Sir Francis Drake Channel, Norman Island- Day 7

Sleeping in was much appreciated. As I clumsily brewed coffee Alex preformed his daily engine check. We sat on the bow of our boat and enjoyed the scenery. Scrub Island to our left is being turning into a world class mega resort. It's crawling with cranes and bulldozers that are clearing the area. We hope that none of the other islands nearby become overrun with development. The natural uninhabited land provides a beauty like none other however tourists will soon flock to Scrub Island.



We prepare the boat for the sail south to Norman Island. After closing all of the hatches we wait for the dock to empty so we can fill up our tanks with fresh water for showers. The boat is equipped with 2 large tanks and we were more than half way empty. We wanted to fill up here because we were unsure if we would find another place to fill up. Having fresh water on board was a luxury. We could enjoy long warm showers and not have to be concerned too much with how much we used. Filling up both tanks was only $7-- not bad!



We motor past Scrub Island on it's north west side and found ourselves sailing down the middle of Sir Francis Drake Channel. We imagined Christopher Columbus sailing these same waters in 1493. He discovered the Lesser Antilles island chain on his second voyage.



The seas were manageable. Winds were at about 15-20 knots. Headed due south, we did experience a little rockiness. I'm sure I was very obvious with my body language but I was really trying to keep my cool about tipping so much from left to right. I just don't like being rocked back and forth so much. I sat on the edge of my seat with my feet planted firmly. One hand was holding onto the bar behind me and the other was securely holding onto Alex's arm for reassurance.



He's a spectacular skipper and sailed most of the way. I took control a couple of times when Alex reefed the main and checked the charts. When we turned downwind we pulled out a reefed jib but still kept the motor on to give us an extra boost. It was another enjoyable ride.

We passed The Baths at Virgin Gorda on our left and planned to come back there on our next trip. We would have loved to stopped there for lunch but figured we better keep moving since we were unsure of how long it would take us. The beach at The Baths shows evidence of the island's volcanic origins where deposited granite eroded into piles of boulders on the beach. The boulders form natural tidal pools, tunnels, arches and scenic grottoes that are open to the sea. The largest boulders are about 40 feet (12 m) long.

We pulled into The Bight at Norman Island around 2 in the afternoon which was earlier than we expected. Traditionally explorers defined a bight as a bay that could be sailed out of on a single tack. I say it's because it looks like a pirate took a big bite out of the island.




Legend plays a large part in the history of Norman Island with tales of pirates and treasure caves. With an area of 610 acres, the island is approximately 2 ½ miles long with a central ridge extending along the length of the island creating gently rolling hills. Norman Hill is the highest point at 427 feet above sea level. The coast line comprises a number of bays and offshore reefs providing excellent snorkeling. Norman Island lies close to the international boundary line separating the British Virgin Islands from the US Virgin Islands.



Norman Island has a history involving pirates and treasure. Norman was the inspiration for the famous Caribbean epic book Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. The influence of Treasure Island on popular perception of pirates is vast, including treasure maps with an "X", schooners, the Black Spot, tropical islands, and one-legged seamen with parrots on their shoulders.

As we approach the anchorage, we pick a mooring ball and attach to it on our first try. We let out a big "Hooray!" as this was the longest journey that we had left on our trip and in reality it really wasn't that long at all.

We prepare sandwiches for lunch and celebrate with an ice cold Heineken. Just then a 6 foot tarpon circles under our boat! Alex is amused and quickly grabs his mask and snorkel. We feed him some bread and were amused at him hanging out in the shade of our boat.



We were really looking forward to diving and we read that there was a dive shop on shore. We dinghy to the dock and head straight for the tiny dive shop. It was more of a wooden shack on the beach. A short stocky Australian guy greeted us but unfortunately they didn't have any dive trips for tomorrow. Their other branch located on Cooper Island was going out to Anegada to dive a Japanese refrigeration vessel but they were unable to pick us up since it was so far out of the way.

Anegada is the only inhabited British Virgin Island formed from coral and limestone, rather than being of volcanic origin. While the other islands are mountainous, Anegada is flat and low. Its highest point is only about 28 feet (8.5 m) above sea level, earning it the name which translates as “the drowned land.”

