The Caribbean sea and its islands - cruising ground for "Manx Mist"

The Caribbean Sea is a body of water, bounded to the south and west by South and Central America, to the NW by the Gulf of Mexico, and to the NE by the Atlantic.



Due to a combination of its warm waters, consistent trade winds, and colourful islands, it is an idyllic place for cruising.

 The Caribbean Islands were originally called the Antilles, after a mythical island Antilia from medieval times, and this is still their nautical name, with the island chain being divided up between the Greater Antilles and the Lesser Antilles.
The Greater Antilles are the larger islands of Cuba, Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic), Jamaica and Puerto Rico, and the Lesser Antilles are the necklace of smaller islands starting with the US Virgin Islands and running a semi-circle around to end in the Dutch Island of Aruba. Outside of their difference in size, the two groups of islands are geologically distinguishable, with the larger Greater Antilles being formed from continental rock, and the Lesser Antilles being of volcanic and coral origin.

It is the Lesser Antilles that is the cruising ground for "Manx Mist", and this sparkling chain of islands is sub-divided into the Leeward Islands in the north and west, the Windward Islands in the south and centre, and the Leeward Antilles, along the coast of Venezuela.

When the sailing ships of Europe first sailed into the waters, landfall was usually in the Windward Islands - the closest in the direction of the easterly trade winds - hence their name.

"Manx Mist" commenced cruising in the Virgin Islands, and for the last 2 seasons has been based in Jolly Harbour, Antigua.

Antigua, apart from being blessed with wonderful beaches and some excellent anchorages and marinas is an ideal, central spot to cruise the surrounding Leeward Islands.