usvi-on-line
Pic's Pics & Report - Vol. 2
Pic's Pics & Report - Vol. 2
We moved from Bordeaux Mountain to Seagrape Hill in Cora Bay. Our home for the second week was Reef Madness. This was our third stay there three years in a row. You can tell how much we adore and appreciate this beautiful home. Needless to say, we felt immediately at home. It just feels like we share good karma with Reef Madness.
Coral Bay mirrored on the glass doors at Reef Madness; the porch at Reef Madness
Featured bay & beaches:
Honeymoon
Pelican Rock/Long Bay
Haulover South
Gibney
Hansen
Salt Pond
Francis
----- Honeymoon -----
We parked at Caneel and hiked over to Honeymoon. My arm was wrapped up, felt stiff, hot and uncomfortable. The water was actually a little rough that day at Honeymoon. Nonetheless, the place was as beautiful as we'd remembered.
I let my husband get into the water first to see how the visibility was. If it hadn't been good, I wasn't going to get in because of my burn. I heard him saying it was "okay", so... here I go.
Different species of Parrotfhishes: Redband, Rainbow and Stoplight
Puddingwife
We usually see eels here but none that day. I always wonder what's inside these maze-like reefs. Wish I were as small and sleek as an eel for just a few hours... but, of course, all I could do was look into the reef from the outside. Yes, I could see you, Porcupine. I knew you wouldn't come out and you sure didn't.
I would've loved to snorkel longer, but soon my burn started stinging. I disappointingly called it quits. As my husband happily waded in the water, I cleaned my wound and wrapped it again. Not exactly relaxing. We opted not to have any drink/food at Caneel. When we got to the front desk to pay the $10 for parking, the receptionist said, "Oh, you are not having drinks with us?" I told her "Sorry... not today." To my reply she responded in a rather sarcastic tone "You sound like you've been here for weeks." I just smiled and thanked her for the stamp on the parking slip. We headed back to Coral Bay and ate a late lunch at Aqua Bistro. All the dishes we had were excellent. Unlike at Honeymoon, mosquitoes were bad there. At times I wasn't sure if I was eating or eaten.
----- Pelican Rock -----
The oozing burn was now surrounded by hundreds of blisters in all sizes. My arm was red and swollen. My husband winced. I sighed. And then we drove out to the East End. The beaches there may not be as picture-perfect as some of the North Shore beaches, but we really like that part of the island. Whenever we are not sure where we want to go, we often just drive off to the East End. And Reef Madness is perfectly located for that.
Pelican Rock
We didn't see a lot around the rock - the usual suspects and a baby Hawksbill Turtle (which I got only crappy photos of).
----- Haulover South -----
The snorkeling at Pelican Rock was a little disappointing that day, so we dropped by at Haulover South for more underwater time. I somewhat managed to ignore the stinging burn - wisely or stupidly. I didn't want to let the burn ruin our vacation and was going to deal with consequences, if any, after the trip.
Flamingo Tongue & Split-Crown Feather Dusters on Brain Coral
There is better snorkeling after you go around the point on the right side of the bay - though sometimes the water can be choppy out there.
Hawksbill Turtle
After our long snorkeling, I was ready to go back to Seagrape Hill. My husband lounged in the pool. I sat on the steps into the pool with my arm raised. I looked and felt dumb. I gave up and started cooking - on the stove only.
----- Gibney -----
This is our favorite beach to hang out. We often end up visiting Gibney and Francis more than once on one trip, and it's always one of them where we decide to spend our last full day on the island.
Graysby & Beaugregory
Elkhorn Coral & Southern Stingray with Bar Jack
A bunch of (at least six) Caribbean Spiny Lobsters stacked up under the rock
We drove into Cruz Bay to pick up medical supplies at Chelsea Drug. Since we were there, we decided to eat lunch at Black Sand Bistro. We will definitely go back there again on our next trip!
---- Hansen -----
This was another East End day for us. We dropped by at Sloop Jones' studio for the first time in 10 years. We enjoyed chatting with him and he kindly let me take shots of his cool funky studio.
