This is a trip report for a bareboat charter vacation from Road Town, Tortola on December 8th through 15th. There were only two of us on this trip, myself and my friend Bob. We charted a Jeanneau 36i from Sunsail. This was my second time on a 36i, and it is perfectly sized for two people. As usual, the boat was ready and spotlessly clean when we arrived. This was my third charter from Sunsail, and their customer service has been consistently superb. The one issue that we had with the boat was that the hatch in the main salon was installed backwards—it should have hinged from the front but was installed to hinge from the aft. This resulted in the hatch being essentially unusable it couldn’t be opened without first loosening the main sheet and boom vang.

Bob and I flew to STT from JFK on the nonstop AA flight on Saturday morning. Flight was on time, no issues. On this trip I decided to arrange the STT-Road Town transfer myself rather than having Sunsail do it. My thinking was that I would be more flexible with my ferry choices, especially given the ferry irregularities that have been reported on TTOL. In retrospect, I don’t think it really matters.

Bob and I took a taxi to the ferry terminal, bought tickets for the 1530 ferry, and went upstairs for lunch. When the ferry arrived, it was oversold, so the first 55 people who bought tickets got to board. Bob and I were in that group. I think about 15-20 people didn’t get on. Ferry was a little late, departed the dock at 1605, arrived West End and 1645 and we had to wait there for another 45 minutes before departing for Road Town. Once we docked in Road Town, the customs and immigration line took about 45 minutes. However, despite the waiting and loose schedules, the ferry ride is really quite nice, with the outdoor seating and great scenery and convivial company of the other passengers.

Quick taxi ride to Wickhams Cay. The charming Sunsail representative greeted us with a smile and showed us to our yacht. All of the provisioning that we had ordered from Sunsail was onboard (mostly water, drinks, cereal, and other staples), and, like I said, the boat was spic and span clean. We walked over to Riteway (maybe a 6 or 7 minute walk) to finish off the provisioning. Bought steaks and lamb and salads and veggies and fruit and PB&J, etc. We easily carried it all back to the boat. The big challenge of provisioning is not to buy too much stuff and we did pretty well. We were pretty bushed by the time we finished stowing all the provisions, so we munched on a few snacks and went to bed. I find the high density foam mattresses on the Sunsail boats to be quite comfortable, plus I love sleeping on boats, so it was a good night’s sleep (at least for me.)

Sunday morning brought a flurry of activity—at least we woke up early enough to enjoy a cup of coffee and bowl of cereal before the 0800 boat briefing. Our boat briefer was quick but thorough. Since I was familiar with Jeanneaus and with the 36i, the briefing only took 15 minutes. We spent the next hour getting the Sunsail paperwork (charter contract, BVI parks permit, etc.—easy and painless,) cell phone and FM adapter (this boat only had a USB input for an MP3 player so I had to use a FM transmitter to get music from my phone to the stereo,) ice, cooler, and snorkel gear. The chart briefing was at 0930 and lasted about an hour. The briefer was thorough and conservatively cautious. I would definitely recommend doing your homework in advance and relying on the chart briefing to answer questions and refresh your memory. We were off the dock by 1045, with a Sunsail pilot taking us out of the slip and jumping off as we headed out. The whole process was quick, professional, and efficient, and all of the Sunsail people are very friendly.

We motored out the channel at Road Town. Weather was sunny with northeasterly winds about 20kts. I showed Bob how to unfurl the genoa, and we raised the main with the second reef. My plan was to sail to either Marina Cay or Trellis Bay, thinking it would be a nice, easy first day and position us for an early morning departure for the Baths. With the northeasterly winds we had to tack to make it around Beef Island. The boat behaved beautifully, nicely balanced with the reefed sails. I showed Bob how to reef the genoa and we played with varying amounts of sail to see how the boat handled. Also practiced man overboard procedures and heaving-to. Bob has a lot of lake experience in small racing boats, but had never been in an ocean or on a larger boat. However, he readily picked up on the big boat aspects such as the higher forces involved and needing to use a winch to control the main sheet.

