Friday morning having returned the car we went into Mollys for breakfast. When I logged on to check Thursday’s purchases had gone through OK we realised that our credit cards had been suspended…. Oh no….   Talking to them via Skype they said they had been suspicious of all the activity and wanted to go through each transaction individually to ensure they were genuine.   Relieved there were no dodgy dealings we got our cards quickly restored to their proper status. Phew.   We also promised not to spend more than £200 in the next few days – I think we can manage that. After breakfast we headed over to the bank for a final ATM withdrawal and that card got refused too!!!!   Frustrated we head back to Mollys for another sparkling water – feeling quite hydrated at this point LOL – and Skyped the bank.   Cleared through all the security questions and got this quickly resolved too… Double phew….

Back on board we got Morphie ready to go sailing and left the slip in Red Hook for the final time….   And, of course, there was no wind.   We motored through the Current Hole Passage – with no ferries this time thankfully – and then turned west towards Charlotte Amalie.   The seas were pretty flat and we made good time – pulling into the main anchorage area at 3pm. The anchorage was busy so we ended up quite a long way out and directly opposite the cruise ships – two in today.

We then prepped the boat for varnishing by removing the stainless steel rubbing rails, getting the ropes out of the way, and snubbing our anchor across the front of the bow rollers to keep the rails clear. Job done we got ourselves cleaned up, dropped dink, and then headed into the marina where we had a few drinks in the Fat Turtle before coming back to Morphie for dinner and an early night.

Saturday morning we were up really early – in fact so early we watched the cruise ships come into harbour and the sun rise – and then we started working.

By 4pm we had sanded down, cleaned up and varnished – we just need the weather to hold for the night.   Fingers crossed this time!    Here’s a sanded down picture….

During the day we had been distracted a couple of times by some type of ride on the cruise ship opposite – is that the equivalent of the naughty step for those that don’t go ashore????

At 5.30 pm we went on board Cutter Loose for a reunion with Eric and Pat and another island packet couple Pam and AD who are down here on their boat called Pappy’s Packet. Had a lovely evening and I really enjoyed Eric’s rum punch – which is great praise indeed as I don’t tend to drink rum!

Sunday morning and we awoke to a grey sky. Thankfully there was no rain during the night – so we admired the newly varnished wood.   Looks good and we think we’ll leave it at that now. Hurrah!!!!

We waved off Pat and Eric as they left for Culebra – and we decided to be tourists for the day. So we wandered the shops and went up the Skyride to see the view down over the anchorage and the marina….. Wow Morphie looks tiny!   Stunning…..

On the way back we settled into the coffee shop to pick up wifi – the only place around here with a constant signal – and caught up on a few things like paying bills!  Oh yes, and check out this photo Eric sent us with Morphie being dwarfed by Quantum of the Seas pulling into the dock…. Great shot!

Later on we headed back to the Fat Turtle for happy hour and then returned to Morphie for the evening.

Monday morning and it’s another busy day…. We cleaned off all the blue tape and its sticky residue; cleaned up the stainless steel; and restored all the ropes and lines to their proper place…. Phew – hot work!   It took us all day and we were shattered so didn’t even bother to go ashore.   Just a quiet night on board and a very early night!

Tuesday morning and things to do – we have to meet the guys from Reefco to pick up our delivery of gauges, gas containers and a Merlin controller – all to help us manage Morphie’s refrigeration systems ourselves going forward.   We also have to go to Pueblo to pick up some fresh produce….. to be followed by a visit to Customs to clear out of the USVIs for Wednesday’s departure.   Sitting in the cockpit having a cup of tea – not having slept very well at all because of a large swell in the anchorage – we were listening to the music from the Disney cruise ship when we spotted dolphins in the anchorage.   Fantastic – and of course it is really difficult to get a photo – but I managed one just to prove it!!!   Love these creatures….

Out to town – jobs accomplished – and we went back to Morphie to drop off our purchases.

Then we went ashore again to the Fat Turtle for a snack and a couple of beers.   After about two hours we left and struggled to get into dink because of the motion on the dock.  Back on board – having to time the leap from dink onto Morphie to coincide with the height of the wave – and we lifted dink quickly onto his davits to get him safe. We then settled down for an early night but of course sleep was pretty elusive in those conditions!

Wednesday morning and the forecast changed overnight for largish seas and high winds with a small craft advisory in place. But we are committed to leaving as we have already checked out. So after the cruise ships had come in we motored out through the channel and then, having realised that it was pretty breezy, we raised the genoa and the main with reefs in both.   It actually was around 23-25 knots with lumpy seas – but the annoying thing was that the wind direction was SW not NE – so, guess what, we are close hauled beating into it…. Should have been a lovely downwind sail!  Oh well….never mind….we had fun anyway.   Goodbye St Thomas.

As we approached Sail Rock a cruise ship – Freedom of the Seas – was on a collision course with us and then we realised that he had changed course to give us safe passage. What a nice man!   So I radioed him to thank him – and he was very pleasant and moved a few more degrees to port to accommodate us…   That was a bit of excitement!

We had to drop our sails as we approached the reef strewn entrance to Dewey, Culebra, as we couldn’t hold the angle any more.   We motored through the markers and came into Ensenada Honda – a bit of a hurricane hole. It was lovely and flat inside – you could never guess the conditions outside. Made a lovely change after the washing machine action in Charlotte Amalie and the 25 mile bumpy and wet sail here….

As required, we telephoned the customs guys and after a number of calls we were told to report to the airport with our papers.   We went ashore to the Dinghy Dock bar and restaurant – locked up dink – and wandered up to the main road.   A golf buggy – driven by two women from New York – came by and offered us a lift, so we gratefully accepted.

Entering the airport building we found the Homeland Security Office and entered….   The two guys working here were very funny – a real double act – and the whole process, although drawn out and bureaucratic, was very efficient. Culebra is part of Puerto Rico which, in turn, is a US territory – so they granted us a 12 month cruising permit which enables us to enter Florida at no cost later in our trip. It only cost $37 – a real result!   We also found out about the rules as we move around Puerto Rico in future weeks – telephoning as we move ‘zones’ and checking out at our last port of call.   Was the best experience we have ever had with US customs and immigration officials!   Helped I think by their love of Top Gear and the naughtiness of Jeremy Clarkson LOL…

We walked back from the airport – about 20 minutes – to the Dinghy Dock restaurant. We had just opened our first beer and Eric and Pat turned up!   So we spent some time with them before returning to Morphie for a quiet night on board and our first Culebra sunset.

This morning – Thursday – we are feeling much more refreshed having had a reasonable night’s sleep and a bit of a lazy morning. Later on we are going on a fact finding mission hoping to hire a golf buggy tomorrow so that we can explore this island.

Bye for now

Jan

Sunday afternoon we went ashore to go bobbing on Pirates beach.  We were having a great time – using one of Orion’s blow-up paddle boards as a table – when we spotted this Moorings catamaran trying to anchor near Morphie 10 times…..   Drop it, pick it up, drop it in the same place, run back, too close to Morphie, and repeat…. Oh yes, and he managed to pick up our stern anchor as well during a couple of these attempts….. Not impressed we went out in dink to ask him to move. We were absolutely gobsmacked to find that this was a skippered Moorings boat – and the crew shouted at us because, allegedly, it is illegal to use a stern anchor and threatened us with the coast guard.   Yeah – right!!!!!   And why did you have to have that particular spot anyway – there was room for at least two more boats in there without coming that close to us????  Anyway, to attempt to maintain world peace with the South African skipper – and the set had been compromised anyway – we picked up our stern anchor.   Of course, immediately, Morphie starts swinging widely around so we ask him to let out more chain as he was even closer now.   And, in fact, why don’t you just move????  Clearly this is not sustainable overnight.   He refuses and says he will stand watch instead….   Irritated and frustrated we left them to it and returned to the beach whilst deciding what to do next.   Really didn’t want to move Morphie as we were there first and had been in the same spot for two days already.   Anyway – within 10 minutes of our return to the beach they picked up their anchor and moved away to a safe distance…. Now why cause all that fuss and upset???!!!??? Moral of this story – if you come across B’Shert II – avoid!   They clearly do not know how to anchor and I bet their guests were not too pleased with losing two hours of their vacation time while their paid crew messed around being belligerent…….

Having calmed down and relaxed back into it – we had a lovely bobbing session and said our final farewells and went our separate ways….   All good things have to come to an end, sadly!  We have had so much fun catching up with Julia and Lyle and all their guests over the last few weeks…..

