Posted by Ed
(Not to be confused with college basketball)
As I write this, the “Final Four” is only a few days away! The “Final Four” relates to the remaining four weeks of our winter sojourn.
We departed New England November first to begin the journey south for our winter away for Liz and I to enjoy the cruising life in the Caribbean. The delivery trip was uneventful with only a few minor repairs to attend too along the way and upon arrival in Antigua. As of today, the ongoing repairs have also been minimal with the rebuilding of the hydraulic backstay and the replacement of the engine’s fresh water pump which only caused a few days delay in our laid back schedule.
Since February, which was “hump month”, meaning we were half way through our Caribbean sailing trip, it’s hard not to think about the count-down to the final weeks of sailing. Soon we’ll be leaving this gorgeous cruising ground and preparing for the voyage back to New England.
With very positive thoughts of how wonderful the cruising has been the great places we have anchored and spent time and the warmth and camaraderie of like minded sailors, helps to keep us “in the moment”. To exciting to awaken every day to the warm sun peering through the hatches, puffy fair weather clouds in the sky and the knowledge that each new day is a new adventure in itself. With more than a tear in our eyes, it truly is about the journey!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
Marina Cay, Tortola
Posted by Liz
It was 11 years ago that Ed and I tried to get here when I was sailing with him aboard Gypsea, April 1999. But at that time, we had engine trouble, and had to sail over to Roadtown for repairs, so we never made it.
But here we are and it's a jewel of a place - just a teensie, weensie little island which was developed in the late 1930's by a young couple from Georgia - Robb and Rhodie White. They schlepped all of of the materials needed to build their home from Roadtown, Tortola, back and forth - in their 19 foot skiff.
This is at a time in the BVI's when the islands were impovershed. They left their life of luxury to develop this beautiful plot of land and live here. Robb White was a struggling writer, and ended up writing a book about their adventure, called "Our Virgin Island" which was later turned into a movie (of a different title than the book - can't remember the name) in the 1970's starring Sidney Portier and John Cassavetes.
Their orginial house still stands on the property - small and not luxurious - but with views to die for.
We can see why they came here!
It was 11 years ago that Ed and I tried to get here when I was sailing with him aboard Gypsea, April 1999. But at that time, we had engine trouble, and had to sail over to Roadtown for repairs, so we never made it.
But here we are and it's a jewel of a place - just a teensie, weensie little island which was developed in the late 1930's by a young couple from Georgia - Robb and Rhodie White. They schlepped all of of the materials needed to build their home from Roadtown, Tortola, back and forth - in their 19 foot skiff.
This is at a time in the BVI's when the islands were impovershed. They left their life of luxury to develop this beautiful plot of land and live here. Robb White was a struggling writer, and ended up writing a book about their adventure, called "Our Virgin Island" which was later turned into a movie (of a different title than the book - can't remember the name) in the 1970's starring Sidney Portier and John Cassavetes.
Their orginial house still stands on the property - small and not luxurious - but with views to die for.
We can see why they came here!
The Baths, Virgin Gorda
Posted by Liz
We were on a mooring in Spanishtown, Virgin Gorda for a couple of nights - enought to do laundry one afternoon and then take a 10 minute taxi ride the next day over to The Bath's.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgin_Gorda
How cool. I was here about 15 years ago (or more) and it's still as magical. Tons of huge boulders that have been around for millions of years, creating little pools of waist-deep water that you can swim around in, and hike over to Devils Bay.
I snorkeled from the Baths around to Devils Bay - not much in the way of interesting sea life or coral - but it was still fun to swim with the little fishes. Ed hiked over the rocks while I snorkeled.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Bitter End, Virgin Gorda
Posted by Liz
It's beautiful here - glimmering blue water and bright blue skies with breezes to cool us. As Ed exclaimed this morning, you come up on deck from down below, and see the beauty and it's like "being born".
The other night I was sleeping in the V-berth which gets a ton of breeze with our wind scoop up there - and awoke in the middle of the night, looking up through the hatch, I saw a gazillion stars. The constellations kept revolving and changing as the boat direction changed - and I then realized why babies in cribs have such a fascination with Mobiles hanging over their heads. This was my own mobile - and I was mesmerized by it!
There are a bunch of fellow Swan's here for the Club Swan Regatta and that alone has been quite a sight to see.
The Bitter End is a neat resort, and being here we have access to their pool, some little hikes (if we can get motivated to get moving earlier in the day!), and some snorkeling nearby on the reefs. It's quiet and comfortable and gorgeous, so we're going to stay for a few more days!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
In the BVI's - Memories and Living in the Moment
Posted by Liz
At first, we were a little bummed to be heading to the BVI's (Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, Virgin Gorda, Cooper Island, Norman Island and others) and the USVI's (St. John will probably be our only stop there) because it meant that we're closing in on the end of what has been a most WONDERFUL winter and adventure together.
