BVI 2016 trip log and video

I want to get this trip log down before it disappears into the mists of my memory. Apologies for grammar, and shorthand. Will try and flesh out as time allows.

Day 1 - getting there

Early wake-up call at 5am, for 6am departure to Newark airport. 9:15am flight with United to St Thomas slightly delayed due to mechanical issues, and we eventually left at 10:10am. Slightly bumpy ride, but 4hr journey went pretty quickly, especially for me as I am getting into a book called "Sailing to Far Horizons", about a tall ship called the Sofia.

Arrived St Thomas at about 2pm, quick shot of free coconut rum from the welcome centre, grab bags from carousel, and into what has to be the most expensive taxi ride mile for mile in the world to the Ferry Terminal....$45 for 4 people to go about 2-3 miles. Checked in wit Tortola Fast Ferry desk (forgot that we had to pay $3 per bag, and a $10 per person port tax). Upstairs to a nice outside deck for our first painkiller, beer, and snacks (about $56).  

Uneventful if bumpy ferry ride to Road Town in Tortola, arriving about 5pm just as sun was setting. Thank goodness we did not have to queue for immigration and customs in the heat of the sun, as it was a bit of a wait! Sebastians taxi service were expecting us, and $5 per head got us to Fort Burt Marina and Conch Charters. The office was already closed, but some of the Conch staff were sat chilling with some beers and pointed us to our boat. Ekdysius is her name, and she's a beauty.

After settling in and unpacking (no fights over the cabins) we decided to grab dinner at the pub, literally spitting distances from the boat, and wait for our delivery of food from Riteway. Food arrived at about 8pm, and we quickly helped the nice guy ferry it from van to boat. Dinner was pleasant (Calamari, Burger/Fries, Conch Fritters, and Fish n Chips, painkillers x 2, and soft drinks) for about $85.

Showers and teeth brushed and turned in by 10pm. Up again at 11pm to move the dinghy that was rubbing against ours and neighbouring boat. Rocky rolly and disturbed night for me.

Saturday April 9th, distance sailed 5nm

Dawn over Road Toan harbour

JD: Up early (6am), showered, etc. Breakfast of eggs and toasted baton. Trip to Rite Way for last minute provisions. Met Laura and Megan in the office, signed forms, and had chart briefing. Mark (???) gave us boat briefing. Second last minute Rite Way trip for charcoal, fish, burgers, and ice-cream for kids. Final departure at about 11:30am ish….Conch took us off the dock and then handed over in the channel. Sails up (1 reef) and straight shot over to Great Harbour on Peter

Just left Road Town

Island. Quite breezy (15kts). Lunch onboard (pitta with bean salad and ham), then dinghy to beach and snorkel excursion. SAW A TURTLE!!!! But did not have the camera to capture L Totally magical close up encounter. He/she was totally unphased by us, and carried on cruising and munching on whatever tasty he could find. Kept surfacing every now and again for a gulp of air. He/she also had a ray in close attendance, but after seeing us the ray

Sunset in Great Harbour, Peter Island

decided to bury herself and play hide and seek. BBQ king fish for dinner, bean salad, etc. Beer and painkillers. Dylan setup his hammock between the mast and the forestay. Had to re-wrap as the first attempt unfurled the furler and he unceremoniously plopped on the foredeck hatch.

Sunday 10^th April, distance sailed 28 nm

JD: Better night sleep, but up early at 6am. Quick in/out dip off back of boat.

Breakfast of rice, fried eggs, and plantain. Discovered GPS chart-plotter is not switching on. Need to phone Conch to find out what to do. This might put paid to our Anegada plans. Conch have already said we need to have no north swell in the forecast for 2 days. Currently Monday does not have any, nor does Wednesday, so this window might work.

Sailing towards Gorda Sound, Francis Drake Channel

Sailed Great Harbor to Saba Rock via Road Town. Conch guy from SA  comes out to look at chart plotter, and gives us a hand held GPS as a backup. Sail to Gorda

Sound. Dingy into a bit of Eustatia Sound, then burgers on bbq, and dessert at Saba (key lime pie, mousse, and choc caramel brownie).

Saba Rock

There was yet another stunning sunset.

Monday 11^th April, distance sailed 15 nm

Anegada (15nm)

Engine off ball 9:14am

Sailing around 9:35

9:48am 15-18kts sog 6-7kts

11:45 arrive Anegada! Sam from Potters helps us grab ball, after JD made a dodgy approach. 6.8 feet of water!  Looks like we bent a stanchion in the process. Walk around setting point bay. Lobster meal at potters by the sea.

