Renting a dinghy

[BuffaloGal]

Has anyone rented a dinghy for the day to access beaches and snorkeling? If so, did you have a good experience? Was it worth it? And where did you rent from?

Thanks!

[hoosierdaddy]

Has anyone rented a dinghy for the day to access beaches and snorkeling? If so, did you have a good experience? Was it worth it? And where did you rent from?

Thanks!

This is a question that comes up often. I love renting a dingy. We rented from Noah's little arks and it was prety easy to do. They are located in Cruz Bay in front of the Beach Bar. I love the freedom to go to different beaches and to wistling cay. The only problem is that some people have troble getting back into the dingy when they get out of it in open water.

[Pianogrl]

We rented from Calypso....
www.calypsovi.com
Click on the Dinghy Rentals link & go from there.

It was amazing! Truly one of the best days we had; now we schedule a "Dinghy Day" each time we go.
We rented the larger one with the center console with the steering wheel. It was completely worth it.
Enjoy!

[RickG]

I enjoy it, but its work. Check out and check in take up a good bit of time. Getting back in the dinghy is pretty hard for folks without upper body strength. I do REALLY like cruising up and down the north shore and checking things out. I'd do a half day again.

Cheers, RickG

[alw1977]

We love dinghy days! We usually do a 1/2 day (morning) with Noah's Little Arks. We leave Cruz Bay, go all the way to Waterlemon Cay and work out way back. It's great fun, though do note that sea conditions vary depending on time of the year. We have a very calm ride in October 2008 and a very bouncy ride in April 2009. St. John from the water is so spectacular, it's one of my favorite things to do.

[XOXO]

We did not like it.

1. we weren't familiar with St. John yet and they basically gave us a map and said don't go here and don't go there. See ya.

2. we went during the winter "swells" and it was VERY rough.

3. we did not feel that we were able to see anything that we could not see from the beach.

I am just trying to give you all perspectives. It wasn't for us.

Gina

[P-600]

Back in April of 2003 we had a nightmare experience because of the swells. We had our three children on board and brought it on to the beach. We couldn't bring it back out. The waves crashed over the boat. Water filled the boat and ruined everything not to mention weighing the boat down. When we finally got it out(with alot of help from people on the beach) we went over to Henley Cay to hang out (we had to drive fast to get the water out from the back of the boat)We couldn't start the boat- the engine was flooded. My poor husband must have pulled that cord 1000x. Luckily, some guy who moored his saiboat out there and had come back for lunch or something he called Noah's for us and they came to help us. My kids tell that story to this day --they were crying at the time. It's kind of funny now but then not so much.
If there are no swells Go! If there are swells-wait until they're gone!
PS- We are boaters

[cjroyer]

The first year we went to St John, we rented dingy's and it was my favorite day. Although I agree with ALW. We went in Nov 06 and the water was smooth. It was paradise. Went again April 08 and it was rough that day. Made it very hard to get back out into the water once we beached the boat. Way too much work.

I think we're going to skip it this year although we have a newbie couple going and they may want to do it so we'll play it by ear. We also rented from Noah's.

[alw1977]

I guess it all depends on your level of comfort with being on the water. I personally *love* being on boats and would choose to go boating every day if I could. I'd say the advantage to taking a dinghy over driving to the beaches is that it's much, much easier and quicker to get from beach to beach. When you aren't driving on the windy roads, it takes a lot less time to get from Cinnamon to Maho.

It's not like you see something on a dinghy you can't see from the island, but rather, the adventure of getting there and being on the water is what I go for. Definitely check out sea conditions - I went on a Sail Safari during a small craft advisory day last April and it was insane. Fun for me, but it would probably have scared the poo out of some people.

[*Sunnie*]

For those of you who did rent a dinghy, have you ever snorkeled Johnson's Reef? Are there any moorings nearby or will we have to anchor?

I agree that the North Shore beaches are easy to access and don't exactly require a dinghy to get to -so is it more worthwhile to just do a half day rental instead of a whole day? Initially, we were planning a whole day...

[BuffaloGal]

Thanks for the good input. Have you ever taken a dinghy to Whistling Cay for snorkeling? Is there somewhere to pull the dinghy up on shore there? Thanks!

[Exit Zero]

There are no Moorings at Johnsons Reef - the yellow buoys should not be tied to and mark a no anchoring zone inside them.
There are moorings at Whistling Key - the beach area by the old stone guard house is usually rocky and not easy to beach a dinghy on.

[Ryker]

One other point to consider. My wife and I and a friend rented a dinghy for the day it was a lot of fun with one exception their was a large yacht some distance from us and it appeared to be going slow I did not see the large wake it created until the last minute and had to turn into it to avoid tipping over. The wake was about 6 feet it was a little scary to say the least but everyone was fine. Its more relaxing when someone else has the responsibility.

[djmom]

Be sure everyone in the group knows how to turn it on and do basic forward, reverse in the dingy.

My husband was snorkeling with my daughter and I was in the dingy with my other daughter, it started drifting away towards the reef (bad knot on my part when tying on to the buoy)-

It was hard to figure that out (how to start it, etc..) when I was in a panic and couldn't think straight. Better for all adults to know how to drive it at the outset.

Also I always bring a small first aid kit with tweezers after the time when a sharp fiber from a rope got stuck in my finger and was so painful it almost ruined the day.