I am 54 and came to the BVI for the first time in probably 1975 if I were to guess a year. I grew up on a 42ft sloop named Traumerei and we were based out of Grenada but spent lots of time in the BVI and USVI. There were many times that we were the only boat in White Bay, Jost Van Dyke and the only place that I remember being on the beach was the Soggy Dollar/Sandcastle Hotel.

I now live outside of Vail, Colorado and have raised all 3 of my kids here. Once the youngest 2 were old enough to swim on their own we started going back to the Caribbean at least once a year so they could experience a little bit of what life was like for me on a boat in the Caribbean. This was compliments of my mom who funded and went with us on our trips until she got too old to be on the boat. We didn't go to the BVI every year as we were trying to expose them to different parts of the Caribbean. We've sailed the SVI, USVI, BVI, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Why is the BVI special? For me it is the easy accessibility to different places every day. Everything is close by and there is no real big water sailing (even if you want to go to Anegada). The beautiful beaches and the laid back vibe brings me back to my childhood and when life was simple. My kids like the beach bar scene of the BVI better than any other (although at times it had my mother cringing at how much it has changed). My mom died in 2019 and in her memory we bought a boat, through The Moorings, so that we could spend more time in different places of the Caribbean and then eventually move back down. We also bought a condo on St. Thomas so that we would have a land base as well.

We will be back in the BVI for 20 days in November and although summers in Colorado are also magical...I can't wait to be back in the BVI!