Tuesday 12^th April, distance sailed 15 nm

Up at 6:30am. Rent Jeep Liberty from Eric ($68 per day). Drive through settlement to Loblolly Bay. Snorkeling and chilling. Warm and cloudy which is perfect. Cow wreck beach then Anegada Beach Club for happy hour and sunset. Dinner on board.

Wednesday 13^th April, distance sailed 28 nm

Drop keys with Eric. Tegan on wifi checking snapchats. Off ball around 9ish, out of channel, and sails up heading for Jost. Light winds and only making 2kts. Rigged a preventer. Motor sailed some. Into Diamond Cay but no mb. Round to little harbour and plenty of mb. Take away dinner from Sydney's (shrimp). Dylan got new cap. Chatted with Sydney's son and had self service pks. Weird upside down fish feeding off back of boat.

Thursday 14^th April, distance sailed 6 nm

Back round to green cay, and used anchor for first time. In about 30ft. Turtles galore.  Dinghy to sandy spit beach (slight mishap on arrival, bumping another dinghy). Snorkeling and soaking in spot. Quick turnaround lunch then to Foxys taboo dock, stroll to bubbly pool, which was v cool. Short sail to cane CB. Lots of turtles. Sundowners and snacks (cheese fries, conch f, coconut chicken, focaccia) at Merrits, then moved onto Tony's for PK. Resupply at small supermarket. Babe burgers on back of boat. Cat moored to next mb is swinging really close. Spend next hour rigging fenders, dinghy, and shortening mb line.

Friday 15^th April, distance sailed 12.3 nm

CGB to Norman Island via Indians.

Light winds again, and motored through Thatch Cut past Sopers Hole, and onto the Indians. Grabbed mooring ball, and jumped in for some snorkeling. Toba came eye to eye with a Baracuda hanging out by the dinghy mooring balls! Very cool spot. Motored on to little bay just outside of Bight on Norman island. 5-6 boats moored up. Fun swinging and falling from spinnaker halyard. Problem with gas diagnosed as solenoid issue (wire had pulled out of connector because of cooling water pipe moving……Peter from Conch was very helpful). Went to Willy Ts for happy hour and food – turned out to be the best meal……Wahoo was amazing. Chatted to Rowan and Rory (British brothers working on the boat as chef and barman).

Saturday 16^th April, distance sailed 20 nm

Norman to Salt Island (wreck of RMS Rhone) then to Road Town.

Arrive RT about 3pm, Ben (CT) backed boat into slip. Checkout/debrief where we fessed up to bending the stanchion. Conch Fritters, fries, and beer at the Pub. Walked round to Wyckham Cay and saw Jerry (who was heading off shopping) and then Steve from NJ Sailing School on his charter boat. Couple of painkillers in bar with Steve, then off to Rite Way for last minute sweet shopping. Taxi back to marina.

Sunday 17^th April, distance sailed 0 nm :-(

Road Town to home L Taxi from Sebastian's did not turn up at 8am, so fortunately asked a different minibus to come back and pick us up after dropping the party in front.

Build-up to the BVI trip 2016

So we're in full prep mode for our 2016 trip to the BVIs. Today is Wednesday 6th April, and we leave in 2 days! A mix of excitement, trepidation, and for me at least even some sadness that in just over a week it will all be over......is that weird to say? How lucky are we that we can do such lovely trips, and I need to keep reminding myself, be in the moment, and mindful of every single scrap of the experience.

This year we have decided to go with Conch Charters on a 2010 Beneteau Oceanis 43. Longer than last year's Jeanneau by 7ft, and with 3 cabins and 3 heads.

Why Conch Charters and why this vessel?

We'd seen some Conch boats around last year, and they didn't look bad at all. We'd heard that they were a second tier charterer, meaning that most of their vessels would be 5yrs+ old. Because of this, they were cheaper than Sunsail/Moorings to the tune of at least $1k for an equivalent boat during the same week. This is significant when travelling with a family on a budget.

The 36ft monohull was a great intro for us last year, but we wanted a bit more room on board, especially in the cockpit area where we spent most of our time. This year we are not travelling with the NJ Sailing School, and are sailing solo so wanted a familiar cruising ground within which to learn the ropes (literally) on this larger vessel.

More to follow :-)

BVI virgins!

OK, so here's our compilation video from our first charter adventure to the British Virgin Islands (BVIs). The perfect paradise for beginners, both sailors and film makers!

Boat Hire: Sunsail were great, and our Jeanneau 36i called "Wallys" was just big enough and 98% functional (the anchor light and fuel gauge were faulty but this did not cause us a problem). Much like an R/V, we liked having the option to prepare snacks and cook onboard. Ice did not last too long in the ice-chest (maybe 48hrs), but all of our food remained chilled.