Monday morning and the wind had picked up considerably – we retrieved our anchor – and made our way out of the busy anchorage.

The waves were building and we spotted one power cat struggling to make their way into it. We, however, had a brisk and exhilarating downwind sail in 25 knots of breeze before pulling into West End.

No available mooring balls again – so we ended up anchoring out.

We dinked in and went to customs / immigration to check out.   The same dodgy customs guy was there – but in a better mood – although nearly gave me a turn when he said it would cost 100 to leave….   What???!!!???   Then he said 100 cents – $1 – ha ha ha!   Very amusing NOT….   Formalities completed we went across the bay to Sopers Hole to do some last minute shopping.    Always think the water front here is so pretty.

We quickly managed to purchase the marina market’s entire supplies of English sausages as this is our last chance to get them….   We returned to the busy dinghy dock, back to Morphie, anchor up and set sail towards St John…. So this is it – we really have left the BVIs now…. Bye – it’s been so much fun….

We had another great downwind sail surfing along with the waves until we picked up a mooring ball off Honeymoon Beach, St John.  Rough seas today.

We then dinked into Cruz Bay to clear customs and immigration. This was a bit of a slow and grumpy service today – but hey, who cares.  We then went into Connections to check our post – fingers crossed – and a big HURRAH, our chart plotter chip has finally arrived so we are good to move on….. The first chip was lost in the post it would seem – so we have given instructions for them to return it to sender if it turns up – but not hopeful.   Thankfully the US supplier were good enough to send us a replacement without too much argument. After having lunch ashore while we caught up on the internet we returned to Morphie for a quiet afternoon / evening on board.   Well wasn’t that quiet as it was pretty rolly but you know what I mean.  We particularly enjoyed the sunset over St Thomas before we retired to bed.

Tuesday morning and we had a leisurely time getting ready to go across to Red Hook on St Thomas whilst admiring the view of the coastline of St John for the last time.

We can’t officially check into the marina until 2pm – so we motor across the Pillsbury Sound slowly and pull into the fuel dock around 1ish.   While Richard is filling up, I run to the office to find out our slip assignment and, luckily, it is free so we are cleared to come right on in.   Great – and so to work!

Immediately we were on the dock I left Richard in charge sorting Morphie out while I took the first loads to the laundry…..   Managed to snaffle the two biggest commercial washers so four loads turned into two and I settled down with my Kindle trying not to expire from the heat!     All done – and back to Morphie – to find that Kevin had been on board but when he had unpacked the spare parts, they had delivered the wrong ones! He was embarrassed as they had been sitting in his shop for three weeks awaiting our return and he hadn’t checked. Oh well…. Never mind…. He managed to make a few phone calls and secured alternative supplies for the following day. He also took off the badly scratched cover from the cockpit instruments which we had been struggling to see through for years as he knew of somewhere they could fabricate a replacement for us.   Great news as we had really baulked at paying $100 plus shipping / taxes to Island Packet for a new one!!

After he had left, Richard and I went across the road to the pharmacy for more bug bands; the bank to replenish our drinking voucher supply; and finally to the new supermarket for our fresh meat.  Back on board we spent quite a while unpacking and repackaging the huge supply of meat and stocking the freezer – wanting to make the most of the shore power connection to get this lot frozen before we head off on our travels.   We have been warned that getting supplies through some of the islands as we head up towards Florida is very difficult so we have decided to heavily provision the boat up with meat and dried foods prior to leaving here.

Phew… busy hot day….   Dave and Susan came by for a chat after work so we had a couple of beers with them in the cockpit before we both headed up to the busy bar that overlooks the marina for a bite to eat.   Beautiful moon tonight…..

Wednesday morning up bright and early – and we spoke to Kevin. Not sure when he will get to us today as he is waiting on the instrument cover to be ready.   So we decide to stay put for the day and get on with more jobs….   So I went back to the laundry again with another couple of loads and Richard proceeded to wash Morphie down.   By the time I returned she was looking really pretty on the dock.

I went off again to get some more bits and bobs while Richard waited on Kevin – he turned up, fitted the new parts, all is working YAY, and then tried to fit the new instrument cover. Well, of course, they hadn’t got it completely right so he had to go off and do some small modifications before returning to try again. This time it fitted perfectly and we are very pleased with this improvement!   Look at the difference…

After he had gone we got the anchor chain out of the locker – marked up the lengths again and gave it a fresh water wash down – then stowed it back.   We also filled up our water tanks and then settled down in the cockpit to clean all our saloon cushions.   It took us a while to get them clean and dry before putting them all back down…. They sure felt nicer as a result.   By the time we had got ourselves cleaned up Dave and Susan came by to take us to Mollys. We had snacks and beers there – and were joined by Paul – and had a fun few hours… 

Thursday morning and we picked up our hire car.   Quite a nice car actually compared to the wrecks we have been renting before LOL.

Huge shopping list in hand and off we go.   First to Cost-U-Less – think CostCo – and stocked up on loads of dried foods / soft drinks / beer / wine etc.   Then to Home Depot and got some more bits and bobs…. On to K-Mart where we picked up new rugs for Morphie’s saloon along with some pillows and a new chip for our US phone so that we now have a working local phone again…..   Then to Pueblo for some things we couldn’t get in Cost-U-Less – then onto Foodland for the remaining things on our list.   And finally to Budget Marine for some other stuff….

Credit cards wobbling with extensive use, we had filled up the car boot so also had purchases strewn on the back seat.  Time to return to Red Hook.  And, of course, we took a wrong turning but hey the scenery was nice there for a little while.

Back to the marina – got a car parking permit organised – and then loaded up a marina cart. Back to the boat – unloaded the cart – and Richard returned for the next load, while I started unpacking.   Well – it took hours – moving things around to make room and then trying to remember where everything is.   Oh yes, and we went to the bank again for another drinking voucher expedition…   ATMs are plentiful here – unlike other islands – so we are making the most of it!   Check out the new rugs… Nice eh???

Later on we met Dave for a quick supper – with us actually sharing a meal between us as we struggle to cope with US sized portions – and then said our goodbyes. Have had some much fun catching up with him again….   We were in bed, exhausted, by about 9 pm.

This morning – Friday – and we have just spotted Cutter Loose in the marina.   So went over to say hi to Eric before returning the car.    Now we are in Mollys having breakfast and doing internet stuff……  We have to leave the marina by 1pm latest today.   Our immediate destination is Charlotte Amalie where we are hoping to finish off the earlier aborted varnishing job. Will have to do another two coats we think…..

Bye for now

Jan

Thursday morning we met up in the coffee shop and caught up with the internet while Carolyn enjoyed some retail therapy….. We enjoyed watching the little hummingbird buzz between flowers and then, suddenly, the heavens opened!   White out in the anchorage with Tortola disappearing into the gloom…..

So we decanted to the bar…. And had a couple of drinks while waiting for the weather to clear.   Oh yes, and we got Ron to show off his stylish bug bands…. He gets badly bitten so we had got him every device known to mankind to help – and, although he still got bitten, they didn’t turn bad so it was a result!

After the rain had cleared we had a lazy day reading and bobbing on the beach. Was very chilled…. And we were also the source of some amusement to a group of Germans who wanted to take our pictures as we bobbed with wine LOL!

Later on we separated to get cleaned up and then joined up for our final Cooper Island dinner. Luckily there was a special on the menu that the gang fancied – sea bass cassoulet – and I managed to persuade the waiter to let me have a salad with the steak rather than the strange concoctions on the menu.   When I say strange I do mean strange….   For example the tempura shrimp comes with popcorn, radish and a sour passion fruit dip….   And here’s the evidence!

We had a lovely meal before moving onto the Rum Bar for our final visit.  Richard and Ron tucked into the Dark and Stormys while Carolyn and I made time for wine….. This is a really chilled place but sadly the ambience was ruined somewhat by a crowd of very loud and rude people….. Sadly it wasn’t the perfect end to a perfect day…

Friday and it’s our last morning together.  We met up over coffee and then decanted to the bar for our last Caribs of the trip. We enjoyed the view and watching the day trippers come in for a frantic 45 minute lunch break…..

Then it was noon – the little boat came in and all the provisions were offloaded – then Carolyn and Ron’s luggage was delivered from their room to the boat and now it really was time to say goodbye.   Hugs all round – final photos – and then we waved them off as they motored out across to Tortola for their flight to Antigua and their connection to London.   Was very sad and I shed a few tears….

