Spring Break 2011 on STJ - Part V
Posted: Thu Apr 14, 2011 8:12 am
STJ Spring 2011 - Pt. V (Link to previous installments at bottom of the page):
Friday - This morning we got up and about a little earlier than we had been, but for a good reason. Today was the day that (inexplicably) for the first time, we were going to take an off-island trip to the BVIs. And the best part was that we were going with Captain John Brandi, of Palm Tree Charters!
I don't know how an operation could be run any smoother or efficiently than theirs is, but John and his wife Sue (who runs the operations ends of things) have this down to a science. She collects all of the information ahead of time, and this enables things to go like clockwork once you're in John's capable hands on the water.
So we drove to Cruz Bay, actually found a free place to park across the street from Mongoose Junction, and stopped in at Deli Grotto to supplement the things we'd brought for lunch.
As we were hanging out near the dock, a couple walked up and asked if we were waiting for Palm Tree Charters. When I replied in the affirmative, the response was "we thought that's who you all were", and we met, in person, Paul and Tracie (paulandtracie) from Michigan. They had been dealing with some of the same airline drama we were on their way down, so we were glad to see that they had made it too!
They told us that they were staying with Dave (BigCheez) and Polly, at the villa Choco Cruz out in Great Cruz Bay. I mentioned that Dave had said that they'd be having a happy hour out there later this evening, but that I hadn't called because I know that on island, sometimes intentions and reality, mixed in with island time, can make what seemed like a good idea inconvenient at best.
Paul said that happy hour was still on, and that Dave was hoping for a good turnout, so I said that we'd try and at least call once we were finished with our boat trip.
Then, just as arranged, Captain John motored into the harbor and picked us up at the VINP dock NOT in Bella Palma! She was in for some repairs, and although the substitute boat that was rented was perfectly fine, you could tell that the captain missed his "baby" greatly!
As we were in the process of getting all of our stuff stowed properly and listening to the instructions from Captain John, someone on another boat called to him, and said that he was being called to by someone on the customs dock. We motored over in that direction to see St. John Ruth calling out to us. She was waiting on a shipment to clear customs and happened to see all of us, so she took a couple of pictures of our motley crew and wished us a good day!
We filled out the customs forms needed to enter the BVIs and were very shortly motoring along the north shore of St. John.
Our first stop, was at Whistling Cay. We had intended to snorkel there on our dinghy day with Chet and Mrs. Chet last fall, but the currents had been much too strong to chance it. This time around they didn't look bad at all, and even Captain John remarked on how clear the water looked. He tied to boat to the mooring buoy, and within a couple of minutes we were in the water and checking things out! I saw this queen triggerfish almost directly under the boat:
This proved to be a very good snorkel spot - lots of life, interesting coral and rock formations, and of course, the calm, clear water didn't hurt either!
After we had a good long look around we made our way back to, and on to the boat, and the good captain steered us in the direction of Tortola.
Next stop - Soper's Hole, aka West End, where we'd clear BVI immigration and customs.
The water was beautiful there, and the harbor was full of boats - many of them there, we were told, to take part in and/or watch all of the regattas that were being held down there during this time time of year.
One of the great things about being on a Palm Tree Charter for this kind of trip is how painless going through the customs/immigration check in progress is. Sue Brandi makes sure that they have all of the necessary information from you ahead of time, and that you know exactly what you need to have and bring with you, and all of the folks working there know John very well. it couldn't have been more than five minutes after we had tied up to the dock at the customs building before the captain was back in our boat, and we were once more on our way!
Heading out of Spoer's Hole ahead of the crossing to Norman Island:
Once we had completed the somewhat bumpy crossing over to Norman Island (to be fair, we were heading into a stiff breeze and the "substitute" Bella Palma isn't quite as stable as the original), we headed to the snorkel spot we'd been anxious to see with our own eyes for a long time, The Indians.
As we approached it appeared that all of the mooring balls close to the rock formations that define this site were occupied. The captain tied off to one a little bit further away and let us know that there were certain types of boats that had priority at that particular ball, and that if one of them came along while we were in the water, he'd have to move off. No worries on our end - we're all comfortable enough in the water that we knew we'd be able to find him.
Of more interest/concern to me was the large number of folks in the water near the middle of the rock formations, many of them quite young, and none too calm in the water. We were given recommendations as to how we should go about checking out the site, then were in the water and on our way.
We were told that the point closest to where we'd entered resembled a large aquarium - and that wasn't wrong!
It didn't look too shabby topside, either!
Despite the obvious popularity of this place, we saw some very healthy coral formations:
When continued in a clockwise direction, and when we made it back to the side closest to where we had left the boat we were pleasantly surprised to see that the horde we had noted there before had moved on. It was basically just us and the fish!
The snorkel complete, we made our way back to Palma Bella FTD (for the day) and re-boarded. Next we were taken on a slow spin around Pirate's Bight, where Captain John filled us in on the history, geography, gossip, etc. associated with the whole place. We tied off on a ball not far off of The Caves and gently rocked in the water while we attacked our lunch.
