The past 6+ months have been very stressful for our family when our son was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive blood cancer. Luckily, he was accepted into a clinical trial and, after an immunotherapy course of treatment, he was declared in remission! As a consequence, we decided this would be the perfect time for a family vacation. Borrowing an idea from one of our vacations several years ago, we decided on a sailing vacation in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). But this time, rather than bare boating with our experienced open ocean sailor friends (Bryan and Robin), we decided to get a captain and chef for our week-long sail. Everyone was psyched about the trip!
One of the reasons we haven’t visited the BVI for a long time is the difficulty and time to get there from the Northwest. This time was no different — between the flights, layovers, ferry, and taxis, the trip took about 24 hours. We decided to come a few days before our sail to adjust to the time zone and just relax. Our charter company, The Moorings, has a hotel at the marina and we made that our base of operations. Road Town has grown in the 30+ years since we were last year, but in many ways it hasn’t changed. That includes the temperatures and humidity levels (high 80s, with 70+ percent humidity). While these levels may not seem high to many people (including us when we lived on the East Coast), our Northwest sensibilities struggle a bit with that. And, of course, I packed a lot of nylon/synthetic t-shirts which while highly wicking, also don’t breathe. I quickly became a sweat bomb! As a consequence, we had three goals in mind for our short stay in Road Town: (1) find cotton t-shirts, (2) make a pilgrimage to the original Pusser’s Rum Bar for their signature Painkiller cocktail, and (3) tour around a bit. Goal 1 turned out to be a bit harder than I thought it would be. Many of the tourist shops were closed while awaiting the next cruise ship’s visit and the clothing stores were more high-end — with a very surprising number of formal gowns and cocktail dresses in the windows (not that I was in the market for said items). I wondered where they would wear such things. After much walking in the heat, we found the requisite store and undertook some retail therapy. Luckily, the Pusser’s Bar was quite close to this store and thus, the second goal was quickly met. To meet the third goal, we actually visited Her Majesty’s Prison Museum, a limestone and rock structure that was built in 1775. The prison itself was still in use when we last visited and it was interesting to learn the history of the prison in the context of what was going on during the various eras of Road Town’s and Tortola’s history. We happened to be there while they were taking a school group through, and the kid’s questions and reactions were priceless. The teachers were working the “cautionary tale” aspects very energetically.
The day we were to start our sail, we received some very sad news — our son’s wife tested positive for COVID, so she and our son would have to stay at the hotel and isolate for at least 5 days. That pretty much meant, they weren’t going to be able to join us on the sail, thus undoing one of the primary reasons for the trip. While we agreed that we would try to stay close by for the first few days to see if there might be any chance to pick them up sometime during the week, the door on that slammed shut when our son tested positive for COVID. As a consequence, our daughter and her wife, and Deb and I left the sickies behind and embarked on our sailing week. Maybe the best way to start this is to talk about our boat and crew that were both awesome. Our boat was a Moorings 4500, a catamaran that has 4 roomy staterooms with en-suite baths. Our sailing experience up to this point had been on monohulls with pretty cramped conditions, even on a boat with similar overall length! The saloon area on the catamaran is huge with lots of windows and the galley, so the chef can be a part of everything that is going on. It also had two other things that we had never experienced on a sailboat before — a water maker (you could actually have a reasonable shower) and air conditioning! We were in heaven! But that was just the start. Our captain (Luca) and chef (Georgia) were outstanding. Luca was originally from Italy, but went to school in Perth, where he met Georgia. They both shared a passion for sailing, diving, and adventure and were a natural match for each other. To date, they have been together for over 10 years and have crewed sailboats up to over 70 feet in different parts of the world. They truly love what they do and it shows — they were the perfect team, working to backstop each other. While Luca did most of the sailing and engineering work, Georgia also did her share of sailing duties. Similar, while Georgia was the chef and logistics coordinator, Luca helped out in the kitchen too. I have to say that Georgia’s culinary creations (for 3 meals/day) were the rival of any restaurant I have eaten at. Inventive menus/recipes, attractively plated, and a mixology repertoire that would rival a bartender’s, we were certainly taken well care of. Now, let’s talk about the trip itself.
