Flying Across the Seas: Marching with Mark

As you can imagine with all the projects we had going on the home front we were in desperate need of some exercise and a little social interaction. Once we heard Mark on S/V Sea Life, announcing on the morning net a group hike we decided to sign up and join the group. Mark is an amazing guy from down-under with a deep booming voice that immediately captures your attention. He has an acting background from Australia and decided to retire at an early age to take up sailing.

Our group of seven couples off various cruising boats get their marching orders from Mark.

We first met him in Grenada as a cruisers radio net controller. He is a spot-on kind of guy very involved with the cruisers safety and has helped out boaters in numerous emergencies. Right, so come Saturday we were raring to go.
We met at the Simpson Bay Yacht Club at 10:30 am right next to the Dutch bridge as boat traffic was lining up for the morning opening. A group of seven couples showed up. We checked out the boat parade and then we all caught a bus heading toward Philipsburg, the capital and largest port in St. Maarten accommodating hundreds of cruise ships every year. We got off the bus early and took a detour toward the beach opting for a more scenic walk eventually reaching the beautiful coastline.

You need to be prepared for anything with the intrepid Mark in the lead.

Although we'd been in Sint Maarten for over a month, we'd never seen this beach until the hike with Mark.

Mark had already scouted out the route so he knew where he was going. We had ample opportunity to chat amongst ourselves as we walked and coincidentally, reconnected with a couple on Ptarmigan, whom we had briefly met when we refilled their Soda Stream CO2 cartridge. Nice couple.

Meryl and Mark from Australia.

Cruise ships at Philipsburg.

Cannons guarding Fort Amsterdam.

Stars and Stripes and another former America's Cup boat spar on the waters outside Philipsburg.

We climbed up to a point overlooking the harbor where Fort Amsterdam Heritage Park displayed old walls and cannons built to ward off invaders centuries ago. As we looked off in the distance you could see two former America's Cup boats cross tacking. Practicing for the upcoming Antigua Classic Regatta the following weekend.

Our group of intrepid travelers pause for a couple of Caribs at a beach side bar in Philipsburg.

While all the cruise ship people hang out on Front Street, Mark is about to show us the hidden treasures in the shops on Back Street, where all the locals shop.

We continued hiking along the road toward a long string of hotels and then walked along the beach for a distance. We ended up stopping for a round of Carib’s at a beach-side restaurant. Perfect! Next, we headed toward the center of town along Front Street where all the cruise ship passengers shop. We took a left turn and headed for Back Street which is where all the locals shop! We followed Mark into a store entrance which opened up into a huge three-story building with everything imaginable to buy. We all wandered around looking for something we really needed as you know with limited space you are limited with what you have space for. That being said, it is a good thing! By now it was past lunch time and we had probably walked close to four miles so Walter and I dropped off to get a quick bite at Subway, no less. We eventually caught up with the rest of the group as we hopped on a local bus bringing us back to the yacht club.

Meanwhile, Walter and I had learned about a fabulous ice cream & gelato shop called Carousel as we were walking with the group. So we had to go scope it out and hurried over by dingy. Pretty amazing place with so many flavors you couldn't make up your mind. It was a place we wished we had the grand-kids with us. Finally, after a great day it was time to sit out in the cockpit and pick up a book or just collapse.