Posted by Liz
We've been here since Sunday afternoon, and every day we've been busy all day - so busy that we haven't even been able to get naps in!
Have been stowing things away, getting my freezer and refrigerators organized, taking inventory of provisions on board and figuring out what needs to be bought, multiple trips to the market to provision (thank goodness it's a close dinghy ride!), cleaning stainless, doing a few little fixes/repairs, packing away warm summer clothes and bringing out some cold weather clothes for the delivery home. (Even 79 degrees feels cold to us now - we can't even imagine how 39 degree nights will feel out at sea!)
Ed headed into Roadtown this morning to get to the chandlery and poke around, while I'm here in a nice air-conditioned marina office to do emails.
Need to get some fuel and clean down below (chores for Friday), get some last minute provisions (perishables and meats), make a spinach lasagna so we have it for the first night at sea, and then have crew members arrive on Saturday afternoon. We plan on slipping the lines on Sunday morning after we check out of customs, probably by 9am.
Make sure to follow us on the way home - by clicking on "Where's Gypsea Now" in the top right section of the blog.
Cheers!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Final countdown - last week
Posted by Liz
Just left Jost Van Dyke, where we spent time in Great Harbour, home of "Foxy's", where we ran into the man, himself and had a nice chat. He's been a remarkable influence for the island - his personality and charisma have drawn sailors to his beach bar for years (42+) from all over the world. Wear a Foxy's t-shirt, and chances are you'll strike up conversation with someone who has been there and will regale you with their stories of late nights, music and libations.
While at Foxy's, we heard a wonderful musician, Mr. K.I. Nicholas - who plays amazing instrumental guitar, calling his music Caribbean Fusion, and also has a great voice. He's been playing at Foxy's since 2005, and plays some gigs in the States. Very talented.
We decided to spend the last week of our winter adventure here in the West End of Tortola (also known as Sopers Hole). There's WIFI (thankfully - we've been without for quite a few weeks now!), a good grocery store to provision the boat before we depart, fuel, Customs, laundry, garbage dumpsters, shops and a Pusser's restaurant which serves good food and is right on the harbor.
We were originally going to anchor outside of Roadtown for the week - but it's busy with ferry traffic and is a bit of a haul in the dinghy to get into Village Cay, and then a walk to/from the laundry and grocery stores. So, this is a whole lot easier - just a quick dinghy ride over to the marina, and everything is at our disposal in one place.
We're both feeling very sad that this is the end of the trip. I've already cried a couple of times. We've shared so many wonderful memories together, and made new friends, and have delighted in all that nature has shared with us.
Our departure date is planned for Sunday, May 2nd - a week from now. Once we slip the lines, we'll be out of communication until we reach Bermuda - where we probably will only be for a day (hopefully) to refuel and provision and drop off/pick up crew members. If you want to stay on top of where the boat is, though, please click on "Where's Gypsea Now" on the blog (top right). Our position will be updated every day while we're out at sea.
Just left Jost Van Dyke, where we spent time in Great Harbour, home of "Foxy's", where we ran into the man, himself and had a nice chat. He's been a remarkable influence for the island - his personality and charisma have drawn sailors to his beach bar for years (42+) from all over the world. Wear a Foxy's t-shirt, and chances are you'll strike up conversation with someone who has been there and will regale you with their stories of late nights, music and libations.
While at Foxy's, we heard a wonderful musician, Mr. K.I. Nicholas - who plays amazing instrumental guitar, calling his music Caribbean Fusion, and also has a great voice. He's been playing at Foxy's since 2005, and plays some gigs in the States. Very talented.
We decided to spend the last week of our winter adventure here in the West End of Tortola (also known as Sopers Hole). There's WIFI (thankfully - we've been without for quite a few weeks now!), a good grocery store to provision the boat before we depart, fuel, Customs, laundry, garbage dumpsters, shops and a Pusser's restaurant which serves good food and is right on the harbor.
We were originally going to anchor outside of Roadtown for the week - but it's busy with ferry traffic and is a bit of a haul in the dinghy to get into Village Cay, and then a walk to/from the laundry and grocery stores. So, this is a whole lot easier - just a quick dinghy ride over to the marina, and everything is at our disposal in one place.
We're both feeling very sad that this is the end of the trip. I've already cried a couple of times. We've shared so many wonderful memories together, and made new friends, and have delighted in all that nature has shared with us.