But now that we're back here, it's bringing us back to the time of our original courtship and falling in love stage 11 years ago or so. My first experience cruising in the islands was here in Tortola in April 1999 - shortly after I had met Ed (December 1998). It was a magical week in many ways - the beauty and exhilaration of sailing (while at the helm then, as a novice, I got our boat speed up to 9.3, probably with the help of Ed's excellent sail trim and perfect wind too), the warm and blue waters, and the magic that started happening for us personally.
We're here in Road Harbour, Tortola for a day or so to get laundry done and work with an excellent machinist, to possibly recreate a new bimini structure and perhaps work on some other projects for us while we're cruising in this area for the next 6 weeks.
From here, we're heading up to the Bitter End, Virgin Gorda - where "Club Swan" is having their annual Caribbean cruising regatta and festivities - where fellow Swan owners gather to enjoy time together.
We'll just spend the next 6 weeks cruising around these great islands - small, beautiful achorages with great restaurants and nightlife (if we can ever stay up past 9pm!). All of the islands are within a few hours sailing distance from each other, so you can leave one place at 8am and be somewhere else in time to drop the hook, snorkel and have lunch and a nap!
We're going to try to Live in the Moment and cherish every minute!
At first, we were a little bummed to be heading to the BVI's (Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, Virgin Gorda, Cooper Island, Norman Island and others) and the USVI's (St. John will probably be our only stop there) because it meant that we're closing in on the end of what has been a most WONDERFUL winter and adventure together.
But now that we're back here, it's bringing us back to the time of our original courtship and falling in love stage 11 years ago or so. My first experience cruising in the islands was here in Tortola in April 1999 - shortly after I had met Ed (December 1998). It was a magical week in many ways - the beauty and exhilaration of sailing (while at the helm then, as a novice, I got our boat speed up to 9.3, probably with the help of Ed's excellent sail trim and perfect wind too), the warm and blue waters, and the magic that started happening for us personally.
We're here in Road Harbour, Tortola for a day or so to get laundry done and work with an excellent machinist, to possibly recreate a new bimini structure and perhaps work on some other projects for us while we're cruising in this area for the next 6 weeks.
From here, we're heading up to the Bitter End, Virgin Gorda - where "Club Swan" is having their annual Caribbean cruising regatta and festivities - where fellow Swan owners gather to enjoy time together.
We'll just spend the next 6 weeks cruising around these great islands - small, beautiful achorages with great restaurants and nightlife (if we can ever stay up past 9pm!). All of the islands are within a few hours sailing distance from each other, so you can leave one place at 8am and be somewhere else in time to drop the hook, snorkel and have lunch and a nap!
We're going to try to Live in the Moment and cherish every minute!
Second Night Watch...Alone
Posted by Ed
Liz is becoming very experienced at night sailing since she was on watch again, alone at night for the second time during this winter sojourn. Safety harnesses on, spare safety whistles around our necks on a lanyard and two-way radios to communicate to the off watch person resting in his/her bunk below.
The passage from St Martin to the BVI’s is about 90 miles. We left St Martin at 6:00 PM heading Northwest to the British Virgin Islands. This overnight sail was a little different since it was the time of a “New Moon”, meaning there is not any moon visible at all but the stars and their constellations were absolutely spectacular and somewhat lighting the way.
The path between St. Martin and the BVI’s was very busy with cruise ship traffic, commercial boats as well as pleasure boats like Gypsea. Liz has become very skilled at recognizing the light schemes of the other vessels and determining their direction, even before searching and tracking the night traffic via radar. I’m very comfortable with Liz on watch alone at night and her traffic separation skills are excellent. We arrived in the BVI’s in the early morning.
Liz is becoming very experienced at night sailing since she was on watch again, alone at night for the second time during this winter sojourn. Safety harnesses on, spare safety whistles around our necks on a lanyard and two-way radios to communicate to the off watch person resting in his/her bunk below.
The passage from St Martin to the BVI’s is about 90 miles. We left St Martin at 6:00 PM heading Northwest to the British Virgin Islands. This overnight sail was a little different since it was the time of a “New Moon”, meaning there is not any moon visible at all but the stars and their constellations were absolutely spectacular and somewhat lighting the way.
