Hey all, I tend to remember to sign on to TTOL the week before my BVI charter... in this case it's this Saturday, and my last one was 2019 (gasp!) Glad to see this site's still standing!!

I booked this charter (July 21-27) without thinking, and it's right on top of Christmas in July. My family of four tends to value seclusion over party atmosphere... any idea where the least crowds might be and what specific days things heat up or cool down? I also understand much of the festivity is this weekend, so one of my main questions is, when sailing from Road Town on Sunday at noon, where to head for the first night where I'll still find a FCFS ball?

Thanks!
-dan

You can go anywhere and get a ball in July. Cooper might be the exception if you get there after 3. The PR Navy rarely uses Mooring balls.

Thanks George. Yeah, I know the large motor crowd tends to anchor and raft, and I'll certainly avoid Savannah/Pond as I've seen that place blow up before. Just wondering if there are other areas that get busy, and when during the week. I'm also assuming White Bay JvD and CGB will both be busy...

I am in Virgin Gorda. Several motor yachts are now in Savanah Beach area right now.

The North Sound will be very busy starting today through next Thursday. BEYC and Saba Rock especially.

Sunday/Monday Cane Garden will probably also be packed.

Otherwise you should be fine avoiding the crowds.

Thanks... didn't realize it would go that far into the week and into North Sound, good to know... were actually planning to spend a good part of our week up in NS. I hear there are now a few moorings in Deep Bay so maybe we'll hide around the corner there, or off the east side of Prickly Pear in Eust. Sound.

Yeah, BEYC is putting on events Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week specifically for CIJ.

We do have 11 moorings up here in Deep Bay. Otherwise, east side of Prickly Pear in Eustatia Sound is a great anchorage. Also, downwind from Sandbox in the North Sound good too.

You could always do a day on the dock at Leverick and rent a car to explore VG by land too! Always a fun day

"BEYC is putting on events Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week specifically for CIJ."

That's fantastic intel; thank you! Anyone know of other organized events that will draw a fleet?

Have yet to venture into Eustatia with anything but a dinghy but might give the area between Prickly P and Eustatia Isl a try. Not sure what's "downwind from Sandbox"... do you mean up the western-facing shore of Prickly from Sandbox, in the lee of PP?

Anchoring in Eustatia is banned I believe by all charter companies. The area off the Sandbox is a good anchorage with excellent holding.

Used to be for sure, my understanding is that it's been relaxed. Will check with base for sure.
Where around Sandbox do people like to set the hook? It's always seemed to me that going east along the south shore of Prickly Pear, the water deepens very quickly making it a bit hard to find the right anchoring depth; around the corner from Sandbox heading up the west-facing coast, in PP's lee, on paper looks to make a lot more sense, all the way up to near Catcus Reef at the north end... I just don't recall seeing boats do that.

"around the corner from Sandbox heading up the west-facing coast, in PP's lee, on paper looks to make a lot more sense, all the way up to near Catcus Reef at the north end..."

This!

I don't think The Moorings bans it. They mark it as not covered by your insurance - just like they do for Anegada - but it didn't look to me like it was actually banned. I tried to get them to tell me where I couldn't go and never got a clear answer.

I didn't go there this last trip but I was thinking about it and was thinking about it a little more for our next.

We anchored off Prickly Pear to the left of Sandbox, west side last week. The oddest thing happened. The anchor STUCK. We dove the anchor to find it was a 4 ft metal pole sticking out of sand about 12 ft deep. It was about 25 ft off the beach. Have no idea what that pole was for but we picked up the anchor and moved further left

So watch out for the pole!

Moorings has it in their checklist on a map you sign off on...they say if you go here you arent covered by insurance which is different language then before. White Bay, Eustacia etc...

We have a Moorings trip part paid for next year with one aim to revisit Anegada. So I guess we will be looking at their cancellation policy. Oddly they mention Anegada on their online itinerary.

The Moorings allows Anegada. They will not however provide chase services out there.

Yikes! Kinda hard to watch out for it…. But if it’s truly 25’ off the beach I’m guessing it’s not where I’d be dropping an anchor!

Unfortunately I think Bailau is correct about Moorings and Anegada.

I now see that in their e-guide to the BVI they discuss Red Zones and say "Red zones are a part of the region where guests need to pay special attention while maneuvering their vessels. Any damages incurred in these areas will be considered negligence.". They list Setting Point, Anegada, as a red zone.

