Position 31.01.2014 Soper's Hole, Tortolla
Stream
Darrell Jackson and Sarah Barnes
Tue 4 Feb 2014 13:28
31st January
Friday, our early start was even earlier than we planned due to the mooring buoy wrapping itself around the keel. The banging of the buoy against the hull had caused some disturbance during the night, but we all soon went back to sleep. However,early in the morning, the grinding of mooring lines round the keel was too much for Sarah, so Darrell got up to investigate and was soon joined by all the crew. The boat refused to complete the full 360 degrees turn required to free the mooring buoy from the keel, without intervention, so releasing one mooring rope eventually kick started the unwinding.
With everyone up we headed off to Sandy Cay to pick up one of the few buoys and have breakfast, which turned out to be a very rolley affair. Sandy Cay had tantalised us the previous day, but had been invaded by a flotilla. So our early start meant we were the first to arrive and had our pick of the buoys, so we were as close as possible to the beach. A wet dinghy ride and we were on our perfect desert island, ready to explore. Donated to the national park by Laurence Rockefeller there is an interesting walk around it. It is not flat as I had supposed, as there is a very gentle climb and looking over the other side cliffs down to the sea. Darrell decided it would benefit from a leaflet explaining to visitors the different flora and fauna, ever the teachers! It was interesting getting the dinghy back into the surf, in fact Dave decided he would rather swim back, after pushing us off from the beach, and he managed to keep his cap dry. All a little damper we set sail for Soper's Hole back on Tortola. Much to Sarah's relief as she was starting to feel decidedly green with the motion of the boat.
Soper's Hole is a harbour,with mooring buoys and some marinas. It is very busy and we had to negotiate a lot of boats to find a buoy, which was difficult as other yachts were in what seems to be a holding pattern as they wait for one to be freed up. It is busy as it is one of the main checking in and out places for customs and immigration in Tortola. We were lucky to find one in amongst the private buoys just off the beach at the head of the harbour, which turned out to be a pleasant and quiet spot for the night.
The buildings are in the colonial style and very brightly painted in pastel colours, giving it a pleasant feel. It is full of yachties and nice shops to explore, as well as the necessary bars. It meant we could stock up on provisions and have a gentle wander to take in the atmosphere.
We found a restaurant with space for our evening meal. But the highlight was the dinghy ride back to the boat. As we left the marina dinghy dock, the lights shining into the water meant we could see our first shark of the trip, gently swimming under the dinghy, ignoring us.