Rated #1 hotel in Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda by TripAdvisor.com, recommended by Frommer’s and The Best of the British Virgin Islands and named the best value in Virgin Gorda by Travel+Leisure Magazine, Nail Bay offers numerous distinctive villas, apartments and rooms with magical sunset views and three sun bleached, deserted sandy beaches with great snorkeling. Come enjoy our 148acre luxury villa resort nestled below Gorda Peak
within a 19th century historic sugar plantation on almost a mile of waterfront with newly paved concrete roads and underground utilities including reliable water supply and two large stand-by generators. Nail Bay also offers modern conveniences such as ADSL internet service, satellite television and radio as well as DVD players and iPod stations, not to mention maid service and great dining at the SUGARCANE Bar and Grill.
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FULL CIRCLE VILLA A luxurious 3 bedroom, 3.5 bath house built on 1.8 acres of beautifully landscaped beachfront property with historic sugar mill ruins. Gorgeous lap pool with easy access for children. Large living area with a spacious kitchen and dining area with lots of covered and uncovered outdoor space. Extraordinary sunset views.
or
SUGAR MILL HOUSE Imagine yourself in the rooftop pool with a 360-degree view of the Copper Mine Ruins, Gorda Peak, the Dog Islands, Anegada, Tortola and St. John or in a pool by a tropical garden looking out to sea in this architecturally unique villa with its curved stone walls, terraces and balconies, and porthole windows on each floor allowing views of the cascading waterfall from the rooftop pool. A one-of-a-kind property based on a replica of a historic sugar mill, this brand new villa sits with a breathtaking view over looking Savannah Bay, Little Dix Bay and Long Bay.
book online at www.nailbay.com Why rent a hotel room when a private villa can be yours for less? Excellent choice of apartments and villas from $225 to $1715 per night.
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THE CREW Copy Production Owen Waters, David Blacklock & Traci O'Dea Advertising Production Colin Rathbun & Nick Cunha Advertising Sales Owen Waters :: owen@alookingglass.com Graphic Design Richard George & Nick Cunha Executive Producer Colin Rathbun, aLookingGlass Publishing colin@alookingglass.com For additional information contact Nick Cunha or Colin Rathbun at aLookingGlass or visit www.bviyg.com aLookingGlass #7 Road Reef Plaza, P.O. Box 3895 Sea Cows Bay, Tortola, British Virgin Islands t 284.494.7788 f 284.494.8777 www.alookingglass.com | info@alookingglass.com
On the Cover: Reef Check Photo by Nick Seth-Smith. A flamingo tongue snail—one of the indicator species of the Reef Check program— feeding on a sea fan coral.
aLookingGlass Ltd., publisher of BVI Yacht Guide, assumes no responsibility for the accuracy of the content placed in its publications. For the avoidance of doubt, aLookingGlass gives no warranty or guarantee in regards to any information placed in its publications.
letter from the editor Welcome to Yacht Guide's May issue. Twenty five years ago, I was sitting doing my homework like any good schoolboy. The wind was howling outside and, given the Middle Eastern location, the sandstorm provided some technical issues with what I wanted to do that day. Sneaking off to the beach would be tricky enough, let alone dealing with the visibility on the water. I slid Boards, my windsurfing magazine, over my math book and read about a windsurfing championship in the Caribbean: adventure racing, rocketing through the islands. Due to my imagination and a long-reaching determination, I wrote a letter to the editor stating that I had a passion for riding boards and a leaning towards literature and wondered if they had ever considered hiring a schoolboy to write for them. The editor sent a letter my parents stating that if I was determined enough, both the event and magazine would still be there once I paid my dues on and off the water. But in order to achieve both ideas to fruition, Bill Dawes, the editor insisted, and my parents agreed, that the prizes would be in the actual participation and understanding of everything, not just the trophies or titles. Now HIHO, the original Caribbean windsurfing event I’d first read about as a youngster, celebrates its twenty-fifth year during the first week of this month. Life has its little circles and moments, and many of us have dreamed about a vacation or even a life here on the islands, and before you know it, you are here. Mostly, dreams can become reality. In this issue, we examine the journeys of people who have followed their passions to visit or remain in the islands. This is also our annual underwater issue, and we cheer the sport of diving—one of the most fascinating sports out here, one that goes on silently, underwater and always with the greatest respect for the environment. We are delighted to have explored spots off Virgin Gorda and to have tagged along for the annual Reef Check. This month on the water, you’ll see a lot of windsurfers, sailors, snorkelers and divers. We hope you’re inspired to join them.
See you on the water,
Owen Waters
BVI Yacht Guide and its contents are the intellectual property of aLookingGlass Ltd. Neither this magazine nor any part of it may be reproduced without written permission from aLookingGlass Ltd.
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JULY 2009 BVI YACHT GUIDE ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING | www.bviguides.com
Owen Waters
Managing Editor Owen Waters :: owen@alookingglass.com
www.bviguides.com | ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING BVI YACHT GUIDE JULY 2009
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9 The Rhone Inspires Stories from the Depths
11 Marine Conservation: Tracking the Independent Turtle
12 BVI Reef Checkers Observe Changes . . .
20 Reaching for Sky: The Story Behind a Yacht Sale
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JULY 2009 BVI YACHT GUIDE ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING | www.bviguides.com
contents Skipper's Tips: Mariners' Manners 8 Docking a dinghy on a crowded dock can be accomplished in a way that makes arrival and departure easy and does no harm to your dinghy or those around you. The Rhone Inspires Stories from the Depths 9 The tall tales about the wreck of the RMS Rhone are just as spooky as the true story. But more life-changing than both is the chance to dive one of the Caribbean’s most beautiful sites. Marine Conservation: Tracking the Independent Turtle 11 Since Dr. Archie Carr first began doing research on sea turtles in the 1950s, researchers have been learning about their lives and that which threatens them, but most of turtles’ lives remain a mystery. BVI researchers track turtles that nest in the BVI hoping to find out more about them. BVI Reef Checkers Observe Changes in our Most Precious Resource 12 The BVI Reef Check team records changes that have taken place in the BVI’s most popular reefs, including tracking the number of indicator species present. Reef Checker Nick Seth-Smith provided YG with stunning photos from the dives. Provisioning: The Search for the Perfect Mango 16 Mangoes are ripe and falling off the trees in the BVI. Eat them as nature intended or use one of our recipes to make the most of this succulent fruit. Nanny Cay takes ARC and Sailing Events to a New Level 17 This year, the ARC European leg chose to pit stop in Tortola, at Nanny Cay Marina, before its return leg toward Europe via Bermuda, the Azores and Portugal. YG chats with representatives from Nanny Cay, ARC Europe and cruisers participating in the event. No Waves, No Paddles, No Problem 18 Video game designers often attempt to mimic reality. The most recent software encourages gamers to get off the couch and interact with the screen or other players while dancing, boxing, golfing or bowling. The latest watersports products bring the joystick out of doors. Traci, Owen and Richard Branson try them out. Reaching for Sky: The Story Behind a Yacht Sale 20 After a car crashed into her first house and her second one caught a fire, Canadian Heather Lane decided to buy a boat. Her love affair with a Hinckley lead her to the BVI and a deal with Clive Allen of BVI Yacht Sales. Yacht Charter and Broker Directory 22 Look here for the most up-to-date Yacht Charter and Broker Directory. It's a great place to start if you're looking to buy or charter a yacht in the BVI.