Many moons ago the Anegada Passage was considered the entrance to the Caribbean, and the protected waters of the Sir Francis Drake Channel attracted merchantmen and pirates alike. It's a spectacular destination for diving because there are so many wrecks. Anegada's reefs are a shipwreck treasury, with over 300 wrecks off its shore. 1/2 took place between 1654 and 1899.

The many hidden coves along with shallow waters and complex reef systems provided the perfect spot to ravage passing ships carrying riches from the New World back to Europe. The islands became a favored hangout of famous scoundrels such as Blackbeard, Bluebeard and Sir Francis Drake.

Tom handed us a printed map of the trails on the island so we took off in search of treasure. We weren't really prepared for a hike (flip flops and no water) but we are always up for an adventure.

We walked behind the dive shop and came to a steep gravel trail. At the top, there is a nice rock perch which is the perfect place to sit and take in the scenery. From here you can see a panoramic view of the entire island. There is an overgrown trail that leads down to the beach on the other side of the island but since we weren't wearing our Tevas, we stuck to the more well traveled path. We didn't see any other people the entire time and this reminded us of the island we hiked near Komodo.





It's a breathtaking view from the top. White sand beach surrounds the island, reef offers protection and turquoise water is calming. We follow the main trail around a few curves and pass openings in the trees which offer a beautiful view of our surroundings.



Hermit crabs rustle in the brush and we stop to admire them. We came across so many that were dead. I wondered what happened, it's almost like someone or something came and attacked them. Later we learned that wild cattle and goat roam here so we hope that it was caused by natural means and not by people. I did manage to find a couple of empty shells so I keep them as souvenirs. I hope this did not disrupt a small crab's house hunting endeavor by too much.



The land is very dry here. All of the islands are so different. Some are lush and green, some are rocky, others flat. The diversity makes exploring each island unique.



As we get back to the shore, we notice that all of the bars and restaurants are closed for down season. It just so happens that they closed yesterday and won't open until the snow birds come in November. We ran into some other hungry sailors who pointed out that Willy T's was open for dinner. Little did we know that we were in for a treat!



We head back to our boat for some R&R and take in a beautiful pink and purple sunset. After freshening up, we dinghy over to the dock at the floating restaurant and tie our dinghy up in a sea of others. The place was packed!




The back 1/2 of the boat is devoted to the restaurant. Picnic tables are full of patrons and the open kitchen is bustling. A line formed at the counter where hungry sailors placed their food orders.

Alex ordered up a delicious meal of Anegada Conch fritters and jumbo shrimp! It was my first time to eat Conch but its was soooo good! (I'm craving it now)

Conchs are the mollusks that live in the large beautiful spiral shells. In 2003, the export of Queen Conch shells was prohibited from the Caribbean. Many types of Conch live among sandy bottoms among beds of sea grass in tropical waters.



As we're eating a small motor boat pulls up next to the floating restaurant and ties on. The captain looks like an American and has a young local guy with him. The older, fat American man made quite a spectral of himself because he kept going around from table to table asking if everything was alright and if we needed anything. We thought he might be the owner but come to find out he was just a crazy old guy who wanted attention.

The front 1/2 of the old ship is designated for the bar and is complete with flashing lights, loud music and a hoppin' dance floor. We meet a group of 9 Canadians who are on a sailing trip together. They are young and friendly so we instantly struck up a conversation. The drinks started flowing!

A picture book was being passed around the bar. It was from the 90's (when people still used pictures books..hello!) Those must have been fun times at Willy T's! There were women jumping off the back of the boat topless and people doing body shots. The crowd we were hanging out with did their best to recreate those legendary moments. I couldn't help but think that Perry would love this place! lol

After a few more (strong) rum punch drinks, Alex and I hit the dance floor. The local guy, "Hollywood" showed his dance moves and a group of locals really got their bump and grind on. Ummmm, Wow!



