After checking out Virgin Gorda, our first stop in the BVIs, it was time to move on. Trying to decide what is next in the “Sailor’s Playground” is always tough. So many options. The BVIs are not just known for its stunning beaches and crystal clear blue waters, but it is also known for it’s vibrant nightlife, or let’s be honest, day drinking of us older crowd! We love sipping on a tropical cocktail, enjoying live music while relaxing by the sea, and so it was time to sample some of BVIs most well known watering holes.
First up, we realized a full moon was on the calendar a few nights away and we had heard that Trellis Bay, Beef Island throws a mean Full Moon Party each month! Perfect timing!!
Knowing this a popular monthly event that is a checklist item for cruisers in the BVIs, we decided to head over the night before in case we had an issue getting a spot on the first come first served moorings. We woke up just after sun up and departed Saint Thomas Bay off of Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda for the 5 mile trek west to Trellis Bay on Beef Island. With limited options to anchor we decided to pick up a mooring ball for our two night stay so got their a day early. Super smart move! (GO US!) Since we arrived fairly early in the day the mooring field was actually decently empty when we showed up. We opted for a mooring ball on the outer edge off the southwest side. This turned out to be a good call! We paid up around sunset when a boat swung by for the evening to pick up the fees. Cash only. At the time it was $40/night.
We went ashore and stopped in for a beverage at the De Loose Mongoose at East End of Trellis Bay, a newer establishment with a great set up and beautiful view of the bay; Highly recommend. Food and drinks were very good and it’s a nice alternative to the smaller ramshackle shops down on the water.
As the day of the full moon wore on more folks showed up looking for a mooring. Many charters with not so sure (credit card) captains on board attempting to moor or anchor(!) in 20 plus knot winds. While fairly sheltered from fetch reducing wave action, the winds certainly made it a more varsity evolution to even to grab a motoring ball. Watching from the trampoline of WW got very entertaining, and unnerving. The fenders went out after watching a boat try to catch the mooring next to us and end up being blown every which way. (One of the “ways” was a few feet from WW.) Watching these boats come in and try to fight into the wind and grab the mooring with more novice crews, especially as it got more crowded, made us very glad we had chosen to arrive the day prior! Late afternoon we watched a 60+ foot motor yacht attempt to drop anchor just behind WW in the middle of the mooring field…ummm, that is NOT how this works. He upped a moved eventually and had to ferry his paying customers in later that night. Good call cap! By dusk, the moorings field was completely full with some of the larger yachts anchoring out in the rough water.
After watching the mooring action we dinghy’d in and stopped by Aragorn’s Studio, which sold fine art, prints and locally made gifts…and of course touristy T-shirts! Next store was a cute pottery place as well. With the moon rising before dinner, so we just had to wait for the festivities so begin!
Trellis Bay Full Moon Party
A lively, family friendly party held by the Trellis Bay Market, Bar and Grill. For normal provisioning, they also have a mini-mart with ice, water, fresh veggies, meats, beverages, and alcohol. But once a month they through one heck of a party to celebrate the full moon. They provided a huge BBQ buffet. At least two bands were rocking on opposite sides of the bay and there was entertainment all around to include stilt walkers and fire dancing.
Seriously, we watched a guy try to set himself on fire, then eat the fire, then ACTUALLY set himself on fire. It was wild. The band was super fun and we danced below the beautiful February “Snow Moon!” We had a great time feasting, dancing and watching the mayhem which well into the night along with many new friends we chatted with throughout the evening!
The Indians
Up early-morning not too worse for the wear…nothing a good greasy breakfast couldn’t fix, we dropped our mooring and headed west again. Our destination for the day was Pirate’s Bight Bay on Norman’s Island. But just north of the island there is a small cropping of rock formations jutting sharply out of the water. Below the surface down to 50 feet at times of clear water is a very lively reef hailed as one of the most spectacular reefs in the Virgin Islands. It’s an iconic spot to snorkel, paddle board, or just stop for lunch. We new to get there fairly early, but even arriving prior to lunch we had to wait for a bit until a mooring ball opened up. (FCFS and the mooring turnover is high, wait 30 min and most likely a boat will depart.)
Why is it called “The Indians”, as far as I can find, has nothing to do with native people and instead refers to the shape of the rocks. Apparently the 4 rocks rising from the ocean floor look like an Indian American Headdress or Teepees depending on who you ask. I didn’t see it personally, but that’s all I could find on it.
Underwater one side is sheer cliff on one side and the other is a soft and hard coral garden with lots of fish and sea life. It was a decent snorkel much like swimming in a big aquarium with lots to look at, but nothing super spectacular. Definitely some of the most diverse snorkeling we have been able to do since we hit the islands, lots of coral and fish to see not to far below the surface.
The Bight Bay, Norman Cay, BVIs
Once we finished snorkeling on the reef and had lunch, we finished out the trip to Bight Bay on Norman Cay. We found an open bay with lots of moorings at $40 a night. The area known as a must stop on the way through the BVIs.
