British Virgin Islands

We did another overnight sail which wasn’t great at all. There wasn’t enough wind which meant we were flogging a lot of the time, and the sheet from the jib kept hitting the deck. Down below the sounds are magnified and the jib sheet sounded like a cracker every time it slammed down. Laura slept peacefully in her old cabin while Andrew and I kept watch or tried to sleep. But we got to the BVIs eventually! And boy was it worth it. 

Even though the trip itself wasn't great, the sunrise and sunset were fantastic. And it was lovely to see all the stars in the night sky again.

Beautiful sunset at sea

Checking in to the country certainly was more complicated and more expensive than the French islands. Apparently only the skippers are allowed ashore to check in, so Laura and I stayed on the boat cleaning up and sorting the boat out. There were three different departments Andrew had to check in with and it cost $83 US. Once we were legally in the country complete with a stamp in our passports, we left Thomas Bay and went on to Long Beach on Virgin Gorda.

Wilson

Laura on the SUP

Viento del Mar

Claire and I went for a hike with Brandon, West and Linda. I wore shoes this time, thank goodness as it was quite rocky with cactus plants ready to spear any naked toes.

Thanks for the pic Brandon

Brandon headed off over the ridge saying he would take a photo of the boats. Next thing we hear sliding. We thought it was tickets for him but he managed not to fall over the edge and even took a great pic of Calypso! Thanks Brandon.

Who knows how a life jacket ended up way up here in the tree!

Brandon had to get to Nassau in The Bahamas before the end of January. There was a good weather window which he decided to take advantage of. After an evening of farewell drinks on his boat, he and his crew left the following morning and headed west.

Andrew, Brandon and Laura

Jim, Linda and Claire

Linda, Claire and West

We went for a walk up a long steep road. Brandon had told us that it was about 2km and it wasn't too steep. Well, he got the distance right, and it wasn't too steep, it was just a very, very long uphill road. We eventually made it to the top to find the views were amazing.

Obligatory post long walk beer

She made it! And she is still smiling!!

The wind was howling

Long steep hill

Richard Branson's island, Necker, is out there

After a few days of blissful blue water and peace and quiet, we went back to Thomas Bay with the idea to anchor off The Baths to be close enough to get there early in the morning. The place where we wanted to anchor was quite full with charter boats and the spaces left to anchor were rocky so we went back to Thomas Bay. Andrew, Laura and I went ashore for a walk and to find the supermarket. Andrew set off confidently in one direction. After a kilometer or so I looked at google maps and couldn't see any shops nearby. I hailed Andrew who was striding ahead and relayed this information. He had a look at his phone and said that it was just around the corner. We ended up doing a big loop, up hills and past houses before arriving back where we started. The shop was on the other side of town. Well, not only did we get a bit of exercise but we also got to see the residential part of town. Bonus!

This was another area that got hit by Hurricane Irma in 2017. As in the other islands we have visited, many of the houses and buildings have been restored, but there are some that still need work.

Church at the top of the hill

School

A common sight

A common problem on the islands seems to be that they are unsure of what to do with cars that are wrecked. Wherever we have been we have seen cars abandoned on the side of the road, left to rust and become a garden for weeds and storage for junk.

The other observation that was quite weird is that the cars are all left-hand drive, and they drive on the left side of the road. Think about that one for a second. It would take some getting used to.

Bus/taxi

Laura on the other side of the well

Sib's Cafe

It's actually Sips Cafe, but it looks like Sib's Cafe

Sign on the church fence

Recycling bins - at last!

Obligatory post unexpected long walk beer

Supermarket over the road

Cheers

The following morning we got up early wanting to get a head start on the tourists who visit the Baths in their droves. We walked the 3 kilometers and watched, our hearts dropping, as bus  after bus with loads of people drove past us. We dreaded the queue once we got there.

The shops along the road are more like little huts than buildings. The funniest thing we saw was an eyelash vending machine. I wish I had taken a photograph of it.

Shops

Lending Library!

Soccer field

The queue when we got to the entrance was ridiculous. We went to the ticket booth and purchased our tickets thinking we would have to stand at the back of the line to get in. Nope, the lady at the counter pointed in the opposite direction and said we could go that way - no queue. It was amazing. We walked around for a good half an hour before we noticed it getting busier. 

The best view

Near where we wanted to anchor

Caught! A rare pic of Claire

Knee deep in water

Rock Rabbit Jim

A tight squeeze

While we were exploring it started to rain and didn't stop for hours. We all got soaked but it was okay as we were walking through knee deep water most of the time anyway and it really wasn't cold. We passed a few tourists on the way out and some were wondering if it was worth going in the rain. After paying for your ticket it was a no-brainer. We must have looked really odd as we highly recommended it, whilst soaked to the skin with no rain jackets at all!

Lagging behind as always

Entrance to Devil's Bay

Amazing rock formations

The rain stopped and the rainbow filled the sky

A wonderful day exploring

After a morning of exploring in the rain we walked back to the dinghy dock. We were mostly dry by the time we got back to the boat. We left Thomas Bay and sailed across to Lee Bay on Great Camanoe Island where we spent a few days enjoying the blue water.

In the next installment I will continue with our adventures in the British Virgin Islands.

Thanks for reading!