This trip report is in 2 parts - overview and key points first (for those short of time!) and details later. The details are drawn from daily facebook status updates.
Overview/Key Points- We were a crew of 8 from Raleigh, NC - 4 adults and 4 late teens. 4 of us were BVI charter 3rd-timers, 3 were 2nd-timers and 1 was BVI charter newbie (though had a prior land-based trip).
- We chartered Island Fun from The Captain's Compass. There's not much I can say about The Captain's Compass and Brent that hasn't been written before on this forum, but I'll repeat and re-inforce. Brent is a one-man operation out of Sea Cow Bay on Tortola - he does everything himself, even down to cleaning the yachts. He only has a handful of yachts - all of them fairly old but well-maintained - and he focusses on value - you just can't beat his prices. He does have some restrictions that other operators don't have (White Bay JVD is red-lined, Anegada requires prior experience and a written sail-plan), but that's how he keeps his costs down and his prices low. He's gives you his cell-phone number and always answers promptly, night or day. Overall he's a straight-up guy who says what he'll do and then does what he said. I found him good to deal with.
- Island Fun is a 2002 Leopard 42. It's been well-used in its time (used to be someone's home) and its external appearance is a little shabby - certainly doesn't have the "shiny and new" feel that you get from, say, a Moorings yacht - but it's nice and spacious, clean, well-ventillated and everything works just fine. Ultimately we didn't have to make a single maintenance call to the marina on our 8-day charter. Brent has had Island Fun for less than a year and it is still a work in progress for him, and I expect him to continue to improve it over the coming year.
- Provisioning was a mixture of Bobby's, Caribbean Cellars, stuff we took with us (more on this later) and a visit to Riteway in Road Town. Next time we may skip Bobby's.
- We did pretty much a standard counter-clockwise itinerary, including Anegada. Weather and winds were generally good throughout. Details are
here- Photos are
here- Overall, another incredible trip in the wonderful BVI. I know I'm preaching to the choir on this forum, but there is no vacation quite like it!
Stuff we learned (mostly notes-to-self, but may be of interest to others)
- We took a lot of food in Polar Bear coolers (thanks for the tip guys!) - will definitely do this again - we ate well!
- If you do take frozen food, then cook a big chilli and bag it up in zip-locks. Then use it to make nachos on the boat - they will be devoured.
- If travelling through St Thomas and have time to kill, then instead of going to the Pump Room, walk a few minutes east along the dock to The Green House.
- Use D.W. Truck Rental on Anegada - 284-495-9677
- Monkey Point. Wow.
- Do Jumbies at Leverick on a Friday night. Great happy hour (or 3!) also.
- Do a night or 2 at Scrub Island mid-way through the trip to get some creature comforts.
- Having done both, I prefer the sail to Anegada from North Sound over from Scrub Island.
- Spend more time at Diamond Cay, JVD
- Eat dinner at Corsairs on JVD
- Walk the road between Gt Harbour and White Bay on JVD. You'll work up a sweat but won't regret it.
DetailsDay 1/2 - June 30th/July 1st
Taxi, plane, transit, plane, taxi, ferry and taxi - almost 12 hours door to door, but arrived safely at the marina yesterday afternoon ready for our first night sleep aboard. The yacht is older, but nice and spacious, and everything works! Dinner out last night, provisioning and preparation this morning and we were on the water by noon. A couple of hours of sailing in the Drake channel, then into Gt Harbour, Peter Island to grab a mooring. Some great snorkeling, jumping off the boat, drinking and general messing about, and then into the swanky resort for the USA/Belgium game. Tough loss. Back to the boat to grill dinner.
Day 3 - July 2nd
Great Harbour on Peter Island was pretty sparsely populated last night, with boats few and far between - good job, because we made a hell of a racket, singing and dancing late into the night. Our detour to watch the USA World Cup game had left us with a long sail this morning, and so we got going early. However progress was slow into the wind, and it was pretty clear that we were not going to get to The Baths early enough to get a mooring ball. Also, some of the crew were looking a little green, so we cut short and headed for Cooper Island instead and spent a happy few hours there, grilling, chilling and snorkeling. After lunch we were off again, a short reach across the Drake Channel to Scrub Island resort for a few hours relaxing by the wonderful pool. Dinner on the boat followed by an early night - a tired crew after a busy couple of days. Now watching the weather forecast and pondering tomorrow.
