A Great Day!

A Great Day

Yesterday (Friday, January 29) was a great day for us.  We tried several new things, successfully.  And we returned to an anchorage we had been to years before and discovered surprises galore.

We began in the US Virgin Islands, St. John, on the eastern edge in Maho/Francis Bay (think Tahiti).  We were ending four nights in the same place which had been a great gift.  A beautiful setting, with time to do cleaning chores and to read and reflect.  We were keeping both the batteries and the water making maintained.  And we had met several other sailors, mostly couples, but including one single woman who sails solo on her boat named “Buttercup”!  She started in Florida and has been all the way to Grenada and is now on her way home  (and she’s had crew for several parts of her journey).  So, we said goodbye.

First stop: Immigration and Customs into the BVI.  We motored the boat the hour it takes to leave St. John and reach the west end of Tortola.  Didn’t bother with the sails because we were motoring into the wind.  West End is known as Soper’s Hole, the place where Blackbeard hid his ships.  He kept lookouts on the hill overlooking the Drake Channel and when there was a galleon spotted, he sailed out of the “hole” and went after the “booty”!  Arrgh! 

Both Customs and Immigration are in a small office at one end of the ferry dock building.  You fill out forms, hand them over, are told what you missed that you need to complete, then wait.  Eventually, the staff asks questions, you answer and they write down a number on the back side of one of the forms.  Our number was 10.  That meant we owed ten dollars to enter the country.  So, we go to the bursars office, outside and around the corner, pay our fee, and then return to show evidence that we’ve paid up and are free to move on.

Yesterday’s winds were typical, coming from the east, though lighter than we’ve had so far.  They were in the range of 12-15 mph.  As we left the west end and moved into the Channel, we headed eastward and eventually put up the mainsail.  We were going as far as Roadtown, in the center of Tortola.  When you’re going with the wind, it takes about an hour to sail.  When you’re going against the wind and motor-sailing (mostly motoring), you add a half-hour to the ride.

The Roadtown harbor is huge.  It is the home to the island government, it has many services, about six different charter companies, and most recently, a new cruise ship dock that will hold two of those monsters at the same time.  We grabbed a mooring ball on the west side of the harbor (they’re free for the day, $30 if you stay overnight).  Then, we crossed the wide harbor in our dinghy, past the ferry dock and around a Norwegian Lines cruise ship and first went to one marina to complete an errand, and then to a charter company’s dock to go grocery shopping.  The BVI Yacht Charters has the dock closest to the large Riteway on the island (think a Kroger’s, Albertson’s that has international foods, especially British imports).  They also sell 8oz beers (Heineken) – only place on the island – and I wanted to stock up! 

We walked from the dock through an alleyway to the main road (four lane speedway) and crossed over to the Riteway parking lot.   I carry a large backpack and we put most of the heavy stuff (think beers, rum, scotch) on my back.  Then we trudged back across the highway, to the dinghy and back to the boat across the harbor  (the cruise ship had left). 

We learned that this is a good way to pick up supplies or shop in Roadtown without taking the bus.   Great to know about for the future.

From there, we decided to cross the channel and spend one last night “out”.  We will return to the marina on Saturday to go to church and prepare for company early next week.  We crossed the channel in a dead calm, a front went by, with a bit of rain, and behind it was practically no wind for about twenty minutes.  We were heading for Peter Island.

Peter Island is a large and privately owned island.  As you look at it from Roadtown there are four anchorages you see.  From left to right (from east to west), they are Deadman’s Bay, Sprat Bay (home to a very exclusive resort), Great Harbour and Little Harbour.  Lots of sailors grab a mooring ball or drop an anchor there, especially at the last two on the right/east side. 

We decided to look for something a little less crowded, which took us around the west side of the island to a much less used Key Bay.  We’ve stayed in Key Bay before and found no more than two other boats on the nights we’ve anchored.  The anchoring is good in sand.  And we’d heard there is great snorkeling.  We set the hook and settled in.  One of us swims over the anchor to make sure it’s buried into the sand.  It was my turn to do this and because there was plenty of sunlight I decided to swim to Key Cay (at the edge of Key Bay) to check out the snorkeling.  What a great find!  Best snorkeling yet.  See for yourself:

As I said, a great day.  No big boat chores, figuring out more of a cruising life and a great surprise at the end of the day.