Not knowing how Esther would fare with her COVID (and in advance of Ryan testing positive), we decided to stay pretty close to Road Town in the event that a negative test would allow us to return and pick them up for the rest of the trip. On the first day, that meant doing a short sail over to Smugglers Cove on the northwest side of Tortola. Luca and I had time for a quick snorkel. We saw a few fish and a ray, but the amazing thing was watching Luca free dive. My attempts to follow him were hindered by my “excessive buoyancy…” At the same time, Elise went ashore to do some rock collecting. Lacking anything to hold her discoveries, she brought them back in her bathing suit top. After a round of Georgia-produced cocktails and food, we spent the evening staring at the full moon.
The next morning we headed to Sandy Cay on our way to Jost Van Dyke. This was a familiar route, as we had taken it when we bare boated here in the late 80s/early 90s. Sandy Cay itself is a small (about 13.5 acres) island with a wide sandy beach on one side and a trail that leads through the wooded center to the rocky cliffs on the other side. This little jewel was owned by the Rockefeller family for many years and preserved it for future generations. It was ultimately donated by the family and now is a national park. While the ladies stayed on the beach, Luca and I hiked around the island and were buzzed by some Laughing Gulls who apparently had a nest nearby. I also tried to recreate a photo of myself that was originally taken in 1989. From there, we sailed on to Little Jost Van Dyke for lunch and on to Little Harbor on Jost Van Dyke for the night. We went over to one of our old/new spots for dinner (Sidney’s Peace and Love). I say old/new because Sidney’s was flattened during the hurricane of 2017, as was the home of one of Sidney’s daughters (Sidney died in 2014). They rebuilt, but in a very different style. They were in the middle of a power failure when we arrived, so we shopped and ate by flashlight until the power came back on. Fun!
The next day, we sailed over to Guana Island for a little snorkeling and lunch. Elise was the first in the water, and while she was waiting for everyone else, she looked down and saw a barracuda. Needless to say, she was a little agitated about that! In the afternoon, we stopped by Aragorn’s Studio (http://aragornsstudio.com/) at Trellis Bay on Beef Island. I really wanted to see his fireball sculptures (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vucfmXvOczg). I originally thought that these massive sculptures with intricately carved patterns (today using a plasma cutter) were large installed clay pieces that are fired in place in the style of the late Danish artist Nina Hole (http://ninahole.com/). Instead I found out these were made out of steel floats that he meticulously cuts to create these very complex art pieces. He puts them in fire just to show them lit up from within. He says they often get cherry red, but the fire is not hot enough to melt the metal. Anyway, I had a really interesting discussion with him and showed him some of my work. From there, we sailed over to Diamond Reef for a really beautiful snorkel (crystal clear water, and lots of beautiful sea life). It’s also when I discovered that Georgia must be a secret mermaid. She did these effortless free dives, twisting and turning and generally checking things out. She is clearly made for the water!
