We chartered Debriefed (Elba 45) through BVI Yacht Charters July 12-24. Our "crew" was 7 adult friends ranging in age 58-70.

Our travel started a little rough with the Midnight red-eye from LAX to Miami being delayed 2 hours due to poor airline execution. Thankfully we made the connecting flight or we would have lost a day. Not a great way to start the trip. Kevin provided great service to the ferry dock and we waited with lunch and cocktails in the Petite Pump room. Service and food were good.

We provisioned through Bobby's & Rite-way for food and Caribbean Cellars/Tico's for wine/spirits (our crew had particular requests requiring multiple companies). All 4 had items waiting on the boat when we arrived. We slept aboard Wednesday night and completed the boat check-out Thursday morning.

Our first day was a nice long sail to the North Sound where we picked up a mooring ball at Saba Rock. Saba looks great since the rebuild and was a nice spot to visit. We did not make it over to BEYC.

We snorkeled the NE side of Prickly Pear island and enjoyed the solitude of the beach. Great spot to relax. We rented a slip at Leverick and rented a car to tour the Baths. We arrived at the Baths early afternoon and there were no crowds, but it was HOT on the hike down. The newbies really enjoyed this spot and we had a late lunch at Mad Dogs. Food and drinks were good. We arranged our schedule to be able to have the Friday Night BBQ at Leverick. It was EXCELLENT. Food was really good and all you can eat. The show was a plus and really entertaining. There is no comparison between Leverick's and Foxy's BBQ. Leverick hands down.

Saturday morning, we departed along with several other boats to Anegada and had a pleasant sail as weather/sea conditions were good. We had booked a trip with Sherwin which was a first for us. This was one our our trip's highlights. The tour was a brief snorkel to Conch Mountain and then a drift snorkel were we collected conch and lobsters. He was highly energetic and provided exceptional service. The adventure was completed with fresh conch ceviche and Sherwin giving us two lobsters. We ate at Wonky Dog which was also a great meal. The lobster was outstanding and portions were large.

We left Anegada and wanted to snorkel the Dogs, but all of the balls were taken so we went to Scrub to grab a slip and enjoy their "infinity" pool. We also enjoyed taking a proper shower. This is a good stop to pamper the crew after Anegada. We did snorkel Diamond Reef which was a pleasant surprise. The coral was in good shape and lots of fish. We sailed over to Monkey Point to snorkel and found it to be so-so. Best snorkeling was against the rocks on the west side of the "beach".

Our next stop was Cane Garden Bay which was relatively empty. The beach was relaxing and enjoyed the happy hour beach bar specials. It was also our laundry and reprovisioning stop.

After a stop at Sandy Spit, Sandy Cay, we did the hike to the Bubbly Pool. This was a first and we enjoyed the hike and found the bubbly pool better than expected. After our stay in Little Harbor we booked a Boaty Ball in Great Harbor. After all of the feedback from this forum, we took a cab to Soggy (which we thought was the best option for 7 of us). Soggy was hopping. The PR Navy had arrived in a big way with the entire shoreline covered with impressive boats rafted together. It limited the ability to wade in the water but there was plenty of entertainment with their expensive boat sound systems. It was fun if you were in a party mood.

Next stop was Norman Island where we picked up a ball. Again the mooring field was less than 50% filled. Willy T was busy and fun. The following morning we went the Caves and were the first and only boat there. The caves were more impressive than I remember and a lot of fish. Next stop was the Indians which was again so-so. I had remembered the coral and fish to be better than what we experienced this time.

The crew wanted to visit Cooper and we were fortunate to reserve a Boaty Ball, but the FCFS balls were only about 33% occupied. I hadn't been to Cooper in years and found the resort to be impressive. We enjoyed the rum bar and ice cream while our wives found 50% off discounts at the gift shop. The beach was relaxing as well. The only comment was there was a foul smell throughout the afternoon and evening. It was gone the following day.

Our last night was on Peter. We day-anchored in Deadman's Bay which was the crew's second favorite beach (besides Cow Wreck). We wanted to anchor on the south side which was empty but the south swell made conditions for an overnight stay unappealing, The north side anchorages were full so we decided to grab a ball in Great Harbor. This proved to be a challenge as a lot of the mooring balls were in poor condition.

Our last morning was a sail back to Road Town. BVIYC's check-in was very efficient and we were on our way back home. We arrived at the ferry dock early and had Kevin pick us up. Since we had 5 hours before our flight, Kevin offered to drop us off at Emerald Bay and hold our bags. We took advantage of this and had lunch and drinks at the hotel. While it was nice to not sit in a hot airport terminal, the food and service were not good.

Overall, the highlights were Leverick's Friday night BBQ, Sherwin's Adventure & Tipsy's on Anegada. Best snorkeling was Diamond Reef, Flash of Beauty, and the Caves. The water was 85-87 with only a few sporadic jellies. Wind/sea condition was excellent. Although we had grand plans for the evenings, the heat, sun, and activities had us in bed early most days. What a difference from our last charter with 6 twenty year olds as part of the crew.

BVIYC was great to deal with and we will no doubt charter with them again. Debriefed was the best boat we have chartered. Really liked the full sun deck and spaciousness overall. The boat sailed as expected via the Polar diagram. Only downside was the loss of the freezer a few days into the trip.

Thanks to the people on this forum who assisted in planning and providing the valuable recommendations. The BVI is a special place and we had another fantastic trip down here.



Mark