It’s taken a while to get to it, although I find myself looking back at the numerous photos from the trip almost daily. The group, (L.B., Parker, Jen, Michele, Lorne and myself), five regulars and a newbie, with one kid celebrating his 16th birthday. We flew out of Tallahassee for the first time in six years. Usually we do the drive to Orlando, but flights had only $50 difference, so no drive down the night before, or hotel stay or parking. Slept in our own beds, got up walked the dog at our normal 4:30 time, but she knew something was up. Must have been the suitcases sitting by the kitchen table. Off to the airport at 6 a.m. for our 7:30 flight to Miami, then on to STT and the tradewinds of the Virgin Islands, or in this case, the tropical storm winds from Bertha.

You book vacations to beautiful places, get excited about the time away from work and usually never think about anything else. The Virgin Islands in the summer, well this could get exciting with a storm coming through. TS Bertha did just that. All week long we watched the storm grow from the African coast. Maps showed a great track….ugh.



Not to worry though, we checked flights and TTOL in Miami, all good. So off we go.



The newbie…..can you find him?



Christopher’s driver waiting to take us to the Water Taxi and with no cruise ships in port, the Friday afternoon traffic was very light. The Water Taxi over to Cruz Bay always get the mind right for the vacation. Relaxing, quick, not having to wait on the ferry to arrive and load.

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Usually we stop somewhere for a six pack of Carib for the taxi over. Not this year. Chris has it worked out perfectly with Chris’s Shack, one stop shop before any water taxi ride! The BBQ that was being prepared also smelled fantastic. Too bad no one was hungry, maybe next time.





Lots of sportsfisherman down for the tournament that would be at the end of our trip, but today they were all in port since the seas had steadily built during the day in front of TS Bertha. Big swells between Red Hook and Cruz Bay, but the Water Taxi handled them fine, then familiar pictures began to appear. Nothing like approaching Cruz Bay, just relaxes me every time.







We were about 20 minutes ahead of schedule and phoned Nancy at Caribe Havens. She was on top of it. She called Courtesy Car Rental and asked if they would also meet us at the park service dock with our vehicle. Soon we were off to our villa Blue Agave with great views of Hart Bay and Chocolate Hole.



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After some jumping in the pool, visiting the local wildlife and checking out the scenery, it’s a tradition to head into Cruz Bay for our first night dinner (no one wants to cook after traveling all day!) With JJs no longer open, we headed to Mongoose Junction. The boy (who now stands at 6’2”) wanted a SJB Root Beer and I talked Lorne(the newbie) into a SJB Summer Ale while the ladies walked around the shops.

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Parker, Jen and Michele found us after a while. Parker had already found the hook bracelet she had been talking about for weeks. Jen bought me one a few years ago, now both my girls wanted one also, so I would slip off after we ordered a light dinner at SJB and make the secret purchase. After we finished dinner, we walked through the shops, not many people out, guess they were battening down the hatches for TS Bertha that would arrive during the night………