After spending the night in Marina Cay, we did a morning snorkel at Diamond Reef. The early morning sun really showed the reef to its best advantage — lots of beautiful soft and hard corals and varieties of different fish. It was really exciting to me to see the health of the reef here, with a wide variety of branching, mound, plate, and flower types of corals in evidence. It was tough to leave, but we were off to Virgin Gorda and a visit to the Baths. Anchoring off Spanish Town, it was a short taxi ride with Mr. Dependable (yup, that’s his handle) over to the national park. We chatted about the hurricane damage there and the struggle to recover. He had worked at the Little Dix Resort for 19 years until it was destroyed in the hurricane. We had stayed at Little Dix in the past and mourned its loss, although they are rebuilding. The Baths are always an interesting place to visit, leading to questions how these giant granite boulders came to be here. There are some complex geologic explanations involving molten rock seeping up through existing volcanic rock layers. Personally, I like the theory that they were dropped there by aliens… The national park has a number of trails to get down to the water. As we set off on the trail, we reached a signpost that pointed out a trail with moderate difficulty. Any reasonable person would assume that if it wasn’t labeled with the level of difficulty, it must be easier. Our assumption turned out to be incorrect as the trail we took was quite difficult, especially for Deb whose knees are not in the best of shape. Ultimately, Deb retraced her steps while Elise, Courtney, and I plundered on. In the lower reaches of the park where the boulders reach the water, the trail often requires you to wade around in the water, climb over rocks, perform limbo moves between rocks and trees, or perform steep descents using various implements. This reminded me of Navy boot camp! Anyway, we made it through the trails and took many opportunities to admire the views. After a couple of “reward” painkillers (which accompany sushi quite well I might add), we were back to the boat for a sail up to the North Sound, a mooring at the Bitter End Yacht Club, and a very interesting happy hour involving a floating bar and its dog mascot! Quite a wonderful day!
The next morning we sailed up to Anegada, a trip I have wanted to take for a long time. It used to be that bare boaters were not allowed to take their boats up there. I suspect that it might have to do with the extensive shallow reefs and the draft of a typical monohull sailboat. Now that there are a preponderance of catamarans (with much shallower draft) that concern has been lessened. The approach to the island was unremarkable because of its flatness. Unlike the other BVI islands that have a volcanic past, this island is made up of coral and limestone and its highest point is only 28 feet! Georgia and Luca took the day off to join us and Luca graciously agreed to drive our rental car (typical left hand drive car on the left side of the road — tricky!). As a small island, the “sights” are similarly scaled — a botanical garden that is the size of a typical front yard, an overlook to view the historic Arawak conch mounds which are several hundred yards away, etc. We did visit an interesting museum honoring Theodolph Faulkner, a local leader and activist for the Anegadian people, who pushed for better social services for the people of the BVI, culminating in a 1949 march in Road Town where he achieved concessions from the British government including a new legislature and constitution. But what we really came to Anegada for was the snorkeling. Being a reef and limestone island, the surrounding reefs are multi-layered and dotted with caves. Snorkeling at a beach called Flash of Beauty, we swam through some amazing reefs and Georgia and Luca continued their free dives. In fact, Georgia used my camera to go into some caves to take pictures of the spiny lobsters (or as they say, “crays”). We then went over to another lovely beach and bar named Tipsy’s for lunch and cocktails. After returning to the boat and relaxing for a while, we went ashore to the Wonky Dog for lobsters. Up to this point in the trip, things were relatively quiet and sane; that evening at the Wonky Dog was more or less drunken bacchanalia, with groups of drunken tourists carousing, trying to pass off shots/drinks, and generally being abusive to the staff. We ended that night fairly early!
The next morning we went to the Dogs — actually George Dog, one of a group of uninhabited islands that are a wildlife preserve. The snorkeling was supposed to be excellent along the rocks there. I did a first snorkel and confirmed this, especially with all the canyons, etc. Sadly, I didn’t have my underwater camera on this first excursion. After lunch, I returned with Georgia and got a few photos. When we reached the tip of the island, we experienced a beautiful canyon with really high walls. This was more a dive than snorkeling site. I later found out, that this area is known as “Bronco Billy” due to surge that carries divers through the canyon (people say it’s like riding a bucking bronco!). But I guess the tide had started to change and we had to really hump it to get back to the boat. We were not very popular at that point… From there, we sailed to Cooper Island for the evening to meet some repair people for an issue on the boat. It is quite a lovely beach along with some accommodations, restaurants, and bars — including the Rum Bar that apparently has the largest number of rum brands (280!) in the islands. Luca, Deb, and I had a “before” and “after” photo taken from the boat. We stuck with two different rums — Deb’s for her painkiller, and a top and bottom float for Luca’s and my Dark and Stormy. The sunset was very impressive that night and a little later, Deb spotted a number of tarpon swimming by the stern lights. They were mesmerizing to watch.