Our departure date is planned for Sunday, May 2nd - a week from now. Once we slip the lines, we'll be out of communication until we reach Bermuda - where we probably will only be for a day (hopefully) to refuel and provision and drop off/pick up crew members. If you want to stay on top of where the boat is, though, please click on "Where's Gypsea Now" on the blog (top right). Our position will be updated every day while we're out at sea.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Stargazing
Posted by Liz
The other night I woke up at 3am, and took a peek out of the window in our aft cabin - and I saw a gazillion stars lit up against the black night sky. It's a sight that we've become so familiar with this winter - almost too comfortable. In the early days of the trip, I'd hop out on deck to just stare at the sky and pick out constellations and shooting stars. But now, we're so used to this sight, that I'm not as quick to run out.
On this particular evening though - I thought to myself: We only have a short time remaining on this journey - don't put off looking at the stars and the sky. Go out now, and every moment you can, Liz - and relish this view!
So, at 3am, I hopped up the companionway stairs and out on deck. Chipper followed right behind me (a real treat for him! he loves being out on deck in the middle of the night).
Staring at the night sky, I noticed that many stars seemed to come in pairs of two. Kind of reminded me of people, and I thought how blessed I am to have found Ed to complete my "pair".
I also noticed some stars, usually the brightest ones in the sky, that appeared to be solo. But upon further reflection, they weren't alone at all; in fact, those "solo" stars were enveloped by many smaller stars clustered around the bright star. This also made me think of people.
Sometimes you might feel all alone in your universe, but really, you're surrounded and loved and supported by many others in your star community - - family, friends, customers, neighbors, colleagues, and if you're a believer, your Higher Power. None of us are alone, unless we really choose to be.
Kind of strange - it all seemed to really make profound sense to me at 3am. Now it seems a little non-sensical - but I hope you "get it"!
The other night I woke up at 3am, and took a peek out of the window in our aft cabin - and I saw a gazillion stars lit up against the black night sky. It's a sight that we've become so familiar with this winter - almost too comfortable. In the early days of the trip, I'd hop out on deck to just stare at the sky and pick out constellations and shooting stars. But now, we're so used to this sight, that I'm not as quick to run out.
On this particular evening though - I thought to myself: We only have a short time remaining on this journey - don't put off looking at the stars and the sky. Go out now, and every moment you can, Liz - and relish this view!
So, at 3am, I hopped up the companionway stairs and out on deck. Chipper followed right behind me (a real treat for him! he loves being out on deck in the middle of the night).
Staring at the night sky, I noticed that many stars seemed to come in pairs of two. Kind of reminded me of people, and I thought how blessed I am to have found Ed to complete my "pair".
I also noticed some stars, usually the brightest ones in the sky, that appeared to be solo. But upon further reflection, they weren't alone at all; in fact, those "solo" stars were enveloped by many smaller stars clustered around the bright star. This also made me think of people.
Sometimes you might feel all alone in your universe, but really, you're surrounded and loved and supported by many others in your star community - - family, friends, customers, neighbors, colleagues, and if you're a believer, your Higher Power. None of us are alone, unless we really choose to be.
Kind of strange - it all seemed to really make profound sense to me at 3am. Now it seems a little non-sensical - but I hope you "get it"!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Raining in Paradise!
Posted by Liz
I'm starting to go a little stir crazy! The past four or five days have been so blowy, that trying to take a dinghy ride to Cruz Bay to do provisioning and laundry would have meant a wet ride back to Caneel.
Now, the wind has subsided but it's been completely cloudy with lots of rain over the past day or so.... so no wind, but now would still be a wet dinghy ride with the rain! Wouldn't mind if it was just us and not our freshly washed/dried clothes and provisions.
The resort here at Caneel has not been very friendly about letting us leave our dinghy at their dinghy dock, unless we want to go in and have $16 glasses of wine and burgers or something to eat.... which is frustrating, because we'd like nothing better than to go for some nice long walks - - we're getting a little pent up here in the 44 ft.
Hoping the rain clears by this afternoon - and then we can get into Cruz Bay tomorrow, do our chores, get some walking in.... we'll stay here through April 15th - when we'll celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary with dinner at the Equator restaurant here at the resort... Then, will move on to Francis/Maho Bay and over to Leinster Bay - maybe back to Jost/Great Harbour for a couple of days, and then to Roadtown, Tortola for the final days of our trip.
Getting VERY sad that all of this is winding down.....
I'm starting to go a little stir crazy! The past four or five days have been so blowy, that trying to take a dinghy ride to Cruz Bay to do provisioning and laundry would have meant a wet ride back to Caneel.
Now, the wind has subsided but it's been completely cloudy with lots of rain over the past day or so.... so no wind, but now would still be a wet dinghy ride with the rain! Wouldn't mind if it was just us and not our freshly washed/dried clothes and provisions.
