We only spent 5 short days in USVI, but they were fabulous. Now that we are in the Virgin Islands, everything is so close. We are no longer tackling 140 mile overnight passages. We aren’t island leaping anymore, we are truly island hopping. We stayed in three mooring fields in USVI: Christmas Cove, Maho Bay, and Leinster Bay.
Christmas Cove, St. Thomas
Our first night in the Virgin Islands did not disappoint. We spent the day snorkeling the south end of Great St. James Island and Fish Cay. We saw turtles, rays, and little squids. The coral was different than what we’ve seen in the Bahamas and Puerto Rico. Instead of large coral heads, the coral grows on large rocks and is full of tropical fish and sea life. It was also the first time we’ve seen elkhorn coral. With fish circling in and out of the horns, it’s easy to see why snorkelers adore it.
On our second night in Christmas Cove we met up with Allison and Bo (Sailing B+A) for happy hour aboard their boat, Selah. We love swapping stories with fellow cruisers. We’ve had many great experiences and a few bad ones over the last 1600 miles and it’s always fun to share and laugh with other crazy sailors. To top off the night, we ordered take-out from the pizza boat. Yep, we took the dinghy over to the order window and picked up our pizza. It was almost like being back on Tennyson Street in Denver ordering at Atomic Cowboy.
Maho Bay, St. John
It’s difficult to find places as beautiful as Maho Bay. Palm trees line the white sandy beach and the clear turquoise water is breath-taking. Despite the beautiful scenery, Rob had a single mission in Maho Bay and that mission was to find LOBSTER. Searching under every rock and crevice, he stumbled upon a sea monster. A battle ensued. The lobster put up a good fight, losing two legs and both antennas in battle, but Rob emerged victorious after wrestling it out with his hands.
The lobster was more than enough for dinner (we actually ate it for four meals), but we had one problem. We were out of butter. Luckily there’s a campground in nearby Cinnamon Bay with a mini mart. While we were there, we helped ourselves to the outdoor showers. With butter and a monster lobster tail on board, even the monsoon like rainstorm that followed couldn’t keep us from enjoying a well-earned lobster dinner.
Leinster Bay, St John
Our last stop in the US Virgin Islands was Leinster Bay. While snorkeling Watermelon Cay, we were once again amazed by underwater sea life. The water was clear, the visibility was great, and the colors were vibrant. It’s a wonderful snorkeling spot just off the beach.
That evening we hiked the trail to the main road, which led to the Annaberg Plantation ruins. With the pups, we walked around the stone remains of the old slave quarters, horsemill, rum still, and windmill. It’s difficult to imagine this plantation in full operation, extracting sugar cane 200 years ago. Life and culture on St. John has greatly changed since that time, but the island’s beauty remains pristine.