I decided to pick up a mooring at Marina Cay. Gave Bob a quick rundown on the mooring procedures, and we got the ball on the second try. On the ball around 1430 or so. Wind was whipping through the mooring field—not much wind protection at all. By this time Bob had a raging headache, which I suspected was from a combination of seasickness onset and nerves, being that all this was not only exciting and fun but also a bit nerve racking, for him at least. He took a nap for a bit and I chilled out and enjoyed the sun. Eventually we dinghied over to Marina Cay to explore the island. Tried to buy seasickness pills and playing cards (the two things we had forgotten) at the gift shop, but they didn’t have any so we high-tailed it in the dink over to Trellis Bay before the supermarket closed. Doesn’t look like much of a distance between Marina Cay and Trellis, but it seemed like an open water passage to us in the dink. Made it ok and found Bonine and playing cards before the market closed. Dinked all the way back to Marina Cay to check it out, but this time it was well after dark. Decided to eat on the boat, Bob wasn’t really hungry so it was just turkey and cheese sandwiches for us. The wind was howling, and the mooring field was very rolly. Didn’t bother me too much, and turned out that Bob was able to sleep ok. I think we had some rain showers overnight.

Monday morning started with a 0545 alarm. Coffee and cereal and yoga (for Bob), and we were underway for the Baths at 0645. Nice winds, maybe 18 kts or so, more easterly so we were sailing on a close reach. Arrived at the Baths at 0800. I beached the dinghy to drop off Bob and then tied up at the dinghy mooring and swam ashore. We pretty much had the Baths to ourselves. The beach was deserted when we arrived, and we only saw one other group of people as we explored the boulders. The Baths are pretty magical, and we spent an hour or so before we headed back to climb up the path to the gift shop and bar. After looking at the t-shirts in the gift shop, and entire busload of elderly Europeans started down the path, so we decided to kick back with a fruity drink at the bar and let the crowds die down. The view from up there is spectacular, so we had a nice time chilling out. Finally the crowds had abated, and we walked back down to the beach. By now the beach was packed—looked like Jones Beach on Memorial Day. It dawned on me that I wouldn’t be able to beach the dinghy to pick up Bob (duh!!) so we both would have to swim for it and try to hold our crap (camera, souvenir t-shirts, etc.) out of the water as we swam. Bob put his camera under his hat and breast stroked, I help my bag up out of the water and side-stroked. Both of us made it to the dinghy without any catastrophic water damage to our stuff.

We relaxed on the boat for a bit, then vacated the mooring to let newcomers have it. Off the mooring at 1200. Quick lunch underway, then we raised the sails for the North Sound. Sailed close hauled with winds 22 gusting to 28 and maybe 6 ft swells. Again, the boat handled both the winds and the swells with aplomb. Arrived North Sound around 1500 after an invigorating, sporty sail. Elected to pick up a mooring off of Vixen Point because it seemed a bit more secluded than BEYC or Saba. Dinghied over to BEYC to watch the kite surfers (or whatever they are called.) Hiked up the trails behind the BEYC. The trail was much steeper and more rugged than I had expected, but afforded great views. Be careful of the cacti—Bob grabbed a hand hold on what he thought was a tree branch but proved, rather painfully, to be a cactus. We could have used some bug repellent—the mosquitos were plentiful, big, fat, and juicy. My arms ended up smeared in blood and squashed mosquitos. Also, hike the trail clockwise, not counterclockwise so that you will be going uphill on the steeper, rockier portion.

We got back to the dock around sunset and headed by dinghy over to Fat Virgin café at Biras Creek which had been recommended by our chart briefer. We were the only diners, and the place was charming. Bob had the ribs (very good) and I had the grilled wahoo (ok, but the ribs were better.) Bugs were pretty bad there also. The dinghy ride back across the sound though the pitch black night was a bit of an adventure. We had two flashlights and managed to avoid all the mooring balls as well as find our boat way, way across the sound at Vixen Point. Had one close call with a fast moving powerboat running without lights.

Once again the wind was howling at night. We put up the dodger, which did a lot to make the cockpit more pleasant. No waves or swells whatsoever in the mooring field.

Tuesday morning was welcomed by sleeping in and a leisurely morning on the boat. You have to loosen the bimini to collapse the dodger, and without thinking I loosened and released the front straps for the dodger. The wind, which was still quite strong, took hold of the loose bimini and tore one of the metal supports right out of the deck. Crap! Bob came up and we assessed the situation. Both of the screws that held the support attachment had pulled right out of the deck, with no hope of just screwing them back in. We tried to find some oversized screws to use, but that didn’t work. We tried to use saran wrap, and then electrical tape, to wrap the threads of the existing screws, but that didn’t work either. Turns out that the electrical tape over the screw threads, combined with two teaspoons placed between the screw heads and bottom of the attached clevis fittings did the trick. The thin portion of the teaspoon handle prevented the screws from pushing out, and the tail end of the handle prevented the entire assembly from rotating. We tightened up the bimini straps and the whole thing lasted the rest of the trip (which featured lots of winds and swells and squalls—max wind we saw was 34 knots and the bimini still held.) I was quite pleased with ourselves that we managed to fix the bimini with two inches of electrical tape and two teaspoons.