We have had the most amazing two weeks..… Sigh….  Can’t believe it had gone so quickly!

Soon after their departure we said goodbye to Cooper ourselves and headed out for Norman Island.

There was no wind so we ended up motoring again…. Arrived into The Bight and found a good anchoring spot near the beach and then just chilled out for the afternoon leaving the radio on.  It always sends a shiver up my spine when I hear the US Coastguard calling for assistance to look for a swimmer missing off of Cooper Island.   We were too far away to assist by then – just left to hope that the outcome was a happy one.

After watching the sun go down – we got ourselves cleaned up and went into Pirates to see MJ Blues play. During the evening Lyle and Julia turned up with their latest guests along with Chrissy and Dirk who were anchored out and we also got surprised by Eric and Pat from Cutter Loose who had heard us on the radio!   We did try to catch up with everyone but the music was a bit loud for meaningful conversation….   Never mind, we had a great evening… especially enjoyed the music and the dancing too….

Saturday morning and it’s time to ease ourselves gently back into cruiser mode rather than holiday mode. So we started the generator, made water, did some hand washing, cleaned the waterline and cleaned Morphie down below. Then we finally cleaned ourselves up and headed over to Pirates to catch up with Eric and Pat.    Before we knew it there were 10 cruisers round the table exchanging information about going down / up the island chain. Was a fun few hours.  After they had all gone we stayed for a little while to catch up on the internet and then returned to Morphie – put on some lights – and then went straight over to the Willy T where we were meeting Julia and Lyle again.

The Willy T was busier than we had seen it for a while – and, for the first time ever, there were lots of young men topless (and some bottomless) rather than the girls!!!!   We had a great evening dancing before retiring back to Morphie….

This morning – Sunday – and we are in Pirates blogging having already made my  weekly Skype call to Mum. The Bight sure looks pretty this morning….

Later on we are going to go bobbing with Lyle and Julia as this is our last chance to catch up with them before we return to the US Virgin Islands.  Interestingly whilst here we have met other cruisers who have also been threatened (and made to pay) the annual boat import duty – by the same stroppy customs guy in West End.  But others have been told it is only due if you stay for a consecutive 30 day period not on a rolling calendar year basis. That has always been our understanding of the rules but it is not wise to argue with customs officials even if you know they are wrong!!!!  So playing safe we’ll leave tomorrow as planned…

Bye for now

Jan

Sunday morning we met up as planned for breakfast and then wandered around waiting for a taxi to take us across the hill to White Bay. So, of course, we played in the hammock…

When we arrive at the Soggy Dollar it is a bit cloudy and a little overcast so we find some chairs tucked away at the top of the beach and set up camp. We chilled for a while – with Richard enjoying the hammock – and then we bobbed and had fun in the water.  There were showers but it didn’t dampen our spirits – and we stayed out in the warm rain rather than rush for cover along with the rest of the day trippers.   Lunchtime we decided to try the little shack on the beach and had some fantastic ribs… Really tasty and a huge portion too!   We then carried on people watching – getting a bit annoyed when bobbing in the shallows by the arrogance of the day tripper skippers who just threw anchors out and expected us to get out of the way with very little warning.   It was sheer madness – someone is going to get hurt one of these days if they are not paying close attention. They even swore at us when we didn’t move quickly enough…. Not impressed!   It was a very crowded and noisy day in White Bay…..

We returned to Great Harbour and went our separate ways – Carolyn and Ron retreating to their air conditioning while we returned to Morphie.   Later on – suitably refreshed and cleaned up – we headed off to Corsairs for dinner.   Was a mad night there too…   So loud and busy…. Don’t know how JR coped with that many covers to cook for – despite that, the food was great as usual….

Monday morning and we were up early and headed in for breakfast temporarily getting distracted by the crane fishing from the dinghy and the pelican resting up on one of the motorboats tied to the dinghy dock…..

We were excited today as we were going out with Vinny and Lori for a spin in their new speedboat.   We confirmed arrangements and met up at noon – with Vinny and Lori wading out to prepare the boat before coming alongside the dock to pick us up.   Beautiful boat! We left Great Harbour at great speed – with the amazing sound system blaring out – and turned right to do a run through White Bay. What a sight…..beautiful.   We felt like rock stars – with people recognising Vinny and waving at us LOL

Then we powered up out of there and ran – at about 45 mph – down the cost of Jost to Little Jost…. We pulled up alongside the jetty and walked to the Beeline bar.   Met up with Jerry the barman – and we had a few hours having fun.   Was a great afternoon!   Then we had the fantastic return trip at speed back to Great Harbour.   Back on the dock we said goodbye for now to Vinny and Lori, piled into dink, and returned to Morphie for cheese and wine.   Richard then took Carolyn and Ron back to their guest house and we had a few hours recovering before heading back to shore for dinner.

Tonight was crew shirt night – so we headed into Corsairs and thanked Vinny once again for a wonderful afternoon. Was a real adventure and we all thoroughly enjoyed it!   We had dinner before wandering down to Foxys for a couple of drinks.   Ron met Foxy at the bar and when we turned around and they were having a man hug – not sure what all that was about LOL.   Anyway, after stretching our legs, we wandered back to Corsairs to catch up with the gang.   I don’t think they had realised that we were not returning again for some time so there were sad farewells before we finally called it a night and headed back to Morphie.

Tuesday morning up bright and early preparing Morphie to go to sea – and Richard went and collected Carolyn and Ron.   After a quick breakfast on board we headed out – and, thankfully, there is wind! Hurrah!   And….so lucky…we have some south in it so we can actually sail pretty much the whole way.   We hoisted the sails – waved goodbye to Great Harbour – and sailed up the coast of Tortola…..   The wind was about 22 knots so we had a reef in both the genoa and the main and we made good speed at over 7 knots a lot of the way.

We then tacked to go behind Guana Island – took down the headsail – and then motor sailed through the cut between Great Camanoe and Little Camanoe.   Having got through there safely and passed the rocks marking the entrance to Trellis Bay we pulled out the genoa again and sailed alongside Beef Island into the Sir Frances Drake channel. Once we had a visual on Cooper Island we let Captain Ron take the helm and he did brilliantly, especially as it was a bit like the M25 out there LOL.

Arriving into Cooper Island and the mooring field is full – so we dropped anchor in 65 feet of water – and I stayed with Morphie while Richard took them ashore to check in.   When he came back a boat moved off and a mooring ball came free so we snapped it up.   We then went ashore to meet Carolyn and Ron and had some lunch.   I then went to visit their room – OMG – talk about leaving the best until last!   Fantastic huge four poster bed, sofa, balcony, private garden, anchorage views, massive showers…. you name it, they’ve got it!   Me, jealous, er YES!!!!!

Back on Morphie we rested up – feeling tired after all that sailing business – enjoyed a fantastic sunset and then went ashore for dinner.   Had dinner in the restaurant and then retired to the Rum Bar so that Richard and Ron could try out the special dark and stormys there before heading to bed.   Lovely day…..

Wednesday morning and a mooring ball closer to the beach came free – so we moved to it.   We relaxed on board, swam off the boat and then went ashore to meet Carolyn and Ron. We made camp on the beach – and, yes, Richard really is drinking coffee!!!! Then we were just about to go in the water when we realised that Morphie was swinging a bit close to another boat – so we went quickly in dink to check it out.   Luckily the charterers had been on board when this happened so they had fended Morphie off….   Because of the swirling currents here – and our long keel – we often swing the other way when there is no wind…..and not helped by the length of their line either. Never mind, no harm done, the other boat picked up and moved elsewhere and we took the mooring ball pennant on board to reduce Morphie’s movement. Back on the beach and it started to rain – so we moved quickly to the bar to avoid the toxic sap from the manchioneel tree that we had been sitting under.

We weren’t hungry – but Carolyn and Ron had lunch – and there is a new contender in the conch fritter competition!  Cooper Island was awarded the winning rosette nudging Soggy Dollar into second place…..

Later on, as the weather cleared up, we went bobbing again – this time with style and wine!   Had a great time before deciding to call it for the day.   We met up again later and had dinner in the restaurant.   Unfortunately the kitchen doesn’t quite get it right at dinner time and we had to send Carolyn’s tuna back – but the replacement was good. My lamb was great – the potato salad was dire!  Very strange flavour combinations here….

After dinner we retired to the Rum Bar for pontoonies again…. Richard and Ron again tried out the dark and stormys – their new favourite drink – and Carolyn and I made time for wine…..   Was a great end to a really nice day.

