Full Moon Sail to Virgin Gorda

5/15 - Virgin Gorda lies about 90 miles to the Northwest of St. Maarten.  A passage of some 16-18 hours.  We were advised to make the crossing at night so we would arrive with the early morning light.

We departed Phillipsburg about 3 pm on Thursday afternoon and decided to take 3 hour watches.  The weather was overcast and the full moon wasn't clearly visible until well after midnight.  The winds were light to moderate and we averaged about 5 and half knots.

As Rick handed over the watch to me at a 3 am  he pointed out the lights of what he believed to be a freighter or cruise ship on the horizon directly ahead of us.  It didn't seem to move or change in size and we finally determined that it was lights on Virgin Gorda rather than a ship.

Our destination on Virgin Gorda was Bitter End Yacht Club on the famous North Gorda Sound.  Richard treated us to two nights in a slip at the dock so we could come and go as we like.

Virgin Gorda - A Little Bit of Paradise

5/16 to 5/18 -Virgin Gorda is one of the prettiest places I've ever seen in my life.  Take the waters of the Florida Keys and the Bahamas add a moderate elevation of almost 1400 feet, stir in some of the warmest people I've met anywhere and you have my definition of paradise.

As we made our way to the channel to North Gorda Sound, we passed Necker Island, owned by Sir Richard Branson.  He also owns nearby Mosquito Island.  The story has it that on a early trip to the BVI, he couldn't get a flight back to the UK so he chartered a jet and sold seats on it to pay his own way.  That was the beginning of Virgin Airlines.

We spent two nights at the Bitter End Yacht Club which almost defies description.  You have to check out the link above to begin to appreciate what this place is like.  Go on!  I dare you!

First order of business - Cheeseburger in Paradise

The first night we took a ferry across the sound and visited Hog Heaven, a local rib joint with a commanding view from high above the sound.  The owners were warm and friendly. The ribs were great.  The Pain Killers were potent.  And the view was magnificent.

                  

On Saturday, Rick and I took the dinghy and explored the Sound.  He wanted to
play with his new Go-Pro camera.  Here, he's using his shades as a polarizing filter. Check out the video taken here.









Sunday morning I decided to check out Guy's Trail which goes up to the ridge behind Bitter End.  It was a lot more challenging than I had anticipated.  A steep vertical climb through the rocks that required you to keep your eyes on the path to avoid turning your ankle.  You had to be careful when you saw a needed support tree branch in your peripheral vision - it was just as likely to be a cactus.

The reward was worth the effort.  The small island you see to the right below is a restaurant called Saba Rock.  I followed another trail from the top to the opposite side of the island and hitched a ride on a boat back to Bitter End.

Unfortunately, we were due back at Hodges Creek mid-day so at 11 am we said goodbye to North Gorda Sound and made our way around to the SW corner of Virgin Gorda to check out one more beautiful spot before closing the book on this trip.

The Baths is an area where house-sized granite boulders line the white sand beaches.  It's incredibly beautiful.

Back to Reality

5/18 - The dream ended when we returned to Hodges Creek Sunday afternoon.  It was an incredible journey and truly an opportunity of a lifetime.  I may never get to spend that much time in the Caribbean and see that much territory again but I can guarantee you that I will be back.


I'd like to thank Capt. Richard Stanard for choosing me to accompany him on Lakota for this 900-mile odyssey and for putting up with a  perverse sense of humor which he was clearly unaccustomed to.

I'd also like to thank fellow traveler, Rick Floyd, for returning that humor in kind and for saving our bacon in the blow off Guadeloupe.  As a fellow Oriental sailor, I look forward to spending more time under sail with Rick in the near future.

And last, but not least, thanks to Lakota for all the good times.