# Barefoot Yacht Charters St. Vincent: Never Again



## DoNotLieToMe

The first lie relates to the location... "Blue Lagoon". Barefoot Yacht is outside of the protected harbor and waves roll over the reef and slam the boat around making loading and unloading dangerous. Laying away the provisions on board at the dock will test your stomach. The lies just get bigger from there which makes their website the largest amount of false advertising I've seen in one place. If something goes wrong you are on your own. We had a short in the windlass switch which caused the motor to switch on spontaneously and dump all the chain we had left (100+ feet) causing us to swing wildly in the harbor. We had a dinghy leak and no pump with the appropriate adapter for the type of valve required to inflate. The inverter was inoperable so charging cell phones, etc. was impossible. We made do... because we had to. The employees at Barefoot Yacht were incredibly rude and totally unhelpful. We were harbored in Bequia(Friendship Bay), Mustique(Brittania Bay), Mayreu(Salt Whistle Bay), and Canouan. Their answer was always "if only you were somwhere else (Admiralty Bay, Union Island, blah,blah,blah) we could get it corrected". They provided no assistance!


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## bakerha51

*Out there ?*

So other than the Charter Co. How was the trip? We plan to do that area in 2012.


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## DoNotLieToMe

it was fantastic... I really want to go back and explore farther south. Of course with a better, reputable charter co.


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## knotnow

Let me start with the fact that I know this company well. Both its office staff and the guys and gals that are part of their support crew have become friends. I have spent a lot of time at their base and have seen both very good charters and those with a consenting, know it all attitude.

I would like clarification on a couple of the OP concerns.

>>“Barefoot Yacht is outside of the protected harbor and waves roll over the reef and slam the boat around making loading and unloading dangerous.”

While technically correct, the trade winds generally are from the east making their docks in the lee of the reef. Not normally an issue. The dock crew is most always spot on assisting charters with loading and unloading of luggage and provisions. More so than I’ve seen anywhere else. If there is a swell there that you could experience a swell in just about any other westerly facing anchorage or lagoon. 

>>”the windlass switch which caused the motor to switch on spontaneously and dump all the chain we had left (100+ feet) causing us to swing wildly in the harbor.”

I can’t see how with a proper snubber or bridle set one could pay out anymore effective scope. Seems worst case it might pile up on deck on a mono or between the hulls on a cat.

>>”The inverter was inoperable so charging cell phones, etc. was impossible.” 

That really stinks and might have been a result of a prior charterer not adding that to the punch list. Either way that’s really unfortunate.

Repairs of any kind in the Grenadines can be a challenge. Especially in those neat little bays you mentioned. The area is pretty vast and with just a little cooperation and a quick divert maybe some of your concerns could have been taken care of.

Regards

Rick


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## DoNotLieToMe

as to the anchor: we had just set it 10 minutes prior and wanted to make sure we were holding before attaching the bridle
as to "quick divert": Friendship Bay is less than 2 miles over land to Admiralty Bay. They wanted me to sail 6+ miles around west cay(last 3 miles beating straight in) to Ad. Bay to basically deliver the boat to their chosen mechanic. A totally unreasonable request given the ease of travel over land versus water in this particular case


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## sailingdog

Well, if you are so unhappy with them, I hope you paid by credit card, since you could get some redress through your credit card company.


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## mjlanglois

I would like to respond to Rick, who seems to know the folks at Barefoot. I have just returned from 2 weeks aboard their oldest boat, Pelican Pete. We spent 4 days at Barefoot and no one came to greet us, welcome us, tell us what would happen when. There was no "check out" of the boat systems, many many of which were faulty. Aft cabin reeked of diesel and leaked water. Old worn our anchor rode broke in Chatham Bay. Battery held no charge. Toilet never voided correctly. No chart plotter in cockpit. Bimini top was not even water proof and it rained nearly every day. Everyone dumps their **** and piss in the water in SVG. No holding tank regulations. Unbelievable! Lifeboat was last serviced in 2004. No dinghy pump and on and on and on. This organization is awful, truly disorganized. Who runs this company? I have no clue. Never met a soul who seemed to take responsibility for what was or wasn't happening. I would recommend that anyone think long and hard before chartering with Barefoot or, as I refer to them, Barebones.


