Nov 2009 - back to the BVI

With nice weather and a calm sea forecast, we head out across the Anegada Passage, from Simpson Bay, bound for Tortola BVI.
 It's a trip I've done a few times, and now I like the routine of leaving around 3am and clearing into BVI early in the afternoon. The weather and seas cooperate and we have a smooth passage.
Its nice to be  back in the very familiar and sheltered waters of BVI. Its a busy place these days - full of yachts, and most of them bareboats charters. But if you know where to go, there are still a few quieter locations, away from the maddening crowd. And some of thise bareboat skippers are definitely maddening.

Our calm passage weather does not last, and we're treated to more windy, squally, wet stuff - and more south west winds bouncing us around in what should be sheltered anchorages. We take advantage of a break in the rain and hop across from Norman Island to Marina Cay. It's a sheltered spot in almost any conditions, so we hunker down for a couple of days.Its an opportunity to do some boatwork, and Kerry has solved the mystery of water entering the stern bilges. looks like theres some hairline cracks in the transom, and when the dinghy and engine are hoisted on the new davits, they allow water seepage. So its an uncomfortable and contortionist fibreglass job in the transom space. But it gets done and hopefully ends the water entry.
With an improvement in weather, we move on, take an early morning motor through Camanho passage and pick up a mooring ball off Monkey Point. This is a great location for snorkeling. We're the first there, and we get a special treat - two dolphins circling our boat. They stay for hours, continue their circling as other boats gradually come in and fill the location up. They don't seem bothered by anyone and we get the chance to snorkel in the water with them.


The weather continues to brighten so we leave the dolphin show and sail across to Diamond Cay and Foxy's taboo.


We have enough time for a walk to, and then a swim in, the bubbly pool.

The next day we move on again, breakfast stop at Green Cay and Sandy Spit before it gets too busy, and then continue on around Jost Van Dyke, sailing past Great Harbour and then motoring inside the reef across White Bay, to drop anchor just off the Soggy Dollar Bar. Too much beauty here - it's a busy spot but mainly around midday, and the evenings and mornings are quieter. Our stay here is also marked with some "entertainment" laid on by the bareboats. One catamaran coming adrift from a mooring ball, floating past us crewless (they were in the SDB having lunch) - Kerry pulls it off the reef with his dinghy. Another catamaran anchors too close in to shore, and ends up on the beach in the night when the wind shifts around. Manages to escape and re-anchor.

Next stop, back across to Tortola and Cane Garden Bay.


It's an excellent anchorage, but tough to find a spot to swing these days. Like most of BVI, the water is taken over by a pox of mooring balls. It's still a fine and classic caribbean beach, and a chance to sit in Rhymers and have a rum punch as the sun goes down.

And that completes the short return to and rounding of BVI. Not enough time to get out to Anegada this trip, and we plan to catch Virgin Gorda on the way back.

We make one last stop in Sopers Hole to clear out of BVI, and head west to new waters.

October 2009 - another winter sailing season starts

Late October 2009 -  An excellent new Westjet service via Toronto to St Maarten looks like it could make travel to the boat a lot easier and a lot cheaper. Hil is booked to arrive in SXM on Nov 5th, but first I need to get there. Another overnight passage from Antigua beckons - its about 160 km from Jolly Harbour to St maarten - or about 85 nautical  miles - and at a passage planning speed of 5.5 kts that works out to be 15 hrs. And that seems to be the time it usually takes.
A weather window appears to be opening up, so no time to hang around in Jolly world, "Manx Mist" heads out on a calmish and starry saturday evening. Different crew complement this time - with Claudia, daughter Tathra and dog Tila along for the ride.

The first half of the passage is lovely, but then it turns to crap. Clouds roll in, stars disappear, wind picks up, and by 3am we get the first of many squalls. The sails come down and we chug around under motor until daylight shows us St Barths and the squalls disappear. We motor-sail past Barths and into Phillipsburg, where we drop anchor with much relief.


St Maarten is a unique island - the southern half is Dutch, part of the Netherlands Antilles, and contains the largest town, the commercial port, the airport - and the northern half is part of the French West Indies (and thus part of the European community) and has a very french feel to it and the best beaches - though there are plenty of great beaches to go around.
Phillipsburg is a great anchorage - generally well protected, other than rolly swells from the north. Most of Great Bay is 10ft'ish depth, and sandy, so good holding. The beach is wide and excellent, but it is very commercial - there is usually 2 or more cruiseships on the docks, disgorging thousands of tourists.
The other disadvantage for "yachties" is the Customs and Immigration location - which you cannot reach by dinghy and is a long hike back into the commercial port. But they're friendly and helpful when you get there.
I usually head straight to Simpsons Bay, for easier clearance and access to the protected waters of the lagoon and the excellent chandlers for spare parts.
But I'm expecting some friends coming in on one of those cruise ships, so I hang around. It's an enjoyable break and a chance to rest up after the hectic boat "launch" work and the rough passage from Antigua.
After a few days in Phillipsburg, I do relocate to Simpson Bay and pass through the bridge, into the sheltered lagoon and onto the dock at Island Water Marina. This is far from a pretty location, but if you have some shopping to do and/or work on the boat, it's a great spot and I have about a week of odd jobs to do.
Hil flies in, via Westjet to join me. One of the "must do" things in St maarten is to go for a drink at the Sunset Bar on Maho beach and watch the planes land at Julianna Airport. They barely clear the beach as they come in, and it offers crazy youngsters the opportunity to stand and get blasted into the sea by the jetwash.
Hil arrives safe and sound and brings with her our new stove.
Another great Westjet fact - they have the best excess baggage policy around - and the stove is shipped as oversize and overweight accompanied baggage.
The stove fits perfectly (thanks Force10), and what a treat to have 2 working burners again. With that installation job done, we happily leave the dock and head out to the cleaner waters in the anchorage just outside the lagoon entrance.
 And it's time to go cruising.