We finally left the mooring around 1030 or so. Original plan was to go to Anegada but the Sunsail chart briefer had advised against it because of the swells and gusty winds. I would have gone anyway, but Bob was the voice of reason, so we opted for Cane Garden Bay. Winds were from ENE, so it was a run past Great Camanoe, Guana Island, and the north shore of Tortola. We ran with just the genoa, 22-24 knot winds and choppy 8 foot swells. Again, the boat handled quite well. We had to play with the dinghy painter length to keep it from surfing down the swells and crashing into the stern of the boat.

Somewhere a few miles northwest of the Dogs, Bob says, “There’s some guy in a dinghy out here!” Sure enough, it was the photographer guy (bviyachtshots.com) out in a dinghy by himself in the 8 foot swells and 20+ knot winds!! I was totally impressed at how he handled that dinghy and circled around us to take pictures with a huge camera. Wow!

Arrived at Cane Garden Bay around 1430. Swells were from the east so the anchorage was nicely settled. Three of the four markers for the channel entrance were missing, but the chart plotter seemed accurate. I was a little nervous because I don’t really trust the GPS or chart plotter data for real accurate information, but it all worked out fine. We picked up a mooring ball and dove into the water for a swim. Cane Garden Bay is a picture perfect Caribbean bay with a beautiful palm-fringed white sand beach lining the horseshoe shaped cove. Dinghied ashore to go for a walk; we were almost around the western tip of the bay when we decided to head back to avoid the approaching squalls. The rain really started by the time we got to the bar at the top of the steps off the dinghy dock. We sat looking out over the harbor drinking virgin Pina Coladas watching the torrential sheets of rain and wind sweep through the harbor. When the bartender gave us our drinks, she says, “I usually only put cherries in the ladies’ drinks, but I put them in for you two.” We got lots of laughs out of that one. The rain lasted an hour or so, and we sat mesmerized by the squall lines and watched the tarpon circle around in the water beneath us and the pelicans dive bomb for fish. Was a delightful afternoon. Unfortunately, we had left the hatches open on the boat so there was a ton of water to mop up and sheets to dry out, etc. Dinner on the boat—grilled lamb chops with fancy rice.

Wednesday brought another laid-back morning. We left the mooring around 1045. Since we were only headed to Diamond Cay, we decided to circumnavigate Jost van Dyke to get some sailing in. Again we had 20-24 knot ENE winds with smaller easterly swells, maybe 5-6 feet. Around the north side of JVD we tried sailing wing on wing—I was a little nervous about jibing with those sort of winds, but we practiced a few controlled jibes and only had two uncontrolled jibes, which turned out to be much milder than I had anticipated. Once more, the boat handled great and was pretty stable wing-on-wing. We decided to continue around Tobago Island and cut south between Tobago and little Tobago. Raised the main, then reefed it twice as the winds picked up again. Also played a lot with the genoa reefing and sail trim to find the optimal amount of sails and the best trim. Was lots of fun as we tacked back close hauled around the south side of JVD. As we approached Diamond Cay I saw that it wasn’t going to be protected from the easterly winds, but I wanted to go to the bubbly pool so we picked up a mooring anyway. I aimed for the one closest to the beach on the western side of the mooring field, but the depth was super skinny there so we took one further to the east. An hour later we watched a Mooring Beneteau 43 run aground trying to pick up the same mooring ball. He was able to back off the sand, but couldn’t have been a good experience.

The bubbly pool was awesome. There were still some decent waves crashing in even though the swells were from the east rather than the north. I can only imagine how fun it would be with a north swell. We climbed up the rocks and enjoyed the view. Once again, we were the only people there. Grilled steaks on the boat for dinner. I was right about the wind, it was howling and lighting the grill was a challenge, but all worked out ok. Another relaxing night on the boat, listening to music and solving all of that ails the world while rain squalls swept over the boat.

