Vieques

Have just completed a trip around the island of Vieques and we are sitting at anchor on the west side waiting for the trades to fill in later this morning to take off to Fajardo on the mainland.

We arrived here last Monday and have spent the week visiting a couple of bays and the two settlements on the island.  Vieques is a beautiful island and very quiet.  It used to be used for gunnery practice by the US military and as such much of the island was off limits.  Not so long ago the military handed it back to PR and it has since been opened up.  There are still areas which you are not allowed onshore due to unexploded ordnance but that is mainly down the east and west ends.  There are tourists here but it is nowhere near as busy as other places.

We made landfall on the west side and then sailed clockwise around the island.  Generally we spent the week at anchor in peaceful bays, doing school and exploring where we could.  The first day we visited the Northern town called Isabel Segunda.  We anchored in a bay which had a bit of a roll going through it and went ashore for lunch.  The town itself is not much to look at.  There is one main street with the ferry dock coming off it and a couple bars and cafes, half of which were shut.  Behind the main street the land rises and houses are built on the hillside.  We did manage to find a supermarket and so stocked up on some essentials.  We had an average lunch in a bar overlooking the water and then headed back to the boat and pushed on to anchor at a quiet place called Bahia Icacos.  

Isabel Segunda Anchorage

Its good coming ashore

The bay here is fringed with three reef systems and a small island and so is quite protected from the northerly swell.  The beach is wide and studded with palm trees.  All in all an idyllic spot.  There was only Dulcinea and one sport fishing boat in the bay.  We spent two nights here.  On the second night we went ashore to a small cove and had a fire on the beach while the sun went down.  It was beautiful and the kids really enjoyed it.  There were some stunted palm trees at the cove and we managed to get a few green coconuts after a bit of exertion and some near misses with a knife and Sam on Scotts shoulders.

Beach Fire

Beth enjoying fresh coconut

We moved around to the south side of the island the next day near to the next town called Esperanza.  Nearby there are two small bays with bioluminescent plankton which we wanted to see.   At night we took the dingy into one of the bays called Puerto Mosquito.  We had to take the dingy out of the bay we were anchored in and then along the coast about a mile to reach the entrance to the bioluminescent bay which is very narrow.   Even though it was not that rough it is not that comfortable being in a dingy with a 15HP engine in the open sea at night.  We made the entrance to the bay in about 15 minutes and once inside it was like we had come indoors from a stormy day outside - everything was quiet and peaceful.  The contrast was startling.  

The bay is absolutely still and ringed by mangroves.  It was a full moon when we visited so could see the whole bay.  There were a few other visitors in kayaks just drifting around, each with a small red LED on.  We shut off the engine and paddled further into the bay.  At first we could not see much but then as we got further in someone noticed the oar glowing like a light saber every time it went into the water.  We just played around in the water with the oars and our hands watching the glow produced.  It is quite sureal.  At one time we put the outboard on to shift location and a trail of light flowed out the back of the dingy like a comet tail.  There are a few more of these bays around so we may get to see this again.  Wish we could have got some pictures but its impossible to photograph (by us anyway).

The following day we shifted closer to Esperanza and went ashore for lunch and so those so inclined could have a look at the few gift shops.  Esperanza was smaller than Isabel Segunda but was a more picturesque place better suited to visitors.  Got a fantastic lunch of Tapas with a glass of Sangria.  In the afternoon we sailed back to the west end to anchor for the night.

Esperanza Waterfront 

Tapas at Bili in Esperanza

West Coast Anchorage

Its been a real fun week.  I think the best thing is that we have not had to worry too much about the weather.  We can essentially go when we want as the wind is pretty constant.  It's usually calm in the early morning and then picks up late morning and in the afternoon before settling down at night.  We still monitor the daily forecasts but are now really looking out for the unusual weather which may be on the horizon.

Today we sail to Fajardo up the east coast of PR.  Should be a great sail.