The resort here at Caneel has not been very friendly about letting us leave our dinghy at their dinghy dock, unless we want to go in and have $16 glasses of wine and burgers or something to eat.... which is frustrating, because we'd like nothing better than to go for some nice long walks - - we're getting a little pent up here in the 44 ft.
Hoping the rain clears by this afternoon - and then we can get into Cruz Bay tomorrow, do our chores, get some walking in.... we'll stay here through April 15th - when we'll celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary with dinner at the Equator restaurant here at the resort... Then, will move on to Francis/Maho Bay and over to Leinster Bay - maybe back to Jost/Great Harbour for a couple of days, and then to Roadtown, Tortola for the final days of our trip.
Getting VERY sad that all of this is winding down.....
Monday, April 12, 2010
Water, Water Everywhere!
Posted by Ed
When cruising we need to stay in touch with the availability of several consumable resources, food, fuel and fresh water. Eating habits become adjusted to the areas we may be visiting, such as baguettes and croissants on a daily basis when visiting the French islands. Fuel and water are both closely managed so as not to run out at the most inopportune time. Fuel can usually be managed through the awareness of how much fuel is necessary to run the engine to charge the batteries and run the engine driven refrigeration.
Water on the other hand, although tightly managed gets consumed quite rapidly through dish washing, boat cleaning, human consumption and the luxury of daily showers. Many boats have large storage capacities for water and may not worry about how much water they use between ports. Other cruisers are always looking for a dock with a garden hose to fill their five gallon Jerry Jugs or a place to pull their boat up to a dock to replenish their water supply. However, most cruisers I talk with have some type of watermaker on board and once you have a watermaker, you ask yourself how did I ever get along without one.
The basics of the way a watermaker works is through a reverse osmosis (RO) process where sea water is transformed into potable (drinkable) water. The sea water is filtered through a series of prefilters before being pumped at a high pressure (800 PSI) to the reverse osmosis membrane which removes the salt element and other impurities from the water before sending it to your water storage tank. The water that passes through a typical watermaker system discharges approximately 90% of the water as brine and the remaining 10% becomes product water or drinkable water. There are many RO systems on the market that produce anywhere from 3 gallons an hour of product water to hundreds of gallons an hour based on your needs, available space for the RO system and of course cost. RO systems have been in use for years by hotels in the island communities and among others, the island of Jost Van Dyke in the BVI’s depends almost exclusively on their RO system located in Little Harbor to supply the entire island with potable water.
The concern for most cruising boats is finding the available space for the RO system and the energy required to run such a system. We chose a Katadyn Power Survivor 160E watermaker which produces 160 gallons a day or 6.6 gallons an hour, which generally satisfies the needs of Liz and I. One of the main reasons for our choice in watermakers is due to its extremely compact size and its easily tucked away in an area that does not need to be accessed expect to service the unit when needed and its reliability. Typically we run the watermaker whenever the engine is running to charge the batteries and refrigeration.
As of today, we have logged 200 hours on our watermaker which relates to 1320 gallons of water produced by out watermaker. We love the independence of not having the need to chase down the next available water source. Water, water, everywhere!
When cruising we need to stay in touch with the availability of several consumable resources, food, fuel and fresh water. Eating habits become adjusted to the areas we may be visiting, such as baguettes and croissants on a daily basis when visiting the French islands. Fuel and water are both closely managed so as not to run out at the most inopportune time. Fuel can usually be managed through the awareness of how much fuel is necessary to run the engine to charge the batteries and run the engine driven refrigeration.
Water on the other hand, although tightly managed gets consumed quite rapidly through dish washing, boat cleaning, human consumption and the luxury of daily showers. Many boats have large storage capacities for water and may not worry about how much water they use between ports. Other cruisers are always looking for a dock with a garden hose to fill their five gallon Jerry Jugs or a place to pull their boat up to a dock to replenish their water supply. However, most cruisers I talk with have some type of watermaker on board and once you have a watermaker, you ask yourself how did I ever get along without one.
The basics of the way a watermaker works is through a reverse osmosis (RO) process where sea water is transformed into potable (drinkable) water. The sea water is filtered through a series of prefilters before being pumped at a high pressure (800 PSI) to the reverse osmosis membrane which removes the salt element and other impurities from the water before sending it to your water storage tank. The water that passes through a typical watermaker system discharges approximately 90% of the water as brine and the remaining 10% becomes product water or drinkable water. There are many RO systems on the market that produce anywhere from 3 gallons an hour of product water to hundreds of gallons an hour based on your needs, available space for the RO system and of course cost. RO systems have been in use for years by hotels in the island communities and among others, the island of Jost Van Dyke in the BVI’s depends almost exclusively on their RO system located in Little Harbor to supply the entire island with potable water.