Thursday morning we headed for Norman Island. Waited out a few showers, then set out. Sailed a bit, then dropped the main in preparation for an approaching squall as we approached Thatch Island Cut. We rolled in the genoa quite a bit and started the engine, then the winds and rain hit! We should have rolled in the genoa all the way and Bob rushed to get that done as the boat heeled right over with a 34 knot gust. Was all very exciting and fun, and before we knew it we were through the squall and approaching Soper’s Hole. By this time I was craving a decent cup of coffee, so we decided to pick up a mooring in Soper’s to find a coffee shop and buy a loaf of bread. Nice supermarket at Soper’s for provisioning, although all we needed was a baguette.

Left Soper’s around noon, had sandwiches as we motored around Little Thatch Island, then raised the sails for Norman Island. Now the wind was more easterly, even southeasterly so we had to tack a few times. Nice sail with winds varying from 17 to 22 knots.

At Norman, we elected to pick up a mooring in Privateers Bay, which was delightfully scenic, and we were the only boat there. We dinghied into the Bight avoiding the Willy T, and I was quite disappointed to see the new large concrete dinghy dock in front of the Pirate’s Bight Restaurant. The Pirate’s Bight has been remodeled and is now very upscale. The workmanship looks superb, and the whole place has an elegant air about it. I prefer the old days when we had to beach the dinghy and tie it to the line strung between the trees, and when the restaurant was more rustic. I’m sure that lots of people will like the dinghy dock (again, beautiful workmanship, nicest dinghy dock I have ever seen) but it’s not really my cup of tea. We went for a walk up the trail to the helipad (great views) and then headed back to the boat to enjoy the sunset from the boat. Again, Privateers Bay was lovely and quiet. We played music and cooked red beans and rice with leftover lamb. Was delicious. Once more Bob beat me at gin rummy. No rain that night.

Friday was our last full day on the boat. Another leisurely morning spent swimming and drinking coffee and chilling out. We decided to head out to sail around the south side of Norman Island and then back into the Francis Drake channel between Norman and Peter Islands. ENE winds south of Norman and maybe 6-8 foot swells from the east. We tacked around the south side of the island and then the winds and seas died down as we entered the passage between Norman and Peter. We had maybe 6-8 knots of wind and smooth seas as we went between the islands. Made for an easy lunch preparation. Once in the channel the winds picked up to maybe 12-14 knots, so it was very easy and comfortable sailing. We decided to try Cooper Island for our last night, and picked up a mooring around 1600. We had drinks and appetizers at the beach bar—food was good, drinks so so, and the music was obnoxious and loud. Beautiful sunset from the boat, and lots of stars out that night. We had leftovers for dinner—pretty much just eating all that was left in the fridge.

Saturday morning was beautiful, sunny and calm. We were off the mooring at 0700 and motored back to Road Town. No wind to speak of, and the Francis Drake Channel was as smooth as a mill pond. An the Sunsail dock by 0815 (I slowed down to avoid arriving too early.) Sunsail answered on Ch12, and the young Sunsail pilot hopped onboard from another moving boat and deftly maneuvered us into a slip that I swear only had room for half a boat. Those guys are real pros at moving those boats around. He got a big smile out of our bimini repair. We already had the trash bagged, linens gathered, and our crap packed up, so we were pretty much ready to head out when we hit the dock. Another Sunsail rep appeared and took down all of the squawks that we had with the boat (chafed shore power cable, aforementioned bimini, mainsail reluctant to come down without assistance, the backwards hatch, and a few other trivial items.) We turned in our cell phone and FM adapter, turned in our charts and cruising guide, and were in a taxi for the ferry terminal by 0845. Caught the 0930 ferry (which was crowded and left after 1000.) The ferry terminal was a zoo and many people were confused with having to pay the departure tax. Nice ferry ride to STT, although this ferry was quite loud (can’t remember which company it was.) Uneventful taxi to the airport and before we knew it we were headed back to New York.

All in all, it was a fantastic vacation. We loved the sporty sailing conditions, and we got lots of sailing in. With that kind of weather, the trip would probably not have been as much fun if I had a less capable sailing companion, but for us it was a blast. Someone who has an idea that sailing is peacefully gliding through the water from one palm fringed islet to the next may not have enjoyed the trip as much. Once more, I was very impressed with Sunsail. For the most part the boat was in good shape—luckily the weather was not super hot so the goofy hatch didn’t pose a problem. Sunsail’s personnel were all hustling to smooth out the chaos of all the boats arriving and departing, and they do a great job of it. For me, the trip was super easy and low stress. I loved being on ‘island time.’ I particularly loved being able to choose quiet anchorages and enjoying the Baths before the crowds hit. Can’t wait for the next trip.