This morning up early to get this done – then we are going to meet up, have some retail therapy in the gift shop, and then enjoy our last full day together….

Bye for now

Jan

Wednesday morning and we had breakfast before heading out in our good looking rental 4×4 to explore the island.

It isn’t going to take that long as it is only 9 x 2 miles at its widest point – but we’ve never done this before so looking forward to it.   So we head off with the warning about quick sand in the marshes being the only restriction – oh yes, and no real map. There wasn’t any other traffic – just a few cows and goats wandering. Oh yes, and Carolyn and Ron fancied this prime bit of real estate for a holiday home – bit of a renovation project or what!   Richard was driving and we all enjoyed the concrete roads for a while before we then went onto the sand…. We found a viewpoint of the interior salt ponds – fantastic panorama – but unfortunately the flamingos were out for lunch and we didn’t see one!

We arrived at Loblolly Bay – stunning place and a personal favourite of ours. We had a beer with the owner of the Flash of Beauty and reminisced about playing with the little ones many years ago – felt old when she told us that the boy in question was now a trainee fireman!!!

Moving on we took diversions up and down sand roads and at one point we went up a steep incline between loads of bushes and, of course, if it doesn’t look like a road it probably isn’t!   So Richard had to reverse back down through the winding shrubbery and we were horrified by the noises of the bushes scraping down the side of the SUV….   Once we were back safely on a real road – lesson learnt – we inspected the damage and were pleased to see nothing to write home about – with most scratches coming off with the application of a few wet wipes!   Phew…..

We continued driving – stopping briefly at The Big Bamboo – before we ended up at the Anegada Beach Hotel.     This has the only pool on the island – well, actually, it’s more like a plunge pool – and has some spectacular accommodation. Now that is what I call Glamping – although you need deep pockets at $300 a night!   We stayed here for a while and had a nice lunch before moving on again…..with Carolyn tasting the conch fritters…. Leverick Bay is still in the lead in this competition!

Back to Cow Wreck for a quick one – where I did the usual barmaid routine at the honesty bar – and then returning, finally, to Neptunes where we admired the views over the flat calm anchorage. Going our separate ways for a while we reconvened having freshened up and enjoyed the beautiful sunset together. 

We then all walked along the beach to the Wonky Dog – a new restaurant – and had a great meal, although we were the only ones in there!   The lady serving the restaurant and bar was the owner of the business and her husband was the chef.   She was lovely and friendly and then he came out to see us. Well, a big surprise!   He was a huge tattooed Scotsman from Govan, Glasgow.   We enjoyed good food…. and hope this couple manage to make this new venture work for them.

Back to Neptunes for a pontoonie and we chatted with Mark – one of the owners of the business – and he told us about the significant number of sharks that they were now finding in the anchorage. We knew about the two sizeable tiger sharks they had killed previously – but he said now there were bulls and hammerheads too…..   They are coming in hunting an increased turtle and stingray population. The recent ban on killing sharks had been strictly enforced when Mark had been caught on camera – which had gone viral – killing a very large hammerhead that was patrolling the edges of the waterline where the kids were playing. He had been questioned by the authorities as a result although there is a clause in the new law which says that you are allowed to kill if there is a threat to human life….   Interesting stuff – if you are reading this, and planning to visit soon, I wouldn’t recommend that dip off the back of the boat in the anchorage!  Morphie seems to be having fun anyway….

Thursday morning and we survived the slightly shambolic breakfast service and enjoyed the views while chilling…..

Later on we headed out to Cow Wreck beach. We had a great time bobbing in the water, chilling, eating lunch, and generally just having fun.   Carolyn and Ron particularly enjoyed walking the beach and watching the pelicans fishing…..   A truly magical place – and photos really do not do it justice….

Back to Neptunes in the afternoon and we headed off in separate directions before Richard ran ashore later to pick them up – tonight the plan was cheese and wine in the cockpit whilst enjoying our last spectacular Anegada sunset.   Was a great evening….

 Friday morning up early to see the sun rise and a double rainbow.

Sadly it is time to say goodbye to Neptunes and Anegada.

All week the weather forecast had predicted wind of 10 knots on Friday – but, alas there was nothing! Oh well, never mind. Carolyn and Ron were picked up, luggage stowed, and then we picked up our anchor and worked our way through the mooring field.   As we came to the green marker buoy where you turn at 90 degrees into the channel a large bareboat catamaran came inside us and cut us up – er, hello, you are the overtaking boat, keep clear!   Anyway…. he didn’t…. so was treated to Richard shouting some working class language at him as he drove away at speed.

Leaving the channel behind we motored towards Great Harbour, Jost van Dyke.   No wind although the seas were not as flat as the passage up to Anegada….   Sadly no whales today either…. But we enjoyed the sight of Green Cay and Sandy Cay on the way.

Arriving into Great Harbour we anchored briefly in close so that Carolyn and Ron could be dropped off to check into their room at Ali Babas.   Richard and I then went further out and dropped almost 200 feet of chain in 40 feet of water….   Once we were happy we quickly freshened up and headed into shore and met Carolyn and Ron for a cold one at Ali Babas and some lunch – Carolyn still continuing with her conch competition. We decided to eat at Corsairs, so made reservations, and went our separate ways again for a little while – particularly important for our friends to get out of the heat into the air conditioning! Jealous – me? – OK perhaps a tad!!!!

Later on we met in the bar at Corsairs and caught up with the staff – sadly Vinnie was ill…   We had an excellent dinner and then wandered down to Foxys to join the party. Was a pretty busy night with a DJ playing and Carolyn and Ron actually met Foxy himself which was a bit of a treat.   Was a great end to a hectic and tiring day so we called it a night.

Saturday morning and we met at Ali Babs for breakfast.   Enjoyed chilling for a while admiring the view of the anchorage before wandered down to visit Foxys gift shop.

Foxy himself was sitting outside entertaining the tourists with little singing ditties….. So that was fun – and Carolyn and Ron enjoyed looking at the photos when he came to Buckingham Palace to pick up his gong!   Purchases made and time to head to the beach. We wandered back to Corsairs – met Vinny briefly – and then got Bun to take us in his taxi to White Bay.   Amazing views down to Great Harbour and White Bay from the top of the hill….

We arrived at the Soggy Dollar Bar to be greeted by Mic with the lovely comment ‘welcome back to my UK family’. Nice. Was a busy day in paradise so we bobbed for a while…. Did more shopping in the gift shop…. Bobbed again…. Watched the pelicans fishing…. Admired the huge black yacht – and were told that Sir Paul McCartney was on board and that this was his smaller yacht!   Hmmmmm…… Definitely can’t confirm this rumour…. We then had lunch – with Carolyn declaring that the winner of the conch competition was, to date, the Soggy Dollar who had retained their crown from 2009. Here is a photo to prove it!

We then wandered down to the beach to One Love to find Reuben entertaining the tourists…. Enjoyed listening to him and Richard started on the Bushwackers…..   Enjoyed chatting to others – but Carolyn and Ron were shocked when Seddy came in.   A shambling dirty skinny wreck – and a huge contrast to the smiling rasta magician of yesteryear….   The whole place actually looks pretty seedy and shoddy now too…

Back to the Soggy Dollar to be picked up by Bun and we enjoyed the trip back to Great Harbour.   We popped into Corsairs to make dinner reservations and I managed to trick Carolyn with Vinny’s box of ‘stickers’. She really jumped when the rubber mouse came out – was funny. Obviously this photo is posed for effect LOL…..

We separated to clean up…. and then met again in Corsairs. We had another wonderful dinner and Ron got to meet Vinny briefly.  After dinner we returned to sit at the bar – chatted to Kenroy – and JR the chef.   Followed of course by shots!   And so to bed.

This morning – we are meeting for breakfast – and then another Soggy Day beckons.   We’re having a fantastic holiday with friends with more adventures to follow.

Bye for now

Jan

Saturday morning we got up bright and early for some last minute things … then up to the carpark to pick up our taxi.    We were watching all these nice air-conditioned minibuses driving through and, of course, when ours turns up it is an old safari bus type vehicle.   Oh well….   As we are just about to leave we get a text from Carolyn to say that the ferry has left on time! Wonders will never cease LOL.   We arrive in good time in Spanish Town and had a Carib from the local vendor while waiting – and then the ferry is seen off to the distance and we walk inside the fence.   And they’ve arrived – yay – hugs and kisses all round.