A group of young Puerto Ricans take a 4 person shot and the old man flings his shirt off and jumps off the boat of the boat into the dark water! It was a hilarious site and everyone was really enjoying themselves!

Monkey Point & Marina Cay- Day 6

Rays of sun shinning through the hatches awoke us. We were just in time for the morning weather report on VHF channel 6. Both channel 5 and 6 report weather for the Inter-coastal waterways however every single time you turn it on it's in Spanish. You'll need to wait for it to run all the the way through until they say it in English. Just then, the static picks up and it's impossible to understand what the reporter is saying. If you manage to pick up a few tidbits you're doing better than we did.



An early start was welcomed today since we had a long journey and wanted to make a stop along the way to snorkel. We quickly enjoyed our coffee but had no breakfast foods on board since we gave our fresh fruits away as a thank you gift to Debbie and Rick.

It was time to do a little cleaning and reassess our food inventory. We gathered our trash and loaded up the dinghy. We needed to drop that off on shore and find a grocer to stock up on sandwich meats and ice.



We strolled passed the beach side bars and restaurants to a small narrow winding road. To the left was an extremely steep hill that lead inland. We curved around the main road and stumbled upon Bobby's Grocery. It was exactly what we needed. They were very well stocked and had everything we were looking for. Good thing we were still on island time because the clerk chatted with us about every individual item we selected. Most of the other little places we'd been had more of a bodega look and feel- with dusty half-empty shelves and freezers. We now had all the supplies we needed so we returned to the boat, closed the hatches and we were off.

I really liked Cane Garden Bay. I was sad to wave goodbye as we pulled out of the harbor. It had a nice feel to it, everyone was friendly and helpful and I really enjoyed the live reggae music. We would have liked to stay there a few more days but because we waited out the weather in Francis Bay we had to get moving.

We turned to our starboard side and headed north around the top of Tortola. We were really nervous about going out into the open sea because we weren't sure what to expect. It actually ended up being my favorite ride of the entire trip. I had finally gotten comfortable with our boat and kept reminding myself that we were 15 tons of weight. It was going to take a hell of a lot to tip us over.

We contemplated heading back south instead but Alex left it up to me. He's so great about making sure I'm completely comfortable. We enjoyed really nice sailing over to Monkey Point and even turned off the engines completely which allowed us to take in the peacefulness of our surroundings.



At the southern tip of Guana Island is a beautiful rocky outcrop known as Monkey Point It came highly recommended for snorkeling. As we slowly approached, Alex prepared to moor and anchor. We weren't sure if mooring balls were available since it didn't show them in our cruising guide.

Sure enough there were moorings however the one we came to was missing the ring to attach our line to. We circled around once more to double check but eventually anchored a little further back.

We had no problem anchoring and actually got it on the first try. We were very proud about that :) We thought we had left enough room between our anchor and the mooring balls but a Catamaran pulled right up on top of our line. We would have to wait for them to leave.

Under the water we saw large trumpet fish, rainbow parrot fish, 6 foot tarpon, huge angelfish, striped parrot fish, yellow tail snapper, and many more tropical fish. The coral life is rich and healthy. Large fan coral sway back and forth and red stag coral populate the area. A few large tube coral were present. I also noticed that there were very few sea urchins which is unlike a lot of the places we visited in SE Asia. That's the sign of a healthy reef.

All of the British Virgin Islands are protected by the national park. It is absolutely illegal to fish in the BVI without a permit. That along with plentiful mooring balls for boaters helps preserve the natural beauty of the sea life.

My absolute favorite thing was a school of cuttlefish! It was amazing!! I felt a rush of excitement flow through my entire body. To see one would have been awesome but I was face to face with 30 of them. They flashed purple and red to communicate with one another. Cuttlefish are referred to as the chameleon of the sea because of their remarkable ability to rapidly alter their skin color at will. Their skin flashes a fast-changing pattern as communication to other cuttlefish and to camouflage them from predators. WOW!