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## SamSpade

The yacht on which the above poster, Mr Langlois, sailed for 2 weeks, went on charter again 24 hours after Mr Langlois's return from charter. Mr Langlois wrote to Barefoot Yacht Charters and said that to allow it on charter after his "experience" was conduct that indicated gross negligence on the part of the company.

Here is the report from the guests who sailed the same yacht 24 hours after Mr Langlois - 

"The yacht was everything we were hoping for. I will be thoroughly recommending Barefoot Yacht Charters and will be looking forward to sailing with them again soon." He rated the cruise as follows -

Cleanliness - Excellent
Mechanical - Excellent
Equipment - Excellent
Sails/Rigging - Excellent
Electronics - Good
Service from Reservations office - Excellent
Service at the marina - Excellent
Barefoot compared with other companies - Excellent
Overall satisfaction - Excellent
Overall value for money - Excellent

The above has not been fabricated by Barefoot and if anyone would like to e-mail us, we will be happy to provide the names and contact details for the clients.

Those clients, incidentally, are experienced sailors - who have been on a yacht more than twice


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## mjlanglois

my response to mr. spade: following were the issues with the boat in question: the anchor rode was old and broke in chatham bay. we managed to retrieve the original anchor and chain and were fortunate it didn't happen in the middle of the night or the boat would have ended up on the rocks. the aft sleeping berth leaked and smelled of diesel fuel so we never slept there. the helm squeaked, the throttle mechanism was loose, the bimini top was not waterproof, the compass was so old you could hardly read it, there was no chart plotter (a surprise to the "experienced" sailor who followed us), no dinghy pump, pliers, can opener. the engine was overfilled with oil, the windvane atop the mast was crooked, the main sail interfered with the lazy jacks on close hauls, the battery never held a charge of more than 12.5 amps and we were told never to let it drop below 12 amps. as a consequence we could never run lights or fans or even the anchor light at night (our captain whom we hired for 4 days from barefoot told us it wasn't necessary for boats under 40 feet). hilarious! the lifeboat hadn't been serviced since 2004. the flashlights rarely functioned correctly. the oven knob didn't work. the toilet backwashed and was thus often filled with pee water or worse. does this sound like a boat that is well maintained? even for 2 sailors who'd only chartered once before? i don't believe so.


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## knotnow

“the anchor rode was old and broke in chatham bay.”

Ok- I’ve bit my tongue long enough. 
The best anchoring in Chatham is in the N.E corner. Pretty easy to find
to find good sand there in 15 to 25 feet of water. If I remember correctly that boat has 150’ + chain so why where you hanging on the rode? Granted the rode should not have been compromised but at a 5 or 6 to 1 ratio the chain should have done the job.

“the bimini top was not waterproof,” 

If it was it would have been the first one I’ve seen that wasn’t new.


“there was no chart plotter (a surprise to the "experienced" sailor who followed us)”

None is listed on the equipment list

“ no dinghy pump, pliers, can opener.”

What’s really strange is Barefoot has always been anal about an inventory list that the charter needs to sign off on. Did you do the inventory?


“the main sail interfered with the lazy jacks on close hauls,”

Loosen the jack lines maybe

“the battery never held a charge of more than 12.5 amps and we were told never to let it drop below 12 amps. as a consequence we could never run lights or fans or even the anchor light at night “

Could that have been “12 volts”? Anyway that would stink, but apparently the next charter had no problem with that. They must have fixed that issue

“the lifeboat hadn't been serviced since 2004.” 

