British Virgin Islands Day 6 - Passage to Jost Van Dyke

The following day the winds were much better. They were still strong but the swells were smaller. It was time to head to Jost Van Dyke, an Island on the other side of Tortola. We had far to go today, almost 20 miles, but with favorable winds we hoped the journey wouldn't be too long.

I've beome the official navigator on our sailing adventures. Navigation is one thing about sailing that I really enjoy. Plotting a course, determining our heading, getting our bearing...its all fun to me. I'm slowing improving my methods too, mainly by writing down headings and bearings as I figure them out. Otherwise I just spend the day constantly recalculating things, cause I can't remember anything anymore. I've started writing down the current heading and bearings on little slips of paper, because otherwise by the time I climb the stairs from the nav table to the cockpit I've forgotten them again. When we get our own boat I will learn how to plot waypoints into the gps, and that will eliminate the need for little paper pieces, but for now they will do.

We stopped at Diamond Cay for a little snorkeling, but it was too rough for me. Instead I stayed on the boat, writing and reading while the rest snorkeled. Suddenly a school of large silver blue fish came flipping and leaping around the boat. They even flew underneath the boat, making thump thump thumping noises as they tried to jump but hit the boat instead. They would start to fly out into the bay and then they would come back to the boat and repeat the whole enterprise.

Then it was on to Great Harbor. The few moorings available here were already taken so we had to anchor. Then it was time to go Into shore and walk around in the little town. This part of our first trip to the BVI I remember very well; the little Police Station, and of course Foxy's. I bought a Foxy's tshirt, my one souvineer for this trip.

We had crazy Caribbean cocktails, (Sally and I chose mango mohitos), and the kingfish for dinner. We listened to funky, relaxed, regeaa music, and had key lime pie for dessert. Back on the boat, we were reduced to bobbing on an anchor all night which sucks, but what can you do? That's the way it is on a boat sometimes.