The concern for most cruising boats is finding the available space for the RO system and the energy required to run such a system. We chose a Katadyn Power Survivor 160E watermaker which produces 160 gallons a day or 6.6 gallons an hour, which generally satisfies the needs of Liz and I. One of the main reasons for our choice in watermakers is due to its extremely compact size and its easily tucked away in an area that does not need to be accessed expect to service the unit when needed and its reliability. Typically we run the watermaker whenever the engine is running to charge the batteries and refrigeration.
As of today, we have logged 200 hours on our watermaker which relates to 1320 gallons of water produced by out watermaker. We love the independence of not having the need to chase down the next available water source. Water, water, everywhere!
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Blowing in Caneel - and another great quote
Posted by Liz
Here's another wonderful quote, by John Muir, sent to me by my friend Nikki:
"When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world."
It's SOOOO blowy here in Caneel Bay - so much so, that we don't dare get in the dinghy and head around to Cruz Bay (about a 15 minute ride each way) because it would be a VERY WET ride! Getting to the point, though, where I desperately need to do some provisioning and would like to do laundry over there - but unless I want all the groceries and fresh laundry soaked with sea water, we best wait til things calm down a bit (supposedly a day or two).
For some exercise, I'll probably just pop off the boat this afternoon for some snorkeling - the reefs are right here - about 30 feet away from the boat! We also have that beautiful beach (previous photo below) right near the boat, which we can swim to or dinghy over to land the dinghy on the beach.
Had pancakes for breakfast this Sunday morning, just started a new book "Half Broke Horses" by Jeannette Walls, on my Kindle and catching up on emails. A nap and my snorkeling is in order too!
Here's another wonderful quote, by John Muir, sent to me by my friend Nikki:
"When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world."
It's SOOOO blowy here in Caneel Bay - so much so, that we don't dare get in the dinghy and head around to Cruz Bay (about a 15 minute ride each way) because it would be a VERY WET ride! Getting to the point, though, where I desperately need to do some provisioning and would like to do laundry over there - but unless I want all the groceries and fresh laundry soaked with sea water, we best wait til things calm down a bit (supposedly a day or two).
For some exercise, I'll probably just pop off the boat this afternoon for some snorkeling - the reefs are right here - about 30 feet away from the boat! We also have that beautiful beach (previous photo below) right near the boat, which we can swim to or dinghy over to land the dinghy on the beach.
Had pancakes for breakfast this Sunday morning, just started a new book "Half Broke Horses" by Jeannette Walls, on my Kindle and catching up on emails. A nap and my snorkeling is in order too!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Profound Saying
Courtesy of our friend, Marcy:
LIFE IS NOT MEASURED BY THE NUMBER OF BREATHS WE TAKE, BUT BY THE MOMENTS THAT TAKE OUR BREATH AWAY.
LIFE IS NOT MEASURED BY THE NUMBER OF BREATHS WE TAKE, BUT BY THE MOMENTS THAT TAKE OUR BREATH AWAY.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Caneel Bay, St. John USVI
Posted by Liz
Gypsea is sitting in gorgeous Caneel Bay, on the northwest side of St. John, where we'll probably stay for the next few days or more. The beaches here are magnificent, and hopefully the snorkeling will be OK too.
We arrived yesterday (Weds, April 7th) and hope to get some hiking in while we're here in St. John. The island provides numerous hiking trails. We'll move over to Francis/Maho Bay and then to Leinster Bay, also on the north side of the island. '
It's pretty blowy for the next few days - northeasterly - and yesterday we had a VERY wet dinghy ride to/from Cruz Bay - where we had to go to check into customs and get some provisioning done. So, we'll hang here til the wind subsides and then move over to the more northern bays.
Caneel Bay resort is right here and it's where we decided to share our lives together, 11 years ago (May 1999), so it holds a special place in our hearts.
Gypsea is sitting in gorgeous Caneel Bay, on the northwest side of St. John, where we'll probably stay for the next few days or more. The beaches here are magnificent, and hopefully the snorkeling will be OK too.
We arrived yesterday (Weds, April 7th) and hope to get some hiking in while we're here in St. John. The island provides numerous hiking trails. We'll move over to Francis/Maho Bay and then to Leinster Bay, also on the north side of the island. '
It's pretty blowy for the next few days - northeasterly - and yesterday we had a VERY wet dinghy ride to/from Cruz Bay - where we had to go to check into customs and get some provisioning done. So, we'll hang here til the wind subsides and then move over to the more northern bays.