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Docking should not be THAT difficult
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SKIPPER’STIPS
Mariners' Manners Dinghy Docking
by David Blacklock
It's a sad fact, but not everyone's perfect—a truism that applies as much to the sailing community as to other groups, though sailors all know that they individually are exempt from any taint of imperfection. This little column tries, in a modest way, to encourage perfection in the otherwise ordinary sailor. Sadly, observation would dictate the view that full attention is not being paid! Oh well, what can one do but dip one's nib in the oily inkwell and try anew? The lesson this month involves dinghies. While these sultry summer months are hardly the occasion for mass crowding of dinghy docks, they are probably a good time to practise a few dinghy dos and dont's. A pet peeve of many boating types is the lack of mutual respect and concern as shown by the random alignment of dinghies at the dock. Does the first dinghy on the dock need to be placed dead centre? Or could it be tied off at one end or the other, allowing subsequent dinghies to align themselves accordingly? Does the dinghy need to be attached like a Siamese twin to the dock, or could a few feet of painter be allowed so as to give subsequent arrivals a little wriggle room? At some crowded docks (Willy-T, Pirates, etc.) dinghies are jammed in so that new
End Yacht Club. He barely grazed the exposed prop of a large super-yacht tender but was forced to pull his boat from the water and patch the gash—an expensive and time-consuming task. An unfortunate multiplier to the viciousness of this behaviour is the tendency of a dinghy with a tilted motor to stay at the dock for an extended period. The reason the motor was tilted in the first place was that the dinghy operator was heading to the airport or, one hopes, to jail. Sailors are encouraged to drop such offending appendages back into the water where they can do little harm to others. Having approached a dock and found access, some sailors seem confused as to how to attach a painter to the dock. Many docks have a type of bollard for tying dinghies to—often a short length of PVC pipe. The favoured method of attachment seems to be a type of clove hitch around the bollard, but this means that any subsequent arrival has to tie his painter above the earlier arrival's. When it comes time for the first dinghy to depart, many lines need to be untied
line can be used to hold the dinghy off the dock and protect against surge and damage from being trapped beneath the dock, particularly around times of large tidal movement. The trick is to drop anchor and pay out line as the dinghy approaches the dock. After disembarking all passengers, “simply walk the dinghy along the dock, making an hypotenuse to the right-angled triangle formed by the stern line and the dinghy painter,” Palmer told us. “This leaves the dinghy on an angled line, but out of danger of crashing into the dock or being stuck underneath it. When time comes for departure, you can just untie the bow painter and walk the dinghy back along the dock until it is easily accessed,” he said. There are, of course, many other mentionable offenses, but we'll save them for a subsequent column. YG
Upcoming Races ISAF Youth Worlds (Brazil)
Having approached a dock and found access, some sailors seem confused as to how to attach a painter to the dock.
Opti North Americans (Dominican Republic) 4-12 Jul Radial Worlds, Youth, Male, Female (Japan)
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and retied—a tedious and (depending on the state of sobriety of the hitch tier) sometimes dangerous practice. Better to tie a loop in your painter and drop it over the bollard—then any subsequent arrivals can merely pass their own loops up from under and then through your loop and around the bollard. That leaves the first loop free to be picked up with no fuss. Any loop lower in the pecking order can be removed by simply reversing the original procedure. Charter operator Jim Palmer has a particular concern that many sailors have forgotten or are neglecting the ancient art of dropping a stern anchor when approaching the dinghy dock. This
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1-10 Aug
Canadian Olympic Regatta Kingston (Kingston Ontario)
arrivals often have to barge and push their way to deposit passengers. If all dinghies had several feet of loose painter, it would make that process much easier. Another peeve is the tendency of certain uneducated types to tilt up their motor when attached to a dock. This is a particularly heinous crime since it not only inconveniences other dinghy operators by forcing them to skirt around the offending motor and the multi-bladed razor attached to its nether end, but it actively endangers the safety of other dinghies. Guy Clothier of Yacht Shots tore a gash in his new red, twin-hulled inflatable a few months back shortly after launching it at the Bitter
9-18 Jul
13-16 Aug
RBVIYC EVENTS: 6th Back To School Regatta 2009
5-6 Sep
BVI Schools Regatta X-Mas Camp 2009, RBVIYC
7 Nov 18-22 Dec
And if that's not enough, check out the forum on www.IC24.org for more weekly beercan racing action right off the southern end of Nanny Cay. IC24s are the new fad in racing and spreading fast to the rest of the Caribbean and North America.
I’m always amazed how history is presented. BVI history, in particular, seems a little cloudy at times. This is evident when visiting the infamous wreck of the Royal Mail Ship Rhone. Storytelling is an ancient art. There are those that let the imagination run, and there are others that are, well, more factual.
The Rhone Inspires Stories from the Depths by Owen Waters
Taking advantage of a dive assignment with Virgin Gorda’s Dive BVI, I catch the ferry from Tortola to VG then ride with Dive BVI over to the Rhone. I’m already getting an eerie feeling— on my last visit a few years back, I sailed past tiger sharks devouring a dead whale over the same spot.The wind on that day was a southwest hurricane wind, and as we sailed through in overcast conditions after a long trip with a broken boat, the world, or rather the familiar, seemed upside down. The Rhone has a certain mystique, and I am drawn to this area as I am drawn to the tales told over the years and tales to come. Three certified divers are on board setting out from Dive BVI’s Virgin Gorda location. The shop is impressive, complete with every watersport outfitting imaginable. Managing partner Casey McNutt explains to me that this is only one of several operations. They
As most of Dive BVI’s guests are either on Virgin Gorda or rendezvous pickups from a resort, the Saturday afternoon session over the Rhone and down to 75 feet is reserved for certified divers. That rules me out, and there is no time to redo a resort course, so I instead grab the trusty snorkel and fins. As Anna recaps what they might find during the 40-minute dive through the Rhone, I feel teased like a kid in a candy store with only a nickel but hoping for the big chocolate bar. Anna tells us how, after the severing of the anchor (still down there) off Peter Island, the Rhone’s sister ship RMS Conway offloaded their passengers onto the “unsinkable” Rhone, leaving the headcount of the tragedy still unknown. Conway sailed back to Tortola only to break up outside the harbour and join the other 200 vessels that perished in the storm. I had always, probably like many sailors, imagined that some human error by Captain Wooley of the Rhone had caused the collision with
The wind on that day was a southwest hurricane wind . . . have sites at Leverick Bay, Little Dix and one soon to open at Scrub Island. The service is impeccable. Everyone is welcomed and goes through the safety checks on the Newton 36. Within 20 minutes, we are by the Rhone, instructor Anna Janczewska hooks a mooring ball and then the map of the Rhone is pulled out. It’s a map I have seen before but never heard explained in such depth.
