N0 32 USVI

Hi from Clare,                         Thursday 12th December 2013

When last I wrote we were on the Island of Jost Van Dyke in a shallow bay well known for Foxy's Bar where they serve the best Painkillers (a rum drink with pineapple and orange juice, coconut milk and nutmeg). At Foxy's we had access to WiFi and so before the second Painkiller we managed to send last week's newsletter. We stayed overnight and left early the following morning and returned to Peter Island to seek cover from a cold front and strong winds predicted.

Foxys from the dinghy dock

Foxys from the inside

A PEACEFUL SPOT

The ceiling at Foxys

Little Harbour on Peter Island was home for the next four nights. It is a perfect place to wait and swim in flat calm water while watching the white caps and currents rush by just outside the bay in Sir Francis Drake channel. We were anchored and tied stern-to along with about fifteen other boats. It was just like being in Turkey and I'm pleased to say that our skills for tying stern-to practised and perfected in Turkey, haven't been forgotten. The procedure is to drop the anchor about 40-50 metres from the shore, back in slowly feeding the chain out. When close to shore Andrew's launches the dinghy with the rope already feed into it, rows to a rock which has already been selected and ties the rope to the rock. I then pull in any slack and wrap the rope around a cleat on the boat. Sounds simple but speed is of the essences or you will lose control of the boat and the whole thing goes to pot. Needless to say our entertainment for the next few days was watching less experienced folk tackle the procedure with not enough chain down, not enough rope to reach shore, bundles of rope in a dinghy all knotted together, people diving off the back of boats to swim ashore with the rope between their teeth and neighbouring dinghies helping to push any wayward boat into position.

Internet at Foxys

The weather has been pretty much the same as last week, a continuous pattern of wind, rain, sun and heat. We have been swimming each day and enjoying the sunshine.

A NEW VIEW
Yesterday we checked out of the British Virgin Islands and entered the US Virgin Islands. There are three USVIs. We are currently on St John's which is mostly National Park and has many bush walks and lovely beaches. We checked in with US Customs in the tourist town of Cruz Bay. So far this is the only town we have been to but we could notice the US influence on the island with better quality roads walkways tourist shops and malls. It is a very pretty little town and crowded with American tourists. Unfortunately I didn't have our camera with us and so missed out on photos.

SO WHAT'S NEXT
I think tomorrow we will move down to the USVI island of St Thomas. Once again there is a strong wind forecast for the weekend and so we will be in search of a peaceful bay. St Thomas is the most populated of the USVIs and we are looking forward to seeing it.

Love Candy and Deb xxx

At 12:53 PM14/12/2013 (utc) our position was 18°21.85'N 064°44.78'W

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No 31/13 Rain and Sun

Hi from Clare,                                          Wednesday, 4th December 2013

OPEN SHUT AND OPEN SHUT AND GIVE A LITTLE CLAP (Until this week these were just words from a child's nursery rhyme)
For the past week we have experienced cycles of sunshine, heat, wind and rain. I seem to spend most of my day watching the weather and opening and closing hatches. Years ago when first on the boat, Andrew christened me "Minister for Openings and Closings". Well I can tell you, the poor old Minister is working overtime this week. It has also rained every night except for one and so the Minister is working night shift as well. Today the weather is no different, we had dead calm this morning then a boisterous sail to our next destination followed by rain and now we are seeking shelter from forecast strong wind; nothing like a bit of variety to keep us on our toes.

EVERY CLOUD HAS A SILVER LINING
The highlights for the week have been some terrific company and some good snorkelling. We had English friends Rob and Sarah from 'Serafina' on Eye Candy for drinks and then a few nights later we went to their boat for drinks and met a new English couple Ian and Fiona from 'Ruffian'. Both nights were very entertaining as Rob is a talented story teller and after spending a good proportion of his work life around charter boats he has a wealth of experience from which to draw.

 

Deb, Rob and Sarah & Dead Mans Bay, Peter Is

ME AND MY BIG MOUTH AGAIN
After saying in my last newsletter that the snorkelling was ho hum we managed to find a few good sites on Norman Island. There are some lovely caves to snorkel and the fish life is the best we have seen in the BVIs. I love seeing all the tropical fish and when the water is around 28 degrees it is a pleasure; in fact I hate having to get out of the water.

FIRST IN BEST DRESSED
We went over to the island of Tortola for provisioning. There were two large cruise ships in the harbour and Tortola is also the base for Sunsail, Moorings and a few other yacht chartering companies. We heard that the fresh fruit and veg arrives Sunday morning and by Sunday afternoon the best of it has gone. I guess with hundreds of charter yachts provisioning for the following week it is no real surprise. We arrived Sunday mid morning and got everything we needed except for tomatoes; they were totally sold out. Not to worry we restocked the Rum supply so hell, who needs tomatoes.

 

Windward side of Peter Is and Benures Bay, Norman Is    TAKING IT EASY We are now on the island of Jost Van Dyke. It is overcast and threatening rain, certainly a lot different from the brilliant sunshine we experienced here last April. It's probably a good thing to have a few dull days as Deb has been working on her suntan and she is fast approaching the colour of the natives. We will have to be careful going into town as we could loose her in the crowd.

SO WHAT'S NEXT?
We will be in the BVIs for a few more days before we go across to the American Virgin Islands. Andrew and I haven't been there before and so we are all looking forward to the adventure.

Love Candy and Deb xxx.

At 5:01 PM4/12/2013 (utc) our position was 18°26.49'N 064°45.62'W

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