Provisions: We pre-ordered as well as bought the right amount of food and water from Rite Way supermarket. Our only regret was the wine we purchased as we ended up favoring the local rum and gave away all the 3 bottles of vino to our boating neighbors in the marina on our return. The taxi from Wickham's Cay to Rite Way was an overkill as we could have easily walked the short distance instead of paying $40 to travel there and $35 back for a car ride that would have taken us 5 mins to walk.

Taxi rides  It is the norm to pay per person for a taxi, which for a family of 4 was quite an expensive way to travel.

The marina  at Wickham Cay was clean and well run, with plenty of facilities such as washrooms/showers, pool, restaurant, shop, small provisions store, and even a spa, should you so wish. The lack of A/C on our boat made for a hot and sticky night at the marina but once out in the isles, the trade-winds kept the boat comfortable. We did not use the supplied wind-scoops that funnel air through the deck hatches, but guessing that these would have help with ventilation too.

By far the best bit  about sailing was the freedom to island hop, and the line-of-sight navigation of the BVIs made it easy for us novice charterers. The only island out of sight is Anegada which we plan to do next year (2016). This is the route we followed:

• DAY 1: Road Town > Marina Cay
• DAY 2: Marina Cay > The Baths > Cooper Island
• DAY 3: Cooper Island > Bitter End Yacht Club
• DAY 4: Rest and scuba experience
• DAY 5: Bitter End Yacht Club > Little Harbour, Jost Van Dyke
• DAY 6: Little Harbour > White Bay > Norman Island
• DAY 7: Norman Island > Peter Island > Road Town

The islands were all beautiful and surprisingly unspoiled by man (at least the ones we visited). Each had its own vibe and we loved that. Our favorite spots were Little Harbor (JVD) where it felt like time had stood still over the years and the pelicans dived for fish along side men casting nets for bait in the shallow waters, and the Bitter End Yacht club (VG), possibly because we were able to visit Saba Rock next door via our dinghy and stock up on McVities (UK cookies) ...

The people were friendly and very accommodating and we came across two bars that had an honesty system where you could pour/mix your own drinks, write down what you consumed, and the settle up at the end of the night . . . wonderful.

The wildlife  was in abundance as most of the BVI's is protected and practices conservation on many levels including the conservation of water (rightly so). The park/s, although popular with tourists, remain mostly unspoiled and snorkeling was a great way to see the sea life. We felt truly blessed to see and swim above a sea turtle (our first ever encounter) at "the Baths" and were all ecstatic to have dolphins (2 separate individuals we think ) check us out whilst sailing north east in the direction of Anegada. Spiny lobsters were visible from the shores of Saba Rock and zebra, parrot, angel, trumpet, yellow fin, bass, sea stars (star fish), squid, rays, conch, seagulls and pelicans appeared to be thriving. On land we saw chickens, goats and a dog, all roaming freely. A delightful experience for us nature appreciators.

Anchoring /overnight morning:  Most of the time we were moored to a ball, which was almost fool proof and cost about $30 per night. We say almost, as our sister vessel managed to drop their boat-hook during one mooring procedure, but fortunately had a couple spare onboard. On night three,
we had our first experience with anchoring at Cooper Island (notorious for being popular and, thus, the recommendation is to arrive early to secure a morning ball). We arrived late, and there were no mooring balls left in the crowded mooring field. Our fellow vessel (Sambamba) had already arrived, dropped anchor, and gestured for us to do the same, which we duly did alongside. We then went ashore and enjoyed desserts and drinks. On returning, we felt that the boat had shifted significantly so decided to stay up on deck for a while. Within about an hour or so  it was clear that we were swinging uncomfortably close to a 70-80 foot super yacht to our stern. It was apparent that the owner of said super yacht was also feeling anxious, as he started pacing up and down for the next hour, gauging where and how close to him we were swinging. It got to the point that our dinghies almost touched, and he diplomatically said "can I help you move?" (or something along those lines). Captain Steve, the skipper on the mother sailing ship from NJSS, had also been observing the events and was clearly concerned too as he came over in his dinghy at approximately midnight to assess the situation. It was now abundantly clear we had indeed shifted from astern of his port side to his starboard side so with engines started, we repositioned and re-anchored "Wallys" further out, but still at the same depth, then took turns to mount an "anchor watch" from up on deck throughout the night which proved to be remarkably pleasant. The Southern Cross constellation was also visible from this part of the world and served as a reminder to us of how far we had travelled. At about 0200 hours it was clear we had started to drift again, and had to pull in our anchor a little (as recommended) to secure position. . . this did make for a rather restless/sleepless night but an invaluable learning experience that you cannot experience from reading a text book. In fact, the text book would have you believe that a 7/1 ratio of water depth to anchor rode is the rule of thumb; Sunsail, on the other hand, told us 5/1 was recommended in these parts; in reality we were at 53 feet depth with only 150 chain . . . ... we'll let you do the math.  . . . we have since anchored 2 more times (successfully) after this and we would confidently do so again.  A caveat to all this anchoring discussion is the fact that our rode was entirely chain, and not part rope part chain, so much weightier and more heavy duty methinks. BTW its FREE