We get a cold restorative Carib for the journey and climb into the safari bus. Although not built for comfort what it does offer is the chance to catch sight of some spectacular views over North Sound.   We haven’t gone across Virgin Gorda by road for a number of years and so it was great to admire the beautiful vista – although, of course, it is a bit difficult to get decent photos when the driver shares Richard’s racing driver tendencies LOL.

Arriving at Leverick, Carolyn and Ron check in to their hotel room and the receptionist gives us a lift up the hill in a pickup truck – so Richard and I climb in the back for the quick journey!

To the room – and we gave them all the bug stuff we had got for them – and we got pressies too!   A selfie stick for the camera, a nice bottle of brandy and beef hula hoops – lovely. Thank you.

Richard and I then left them to it and went back to Morphie – we picked up towels etc – and headed to the small resort beach.   We then spent a few hours bobbing in the pool, having lunch, having a few drinks and generally catching up. Oh yes and of course we had to try out the new selfie stick! Then we went our separate ways and reconvened in the upstairs restaurant at Leverick for an excellent meal and some very nice wine…. Was a lovely start to their holiday.

After dinner we had pontoonies in the Jumbies Beach Bar with Josh the bartender before retiring to bed…..

Sunday morning and Carolyn and Ron came on board for breakfast. We are going across the North Sound to visit Sandbox for the day with dink. Carolyn went for a wander and came back very excited because she had seen a poster which advertised ‘free beer tomorrow’.   When Richard and Ron fell about laughing she realised that, of course, it is always tomorrow and you never actually get any.   Was funny…. Of course, I have to say, I would probably have fallen for it too!!!

Richard decided it would be more fun to take Morphie rather than dink so we left the dock, motored over and picked up a mooring ball.   We had mimosas to celebrate just being there – and lazed around a bit taking in the views – before heading in to the beach. We had a great time bobbing, playing with the waboba, having lunch – with Carolyn on a mission to find the best conch fritters in the islands again LOL – before returning to Morphie. We swam off the back and enjoyed the breeze before heading back in.

Back to our slip smoothly and all is well.   Carolyn and Ron then went back to their room for a while…

Tonight we had decided to take the ferry to Saba Rock. While we were waiting on the dock some American guy asked me if my accent was for real – thought I was putting it on!   How rude / stupid is that? But we got our own back when they told us they came from Texas – Richard quickly replied with “Where’s that?!?” The look on their stunned faces was hilarious!   The little ferry turned up – and we climbed on board. We were expecting a little put put across the North Sound not a speed boat ride – boy that thing moves!   We then walked into Saba Rock and bumped into Lyle and Julia with their friends Bill and Helena.   Quick intros all round before they headed back to Orion and we sat down to enjoy a really nice dinner. Back on the ferry again and the annoying group were returning as well – this time we had to put up with really bad karaoke screaming / shouting of “Roxane”.   We were glad to get off the ferry onto the dock at Leverick to realise that the bar was shut – so we had a couple of pontoonies onboard.   Nice end to the evening and so to bed.

Monday morning and Carolyn and Ron came over for a late breakfast. It was miserable weather – really drizzly and grey.   After breakfast we went shopping into Pussers and a couple of other shops – Carolyn and Ron managed to buy some stuff and I got a bracelet too…..   We were going to then laze by the pool but rain stopped play again – so we just ended up sitting in the bar chatting.   At which point Carolyn and Ron went off to buy her a bracelet and came back with rum for Morphie and a pair of earrings for me.   Very kind….thank you……

Later on we reconvened for the pirates show by Michael Beans.   We had made the reservation on Friday but didn’t get a great table – nice position but hard benches to sit on, rather than individual chairs. So had a word with the organiser and we got moved – much more comfortable.   The Orion gang turned up – suitably attired in pirate fashion – and we had a great evening watching the show, singing along, blowing conch shells, waving the jolly roger, chatting, drinking etc etc etc.   Was really good fun.

Afterwards Orion left to eat at the fancy restaurant upstairs while we hung about so Carolyn could buy a pirate shirt!   Then we ate downstairs by the pool off the more casual menu. Had a nice meal and then a relatively early night….. Amazing how tired you can get doing not much LOL!

Tuesday morning and we were up early preparing Morphie to leave the confines of the marina and head back out to sea. Carolyn and Ron turned up on the golf buggy with their luggage so we pulled out around 9 ish – bound for Anegada.   Unfortunately the weather forecast was wrong in that although we had a lovely sunny morning with flat calm seas there was absolutely no wind at all…. Nada…. Nothing.   Shame – so we ended up having to motor. The upside was that it was much easier to prepare the bacon butties to eat underway for breakfast!

After a few miles we saw a few catamarans going around in circles – as we got closer we realised there was something in the water near them.   So we slowed down and watched from a distance – it was a whale!!!!   Only a baby having fun broaching, popping his head back up, doing the dive thing with his tail…   What a sight – beautiful.   Was annoyed though by how close the boats were to him and wondered about his mum.   Respectful distance from these beautiful creatures please! Rant over…   Because we were so far away with our view often blocked by the circling boats it was difficult to get a photo – but here is a hazy one just to prove it happened.

Wow what an experience……   Richard then decided to go fishing. Yawn….. here we go again….   Anyway, it can’t have been more than half an hour and the lure goes screaming away   Richard excitedly pulls it in – no thrashing, no fighting, nothing. Thought he’d caught weed and was disappointed until it got close to the boat and then a fish started flapping about.   Yay! Oh dear, another barracuda so nothing for tea, but hey – he caught a fish!!!!!   Hurrah!!!!!

Arriving into Anegada we were surprised with how all the boats were laying in the water – no wind so they were facing 180 degrees where they would normally sit.   So this means that we are going to anchor the ‘wrong’ way and will swing back later – oh yes and there is a squall out there on the horizon. So we got set and then Richard took Carolyn and Ron ashore to check into Neptunes – I stayed behind to keep an eye out. On his return we decided to feel our way in towards Neptunes – very shallow water there – to see if we can get anchored closer.   We went down to just under two feet under the keel on at one stage – but managed to find a spot directly opposite the hotel – with two and a half feet under us.   Much better position here especially for late night dink rides.

Once we were all set we took ourselves off to meet Carolyn and Ron – made our dinner reservations – and then headed off in a taxi to Cow Wreck beach bar.   Was stunned by the beauty of this place –photos really cannot do it justice….. We had a few drinks – enjoyed some bobbing – and was given a tour by Belle of her brand new kitchen.   Very nice!     We were then picked up by our taxi to return to Neptunes and went our separate ways until later.   Back on board we enjoyed a beautiful Anegada sunset.

Around 7pm we went ashore – met up in the outside bar – and then wandered to our table. Had a really good meal and some wine and a perfect end to a perfect day.

We hadn’t noticed that it was raining – although we were sitting outside, we were undercover – oh no, that means a very wet dink ride back. We did stand around for a little while to see if it would pass – no chance – so we had to man up and get wet!   As we got to Morphie I realised that I’d left all the beach towels on the rail too – so off course they are all soaked now….   So put extra pegs on them and decided to leave them there overnight.   Richard and I had a pontoonie in the cockpit to warm ourselves up – decidedly cool tonight in the rain – and then to bed.

This morning – Wednesday – and we are going ashore to meet them for breakfast… And the plan is to explore the island by car today. Richard and I have never actually done this – so should be fun!   Really looking forward to it….

Bye for now

Jan

PS – Pat and June – please give hugs to Jamie, Rufus and JJ from us all – and remember to reply to your e-mails!!!!!   For other readers to know – Jamie and Rufus are Carolyn and Ron’s two dogs…. JJ is theirs….

After blogging and provisioning we motored up the coast of Tortola towards Cane Garden Bay as the time was getting on.   After getting a good anchor set at the back of the mooring field and having cleaned ourselves up, we went ashore – definitely ready to celebrate my birthday!

Tying up to the dinghy dock we came across this picnic bench boat!   Was a bit nervous when I realised that they were all drunk and were struggling to get on board, let alone manoeuvring this strange contraption!   Looked like an accident waiting to happen!

Wandered down the beach – enjoyed Happy Hour at Myetts and caught up with Prince the bartender and watched the sun go down.   Always beautiful here…..

We then wandered down to the Elm – was welcomed royally with hugs etc – and had a tasty  BBQ dinner.  This was followed by the Elmtones doing a great set and some dancing. Great fun had by all and back to Morphie suitably chilled – was a great end to my birthday!

