Thursday 26 March 2015

 

It’s just over a mile to Sandy Cay where we anchored behind the charter boats tied to mooring buoys.  There was quite a ground swell and we had an anxious moment when a catamaran came in and anchored quite close ahead of us.  His anchor was dragging and they were falling back on to us and the skipper wasn’t looking behind him.  It was only when his wife pointed us out to him that he raised anchor and started again.  The second time was more successful and his anchor held although they were still far too close to us for comfort.  We certainly weren’t going to be able to leave until he does as his boat was floating over our anchor.

 

Once everything was settled we ventured ashore in the dinghy leaping out quickly as soon as we touched sand before the waves washed us aside.  After dragging the dinghy up the lovely sandy beach we took a stroll around this small island.  It was bought by one of the Rockefellers years ago to ensure that nothing was built on it.  He gave it to the BVI National Trust a few years ago and hopefully it will be maintained as it is.

 

 

The view from the beach to the anchorage:-

 

 

 

 

To the south looking towards Tortola:-

 

 

 

 

and to the north with Jost van Dyke and Little Jost van Dyke in the background:-

 

 

 

 

The island is bigger than we thought, about 13 acres according to a sign in the undergrowth.  There is a pathway in the bushy centre and a few palms.  It doesn’t take long to go around the whole thing but it’s very peaceful.

 

Looking out to the boats at anchor, we are lying beyond and between two catamarans:-

 

 

 

 

The swim in the turquoise sea was lovely although Lin wasn’t entirely impressed with it’s temperature.  Back to the boat for lunch and as the sea was very rolly we left soon afterwards to go 3 miles to Cane Garden Bay, one the the few viable anchorages on the north side of Tortola.

 

It’s a shame we don’t have the sea conditions to stay a little longer but we are so pleased to be back here in our own boat, 22 years after our first visit on the last Thursday of our honeymoon.

 

As we raised anchor we saw that the bow roller over which the anchor chain runs had been damaged.  White gelcoat was showing on this and the nearby bowsprit so something has given us a wack and pulled the stainless steel jaw to one side whilst we were ashore.

 

 

The steel plate off to the right should be parallel with the rest of the structure and moving this will have taken quite some force.  The colour of the sea is good though :-

 

 

 

 

Cane Garden Bay is accessed through a pass in the reef and is much as we remembered it.  A similar number of mooring buoys and plenty of room to anchor clear of them.

 

 

The hills around Cane Garden Bay:-

 

 

 

 

We will go ashore tomorrow to see what’s changed.