St Barths and Virgin Gorda

Arion's West Indian Adventure
Hermione & Douglas Pattison
Wed 16 Mar 2016 19:28
We arrived in St Barths in thick rainy fog and drizzle. Yuck!! It is the first time we have all had to wear our waterproofs :-(
The next morning however was beautiful sunshine so we spent the day on Shell beach which, you have guessed it, is chocker with amazing shells. It is the start of the Barths Bucket race week so there are many big and beautiful yachts in and around the main harbour. The water here is so clear so we did a lot of swimming off the boat. Brother-in - Law PK is in town and we really enjoyed seeing him that morning and hearing all of his news!! We would have liked to have spent more time here as it is a beautiful place. I also enjoy watching how the other half live!! We saw a lot of bling, and a lot of facelifts…… and women doing lots of wafting around in floaty beachwear. I am not sure what they thought of us stumping around town in crocks and the children with their extremely scruffy clothes!!

The afternoon was spent on another lovely beach. Arthur and I managed to find a secret path over and around the rocks, so went on a mini adventure which he loved. He trotted the whole way!! We left at 6pm after an early supper and the children cosy down below in their PJ’s. This is our first night passage since being out here. the sunset was spectacular and at about 10pm, I went down below for some sleep leaving Douglas at the helm. We swapped over at 3am, and I was on watch until 7am. When we reached the Necker passage we decided to take the short cut through the coral heads, bringing you in at Saba rock. We knew it was possible but had to be very careful. It was a case of weaving around the shallow bits and sticking to the sandy bits. I was on the foredeck with the best visibility. Douglas was sailing ‘blind’ and had to trust my directions. I am pleased to say that we did not touch the bottom once but I am certain that at times we must have only had centimetres below the keel!! The rest of the day Douglas and I were both a bit tired so we spent our time on the beach at the Bitter End Yacht Club. In the evening it was over to Saba Rock to watch the Turpin feeding ( they are huge fish, but do not have teeth) and then back for supper and an early night.

Today we dinghied round to Eustacia Island, and the reef beside it and all managed to go snorkelling. We then found a deserted beach on the Northern side of Prickly Pear Island where the children played so happily and we met a lovely Italian couple who we are going to meet for a drink later. The water here is magical and I know that Douglas in particular is really excited to be back in the BVI.