Monday and we are moving on again  – so picked up anchor.  The day started out beautiful but soon deteriorated to a windy and squally one…..and we were a bit fed up!   Richard decided to dance in the cockpit while under way to entertain me and I used the ‘ear’ of the bimini to keep out the worst of the rain LOL….

As we went through the Little Camanoe Cut – nice place for a retreat?!? – the weather picked up and we enjoyed the rest of the trip to Marina Cay.   We anchored again at the back of the mooring field and went ashore for happy hour and to pick up internet.   After a couple of beers we went back to Morphie for dinner onboard and an early night.

Tuesday morning – and it’s raining again!!!!  Waited for it to clear a bit then picked up anchor – checking out Scrub Island on the way past – and started our trip up to Virgin Gorda….

The weather deteriorated….   Rain squalls with sustained winds at 30 knots and much higher in the gusts….   And we got wet….then we dried….then we got wet….and it was a white out….and more rain came….actually, it was pretty horrible.

We were thankful as we rounded Virgin Gorda near Mosquito Island and was quite amazed by the progress of the building works – rumour has it that Sir Richard Branson is going to use this main house as his own, and use Necker purely for guests…. Looks pretty nice!

We passed through the reef and entered North Sound, to the back of the mooring field at Leverick, and got a nice set in about 15 feet of water…..   We went ashore – when the rain passed – just in time to do some laundry before retiring back to Morphie for an early night.

Wednesday morning and it was dull again – so another chores day…..   Came in for laundry again…. Then caught up on the internet…. After a few hours chilling on board we went ashore for the Pirate show by Michael Beans. We have seen this loads of times but always enjoy it – and had a nice chat with him during the interval.   While we were watching the show this English couple sat opposite us – and they were the people we had done the island tour with in Montserrat – what a small world!   Ended up a pretty late night!

Thursday and we had prepped the boat for another varnish day – but the forecast said rain and we couldn’t face having it ruined again….   So we lazed around and did a few jobs – and then wondered whether we should have just bitten the bullet and done it…..   But guess what – at 5pm, around the time we would have just finished varnishing, the heavens opened for about half an hour. Heavy enough to have ruined it again – glad we didn’t bother!  We didn’t even go ashore…..

Friday morning and we moved into the marina.

We have a special deal with the manager for this as we have friends coming in to stay in the resort for three nights…..   Plus free water and ice…. So took the opportunity to wash Morphie down, get some more shopping, fill up the water tanks, plug into shore power, and generally tidy up and get ready for tomorrow when our friends arrive.   She sure looks pretty on the dock doesn’t she???

Anyway….this afternoon….. I took myself off to the Spa for a massage and Richard carried on working.

Good job!   Finished….  We then went into the bar for Happy Hour….   We went back on board for dinner and planned to go back out to see the Jumbies – but decided to stay put in the end and have another early night.

We are really looking forward to seeing Carolyn and Ron again tomorrow.  They are not staying on board this year – they are going to be land based – with us being their personal water taxi, sailing them between islands. Should be fun!

Bye for now

Jan

Friday and the weather kicked in – we didn’t even go ashore!   It was pouring with rain….and then cloudy….and then raining….with very little sun. So we ran the generator to top up the batteries and made some water. The wind, actually, was not as bad as forecast but the conditions weren’t nice – and definitely no good for varnishing – so glad we stayed put and enjoyed a lazy day.

Saturday and the weather improved – looks like they got it wrong again…. Oh well, always better to be safe rather than sorry!   We did a few boat jobs and then went ashore later in the afternoon to catch up on the internet – during happy hour – and then over to the Willy T.   Nothing going on again – Richard was very amused by the tacky pirates ship lamp clock thingy that was on the bar – and we had a chat with a few people before having a very good chicken and chips supper, cooked by Branson. Back on board for an early night.

Sunday and it was lovely and we decided to spend some time on the beach….. It was nice for a while, but it was pretty busy, there was a lack of chairs, and lots of kids screaming….   So we retreated back to Morphie and sat on the transom drinking cold beer from the fridge.   Lovely way to end the day as the sun went down.

Monday morning and we were up early. We are headed over to the USVI today – our plan is to go into American Yacht Harbor to get our replacement temperature gauge fitted.   And of course the weather turned as we picked up anchor!  So we left Norman straight into bad weather and 30+ knot winds…. There was certainly a different view today of the Indians in the gloom. It is a downwind run from Norman to Tortola, so we actually had a fantastic sail under a reefed genoa alone. We did get wet a few times though as rain storms passed through.

Arrived in West End and the first thing we see is this huge black yacht – all black, no name, no AIS, nothing!   We thought it looked decidedly evil….   And check out the size of the guy standing on the transom… That’s what you call a big boy’s toy LOL!!!

As we entered the mooring field there wasn’t a mooring ball to be found. People were stooging around waiting for balls even for customs – so we decided to turn around and perhaps go to check out from the BVI in Jost instead.   As we were leaving we were checking out the depths just between the Fish and Lime Restaurant and Steele Point – and found a sandy spot in 25 feet…. So decided to anchor…   We got a great set straight away and sat there for a little while to check how the wind would move us around. Happy that Morphie was safe we left her and went into the Customs and Immigration Office and checked out. Very quick and pleasant experience – makes a change!   Even the weather had started to improve….

Then over to D’ Best Cup coffee shop and we’d received an e-mail to say that the spare gauge had not arrived….. So we quickly cancelled our slip at AYH – rescheduling for early February – as we didn’t want to go into the marina for nothing… and debated our next move. Well – we have to leave the BVIs now as we’ve already checked out – so decided to go shopping at the Marina store for some bits and bobs and were very happy to find Branston pickle, French cheese, French baguette and English pork sausages. Sadly they had run out of English cheddar cheese… So got our fill of those LOL!

Back to Morphie, picked up anchor, and sailed downwind to St John.   Had another exhilarating sail in washing-machine like seas – but we enjoyed ourselves a lot!   And we almost got 8 knots out of Morphie on reefed genoa alone….   Great fun.

We picked up a mooring in Caneel Bay and dinked round into Cruz Bay marvelling at the colour of the water – cleared customs into the US Virgin Islands – and then picked up our parcels. Two out of three only had arrived so we’ll have to come back again another day.   Got some drinking vouchers out of the bank and then headed back to Morphie where we had a quiet time on board and an early night enjoying the view.

Tuesday morning and back into Cruz Bay – some more drinking vouchers obtained – and we had breakfast while we were out.

Then we found the local supermarket and did some more shopping. We managed to get some steak and some great fresh produce….. so salad for the next few days!   Yay!!   Back on board, provisions stowed, and then we dropped the mooring ball and motored upwind to Mahoe Bay – being passed by the huge yacht Erica VII.

We arrived into Mahoe – this is a beautiful bay with a white sand beach edged with palm trees, backed by lush hills, and spectacular clear blue water. We picked up a mooring ball – compulsory here as it is a marine park – and started taping up Morphie, getting the ropes all stowed out of the way, removing some stainless steel etc – all in preparation for her first rub down tomorrow.  No distractions here other the natural beauty of it all – no bars, no restaurants, no internet, no nothing! Just turtles popping their nosy little heads up checking who is around….and the fins of tarpon chasing little fry around the bay.   This is one of our favourite places and we enjoyed sitting in the cockpit having a quiet night on board.

Wednesday morning and we started the mammoth job of rubbing down by hand…..   The teak needs some tender loving care with the varnish peeling and rubbed off in loads of places.   We pretty much finished the first rub down and collapsed in the cockpit – albeit with aching muscles – just had dinner and then straight to bed…..     Here are some ‘before’ pictures.

Thursday we got up very early and washed down all the dust and sanded a few more bits that we’d missed yesterday.   We then started to apply our first coat of varnish and were really pleased with ourselves – such a shame we have to rub it all off again tomorrow in preparation for the next coat!!!   While we were in the middle of all this – and I did get distracted a couple of times by a sting ray who kept swimming underneath Morphie – we saw a familiar boat in the distance.   It was Orion! They had just left the BVIs now that their friends had gone home – and wondered whether we would be here….   So when we finished our varnishing we all went bobbing for a couple of hours while Morphie looked all shiny and enjoyed her surroundings….

Friday morning – up early – and started rubbing down again…..   This took us until about 3pm – then we started applying the next coat.   During this time Julia came by on the kayak to invite us over for sundowners…  We said we couldn’t guarantee what time we would get there – but that was fine by them.   So when we finished we cleaned ourselves up, left Morphie to dry and headed over.

