HI, My wife, and I are off going to the bvi's for our 1st sailing charter this coming March. I was hoping to get some do's and don't from seasoned sailers. Looking forward to it! 720-851-8662 John
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J
Jim
Mooring Balls Tether
When departing from a dock and there is a mooring ball holding the bow out...watch out. We ran over the mooring tether and wrapped it on the prop shaft. A rookie move to say the least. Give it some gas to start the boat moving and then quickly put it back to neutral until you are well past the ball/tether. Have fun
When departing from a dock and there is a mooring ball holding the bow out...watch out. We ran over the mooring tether and wrapped it on the prop shaft. A rookie move to say the least. Give it some gas to start the boat moving and then quickly put it back to neutral until you are well past the ball/tether. Have fun
bvi - great 1st charter
We've chartered in the BVI twice and have now chartered in many other locations. It was the first place we took a week long charter with our children - 4 and 8 yrs old at the time. The BVI is incredibly easy. Easy line of sight navigation, short sails, very small tidal range, plenty of anchorages. The typical week long charter usually goes in a circle around Tortola. All the charter companies will have a charter guide and recommended stops and anchorages. Depending on the wind, some anchorages will be a little more exposed than others but there are so many you can easily just skip those anchorages - or just use them for a lunch stop. The Moorings has a good map and info on their site (http://www.moorings.com/Destinations.aspx?Destination=TOR). The Bitter End Yacht Club is a nice stop in the middle of the trip and the opportunity for a nice dinner ashore. Our first year we spent the first day/night on Norman Island. The next day the wind was from the N-NE and we sailed up the Sir Francis Drake Channel along the southern side. It was fairly choppy and my daughter is prone to seasickness and she got sick. The sail up the channel would have been nicer if we had crossed over and sailed in the lee of Tortola. Have a great trip.
We've chartered in the BVI twice and have now chartered in many other locations. It was the first place we took a week long charter with our children - 4 and 8 yrs old at the time. The BVI is incredibly easy. Easy line of sight navigation, short sails, very small tidal range, plenty of anchorages. The typical week long charter usually goes in a circle around Tortola. All the charter companies will have a charter guide and recommended stops and anchorages. Depending on the wind, some anchorages will be a little more exposed than others but there are so many you can easily just skip those anchorages - or just use them for a lunch stop. The Moorings has a good map and info on their site (http://www.moorings.com/Destinations.aspx?Destination=TOR). The Bitter End Yacht Club is a nice stop in the middle of the trip and the opportunity for a nice dinner ashore. Our first year we spent the first day/night on Norman Island. The next day the wind was from the N-NE and we sailed up the Sir Francis Drake Channel along the southern side. It was fairly choppy and my daughter is prone to seasickness and she got sick. The sail up the channel would have been nicer if we had crossed over and sailed in the lee of Tortola. Have a great trip.
Sailing BVI with SunSail Flotilla, June 23-30
We set sail aboard "Marsha Claire" a Beneteau 393 and eight other boats in a flotilla: "Perroquet" our lead boat with Philmore and Sue Plum, Bikini Man, Atanto, Baby Ben, Niou Dem, Rondeau II, Pip Overall comments: We really enjoyed the sail. The flotilla gave us an opportunity to meet others and a guide to help us learn the Caribbean. I'm sure we would have had a good time by ourselves, but Philmore and Sue showed us were to anchor and recommended great places to eat. We choose to have breakfast and lunch aboard and ate out for dinner each night. This gave us a little flavor of the Caribbean. However, eating out was expensive. We had budgeted $100 per night and spent at least that much when drinks were included. But we ate good meals. Most menus had a salad with chicken or shrimp and/or a pasta meal for $12-$15. Chicken and/or BBQ rib dinners were $15-$20. Steaks and fresh fish were $25-$30. We picked up a mooring most nights...$25 and anchored 2 nights at no charge. You can pick up a mooring during the day at no charge. To assure access to a mooring, most recommended being in the bay by 4:00. This seemed early, but there was always good snorkeling in the area. Each boat had a dingy that allowed quick transportation to the beach or far away shores. Fat old men like Mark need a ladder to get back into the dingy! Several other sailors outside the flotilla brought in meat and planned to anchor out each night. I'm sure this saved them a lot on meals and mooring fees. Each boat had a charcoal Magna BBQ grill. We ordered provisions before we left. All was on board with fresh fruits and turkey deli meat in the frig. There is a small store at the SunSail base. On checking prices, ordering provisioning was about 15% more than shopping ourselves. There were lots more beer and less expensive wine options in the store than on the provision list. Next time, I'd buy the wine and beer when we get there. We quickly lost track of time and had to refer to the flotilla itinerary to see what day it was. The one week went quickly. If we have another couple with us or several couples on several boats, we might pass on the flotilla. However, if just our family, we will probably join a flotilla. For more details and pictures sea our website: http://home.att.net/~dragonflyb331/
