April 12-16, 2007

Spanish Virgin Islands

Thursday, April 12

Back in Texas, we'd doze off to sleep every night to the sound of breaking waves coming from the alarm clock on the night stand. Besides the annoying jangle it made at 5:45 A.M. every morning, the clock also provided a selection of soothing nature sounds to lull us off to our dreams of cruising the islands. Tonight the sound of waves breaking on a beach isn't coming from a machine but from a lovely palm-fringed beach. We're tied to a mooring ball just off Green Beach, Vieques in the Spanish Virgin Islands. The beach is off our bow and the twinkling lights of Puerto Rico are behind us. As if that wasn't fine enough, we have this little piece of paradise all to ourselves. After traveling 3200 miles from Texas, we feel a great sense of satisfaction that we have finally arrived at our destination. Surely the dolphin welcoming party that greeted us on our approach to Vieques this afternoon were an omen of good things to come.

Friday, April 13

Settled weather is in the forecast today, so we head northeast across Vieques Sound to the islands of Culebra. We pick up another free mooring ball at a lovely beach on Luis Pena. There's a reef to snorkel about a hundred feet from the boat, so we jump in and play in clear water for the first time since the Bahamas.

Saturday, April 14

Although we like Luis Pena, it's a rolly anchorage. After breakfast, we make the short trip around the corner to Dewey, the only settlement on the main island of Culebra. We take a mooring ball behind the reef in the bay of Ensenada Honda. Behind the reef, we get the benefit of wind but no swell. The boat rests comfortably on her mooring much to our pleasure. That afternoon, we talk to some cruisers at the Dinghy Dock restaurant happy hour. Again, opinions vary about destinations south.

Sunday, April 15

For some reason, the first mate is in the mood to cook today. We start with pancakes for breakfast. For lunch the meal is Bahamian inspired with homemade wheat bread, baked mac 'n cheese, and peas 'n rice. Dinner is fish tacos with coleslaw. And there's a key lime pie for dessert. Like Kenny says, "My baby likes to watch me eat her key lime pie."

Monday, April 16

We make the long dinghy ride to Dewey for errands and lunch at Mamacita's waterside restaurant. Here we question some locals about the best snorkeling areas. John and Diane, a South African couple we met in Ponce, invite us for dinner on their catamaran Dream. We have a great meal and enjoy the camaraderie. We've now met several cruisers from other countries, and it's nice to talk to people outside the American experience.

While we've been enjoying pleasant sunny conditions, a deadly cold front has marched across the States. This front will start affecting our weather in the next few days, so we must decide whether to stay in Culebra or make the 20-mile run to St. Thomas before conditions worsen. We'll listen to the weather report in the morning and make a decision.