Caneel Bay resort is right here and it's where we decided to share our lives together, 11 years ago (May 1999), so it holds a special place in our hearts.
Little Harbour/Great Harbour - Jost - Ed "The Shepherd"
Posted by Liz
On Monday, April 5th, we hopped around the corner from Diamond Cay over to Little Harbour - home of Sidney's Peace and Love and Harris' Place.
We had AWESOME Spiny Lobsters for dinner at Harris' place - and the owner there is a hoot - Cynthia. Her dad started the place years ago and she has taken it over. Her outgoing personality WAS the entertainment. She's a hot ticket.
On Tuesday, we took a good walk up and down some hills over to Great Harbour - home of the world famous "Foxy's" bar. About 3 miles each way. Had a surprisingly yummy lunch (ceasar salads and some of the best wings ever) at Foxy's while we listened to some live music by a very talented guitarist/singer. Delightful.
On our walk back to Little Harbour, we found a beautiful little white baby goat - looked like he had just recently been born. He was laying on all fours, crying for his mama - looking very lost. His mom and the rest of the herd were down below on the hillside, so we motivated him to get up - and he was like a baby colt, all wobbly on his spindly little legs.
Ed shepherded the little kid down the road and over to where his mama was eagerly awaiting him. The little one ran right up to her and started nursing.
Bubbly Pool! - Diamond Cay, Jost Van Dyke: April 3-5
Posted by Liz
Spent Easter weekend here and can't think of a more beautiful place to celebrate God's creations and life, in general.
The neat thing is that while Ed (and I) have both previously been to Jost, neither of us had been to Diamond Cay - so it was a new place for both of us to discover and explore together!
Diamond Cay is right in between Little Jost and the main island of Jost Van Dyke. It's the home of Foxy's new restaurant "Foxy's Taboo". We had a decent meal there but it was expensive and not really worth it. The upside about dinner there is that we met a lovely family from England - Angela, Richard and their 17 year old son, Oscar, who are spending some of the winter aboard their beautifuul Oyster 46 "Sophisticate".
The anchorage's focal point is a big reef where the water gushes over from the North. Also visible is Sandy Cay - a small, teeny little jewel of an island surrounded by white sand and palm treesn (see photo above), and then in the background, on the south side, is the big island of Tortola.
On Easter Sunday, we had a little hike over to the "Bubbly Pool".... hiked over some big boulders, and witnessed the power and roar of the ocean pouring over the huge rocks and onto the reef. Turns out that we were on the wrong trail - but were glad we deviated so we could capture that scene!
Found the correct trail (a much less challenging walk, thank goodness!) - and ended up at the Bubbly Pool. Small little beach area, encircled by huge boulders where the sea comes crashing in and around and lands in the "pool" which has a Fizzy, champagne-like feeling to it when the water crashes in! You get tossed around by the power of the water, so it's best to look for a clear, sandy, non-rocky path behind you so that when the water comes in, you don't get slammed into a rock (like I did on the first go around, with bruises to show for it).
Here's a video that I shot while IN the Bubbly Pool! - - Quite exhilarting and FUN - - that is what I'm loving about our adventure this winter - we have FUN and smile like all the time. It's what life should be about - the joyful celebration of God's creations. Again, a perfect way to celebrate Easter.
Cooper Island, March 31 - April 3
Posted by Liz
First of all, isn't this THE best photo of Ed??! I think it completely captures his "essence" - so in his element with the blue sea and sailboat in the background. So handsome!
After Marina Cay, Tortola, we headed across the Sir Francis Drake Channel to Cooper Island - just about a one hour motor job! We were almost going to blow off Cooper, but when we got there, we were once again awestruck at how beautiful it was - palm trees lining the beach and beautiful water. Even though every island has the same physical properties - palm trees, blue water, blue sky, green hills, fish - each has it's own unique and distinct flavor and feeling.
I immediately hopped in the water to snorkel - and was bummed that I didn't bring my underwater camera - because I saw the coolest Coral - - it was HUGE - the size of a coffee table - big and round and spreadout, somewhat flat with a circumference of probably 5 feet. It was red. I don't even know what it was - but it was spectacular.
Also saw what I think is a Moray Eel - after looking at pictures of them. It was a big and brown/black spotted thing, hunkered down at the bottom, kind of hovering over a white sea urchin type of thing.
Had a fantastic, yet expensive dinner at Cooper Island Beach Club - but it was probably the best meal we've had all winter! Ed had the Tuna and I had a scrumptious steak.
Stayed for a few nights - and towards the end, the wind was really honking and the anchorage was lumpy, but survivable. You probably only only need one or two nights there - the snorkeling is fantastic and the atmosphere relaxed and fun..
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