Sun, Sand, Snorkelling and Stars

Sun, Sand, Snorkelling and Stars

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

This morning, we decided to inflate the new hard-bottom dinghy.  Okay, lets lug this 100 pound boat up the stairs and onto the deck, then pull everything out of the bag for the first time.  Uh, oh, something's missing!  There are two pumps--a foot pump and a two-way hand pump.  However, neither comes with the attachments needed to fill the dinghy. Aaarrrrggghhhh!  We tried this and that, but nothing was satisfactory.  We even went to the chandlery here to see if they sold the attachments.  

 Finally, Jose, from 'Smoke and Mirrors' loaned us his pump, with attachments. It worked great.  Jose's been a great source for information and help.  Really nice guy.  He sailed in the Caribbean 1500, too, but we hadn't met him before.  

It rained off and on all day today, but it's a warm rain, so we usually just kept working.  

Sometimes, I think Nanny Cay is a boomerang port. Every time we think we're ready to leave, it holds on tight and we boomerang back.  By the time we got the dinghy sorted out, it was 3:00 and too late to leave.  We went for a swim in the pool instead.  Oh, well, there's always tomorrow.  

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Today, it's finally time to leave Nanny Cay. We stopped at the fuel dock to get filled up with diesel.  While we were there, Arthur, from Nordic Light, came over to chat.  He was in the Caribbean 1500, but we hadn't met him before. Really nice guy.  His boat is a Mason 54. Beautiful. He is a retired Delta airline pilot.  

We went to Norman Island, just south of Tortola with the intention of anchoring in The Bight.  However, it was littered with mooring balls and boats.  Really no good place to anchor and pretty busy for our taste.  So, we went to Benures Bay on the north side of the island and anchored around 2:30 in a quiet, secluded spot.  It's just beautiful, surrounded by treed hills and Caribbean teal water.  Time for a swim and a cocktail.  Ahhhh, we have finally arrived.  

 BENURES BAY

It's been so rainy and overcast lately, that we have to close the hatches before going to bed. We can't hear the rain in our back cabin during the night, and we don't want the rain to come in.  That means that the only air flow is through our cabin fans.  It's sweltering!  These are the times when we really wish we had air conditioning. 

Thursday, November 24, 2016

In the morning, I cleaned all of the plastic windows on our enclosure. They were covered with salt.  So nice to get them clean. Then, we took them all off so we only have the roof up for sun protection.  We have a beautiful breeze here, so it's lovely in the shade. 

While I cleaned the windows, Carey put Tef-Gel on all of the lifeline turnbuckles, nuts, and bolts to control the rust. The salt water and sea air is terrible for promoting rust on everything, including stainless steel. It's a full time job, just trying to control it. Our poor boat is already showing signs of rust, and the barbecue is covered in rust. Not pretty. 

It's so hot inside the boat (nope, no air conditioning) that I decided we should have a hot lunch and a cold (or at least a simpler) supper.  That will give us time to cool off the boat after having the stove on.  For lunch, we had beef and gravy (out of a can) over egg noodles.  Amazingly delicious. 

So far, I'm not too thrilled about our cell service.  I usually can't download emails or use the Internet, but every once in awhile the phone boings to let me know something has come in.  It's very spotty. I guess I'll just have to compose emails and press send, and wait for it to go in its own good time.  

In the afternoon, we swam and relaxed.  I read my book and Carey puddled around trying to figure out how best to store things (e.g., the enclosure windows we just took off).  Everything needs a spot, but we have limited space.  Time to get creative!  Hmmmm, how about under our mattress?  Worth a try....tomorrow.  

Friday, November 25, 2016

This morning's job was snorkelling.  Yup, it's a tough life.  After, breakfast we got out our snorkelling gear and I suited up, ready to go in five minutes.  A half hour later, I was still sitting here, in full gear, waiting for Carey to get his new gear just right.  LOL. Finally, I jumped in without him and he eventually followed. There are big fish (about 2 and a half feet long) right below our boat. Carey thinks they might be tarpon.  A little nearer to shore, we saw many colourful coral fish--blue, yellow, orange, peach, silver, striped.  Some are shaped like angel fish, while others are tiny and slim. So pretty and peaceful. On the way back to the boat, Carey followed a large sea turtle for awhile. Once I got Carey in the water, he didn't want to get out!

When we got back on board, Carey resumed his organizing while I updated the blog notes and made lunch. I won't actually be able to send the blog update until we have better cell service or free wifi. 

