Ahoy, Me Hearties!

by Heather

Ken and I have returned from our sailing adventures in the British Virgin Islands ! We spent last week on a 40-foot sailboat with friends, Capt’n Dan and First Mate Peggy, and Bruce and Elizabeth. This was one of the best vacations ever! We flew into St. Thomas ; took a water taxi to Tortola ; picked up our sailboat at the Moorings ( “The Scooby Too”) and we were off! It was trial by fire, or actually by water! I had never been on a sailboat at sea, so the first day found me a little nervous and white knuckling the railing. Capt’n Dan schooled us–his crew–on how to rig the Jennie, hoist the Main, tail the lines, moor and anchor and soon I was sure footing it up on deck while under sail. I even got to sail the boat!

Our days at sea went like this: wake up • coffee • swim • sail • drink • snorkle • drink • sun • sail • drink • swim • snorkel • nap • swim • drink • shower off the back of the boat • drink • dinner • drink • drink • crash • you get the picture. The great thing about the BVI was that we could almost always see land. Each day we would point our boat toward a new island and set sail toward a new adventure! Each night we would moor in a new cay (that’s pronounced “key” in pirate talk and go ashore to drop off our trash ($2 per bag), purchase $4 bags of ice, find more rum and explore the wildlife (i.e. beach bars).

Some of the wildest life could be found at the Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost van Dyke .
There is no dock there so we had to moor and then swim to the beach–thus the name of the bar and the clothes line strung with clothes pins and dollar bills!
The Soggy Dollar is renowned for their Painkillers (rum, pineapple juice, coconut milk, splash of OJ, more rum and nutmeg sprinkled on top). This is, for sure, a recipe for trouble. However, as I see it, Painkillers have lots of juice so I thought they would be the perfect way to fight off the dreaded scurvy ! Gotta keep up your vitamin C at sea!

If you plan to go to the BVI, some other great spots you won’t want to miss are: Sidney’s Peace and Love on Jost Van Dyke. Radio ahead and see if the lobster is fresh then take your dingy ashore where they let you tend bar. Be sure to bring a t-shirt from home to donate to the décor. The Baths on Virgin Gorda with exotic pools, grottos formed by giant boulders, a gorgeous coral beach and one happy bar tender who mixes a mean Painkiller while grooving to Akon and Beyonce . William Thornton’s a cool floating restaurant and rockin bar anchored in the Bight at “Norman Island“http://www.normanisland.com . Get there early for dinner…it gets packed..and stay for the dancing. $20 will get you and three friends the pleasure of a Willy T’s Famous Shotski –a 4 foot long wooden ski with four holes drilled in it to hold shot glasses. An amazing dive site was The Indians off Peter Island . My crew has just gotten in the water when a school of eight dolphins showed up for a visit! They swam up right to Elizabeth’s face and “smiled at her”! Our last stop was Foxy’s Taboo in Diamond Cay on Jost. Capt’n Dan searched online and found that if you go ashore at Foxy’s and trek around behind the bar, there is a cool path that leads you to a secluded “swimmin’ hole” surrounded by huge coral and rock boulders. Be sure to bring your tennis shoes for hiking on shore for spots like this. Otherwise, it’s no shirt, no shoes, no problem most everywhere in the BVI.

The trip was amazingly relaxing. No Blackberry , no computer …but there was WiFi at most bars and I found that there was always someone nice to let me recharge my Ipod Shuffle off their laptop. Drats! Forgot the charger!

I woke up this morning and still had that weird woozy feeling like I was on the boat. I thought it would have gone away by now, but since it is Sunday morning and I have been a land lubber for over 48 hours now, I can only deduce one thing…that this condition is not simply getting used to not having “sea legs” but that I am having alcohol withdraw. I think the combination of rum and the sea is exactly why Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) walks so weird! Where’s the rum? Savvy? Arr! Shiver me timbers! It’s time to get back to me land lubber life!


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  1. Heather:

    What fun – can I go next time?

    patty


    — Patty    Jan 16, 07:03 PM    #

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