Virgin Gorda - 11 April

Dearloves
Thu 13 Apr 2006 13:28
After a rather noisy night with bullets of wind coming from all directions and the anchor chain grinding across the rocky seabed, at Guana Island, we headed for Trellis Bay nearby, where we put Olympe on a mooring.  We then all headed off on Keoma, for a sail to the Baths at the southern tip of Virgin Gorda.
 
Jon at the helm
 
Alice and Mel
 
It was only five miles to the Baths and the wind direction made it a beat.  We were doing 7.5 knots through the water in around 13 knots of true wind, so arrived in no time.
 
The Baths is a collection of very large boulders, created by a volcanic eruption millions of years ago.  The granite boulders were expelled by the volcano, along with plenty of lava.  The lava proved a softer material and has been eroded by the forces of wind and water, so that only the rocks remain, and many of these have been shaped by the elements.  Some of the rocks had cracks down the middle.  Some had been carved by the waves so that they had bowl like indentations.  Some made noises as the water rushed in and out.  It was very dramatic.
 
View of some of the rocks, when approaching from the sea
 
We climbed over and under the boulders, which sit on a bed of sand and some have pools of water between.  The picture below gives some idea of the scale of the boulders.
 
Maddy and Pip between two boulders
 
The children loved climbing through the caves and wading in the rock pools.
 
 
Further on the caves and rock pools ended and there were two little bays where the waves rushed in and out with force.