We set sail aboard "Marsha Claire" a Beneteau 393 and eight other boats in a flotilla: "Perroquet" our lead boat with Philmore and Sue Plum, Bikini Man, Atanto, Baby Ben, Niou Dem, Rondeau II, Pip Overall comments: We really enjoyed the sail. The flotilla gave us an opportunity to meet others and a guide to help us learn the Caribbean. I'm sure we would have had a good time by ourselves, but Philmore and Sue showed us were to anchor and recommended great places to eat. We choose to have breakfast and lunch aboard and ate out for dinner each night. This gave us a little flavor of the Caribbean. However, eating out was expensive. We had budgeted $100 per night and spent at least that much when drinks were included. But we ate good meals. Most menus had a salad with chicken or shrimp and/or a pasta meal for $12-$15. Chicken and/or BBQ rib dinners were $15-$20. Steaks and fresh fish were $25-$30. We picked up a mooring most nights...$25 and anchored 2 nights at no charge. You can pick up a mooring during the day at no charge. To assure access to a mooring, most recommended being in the bay by 4:00. This seemed early, but there was always good snorkeling in the area. Each boat had a dingy that allowed quick transportation to the beach or far away shores. Fat old men like Mark need a ladder to get back into the dingy! Several other sailors outside the flotilla brought in meat and planned to anchor out each night. I'm sure this saved them a lot on meals and mooring fees. Each boat had a charcoal Magna BBQ grill. We ordered provisions before we left. All was on board with fresh fruits and turkey deli meat in the frig. There is a small store at the SunSail base. On checking prices, ordering provisioning was about 15% more than shopping ourselves. There were lots more beer and less expensive wine options in the store than on the provision list. Next time, I'd buy the wine and beer when we get there. We quickly lost track of time and had to refer to the flotilla itinerary to see what day it was. The one week went quickly. If we have another couple with us or several couples on several boats, we might pass on the flotilla. However, if just our family, we will probably join a flotilla. For more details and pictures sea our website: http://home.att.net/~dragonflyb331/
G
g
Another suggestion
Here's another suggestion, wiht a bit more sailing and snorkeling, and less shopping. Weve done this 3 times over the last 12 years. First-spending the first night on the boat is a very good idea; you'll have a chance to play with all the bells and whistles on the boat, see what works--and what doesn't--and get out quicker on your first day. Assuning you are starting in Roadtown or any nearby harbor, head out east for a nice sail to trellis Bay and enjoy the Last Resort. Next day head east and pick up a day mooring at one of the Dog Islands. great snorkeling, and you'll be relatively alone. I'd skip the Baths--way too crowded and commercial. After lunch sail into North Sound, anchor at Drake's anchorage--another tranquil spot. Early the next morning head to the Bitter End, pick-up a mooring and explore the resort. Have dinner there Next day go west-a long run around the North of tortola to Cane Garden Bay. Leave early and try Sandy Cay or Green Cay for good snorkeling and beautiful anchorage, but only for the day. Then head over to Foxy's or Sidney's for some food and fun. Next day you go around the west end of Tortola to Norman island-lots to do, including a wild bar in the Bight, and good snorkeling at the Indians. Then you can try Peter Island or Cooper Island and have a short sail back for your last day. Get the photo anchorage book; its very helpful. You'll have a SUPER time in sailing Paradise.
Here's another suggestion, wiht a bit more sailing and snorkeling, and less shopping. Weve done this 3 times over the last 12 years. First-spending the first night on the boat is a very good idea; you'll have a chance to play with all the bells and whistles on the boat, see what works--and what doesn't--and get out quicker on your first day. Assuning you are starting in Roadtown or any nearby harbor, head out east for a nice sail to trellis Bay and enjoy the Last Resort. Next day head east and pick up a day mooring at one of the Dog Islands. great snorkeling, and you'll be relatively alone. I'd skip the Baths--way too crowded and commercial. After lunch sail into North Sound, anchor at Drake's anchorage--another tranquil spot. Early the next morning head to the Bitter End, pick-up a mooring and explore the resort. Have dinner there Next day go west-a long run around the North of tortola to Cane Garden Bay. Leave early and try Sandy Cay or Green Cay for good snorkeling and beautiful anchorage, but only for the day. Then head over to Foxy's or Sidney's for some food and fun. Next day you go around the west end of Tortola to Norman island-lots to do, including a wild bar in the Bight, and good snorkeling at the Indians. Then you can try Peter Island or Cooper Island and have a short sail back for your last day. Get the photo anchorage book; its very helpful. You'll have a SUPER time in sailing Paradise.
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