That Which Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger

We started the day with some snorkling just south of Haulovers. The snorkling was fantastic but we kept running into clouds of jellyfish which wasn't so pleasant so we headed back to the mothership and then around Salt Island and into the bay on the north side.

I've got to practice diving so I can get down to fish-level

Fish love to hang out under the boat

It had been a few days since a good hike so we headed ashore and set out up the hill at the eastern end of the beach for some good views. Hill number 1: no problem, good views, nice breeze. Once we crested the hill we realized we could keep going to hill number 2.

Mowzer (the little one) in the bay at Salt Island

Only goat tracks to follow up Hill #1

Hill number 2: hot but still ok, no paths, lots of scratchy thorns but still great views and a cooling breeze. From here we could see Haulovers Bay on Cooper Island where we stayed last night.

One boat left at Haulovers this morning

Notice hill number 3 in the background. Didn't look so tough from down here...

This is where the hiking got serious. Scrabbling through the dry undergrowth and over rocky outcrops with the temperature climbing and no shade or path in sight. Henry was a mountain goat and made it to the top - he's being charitable when he tells me I was 30' from the crest but hill number 3 had me beat. On the descent we crossed the spine of the hills out to the south and finally made our way across the salt ponds that give the island it's name and back to the beach. I have never been so happy to sink into the cool ocean waters.

Definitely the dry season - amazing how it all comes back to life in the rainy season

Notice the lovely path we didn't take from the salt pond

Counting from the right - #1 (155'), #2 (270') and #3 (386')

Mid-afternoon we up-anchored and headed for Spanish Town on Virgin Gorda. We really felt that third time was the charm since we have intended to stop here on two previous occasions but always kept on going to another anchorage. The afternoon sail was again pretty surreal with 15 knots of wind on a close reach and boat speeds topping out at 7.4 knots. Sweeeeet!

Tomorrow morning, if I'm still able, the plan is to do a little hiking around The Valley on Virgin Gorda.

 

A tour and tidbits

This morning as promised Paul and Elka took us on a dinghy tour up the north-west shore of Great Camanoe Island. Even though the swell had come up during the night we had a great ride around the shore-line discovering a thunderous blow-hole cave that filled with water from the surge and then spat out a spray of fine mist with a roar, and further along the coast, a narrow cave entrance at water-level that Paul says rises up about 200' into the hillside and is filled with bats. On a calm day you can take the dinghy to the entrance and hear the bats squeaking inside or if you visit in the early evening you might see them leaving the cave, but I wouldn't be keen to take a dinghy round into the rock strewn bays in the dark.

Paul was extremely knowledgable of the local geology and natural sights. We learned for instance that the laughing gulls (considered a pest) will actually sit on a pelican's head and pluck fish right out of it's beak. The red-beaked birds we had seen in Culebra in the past are called Tropic Birds and the heron that we had seen in Puerto Rico and again on the CYOA dock is called a Night Heron. Finally, and probably the one I will remember most is the name the locals have for the Turpentine Tree: The Tourist Tree. This tree is notable for its paper-thin bark that turns red and peels!

We were extremely honoured when Paul presented us with a copy of a book we have admired many times about the BVI; he is the publisher. We were sorry that we had nothing more than some fresh-baked tea biscuits to give in return but we had all thoroughly enjoyed the morning.

For the afternoon we decided it was time to up-anchor and go for a sail. Our original intent was to head to Spanish Town on Virgin Gorda but given that this is the holiday without a plan, the winds set our course for us and we ended back in Haulover Bay on Cooper Island. This is one of our favourites: the low saddle of land allows the breeze to cool the boat without being exposed to the waves, the sunset over Salt Island and later the twinkling lights of Tortola in the distance all contribute to the charm of the place.

We capped off the evening with a cut-throat game of Scrabble - Henry won this one but I'll be back to exact my revenge.

 

Another Boat Day - with a surprise ending

We awoke having spent an exceptionally calm night in Lee Bay and headed off to shore to explore the little bit of National Park that makes up the saddle and hill between Lee and Cam Bay. The views were of course exceptional and we enjoyed the chance to stretch our legs a little.

For the day, we decided to stay put and enjoy the bay, snorkeling on both sides and finding many little fish including a little 'buddy fish' that swam right close to us during our entire foray across the bay. In fact, we had never experienced this behaviour before but just read about it on Paul Shard's (Distant Shores) Facebook page and this little guy was just the same. He swam right in front of my mask or with my outstretched hands and we think he was using our bigger bulk as protection against any predator fish that might be interested in a snack.

See the little fish right in front of my mask - now imagine him fluttering there the whole time you're swimming

It's not often you get to swim with Pelicans

As a surprise ending to the day, we invited the couple from the boat anchored next to us over for sundowner cocktails. Paul and Elka were fascinating company with much local knowledge to share. We are thrilled that they have invited us to go exploring in the morning and we'll report back on our adventures.

Return from Anegada

We really didn't get moving too fast this morning but given that the sun comes up and awakes us around 6:30am, a 9:00am departure from the anchorage felt a bit like we'd been lazing about. The winds died last night and the views at Anegada were serene this morning.

Even though the winds were predicted in the 8-10 knot range we headed out and had another fabulous beam sail with winds at 10-12 knots. As we sailed down past North Sound, the big boys that we had seen out practicing in the Sound were out in full form getting ready for what we heard was a race around the island. These guys are big - full complement of crew and loads of sail area and even at a distance are impressive.

We headed down to Marina Cay on the east end of Tortola to fill up on water and top up our diesel tanks. We probably don't need fuel before our return next week but filling up takes all the worry out at the end of the trip. We definitely needed water though with about 1/4 of our tank remaining after a full week out.

Trellis Bay offers a grocery store and in order to keep us happy we needed some more butter for another batch of tea biscuits. Not to be missed, we are making sure we get the most out of our "Drinking Man's Guide to the BVI". We picked up this tome a couple of years ago and included are coupons for half-price and 2-for-1s so we are doing the tour. Today was the CyberCafe for some TurboKillers that were exceptionally delicious.

The evening ended up on the anchor in Lee Bay on Great Camanoe Island where we watched the pelicans fish and the sun set. The end of another perfect day.

This pelican does a great Darth Vader impression

Lee Bay - breezes flow across the saddle from Cam Bay

In Honour of the Baja 1000

Ok, we'll get this little detail over and done with. As planned we rented a little car to tour around on Anegada and the rental agreement distinctly said we had to stick to only roads that were marked on the map. Here is a sampling of said roads.

Needless to say, with patience, the judicious use of some rocks and a 2"x6" we did manage to dig ourselves out. I know we're missing the cold weather back home but we didn't need a reminder of what it's like to be stuck in a snow-drift!

Despite our little adventure, the day was perfect and Anegada delivered once again for it's pristine beauty and the friendliness of the locals. We returned to Flash of Beauty for roti lunch, snorkelled in Loblolly Bay, had a rum punch at Big Bamboo, found the pink flamingos, missed on Cow Wreck beach to our little dig-out delay and then returned to the Reef Hotel for lobster and mahi mahi dinner on the beach. Any other ideas of what paradise should be?

A hard day in the salt mines?

We may not have made it to Cow Wreck, but we found a cow wreck

Flash of Beauty ambassador and roti scrounger

Loblolly Bay

The snorkeling was just fine.

Nope, this chair's too comfy to move

The elusive flamingos in one of the salt ponds