We headed out early from Peter Island and motored in the calm weather to Road Town where passed an anchored cruise ship on our way to anchored near Wickmans Cay where we can and dingy into the dock. From there we headed to one of the government offices to get the official permit to use the national parks mooring balls for snorkeling. This took a little while as they had been at their work Christmas party the night before and things were moving slowly at the office. Next we headed towards the immigration office we enjoyed our first ice cream cones in the BVIs. The immigration office was nothing exciting, but our 30 days were nearly out so we had to apply for an extension. We can stay now until the end of February, although we think we will off before that anyway.
There a lot of charter boats still waiting for high season. And to think we thought the anchorages were already crowded!
We also wandered around town to the FedEx office to send paper work for Magnus to the Bahamas so that they will be expecting him later this winter. We passed the high school and I saw they had a woodshop near the edge of the property and it appears as though the cafeteria area is an open air space with just a large roof.
We also passed the fire department. It appears as though it may not be a good idea to build a high rise in the area, but a couple of the guys were outside and commented that Magnus was a cute dog. Evidently the fire department has fewer issues than the police, as the police station was surrounded by fence and barb wire.
Seeing as Magnus was on the boat, we took the chance to have lunch at the Pusser’s store and split a pizza. We ended our journey at the grocery store and then carried our food back to the dinghy.
The grocery store had their Christmas display out so we got to see SNOW in the BVI’s!
Next stop was just around the corner at Brandywine Bay where we spent the night, but the waves wrapped around the corner so we rolled a bit as the waves were hitting us mostly on the beam.
Next we left for Norman Island again, but this time Benures Bay on the north side. This is a beautiful spot and there are no mooring balls so the space was dominated by cruisers instead of charter boats. We met another couple who are taking time off work to cruise and we each took a turn at hosting the other. Then we spent our last evening socializing with another Salty Dawg boat and a couple who had done the rally the year before. Magnus and I enjoyed the hiking trails again too.
Maybe we hiked too far!
We departed there for Cooper Island, but our intended anchorage was looking too bumpy so we carried on around Tortola and ended up anchoring in Lee Bay on Camanoe Island where we met up with Compass Rose X who also had travelled from Bay Moorings and a catamaran, Second Wind who is owned by a couple who we met at the year end party the first year we owned Altera. We had a great dinner and breakfast the following morning and are planning to meet for Christmas.
From there we headed to Trellis Bay, just at the end of the Beef Island airport runway. Trellis Bay has a unique charm as it is one of the few places we have seen where they clearly have made no effort to make it look idyllic for the masses of tourists. There are more than a few derelict boats and few sunk or partially submerged.
The highlight to Trellis Bay was the local art studio that was interesting to browse through and Chrissy picked out a few local fruits to sample that are grown on a small local farm.
Since then we have returned to the North Sound for a couple days to stock up on groceries again and to access wifi so that I could update the blog, catch up on email and a few other items.
Great to see you two are enjoying Islands . Magnus sure looks like he is getting the hang of it ! ” The Indians “was one of our favourite snorkel sites as well . The “Wreck of the Rhone” we found to be a great dive site , if you are doing any diving .. Enjoy and keep posting, love the pics !
Thanks guys. We actually snorkelled the Rhone, quite interesting. I wish I had an underwater camera to capture some of our snorkel trips but haven’t found one yet
Great blog.
The best of the season to you Chrissy and Magnus.
Seasons greetings to you as well. Keep us updated on your plans next summer as I recall you mentioning a few interesting possibilities
The islands look wonderful, beats the dreary weather forecast of huge amounts of rain we are expecting.
Have a wonderful Christmas and a safe and very Happy New Year.
Nanny
Hi Jeff, just keep looking at your business card and wanted to drop you an email and wish you the best for the holidays! Love the pictures. The blow up santa sleigh reminds me of a Christmas I spend in Maui many years ago. Hope everything is going well with you and the boat and your travels.
Judi from Liburdi
Thanks Judi. Merry Christmas and happy new year to you and the rest of the group at Liburdi
Thanks for the update, Jeff…It sure sounds to me like it will soon be time to leave the BVI due to…. traffic! Since you are making arrangements to be in the Bahamas, later in the winter, it suggests to me that you are not planning to head south and west to be outside the hurricane belt by summer (e.g. Panama or thereabouts). Is that a correct assumption, and would it mean that you may be returning to Georgian Bay as early as next summer?
Explore and Enjoy, and best wishes to you and Chrissy at this Holiday Time of the Year (including Magnus).
Walter
Hi Walter
Our current plan is to visit Cape breton next summer and a lot of the eastern seaboard in between. We are considering a few options after that but need to see how the next few months go first
Looking good guys! Great to see you having so much fun exploring.
Merry Christmas from Jessie and Eric!
I guess I won’t be seeing you at the boat show this year.
Nice photos!
NG
I’m hoping for the Annapolis boat show this year…. Enjoy the Toronto show if you go.
Jeff