As I kept myself perfectly still in a state of amazement, I suddenly hear a large splash on the surface just a few feet away from me. I instantly peek my head above water and see a yellow tail snapper flapping it's tail violently on the surface. Seconds later, I witness a 3 foot pelican clear it's throat, tilt his neck back and devour the snapper in one gulp. It was a spectacular sight and I had a front row seat. I'm glad he went for the yellow tail instead of me!

Monkey Point offered some of the best snorkeling we've experienced and we hope that it remains a diverse ecosystem for generations to come.



We enjoyed several hours here and then proceed through the narrow passage way to Marina Cay. We found ourselves surrounded by private islands and water so clear that we could almost see the bottom. The water was calm here and we wished that these moments would last forever.



It was a bit challenging to navigate because Little Camanoe and Great Camaone Islands blend into each other in the horizon. It's not until you are close to shore that your eyes reveal a tiny passageway leading straight for Beef Island. It is privately owned and is home to a small airport that hosts propeller planes.



As we approach Marina Cay, I spot a baby dolphin jump out of the water twice. I had my eyes open for them the entire trip so I was really happy to finally see one.



Marina Cay is a cliche Caribbean island. I feel like we're on set for a Corona commercial. It's surrounded by a white sand beach. Palm trees line the shore, hibiscus flowers are in bloom, thatch roof covered picnic tables are perfect for relaxing at and a bar and restaurant await us. The entire island is 8 acres.



We moor successfully on our first attempt. It's always a relief to be securely moored for the night. Even through it was a nice cruise on the way over, we now realized why sailors drink so much! First thing, we popped open a can of pineapple juice and a new bottle of Cruzan rum and sat on the bow of the boat taking in the scenery.



I always love dinghy rides, they're fast and maneuverable and it's fun being so close to the water. We tie up to the dock. (and lock it for good measure) A stroll through the gift shop gave us a few ides for souvenirs.



Next we took a romantic walk up the hill on a secluded windy path. There were no other people in sight. Large hermit crabs rustled in the leaves and little jumping lizards crossed our path.



We wandered up to the very top of the hill and found a good vantage point of the entire island.



Afterward we moseyed down to the restaurant. A bartender greeted us and offered the house special- none other than the infamous Painkiller. This was made with a very special Pusser's Rum.

A rasta chef sat at the end of the bar waiting for the rush to start. We were getting an early start and other than us the place was deserted.



As we waited for our drinks a British woman came up and asked if we had a reservation. We both looked around and thought "What the hell do we need a reservation for? The place is empty!" We laughed about it but eventually filled up with other patrons arriving in boats.



Along one wall were faded black and white photographs of Marina Cay in the 1920s and 30s. A writer named Rob White and his wife lived on the island for 3 years. They were sailors and landed at what they believe to be a large island but soon realized that it was not what they expected. As soon as they set foot on shore, he walked in one direction and she took off in another. They meet up an hour later and realized that it was only 8 acres and was completely uninhabited by people. They quickly purchased the island outright for and incredible price of $60 US.

In the late 70's, Marina Cay became famous as an outpost for Pusser's Rum. Alex told how his dad had a ration of Pusser's when he was the Dr. on board the ship for the Royal British Navy.



Rum and the sea are inseparable, and no rum is more akin to the sea and the sailor than Pusser's Rum–the Original Navy Rum. For more than 300 years, from the earliest days of wooden ships and iron men, sailors of Great Britain's Royal Navy were issued a daily ration–or "tot"–of rum by the ship's "Purser" (corrupted by the sailors to Pusser's). Prior to 1740, the men's daily tot of Pusser's Rum was a pint a day, which they drank neat, that is without water!

From 1655 to the 19th century, Pusser's Rum was one of the few daily comforts afforded those early seamen of Britain's Navy as they fought around the globe to keep the Empire intact and its sea lanes open.

It was not until July 31st, 1970 that the Admiralty Board abolished the daily issue of Pusser's Rum. "Times had changed", they said as they concluded that "in a highly sophisticated navy no risk for margin or error which might be attributable to rum could be allowed". And so it was that the daily issue of Pusser's Rum, which had stood the test of time as the Navy's longest serving tradition for over 300 years, was cast aside like a piece of flotsam and jetsam where it lay quietly until 1979.