16-17 February, 2014 – The US Virgin Islands

February 16  – Jost Van Dyke to Yacht Haven Grande, St. Thomas

The Hog Crew left the mooring in Great Bay of Jost van Dyke , and with mixed feelings waved farewell to the BVIs as we sailed southwest toward the US Virgin Islands. We survived a flurry of speedy ferries near Red Hook and experienced an interesting funnel effect near Current Bay on our way.

St Thomas Coastline

Consisting of three main islands and a multitude of much smaller islets, the USVIs were purchased by the United States in 1917 as a strategic Caribbean base to cover approaches to the Panama Canal. Though American politics has little to do with the territory these days, the impact of tourism on St Thomas was clearly evident as soon as we entered St Thomas Harbor…

It’s a train! It’s plane!

It’s a cruise ship!

Not only is the harbor enormous, but the boats it houses were as well. Little HoG was dwarfed by the yachts and cruisers that surrounded her,  and we later had a logistical issue due to our size. At our last port Captain Carl manually converted HoG’s  original UK electrical cords in order to fit US outlets from here-on-out. However, due to the size of their usual clientele, this prestigious marina did not have an amperage small enough and we had to wait for an adaptor. Two hours later it came — and  Carl’s hard work (and everyone’s patience) paid off.

Yacht Haven Grande is a Port of Entry for the US Virgin Islands and a major hub of commerce for the masses of daytrippers that come and go every few days. As if to solidify this effect, just off our dock stood stores such as Bebe, Gucci, and Dolce & Gabbana –not to mention a boutique “What About Your Pet” canine outfitter– that were only open on days when cruise ships came in. Yes, this harbor was a bit overwhelming!

Some of our neighbors

It wasn’t longer after Em & Canaan went to wander and scope out grocery and restaurant possibilities that they returned with looks discomfort… Thankfully, our additional crew member had arrived to lighten the mood and liven our company. Jeff Evans has been a longtime friend of Carl’s, and came to know Heart of Gold very well (perhaps more than he cared to) as one of the members of the ARC Race last fall. We are all looking forward to having another experienced skipper for this portion of our voyage… Welcome aboard, Jeff!

After brief introductions the general consensus was that it was time for a meal. The whole gang wandered up the dock and stopped at the first eatery within sight. With a toast to HoG, we sat down to dinner at “The Fat Turtle” to kick off the next leg of our journey.
February  17 – Day at Port in Yacht Haven Grande, St. Thomas

With no particular time to wake up, the whole crew rose at their leisure…. and went straight to Badass Coffee. Not having had “real coffee” for quite some time aboard HoG, the prospect of caffeine in combination with quick and responsive wifi was quite the allure.

There were many things to do before heading off on the next leg of our journey to the Turks & Caicos. Quartermaster Kathie ensured that laundry was rounded up to be sent out, a grocery list was made, and the vessel was clean as a whistle. With that word, Canaan and Em polished the chrome until she shone, and then whole crew went on a Provisioning Spree to Pueblo. The shopping list revolved around snacks (granola bars, apples, etc) and ingredients to go with our fish of the day (limes & avocado for Jeff’s ceviche, plus countless other possibilities). Because we WOULD be catching fish.

The crew returned to the dock, loaded down with gorceries, to find that three bags of laundry had been delivered to the boat. Except… Carl reached into one of the bags to find a dainty little number that certainly did not belong to his First Mate. As it turned out, there had been a mix up at the laundromat and we had recieved the clean items for both Heart of Gold AND another vessel. The other vessel was Zenyatta, the Gunboat 62 in the neighboring slip that Jeff and Carl had been drooling over for the past 24 hours. Though it crossed everyone’s mind to propose a tour of the elite catamaran in exchange for their missing Egyptian sheets and lingerie, we sorted and returned each piece without voicing aloud our thoughts of bribery.

Stand-in crew?

After a long day of errands and preparations for leaving the next day, everyone was looking forward to a solid night of rest.  But dinner by Jeff  first! His reputation  in the galley had preceded him- and he didn’t disappoint! His specialty of blackened fish was a superb way to prepare the King Mackerel. Everyone was content to sit and digest when it popped into conversation that it happened to be Jeff’s birthday!  In a split second, Canaan was up and running. He soon returned with two pints of Ben & Jerry’s for all to share (for no birthday is complete without ice cream). Kathie & Em frantically searched for the candles, and once lit atop a scoop of Half Baked the Captain lead all in a spirited chorus of “Happy Birthday.”