Sea sickness was a concern before we departed and was personally endured onboard "Wallys" by two of the Dadd family members, despite taking Dramamine sea sickness pills (proven great for long car journeys but not actually the sea itself). We found that the symptoms were worst when beating into the wind, and into an oncoming sea, which made for an emotional journey especially for our guts!

Foot-wear/clothes  Of course, we packed way too much.....an overnight bag would have done. We mainly remained bear foot the entire time we were onboard, only needing foot wear, typically Crocs, when venturing ashore. Flippers served us well in the water and gave us protection against the sea urchins that (in our travels) were abundant but didn't cause an issue. For the pale of skin, I'd also recommend a light-weight micro-fiber long-sleeve top, as no amount of sun-screen can prevent you from burning if your on the same tack for hours on end.

Weather was perfect and the trade winds not only kept us moving but kept us cool too. The sun shined constantly and being on a smallish boat there was limited shade on deck. Hats and sunscreen is a must.

Keeping clean/showering  much of the time we would jump into the sea, climb back on board to lather up before showering down with the hose on the stern. This saved us from needing to fill up the water tanks. We also paid for a 4 mins shower at the Biter End Yacht Club, (VG) at $3 a pop and got bitten by the no-see-ums that linger in such damp conditions. We all agreed that the back of the boat was the best way to go.

Drinking water although we believe you could have drunk the local water, we certainly cooked with it, we could not be sure as to how long it had been sat in the tanks and bought bottled for the duration. We consumed about a 1/4 gallon each per day, and started our journey with 10 x 1 gallon bottles.

Food/eating out We mostly ate on board (having bought provisions for the trip) and found that Raman noodles and ready cooked rice made for quick and easy meals. Everything else, such as pasta (a home staple,) seemed to take forever to cook onboard. We learnt the hard way to remember to keep the stove on gimbal mode (swinging freely) when sailing because we lost the contents of the morning coffee (grinds included) all over the floor. Thankfully most ended up in the bilge and cleared it self out. We ate out, too, and enjoyed the local offering of lobster ($45) and conch fritters (starter $8-$10 up), plus 50 cent wings at the Crawl Bar (BEYC) during happy hour washed down with $3 house cocktails whilst watching the sun go down. A few times we ate our main meal onboard

and then went ashore for dessert. In general, we found eating- out a tad on the pricey side but we are sure this is due to having to import all the ingredients to islands, which are often only accessible by plane or boat.

Pain killers . . . yes, the most (in)famous cocktail of the BVI's was regularly enjoyed and varied from place to place. First invented/introduced at the "Soggy Dollar" bar and is truly a Caribbean classic. We even mixed our own. Trust us, freshly grated nutmeg, and local rum (such as Pussers)  is key to this delightful refreshment, but that's all we have/need to say on this matter . . .

Cost in general:  Trip total was $8,141 all in. By far the biggest part of our cost was the boat, vital to our venture, followed closely by the travel expense of getting there (flights) and getting around (taxis...see comments above). Eating out added up too, so we ate mostly on board and ventured ashore for dessert or snacks. The mooring balls were typically $30-$35 per night, and anchoring was always free. Garbage $2-3 per bag (a man would come round in the morning and offer this service) as well as ice (not sure $). Food staples, often imported, were more than we would usually pay back home but we expected this. We loved the extras like our diving experience but this was a chunk of change .  .. still you only live once :)

Value of trip Worth every penny. Truly an amazing trip and a bonding experience for us as a family. We loved it so much that we've already booked a bigger boat for next year and look forward to planning out a new route. Watch this space for further posts!

Charter packing and preparation

As promised, I thought I'd write some content about packing for our charter. I ripped the following charter packing list out of the winter edition of the ASA magazine, and we are using this as a basis for our packing efforts. Once we've been on the trip, I'll have a better feel for what we really needed!

