Letters: Your Caribbean tales of swimming with turtles, weed‑fuelled fishermen and heart‑in‑mouth crossings

Letter of the week
My preference for St Lucia (Caribbean special, last week) stems from my profound relief at having finally arrived there, after thudding our way through heaving seas in St Lucia Channel from Martinique in a plucky little catamaran. The experience was greatly enhanced by our skipper, Philippe, who was unfazed by the sudden squall. My partner and I spent a fearful night clinging to each other in our tiny cabin, which was slapped by waves from dusk till dawn. All was (almost) forgotten while we fished from the stern the next day, landing a fair-sized barracuda, which Philippe sautéed in a fruity sauce. We celebrated arriving in St Lucia with rum punch, fat langoustines, plantains and pineapple, on a deserted beach visited…