We were tempted to snorkel Long Bay along the peninsula, but by the time we left Sloop Jones' studio, it was almost noon. We were hungry and headed to Vie's for her garlic chicken and conch flitters. Mosquitoes were swarming around us while we ate. I was dredged in insect repellent and managed to get bit only in two spots. My husband never uses any repellent and never gets bit, even when facing a fierce swarm. I don't get it. Are we that different? Ms. Vie placed a mosquito coil for us on the table saying, "All we need is a breeze to blow them away..." but there was absolutely no breeze that afternoon. It felt wonderful when we finally got into the water there.
Saddled Blenny
Atlantic Wing-Oyster & Barracuda
Anemone
Spotted an octopus
We saw rays and turtles in the deeper water in the middle of the bay. Since mosquitoes weren't bad at the beach, we hung out for a while after snorkeling. My husband pleasantly waded in the water as I dried and cleaned my burn (I was getting quite used to that ritual). After that I enjoyed the sun instead of the water.
----- Salt Pond -----
We wanted to snorkel Blue Cobblestone. When we got there, the waves were up so we snorkeled Salt Pond instead.
The visibility was poor. We almost aborted snorkeling. As we got near the point on the left side, the visibility improved. Tried to swim to the rock sticking out in the middle of the bay but didn't quite get there due to the choppy water. For some reason my calves kept cramping during this entire snorkel. We swam across the bay to the other side and, eventually, back to the beach. We saw rays and turtles in the middle but it was too dim to take any shots. The visibility on the right side wasn't good and got really bad as we swam closer to the shore. I ended up taking just a few photos on this snorkel. The only happy thing was finding one of my favorite fish, a Spotted Drum. They are dotted, striped, shy and cool.
----- (Back to) Francis -----
We'd had a pouring-rain snorkel in the beginning of this trip at Francis, so wanted to go back there when it wasn't pouring. The sky looked promising.
As I mentioned, we love snorkeling at Francis, especially the right side of the bay to Mary Point. The day turned out to be an octopus-day for us.
Yellowline Arrow Crab
Magnificent Feather Duster & Rough Fileclam
Banded Coral Shrimp
Octopus Garden - none of them were really active and some were barely seen
Rosy Blenny
About two thirds of the way back from Mary Point, the underwater views got significantly dim. Here came the rain. Glad that we'd had most of our snorkeling in by then. We amusedly waded in the pouring rain for a while. We imagined this would be our last visit to Francis on this trip and wanted to prolong our time there as much as we could...
That night we had our dinner at Sweet Plantains. We always go there on their curry nights (Fridays & Saturdays). Delicious.
It was our last night on Seagrape Hill. Wished we could've extended our stay at Reef Madness when we added a few nights to the end of our trip. The house was booked for those dates by then, so we had to move, sadly.
Coral Bay night
Visitor in the house. Freed her outside where more bugs were. Eat well, buddy.
Good morning, Coral Bay. How nice to have seen you so beautiful and serene on the day we were moving to Cruz Bay. The bell from the Moravain Church echoed through this little town. Made us really not want to leave.
Me and Coral Bay - reflected off the windows of Reef Madness
We sure hoped to be back. Until then, so long, Coral Bay.
Coral Bay mirrored on the glass doors at Reef Madness; the porch at Reef Madness
Featured bay & beaches:
Honeymoon
Pelican Rock/Long Bay
Haulover South
Gibney
Hansen
Salt Pond
Francis
----- Honeymoon -----
We parked at Caneel and hiked over to Honeymoon. My arm was wrapped up, felt stiff, hot and uncomfortable. The water was actually a little rough that day at Honeymoon. Nonetheless, the place was as beautiful as we'd remembered.
I let my husband get into the water first to see how the visibility was. If it hadn't been good, I wasn't going to get in because of my burn. I heard him saying it was "okay", so... here I go.
Different species of Parrotfhishes: Redband, Rainbow and Stoplight
Puddingwife
We usually see eels here but none that day. I always wonder what's inside these maze-like reefs. Wish I were as small and sleek as an eel for just a few hours... but, of course, all I could do was look into the reef from the outside. Yes, I could see you, Porcupine. I knew you wouldn't come out and you sure didn't.
