Marin, Martinique
Baie des Anglais
Le Havre du Robert
Baie de Santpée,


Position are from CM93, CPN, Doyle and are all referred to WGS84
Not many cruisers visit the E side of any of the Caribbean islands. As we were stuck in Martinique, waiting for dental work to be completed and the weather was settled, we explored there.
To do this you need good charts, the Doyle guide, ‘eyeball’ navigation and settled weather. The anchorages are all within the fringing reefs and are little visited. A complete contrast to the anchorages on the eastern sides of the islands, which are generally busy.
1.   Baie des Anglais 14°25´·47N   60° 50´·57W
A tortuous entrance. We went in between Ilet Perce and Ilet Hardy. The entrance to the actual bay is shallow, mud, (we know) but inside there is more water than shown on the chart. A very sheltered and peaceful anchorage, surrounded by mangroves. No facilities.
2.   Le Havre du Robert 14°40´·70N 60°56´·00W
A small town with a reasonable fruit and vegetable market, boulangerie and a huit á huit. Poor holding and a lee shore
3.   Baie de Santpée, 14°39´·67N 60°53´·59W Better holding and peaceful. Some boats here on moorings. No facilities apart from at Le Havre du Robert
Marin, Martinique
Marin is the charter capital of the eastern Caribbean. Being French, Martinique is part of the EU and benefits from the EU financial system. There are good facilities, including medical and dental. All marine services are available.
This is a big harbour, with several marinas, many moorings and a lot of resident live aboard boats, some of them distinctly ‘run down’. There is plenty of space to anchor, but one may be a long dinghy trip from shore.
Marin is full of charter boats, many of them enormous catamarans. Not all are handled with skill. In the marinas expect to be berthed stern-to.
We spent a month here anchored. We were following the well-known advice that, if you are going to need medical treatment in the Caribbean, do it in a French island. In our case it was dental.
You can get everything you need here, including croissants and baguettes. There are, of course, plenty of restaurants.
An alternative anchorage is outside the main harbour in Ste Anne. We spent a week there (Pos’n ) and it was marginally more peaceful, and it was possible to swim.