The path between St. Martin and the BVI’s was very busy with cruise ship traffic, commercial boats as well as pleasure boats like Gypsea. Liz has become very skilled at recognizing the light schemes of the other vessels and determining their direction, even before searching and tracking the night traffic via radar. I’m very comfortable with Liz on watch alone at night and her traffic separation skills are excellent. We arrived in the BVI’s in the early morning.
On Watch at Night - Alone
Posted by Ed
The sail from Antigua to St Barths, is about 75 miles and to ensure a daytime landfall we occasionally sail through the night. The wind was predicted to be about 15 knots from the Southeast and our course to St. Baths was northeast so an overnight downwind leg was in store.
We had an early dinner and were asleep around 8:00 PM to get rested for the overnight sail. Liz has sailed through the night before on a delivery from Bermuda to Boston but this time it’s a little different, she will be on watch ALONE.
It was nearly a full moon when we departed Five Islands Antigua at midnight and with great visibility we motored slowly to get through the shallower banks to deeper water. We both were “on watch” until one of us seemed more tired than the other, so Ed took the first off watch and went below for a little sleep. After a few hours of rest Ed was ready to take over the watch and Liz was free to go below and rest.
While on watch and between using the radar and Liz’s keen senses, Liz spotted a cruise ship about 10 miles ahead and right on our course line. As we drew near, we called the ship on the VHF radio to confirm our/their intentions. The Sovereign of the Sea was enroute from St. Martin to St John Antigua and we would both be on reciprocal courses and agreed to pass each other starboard to starboard with a mile and a half distance between us. The radio operator from the cruise ship was willing to chat for awhile which makes the night passage a little more interesting.
We enjoyed the night sail under a full moon and arrived in St. Barths at 2:00 in the afternoon dropped the anchor and we both looked forward to the evening’s dinner and early to bed.
The sail from Antigua to St Barths, is about 75 miles and to ensure a daytime landfall we occasionally sail through the night. The wind was predicted to be about 15 knots from the Southeast and our course to St. Baths was northeast so an overnight downwind leg was in store.
We had an early dinner and were asleep around 8:00 PM to get rested for the overnight sail. Liz has sailed through the night before on a delivery from Bermuda to Boston but this time it’s a little different, she will be on watch ALONE.
It was nearly a full moon when we departed Five Islands Antigua at midnight and with great visibility we motored slowly to get through the shallower banks to deeper water. We both were “on watch” until one of us seemed more tired than the other, so Ed took the first off watch and went below for a little sleep. After a few hours of rest Ed was ready to take over the watch and Liz was free to go below and rest.
While on watch and between using the radar and Liz’s keen senses, Liz spotted a cruise ship about 10 miles ahead and right on our course line. As we drew near, we called the ship on the VHF radio to confirm our/their intentions. The Sovereign of the Sea was enroute from St. Martin to St John Antigua and we would both be on reciprocal courses and agreed to pass each other starboard to starboard with a mile and a half distance between us. The radio operator from the cruise ship was willing to chat for awhile which makes the night passage a little more interesting.
We enjoyed the night sail under a full moon and arrived in St. Barths at 2:00 in the afternoon dropped the anchor and we both looked forward to the evening’s dinner and early to bed.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Things that go "bump" in the night
Posted by Liz
2am - Gustravia Harbor - St. Barth's
We had a "bump" with another boat in the anchorage! At 2am we awoke to the "bump" and leaped out of our bunks up on deck - indeed, the 51 ft catamaran stern was perpendicular to our mid-ship. Ed was fending off - I ran down below to get him the boat hook. I repositioned our fenders, started the engine, and when the time was right, Ed came back to the helm and I pulled up the anchor with the electric windlass. Bear in mind, the anchorage was VERY tight with tons of boats and we had very limited maneuverability. The adrenalin was pumping for sure. The saving grace was that the winds were very light and again, we had the moonlight, thank God - which helped us out for sure.
Once we pulled up the anchor, we motored into the big open channel, and just decided to drop the hook there til morning. We took turns doing "anchor watch". The two of us stayed up together til about 4am, then Ed slept for a while, and then I slept til 7. Anchor watch was essential because of A) potential ship traffic in the channel, and B) the current was swinging us in a completely different direction than the wind, and we were afraid the anchor would drag under the boat and pull on the keel, rudder and/or prop, which could be very damaging.
The boat finally settled into the right position with respect to where the anchor laid, so we were really just more concerned about channel/ship traffic at that point. All in all, the great part about this experience was that Ed and I worked totally in sync and efficiently with each other - executing all the important steps together - and it made us feel really good about our teamwork!
At 7am, we departed Gustavia and went 3 miles around to the Northwest corner of the island to a spectacular anchorage - Columbier - where we stayed for about 5 nights. It has some free moorings (we took one) and there are only like 30 boats in here. Private, beautiful beach, and calm anchorage for the most part.
