Antigua, and it was calling me back, as it always does. It was March, and I’d made it through another Maine winter. The warm trade winds in the West Indies were calling; time to go sailing. But not just any kind of sailing. Few places on the planet have such a devoted, diverse, and downright joyful yacht racing season as the island of
When my family and I were living aboard our Bowman 57, Searcher, Antigua was a favorite destination, and it remains tops on my list. While far from the perfect tropical island—it’s relatively flat and dry—it’s perfectly placed in the middle of the Leeward Islands, an easy beam reach south to the larger Windward Islands of Dominica, Martinique, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent, and the Grenadines all the way to Grenada, then Trinidad. Or, ease the sheets and it’s a full day’s sail north to St. Barths and St. Martin, then overnight to the BVI, all downwind.
With its beautiful English Harbor and Falmouth Bay, the island is also well suited for sailboats and sailboat racing. In the waters just offshore there’s enough sea room to establish two challenging racecourses to test boats and crews, and the season begins gathering momentum as early as November, when scores of cruising sailboats taking part in the annual Salty Dawg Cruising Association’s Caribbean Rally arrive after passages from ports along the East Coast and Bermuda. The Antigua Charter Yacht Show in early December is followed by the Nelson’s Pursuit Race, the Budget Marine High Tide Series, and a string of holiday get-togethers. Then in the New Year it’s the Round Island Race; the RORC Caribbean 600 in February; the Superyacht Challenge in March; and the Antigua Classic Yacht