Black Rock that blew the steam engines and caused the explosion aboard and ultimately its fatal sinking. In those days, in cases of storms, passengers were strapped to their bunks, and cabin doors were locked from the outside for fear of passengers wandering round deck and falling overboard. Perhaps that explains why all 23 survivors of the Rhone were crew.
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once again took another explosive charge and blew In envisaging the ferocity of the storm, I realize the across the ocean floor. I ponder over the decision to doomed mail ship had no chance. The odds were have done such a thing. certainly against the crew and its passengers, it seems. When the divers surface, they have a look of Dive BVI tells us that the bodies of those washed bewildered calm and their own tales of lobster, ray ashore at Salt Island were buried in a mass grave of and types of fish that I have never heard of but now stones which we pass, their possessions returned am curious to see to the Queen, for myself. After who, taken by In envisaging the ferocity of the storm, I only 40 minutes the honesty of the people of realize the doomed mail ship had no chance. of diving, they express something Salt, instructed I recognise – them to cease enlightenment from another source, in this case nature. returning the dead's flotsam and send a bag of salt On our return, Casey informs me of other fantastic once a year in lieu. Further rumours indicate that a dive spots, in particular the Dogs and by the side of the silver spoon embedded in coral once belonged to the newly constructed airport. Favouring reefs, it seems to me captain. It is there to be seen, not touched, for fear of that diving is an adventure every time and never easier to Captain Wooley returning at night to see who dares learn. As Casey explains, “Most theory can be done online, disturb the underwater tomb. and we can certify people within four days now. No one We’re also told a story of one of the 23 that did wants to do theory when they are on the Islands.They survive, an Italian man who apparently was in cabin want to hit the water ready.” 26, his porthole still visible at the bottom, who clung I leave the boat and thank everyone for their time, sit to the mast all night till the settlers from neighbouring on the wall by the ferry that will take me back to Tortola Salt Island pulled him free. The mast stayed erect until and soak in the slow sunset over the Channel. As for the early 1960s when the British Navy dynamited the Captain Wooley, his body was never found, and he vessel, leaving the wreck of the Rhone as we find it remains the elusive Captain of the depths with many an today. The story goes that the governments, tired of answer. For me at least, that’s the way it should be, and I fighting over treasure and attempting to stop bounty tip him a salute and a respectful nod as the ferry passes hunters, blew the ship to smithereens to end the him and ploughs on towards Road Town. YG pirating. The dynamite was too much and the Rhone,
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The infamous porthole inspires legends
Green sea turtle swimming in the Caribbean
Marine Conser vation Tracking the Independent Turtle by Shannon Gore
Sea turtles have survived the past million years, but it wasn’t until the 1950s when Dr. Archie Carr began tagging turtles that it became clear these ancient creatures were slowly disappearing and would one day become extinct. Historical records, such as those of Christopher Columbus, describe the incredible abundance of turtles at one time, but after hundreds of years harvesting for meat and shells, the number of turtles has declined. Today, turtle populations are nowhere near the amount Columbus described over half a century ago, but worldwide conservation efforts are on the rise to keep existing populations from disappearing altogether. Here in the BVI, the Conservation & Fisheries Department (CFD) has joined this international race to save turtles from becoming extinct. CFD’s involvement started in 1999 when Cuba wanted to begin an international trade of turtle shells to other countries around the world. Since all the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean are
Hawksbill turtle waiting to be tagged
& Caicos, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, the USVI and signatory to the Convention of International Trade in as far as Aves Island and São Tomé, Western Africa. Endangered Species (CITES), the regulating body for One day, these turtles will venture out of the BVI to importing and exporting endangered species, it was their adult foraging grounds and later, once sexually deemed necessary to research the effects of how mature, will return to those distant places where the proposed Cuban harvest would impact regional they originally came from. Interestingly enough, two populations, especially since turtles are a highly of our tagged turtles have safely made their way as complex migratory species. Subsequently, the UK far as St Barth and Bonaire. government launched a three-year project entitled We now have over 600 turtles tagged with flipper Turtles of the Caribbean Overseas Territories tags and microchips, similar to the ones the family (TCOT) which included Anguilla, Bermuda, Cayman, pet gets from the vet. Since measurements are Montserrat, Turks and Caicos, and the BVI. (The final taken each time, we have learned most of our report can be found at www.seaturtle.org/mtrg/ projects/tcot.) This research’s findings have helped keep turtles are, in fact, juvenile to sub-adult or roughly just a bunch of teenagers or young adults. We’ve Cuba from harvesting turtles for international trade. also learned Anegada is regionally a major juvenile Although the project has long ended, CFD nursery, primarily staff continues the for hawksbills. work started nearly "This research's findings have helped Interestingly, due eight years ago. The keep Cuba from harvesting turtles for to the pristine original project international trade" environment in formed the basis to Anegada, we found better understand out those turtles have some of the highest growth our own population of foraging hawksbill and rates in the world. green turtles, the most common sea turtles in the Although it seems like we know a lot about BVI. We already knew that turtles which hatched our turtles, we really don’t. We have a good start, in the BVI return thirty or so years later to lay a but there are so many questions that are still new generation of eggs. What we didn’t know was where the turtles that live here actually come from, unanswered. What turtles prefer what areas most? Where do our nesting turtles spend their juvenile until we started sampling turtles for their genetic and adult foraging grounds? Are the numbers in the structures. BVI increasing or declining? The more information Tissue samples taken (without harm) from the first we collect, the more likely we will be able to answer 125 turtles caught under the TCOT project were sent these questions about one of the most important to the UK for DNA analysis. What we discovered species of our marine community. YG was some of our turtles are actually from other regions such as Barbados, Cuba, Belize, Florida, Turks www.bviguides.com | ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING BVI YACHT GUIDE JULY 2009
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Reef Checkers Iain Catling and Numan Numan surveying. All photos courtesy of Nick Seth-Smith.
