Speeding Through The Virgin Islands

The Virgin Islands compel you to slow down, and for our first several days we did just that, relaxing in St. Thomas. After touring the Spanish Virgin Islands, we were ready for more island hopping, and that we did! A few days rest and we were speeding through The Virgin Islands.

The Virgin Islands are very hilly and filled with loads of sailors. The islands are so close together it makes for easy sailing: sometimes it only takes an hour to get from one island, nay one country, to another so you can visit a lot of places in a short time.

We took up that challenge! First, we welcomed more guests on board: Jeff and Tanya from NYC flew in last weekend and we crammed in a lot in the 4 days they were here. We visited 4 islands and hit up a lot of beach bars while speeding through the Virgin Islands.

Speeding through the Virgin Islands
Our tour of the Virgin Islands

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

Because it is the low season, we didn’t get to enjoy any tourist sites in Charlotte Amelie, the pretty port city of St. Thomas, our first stop in the US Virgin Islands. The Pissarro Gallery and Blackbeard’s Castle were both closed with no word on when that would change.

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A Guest On Board Sava

Recently our friend Traci joined us as a guest on board Sava for her first time on a sailboat. We broke her in with a tough trip! Her sovereign sail was one of the region’s most notorious crossings: The Mona Passage.

In addition to sailing from Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico, Traci continued with us between ports and over land.

For someone who had never been on a boat, to go through what she did, Traci was a trooper. She got sick and didn’t complain, and helped any way she could, even bringing up the anchor on her own by the end of the week.

We have new guests joining us today, and hope more of you spend time on Sava. Find out what Traci thought of her new experience and her recommendations to those planning to be a guest on board Sava, or any boat!

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Nassau Day Tripping With Guests

Planning for new overnight guests makes me stressed. I want to be a good host, but don’t know how to prepare people for life on board. It’s cramped, the amenities aren’t the greatest, and anything can go wrong. The weather is a huge factor and we have no control over it. Despite my concerns, we just had our first long weekend visitors, and it was a success! Since their visit was short, we spent the time Nassau day tripping. You don’t need to travel too far from Nassau for fun and adventure.

Nassau First Impressions

We sailed into Nassau last Thursday from The Berry Islands and it was a big change. Traffic, noise, big buildings, garbage and smells. On the other hand there are friendly people, boat suppliers, cute seafood shacks, and great hot sauce!

Nassau is a good location for frequent flights, marinas, and stocking up your boat. But if we had known better we would have bought more nonperishables in Florida. The supermarket prices are way higher here! A packet of hot dogs is $6 and sausages start at $10, for example.

Getting around Nassau was okay. We got lost on the bus once and walked a lot.

Brian and I spent one day and two nights in Nassau, welcomed Dave and Freya from Toronto, and got out of the busy downtown to visit some local islands for the weekend. We had a lot of fun just outside of Nassau day tripping.

Rose Island

The first island we sailed to from Nassau was Rose Island. The anchorage was beautiful with super clear water and great swimming and snorkeling. We took the dinghy to a couple of spectacular nearby beaches.

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Overnight Guests

We’ve been in the Florida Keys for a week and the best part so far was our first sleep over! For the first time since we moved on board, we had overnight guests on Sava.

Our first overnight guests

Louis and Susan, who we know from my old job in NYC, stayed overnight on Sava last Thursday.

overnight guests on Sava
On board the dinghy!

Fortunately the weather was perfect. Winds were calm and waves were almost nonexistent, which was a relief for these two who can both get seasick and had never slept on a sailboat.

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