As the plane landed back in San Diego late on a Saturday night, no one wanted to come back to reality after nine amazing days of sailing the British Virgin Islands. The 2024 edition of the club flotilla gathered nearly fifty people across eleven boats: a mixture of catamarans and monohulls from 40’-50’.
Day 1 the fleet left Road Town from the main island of Tortola and set off for the small and welcoming Cooper Island. With the remnants of a strong tropical system still lingering, we ducked our way through the breeze and occasional rain cloud to secure our mooring balls for the evening outside of Cooper Island Beach Club. Right into the water for an appetizer of snorkeling and then off to the beach bar and rum distillery, we settled right into the slow pace of island life.
The next morning, we got ready for a decently long upwind sail in 20 knots of breeze and once again dodged the occasional rain cloud. Wet hair and wet clothes didn’t stop the smiles after 3 hours of fun sailing in big breeze. After the race up the channel (two sailboats going in the same direction) we arrived at the postcard stop of the BVI’s, The Baths, but were disappointed to see the red flag on the beach meaning entry not recommended due to breaking waves on the beach. We took a bit of time to relax and have lunch on the moorings balls until deciding to head to our evening destination of Bitter End Yacht Club where we enjoyed the luxury of the newly rebuilt facility.
Day 3 was a planned relaxation day with no sailing except for relocating from the mooring field to the private Bitter End Yacht Club dock where we had slips reserved for the evening. Some people made up for the red flag by taking a taxi to The Baths to experience the remarkable bolder maze and pools. Later that afternoon the 2024 Harbor Sailboats BVI Professional Amateur International World Championship Regetta kicked off with a handful of Hobie Waves and RS Zest ripping around the sound at what felt like Mach 5 speeds. Childish laughter and grins were hard to hold back, as was capsizing for a couple of overpowered teams! After the regatta we cleaned up and headed to the Bitter End bar for a round or two of happy hour drinks and stories from the race.
The next morning the fleet left the dock setting sail for the furthest north island of Anegada. A beautiful upwind sail in 15 knots of warm breeze has us all feeling good. The tricky entrance around the reef that guards Anegada was navigated without issue, and we secured our moorings for the next two evenings. The following day was all about exploring the northern beaches of Anegada that are only accessible by road. Cow Wreck Beach, Tipsy, Anegada Beach Club, Loblolly, and the flamingo outlook were some of the stops on the magical day. Returning to our boats to get cleaned up for lobster dinner, many of us were unable to move from the cockpit as we watched the best sunset of the trip descend behind the anchorage.
Day 6 was the longest sail of the adventure where we could have used a few more knots of breeze but we happily accepted the 10 knots that was given to us. About 30 miles of downwind and down swell sailing brought us to Cane Garden Bay back to the island of Tortola. Cane Garden Bay was unusually “rolly”, so many were excited to get to shore and walk the mile long white sand beach or enjoy a drink and dinner at one of the many restaurants.
Day 7 was a short downwind sail in 12 knots of breeze over to Jost Van Dyke with an optional stop at Sandy Cay for snorkeling and cockpit lunch. For here the fleet had the choice of two anchorages just a stone throw from each other, White Bay, and Great Harbor. Most selected Great Harbor as White Bay is a heavily guarded shallow water anchorage, but the view of the sea floor and white sand makes it worth it. After an obligatory Painkiller at the Soggy Dollar Bar most of the fleet ended up having dinner at Foxy’s and some showed off their karaoke skills as dinner turned to a dance party.
On our final full day, some might say we saved the best for last! The fleet sailed around the west end of Tortola and onward to The Bight on Norman Island. The Bight is a huge deep-water anchorage with beach chairs and umbrellas, amazing snorkeling at The Cave and Indians, plus a famous happy hour aboard Willy T’s! Most boats were able to explore all the attractions of The Bight and ended the day aboard Willy T’s sharing our favorite parts of the trip and prying details on what’s happening in 2025!
Thank you to all members and their friends who joined the 24’ edition of the club flotilla! Those that want to take part in next year’s trip should mark their calendars for November 2025. The destination will be the Leeward Islands where Caribbean meets Europe in this truly unique experience of St Martin, Anguila, and St. Barts.