Week 9 Virgin Gorda, Norman and Cooper Islands (British Virgin Islands)

Thursday May 29th 2014

Being back in the Virgin islands has been great,we feel very comfortable here , having visited twice before (in 2010 and 2011) we know these islands well...but it is also very different from what we have become  accustomed too over the last few months. What I mean is that here in the BVIs we are surrounded by holidayers (who charter boats for a week or two) and some of these might be relatively new to sailing....This was evidenced a few times when we had to change course to get out of the way of people who clearly did not  know the  rules of the road/ or understand right-of-way). There is also a rather obvious lack of knowledge about radio etiquette or how to pick up a mooring ball, but hey, we were there once too and  not that long ago !  Still under these circumstances it feels very different for us . Every other place we have been, we are usually surrounded by seasoned sailors. I have to say, i feel much safer when we are around people who have been doing this awhile, and we sleep better too, people who charter boats for a week are generally “here for a good time, not a long time” and so Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday night “booze-fests” with loud music are quite a common occurrence here.

So, it is not the same community as we’ve seen with full time cruisers who are are generally more neighbourly, where it is very common for people to stop by and chat as they go by in their dinghy, or on the docks. Capt’n Mark  is especially good at this (that is why he is the designated social butterfly for our boat), having grown up in  small town Alberta, he is used to “kicking the tires” with just about anybody, he’s got that knack of starting up conversation with anyone standing right beside him. The first thing I hear Mark say when he gets back from errands is: “ So I ended up having a chat with.....”  Telling me about the new people he has met, where they are from, where they are going. I personally much prefer that community feel, and the unspoken rule that everyone looks out for one another, and  it is all about information sharing too : anything from the best place to find a good service, or boat parts, or places to visit, or places to avoid. I love it !  We have met some incredibly interesting and lovely people while cruising ! 

We did have a lovely encounter early last week:  While anchored in Marina Cay for the Full Moon Party (see my last blog),  we met the Crew from “AMELIE” from the UK (Stephen and Debbie). As they “dinghied” past us they hailed us: “Hey ! Great name for a boat!”.  We met up with them later on and learned that like us, they had named their boat after the film (Le Fabuleux Destin D’Amelie Poulin), and like us, they felt it was a great name. Amelie brings happiness to others !  This wonderful couple has already taken Amelie (or I should say that Amelie has taken them) around the world once. (They were part of the Oyster Round the World Rally), and they are going again, this time, more slowly. We had much to share with each other, and we enjoyed a lovely snorkel together followed by a beautiful meal onboard their Amelie, they served us swordfish, caught on the South Africa-South America crossing. Delicious !

It’s ba-aaack !   

The News Helicopter crew  (like the one we saw in Antigua during Race week) were with us again this past Sunday, back at doing their low flying stunts, amongst all the sailboats and between all the masts ! Honestly I don’t know how they do it, the pilot must have nerves of steel !  Anyways, this time they were capturing the “Annual Poker Run” here in the BVI’s. The Poker run is a one day event where boats race from island to island picking up cards to get the best poker hand at the end of the day. This event attracts all kinds of very loud, very fast speed boats, (most come from Puerto Rico, we have since discovered). We tried to stay out of their way as much as possible, at times we were almost swarmed by the boats coming in from all around us, SO fast, SO loud ! (Picture the loudest Harley Davidson you have ever heard) . So it was definitely not a relaxing Sunday sail, but neat to see all the same !  

Last weekend we took a break and just lounged around. To the delight of all on board, Cpt’n Mark raised the hammock over the water AND the swing out on deck ....it was a ideal place to enjoy the great beauty and many hues of blue found in the Virgin Gorda Sound.  

The Anchorage at Bitter End, Virgin Gorda

Saba Rock

Cpt’n Mark and MC  even got to have a night out “sans-children” on Saturday Night, from 8:30-10:00. our boat was moored a mere 20 feet from the Saba Rock restaurant. Matthew was already asleep and Meghan was happy to have some quiet time to work on a school project. We took our hand held radio with us, just as a precaution so that she could call us if needed, but really she could of hailed us from the boat deck, we were that close!  Still it was nice to have a mini get- away !