 

The list of other tasks that need to be completed before our departure for STT on Friday is long, and includes buying travel insurance through World Nomads who I've used before. As an aside, anyone know why travel insurance is soooooo expensive to buy in the USA?

So our list currently looks like this:

• Passports
• Money/Cards
• Sailing log books
• Sailing books
• Head-torches
• Solar lights
• Spare batteries
• GoPro
• Fishing stuff
• Sunglasses and strap
• Bluetooth speaker
• Audio AUX lead
• USB Chargers
• Phones and chargers
• Laptop(s)
• Beach Towels
• Snorkeling gear
• Swimsuits
• Shorts
• T-shirts
• Smarter clothes for evening
• Wet shoes
• Boat shoes
• Walking shoes
• Hats/caps
• Rain-jacket?
• First Aid kit
• Sunscreen
• Bug spray
• Seasickness meds
• Ziplock bags?
• Multi-tool and penknife
• Duck tape

What are we missing?

Anticipating the BVIs

As I write in late Feb 2015, we are eagerly awaiting our first proper sailing charter/flotilla to the British Virgin Islands (BVIs), courtesy of NJ Sailing School (link for more info).

This is an annual event run by the sailing school, and offers newbies like us the opportunity to sail in an unfamiliar area with familiar instructors. We've chosen to charter a whole boat, rather than berths on a shared vessel, because there will be four of us including the kids. The format is essentially the same as a standard flotilla, except there will be fewer boats involved.

The sailing school book through Sunsail, and we've chosen their 36i Jeanneau built craft to carry us for the week. At 36ft, this vessel is 6 feet longer than anything we've sailed previously, so should present us with a suitable challenge. Another nice thing about doing our first charter/flotilla through the sailing school is that we can gain ASA Bareboat Charter certification (ASA 104) for a nominal additional fee ($150 each).

If you follow the link above you'll see a rough itinerary that has been used during previous years. We are excited at the prospect of making the challenging sail across to Anegada, a beautiful and unspoilt sand and coral island. The 2-3 hour sail does not sound so bad, but the dicey entrance into the channel, and the prospect of shallow reefs is a little daunting at the moment.

Travel to/from the BVIs is a little tricky from the NYC area. We are taking a direct flight to St Thomas (STT) in the US Virgin Islands, mostly courtesy of HSBC reward points (worth using up those points that otherwise lie stagnant and expire). One night on St Thomas is followed by a 1 hour ferry ride to the island of Tortola in the BVI.

I'm going to post separately about packing for a charter/flotilla, but if anyone reading this has suggestions for essentials and nice-to-have items, would really love to hear from you.

ASA 101 and 103

After some deliberation, we decided to fast-track our bigger boat experience and took the plunge in 2014. We completed the American Sailing Association (ASA) Basic Keelboat (101) and Coastal Cruising (103) certifications, run through the New Jersey Sailing School on the Metedeconk River.

This small sailing school is great, and Captain Steve has a wealth of experience and stories to impart as you learn the ropes (pun intended).

The basic keelboat cert is mostly hands-on, with a little bit of classroom prep to begin with. Anyone who has sailed dinghies will easily cope with this course. Our on-water sailing was done in a 22ft keelboat (forget the precise make and model), and we practiced all the points of sail as both helmsman and crew.

Coastal cruising built upon the experience gained during basic keelboat, and we were let loose on a larger 30 foot O'Day vessel. Day 1 we practiced helming and crewing this larger boat, man-over-board drills, and a review of the various onboard systems. Day 2 was more of an adventure as we sailed the Metedeconk River, navigated narrow channels under power, hailed via radio and then passed under the Mantoloking Road Bridge whilst raised twice, and then anchored in Barnegat Bay for lunch. The really nice part about this sailing location was the shelter afforded by the barrier island, and the fact that we did not have to contend with swell or stronger currents.

Sailing on the Metedeconk River, NJ

ASA 103 training with Captain Steve and NJ Sailing School (http://www.njsailingschool.com/)

O'Day 15 daysailor

Taking delivery of our O'Day 15 (June 2014)

Our first foray into sailboat ownership was this lovely O'Day 15 (foot) daysailor. We needed something affordable within which we could expose the whole family to sailing, and gain some basic skills.

This vessel was built in 1981, and we paid $1,100 for her. She has a nice open cockpit, but still a bit of a tight squeeze with mum and dad and two teen kids!

Hope to use her more in 2015. Challenge we found was finding suitable launching ramps locally, but we lake sailed in Greenwood Lake, Lake Hopatcong, and Spruce Run Reservoir (all in New Jersey).

Very light winds on Spruce Run Reservoir, NJ