After lunch had been dispatched, we got a site briefing from Captain John, then were back in the water at another place we'd heard a lot about, The Caves.
Entrance to one of the caves, from the outside...
...and looking back out from the inside.
Leslie spotted this octopus in cave #2
And Jason found this in #3
After we had finished snorkeling in and around The Caves, we had a little something we needed to get out of our system before we left Norman Island:
Having checked that off of "the list", all that was left was to make the crossing (so much smoother with the wind) over to Jost Van Dyke - another first for us! We opted to head directly to White Bay, and the captain anchored us in chest deep water so that our dollars would have the chance to get wet!
Here it was in person - world famous White Bay!
It was so cool. We took the captain's advice and found a group of vacant chairs that were in the shade with a great view of the beach, and only a short walk from my newest best friend Mick - and you know what that means!
I'm not sure how long we were there, about long enough for three painkillers more or less, I'd venture! We spent that time enjoying the beauty of the place, watching others enjoy their time at the place, and listening to stories from the captain as well as a few other folks that he knew that just seemed drop by from time to time.
Eventually it was time to wade back out to the boat and take one last (for now!) long look at White Bay and Jost.
We were a contended group that made the ride back over to St. John.
After we'd cleared customs and refueled the boat, Captain John dropped us off right where he'd left us in the morning, told us he'd had as much fun as we did (hard to believe) and we were left glowing about how much we'd enjoyed that trip.
But the day wasn't done. A quick phone call to BigCheez confirmed Paul's assertion that the invitation to happy hour at Choco Cruz was still in force - so off to Great Cruz Bay we went!
We found Choco Cruz with no problem and were warmly greeted by the nice group assembled there. Paul was playing the role of Joe the bartender and he did an excellent job - he could be Mick's stand in!
Dave introduced us to Polly, and to his mother Connie, and her husband Dan (if I get any of these names wrong, I apologize - blame it on Joe!), as well as forum lurkers Dave and Rhonda (where are you?), and a great group of happy kids.
We hung out and enjoyed the sunset view;
We had some yummy munchies, featuring some most excellent grilled sliders, and just really enjoyed talking to everyone, learning a little bit about them, how they found St. John, and where/when they had stayed/were planning on staying.
Eventually I realized that unless we planned to sleep on the pool deck, that we'd better head back to Coral Bay. Once I found the keys to our jeep - I had dropped them near the pool, and the fact that it was dark made for a nervous few minutes until they were located - we bade everyone good night, drove uneventfully across island to Mill Ridge. By the time the gear got rinsed and everything was put away we were all pretty worn out, and we hit the hay hard!
This was indeed a good day!
Part I: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19951
Part II: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19954
Part III: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19955
Part IV: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19963
Friday - This morning we got up and about a little earlier than we had been, but for a good reason. Today was the day that (inexplicably) for the first time, we were going to take an off-island trip to the BVIs. And the best part was that we were going with Captain John Brandi, of Palm Tree Charters!
I don't know how an operation could be run any smoother or efficiently than theirs is, but John and his wife Sue (who runs the operations ends of things) have this down to a science. She collects all of the information ahead of time, and this enables things to go like clockwork once you're in John's capable hands on the water.
So we drove to Cruz Bay, actually found a free place to park across the street from Mongoose Junction, and stopped in at Deli Grotto to supplement the things we'd brought for lunch.
As we were hanging out near the dock, a couple walked up and asked if we were waiting for Palm Tree Charters. When I replied in the affirmative, the response was "we thought that's who you all were", and we met, in person, Paul and Tracie (paulandtracie) from Michigan. They had been dealing with some of the same airline drama we were on their way down, so we were glad to see that they had made it too!
They told us that they were staying with Dave (BigCheez) and Polly, at the villa Choco Cruz out in Great Cruz Bay. I mentioned that Dave had said that they'd be having a happy hour out there later this evening, but that I hadn't called because I know that on island, sometimes intentions and reality, mixed in with island time, can make what seemed like a good idea inconvenient at best.
Paul said that happy hour was still on, and that Dave was hoping for a good turnout, so I said that we'd try and at least call once we were finished with our boat trip.
Then, just as arranged, Captain John motored into the harbor and picked us up at the VINP dock NOT in Bella Palma! She was in for some repairs, and although the substitute boat that was rented was perfectly fine, you could tell that the captain missed his "baby" greatly!
As we were in the process of getting all of our stuff stowed properly and listening to the instructions from Captain John, someone on another boat called to him, and said that he was being called to by someone on the customs dock. We motored over in that direction to see St. John Ruth calling out to us. She was waiting on a shipment to clear customs and happened to see all of us, so she took a couple of pictures of our motley crew and wished us a good day!
We filled out the customs forms needed to enter the BVIs and were very shortly motoring along the north shore of St. John.
Our first stop, was at Whistling Cay. We had intended to snorkel there on our dinghy day with Chet and Mrs. Chet last fall, but the currents had been much too strong to chance it. This time around they didn't look bad at all, and even Captain John remarked on how clear the water looked. He tied to boat to the mooring buoy, and within a couple of minutes we were in the water and checking things out! I saw this queen triggerfish almost directly under the boat:
This proved to be a very good snorkel spot - lots of life, interesting coral and rock formations, and of course, the calm, clear water didn't hurt either!