BVI REEF CHECKERS OBSERVE CHANGES IN OUR MOST PRECIOUS RESOURCE by Traci O'Dea
At 7:50 a.m. on a Tuesday morning at Prospect Reef, I board the dive boat Virgin Sun accompanied by dive instructors Marc Lyng and Bettina Dittmar from Dive Tortola, Randy Kiel of Paradise Watersports on Peter Island and Arjan Stoof from BVI Yacht Charters. After gearing up the boat with tanks and such (they gear up the boat—I watch), we head over to Norman Island’s Soldier Bay to pick up divers from Serendipity, a striking 50-foot Beneteau, and head out to Pelican Island to participate in this year’s Reef Check.
Nassau Grouper, one of the indicator species that is considered threatened 12
On the ride over to Pelican, Serendipity captain and BVI Reef Check coordinator Trish Baily discusses the day’s plan with the divers, a group of volunteers from the States and elsewhere, including the owners of Serendipity, Carole and Mark Morrissey. Each diver is assigned a section along the reef, marked out by transect lines, and instructed to count the number of indicator species present in that section as well as to note impacts to the reef such as disease, bleaching or trash. I observe the team both in and out of the water. While jovial, they remain serious about the task at hand. In between counting shifts, one of the Reef Checkers spots me snorkelling and shows me three iridescent Caribbean Reef Squid hovering nearby. I snap a few photos then head back to the boat. After he finishes up an underwater videotaping session, Marc Lyng offers to take me down for a Discover Scuba Diving (DSD) experience, and I gladly accept. Once I get the hang of it, I understand why the Reef Checkers, all seasoned divers, choose to spend their holidays in the BVI. Marc points out several
JULY 2009 BVI YACHT GUIDE ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING | www.bviguides.com
Reef Check indicator species, including a flamingo tongue snail (see front cover), a species that has been overcollected by snorkelers and divers who incorrectly assume the colourful mantle tissue that overlays the shell is on the shell itself, Rather, the shell is plain white, and when the creature dies, the mantle dies, too. The BVI Reef Check process takes place over two weeks with resident BVI divers participating during the first week, and the team of ecotourists taking over the second week. “I don’t think of it as a vacation,” says Reef Checker Iain Catling of Brooklyn, New York. “With this, I think we take it seriously. We do so much preparation beforehand.” “They are dedicated to it,” Trish Baily adds, referring to the visiting divers. “They buy all the [waterproof] paper beforehand and print out all the forms. They’ve also helped Reef Check with website issues, and they’re great with the data collection.” “Once we get down [to the BVI], we start with laying the underwater transect,” Iain says, “making sure that we’re in the exact same spot every year. Then we do various different readings along the substrate— counting fish, measuring coral. We do it twice—once at
Banded coral shrimp, one of the Reef Check indicator species
now. The 10-metre substrate at Pelican was severely three metres and once at ten. Then we get back to the hit. Global climate change, development and poor boat, and I enter the data we’ve collected to be sent sediment control are hurting the reefs. They can’t deal off to Reef Check. The day starts at 6:30 a.m., finishing with the endless stresses that we’re putting on them. up at 5:00-6:00 p.m. I’d say it’s half vacation.” They need a break, time to I ask Iain if he’s noticed recover. If we lose the reefs, any changes since he started As the reefs die, we also lose we lose the fish, and the doing Reef Check seven tourists. As the reefs die, years ago. “You get so familiar the buffering effect of a reef to we also lose the buffering with a reef; you remember break down wave action . . . effect of a reef to break the different rocks and the down wave action—during shape of it. This year, some tsunamis or surges. And without reefs,” she adds, of the reefs were doing better than others. At Bronco Billy [at the northwestern tip of George Dog], I spent a “there is more coastal erosion, so the loss of beaches.” “I find that I evangelize about it quite a bit,” Iain says. “I whole hour underwater and only counted two fish.” “When I started,” he continues, “I didn’t have a baseline, think it’s important to raise awareness. I worry about it, too, because I’ve seen the impact with the bleaching and but then by the second or third year, I noticed that there so forth. I believe in it. I think it’s important. I love the just weren’t as many fish.Then in 2005, there was a diving and the marine life. I used to do lots of dive trips, bleaching event after a really hot summer and a couple of but now I just save it for the BVI. I’ve gotten to know hurricanes, and it was shocking to see the changes.” the BVI very well by sailing around and snorkelling.The Trish also mentions the 2005 bleaching event. “It beauty of the islands for me is driven by the reefs.You was felt that the BVI, Puerto Rico and other Caribbean only have to go to St Thomas to see the difference.The countries lost 40% of their corals. Spy Glass Reef was BVI is a little gem in the Caribbean, isn’t it? All the other beautiful with boulder corals and is covered in algae
A foureye butterfly fish, threatened by aquarium collectors, swims near some fire coral
Reef Check indicator species moray eel at the 74-metre mark on the 10-metre transect at Bronco Billy www.bviguides.com | ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING BVI YACHT GUIDE JULY 2009
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Rock Hind Grouper
Reef Checkers 2009
www.bluewaterdiversbvi.com E-mail: bwdbvi@surfbvi.com Tel: (284) 494-2847 Fax: (284) 494-0198 VHF Ch. 16 2 Locations: Nanny Cay & Soper’s Hole Marina
islands have been spent.” But the BVI could end up like those other islands. “Raising awareness in the BVI is important. Unfortunately, you’ll get people passionate about it, but then two years later they leave the BVI, so we have to start all over again.” “Dive Tortola and Dive BVI have contributed time, boats and staff,” Trish comments. “We raise money in the local community to pay back their fuel costs. Supa-Valu donated some food. In return, the participants who come down here support the economy as tourists—they flew in with Island Birds, they pay for dives beyond the Reef Check dives [including a night dive at the Rhone], they spend a lot of money on provisioning and restaurants. It’s true ecotourism because they are both helping the island and spending money here.” Iain and the other Reef Checkers may not have had a relaxing vacation, but they contributed to important research. Reef Check conducted the first ever global survey of reefs in 1997.Thanks to Trish, the BVI participated the first year and has provided data every year since. According to Reef Check’s website, the data collected in 1997 “provided scientific confirmation that our coral reefs were in crisis due to overfishing, illegal fishing, and pollution.” In 2002, Reef Check released its five-year report which “concluded that there was virtually no reef in the world that remained untouched by human impacts, such as overfishing, pollution and climate change.”The report also cites success stories, showing that “with proper monitoring, management and protection, coral reefs can recover.” With the continued commitment of Trish, the support of the local community and the work of the Reef Checkers, BVI reefs might have a fighting chance. Next year I hope to participate as more than just an observer. YG
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REEF CHECK INDICATOR SPECIES FOR THE CARIBBEAN Queen angelfish French angelfish Rock beauty Great barracuda Fairy basslet Smooth trunkfish Banded butterflyfish Foureye butterflyfish Sergeant major damsel Yellowtail damselfish Spotted goatfish Nassau grouper Bluestriped grunt Porkfish Spotted moray eel Stoplight parrotfish (male) Stoplight parrotfish (female) Southern stingray Spotted eagle ray Caribbean reef shark Yellowtail snapper Squirrelfish Blue tang Trumpetfish Bluehead wrasse Green turtle