I positively despise the sheet that Moorings gives out (and now has people sign) because it is so vague and does not distinguish between destinations that everyone goes to (Anegada) and passages that nobody on a charter boat should take (Mosquito cut). No wonder people just ignore the whole thing. Also has really vague language "avoid the area...", etc. I really with they would re-work this, provide a chart overlay of red-lined areas, AIS warnings, etc. but I'm not holding my breath.

Yeah, I really don't get the designation for Anegada. I'd be fine if they just said they won't service you out there but to lump it together with places where you actually shouldn't go (like the Mosquito cut) is dumb.

It (the red designation) made me nervous going to Anegada this summer but the approach and anchorage seemed incredibly well marked and down right easy. I know there are shoals and rocks and maybe you can get yourself in trouble a bit easier than other places but still. Seems odd. And, as someone else pointed out - they advertise it in their suggested itineraries!!! WTH?

I totally agree as to vague....it surprised me because the redlining used to be very clear and now it is basically hey if you mess up here its on you...

I also feel that there should be a distinction between the two sides of White Bay, Jost - which is totally red-lined by The Moorings. If I were them, I would not allow boats in front of Soggy, but the new balls in front of Ivan’s seem just fine.

I don't have any experience with mooring in White Bay - the whole thing seemed too dicey to me so I dinghied around - but I think red-lining one portion of the (pretty small) bay and not another is not really workable. Based on the description in the Scott guide It seems like it's much easier and clearer to just mark the whole thing off.

Excuse me if this is off topic, but shouldn't the new technologies permit the charter companies to monitor their boats, and therefore be specific about red-lined areas. Obviously in the old days they would tell you where you couldn't go, and unless you got in trouble, they wouldn't know. Now, they can know where all their boats are. So they could specify red-lined areas and send a text if someone goes there. With all the charter boats on the water, it would open up more areas.

This year I saw a charter boat with a "professional" captain moored on a professional dive boat day mooring for 18 hours. I called the manager of the charter company, who thanked me and said all their boats have trackers. At a minimum, technology can alert them to people who disregard the limits set.

TMM does not allow charter guests to anchor off Eustacia - too tempting to head up from the Saba side versus from the N.

I wish that White Bay JVD was redlined by TMM as well - complete s show - too many boats, poor anchoring etiquette (and skill) and the balls by Ivan's are very questionable. Two completely failed this season. The painters are regularly run over and wrapped or destroyed. Back in the COVID days when we spent months on our boat it was one of our favorite places - now we just avoid it.

I just watched the Moorings chart briefing which I have not watched in years. Surprisingly they did not show any redlined areas. What source are you guys using?

For me the source is the Moorings BVI e-guide that you get after signing up for a charter (or at https://www.moorings.com/download-the-british-virgin-islands-eguide). One pages 26-27 there is a "Red Zones Map" with the wording I gave in my previous post.

Strangely on page 48 of the same document it is said that Anegada is "Well worth the 11-mile sail from the North Sound,......"

We have contacted Moorings by e-mail for clarification.

I do suspect I might know the reason for Anegada confusion. The Moorings redlines Anegada like most charter companies. They provide an exception however for the setting point anchorage. They even run flotillas there now and then.

I've attached the red-line page from The Moorings. I'm assuming this is not copyright because anyone can sign in and get access to this.

so the statement about "any incidents not being covered and considered negligence" is what got me as it is vague and seems like a catch all...by example we go through the channel between Great Caminoe and Little Caminoe but it seems to me any issues there and no insurance. Same at Setting Point....

The channel between Great and Little Camanoe is the preferred option and not red-lined.

This document badly needs to be re-worked into separate "Caution" and "Prohibited" zones.

This is actually really confusing, as there is no mention of areas commonly regarded as "redlined" by most charter companies: Savannah Bay, VG; Brewers Bay, Tortola; Eustatia Sound, VG (only mentions the channel b/t Saba, not the anchorage); most all of the north shore of Tortola with the exception of CGB); Pomato Pt, Anegada.

If I was looking at that Moorings Map I would believe that the channel on the right side of Saba is prohibited. This would exclude going down the marked channel to Deep Bay / Oil Nut Bay.

Retitled this thread to be about what is being discussed.

gjconsult - I think that map is referring to the channel to the left of Saba. The main channel is to the right, southeast, between Saba and BEYC and is well marked all the way to Oil Nut Bay.