Lifeboat? In the Grenadines? For what? Your dinghy is your escape. You can at least row it. Get in the lifeboat and your next stop is maybe the DR or Florida or NYC 


“the toilet backwashed and was thus often filled with pee water or worse”

Just a “heads” up in the future. The procedure for using a pump style head is – “Wet it (the arrow pointing in) - “Use it” – flip the lever and “evacuate it” (the arrow pointing out” – repeat without the “Use it” part. The waste needs to get over the built in up loop before it can exit the thru hull.


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## tdw

SamSpade .... you need a signature file that states "Charter Boat Operator". You are more than welcome to state your side of the case and we acknowledge your right to defend yourself but you must identify yourself as a commercial operator. 

KnotKnow ..... what exactly is your connection to Bareboat ?


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## SamSpade

OK, understood and I confirm that this is Barefoot Yacht Charters


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## Slayer

I like to distinguish between trusted and untrusted sources. Those who join this forum just to complain about a particular charter company or vendor or whatever in my mind are not a trusted source. Nor are the people who join just to defend the particular company. I do not judge the folks on this thread, just sharing my personal practice for deciding what weight to give information I read on the internet.


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## Barquito

I had a good experience with Barefoot a number of years ago. The owner of the boat we were going to take out blew up one of his transmissions a few days before our arrival. Barefoot put us on a larger, newer boat without change in cost.


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## coultereng

I chartered from Barefoot a couple years ago and had a wonderful 10 days. The boat was everything I expected, considering its age. I will certainly consider Barefoot for any future charters.


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## smackdaddy

A question for you guys that like to create these flame threads...

Do you not have a freakin' camera? I mean, you're on vacation for crying out loud and you can't be bothered to pick up your camera or phone and snap a couple of selfies with that nasty sloshing pot and the diesel spewing around your cabin and a duck-bill sexy mouth on your pouty face?

Prove your case with some pics or go home.


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## Delta-T

smackdaddy said:


> A question for you guys that like to create these flame threads...
> 
> Do you not have a freakin' camera? I mean, you're on vacation for crying out loud and you can't be bothered to pick up your camera or phone and snap a couple of selfies with that nasty sloshing pot and the diesel spewing around your cabin and a duck-bill sexy mouth on your pouty face?
> 
> Prove your case with some pics or go home.


But they can't post pics till they have 10 posts under their belt. And they only came here to start sh***


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## smackdaddy

Delta-T said:


> But they can't post pics till they have 10 posts under their belt. And they only came here to start sh***


Then just make 10 meaningless posts in one of the junk threads. It's really not that hard.


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## Tim R.

smackdaddy said:


> Then just make 10 meaningless posts in one of the junk threads. It's really not that hard.


That's a lob. Trying my best not to hit it though


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## Missingyou

I'm not out to defend either side. I understand the desire to post negative after a negative experience and then the other side defending. I own a vacation property in the Bahamas. I know all too well, island life is shall we say very laid back, nothing is urgent. A propane tank that hasn't been filled in over a year, empty cistern, burnt out light bulbs, doors that don't lock,..... 

The real measure of a good service provider is in their response to problems. The best company will have problems, but it's how they rectify them.

My question to SamSpade since you came to defend yourself is "Did you make a reasonable effort to fix the problems when you were notified, or did you just blow it off?" What about the short drive over the hill? Too much effort? Has the novelty warn off?

"Do unto others as you would have others do unto you."


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## Slayer

smackdaddy said:


> Then just make 10 meaningless posts in one of the junk threads. It's really not that hard.


From the man with almost twelve thousand posts :laugher

(I only post this because I know you are the kind of guy who appreciates friendly ball busting and I couldn't let that lobbed ball just hang there.)


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## goodsteel53

I will be posting specific complaints regarding Barefoot and their company soon. Pictures and specifics included... BEWARE this bunch... at best, a satisfactory experience is NOT guaranteed, especially if you're an owner with a boat in charter with them. Money and maintenance are of particular interest in this case. Those who have had good experiences or said glowing things about them... consider yourself fortunate. There are as many who say just the opposite.