Hawksbill turtle Giant Caribbean anemone Christmas tree worm Donkey dung sea cucumber Brain coral Elkhorn coral Fire coral Hard coral cover Hermit crab Moon jelly Spiny lobster Octopus Flamingo tongue Queen conch Lavender tube sponge Barrel sponge Cushion sea star Reticulated brittle star Long-spine black urchin Red rock urchin Sea whip Sea fan Halimeda Dyctiota Algae cover
A sea egg, another Reef Check indicator species
www.bviguides.com | ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING BVI YACHT GUIDE JULY 2009
15
Provisioning
by Susie Younkle
The Search for the Perfect Mango Much of the British Virgin Islands’ allure lies in the enjoyment of simple pleasures: sunsets, stargazing, swimming in the sea and, of course, local food. No food captures the essence of the islands like a luscious mango. Mangoes are typically found in the BVI in midsummer and again in winter, although timing depends on rainfall, location and varietal.They are one of the most popular fruits in the world, and for good reason. In addition to being delicious, few fruits are as versatile as mangoes: green or ripe, sweet or savoury, in beverages, chutneys, salsas and desserts. When mangoes are at their best, I like to use them in ways that present them as simply as possible, in their most natural state. For my first mango season on Tortola, I was fortunate enough to live on a property with numerous mango trees. From the time the first rust-colored flowers appeared, my mouth watered with the prospect of mangoes, especially after the gardener assured me they were good ones. Each morning I happily walked among the trees, gathering ripe, fallen mangoes before the birds could snatch them. Then I pulled out my fruit picker and carefully balanced on the hillside to pick ripe mangoes from the tree. Yes, the gardener was right about the quality, especially on the largest tree. In fact, I was surprised to discover that the taste of mangoes varied from tree to tree, so instead of describing them by location, I simply referred to each tree by the flavour of its mangoes: lemon, coconut, mango-ey and even anise. I was becoming a mango connoisseur and thus began my quest for perfect mangoes. A few weeks ago a friend gave me some mangoes from his orchard on the east side of Tortola. They were officially the best mangoes I have ever eaten, at the pinnacle of ripeness, slightly syrupy with a subtle coconut flavour. When you find the perfect mango, don’t mess with nature. Just cut up the fruit and eat it plain, savouring every bite. Be sure to slurp all the flesh and juice from the pit. Then go for a swim in the sea to rinse the mango juice from your hands and face. As my father would say, “life doesn’t get better than this.”
Sponsored by
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Triple Mango Coladas An ideal accompaniment to a BVI sunset 4 C ice cubes 1 C chopped ripe mango ½ C mango juice/nectar 2 oz cream of coconut 3 oz aged rum (e.g. Mount Gay) 3 oz mango rum (e.g. Mount Gay Mango) Freshly grated nutmeg
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Top with grated nutmeg and garnish with mango spears in each glass. Serves four. Spiced Mango Crisp Quick to assemble when you have a crowd coming for dinner 6 C mango in 1/4” slices 1/2 C flour 2/3 C oatmeal 1/3 C brown sugar 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1/8 tsp salt Dash of ground cloves 1/2 C flaked coconut, lightly toasted 5 Tbsp cold butter, cut into small chunks 1/4 C chopped nuts (optional)
Place mango in a lightly buttered 8”x 8” baking dish. Combine next eight ingredients (flour through coconut) in a medium bowl. Cut in 5 Tbsp cold butter using two knives or a pastry blender, until mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Sprinkle flour mixture evenly over mangoes. Top with nuts. Bake in preheated oven at 375° for about 35 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve plain or with vanilla ice cream. Serves six to eight people. YG
Riteway Food Markets provisioning service offers a number of services to help your visit to the British Virgin Islands be a fuss-free, enjoyable experience. Time is of the essence for you and our 20 plus years experience in provisioning has enabled us to tailor our services to suit the needs of all concerned by providing a wide selection of choice foods, beverages, liquor and dry products. So, whether it is your private getaway schooner, or a Super Mega yacht, each order, no matter how large or small, is given the same amount of detailed attention and delivered directly to you. After all, it's the Riteway of way of doing business!
JULY 2009 BVI YACHT GUIDE ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING | www.bviguides.com
ARC boats regroup at Nanny Cay
Nanny Cay takes ARC and Sailing Events to a New Level Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) is one of many international sailing events now coming into Nanny Cay and the British Virgin Islands. by Owen Waters
Traditionally, the ARC European leg arrived in Antigua for repairs and a well-deserved break before sailing on its return leg towards Europe, the next stop being Bermuda. The contingent of racers varies from 36- to 72-foot boats with teams from Germany, Portugal, Norway, Britain and the United States, to name a few. and a compact service industry, Andrew Now securing the British Virgin Islands commented that “the facilities at Nanny Cay as the rest stop, Nanny Cay’s General are particularly suited to yachtsmen preparing Manager Miles Sutherland Pilch beams. for a long-distance sail. We have 27 boats with “We have never been happier; this is one more due to arrive tomorrow. Four more great for Nanny Cay and the BVI. We boats are joining us in Bermuda for the Atlantic have the facilities to work on the boats, crossing. We’re delighted with the reception and the island offers a great venue for the participants have been given here at Nanny the sailors to relax and get a feel for Cay. I hope that it’s the beginning of a long the Caribbean.” association between the World Cruising Club It isn’t the first of big name events for Nanny and the BVI.” Cay. The Caribbean 1500, Oyster Regatta and Stefan Schollmayer, German skipper and Sailing Festival are now part of Nanny Cay’s owner of Carpe Diem, a Dufour 44, expressed arsenal of international sailing events. Going his delight to be in the BVI. He noted, “There from strength to strength, event management is good service here at Nanny Cay, good is becoming a major part of Nanny Cay’s preparations. I operations. Miles needed to have cites BVI Customs “Hey! You look like a sailor. Come some work done on and Immigration to sea for two months; we are the boat, a mechanic, as being one of and they took care of the best assets having the adventure of a lifetime!” everything. We have a in the transition. five-person crew. Two “Customs and will leave us in Bermuda and be replaced by two Immigration were extremely accommodating— more. It’s not easy to get the time,” he added. “I they came down and cleared boats here at had to take two months from my job, but I think Nanny Cay, but this is a territory renowned it’s worth it. “ for welcoming everyone and it seems we are Standing on the dock admiring the boats, I constantly true to form.” was then approached by Petra Lehmköster, the YG spoke with Andrew Bishop, managing skipper of Viva, a Hallberg Rassy 42F. “Hey! You director of the World Cruising Club, at look like a sailor. Come to sea for two months; Nanny Cay Marina the day before the start we are having the adventure of a lifetime!” of the BVI-Bermuda leg of ARC Europe who Aaaah! So are we Madam, I smirked. Except our confirmed the decision to move the stopover adventure never stops. YG from Antigua to Tortola. “We decided the Virgin Islands were too good to be missed, and we wanted the participants to have the To track the boats/racers/countries: opportunity to cruise through the BVI before http://www.worldcruising.com/arceurope/entries.aspx Europe.” With Nanny Cay set for haul-outs www.bviguides.com | ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING BVI YACHT GUIDE JULY 2009
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Testing the new toys are Owen Waters. . .
