Returning to the BVI

Skipperette at the helm.

Before we left St. Martin, we took a long sail past Phillipsburg, the Dutch capital, and out toward Saba and back to Simpson Bay. It was perfect day for sailing! There is a point where you can see Anguilla, St. Martin, St. Bart’s, Saba, St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Statia (St. Eustatia). Granted some of them are way off on the horizon, but it is still a neat sight. And knowing you can see where you are going makes it more comforting when heading out on a new adventure!

We had a great sail from St. Martin to Virgin Gorda. Since I did not enjoy the overnight sail, we changed our approach for the return trip. We got up at 4 AM and left Simpson Bay on the Dutch side in the dark. There was only a sliver of a moon this time. Since we had entered way points into the chart plotter the night before, we just had to follow the lines on the chart plotter to safely make our way out of the bay and toward the BVI. The sunrise was beautiful.

The Captain at the helm in the early morning.

We could still see St. Martin and Anguilla when we were three hours away from them. The wind was perfect and the swells were comfortable so the day was lovely for a 13 hour sail. We each had several naps during the day and enjoyed the sunshine and warm breeze.

Seeing Virgin Gorda, BVI in the distance was also a welcome site as the day was very long! We entered Round Rock Passage just after 13 hours of sailing. Since we had to clear into Customs in Spanish Town, we headed north toward the Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbor.

Sunrise over St. Marten/Cint Marteen

When we could not find a good place to anchor, we gave in and went into the harbor and took a slip for the night. Actually, it was the right thing to do as the warm shower felt wonderful. Then a light dinner at the dockside bar, where I nearly fell asleep with my face in my plate, saved me from the galley. I crashed into bed right after dinner! And it was a great night’s sleep since there was no concern about the anchor holding.