The first trip is a little jaunt across to St Barths, to hook up with Keith Bate and "Blue Eyes" and catch the free Jimmy Buffet concert set for dockside Gustavia as part of the birthday celebrations for Le Select restaurant (makers of that "cheeseburger in paradise").

Jimmy has the Gustavia anchorage packed out, so we decide to hang out in the lovely Anse de Colombier. Colombier is a Marine Park, a fine, sheltered anchorage with mooring balls as an easy option, and a lovely beach. It's a favourite spot. Most of the reef has gone, but the fish life is still good and there is an abundance of turtles.
After a fine afternoon swimming and hanging out, we head in to the concert. It's a longish dinghy ride, but the sea is calm.
It's a fun evening, and even a heavy shower just before Jimmy starts up does not dampen the spirit of the Buffet fans.
Next day "Blue Eyes" and "Manx Mist" up anchor and enjoy a nice sail back to Phillipsburg.
It's a very hot afternoon, the wind dies to nothing and our boats spin around on anchor.

Having started with that squally passage to St maarten, I now get the 2nd taste of the weird weather that will bedevil us for the rest of this sailing season. At 9pm, the wind picks up, swings around to the southwest, and picks up some more. Its not in the forecast, and southwest is a rare event for the islands.
Its blowing above 25 kts and bringing rollers into Great Bay. Our nice sheltered anchorage is now a very uncomfortable lee shore. And our twisted anchors are lifting out, About half of the boats in the Bay seem to be chugging around in the dark, trying to reset.
Hil and I get Manx Mist safely anchored again, and then I bounce away in the dinghy to give Keith a hand.
The rest of the night is very uncomfortable as we are bouncing and rolling around in the waves. At 4am we give up and head around to Simpson Bay to await the bridge opening and shelter of the lagoon.

We get a few more days of windy weather, and Keith has more fun with anchoring in the weed infested lagoon. But then it clears and we enjoy some beach weather and some time with good friends.

Back in the water October 2009

Returning to the boat at the end of the summer is always done with a little trepidation and anxiety.

First of all, I usually head back to the Caribbean in mid October, just after Canadian Thanksgiving. It's still sort-of hurricane season. The old Mariner's poem about hurricanes, that started "June - too soon" and ended "October - All over", doesn't appear to be the current viewpoint. October has seen many late season storms - Wilma in late October 2005 being the most famous. Wilma was the most intense hurricane ever-recorded and the 22nd storm in a record breaking year. However, statistics also indicate that even though tropical storms continue through to as late as December, this late-season weather usually is limited to affecting the Mexican coast and the Gulf of Mexico. The Eastern Caribbean and islands are usually storm free after September. But.... don't count on it. Mother Nature calls the shots, and there was Lenny in November 1999, coming out of the west, travelling east with little advance warning, and surprising and devastating many of the eastern Caribbean islands as it smacked into their usually-sheltered leeward coastlines.
So, with very close scrutiny of the weather, I headed back to Antigua and "Manx Mist" on Oct 16th.
2009 was fortunately one of the lightest years on record, with only 9 named storms, only 3 of which made hurricane strength, and the season was over for the eastern islands. Sigh of relief!

Then you're thinking about what might greet you when you open the boat up. A leak could have it filled with water. Damp could have it filled with mould. And then there's the possibility of invasions of insects or rodents. You take as many precautions as possible when you pack the boat away, and hope everything is looking good when you return. And it was. 2nd sigh of relief!

What is guaranteed to await you is - work.

The excellent folks at Jolly Harbour marina (Stephen and crew) had relocated MM to the work yard prior to my return.
After running through the check list of prepping the boat to return to the water, the only main job to do was the annual bottom paint job. So after a good sanding, and 2 coats of anti-fouling, Manx Mist was ready to go "splash".
One small nagging issue was around a leaky seacock  on the engine water intake - it didn't appear to be a huge concern so, eager to be sailing again, I decided to ignore it - this would turn out to be an increasing problem for the rest of the season.
Anyway, back in the water on Oct 21st after 4 days of work in the yard, and we're ready to go sailing.