We spent a thoroughly delightful 8-day cruise on an Elba 45, Tailwinds, chartered through Waypoints at Nanny Cay. This was our 4th BVI charter, the first since 2004, and our second catamaran. Our previous 3 charters had all been through Moorings, but we were intrigued by Waypoints’ new Elba 45’s. Everything about our experience with Waypoints was first-class: the booking process, the boat briefing, and the return check-in. Tailwinds (new this year) was in perfect condition. With its GPS chart plotter and autopilot, AC, generator, water maker, ice maker, solar array, and swim platform, it was a dream to sail. We had stronger winds that we had usually seen in June (often 18-22 knots), which made for some fast passages. There were seven of us, ages 6 through 73.

Some observations: We did the water taxi through Chillout Charters. On our previous cruises we had always flown into EIS. The water taxi worked out very well, but I can’t compare it to the ferry experience. We provisioned through Riteway, no problems and timely delivery. We had also brought down some frozen meat and fish in two cheap Igloo coolers from Walmart. The food stayed completely frozen (without dry ice), and we left the coolers there as the baggage fee was more than they cost. Except for two dinners and one lunch, we had all meals on the boat, which worked out great with children. We rented scuba gear and tanks from Blue Water Divers at Nanny Cay—they were a pleasure to deal with. Our only disappointment was the general condition of the coral: it seemed far more vibrant 20 years ago!

Itinerary:
Day 1: Picked up a mooring in Benures Bay, Norman Island. We had originally planned Key Bay, Peter Island, but that seemed iffy with the SE winds. Only one other boat at Benures, very peaceful.
Day 2: After an abortive attempt to dive the Rhone (currents too strong), we anchored in Cam Bay, Great Camanoe. We were the only boat there. Found the beach strewn with flotsam and jetsam.
Day 3: Had a so-so dive at Great Dog, then sailed to Leverick Bay. Had lunch there, picked up a rental car we had arranged through Mahogany, and drove down to the Baths. Spent most of the afternoon there, then returned to Leverick for dinner. Delightful—our 6-year-old granddaughter spent most of the evening in Leverick’s pool.
Day 4: Fast early morning broad reach to Anegada (first time there). We reserved a BoatyBall (this was a Friday), but that was unnecessary as only about a third of the moorings were taken by the end of the day. Rented a car (Amazing Rentals) and spent most of the day at Loblolly Bay snorkeling. This was the only place we saw non-trivial sargassum. There was about a 3-foot wide strip of it on the beach, but it was fresh, so no rotting odor and no real problem.
Day 5: Stayed at Anegada, but someone had reserved our BoatyBall so we moved to a FCFS ball. This was a Saturday and by the end of the day about 3/4 of the balls had been taken. We met Sherwin for his Conch Island and Horseshoe reef snorkeling tour. We picked up a couple of conch, which Sherwin made into a terrific conch ceviche. Highly recommended! Had a wonderful dinner at Sid’s (grilled lobster, lobster pasta, red snapper) with a great sunset view.
Day 6: Beam reach to White Bay, Guana Island, picked up a mooring. Great snorkeling at Monkey Point and elsewhere in the Bay.
Day 7: Sailed to Jost Van Dyke, anchoring for a brief stop on the way to visit Sandy Spit. With the wind now out of the east, we tacked downwind to speed things up. Picked up a mooring ball across from Foxy’s Taboo. Took the short hike to the Bubbly Pool (not bubbling much, but still worth a visit!).
Day 8: Sailed to Kelly Cove, Norman Island. About half of this was not-too-pleasant motoring with the wind on our nose. Took the dinghy to the caves, which was fairly crowded. Snorkeling in Kelly Cove was better.
Day 9: Returned to Nanny Cay.

Thank you for the trip report. We are arriving in less than 3 weeks and are chartering an Elba 45 through BVIYC. I was glad to hear that you enjoyed sailing her. We are looking forward to doing quite a bit of snorkeling so appreciate your observations.

Thanks for the great trip report. Sounds like an excellent trip and itinerary. Why was the dive at Great Dog just so-so? Weather conditions? Crowding? Condition of coral and sea life?

I'd agree about the condition of the coral, although it's been a few years since we've been to the BVI recent trips have not matched the memories of colorful vibrancy from my youth.

Wonderful trip report. I completely agree about the coral/reefs. I remember the first time I snorkeled-it was off St John in 1997 and I remember thinking it was like swimming in an aquarium. There were colors everywhere and so many fish. It was quite a few years before I returned and brought my kids who were little at the time. I was so sad to see how much everything changed and that my kids never got to see that.