Anegada Passage

Hi all - we are chartering a Moorings 5000 in early March and working on the itinerary right now. Thinking about a first night at Cooper followed by either a night in North Sound VG (then Anegada) or heading straight to Anegada from Cooper (early AM departure). Leaving it open ended to optimize for weather. For those who have made the Anegada passage, what is your threshold on wind/ wave height forecast to make the trip vs. wait for another day? Okay with some discomfort on the ride but want to be responsible.

Also, any other March-specific conditions to be aware of as we plan our route? Thank you!

We usually do North Sound as a starting point to Anegada. It puts the wind on a reach and makes for a quick sail. Winds over 20 kts and seas over 10 ft is where we get cautious.

I understand your question but would clarify that *commonly* The Anegada Passage is the body of water when crossing from BVI down Island -- Anguilla/St Maarten etc.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anegada_Passage

I'd just go straight to Leverick Bay from RT the first afternoon. You'll have plenty of time, and can jump off to Anegada from there. If you're lucky enough to get a ball at Cooper with all the BoatyBall crap going on, you'll get there by 1-1:30 pm and really your first afternoon is sort of wasted. You'll be able to get to Anegada in a couple hours from North Sound. If it's blowing 25+ with 6-8 foot swells or a squall then I probably wouldn't go to Anegada, but that's rare, and anything below that you're fine. It's pretty much a close reach-beam reach the whole way. Great sail; you'll love it.

Most of this past week, winds were 20-25 sustained, gusting to 30, with 6-9 foot swells. We skipped Anegada for that reason. Hopefully will be calmer when OP visits in the spring. We plan to return in spring or summer, not winter, for our next trip because the windy conditions really made things rough.

morning all, my first post - we're keen sailors & have been to BVI 3 times, all three on catamarans, one on a Moorings 5000 , & we loved it; imo you can get to Anegada easily from anywhere on VG, we prefer both Cooper IS and Spanish Town (for CocoMaya) to Leverick and so cross from either of those, both easily doable. Re wind/ waves, our general boat 'rules' are 1 reef at 20kts sustained, 2 reefs at 25kts sustained, it rarely blows higher than that sustained there, squalls bring 30+ so if they're around we put 2 reefs in at the start of the day & just get going, it's easy to reduce the jib & spill wind off the main when anything stronger comes along & in our experience the Leopards sail fantastically with reefs in. now re the crossing, we were there last month & the Christmas winds were still there, as the above poster said, 20-25 sustained with regular 30kt gusts, we spent night 1 in Cooper (on the Moorings wifi at 7am to get a ball) and then headed straight up to Anegada, the boat sailed fantastically, yes it's a bit bumpy but we headed on as tight a tack as we could which took us slightly West of Anegada but when we got close enough we dropped the sails & motored in the rest. the joy of stronger wind days is that not many people go so you've got a great choice of Boaty & regular white balls. for the first time this time we anchored round the corner at Pomato Point and tendered into the beach to eat at Sid's, a great addition to the restaurants and the anchorage is well protected and nice & quiet; night 2 we went round to the main bay & ate at Potters for more activity & noise Potters happily order taxis for you so we went up to Flash of Beauty beach for sunbathing, cocktails & great snorkelling. Anegada's well protected imo so both nights were comfortable in the breeze as was the day on the beach. The added bonus if the winds are still up is the downwind sail to Jost when you've done, just remember to get the main up when Anegada is still protecting you from the swell. I think March winds will be more like 15kts so the sailing should be fab, & the 5000 sails fantastically, enjoy!

How was the 5000 sailing into the wind? Did you find the electric grill outside useful or to small?
George

George,
I was on a 5000 last April. It sails about the same to weather as the 4800, maybe a little lower. The grill is positively dangerous. There is a grease drain that empties onto the step leading to the stern deck. I slipped, taking a dive into the water. We ended up getting a standard charcoal grill. In general, I liked the boat. Lots bigger than my 4500.

Kevin
S/V Event Horizon

I understand they replumbed the drain. Will try and look when I am down this week. If it’s not quite as good as the 4800 at pointing that probably means mediocre at best.
G

cats don't point very well period, imo all Leopards perform as well; the higher & more easterly you go on VG will improve your angle to Anegada, but like I say, even from Spanish town you can set yourself on a tack just West of Anegada & motor the last mile if you can't be bothered to tack back, and for me it's not worth it.

outside grill? when there's all those lovely folk grilling fish & lobster for you in the fab restaurants who cares

I sailed my L450 up to the Anegada entrance from Little Dix bay last week - sailing about 48-52 deg off the easterly wind - made plenty of easting and had room to bear away nicely for the entrance to the channel... didnt need to tack. Clearly it all depends on the conditions of the day. Wind was steady 18-20kts with the occasional gust over 20. Set out with 2x slab reefs in the main and was comfortable with that and the full jib all the way. Boat handled well. Anegada was pretty full, but several FCFS balls remained unoccupied overnight. Potters was popping!