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## smackdaddy

Slayer said:


> From the man with almost twelve thousand *meaningless* posts :laugher


Fixed it for you and Tim. Heh-heh.

And you're right - not lob should ever go unsmacked.


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## knotnow

goodsteel53 said:


> I will be posting specific complaints regarding Barefoot and their company soon. Pictures and specifics included... BEWARE this bunch... at best, a satisfactory experience is NOT guaranteed, especially if you're an owner with a boat in charter with them. Money and maintenance are of particular interest in this case. Those who have had good experiences or said glowing things about them... consider yourself fortunate. There are as many who say just the opposite.


Hmmm.

Waiting, I'd love to hear this.


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## talkswitch

Hi all, been using this site as a reference for some time, never joined but came across this thread and thought, it's time so this is a first post ....

Just back from Barefoot, St. Vincent on down to PSV and have to say it was a blast, literally ... 2 reefs all week, 25 guesting to 35k daily with 3+M seas, loved it. Kids 18/23 said it was the best family vacation ever, wife prefers calmer waters though!! (BVI in May)

Anyway, Barefoot did everything quite well. The boat was ready and clean though the provisions we'd ordered didn't translate well so ended up getting the correct items in route ($$$). Checkout found a repaired head gushing water, they had it resolved within the hour and otherwise equipment was fine. Had a look at the other boats and all appeared in ok shape, ours was a 7 yo Beneteau 434, well behaved.

The Barefoot staff with all great, had smiles, were easy to talk to and seems to be quite proud of their part in the company.

I was shocked at the bad experienced mentioned here and personally would recommend Barefoot anytime, and in fact will return, but not so close to the Christmas winds!


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## miatapaul

smackdaddy said:


> A question for you guys that like to create these flame threads...
> 
> Do you not have a freakin' camera? I mean, you're on vacation for crying out loud and you can't be bothered to pick up your camera or phone and snap a couple of selfies with that nasty sloshing pot and the diesel spewing around your cabin and a duck-bill sexy mouth on your pouty face?
> 
> Prove your case with some pics or go home.


Well they would have but the inverter was out so they could not charge there cell phones.


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## Goodrich

DoNotLieToMe said:


> The first lie relates to the location... "Blue Lagoon". Barefoot Yacht is outside of the protected harbor and waves roll over the reef and slam the boat around making loading and unloading dangerous. Laying away the provisions on board at the dock will test your stomach. The lies just get bigger from there which makes their website the largest amount of false advertising I've seen in one place. If something goes wrong you are on your own. We had a short in the windlass switch which caused the motor to switch on spontaneously and dump all the chain we had left (100+ feet) causing us to swing wildly in the harbor. We had a dinghy leak and no pump with the appropriate adapter for the type of valve required to inflate. The inverter was inoperable so charging cell phones, etc. was impossible. We made do... because we had to. The employees at Barefoot Yacht were incredibly rude and totally unhelpful. We were harbored in Bequia(Friendship Bay), Mustique(Brittania Bay), Mayreu(Salt Whistle Bay), and Canouan. Their answer was always "if only you were somwhere else (Admiralty Bay, Union Island, blah,blah,blah) we could get it corrected". They provided no assistance!


June 2015. 
Never again is correct. The old "bait and switch" tactic is alive and well with this company. Smaller boat than advertised, torn sails, incorrect provisions, head pumps not working, etc. I wanted a vacation; not an adventure to find repair parts, tools, and food.


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## Jammer Six

mjlanglois said:


> Never met a soul who seemed to take responsibility for what was or wasn't happening.


The irony of this "offshore" sailor making this comment is overwhelming.