They had invited Kirk and Chrissie over too – and we realised that we had met them two years ago – what a small world. Well sundowners turned into a late night – fun times!

Saturday morning – up even earlier. We actually started rubbing down at 7.30 am! This is the final coat we want to apply so needs to be a good one.

We worked really hard and at 5.00 pm we had finished.   It looked fantastic – wood under glass – amazing!   High fives all round.   Quite relieved – that was physical hard work.  Although it was really our turn we couldn’t host sundowners as we have wet varnish everywhere – so back over to Orion again for a nice time catching up with Lyle and Julia.  They also opened a bottle of bubbly to celebrate my birthday early as we are going our separate ways again for a little while.   Well – during the evening it rained.   We had fingers crossed that the varnish was dry enough by the time it came down – oh well, what can you do? And so to bed and it rained again – hard.

Sunday morning – up early – Happy Birthday to me!!!   Opened my cards – thanks everyone.

And then we inspected the wood.   We thought we might have got away with it as there was water sitting on top of the rail…… But it looked milky….. So we dried it – and disaster – it’s ruined!!!  All that hard work – we’ve got to rub it down and redo it.  If only the rain could have held off another few hours…… Not the best start to our day.

So what to do?   We decided not to stay here in Mahoe Bay – we need to get reconnected and I needed to blog!!!   Oh yes, and I’d like not to have to cook on my birthday LOL.   So I tidied up, completed the customs / immigration paperwork and drafted this.   Richard worked hard on deck reinstalling all the lines and the stainless etc in preparation for us departing.   We then motored across – straight into wind and waves – to West End, Tortola.

Managed to pick up a mooring ball – and then went into customs.   Got some major bull from the customs guy – wants $200 for temporary importation duty for Morpheus as we are going to be in the BVIs for more than 30 days in a calendar year.   Hang on – we came in on 20 December, left on 5 January, and are returning today.  Surely it has to be 30 days consecutive???   After some discussion we persuaded him not to charge us – and we have until 2 February to get out or pay.  No worries mate – we’ll be gone for sure.    We have been coming here for years and this stuff happens all the time – but this is a new one on us.   On 20 December we paid $15 to clear in – total.  Today it cost us $55.  OK it’s a Sunday so there is overtime…. but really????   They just make it up as it goes along.    This really hasn’t been the best start to my birthday for sure……  Grrrrrrr

We are in D’ Best Cup now – catching up on news from home and was lovely to receive loads of birthday messages and to speak to my mum.  Thanks everyone for remembering.  Feeling more chilled now….   As the song goes, things can only get better……..

Later on we are going to Cane Garden Bay where we know there will be live music at The Elm tonight. We are both really looking forward to seeing the Elmtones again and maybe a bit of dancing??? The varnishing can definitely wait a few days. We are working our way up to Virgin Gorda as we have our friends Carolyn and Ron coming in for a holiday at the end of the week. So once we’ve arrived up there we can spend the time before their arrival varnishing – again…… Sigh…..

Bye for now

Jan

Saturday night we did go ashore for a couple of drinks….. and chatted with Brian who moved to Jost about four months ago from Alaska – luckily he is renting as it appears that he is struggling to cope with the challenges island life brings….    Will be interesting to find out whether he sticks it out or not!   We left relatively early and were tucked up in bed about 10 pm.

Sunday and we got up early and scrubbed the boat down inside and out….   It takes much longer than you would expect in such a small space – can’t believe how much dust accumulates and, of course, unlike at home you have to wash walls, ceilings, and doors constantly…  Well I do wash them at home, of course, but that’s not every time!    Done at last – Morphie looks and smells lovely…. Phew!

We then went ashore quickly so that I could phone mum to make sure she got back from her Christmas break OK.   Was lovely to speak to her for a little while…    Then back on board to get organised as this afternoon we have Vinny and Lori coming over for some nibbles and drinks.   Richard picked them up and we had a lovely time together.

As the light started to fade the big boats started coming in – first it was the Stad Amsterdam tall ship and we enjoyed the sight of the crew folding away the sails….  Not sure I’d fancy that job!!!   Then this absolutely beautiful British boat comes in – called Elena of London.   Wow!    Followed by a great sunset….

We went ashore for a couple of beers and Elena’s captain and his first mate were in…  So we chatted with them for a while – to find out that the boat costs €85k per week to rent, and that excludes food, drink, customs, immigration, dockage fees, fuel, crew gratuities etc….  Dream on…..!!!!   Anyway, we said our farewells to the Corsairs crew and headed back to Morphie and so to bed.

Monday morning and we were up pretty early and headed out to sea….   The wind was a bit fickle and was coming from the south east – which is pretty unusual – and we pulled out the sails and enjoyed a decent sail across the channel towards the West End of Tortola.    Then the wind died so we doused the sails and motored….

As we were coming into the channel Elena was coming up behind us – so we gave her a bit more room – and she passed us to starboard.   Beautiful boat…. And the crew waved to us when the guests weren’t looking LOL although didn’t manage to capture that!  Look at this impressive sight…..

Having come through the passage we were hoping for a good sail across to Norman Island – but again the wind wasn’t playing ball with us…  So we carried on motoring – enjoying the sights of the Indians as we passed them and the large amounts of Sargasso weed floating – until we came into Norman.

There aren’t that many anchoring spots in the Bight as it is a bit deep with much of it at 50+ feet – and we couldn’t find a spot straight away.    The only available place was on a lee shore and we didn’t fancy that….   So initially we picked up a mooring ball and enjoyed looking at the renovated Pirates Beach Bar and Restaurant.

Then we spotted that the boat that was anchored in our preferred spot was picking up – so we dropped the mooring ball – and stooged around until he had left.  Then we dropped our anchor in a small spot of sand amongst a largely rocky area in 25 feet of water.  Richard snorkelled it to make sure we were set and we were pleased as punch that we’d found the spot and the anchor was buried in the sand….   Yay!!!

Mooring balls here in the BVI cost $30 a night so we prefer to try and avoid using them if possible…..  So far so good!   We went into Pirates for a short time to catch up on the internet and then back on board for a quiet night watching the mooring ball fun….   It is really busy here now – the high season has definitely kicked in – and we were amazed that by around 3pm all the mooring balls were gone!    On the way into Pirates I got toy envy as a few of the charter boats had large inflatable water toys on them – dinosaurs, cows, ducks, swans – all sorts!    Really funny….

There were a lot of big boys anchored behind us here and then there is the sad sight of the charter boats coming in late desperately looking for a ball – and the looks of horror and desperation on the faces of the crew as they realise they have to anchor.  We did actually feel sorry for one Sunsail guy who tried about six times to anchor and failed – we would have gone and helped him but we had already raised dink onto his davits for the night.  But another captain had obviously spotted him and gave assistance…..   Thankfully he got set before it got dark – bet there were a few heated words on board that boat!

Tuesday morning and it was wash day….  Not sure Morphie appreciates looking like a laundry as we hang it all out to dry – and we certainly got some strange looks from other boats around us!   Never mind – all done – and dried in the sun.

Later on in the afternoon we went ashore for a bobbing session at Pirates and then over to the Willy T (the William Thornton floating bar and restaurant).    Was great to catch up with Branson again but it was all rather quiet and sedate – although we did meet one family doing ski shots and another cruising family had their dog with them who decided to sleep on the bar.   How cute is that???

Wednesday morning – New Year’s Eve – and we got up late.  We had decided to have a late brunch / breakfast to set ourselves up for the day and, at this point, Lyle, Julia and their friends Kerry and Ken came over to say hi, as they had arrived into the Bight the night before….    So we made arrangements to meet up for bobbing later and they left to go on a mammoth snorkel adventure.    Around lunchtime we went ashore to Pirates to FaceTime with Rachel, Kiera and Finley – unfortunately it was a bit loud in the bar and outside it was difficult to see the screen because of the sun’s glare.   But we managed to say hi and make them jealous with the blue skies and sandy beach and to have a chat with the kids.   Ah bless…..

We then bobbed until we were joined by Lyle, Julia, Kerry and Ken – and we all bobbed together with Lyle deciding to still wear his Christmas hat – quaffing champagne would you believe it, that Lyle and Julia and bought with them.   Very fancy!

After a merry few hours we went back to Morphie to get cleaned up and enjoyed a beautiful sunset….

