Savannah Bay 4-22

Over night we come up with a plan for at least a couple of days. We are going to make one more run at the Baths (hopefully without jellyfish this time) and then try to go into Savannah Bay for the night. Andy Winson had told us how nice this bay is, but the cruising guide warns that it should be a day anchorage only due to the winter swells. We are hopeful that with the calm water, it will be ok for the night. The snorkeling is supposed to be great there.

We arrive at the Baths, just as 2 other cats come in at full throttle and then some to try to beat us in to the balls. There are none available, but the jokes on them. As they cut us off and speed by (through the anchorage at full speed) we spy someone getting ready to leave at the opposite end and are able to easily move in and grab it. We are at the north end of the bay, right up against the boulders. We take a quick snorkel around the rocks behind the boat to cool down. There are lots of fish and coral on the sides of the rocks.

No sign of jellyfish this time, and we have a great time going through the deep water to reach some of the best caves and grottos. There are some large swells rolling in, surprising because of the lack of wind for a couple of days, and the water is crashing in through the rocks adding to the fun. After a good swim at Devils Bay, and a few jumps off the big rock we head back through the trail for the final time.

Savannah Bay is only a couple of miles to the north on Virgin Gorda, so we motor up and wind our way through the reef  and into the bay. There is one other boat anchored inside. Once inside, its deeper than the guide book suggests, ranging from 30-40 feet in most places. It starts to shallow up some as we approach the other boat. They are anchored in a rocky/coral area that doesn’t look good to us. We push on to the sandy portion of the bay and the depth drops quickly to 10’-12’. We head out some, and drop anchor in about 20 feet of water. What little wind that’s blowing is from the south, holding the boat parallel to the reef, and broadside to the swells rolling over it. We try to make some lunch, but its quickly obvious that this is not going to work here. Further up the bay, and around the point is an area called Tetor Bay. We can see the sandy ground inside the reef, and the swells to not look as bad. So we haul up the anchor and move over there. Its all shallow here, staying right at about 10’. The anchorage is small, only room for one boat to swing in the area inside the reef. The waves are crashing over the reef, but the swells are not coming through and rocking the boat.

From here we are able to snorkel the reef between us and shore. This is a great spot, with lots of coral. Delaina spots a sand dollar back under the boat and we dive down to pick it up on the way back in. We are feeling pretty snug here, surrounded by the reef. There is still no wind, and we are being held in place by just the chain, never stretching it all the way to the anchor. At sunset, we suddenly get a shift in the wind that puts back of the boat facing the outer reef and into the worst area of swells. Its still not bad though. We start up the engines, and back down hard in this direction to make sure the anchor is completely dug in, and that with the chain fully stretched this way, there is still room behind us to the reef. With that done, we settle in, listening to the sound of crashing waves all around us. The moon is about half full, and the breaking waves glow in the moonlight. Like the other night in Culebrita, its very cool here, but a little eerie with the reef so close.  The wind swings all night long, but its very light so no real concerns about the anchor pulling out. In the morning the GPS plot looks like a spiro-graph. We spent the whole night swinging around in circles in the light, swirly winds.