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Cane Garden Bay is remaining delightful with north swell surf crashing in on our port side, a reef with numerous fish on starboard, beach and town forward with a beautiful view of the sunset aft with St Thomas a way off. It is being easy to get comfortable here and dig into books, small repairs, puzzles and a myriad other things.

Actually that surf looks kinda small. However, up close the waves were 6-7 feet at times and this guy made the most of it:

We had a wonderful encounter with the folks at GreenVI Glass Studio where they turn glass recycled from the bars into some beautiful glassware. It is nonprofit and the artisans are local and apprenticed, learning a creative trade. Soon they will be converting to using the discarded cooking oil from the bars to fire the kilns taking a huge step toward carbon neutral. We were treated to a demonstration of making a starfish similar to the one we bought which is being used as a tea bag or spoon holder on the boat. GreenVI, a must see, and the people were friendly and fun. Find them on GreenVI facebook or their short GreenVI mission statement here.

Having run often with Charlie at the beach, we decided it was time to sample one of the bars – Quito’s was chosen and what a delightful choice. Stella, our server, was cheery, efficient, and very down to earth. She really made our evening! Of course a few painkillers didn’t hurt. But the Mahi Mahi was the surprise – cooked perfectly with a fresh flavor that beats any other restaurant we have eaten at in the BVI. And it was a happy hour appetizer at only $5. Talk about value! We retired early to the boat to listen to the live music coming across the water. We are about a quarter of a mile from the beach – just right for privacy and peace, but close enough to sit at night on the foredeck, listen to the live music and watch the stars – that is until the odd shower shows up.

Bottom line is we have come to enjoy the earthiness feel to Cane Garden (not just a resort mentality) and the people we have met. GreenVI – bravo, keep it happening. Stella (previously from Burbank), we wish you all the happiness and good fortune as you choose to follow your dreams!

Jan 7 we departed Marina Cay and had a pleasant sail to Cane Garden Bay. This bay has one of the prettiest beaches on Tortola. There are mooring balls, but also plenty of room to anchor behind them, which we did. We’ll happily save our money and anchor anyday. I personally find it much more pleasant at anchor, especially in light winds (mooring balls tend to bang on the hull in light winds). We launched the dinghy as soon as the anchor was set and headed to town. Fresh veggies were my target. Plus Charlie was desperate for a good walk. We located the small grocery store and followed that with a romp on the beach for Charlie. He never tires of chasing his ball. He now welcomes us to throw it in the water so he can swim. His first encounter with small surf (big to him) was to just head straight into it after the ball. The first time a wave broke in his face, he turned around and came back to the beach with a look saying “why did you do that to me?”. He is now starting to figure out that he can back away from curling water or jump over it then swim to get his ball. Fascinating watching him learn and developing strategies to cope with the curl and undertow. So today he learned to jump the surf, and he experienced it pull him out and bring him in. Check out the video:

Today, Jan 8, we paddled ashore for more beach time. We followed that with a swim off the boat. While catching up the blog, P sighted a dolphin off our bow which lazily swam to and fro teasing us for 10 minutes. We both got pictures and a good video. Our days are becoming more relaxed and rich with the pleasure of being here in paradise.

Jan 6/14 We motored from Lee Bay around the bend to Marina Cay. This is a little cay that has a store, fuel dock and restaurant. There may be a resort here, but we did not get far when we went ashore to explore. Apparently, there are no dogs allowed on this island. So we did not have much of a walk here. We made a pact when we started this sailing adventure, that if Charlie wasn’t welcome then we would not visit (or spend money) on those islands. So after a night on a mooring ball we departed the next day. We hate spending money on mooring balls, but this place has little opportunity to put down an anchor. We did see one gutsy boat come in late in the evening, and drop anchor right in front of all the mooring balls next to the reef. We aren’t that gutsy yet. Maybe one day.

Jan 3-6/14. We left Anagada and headed back toward the north shore of Tortola.  The winds were not as strong on our sail, so we did only 5-6 knots, taking about 3.5 hours to get to Lee Bay on Great Camanoe island. This is a tiny bay and has no mooring balls. We anchored along with only 4 other boats. What a pleasant change after being surrounded by boats at Anagada. The peaceful evenings were also a welcome change (no rave party boats playing loud music til 2am). I paddled ashore with Charlie. There isn’t much sand here, mainly large rounded rocks. He did enjoy a bit of ball chasing into and out of the water and waves. The snorkling wasn’t great as the water was quite cloudy. We did enjoy watching the waves round the point and crash on shore to create a blow hole. The stars were pretty magnificent as well. The highlight was having a mama and baby dolphin swim into the bay while Paul and Charlie were on shore. I watched these two play around the boat for a full five minutes, when it dawned on me to get my camera. I got only one snap before they departed. Shortly after that I spotted a young sea turtle swimming near.

On our last evening here, Paul got out the heavy duty flashlight and shone it on the water. We had quite a show. Large fish, I think are Tarpons, were very attracted to the light. It was our evening entertainment.

We stayed for two days, made water and washed sheets. We would have stayed longer, but the winds picked up on day 3 and our anchor dragged. We took it as a sign to move on. We definitely recommend Lee Bay for anyone wanting to get away from the tourism here in the BVI.

January 2nd 2014 it was time to start seeing more of the BVI. We’d heard it was worth the effort to go north to Anagada. We departed from Virgin Gorda/Prickly Pear island early in the day and enjoyed a short 2 hour sail at a brisk 8+ knots on a broad reach. What a treat. We worked our way into the mooring area through the marked buoys. This island has reefs all around it. As soon as we secured the boat, we took Charlie ashore for an exploration hike. First discovery were the burrs that Charlie attracts, they attach themselves to his fur like velcro. We had to keep stopping and relieving him of the pesky things. We resorted to walking him on the road. We passed two cows and a young bull. There are no fences, these animals are just wandering like us. The bull seemed attracted to Charlie, so we took the next road back towards the beach and thankfully the bull went back to munching on grass.

After investigating the little shops, letting kids pet Charlie, and deciding which restaurant we’d eat at we retuned to the boat, fed Charlie, swam/showered, and got changed into nice clothes for dinner. We arrived early and tried ‘jungle juice’ at the bar during happy hour. It went down easy, so we had seconds. Our dinner reservations were for 6pm at Neptunes Treasure. The island has only 300 inhabitants and they are mainly fishermen who provide fish and lobster to the entire BVI. Paul ordered 1/2 lobster which we saw being delivered to the restaurant fresh off the boat. I had swordfish, breaking my vegan diet for fresh locally caught fish was worth it. Wow it was good.

We had planned to stay 2 days on the island, but we felt we’d already overspent our budget so opted to leave the next morning. We will explore the rest of the island next time. This island is very dog friendly, for those with dogs that might want to know. We even had one of the restaurants tell us we could bring our dog to dinner. We did draw the line, we don’t want him expecting to get into restaurants when most are not that willing.