No Waves, No Paddles, No Problem PowerSurfing and PowerKayaking at Manuel Reef and Necker Island
by Traci O’Dea
BVI Yacht Guide met with Colin Bramble at the BVI Watersports Centre (BVIWSC) in Manuel Reef Marina to test drive the new Surfango Powerboards—motorized kayaks and surfboards—just days before Sir Richard Branson test drove them at Necker Island. When we arrived, Colin, along with BVIWSC students Eben Meyers and Jaye Noel, hauled first the kayak then the surfboard down to the ramp at the end of the dock. Each craft required all three to carry it to the water. After installing the fins, filling the fuel and buckling into life jackets, the young lads hopped on and took off. Alison Knights-Bramble rode us out in her new Pink Panther rib to join the guys in the bay and take some pictures. Jaye whipped around on the motorized kayak—pushing it to its top speed of 25mph—while Eben got vertical on the surfboard. After several minutes of watching the guys cruise around, we were ready to try the new toys ourselves. I chose the power sea kayak, the Hawaii GT, and my colleague Owen Waters, a watersports aficionado, climbed aboard the PowerSurf. Unlike Owen, my watersports experiences consist of one windsurfing lesson from Jeremy at Trellis Bay and two successful deepwater starts (out of about twenty attempts) while waterskiing last summer.
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Despite my inexperience, I easily moved from the rib to the seat of the kayak, plugged in the kill cord and instinctively slid my hand around the centrally located joystick controller. The designers of the joystick probably played the same arcade games I did as a kid. It was simple—a trigger button for speed on the underside of the stick controlled by my index finger, start and stop buttons managed by my thumb, and the left and right determined by the side-to-side motion of the joystick itself. I sped away from the rib and gleefully manoeuvred around the bay. Meanwhile, Owen steered the PowerSurf with his legs and body, just as he would a normal surfboard or wakeboard. Only this board isn’t propelled by the waves or pulled by a boat; it’s powered by a four-stroke, 9.5hp, electric-start engine operated by a handle similar to that of a waterskiing towrope. We zipped around Manuel Reef a few times then headed back to the rib and let the guys ride the two machines back to the dock. I was thrilled at having mastered a new toy in such a short period of time. I asked Owen, the pro,
JULY 2009 BVI YACHT GUIDE ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING | www.bviguides.com
. . .Eben Meyers. . .
. . . and, of course, Sir Richard Branson.
if he would ever consider taking the PowerSurf out in the waves or wake. “No, it’s definitely for flat water only,” he said then stopped for a second and looked up at the ceiling. “Well, maybe wake would be okay.” I could see the wheels turning. “Or just some two-foot waves.” He grinned and added, “I mean, if someone gave me one just to shred, I might take it down a mountain.” These boards could spawn the next extreme sport. A few days later, we met with Colin, along with Gary Sommer and Frank Jablonski from Surfango, to discuss the boats and boards and their visit to Necker Island. The Surfango guys were excited that Owen and I had previewed the boards. I told Gary how easy the kayak was to drive and admitted that I felt a little guilty about it. “Did you paddle at all?” Gary asked. “There was a paddle?” I guess I didn’t feel that guilty…
The gentlemen seemed pleased about their visit with Sir Richard Branson the day before, and the photos show that the weather was perfect, the sea was clear and the Bransons were happy with the latest toys. “The board we’re giving him is custom made,” Frank said, adding that it’s going to be Virgin maroon. “We left the testers over there for a week because he wanted some of his guests to try them out.” I’m sure the guests at Necker enjoyed the Powerboards, as long as Sir Richard didn’t try to scare them with his infamous shark suit. YG For more information on Surfango Powerboards, visit www.surfango.com. Surfango, Inc. 770 Vassar Avenue Lakewood, NJ 08701 +1.732.370.0041 info@surfango.com
. . .Traci O'Dea. . .
Sky at Road Town Harbour
Reaching for Sky
by David Blacklock
The Story Behind a Yacht Sale As tourism numbers drop and the charter fleet goes into mothballs for the summer (and maybe beyond), yacht sales is one industry sector that seems to be showing some muscle. To the casual observer of the local yacht brokers' websites and in conversation with buyers and brokers, cautious optimism seems to be the keynote. In this perilous environment, one obvious question is, who are the buyers out there? And what are the brokers doing to entice them to write a sizable cheque? To find answers to these and other questions, we examined a single transaction and interviewed both the buyer and the broker to see how the transaction unfolded from each side. The boat in question is not your usual Caribbean 40-foot white plastic flotel, but a well-preserved 1970 Hinckley Bermuda 40. Designed by William Tripp, the Bermuda 40 is a head-turning classic yawl whose lines mark her as a yacht for the ages. Eagerly sought after by aficionados, the B-40 has reliably been described as one of the most beautiful yachts afloat and was the design that established Hinckley as a top-quality builder. The eventual buyer of this classic yacht, Heather Lane, had not been thinking of any such purchase but found it while idly scanning the Internet as a distraction from personal travails. “I had no intention of being a boat owner,” the Canadian mother of two told YG. “You know, you have the dream, but it doesn't necessarily mean you go after it.” Heather's troubles had started when her house was destroyed by a wayward driver. “A car ran into it in the middle of night just like an earthquake.” 20
Gathering her children, Heather moved to a new house, in Quebec. “Because of the crazy way the insurance company was handling my claim, I sold the house and bought another one,” she said. “In that time frame, about eight months, the new house had a fire, and we lost everything to smoke damage. So here we were, a pretty close family but a family in
and I persuaded them to take me on as crew. We had four days of gales and lots of stuff happened, and it was the time of my life—so I always wanted a Hinckley.” On top of her daydreaming, Heather said, “I decided I'm never buying a house again. So I'm on the Internet looking at Hinckleys, and there were a couple for sale. One was in New York and the other
In order to preserve her mental composure, Heather began dreaming of a past adventure she'd had on a beautiful wooden yacht. . . crisis. I'd just had it. We ended up in Old Quebec with just one bedroom for the three of us: a 7-year old, a 17-year old and me.” In order to preserve her mental composure, Heather began dreaming of a past adventure she'd had on a beautiful wooden yacht, a Hinckley. “I never get depressed. I think that's a luxury. But I started going to the Internet to look at Hinckleys. I had done a delivery once on Nirvana which used to be Nelson Rockefeller's yacht. Then it was owned by David Ray from Banister's Wharf in Newport. I refitted her with Jim Thorpe, who passed away not that long ago. I got lots of offers to sail as a cook, but I didn't want that,