I would've loved to snorkel longer, but soon my burn started stinging. I disappointingly called it quits. As my husband happily waded in the water, I cleaned my wound and wrapped it again. Not exactly relaxing. We opted not to have any drink/food at Caneel. When we got to the front desk to pay the $10 for parking, the receptionist said, "Oh, you are not having drinks with us?" I told her "Sorry... not today." To my reply she responded in a rather sarcastic tone "You sound like you've been here for weeks." I just smiled and thanked her for the stamp on the parking slip. We headed back to Coral Bay and ate a late lunch at Aqua Bistro. All the dishes we had were excellent. Unlike at Honeymoon, mosquitoes were bad there. At times I wasn't sure if I was eating or eaten.
----- Pelican Rock -----
The oozing burn was now surrounded by hundreds of blisters in all sizes. My arm was red and swollen. My husband winced. I sighed. And then we drove out to the East End. The beaches there may not be as picture-perfect as some of the North Shore beaches, but we really like that part of the island. Whenever we are not sure where we want to go, we often just drive off to the East End. And Reef Madness is perfectly located for that.
Pelican Rock
We didn't see a lot around the rock - the usual suspects and a baby Hawksbill Turtle (which I got only crappy photos of).
----- Haulover South -----
The snorkeling at Pelican Rock was a little disappointing that day, so we dropped by at Haulover South for more underwater time. I somewhat managed to ignore the stinging burn - wisely or stupidly. I didn't want to let the burn ruin our vacation and was going to deal with consequences, if any, after the trip.
Flamingo Tongue & Split-Crown Feather Dusters on Brain Coral
There is better snorkeling after you go around the point on the right side of the bay - though sometimes the water can be choppy out there.
Hawksbill Turtle
After our long snorkeling, I was ready to go back to Seagrape Hill. My husband lounged in the pool. I sat on the steps into the pool with my arm raised. I looked and felt dumb. I gave up and started cooking - on the stove only.
----- Gibney -----
This is our favorite beach to hang out. We often end up visiting Gibney and Francis more than once on one trip, and it's always one of them where we decide to spend our last full day on the island.
Graysby & Beaugregory
Elkhorn Coral & Southern Stingray with Bar Jack
A bunch of (at least six) Caribbean Spiny Lobsters stacked up under the rock
We drove into Cruz Bay to pick up medical supplies at Chelsea Drug. Since we were there, we decided to eat lunch at Black Sand Bistro. We will definitely go back there again on our next trip!
---- Hansen -----
This was another East End day for us. We dropped by at Sloop Jones' studio for the first time in 10 years. We enjoyed chatting with him and he kindly let me take shots of his cool funky studio.
We were tempted to snorkel Long Bay along the peninsula, but by the time we left Sloop Jones' studio, it was almost noon. We were hungry and headed to Vie's for her garlic chicken and conch flitters. Mosquitoes were swarming around us while we ate. I was dredged in insect repellent and managed to get bit only in two spots. My husband never uses any repellent and never gets bit, even when facing a fierce swarm. I don't get it. Are we that different? Ms. Vie placed a mosquito coil for us on the table saying, "All we need is a breeze to blow them away..." but there was absolutely no breeze that afternoon. It felt wonderful when we finally got into the water there.
Saddled Blenny
Atlantic Wing-Oyster & Barracuda
Anemone
Spotted an octopus
We saw rays and turtles in the deeper water in the middle of the bay. Since mosquitoes weren't bad at the beach, we hung out for a while after snorkeling. My husband pleasantly waded in the water as I dried and cleaned my burn (I was getting quite used to that ritual). After that I enjoyed the sun instead of the water.
----- Salt Pond -----
We wanted to snorkel Blue Cobblestone. When we got there, the waves were up so we snorkeled Salt Pond instead.
The visibility was poor. We almost aborted snorkeling. As we got near the point on the left side, the visibility improved. Tried to swim to the rock sticking out in the middle of the bay but didn't quite get there due to the choppy water. For some reason my calves kept cramping during this entire snorkel. We swam across the bay to the other side and, eventually, back to the beach. We saw rays and turtles in the middle but it was too dim to take any shots. The visibility on the right side wasn't good and got really bad as we swam closer to the shore. I ended up taking just a few photos on this snorkel. The only happy thing was finding one of my favorite fish, a Spotted Drum. They are dotted, striped, shy and cool.
----- (Back to) Francis -----
We'd had a pouring-rain snorkel in the beginning of this trip at Francis, so wanted to go back there when it wasn't pouring. The sky looked promising.
As I mentioned, we love snorkeling at Francis, especially the right side of the bay to Mary Point. The day turned out to be an octopus-day for us.