Day 4 - July 3rd
In two minds early this morning, but after checking multiple weather forecasts decided to head for Anegada today. We left the dock after breakfast and set off on the 16 mile sail NW. The boat is built for space and comfort rather than speed, so going was slow to begin with and we had to turn the motors on to help us on our way. However, after narrowly dodging a couple of small squalls, the wind picked up impressively and we sped over the last part. The yacht did not handle too well - lots of weather helm that had me fighting hard all the way - but a good sail nonetheless. We reached just after noon, headed in through the channel and picked up a mooring ball for the night. I had rented a truck, and after a quick lunch we set off for an afternoon of beach (and beach bar!) hopping. Anegada is one of my favorite places on the planet, with a slow-pace, an unspoiled feel and wonderful isolated beaches. Did a bunch of snorkeling along the north shore, and then ended the afternoon with conch fritters and Painkillers at Cow Wreck before heading back to the boat for the evening. Paula threw together some fabulous chili nachos and we grilled burgers and sausages
to follow. Finished the night drinking, singing and watching the fish off the back of the boat. Terrific day.
Day 5 - July 4th
July 4th! Woke up Friday to a beautiful clear blue sky in the pretty harbour at Anegada. Would love to have lingered a while, but we had a plan and wanted to get going, so by 8:30am we were off the mooring ball and heading out for the 14 nm sail to Virgin Gorda North Sound. The winds were good and we made rapid progress, and even had a close-up dolphin sighting along the way. Our destination was Leverick Bay for the Friday night party, and we arrived around 10:45 am, with plenty of chill-out time before the party started. Quick lunch on the boat and then the drinking began, first to pre-game France/Germany, before going ashore to watch the game at the little beach bar. A quick breather and nap on the boat, then it was back for Brazil/Columbia and happy hour (or happy 3 hours as it is here!). Hung out with a bunch of cool people. Quick shower then back in again for the Friday night Jumbies party - a pig picking, huge buffet spread and music/dancing into the night. The Puerto Ricans were in the house and those guys know how to party, but we gave as good as we got! Great 4th of July atmosphere, and we could see the fireworks going off over at Bitter End. The kids were in their prime, mixing it up with the other guests and having a blast. Great night. Happy 4th everybody!
Day 6 - July 5th
Slept well last night despite a rolly anchorage. Up early to take the girls over to the dock for their scuba dive (with Kilbrides) - I decided to pass for the usual reason. Then we unmoored and headed over to Bitter End for the morning. I took the dinghy out to Eustacia Reef for a quick snorkel - excellent clarity and sea life. Did a spot of shopping then waited for the girls to come back, very excited about their dives, especially with seeing a couple of Reef sharks close-up. Quick snacks and then we were off again, a downwind sail back to Scrub Island resort. Did a couple of gibes, just for the practice. Stopped off at Marina Cay to grill/cook a very late lunch just as a series of heavy rain showers came in, but managed to finish up and eat before heading on to Scrub. Up to the bar to watch Holland/Costa Rica - amazing game - then water taxi over to Trellis Bay for an explore. Walked round to The Loose Mongoose bar and it was karaoke night - 'nuff said - we took over the place for a couple of hours! Back to Scrub Island to end the day - the other folk on the water taxi could probably have done without the serenade. Another terrific day.
Day 7 - July 6th
Yesterday started with a little rain over Scrub Island but it soon cleared up for a beautiful morning. Spent a lazy morning around the resort and pool and then just before noon chugged down to Monkey Point for snorkeling and lunch. The snorkeling was excellent - just about the most abundant sea-life I've ever seen - literally millions of small fish, and a whole Eco-system of larger fish feeding off them, including huge Tarpon. Next was a sail down to Cane Garden Bay on the Island of Tortola - we headed out to the north and back for a longer and faster sail. Hung out in the harbour there for a while, drinking and grilling. After dinner we headed into the Elm Beach bar for some live music and dancing with The Elmtones, but the crew was tired so we headed back early. Finished the day with the usual cup of tea!
