Sailing to Culebrita 4-13

The rain showers continued on and off all night long, and we woke to the same overcast skies – feeling like being back in Ohio again. The wind is down this morning so we motor over to Red Hook in calm seas and rainy skies. One down pour is enough for a good outdoor shower! Again we are rewarded with a rainbow that comes down to the ground right near the boat.

We make it in to Red Hook and drop the anchor by 8AM, and waste no time heading in to shore. The propane ran out on the boat this morning as I was trying to make coffee. Luckily there is a very nice coffee stand in the middle of the shops overlooking the water, and we make that our first stop. We run into Bob there having coffee with a bunch of other sailors. This is quite a hangout, and it looks like half the marina is here having coffee and using wi-fi. Bob is headed over to Yacht Haven Grand to prepare for the boat show starting this week.

We swing by Ace hardware hoping to find a percolator coffee pot (we broke the base off the brewer. I jerry rigged it to work, but we should replace it before we go.), but we have no luck. On to the market where we again fill 2 carts. This should be our final shopping, other than little things like bread or milk. At the market we run into Sueno and meet her and Bob’s boss Larry, that owns the charter cat they are crewing on. Its called Good Medicine, which we happen to anchor right next to in the bay. Small world. We load up the dinghy and take the groceries to the boat. The wind is starting to build, which is a good sign for the sail. Forgot the trash on the first trip, so Noah and I run back in with that. We also top off the gas tank on the dinghy since there may not be availability in the Spanish Virgins. 

By 10:30 we have the dinghy hoisted and are underway, sailing around the north side of St. Thomas. There are quite a few houses on hills, and a couple of large resorts on the water, but relatively few beaches on this side of the island. We spot a castle built on one hill that we will have to look up later.

The wind is blowing nicely behind us, making for perfect sailing. We have just the jib rolled out, and are moving along at 6-7 knots. Once clear of the rock and cay out from Magens bay, Tracy puts out the fishing lines. I joke that we’ll probably catch spanish mackerel in the Spanish Virgins. We are just approaching the Salt Cay pass at the west end of St. Thomas when Tracy hollers fish on! She pulls it in to the boat, and I lift him on the swim deck. We are trying to get the rum poured in, but he’s thrashing about pretty good. I set him in a bucket while Tracy pours the rum into a small bottle to make it easier to get down his throat. The fish thrashes again, throws the hook and jumps out of the bucket onto the swim deck. His mouth is filled with teeth, and I’m hesitant to reach for him, but manage to make a grab before he goes over. Tracy has the rum, which this time does the trick. Delaina grabs the fish book and identifies it as, you guessed it, a spanish mackerel.

  

With the fish cleaned and in the freezer, we enter the Virgin Passage, between St. Thomas and Puerto Rico. The wind is steady at around 15 knots from 120-130 degrees – Perfect sailing. The swells are still rolling from the East from the high winds the last several days. They are larger than we had on our previous crossings, but we are running comfortably with them. Its a great day to be on the water.

We make it to Culebrita just before 3pm. There are 3 other boats in the bay, but its otherwise deserted. There is nothing on shore but sand and palm trees. We set the anchor in sand, and then take the dinghy over to check it our. Its set well, but have less scope than I thought I put out. We still don’t have markers on the chain, and sometimes its difficult to tell. I decide its a good day to measure it out, so I take a 25’ line out to the anchor. We are to the bridle before I can measure 50 feet, so I tie the line on the chain, and then go onboard to pull it in and make the first mark. Of course, while pulling the chain in to where I have the line tied, it comes off the chain and sinks in the water. Meanwhile the wind gusts, and before we can let the chain back out, we start dragging backwards. We drop the anchor quickly, and I go in to find the dock line. It should be easy, but it takes quite a while and a lot of passes back and forth before I spot it. While swimming back to the boat, I spot a large remora swim below me. (at least I hope it was a remora) At this point, I’m done trying to measure the chain. We pull it up, set it in a better place, let out plenty of scope, and back down on it hard. It doesn’t budge, so this time I’m not going back in to look at it.

 

 

By now, its almost 5, and there is still the threat of rain. So we stay on the boat, and try to do some more school work. This session goes a little better than yesterday. Maybe there’s hope yet. We fry up the mackerel for dinner. Its good, but I really wish I was a better cook.

The swells are rolling in to the bay pretty steady. They don’t bother the boat much, but we can hear them crashing on the shore to our south, and the reef to the east and west. Its completely dark here in the bay, with only the 2 other anchor lights visible. Its kind of eerie not being able to see anything.  The last forecast we had, showed the wind swinging to the north tomorrow, which will put us closer to shore. We planned for this, and anchored quite a ways off, but still, hearing the crashing waves makes you think about it . We can see a lighting storm lighting up the sky in the distance.