Provo
Moonbeam
David and Lynn Wilkie
Sun 10 Apr 2011 15:01
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21.44.547N 72.17.318W
Nothing to do with the IRA but 'Provo' is the local
name for Providenciales, the main island of the Turks and Caicos
Group. www.turksandcaicostourism.com
www.turksandcaicostourism.com/virtual-slide-show.htmee
Friday morning was glorious and the wind had gone
more on the beam and Moonbeam was revelling in the conditions. We were a bit
disappointed that we had decided to bypass the anchorages in the SE corner of
the group but it was dark when we passed and I was concerned about the accuracy
of the charts for a night approach.
  Sunrise Friday morning
We made for the "ship channel" into Provo and it
was a strange that at 10 miles out we could see no evidence of the island but
the colour of the sea changed from dark blue to turquoise as the depth changed
abruptly from 600ft to 15ft!. Needless to say the 'ship' channel does not take
very large ships but small tankers and container ships bring everything from
Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
We anchored in Sapodilla Bay at 14.00hrs in only
8ft of water over glorious soft sand. We had taken 76 hours and sailed 430 miles
from Puerto Rico in quite favourable conditions. A short walk to Customs
had us checked in, a tidy up after the passage, a good steak and a long night's
sleep!. It amused us that the cost of checking in and out of the
British T&Cs for a four day stay is 38$US while a cruising license for
the USA for a year is only 30$US!
    We had an introduction to a Provo resident who's
late father lived in Kilmelford and he collected us from Moonbeam in his 25ft
launch and sped us to the east end of the island where he lives, threading our
way through coral outcrops showing dark in the water. While there are some
marinas here the entrances are tricky and often only possible at high water
which when there is only a 2ft rise and fall at neeps does not allow much room
for error! www.southsidemarina-tci.com
We entered a narrow 'canal' through the nature
reserve and moored at Peter's dock just below his house then headed off to the
North side of the island for lunch at Mango Reef ( www.mangoreef.com) which overlooks a
glorious beach.
  Entering nature
reserve
At Anchor Sapodilla Bay
Apparently 'Provo' did not get a wheeled vehicle
until 1964 and the roads only started being tarmaced in the mid 90s!
Now the place is popular not only as a holiday destination (
record bookings during the Florida oil spill) but as a home for wealthy folk as
there is no income tax! All tax comes from 30% import duty which when
added to freight costs makes everything expensive as we noted at the otherwise
excellent supermarket! There are some superb houses and very expensive resorts-
one especially apparently charges 10,000US $ a night and that includes a
personal chef and maid!
Apparently one guest was an Arab Sheikh who
travelled with his personal organ donor--- is that a definition of ultimate
wealth or just worrying a bit too much?
Peter ran us back to Moonbeam where we enjoyed a
beer before he had to head home - it is not really practical to travel by boat
in the dark!
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