Day 8 - July 7th
No sailing today - we just motored around the beautiful south eastern part of the island of Jost Van Dyke. Started the day under a cloudy sky in the lovely Cane Garden Bay and set out early for Diamond Cay on JVD to have breakfast and swim with the Turtles. Diamond Cay is one of my favorite places in the islands - stunning beauty - and as usual, it did not disappoint - not only turtles, but also rays and a group of small shark-like fish (identity TBD) swimming around our keel. After breakfast we went ashore and walked to the Bubbly Pool - a small rock pool where the waves hit and bubble up - not very bubbly today, but an interesting trip and it felt good to walk a little! A quick shop/drink at Foxy's Taboo, and then we chugged over to Sandy Spit and anchored for lunch. Sandy Spit is as idyllic a desert island as you will ever see, and we went ashore to sunbathe, swim and take photos. Late afternoon we chugged down to Great Harbour and took a ball for the night. Went ashore to bar hop a little and choose a restaurant to eat in the evening, and decided upon Corsairs (after a quick sample of the crab cakes!). Back to the boat for a quick shower, then back over for dinner. Corsair's proved to be a great choice - very happy with the freshly caught food (and pizza!). Finished the day down at Foxy's, cutting a little rug (actually sand!) at the disco there before heading back to the boat for a cup of tea and chill out under the stars. Beautiful.
Day 9 - July 8th
The final day of a sailing is always one of the best - most of the planning and decision-making is done and you're on the home stretch; you're starting to feel at one with the boat and the water; you start to reflect on a fabulous and successful trip as you contemplate your re-entry into the real world; but mostly it's because you have to finish up all the booze on the boat! Firstly, this was the best weather day of the week - clear blue sky and good winds all day. We dropped the girls off for their dives (JVD Scuba) at 9am and then went for a quick coffee and a chat back at Corsairs. Back to the boat and then walked over the White Bay - a strenuous but rewarding walk, with fabulous views and photo ops. Had a painkiller at the Soggy Dollar, then walked down for a rum punch at Ivan's. White Bay was at its picture-postcard best and it was a pleasure to hang out there for a while. Back over to Great Harbour to meet the girls off their dive - they had another good one, seeing huge rays, eels, a huge crab and lobster. Quick lunch on the boat then we set sail for Norman Island in beautiful conditions. Made the trip in about 2.5 hours and headed for The Indians for some aquarium-like snorkeling. Then it was into The Bight to grab a ball for the night. Headed in to watch a bit of Germany/Brazil, but it was already over as a contest by then. Back to the boat to continue working on the "use-up" and watch a glorious sunset, then dinner and a bit of packing. Headed over to Willie T for a while, but it was pretty quiet, so back to the boat to continue drinking in the cool breeze. Great day.
Day 10 - July 9th
Travel home day - this day always starts with a burst of busy activity followed by a lot of hanging around. Up with the larks after a breezy and rainy night. We didn't hang around, and were off the ball shortly after 7 am with sails up shortly afterwards. Did the short sail across the Drake Channel in no time in good winds, and were on the fuel dock back on Tortola by 8:30 am. Back to the marina and then a flurry of activity to finish packing, clear out the boat, debrief and get a taxi to the ferry terminal for the 10:00 am ferries. Then the queueing and waiting begins, compounded by long delays at every stage. The one bright spot was a walk along the dock at St Thomas for an excellent lunch at The Green House, but apart from that it was pretty tiresome - even the Holland/Argentina game was crap (what I saw of it). Eventually arrived home at around 2:45 am - significantly late - but we were the lucky ones - the other half of the crew got to spend the night at Atlanta airport! It happens, but at least we got some sleep along the way. Rude awakening with an 8 am call this morning and into the office shortly after - back to reality with a bump! Hard to focus with so many memories and happy thoughts floating around my head. Great trip.