After we had a good long look around we made our way back to, and on to the boat, and the good captain steered us in the direction of Tortola.
Next stop - Soper's Hole, aka West End, where we'd clear BVI immigration and customs.
The water was beautiful there, and the harbor was full of boats - many of them there, we were told, to take part in and/or watch all of the regattas that were being held down there during this time time of year.
One of the great things about being on a Palm Tree Charter for this kind of trip is how painless going through the customs/immigration check in progress is. Sue Brandi makes sure that they have all of the necessary information from you ahead of time, and that you know exactly what you need to have and bring with you, and all of the folks working there know John very well. it couldn't have been more than five minutes after we had tied up to the dock at the customs building before the captain was back in our boat, and we were once more on our way!
Heading out of Spoer's Hole ahead of the crossing to Norman Island:
Once we had completed the somewhat bumpy crossing over to Norman Island (to be fair, we were heading into a stiff breeze and the "substitute" Bella Palma isn't quite as stable as the original), we headed to the snorkel spot we'd been anxious to see with our own eyes for a long time, The Indians.
As we approached it appeared that all of the mooring balls close to the rock formations that define this site were occupied. The captain tied off to one a little bit further away and let us know that there were certain types of boats that had priority at that particular ball, and that if one of them came along while we were in the water, he'd have to move off. No worries on our end - we're all comfortable enough in the water that we knew we'd be able to find him.
Of more interest/concern to me was the large number of folks in the water near the middle of the rock formations, many of them quite young, and none too calm in the water. We were given recommendations as to how we should go about checking out the site, then were in the water and on our way.
We were told that the point closest to where we'd entered resembled a large aquarium - and that wasn't wrong!
It didn't look too shabby topside, either!
Despite the obvious popularity of this place, we saw some very healthy coral formations:
When continued in a clockwise direction, and when we made it back to the side closest to where we had left the boat we were pleasantly surprised to see that the horde we had noted there before had moved on. It was basically just us and the fish!
The snorkel complete, we made our way back to Palma Bella FTD (for the day) and re-boarded. Next we were taken on a slow spin around Pirate's Bight, where Captain John filled us in on the history, geography, gossip, etc. associated with the whole place. We tied off on a ball not far off of The Caves and gently rocked in the water while we attacked our lunch.
After lunch had been dispatched, we got a site briefing from Captain John, then were back in the water at another place we'd heard a lot about, The Caves.
Entrance to one of the caves, from the outside...
...and looking back out from the inside.
Leslie spotted this octopus in cave #2
And Jason found this in #3
After we had finished snorkeling in and around The Caves, we had a little something we needed to get out of our system before we left Norman Island:
Having checked that off of "the list", all that was left was to make the crossing (so much smoother with the wind) over to Jost Van Dyke - another first for us! We opted to head directly to White Bay, and the captain anchored us in chest deep water so that our dollars would have the chance to get wet!
Here it was in person - world famous White Bay!
It was so cool. We took the captain's advice and found a group of vacant chairs that were in the shade with a great view of the beach, and only a short walk from my newest best friend Mick - and you know what that means!
I'm not sure how long we were there, about long enough for three painkillers more or less, I'd venture! We spent that time enjoying the beauty of the place, watching others enjoy their time at the place, and listening to stories from the captain as well as a few other folks that he knew that just seemed drop by from time to time.
Eventually it was time to wade back out to the boat and take one last (for now!) long look at White Bay and Jost.
We were a contended group that made the ride back over to St. John.
After we'd cleared customs and refueled the boat, Captain John dropped us off right where he'd left us in the morning, told us he'd had as much fun as we did (hard to believe) and we were left glowing about how much we'd enjoyed that trip.
But the day wasn't done. A quick phone call to BigCheez confirmed Paul's assertion that the invitation to happy hour at Choco Cruz was still in force - so off to Great Cruz Bay we went!
We found Choco Cruz with no problem and were warmly greeted by the nice group assembled there. Paul was playing the role of Joe the bartender and he did an excellent job - he could be Mick's stand in!
Dave introduced us to Polly, and to his mother Connie, and her husband Dan (if I get any of these names wrong, I apologize - blame it on Joe!), as well as forum lurkers Dave and Rhonda (where are you?), and a great group of happy kids.
We hung out and enjoyed the sunset view;
We had some yummy munchies, featuring some most excellent grilled sliders, and just really enjoyed talking to everyone, learning a little bit about them, how they found St. John, and where/when they had stayed/were planning on staying.
Eventually I realized that unless we planned to sleep on the pool deck, that we'd better head back to Coral Bay. Once I found the keys to our jeep - I had dropped them near the pool, and the fact that it was dark made for a nervous few minutes until they were located - we bade everyone good night, drove uneventfully across island to Mill Ridge. By the time the gear got rinsed and everything was put away we were all pretty worn out, and we hit the hay hard!
This was indeed a good day!
Part I: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19951
Part II: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19954
Part III: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19955
Part IV: http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... hp?t=19963
