Saturday morning, time to leave our newly made friends. Two of our group were leaving for EIS – back to DC. The rest of us were headed to RT to catch the ferry to STT. We said goodbye at the ferry dock in STT. Colleen and Ed were off to Blackbeard’s Castle for a couple of nights; and Donna and Charles were going to the Marriott for a week. Kathi, Larry and I were off to the BW Emerald Beach Inn. Kathi left early Sunday, so we thought this would be the best place to spend the night. We did stay in STT long enough to have lunch at the Greenhouse – quite tasty. Kathi wanted to do some shopping, so we wandered around. Larry had to escape as shopping is not a favorite of his, so he went and found a bar to hang at while Kathi got her shopping fix in. STT really doesn’t have much to look at – might as well be in the downtown Juneau area (many of the stores are the same). Loved the beach at the BW Emerald Beach – wow, such nice calm water. We had a great dinner at the Italian restaurant at the hotel, and were entertained by a witty waiter who was charming.

6/27 – Kathi had an early flight, so we hopped on the early Sunday morning ferry to RT. My son, Grant, was flying in to EIS about 11ish. We had some time to kill, so we had a delicious breakfast at Maria’s in RT. We were lucky enough to leave our bags at Hodges Creek (so we didn’t have to lug everything with us for one night and 2 ferry rides), stopped on the way to EIS and picked up the bags. We got to the airport just a little early and then Grant’s flight came in. We spent some time at Trellis Bay waiting for the North Sound Ferry to take us to Spanish Town. Guavaberry was our home for 3 nights. We had a 2 bedroom, with a/c – which we did really seem to need, it was great! What a fantastic property. Drinks at Mad Dogs; dinner at Top of the Baths. The night was spent huddled over scrabble in one of the bedrooms with the a/c on.

6/28 – Laundry was our first quest of the day. We had a rental car, which was perfect! I would recommend it highly, gave us so much freedom to do whatever we wanted to do. We never did find one laundry, but found that right by Bath & Turtle there is a laundry. So, we dropped our laundry off while we ate breakfast. We wandered through shops and enjoyed the area. We then drove over to Leverick for lunch, pool and drinks. Grant was glad that the World Cup was on at the bar. We noticed the TTOL Dinghy Poker Run sign and board were up and ready to go! We cooked at the villa that night – simple ahi and rice dinner.

6/29 – Got an early start to Savannah. Wow – what a gorgeous place to be. We were the only ones there, except for some goats. Beautiful. About 10ish, people started arriving by car and by boat. It seemed like Little Dix was bringing their guests over with umbrellas and chairs and coolers. We decided we had probably had enough sun, and enjoyed Savannah much more without people, so packed up and moved on. It is sad when a few people on a beach you find “crowded”. Much different than my CA days – I do know what crowded really is. Easy to get spoiled! We headed back to Leverick to see if we could catch up with the TTOL flotilla, and for lunch and a swim (yummy food by the way). We ran into one of the TW boats, and Nick & Lucy (Turquoise Dream crew). They said we had just missed a bunch of “pirates” take off in their dinghys. They all commented that it looked like they were having a LOT of fun! After lunch, and seeing Pirate Nick return in the boat, we decided to head over to Bitter End. We swam, we wandered, we shopped, and tested bushwackers (still great). For dinner, we went to The Rock. Excellent food! Glad the Dinghy Poker Run turned out perfectly, and was sorry we missed seeing the fun.

6/30 – Off to Anegada on the ferry. It was a bit difficult finding a taxi to help us get over to Neptune’s Treasure. Someone threw our bags on the top of his car and took us over, not sure he was really a taxi driver, but a nice guy! Got checked in to Neptune’s and enjoyed sitting on the patio at breakfast. We saw the TTOL Flotilla sailing in! Fun. We rented a car, and went off exploring. We have only been to Anegada by boat before, but this time being on land was different. We started at Loblolly/Flash of Beauty. One the way we had to make a quick stop to get a teapot – I collect teapots from my travels and now I have 2 from Anegada, one from Pat and one from Henny. Flash of Beauty/Loblolly is so pretty – easy to forget just how beautiful that water is. We went to Cow Wreck for lunch and drinks. This was our first trip there, and we met Nancy, Walker was behind the bar. It was a busy day – quite crowded for off season. We ran into Captain Jim from Blue Moon and introduced ourselves. We ended up running into him at lunch the next day as well. Nice guy!

7/1 Back into the car and we spent the day at Flash of Beauty. Lunch was very yummy, and the huge crabs behind the building are amazing! The water had such a current. It felt a bit like a Jacuzzi jet hitting your back, quite strong. Not a snorkeling day to be sure, but a good day to cool off in the lovely water.

7/2 This was the day to leave Anegada, and Grant would be flying home (quick trip for him). We decided since Grant did have a flight out of EIS fairly early, to not rely on the ferry and chance him missing his flight. So, we took Island Birds from the little Anegada airport right to EIS. It was quite a cloudy, hazy day, so our pictures are not as stunning as they could/should have been. Great experience – would do it again in a heartbeat!

Grant took off (I always hate to say goodbye), and we headed off to start the final part of our journey – Guana Island. The Guana boat was scheduled to be at the Trellis dock at 10:30am. We got to the dock right at 10:30, and there the boat was, just waiting for us. They loaded our bags, handed us a cool drink, and we were off for about a 12 minute ride to Guana. Awww – this was going to be nice!

Once the boat arrived at the dock, Melissa was there to greet us, along with 2 golf carts (one for us, and one for the bags to go to our room). The beach is the most beautiful beach (ok, there are many beautiful beaches in the BVI). After our welcoming rum punch, she explained a great deal about this unique property and escorted us up to our private hilltop cottage. When we arrived at the cottage, our luggage had already been placed in the room and Melissa showed us our home for the next four nights.



The food was outstanding! Every meal was prepared well. Breakfast was either a special of the day, or you could pick what you wanted from omelettes to eggs and meat, or healthy choices as well. Lunch was a buffet of exquisite dishes well prepared. Dinner was an experience. The first night on island, they seat you at your own private table, for a romantic gourmet meal. After that, dinner is served family style where you are able to mix with other guests and engage in delightful conversations over dinner. Excellent wine is provided with lunch and dinner. 

The service is always attentive, friendly and helpful. They are there whenever you need them and ready to assist, be it for a ride to the beach, a blended drink, a kayak, or basically whatever you desire. 



Activities on the island range from a variety of hikes, the castaway picnic (where a boat takes you to a private beach with a wonderful lunch, chairs/umbrellas), excursions, sailing, kayaking, and enjoying the beautiful beach! I took part in massage by the wonderful Deserine. 

If we had to come up with one word to describe this island, it would be "enchanting". It truly is a magical place, one that we now have to return to!

7/6 – Time to leave paradise! I always hate this part. One part of me is excited to see my puppy, and my friends, but the other part of me just wants to continue this great lounging, island hopping life! (Maybe I better start playing the lottery…) The last night laying in bed, I stopped and just listened to all of the tropical sounds – tree frog sounds. I realized that I would not be hearing that lovely, melodic sound for a very long time. (Dreaded Island Fever has hit.) We had a great three weeks, LOTS of rain and wet weather (more than I’ve ever seen in June in the BVI). We returned to Alaska the next day around noonish.

I just started a new job, so for the first time in a very long time, I’m now working 12 months, instead of 10. I had to go to work bright and early the very next day after our return, which I know most of you do every trip. I’m just not used to it… Work to go again, right?

We are in the process of trying to figure out where we are going to go sailing next! Can't decide... love the BVI, love Grenadines... haven't been to St. Martin?? Time will tell.