JULY 2009 BVI YACHT GUIDE ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING | www.bviguides.com
in the Caribbean. I wasn't really looking to buy a boat in the Caribbean. Life was chaotic enough. Anyway, I just sort of loosely started making some calls.” One of the calls Heather made was to Clive Allen of BVI Yacht Sales, who was representing the owners of Sky. “Heather had made it quite clear that she was only basically browsing the Web,” Clive told YG, “and she's always been in love with Hinckleys after delivering a wooden one. This had remained a passion, something in her heart.” Sky wasn't a new listing but had been on the market for over a year. “They were, let's say, semimotivated sellers,” Clive said. “It was a love affair,
which generally happens with a boat like that, a classic. They'd sold everything here in the BVI.” Having spent several years in the BVI, the sellers were eager for a change. “They'd been down here doing their five-to-seven year stint and the dream of having their children and grandchildren down here on a regular basis didn't materialize as we think it might,” he said. “Sky was their last remaining possession. It was never going to be sailed by them again, and they had no reason to come back. The boat had become a day sailer just a few days a year.” Originally listed at $129,000—not an unreasonable listing price for a boat like this—Clive dropped the price to $119,000. “When they'd gone and it wasn't selling, on our advice they brought it down to $99,000, which created some interest,” Clive said. “We went from 119 to 109 to 99 and I tried very hard to stimulate the market. Very, very hard. At 99 we were going to go to 89. But I said, “Look I've got loads of inquiries.” So I went to everyone who had inquired over the last four months. I mean everyone, a good 30-odd people, to put in an offer. Anything considered. And nobody came back. Nobody. Not even with a ridiculous price. It was quite surprising.” Heather, meanwhile, wasn't sure what to do. “I talked to a friend of mine, who said ‘Do you really think this is a good time?’ Like, shouldn't I be thinking of somewhere to live? And I said ‘Yeah, yeah, you're right,’ and I just let it go,” she said. Clive saw the window for striking deals was closing rapidly. “This time of year buyers know sellers don't want to take on the risk over the summer period. Everybody's going to be prepared to drop that five or ten thousand, if they have to, to say goodbye to their boat before the hurricane season,” he said. “So we basically stuck it out there at $69,000—and then it exploded. Then the world went mad. I had brokers who wanted to do it themselves. Brokers from the States who were just going to sail it up to the States and flip it. Now everybody wanted this boat. The
money unless I think my investment's protected. At phone was off the hook, and I don't know how many that price, my investment's protected. I wasn't going emails a day I was replying to. It was just full on.” to lose anything, nor do I have any intention of selling Back in Quebec, Heather was still fretting over it. I'm a risk taker anyway. I'm not independently her situation. “I got an email from Clive saying they'd drastically reduced the price,” she said. “I didn't call my wealthy. I'm not even your average person with a real job. I'm someone on a subsistence income who friend. I called Clive, talked to him for a few minutes just happened to have a couple of accidents which and hung up the phone. I thought about it for two allowed me to do it,” Heather said. minutes, and I called him back and put in an offer. I The fact that she was the buyer who came through knew if I did not, I'd never live with myself. At least surprised Clive. “I must admit it was a surprise. You pursue it and see what happens. Clive was telling me never know who's going to buy a boat. You have to about all these offers he was getting and that he was take everybody as equal. Even with all our experience, just inundated. But mine was in first!” you never quite know. At the beginning, I wasn't 100% Clive was waiting for whatever offers his price drop had flushed out. “She was a very proactive buyer convinced it would have been Heather. But after a few conversations on the telephone and following because she got the purchase and sale agreement up by email I started to feel that it was in her heart,” signed and back to us before anybody. She went with he said. “Once the sale had been consummated, and her heart. The others were going, ‘Yeah, salesman's the acceptance had been signed, everybody agreed— story. Yeah, broker's story. Of course there's nobody seller, buyer—that anxious to buy it, they would like he's just slinging You never know who's going to buy a boat. some contact. In us one.’ But fact, just prior to that wasn't the You have to take everybody as equal. the final signatures, case,” Clive told I let the sellers YG. “There were know about Heather and the book she's wanting about eight people out there, and they all wanted to write and the things she wanted to do and her it. She signed, and she was down within a week. sentimentality towards the boat rather than it being She saw it, and we plopped it in the water, had it just another piece of floating plastic. And, because of professionally surveyed. Of course issues came up their love for the boat, of course they went with that. as they do—it's a boat. Before she left, she signed Heather had that on her side because sentimentality the acceptance. Quite quick.” came into it in a big way here. And then they got Heather moved quickly. “I talked to my ex who talking by email, and Heather offered that anytime lives in Ottawa—didn't tell him about the boat they should be anywhere in the area where Sky is, though—he still doesn't know. I said, ‘I need to go they were welcome aboard,” he said. “They even to the Caribbean, can you come and look after the offered that they would come and pay for a charter kids?’ So he came. I bought a ticket and came down. and Heather was ‘No, no, no—you're guests on Geoff Williams surveyed the boat. I bought it. I won! board.’ So I hope there's a wonderful relationship I had always thought I was going to live on it, but I between the owners. The old owner loved her, the had no plan. I'd never owned a boat. I hadn't been new owner loves her and I think they could all meet sailing in ages. I did no research. Zero. I knew nothing up sometimes and enjoy that boat together.” YG about buying a boat. But I'm not about to spend any
www.bviguides.com | ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING BVI YACHT GUIDE JULY 2009
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Footloose
est. 1995 | footloosecharters.com | (284) 494-0528 Fleet size: 62 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Jeanneau, Roberson & Caine Year Make: 2002-2008 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls
The Moorings
est. 1969 | moorings.com | (888) 416-8420 Fleet size: 180 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Jeanneau, Leopard Year Make: 2005-2009 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls Yacht Brokerage: (284) 494-8864
The Mooring Signature
est. 1969 | mooringssignature.com | (888) 416-8420 Fleet size: 180 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Jeanneau, Leopard Year Make: 2005-2009 Type(s): Crewed Yachts