Tomorrow, the plan is to go to explore the Caves past Treasure Point and then go to an anchorage on Peter's Island, but right now it's time for lunch. 

We swam a lot today, and then watched the wildlife--tarpon leaping two feet in the air, pelicans diving for supper, etc.  Cool.  

Saturday, November 26, 2026

After a light breakfast, we left Benures Bay and headed for The Caves, which is just around the bend on this island. We saw a sea turtle swimming near us on the way there.  Picking up a mooring ball for the first time in high winds was a treat, but we finally managed it.  I'm sure our skills will improve with practice.  Once settled, we donned our snorkelling gear and jumped in the beautiful water. It's so refreshing, but not cold at all.  Just a comfortable temperature, even when we're in it for long periods.  We swam over to The Caves and saw lots of pretty coral and colourful fish.  Afterward, while back onboard and eating an early light lunch, friends dinghied up for a visit.  Then, two more friends swam up to the boat.  So fun.  It's a different life here, when people can swim over to drop in.  We hadn't seen them in over a week, so it was nice to catch up.  

Later, we went to anchor in Little Harbour, on Peters Island.  It's a very pretty spot, and of course we went snorkelling immediately.  We swam over the anchor to check that it was secure.  We snorkel every day and swim several times a day.  It's so hot that we need to swim to cool off frequently. No air conditioning on this boat!  

Around 2:00, we enjoyed some appetizers and had a barbecued steak dinner around 7:00. We usually eat dinner in the dark, because the sun sets so early, but it's beautiful in the evenings. No bugs (even with our table lamp), light breeze, tons of stars, and anchor lights.  From this harbour, we can see the lights of Tortola.  So pretty.  After cleaning up the dinner dishes, we usually read for a while, and then go to bed early.  We tend to wake up with the sun, so it works out well.

Sunday, November 27, 2016

At 10:00, we lifted anchor and raised the sails, heading for Soper's Hole at the west end of Tortola. We need to get rid of our trash and do laundry, and this is a place with all of the facilities--restaurants, laundry, trash, shops, and a market. 

We were sailing downwind in about 10-13 knots of wind. Just a lovely relaxing sail.  

We arrived at Soper's Hole, at the west end of Tortola, at 12:45. We picked up a mooring, which was much easier this time. Hallelujah, we're learning!  

The next jobs are to put the dinghy in the water, have lunch, do the laundry, empty the trash, and update the blog, in no particular order.  

When we were coming into the mooring field here, another Canadian boat came in at the same time. Carey called hello to them and chatted a bit across the way.  It was a young couple, who had taken a sabbatical, with their two young kids.  A short time later, around 2.00, they drove up in their dinghy.  The kids immediately climbed aboard and we invited the adults onboard, too.  They are Frances, Matt, Piper, and Digory Vantol, from Surrey, BC.  (I made a game of guessing the kids' names and amazed them when I guessed Digory's name with only a 'G' and a 'D' as clues.  Carey just rolls his eyes, but I love guessing games.). We had a great visit with them and never ran out of conversation during their four hour visit.  They are living the dream that most people only talk about, and giving their kids some awesome life experiences.  They are a really nice couple.  Their kids were so well-behaved and a joy to have aboard.  I got my kid fix!  Woohoo!  

Well, we didn't get anything done on our list, so I guess we'll have to be tasky tomorrow.  (Matt and Frances did take our trash with them, since they were going that way.  So nice of them, and one thing off our 'to do' list.)

Monday, November 28, 2016

It rained off and on all night and throughout the morning.  We had a good breakfast and did some cleaning around the boat while we waited for the rain to stop. The plan was to take the laundry into shore and to buy a few provisions, and maybe even go out for lunch.  And use the free wifi, of course.  What a treat!   Hmmmm, great plans.  

When it was time to lift the dinghy off the bow, it was blowing quite hard.  That makes it a little dangerous to be standing on deck with a large inflatable crazily blowing in the wind.  Since we didn't want Carey getting knocked overboard, we held off on launching the dinghy. That meant that we were boat-stranded for the moment.  We haven't stepped on land since last Wednesday morning.  We don't mind that, but I'd like to get a few things done.  It's rainy, so I can't even do the laundry onboard and hang it out.  Hopefully, the wind will quiet down in a bit and we can go ashore.  We can't even swim here, because some boats don't use their holding tanks--when they flush their toilets it goes right into the bay.  Uck, we are not swimming in that.