From Christmas Cove to Nanny Cay

andromeda of plymouth
Susan and Andrew Wilson
Tue 29 Apr 2014 17:56
Christmas Cove was recommended by several of our boaty friends and a good recommendation it was too, we really enjoyed the small un-crowded bay but then of course we have to keep moving. Having watched the tide for a couple of days we worked out that it would be good to head back up to St. John quite early before there was 4 knots against us and so that is what we did. We moored in Caneel bay again, but this time at the other end and thinking we had to clear out of the US islands we decided we would make a day out of it and caught a ferry across to Red Hook to spend another enjoyable day ashore. It was nice to arrive on a big boat for a change and after wandering around we went to lunch in Senor Frogs, where the lobster bisque was superb and the Pina Colada very tasty, it’s a good job Susan had only the one. Arriving back in Cruz we walked to the Immigrations office only to be told there was no need to clear out, we could just go when we liked......good news for us as there were several other bays we liked the look of but we didn’t have the time to go and come back again.


Water Melon bay was our final stop in the US islands and another delightful place, the buoys are well spread out and we enjoyed some snorkelling in the crystal waters as well as watching all the folk coming and going. You can only get to the bay via the water or a longish walk, but that didn’t put people off and there was a constant stream of people going along the shore to enjoy the sea.


Now for the British Virgin Islands, our original plan was to head to Soper’s Hole but a wind shift decided for us and instead we motored up to St. Thomas Bay on Virgin Gorda to clear into the islands, and thankfully we didn’t need any clearance papers from the US ones. It was rather nerve racking watching Andrew go off to the authorities wondering whether he would be castigated for not having cleared out, but apart from a wry smile there was no other comment and so a big sigh of relief was had by us both. We had a bit of an interesting night though as due to a wind shift we ended up much nearer one of the channel markers than we would have liked and were glad when first light arrived so we could set off for North Sound and Bitter End where we were hoping to catch up with some friends.


Bitter End is a very popular anchorage crowded with many moorings packed close together and at first we thought we were too early to find a vacant one, then after going back and forth we spotted one, just as our friends came out on the deck of their boat, on the very next buoy, and so we moored right next to Rocking Horse. Marilyn and Martin (the guys who have the Andromeda recipe) had arrived late the previous day and were going to provision and then move further up the bay, we settled down for a couple of hours sleep after our buoy watching the previous night and then moved up the bay too, and amazingly managed to get a buoy right next to Rocking Horse again. That first day the anchorage was completely full, then with it being near the weekend and change-over day it emptied out quite nicely. We had sundowners on Saba Rock with Marilyn and Martin both evenings and we were given that all important recipe for the Andromeda cocktail. We also saw the tarpon fish that live off the dock being fed, these fish were huge, the biggest we have seen anywhere so far, and no wonder with the amount of food they were given. We had a long walk round the bay to explore Birras Creek and take refreshment at the Fat Virgin Cafe, before heading over to Saba Rock and those sundowners again – pain killers are their speciality.
Saying goodbye to Marilyn and Martin the following morning, we headed down the sound to Leverick Bay for laundry and provisions. We really liked Leverick Bay, though once again we had 30 knots of wind when we were catching the buoy. Laundry and food shopping done we enjoyed a delightful lunch and a dip in the sea before heading back on board for another windy night. Leverick is a very pretty place with its own red telephone box (minus door and phone) on the main dock – a little bit of England.


The sail to Trellis Bay at the north end of Tortola took a couple of hours and we were back once again into a much more crowded mooring field. Going ashore was a real treat though with all the craft workshops to visit, there were many lovely things to tempt people with a house, probably a good job that we don’t have one. Walking along the gorgeous beach we saw several conch and bright red starfish, and had a really quiet evening for a welcome change.


Our time in the Caribbean is drawing to a close now and we had two more stops to make, first of all a lovely sail across to Cooper Island for a couple of nights in this little anchorage, swimming and snorkelling and enjoying the shore-side shops where for the first time we were tempted into buying a piece of art. Postcards were written and deposited in the little English red mail box, not sure when they will arrive though.


And so now to Great Harbour, Peter Island where as it happened we enjoyed the best snorkelling we have had anywhere so far in the Caribbean. Wednesday we thought things couldn’t get any better after the lovely sight of so many fish on the coral including an enormous shoal of small fish, there must have been several millions of them, swimming over the reef and around us but on our last full day after had we moved to different mooring (and in hardly any wind at all) we went out again and were treated to the sight of a hawksbill turtle swimming slowly below us, sedately grazing as he went. Brilliant!


Friday morning we set off for Nanny Cay and taking a roundabout route so we could have a play with our big ORANGE (well it had to be...thank you Clint) sail, great fun and we are hoping to use it again very soon. But all too soon it was time to head into the marina and the hustle and bustle of getting ready for our next big adventure.

Photos are from US Virgin Islands.


More in due course

Andrew and Susan,

Andromeda of Plymouth

Nanny Cay,
Tortola,
British Virgin Islands
West Indies
Caribbean

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