom enticing me to hoist my way up into its branches.  I guess I still am young at heart. There are usually guava trees on   our hiking routes, with ripe guavas sitting on the ground, we have been enjoying their sweet taste  on most of or hikes.  Most days consist of going ashore to get a fresh baguette and visit the fruit and veggie market to get whatever supplies we want for supper.  I have been trying to fit in some kite surfing lessons but so far the wind has not co-operated, maybe tomorrow. 

The other day 6 of us set out to the turtle sanctuary.  In the 1800's Rodrigues was covered in tortoises, one report in the museum said you could walk on top of them for a long way. 

 They were nearly all slaughtered for their meat, but have been restocked from Madagascar and there are now almost 2000 on the island.  They are not as large as the tortoises we saw on the Galapagos Islands but the largest weighed  200 kilograms and the oldest was over 110 years old. We were allowed to touch them and they would stretch up their necks to be scratched.  Their skin was very dry wrinkly but soft. We went to visit a limestone cave afterwards. It was very large and there were stalagmites and stalagtities that would reach from floor to ceiling.  The guide had stories for all the different shapes seeing crocodiles, frogs and even Santa Claus in the limestone shapes.