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## jimrafford

"The first lie relates to the location... "Blue Lagoon". Barefoot Yacht is outside of the protected harbor and waves roll over the reef and slam the boat around making loading and unloading dangerous. Laying away the provisions on board at the dock will test your stomach. The lies just get bigger from there which makes their website the largest amount of false advertising I've seen in one place. If something goes wrong you are on your own. We had a short in the windlass switch which caused the motor to switch on spontaneously and dump all the chain we had left (100+ feet) causing us to swing wildly in the harbor. We had a dinghy leak and no pump with the appropriate adapter for the type of valve required to inflate. The inverter was inoperable so charging cell phones, etc. was impossible. We made do... because we had to. The employees at Barefoot Yacht were incredibly rude and totally unhelpful. We were harbored in Bequia(Friendship Bay), Mustique(Brittania Bay), Mayreu(Salt Whistle Bay), and Canouan. Their answer was always "if only you were somwhere else (Admiralty Bay, Union Island, blah,blah,blah) we could get it corrected". They provided no assistance!"


Our experience w/ them was the same.
Nothing worked properly on the boat including the refrigeration. The dink leaked air w/ no way to inflate it and the outboard leaked fuel like crazy. 
My wife go seasick at the dock putting away the provisions. We have done several trips to Bermuda in the last 30 years and she has never been seasick!
when we called them from Mystique the second day about the dink the reply was "your problem now".
I spent 2 weeks trying to get stuff working w/ limited tools.
Never again.
Jim


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## Slayer

Let me see.....do I believe Talkswitch who just joined (but claims to have been visiting the site for a long time) and has only one post. Or do I believe Jimrafford who has been a member since 2011 and has posted 630 times. Hmmmmm. Jimrafford must have it out for Barefoot Charter in St Vinvent because how else can you explain the different experiences each had. 😜


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## Jammer Six

Given the tone of rafford's messages and the thirty years I spent in business, that's one of the easiest decisions I've ever run into on the net.

I think I'll try this company, just based on this thread.

Thanks to all of you for your help.


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## colinbm

I realise this thread is quite old, but as this is one of the first things that come up when searching for Barefoot, it could do with an update for 2018.

I'm going to be bareboating for the first time on Pelican Pete with Barefoot in a few weeks, I thought I'd add a note here to say I'll write up my experience once I'm done. I'm certainly hoping it'll be positive, but I'll aim to back up what I'm saying with photos, etc.

Good tip from someone that there's no chart plotter (indeed there's not one on the specs)! At least means we'll be forced to get some practice in on chart work - that combined with Navionics on the phone should see us through.


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## Donna_F

colinbm said:


> I realise this thread is quite old, but as this is one of the first things that come up when searching for Barefoot, it could do with an update for 2018.
> 
> I'm going to be bareboating for the first time on Pelican Pete with Barefoot in a few weeks, I thought I'd add a note here to say I'll write up my experience once I'm done. I'm certainly hoping it'll be positive, but I'll aim to back up what I'm saying with photos, etc.
> 
> Good tip from someone that there's no chart plotter (indeed there's not one on the specs)! At least means we'll be forced to get some practice in on chart work - that combined with Navionics on the phone should see us through.


Normally if the moderators catch a post that's clearly from someone with a grudge who registered to make that complaint, we'd delete it. As there seems to be responses from Barefoot and some subsequent good posts, I'll leave it be.

I do want to again warn that SailNet is not the place to post a complaint as your first post and run away. That said, knowing that the thread is old and knowing the possible limitations of the boats while still continuing with the charter, I expect colinbm to post a fair review. At least I hope so. I hate even leaving this thread visible but the genie is already out of the bottle.


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## colinbm

Donna_F said:


> I expect colinbm to post a fair review. At least I hope so.


I'll do my best  I've been on three different training boats and something's gone wrong on each of them. Part of the fun/challenge is dealing with problems yourself, though I realise some are more of a challenge than others!


