A Trip to Culebra

This past week, we took a five day trip to Culebra. (pop. 1,818)  Culebra is one of the two major islands east of Puerto Rico and is part of what is called the Spanish Virgins.  I first read about them as a “little known secret” in a sailing magazine several years ago.  New friends, Jim and Carol Pehl from Boston, offered to buddy sail with us there.  They go to Culebra several times each season and then on to Fajardo, Puerto Rico (another 20 miles to the west) to re-supply their boat.

To get there, Marney and I left the East End of Tortola on a Sunday afternoon and sailed across the Drake Channel to Peter Island for the night.  On Monday, we sailed back across the channel to the West End of Tortola to check out of the BVI, and then on to Maho Bay in St. John, USVI for the night.  Then Tuesday, we sailed west past St. John and around the south side of St. Thomas as far as Lindburg Bay on that island’s west end.  We met up with the Pehls there, and headed west to Culebra on Wednesday.

The 20 mile ride across the open waters was rolly.  The winds were directly at our back which made it hard to put out a sail.  And the waves came at us from both the north east and the south east (they push around St Thomas and then converge again on the west side).  So, we were in a choppy sea and though the swell was not high (about six feet), this was not an easy ride.  However, going west was much easier than the boats heading east into the waves and wind

It may be hard to visualize the wave action; that's St. Thomas in the background

Another boat pushing east into the wind and waves

 There is a large reef that you meet first when approaching Culebra.  It starts to provide the protection that makes this such a great place to visit.  We motored inside this reef and then went to a quiet anchorage at Bahia Almodovar.  The bay is located behind a second reef where we found a mooring ball.  We spent two nights there, and a rainy day in between.  We had time to recuperate and visit a small mangrove cay for a walk. 

Our friends, the Pehl's "Peace of Mind" behind the reef at Almodovar

On the cay there were interesting things to see:

It's surprising to see Arizona cactus in the middle of the Caribbean - Prickly Pears with blooms!

Admiring the reach of the mangrove roots

And a group of broken conch shells

Azure Wind at rest

You gotta know where the sand bars are!

Then on Friday, we said goodbye to our friends who wanted to stay another couple of days at Almodovar.  We motored into the main bay of Culebra, Ensenada Honda and the small town of Dewey.  

Dewey - with its sleepy streets and colorful buildings

We dropped the anchor and then spent an afternoon of sightseeing.  We rented a golf cart and drove first to Flamenco Bay and the beautiful beach there.  The beach is rated #6 in the world by Trip Advisor and we could see why.  Lots of people already on the beach  (Culebra is a weekend place for many Puerto Ricans), doing what people do on beaches:

Flamenco Bay and Beach

Yoga Stretching (that hurts to think about it!)

It is beautiful!

At the northwest end of the beach, we found a surprise: a relic tank.   In 1901 the US military moved onto the island to conduct target bombing practice and beach invasions.  When they left in 1975, they left a few things behind:

 We drove back into Dewey for a look around, some lunch at the Dinghy Dock restaurant, and a drive to one of the two eastern peninsulas that flank the bay.  Finally we took the dinghy through a small canal that stretches from the Bay to the Caribbean open waters.  On the outside, there’s a ferry dock and for $2 you can ride the ferry to Puerto Rico’s main island. 

Riding through the canal from the bay to the sea, we came across a lift bridge that no longer works

And then a surprise

Variously interpreted:  Man throwing rocks into the sea
or
Man throwing rocks at the boats!

Then on Saturday, we faced the music of having to motor into the winds and waves going east back to St. Thomas.  By leaving early (8am), we avoided the worst of the build up and made the return passage to St. Thomas in about 3 ½ hours. 

We're glad for this time and trip into a different part of the Virgin islands.  And we'll be back to check out the snorkeling, turtles, pipefish and other special parts of this island.

Dave & Marney