The water is SOOOOO blue - you can see clearly down to the bottom from the 22 feet that we're anchored in. I've been snorkeling like crazy - and each time see many Manta Rays, Sea Turtles, Starfish and YES, SHARKS! EEEK! Black tipped reef sharks -smaller guys about 4 ft in length and supposedly harmless, unless agitated! That was a little freaky at first, but now I'm more calm (but on guard) when I see them.
Overnight to St. Barth's
Posted by Liz
Hope that Spring feels like it's coming around the bend for you - but for us, the notion of spring means that our journey is starting to come to an end.... boo-hoo in a big way!
We're currently in St. Barth's, where we honeymooned 10 years ago (!). We did a 12 hour sail, which meant six hours of night sailing (we left at Midnight) - from Antigua, where I had did my first night watch, alone! I've been on watch through the night previously when I sailed from Bermuda to Boston back in 2003, but this time, I was on my own. I was a bit nervous, mostly about ship traffic - but there were only four boats - one big cruise ship, a couple of sailboats and a fishing boat. Ed thought that was a lot of traffic, but it seemed OK to me - he said sometimes they can go for days without seeing a boat, but this is a busy route.
As it turns out, I had nothing to be nervous about. It was very light wind from behind us, so we motored the whole way and I didn't have sail changes or tweaking to contend with. Also, I could read the ships lights (red light on port/left, green light on starboard/right and white running lights or stern lights) and could see them on our radar screen at the helm, so I was able to detect which direction they were moving and how far away they were from us. If it would appear that there would be a close call, I would have had to radio them on Channel 16 of the VHF radio and let them know of our position and make sure we had a plan on how to pass each other. We actually did this procedure with the big cruise ship, which was pretty interesting.
It was pretty exhilarating, actually, because the moon was just about full and lit the way for us - so it wasn't so inky black out (although the beauty of that would be the star-gazing and shooting stars!). It was very energizing, and even Chippy was totally psyched and energized - - he has never been "allowed" to stay out all night and play, so this was a new adventure for him and he was like a little kid - so excited that he couldn't sleep - and the poor thing was just such a tired lump after hours of being awake, that reluctantly he fell asleep in our arms while we were still underway in the late morning hours.
When we got to St. Barth's, we anchored in Gustavia harbor, thinking that we'd spend some time doing a gastronomic tour of the town - fabulous restaurants - however, it was SO lumpy and bouncy because of the wind and the big sea swells coming in. Very uncomfortable - you almost felt sea sick while at anchor!
Also, with the US dollar being what it is compared to the Euro, St. Barth's is more expensive than ever. One night, we went out to a casual place called Le Bistro, on the harbor, and had salads, pizza and iced teas - - $100 US. Yikes - that certainly doesn't fit into our sailor's budget!
Monday, March 1, 2010
Five Islands, Antigua
Posted by Liz
We made our way yesterday from Falmouth Antigua to Five Islands (3 hours) on the west coast - for a straight shot out and good jump off point, as we head out to St. Barth's. We plan to leave tonight at midnight, under the light of the glorious full moon. It's 75 miles, so it should take us about 12 hours, getting us into Gustavia Harbor around Noon on Tuesday.
Five Islands is absolutely gorgeous - serene and the water is the bluest of blue - turquoise. We're anchored in Hermitage Bay, with the exclusive Hermitage Bay resort on shore. (about 30 villas, very private and quiet).
Today, they provided us a very generous service. We needed to get to shore and get around to Jolly Harbor to check out with customs, and also do some provisioning at the excellent "Epicurean" supermarket. However, the northerly swells, causing a surge onto the beach, made pulling our dinghy ashore a bit "tenuous" (at best) and we were wondering what to do.
Yesterday afternoon, I had seen a large tender depart from the hotel anchorage, and I was wondering if perhaps they might meet us at our boat and take us over to Jolly. I called up and asked, and said of course, we would compensate them for their service - and within 5 minutes, out came a super personable lad named Michael. He not only took us over there (giving us a fun little joyride as well) but he waited while Ed went to customs and I did the shopping. Lovely person - and very generous of the hotel to lend us his services - so we'd like to recommend that if you ever are in need of a romantic get-away, to please contact the Hermitage Hotel. (268)562-5500.
As for our overnight sail tonight...It won't be my first (I sailed back from Bermuda to Boston - five days - after the Marion to Bermuda Race one year), but it WILL be my first night sail where I'm on watch alone.... EEK. I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't a bit nervous. But Ed will be down below and if I need him, I know where to find him!
Cheers for now!
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