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## davidpm

This might help

http://www.sailnet.com/forums/general-discussion-sailing-related/321722-trip-st-vincent-story.html

http://www.sailnet.com/forums/gener...related/321994-standard-charter-behavior.html


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## sailingfool

Donna_F said:


> Normally if the moderators catch a post that's clearly from someone with a grudge who registered to make that complaint, we'd delete it. As there seems to be responses from Barefoot and some subsequent good posts, I'll leave it be.
> 
> I do want to again warn that SailNet is not the place to post a complaint as your first post and run away. That said, knowing that the thread is old and knowing the possible limitations of the boats while still continuing with the charter, I expect colinbm to post a fair review. At least I hope so. I hate even leaving this thread visible but the genie is already out of the bottle.


I'd think moderators should also catch glowing,positive comments from first time, one-time new members as they are just as likely to have an agenda, as a grudge poster...

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk


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## Donna_F

sailingfool said:


> I'd think moderators should also catch glowing,positive comments from first time, one-time new members as they are just as likely to have an agenda, as a grudge poster...


The only time I've seen that happen is for products for which a company employee pretended to be a customer. It doesn't happen often but when the post has been reported or we've noticed it ourselves, we've taken care of it.


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## capta

As someone who lives and runs term charters (not bareboat) in the Grenadines, I'd like to put forward a few things.
There are places like Admiralty Bay, Bequia, Clifton, Union Island and Hillsborough or Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou where the bareboat companies have contracts with local repair people to take care of any problems that might arise on their boats. Friendship Bay, Mustique, and the Tobago Cays are not places accessible, in normal Grenadine sailing conditions, to repair personnel in speedboats. If you have a problem, you need to get the boat to the repair personnel if you can; this area is not like the VI, where every anchorage is but a few minutes from support personnel in a speedboat.
Use you cruising guide! There are very few anchorages in the Grenadines where one must anchor in water deeper than 25 feet. Most are sand with good holding (Doyle's guide is spot on about anchoring), so don't throw out more than a reasonable amount of scope. Normally, 3 or 4:1 (on all chain) is sufficient, even in Christmas Winds. Some places, like Chatham Bay, require more than a normal distance between boats because the boats will swing around in gusts that do not move all the boats equally. If you see boats anchored farther apart than you would consider normal, do not try to squeeze in between a couple of boats, or you *will* have to move, and usually at a most inconvenient time, in the dark.
In many of the anchorages down here the wind in the anchorages may not be the same strength or direction as it is outside the anchorage. I would suggest reefing before you get out in the weather unless you are certain of the conditions outside; it's much easier to shake out a reef than tuck one in if needed. As with most eastern Caribbean sailing, the current generally sets to the west, therefore a bit of easting in your course is recommended.
Unlike the Virgins, there are a few uncharted dangers, so read your cruising guide before you set off for the day; forewarned is forearmed. The Grenadines are a fantastic sailing area with lots to do and see, but it is definitely *not* the kindergarten of Caribbean sailing, and at times the Grenadines can test your mettle.


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## colinbm

Ok, here goes... This comes in two parts, there's Pelican Pete, and then there's Barefoot.

*Pelican Pete*

As has previously been pointed out, Pelican Pete is a "budget" yacht. I wasn't expecting luxury and I didn't receive it. I'm not going to list all the things that come under that, as there's no point - it is priced appropriately. However, there were some problems that I do feel shouldn't have been there.

On going over the boat, we found the handle on the engine coolant through-hull was snapped, and required a spanner to turn. That combined with the (typical) awkward access would have been tricky to close in an emergency. Thankfully that was not necessary.

The fridge needed re-gassed before we departed. This was done, and we left with it nice and cold. Unfortunately that didn't last, and we had additional problems with the shower drain pump not working. When looked at by an engineer, they adjusted the alternator and appeared to resolve the issue. I hadn't thought of it being a battery issue, as the charge on the battery had not been dropping, however I'm not convinced it was the alternator as unfortunately soon after they left it stopped cooling again. My suspicion is that the battery is not able to hold sufficient charge (we were running the engine regularly to attempt to keep them charged, and were not plugging anything else in to charge from them.)

We had intermittent issues with drive from the engine. Sometimes it was as if it was in neutral and providing nothing, and other times it was just much reduced. This could occur while it was already powered. Usually it could be rectified by dropping to neutral and then putting power back on.

