Long Bay, Tortola.
Stream
Darrell Jackson and Sarah Barnes
Sun 16 Feb 2014 20:50
Those of you who have been following our route on the Google Map will realise that our route around the BVI has been meticulously planned and that the fact that it looks more like a macrame pattern, or worse still, a poor attempt at a cat's cradle is just a coincidence. However our return to Trellis Bay was to attend the Full Moon Party and I have not used that location, but the location of another one of our snorkelling venues.
We left Fat Hogs Bay early Thursday morning after an uneventful night. We motored the short distance as it was a beat to windward and it also gave us a chance to recharge the batteries and make some water. It took just over an hour and we easily picked up a buoy in Trellis Bay. Our early arrival meant we could do some much needed domestic chores. Why is stainless steel called "stainless steel"? It rusts! So it was polishing time, we carried out a comparison between two products. Each taking one side of the boat. Darrell on the starboard side used Spotless Stainless; "Makes stainless steel sparkle!" And Sarah on the port side used Starclean: "Superior shine with no buffing!" Results of the exercise will be revealed later when their full performance can be assessed, as if you are really bothered. (However, in the short term it does look like Sarah is the perfectionist when it comes to polishing.) (In Sarah's opinion!) It was definitely hot work.
So as a reward for all our efforts, we took a short ride in the dinghy around to Long Bay. This is a bay where David and Jane said: "Rays guaranteed!" Unfortunately, it was obviously they had had the day off as we didn't see any. We have tried to decide which is our best snorkelling venue and failed, as each one has had its unique merits and highlights. Long Bay was very different from the others as it is a sandy bay with a coral floor leading up to the beach. This is a beach where turtles lay their eggs in April and is pristine. The swim over the coral in most areas was very shallow, but it had the peculiarity of significant temperature changes irrespective of depth or substrate, in small areas. It was also unusual snorkelling to the sound of aircraft landing and taking off at the adjacent runway.
The significant fish sighting was the Pacific Lionfish, which is the invasive species we mentioned when we were on Anguilla. It was at the bottom of a rock pillar about 3 metres below the surface. It was unfazed when Darrell dived down and wafted water at it, not recommended in the literature read later, the guidance is to back away slowly. It was a maroon red, with white and black vertical stripes around the body and fins. About 30cm long, with elegant dorsal, anal and pelvic fins, which all have venomous spines at the tips. A striking sight. The venom causes acute pain and can cause vomiting, seizures, chills and cramps. If left untreated abdominal pain and paralysis may occur along with respiratory and heart complications. This would have seriously put a dampner on our adventures if I had been stung.
We saw a fine array of fish swimming around the rocks and coral. Princess angelfish with their dramatic eye markings were evident. The squirrel fish were not hiding in the holes but swimming contentedly. Darrel saw a strange triangular fish in cross section, but square from the side. We think we have identified it as a smooth trunkfish from our hunt through the books. There were butterfly fish, parrot fish and the blennies in the sand. So a good spotters bay. But no rays unfortunately.
The snorkel also had the desired effect of cooling us down. So it was back to the shiny boat for a sundowner. At least she was easy to find as she glinted in the last sunlight of the day, as the bay was now full of boats that had come for the evenings party.