Racing in Paradise
est. 2002 | racinginparadise.com | (284) 494-6781 Fleet size: 11 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): IC24 Year Make: Converted From J24 in 2003-2006 Type(s): One-Design Sailing Race Boats
Southern Trades
est. 1977 | southerntrades.com | (284) 494-8003 Fleet size: NA Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: No Brand(s): Non-Specific Year Make: Non-Specific Type(s): Non-Specific
Tortola Yacht Sales
est. 1965 | tysbvi.com (284) 494-2124 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: No Brand(s): Stamas, Contender, Angler Year Make: Non-Specific Type(s): Non-Specific Boats Sold/yr: 6 Number of Brokers: 1
The Moorings Power est. 2000 | mooringspower.com (800) 416-0224 Fleet size: 16 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Robertson & Caine Powercats, Fontaine Pajot Year Make: 2008-2009 Type(s): Power Cats Sunsail
est. 1974 | sunsail.com | (888) 416-8420 Fleet size: 175 Sells boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Jeanneau, Fontaine Pajot, Robertson & Caine Year Make: 2005-2009 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls Yacht Brokerage: (284) 494-1000
est. 1993 | pvc@provalorcharters.com (284) 495-1931 phone/fax Fleet size: 16 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Jeanneau Fountaine Pajot power and sail, Lagoon Year Make: 1993 - 2006 Type(s): Sail & Power Cats and Monohulls
est. 2002 | charterportbvi.com | (284) 494-7955 Fleet size: 80 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Non-Specific Year Make: 1923-2006 Type(s): Non-Specific
North South
est. 1970 | nsyv.com | (284) 545-0096 Fleet size: 42 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Jeanneau, Catalina, C&C, Leopard, Island Spirit, Chienwha, Hershine, Nova Sundeck, Trader Year Make:1994-2003 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls
est. 1993 barecats@candwbvi.net (284) 495-1979 Fleet size: 10 Sells boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Fontaine Pajot, Lagoons, Leopards, Island Spirit, Robertson & Caine, Privilege, Voyages Year Make: 1997-2005 Type(s): Catamarans
Tortola Cane n Garden Maya Cove
Road Harbour
Nanny Cay
Sopers Hole
see detail top right
est. 2007 | 123hulls.com (284) 499-0591 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: No Brand(s): Non-Specific Year Make: Non-Specificl Type(s): Non-Specific Number of brokers: 3
Voyage Yacht Charters
est. 1995 | voyagecharters.com (888) 869-8436 Fleet size: 25 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Voyage Year Make: 2000-2009 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls
est. 1986 | charteryachtsales.com | (284) 494-4868 Fleet size: 46 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Jeanneau, Lagoon, Leopard, Norseman, Island Spirit, Athena, Hunter Year Make: 1996-2004 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls
BVI Yacht Vacations
est. 1998 | bviyachtvacations.com | (284) 499-2768 Fleet size: 1 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): 45’ Crewed Charter Yacht Year Make: 1998 Type(s): Sail & Cutter Ketch & Monohulls
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est 1991 | patouche.com est. patouch | (284) 494-6300 Fleet size: 6 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Peter Spronk, Sea Ray, Privilege, Beneteau Year Make: 1976-2006 Type(s): Sail & Power Cats & Monohulls
JULY 2009 BVI YACHT GUIDE ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING | www.bviguides.com
BVI Yacht Charters est. 1974 | bviyachtcharters.com (284) 494-4289 Fleet size: 45 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Lagoon, Leopard, Jeanneau, Lavezzi Year Make: 1999-2008 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls Amazing Charters
est. 1941 | amazingcharters.com (284) 495-2647 Fleet size: 74 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Non-Specific Year Make: Non-Specific Type(s): Power/Sail, Mono/Multihull
Charter Yacht Society est. 1982 / bvicrewedyachts.com / 284-494-6017 / Fleet size: 70 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Types: Sailboat Cats, Monohulls and Power Yachts Non-profit for BVI crewed charter yachts. Hosts BVI Boat Show. TMM
est. 1987 | sailtmm.com | (800) 633-0155 Fleet size: 44 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Lagoon, Fontaine Pajot, Hunter, Jeanneau, Beneteau, Nautitech, Trader Year Make: 2000-2007 Type(s): Powerboat and Sailboat Cats and Monohulls
Caribbean Images Tours Ltd. est. 1987 | snorkelbvi.com (284) 496-7935 Fleet size: 4 Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Caribe, Ribtec, Atlantic Industries Year Make: 2000-2007 Type(s): Powerboat - Ribs
Virgin Traders est. 1995 | virgintraders.com | (284) 495-2526 Fleet size: 17 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Horizon Year Make: 1997-2004 Type(s): Large Powerboats
Nanny Cay
Horizon Yacht Charters
est. 1998 | horizonyachtcharters.com | (284) 494-8787 Fleet size: 36 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Bavaria, Jeanneu, Beneteau, Fontaine Pajot, Lagoon Year Make: 2002-2009 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls
Vacances Sous Voiles
est. 2004 | vacancessousvoiles.ca | (284) 499-1711 Fleet size: 5 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Beneteau, Fountaine Pajot Year Make: 2000-2007 Type(s): Monohulls and Catamaran
est. 1981 | bviyachtsales.com | (284) 494-3260 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: No Brand(s): Non-Specific Year Make: 1976-2006 Type(s): Non-Specific Boats Sold/yr: 70 Number of Brokers: 3
Catamaran Charters
est. 1989 | catamarans.com | (800) 262-0308 Fleet size: 23 Sells Boats: Yes Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Privilege, Lagoon, Fontaine Pajot Year Make: 2000-2007 Type(s): Sailboat Cats and Monohulls
Island Time Ltd est. 2001 | islandtimeltd.com | (284) 495-9993 Fleet size: 10 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Contender, Caribe Year Make: 2006-2008 Type(s): Fast Powerboat and Dinghys King Charters est. 1990 | kingcharters.com | (284) 494-5820 Fleet size: 5 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Bradley Year Make: 1998-2007 Type(s): Fast Powerboat
Yacht Charter & Broker Directory The BVI Yacht Guide wants this list of Yacht Charter companies and Yacht Brokers to be as complete and accurate as possible. To this end, we will include your company’s details at no cost. If your company is not listed here or the description is incomplete, please contact us with the proper information.
Virgin Gorda
Sail Bravura
est. 2004 | sailbravura.com | (284) 443-2586 Fleet size: 1 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Hans Christian 48 Year Make: 1987 Type(s): Monohull Cutter
Double D Charters
The Valley
est. 1995 | doubledbvi.com | (284) 499-2479 Fleet size: 3 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Crowther, President, Grady White Year Make: 1980-1988, 2003 Type(s): Catamaran Sailboat, Powerboat
Powerboat Rentals/Cruises est. 1987 | boatsbvi.com | (284) 495-5542 Fleet size: 7 Sells Boats: No Charters Boats: Yes Brand(s): Logic, Sea Fox, Bertram, Riviera, Azimut Year Make: 1996-2002 Type(s): Fast Powerboats www.bviguides.com | ALOOKINGGLASS PUBLISHING BVI YACHT GUIDE JULY 2009
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