We then headed back into Pirates for our New Year’s Eve dinner…   When we got there I managed – stupidly – to drop the dinghy kill switch into the water and, guess what, the automatic float thingy on it didn’t work!   And luckily I had a spare key to the padlock on me….   Never mind, it is possible to use without, but I wasn’t flavour of the month with Richard at that point….

When we finally got into the restaurant we were surprised to see MJ Blues playing – he is fantastic and one of our favourite local musicians – and we haven’t heard him play for quite a few years now.  So great to catch up with him again…..

Dinner was lovely and I was dancing when I got asked by the waitress to return to my table so that I could pay our part of the bill – apparently there was another sitting after us.  Didn’t realise – so we quickly evacuated and moved to the dance area and waited for our change.   And waited…. And then chased…. And then she was confused….. And then she tried to give us the wrong change….. And then had to redo the bills….. And finally we got our change.   They were under a lot of pressure though and I think they could have done with a few more staff…..   Never mind…   We carried on dancing and drinking for a little while – and then decided to move on to the Willy T.

So we piled into our respective dinghies – carefully motored across the mooring field – and climbed on board the Willy T.  Again, not a lot going on, but we made the most of it as you can tell by the pictures!

Then we counted down to midnight – Happy New Year! – and kisses and hugs all round.   We enjoyed our evening and then returned to Morphie and to bed.

This morning – Thursday – and Richard went out early to snorkel under the dinghy dock and managed to retrieve our kill switch!   Good job….. thank you!   We’ve now picked up anchor and moved closer to Pirates.  We were planning to leave tomorrow to go across to St John to pick up our parcels and tuck into Mahoe Bay to re-varnish the bright work (the outside teak for our non-sailing friends).   But the forecast is decidedly dodgy – with strong winds and gusts forecast – and that will reduce our ability to varnish as we need to do under the rail from the dinghy and this requires a settled sea state and low winds…    So we will probably sit it out here but will wait and see what tomorrow brings.

Bye for now.

Jan

Sunday afternoon we dinked around the point to White Bay to visit the Soggy Dollar and were surprised how quiet it was.   Pulled dink up the beach – so he could show off his new painted numbers and his clean bottom – and left him alone to enjoy the space!!!   We wandered into the bar and got a great welcome from Mic who gave us beers before we even opened our mouths LOL.   Was pretty hot so we – surprise, surprise went bobbing …

After a while we headed down the beach to One Love. Seddy was missing although Teddy the dog was around and we bumped into Christian and Karen – the honeymoon couple from Florida – that we’d met the previous night in Corsairs. They were drinking bushwackers and were quite jolly!   They hadn’t been to Soggy yet – having started at the other end of the beach – so we escorted them down so they could try a famous painkiller and they then joined us in a bobbing session.  Getting out of the sun and it was time to pay our tab – returning to the bar we had a lovely ‘welcome home’ from Simone, Winsome and Shaneek who had just come on shift….   Time to go and we gave the couple a lift back to their boat as they had swam ashore – but did think that they should have been picked up really as they were the only guests on a crewed catamaran charter!

We headed back around the point – enjoying the view of Morphie in the anchorage – and were back on board for dinner and to get cleaned up – and then into Corsairs.

Vinny greeted us by telling us that our American friends were already there!   We had recommended the food and told them we would be going there later, but we really didn’t think they would make it back…. They were pretty sozzled when we had left them in White Bay – but somehow they had managed to persuade the captain to move the boat to Great Harbour.   We had a lovely time ending up in the boys doing shots…. Oh well….. Then they left to go back and we found out that they had a dinghy on the dock – we couldn’t believe that a paid skipper just gave his non-boating guest who was already a little worse for wear a dinghy to come ashore in.   Really not good enough!!   Richard helped them on the dock and thankfully they made it back without incident.

After a pretty hectic Sunday we decided not to go ashore Monday – so got up later than usual.   We sorted out the water maker, serviced some more winches, did some laundry and polished some wood down below.   About three o’clock we were taking a break in the cockpit and saw Orion coming into the anchorage….   Hurrah!   They got their anchor set behind us and went in to clear into customs and immigration. They came back legal and we all got together for a reunion on-board Orion. Such fun to see Lyle and Julia again….

Tuesday morning and we were up early and into Corsairs for internet again – the only semi-reliable service it would appear at the moment.

Back on board mid-morning and we waited for Lyle and Julia to pick us up as we were going to dink around to the Soggy Dollar.   Had a lovely bobbing afternoon followed by a roti at Gertrudes and back round the point … to found that we were surrounded by large boats anchored.  After a fun afternoon in the sun we had a quiet evening on board.

Wednesday morning – Christmas Eve – and back out to get internet again – still trying to sort out spare parts to be shipped into St John and to secure a slip in American Yacht Harbour to allow Kevin the mechanic to come on board to fix stuff….   Finally all sorted out – phew – and while I was on line Richard fixed the D-ring at the front of dink which had been leaking.   Back on board and more wood cleaning / polishing again and got the generator running to charge things up and make water.   Unfortunately our water maker decided to spring a small leak so we investigated with Richard’s new wifi endoscope. Great tool – spotted the source – just a shame we can’t reach it easily!   Nothing to worry about though just a loose fitting – we’ll sort that out soon…..

Later on we went into Corsairs for dinner with Lyle and Julia. Perfect day and the anchorage started filling up quite early – and we ended up surrounded by big boys again!

We had a lovely dinner and a few drinks and laughs – we caught up with Vinny and Lori too – and then headed down to Foxys where there was karaoke going on.   Pretty busy night but the singing was dire – maybe that’s why the rest of the people there looked so miserable!!!!!  Richard asked the DJ to play one of his favourite songs from down island and then we had to dance of course. We had a good time….

And so to bed – late!

Thursday morning – Merry Christmas!

We had already planned a full-on party day today starting with a trip to the Soggy Dollar scheduled for early afternoon.    So we got up – had breakfast – had a swim and chilled in the cockpit, having opened our Christmas cards.   Thanks everyone – we miss you all….!!!!

Lyle and Julia gifted us their sea anchor as they no longer have any need for it.   We had this on our list for future purchases so were very grateful for this generous gift.   For our non-sailing friends you only use this in serious storm conditions…. So something that you should have and hope never to need to deploy!

We went over to Orion to pick them up and dinked round to Soggy.   Was a perfect day on the beach – everyone was in a great mood – and we looked the part in our Santa hats.   So bobbing in the beautiful blue water was the order of the day. There was a small stingray moving around which made a few of the other people get out quickly – and some little fish that kept nibbling our toes!!!   Funny….

During the afternoon we also enjoyed the wandering Christmas minstrels who came in and entertained us with some carols for a while before they moved on…..   Great service from Mic and Shaneek as always!

We dinked back around to Great Harbour before the sun went down and we got absolutely soaked – the waves were building and breaking over the front of dink – and I took the brunt of them, much to the delight of the rest of the gang!!!!   Oh yes, and to keep morale high, we sang Christmas carols en route…. LOL

After getting cleaned up we headed back into Corsairs for their special lamb dinner. Was lovely and we had a great evening.   Lyle and Julia bailed on us a bit earlier as they were leaving the anchorage in the morning but we stayed on – moved down to Foxys in Vinny’s army truck – and partied with the Corsairs gang which, of course, involved more dancing…..  Oh yes, and spot the Duffys hat worn by Pizza Dave….   We donated them to the local kids and they left behind one in Corsairs – so Dave nabbed it!

Another late night….

Friday – Boxing Day – and we had a lazy recuperative one.   We stayed in bed, we lazed in the cockpit, we dozed and we read books….. We even ate some chocolate to make it feel more Christmassy!!!   Orion had left us by the time we surfaced – but we have made plans to get together for New Year’s Eve so didn’t feel sad at the loss of our Canadian play mates.  We didn’t attempt to go ashore just enjoyed watching the boats moving around and the usual mad dash for mooring balls at the end of the day.   This is a great anchorage with the sounds of the goats in the hills; the views across to Tortola; and now that the big boats have left we are out here on our own enjoying the lapping of the waves on the hull and the wind whistling through the rigging……

A quiet day, followed by a quiet night, and so to bed.

Saturday – up early and Richard has installed our transom shower hose and tap covers while I wrote this….   We then came ashore for breakfast and to blog….. planning a quiet afternoon on board and perhaps some after dinner drinks at Corsairs.   It was a quiet morning in Great Harbour and the anchorage…. and we just ran into Shaneek with her new baby boy Kaleb…. Lovely cuddles!!!

Bye for now

Jan