Willie Ts is the well known infamous floating pirate ship bar/restaurant with a “bit” of a chaotic atmosphere. Of note; If you are trying too avoid the charter boat crowd, this is not the stop for you. Thankfully we hit it on a slow day so it wasn’t overly crowed and crazy that afternoon. It’s known to be quite raucous and loud, with the occasional nudity thrown in. (Just remember, some things you can never unsee.) Jumping off the back of the ship is apparently a right of passage and jumping in your birthday suit is a way to take it up a notch. We made the jump after a a couple of their Willie T specials, a Coconut Rum/Pineapple concoction (not quite worth the price)…in our bathing suits. Then hopped back in the dinghy to avoid the later boom boom crowd we heard going well into the night. Definitely a must stop for the experience.
The next day we dinghied over around the southern tip of the bight to a well known snorkeling spot called The Caves. (So clever…just wait, you’ll never guess what they are.)There is a nice long dinghy line you can tie off to and few larger balls for boats stopping in. We found this spot a delight. Barracuda, lots of fish, a little cave exploration and an Octopus!!!!
Jost Van Dyke: Foxy’s and the Soggy Dollar
Once we got back to the boat, we headed to our last and final stop in the BVIs, an 11 mile quick, Jib only, downwind sail over to Great Harbour on Jost Van Dyke. This is another of the must stops in the BVI bar crawl fun. We actually planned our route to sail by Sopers Hole and debated on stopping, but opted to keep going on to Great Harbour.
Once we arrived and settled onto our “Boaty Ball” mooring. (Of note: we had to reserved this mooring at 7am before heading to the caves.) Head’s up, as of this writing if you want to stay a second night, be prepared to get up the next morning at 7am to reserve another ball…which we did, but still had to move to a new ball after being able to log on at 0708. Kind of annoying. But I digress… once set, we dinghied around to White Bay to experience the famous Soggy Dollar Bar.
Fun Fact: The bar’s name has a great sailor origin. With no dock available, visitors had no choice but to anchor their boats offshore and make their way to shore by swimming. Once there, the currency tendered at the bar for their rummy libations was obviously VERY wet, giving rise to the “Soggy Dollar.”
One, that was accurate, we threw out an anchor in about 2 feet of water and waded into to shore, though we put our cash in a waterproof bag, so no soggy dollars for us! (We so smrt) And two, the place lived up to the hype. It had a great energetic vibe within it’s laid-back atmosphere both in the bar and along the long white fine sandy beach for people of all ages. More importantly? Their signature beverage, the painkiller, was cold, strong and delightful delish. Perfect for a warm beach day, it is a concoction of dark rum, cream of coconut, pineapple juice, orange juice and a dash of nutmeg. This is apparently the location the painkiller was invented. This is a hotly disputed topic throughout the BVI so if you desire to cause a bit of a “stir” just question where this drink originated. We opted for one then switched to coronas…we did not want our clothes to fall off.
We enjoyed a friendly competition of corn hole with some fellow cruisers from the Northeast US. Lots of laughs and fun had by all at this little island oasis.
The following day, we started out with a quick stop at the customs dock to clear out for the following morning. They were on island time as expected…I mean, so are we at this point, so no rush. No rush at all :). Easy process and kind people.
Later that afternoon, since we were celebrating our 3rd “Great Flush” anniversary, we went on a little bar crawl starting with where else, the famous Foxy’s Tamarind Bar. Known for its beachside bashes, It doesn’t get more more island bar than this place. Adorned in college flags and cruiser stickers, this is certainly on of those “if walls could talk…” type of places. It was quiet the afternoon we showed up, but we’ve heard you could walk from the furthest mooring to the bar and not get wet since boats are packed in so tightly for the live music nights.
Next stop was Corsairs Beach Bar, a Kind of an island dive bar with a baller beach view. The bartenders were very entertaining and the mood very light.
We then walked down to the very eclectic Tipsy Shark. We loved the bartender and fellow cruisers at the bar, we stayed for dinner. Great choice. The food was amazing. I had a lobster dish that was insanely good!
The BVIs lived up to their reputation as a “Sailor’s Playground”. It had a little bit of everything: High-end tourism, good sailing conditions, natural beauty, fun beach bars, fun snorkeling spots. We enjoyed all of it with the exception of one thing. You are surrounded by charter boats who aren’t always the most experienced or courteous neighbors and we had to make quite a few defensive sailing maneuvers on our way to new locations and in the anchorages. There also isn’t a lot of places to just anchor so you are constantly on the move and paying a lot of fees. Okay..two things. Otherwise, we loved it, so we’ll give it an 8 of 10.
The BVIs lived up to their reputation as a “Sailor’s Playground”. It had a little bit of everything: High-end tourism, good sailing conditions, natural beauty, fun beach bars, fun snorkeling spots. We enjoyed all of it with the exception of one thing. You are surrounded by charter boats who aren’t always the most experienced or courteous neighbors and we had to make quite a few defensive sailing maneuvers on our way to new locations and in the anchorages. There also isn’t a lot of places to just anchor so you are constantly on the move and paying a lot of fees. Okay..two things. Otherwise, we loved it, so we’ll give it an 8 of 10.