MC was so happy to have a chance to take part in her “Book Club”with her friends back In Ottawa (thanks to the technology of Skype and Facetime), although the connection was not ideal with some delays and image/sound issues), it was still SO great for her to hang out with the girls, share some wine and swap good stories, oh,  and we talked about the book too of course, called “The Rosie Project”, in case you are looking for a good read this summer, it is a very funny and easy read. 

Meg and her dad dove the wreck on of the Rhone and got some pretty spectacular footage on the go-pro camera (hopefully be able to share with you soon).In total, so far they have gone on four dives together and all have been very successful ! 

Our dinghy "Recess" gets officially christened

Meg carefully painting Recess

We did pull ourselves out of the hammock last weekend, just long enough to go for a  brisk hike on Virgin Gorda....Meghan made a comment that our hikes always seem to be UP HILL!  Well, I guess when your starting point is always “Sea-Level” it is hard to do anything but “go up!” Haha ! It is always a good cardio workout for everyone and there is inevitably a rewarding view we get to the top ! This hike was no exception, here is a view of the sound and of Saba Rock. 

We took the dinghy to a deserted beach after school one day for the official “baptism” of Amelie’s tender, Mark decided that “Recess” was a good name for the dinghy since it usually takes us out somewhere fun after school, and so “Recess” was unanimously accepted by the crew on AmelieIV.

Since Meg and MC have finished reading “Treasure Island” just a few days ago,we felt it was necessary for us to sail to Norman Island. This is the island which is rummoured to be the one that R.L. Stevenson based his “Treasure Island” on.  We had a FA-BU-LOUS snorkel at the CAVES and enjoyed exploring the beach, looking for the big black X but we didn’t see it ! 

So we leave tomorrow morning for a three day (non-stop) crossing, the kids longest so far. We are well prepared, the kids have all a list of  planned activities to do while underway, we have a watch schedule (taking turns at the helm and to allow for rest times for all). MC made all the meals ahead of time, the goal being, to simplify our lives as much as possible while we are sailing. The menu is quite simple: Yogourts and granola and fruit for breakfasts, sandwiches, hard boiled eggs, cheese and veggies for lunch and for dinners: pasta, chicken and rice and even a quiche !  

The best snorkelling happens at the Caves (Norman Is)

The floating bar at Norman Island is a popular meeting spot

Meg learning how to turn on the engine

Meg's project on the history of flight

A tiny friend

'The Indians', near Norman Island

Privateer Bay, Pirate's Bight,Treasure Island (Norman)

                    

Iguana crossing on Virgin Gorda

Upcoming plans : 

Like I said we are starting our descent South tomorrow morning. It should take us 2 1/2 - 3 days to sail to Martinique, where we have another maintenance stop  (it never ends). We will then head over to the Grenadines and then Grenada, where we will spend the bulk of the Hurricane Season (until September/October). There we will enjoy our summer break, meet up with other cruising friends and are really excited to greet our first guest onboard Amelie, when MC’s sister, nephew and niece will come down for a two week visit at the end of July !!!

Soon MC will have to write an end-of-year school report to the homeroom teacher. She looks forward to sharing all the progress that both Matthew and Meghan have made in the last few months. Meghan still has a few end of year projects  (LA, SS and SC) and one exam  (Math) to come as her core subjects are wrapping up nicely, We will be doing some other subjects in June (Health, French, Art and Music) to end the year. Matthew will not have any exams to end his school year, but a “progress report”  will outline all of his great progress.

School has been great, YES, really !! Both kids have applied themselves and seemed to have enjoyed the process and as for MC , she feels a tremendously honoured to have been able to teach her children again but everyone is looking forward to summer break so that we can have more time to do special projects, like: our puppets play to finalize and rehearse-See the Globetrotting Puppets Blog-.The never ending boat improvement projects list keeps growing, playing more games together and with other boat friends, going for walks in the mornings when it is still cool out, sleeping in ?  (Highly unlikely, but I can dream, can’t I ?)

Bitter End Virgin Gorda