Yellowline Arrow Crab
Magnificent Feather Duster & Rough Fileclam
Banded Coral Shrimp
Octopus Garden - none of them were really active and some were barely seen
Rosy Blenny
About two thirds of the way back from Mary Point, the underwater views got significantly dim. Here came the rain. Glad that we'd had most of our snorkeling in by then. We amusedly waded in the pouring rain for a while. We imagined this would be our last visit to Francis on this trip and wanted to prolong our time there as much as we could...
That night we had our dinner at Sweet Plantains. We always go there on their curry nights (Fridays & Saturdays). Delicious.
It was our last night on Seagrape Hill. Wished we could've extended our stay at Reef Madness when we added a few nights to the end of our trip. The house was booked for those dates by then, so we had to move, sadly.
Coral Bay night
Visitor in the house. Freed her outside where more bugs were. Eat well, buddy.
Good morning, Coral Bay. How nice to have seen you so beautiful and serene on the day we were moving to Cruz Bay. The bell from the Moravain Church echoed through this little town. Made us really not want to leave.
Me and Coral Bay - reflected off the windows of Reef Madness
We sure hoped to be back. Until then, so long, Coral Bay.
-
California Girl
-
EagleRayLover
- Posts: 1474
- Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2011 8:56 pm
- Location: St. John -WooHoo!!
)-
ColumbiaSCTraveler
- Posts: 528
- Joined: Mon Apr 18, 2011 9:33 pm
- Location: Columbia, SC
California Girl, not sure if the salt water helped. I was told at the clinic that the only concern being in the water with open wounds was staph infection. They gave me ointment to prevent staph - also a tetanus shot just in case (I was due anyway). They asked me to come back if the wound got worse, but that never happened, thankfully.
EagleRayLover, yes, Reef Madness is the greatest! Not only is the house unique and beautiful, but also it's located perfectly for us (we don't mind those switchbacks on the way up the hill). As you know, the house sits up from where three roads meet: the Salt Pond bound, the North Shore bound, and the East End bound. Every morning we were faced with "Which road are we taking today?"
Connie, ha-ha, why did you think that? I don't have one (a little too gross)! I did take the shot of my husband sitting in the exam room at the clinic, though - just for the memory.
As for the camera, its setting, and photo-editing software...
I used the Canon D10 for all the underwater shots and for some on-land. Other on-land photos were taken with the Canon SD850IS.
My preferred method of taking photos underwater is getting close to the subject and using the macro setting (with the underwater setting). The D10 performs quite well for that, in my opinion. When it's successfully done, the photos turn out bright and crisp and there is no need for photo editing. Of course, I can't always get that kind of shot and Photoshop is a great friend of mine, especially for the shots taken in deeper water or in poor-visibility.
Thank you very much, again, everyone.
EagleRayLover, yes, Reef Madness is the greatest! Not only is the house unique and beautiful, but also it's located perfectly for us (we don't mind those switchbacks on the way up the hill). As you know, the house sits up from where three roads meet: the Salt Pond bound, the North Shore bound, and the East End bound. Every morning we were faced with "Which road are we taking today?"
Connie, ha-ha, why did you think that? I don't have one (a little too gross)! I did take the shot of my husband sitting in the exam room at the clinic, though - just for the memory.
As for the camera, its setting, and photo-editing software...
I used the Canon D10 for all the underwater shots and for some on-land. Other on-land photos were taken with the Canon SD850IS.
My preferred method of taking photos underwater is getting close to the subject and using the macro setting (with the underwater setting). The D10 performs quite well for that, in my opinion. When it's successfully done, the photos turn out bright and crisp and there is no need for photo editing. Of course, I can't always get that kind of shot and Photoshop is a great friend of mine, especially for the shots taken in deeper water or in poor-visibility.
Thank you very much, again, everyone.
-
susan & herb
- Posts: 450
- Joined: Mon Aug 07, 2006 5:02 pm
- Location: northern nj
-
msgcolleen
- Posts: 1497
- Joined: Thu Oct 05, 2006 8:33 am
- Location: Allen, Texas
Your pics are a work of art!
I have a hard time taking underwater pics with 2 good arms.
I have a hard time taking underwater pics with 2 good arms.
I've got 2 tickets to paradise~Pack your bags we'll leave tonight!
[url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]
[url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]