By the following morning, what I worried about occurred — I developed a painful ear infection. That meant returning to Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda to see a doctor. It also meant the end of my snorkeling for this trip. While we were there, Luca thought it would be a good idea to get more ice. While this would seem to be a straightforward transaction, we ended up going through 5 different people and 3 locations before we could gather these apparent rare and valuable bags of ice. While starting out as frustrating, it ultimately ended up as amusing — another example of “island time.” From there, we made our way to Norman Island for our last evening before departure. The winds were right for a broad reach and we got up to 9.2 knots under sail alone. Along the way, everyone just chilled out and enjoyed the sail. Georgia added to the ambiance by cracking a bottle of Veuve Clicquot. Quite a genteel way to sail! We anchored off Norman Island in Privateer Bay. Deb and I had been to Norman Island twice before and explored the caves that we were anchored off. These caves were rumored to have been where Blackbeard the pirate stored his treasure and also allegedly served as the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island.” It is quite easy to mix up history and legend down here, especially with the right amount of rum. While we debated having dinner at the new Willy T (William Thornton — the old one sunk during the 2017 hurricane), we ended up spending our last evening on the boat, enjoying another of Georgia’s sumptuous dinners and watching the tarpon go by.
But all good things must end. Our week aboard the Kokamo with Georgia and Luca was truly memorable and certainly a way to revisit some of the areas we had traveled in the BVI several years ago. The next morning, we left Norman Island to head back to Road Town. For us, that meant transitioning to the land portion of the trip. For Georgia and Luca, it meant a 24 hour turnaround before heading off for another week trip with a new group. I know they love their work, but it must be exhausting when you put so much of your heart and soul into it. By the time we made it to port, Ryan and Esther had already flown home. While they were recovering, they decided that they wouldn’t be able to enjoy the time in St. Thomas. So off we went on the ferry from Road Town back to Charlotte Amalie. While we had been to St. Thomas before, we figured a stay there would be a good way to relax before returning home. Our VRBO house was truly wonderful, with expansive views of the harbor in Charlotte Amalie. The only challenge was getting back and forth to town with no car. There are no Ubers in St. Thomas and, for some reason, taxi drivers had a very difficult time figuring out where we lived. The first day of our stay was truly about vegging out and hanging out at the pool. The second day, we played tourist and went on a 3-hour tour of the island. We had seen these sights before, but it was interesting to see the changes that have occurred in the 30+ years since we had been there last and the ongoing rebuilding from the 2017 hurricane.
On our last full day, Deb and I took a short ferry ride over to Water Island, considered the smallest of the US Virgin Islands at around 500 acres with a population of around 200 people. Cars are discouraged on the island, so everyone travels in golf carts. We spent about half a day there, traveling the hilly, winding and somewhat potholed roads to check out the vistas, an old World War II fort, and a beautiful stretch of beach called Honeymoon Beach where we snorkeled and found 3 sea turtles. Despite the fact that two cruise ships did port visits while we were there, the city seemed strangely quiet. Charlotte Amalie is still recovering from the double whammy of the 2017 hurricane and COVID. But the people are still friendly and are optimistic for the future.
So that was the end of our two week trip and our first (at least partial) family vacation in a while. It really was fun to be back in the Virgin Islands and to share some of the experiences we had in the past with our kids. We also made some new friends. Until next time!
This entry was posted in Cruising, Travel, United States, Virgin Islands
I am a traveler and sometimes clay sculptor, following a long career working in consulting. My work allowed me to travel the world extensively and I was hooked. Today, I travel with my wife/best friend to explore new places, meet new people, and learn new things.
