Our friends John & Marisca (or as Bear calls them, John & "Janamarisca") came to visit and daysail with us to a few of our favourite hideaways and tourists spots. We sailed South from Jost Van Dyke to Soper's Hole (West end of Tortola) early on Sunday morning and pulled into the marina. There was an open spot at the gas dock (right behind a massive 60' Catamaran that we cautiously approached) that we planned on landing at. With no dock-hands in sight, Dal was at the bow and was going to hook the bowline onto the cleat of the dock and I would grab the stern line. As we inched in, Dal leapt from the bow down to the dock below to secure the line and prevent us from coming close to the cat, however her foot just caught the horizontal safety wires that surround the boat's deck and she came crashing down knee-first onto the unforgiving concrete pier.
I was stuck on the helm and couldn't do anything but watch my poor wife in agony while trying to avoid crashing into the million dollar yacht just a few feet from us! Luckily several sailors came rushing over to assist Dal and helped us tie the boat up before causing any damage. Dal had a big gash on her knee but was thankful that her prescription sunglasses were spared!
We met our friends, got fuel and water for the boat and headed off in search of adventure!
I was stuck on the helm and couldn't do anything but watch my poor wife in agony while trying to avoid crashing into the million dollar yacht just a few feet from us! Luckily several sailors came rushing over to assist Dal and helped us tie the boat up before causing any damage. Dal had a big gash on her knee but was thankful that her prescription sunglasses were spared!
We met our friends, got fuel and water for the boat and headed off in search of adventure!
The Baths - Virgin Gorda
Dal making dinner and a cake for dessert
Spending the night at Soper's Hole
The girls always play with the animals they find hanging around the islands
Snorkeling at Monkey Point, Guana Island. A 52' Catamaran pulled in just after us (not seen in this photo) and somehow got off their mooring ball, drifted down to us and hooked their rudder around our mooring line, crashing the side of their hull into our anchor, which hangs off the front of our boat. Thank goodness our boat wasn't damaged at all but we ended up having to cut our bridle line to get them off.
We only had two issues with mooring balls the entire trip - the mishap on our first day and then this on our last day!
We only had two issues with mooring balls the entire trip - the mishap on our first day and then this on our last day!
All 7 of us piled into a '2-seater' to drive to Josiah's Bay for surfing, only to find a beautifully calm bay with no waves! We enjoyed swimming, sun tanning and hunting for seashells.
Max and Tia swimming at Josiah's Bay
Nurse Shark at Monkey Point
Eagle Rays at Benures Bay.
We had a fantastic time with John & Marisca and hope that our endless games of "Would you rather" (kid friendly version...lol) didn't drive them crazy =).
We had a fantastic time with John & Marisca and hope that our endless games of "Would you rather" (kid friendly version...lol) didn't drive them crazy =).