On our last day, while returning to base, part of our forestay snapped, leaving the mast unsupported from the bow. I hesitate to mention this as I believe this was a freak occurrence, and doesn't demonstrate an issue with maintenance - I gather the rigging is around 5 years old. This in combination with the previous issue, meant we had a bit of a panic on the return leg as it seemed we had neither sails or sufficient engine power in a F6.

From what I understand, maintenance of the yachts in the fleet require investment by the owners, and if the owner is unwilling, the maintenance doesn't happen. This differs from Sunsail (as an example) where they take on all maintenance costs as part of having the yacht in their fleet. Obviously there is an economy of scale there to make that much easier.

*Barefoot*

Everyone we dealt with at Barefoot was very nice and helpful.

When we contacted them about the fridge we were in Bequia (day 2), and they tried to arrange for someone to come out. After waiting a while and a few calls, it transpired that the person they usually use was in St Vincent, and they'd sent someone else, however they were watching the football and wouldn't make it until later (the last message was delivered by someone else who came out on a water taxi to deliver the message. We decided to give up as we wanted to get to Mustique that day. We contacted them again two days later in Canouan (day 4), but their person there would not be able to make it until the next morning. Again we wanted to head on to Mayreau so arranged to see someone in Union on the 16th (day 7). Through a miscommunication, we had expected to be seeing them at 12, but they didn't come out until 3. Again we were wanting to move on as were planning to spend the night at Frigate Island, but they completed their work in time for us to motor around for the evening.

_Please note, I don't blame Barefoot for any of the delays here. They did their best to set things up, and the people on-island were not Barefoot staff. As @capta says, you're not in easy access of base so they can only do their best._

They provide a mobile phone for contact during your charter. Unfortunately this ran out of credit, and I assumed they would top it up (I mentioned it was low). This didn't happen so when the issue with the forestay occurred we had difficulty contacting them. We were about 3 miles out and received no response on VHF (I heard later that they get very little signal until you get very close, though there was another boat trying to contact them which would have been close, and they weren't getting a response either).

Eventually I realised I had a data-sim on my own phone, so could email them. After doing this I had a call back reasonably quickly, and they sent another boat out with the intention of towing us back, as at that point the engine was not giving sufficient drive, and we were drifting east - my intention at that point was to get into the lee of St Vincent, and find the first bay I could to anchor in. After this we were able to get power on the engine again, and started making way back to base. When the "rescue" boat arrived, they dingy'd over, and very quickly rigged a makeshift forestay using the main halyard. I'm slightly embarrassed I didn't think of that, but at the time it didn't seem too urgent as I figured if the mast hadn't fallen over before we got the sails down, it was unlikely to after. They then brought us in the last few miles to base. If either issue had occurred in isolation then we'd have managed with what we had. I regret not getting the engine working before calling them out, but the forestay did need dealt with as a priority as well.

*Summary*

I have no complaints with Barefoot in terms of the service, and particularly the reactive service when an issue occurs. The problem for me was in the maintenance of the yacht. I don't care too much that the panel under the oven concealing the fridge compressor would fall off every time you heeled over (we removed it and stashed it in a cabin), or that the line securing the dinghy was so worn it snapped mid-passage prompting a dinghy rescue (it's all experience after all!), but a reliable battery, and knowing the engine can give you power are fairly crucial and I would hope that issues would be found during general maintenance.

It was certainly a memorable first bareboat charter. If you're in the market, and that hasn't put you off, Pelican Pete is currently on sale for $40,000, though I suspect they're open to offers.

Completely unrelated to any kind of review, we had some excitement on our last night when a 41' catamaran dragged anchor and landed on us at about midnight. It's all experience.


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## RegisteredUser

I would want something like this to pass on thru and out of my mind...not allowing it to living there rent free.

Stuff happens.
If that eats you up...dont do...stuff.


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