Tortola to Connecticut via Bermuda

On May 8th, I packed up my bags for perhaps the next nine months and took a redeye flight to St. Thomas with a seven-hour layover in Miami. Ouch!!

My ultimate destination was my friend Gibb’s Swan 66 docked at the West End of Tortola. Having checked the ferry schedule between St. Thomas and Tortola, I knew that I only had a minimal chance of making the last ferry, so I chose to spend the night on St. Thomas and take the first ferry the following day.

The payoff for this miserable journey was a night staying in a great little hotel Olga’s Fancy and enjoying a surprisingly good dinner at the French quarter Bistro. The nightcap at the Twisted Cork wasn’t bad as well!

The next morning I was up early and off to the ferry terminal. The seaplane looked like a fun alternative ride but I stuck with the ferry.

I arrived at the West End of Tortola just before noon. The rest of the crew was already onboard and as usual, there was a great deal of activity as everyone raced to finish the few remaining tasks and Jamie (this trip’s captain) took our passports across the harbor to check out of the BVI’s.

Given the fact that there were no tasks waiting for me, and departure was on hold until Jamie completed his tasks at the Customs office, I figured that the best use of my time was to wander over to the rebuilt Pussers Landing and have my one and only Painkiller of the trip. I mean, who flys all the way to the Virgin Islands and doesn’t have one?

And then it was time to go. I think I spent more time flying there than being there.

But hey, I came for the sailing.

Leg #1

The first day and a half was fantastic! 80-degree air temp, 80-degree water temps, and 15-knot easterly trade winds made things just about perfect!

This delivery was unique for the fact that Gibb had installed a Starlink system onboard.

SpaceX started launching Starlink satellites in 2019 and as of September 2022 has launched more than 3,000 satellites into low-Earth orbit.  Starlink delivers high-speed, broadband internet to remote and rural locations globally. As of September 2022, service starts at $110 per month with a one-time hardware cost of $599.

That’s right, we had high-speed internet onboard for the entire trip north. We were totally connected and I can’t decide whether that is a good or bad thing.

Clearly, always on affordable high-speed internet in the middle of the ocean adds a layer of safety and convenience that has been impossible to even imagine in the past. Weather forecasts can be checked and downloaded with ease. Emails, texts, phone calls, and video calls, all work just like you were sitting in your living room.

The downside? Well, most of us have always enjoyed the fact that we can “unplug” for a few days and enjoy the time offshore. It’s great being able to leave most of life’s issues behind and perhaps “reboot” while disconnected. Plus, do you really want your crew to be watching Netflix movies while on watch??

All that being said, for offshore racers and cruisers, Starlink is an absolute game changer, and I need to have it on my boat before my next offshore passage!!

Speaking of weather, as we sailed North we hedged our course East keeping Bermuda “in range” as a possible bailout should bad weather present itself. On day three, we looked at the forecasts and saw that if we continued we would be hitting the Gulf Stream in 20-25 knots with wind against the stream’s 2-4 knots of current. That didn’t sound like fun, so Gibb made the decision to alter course directly for Bermuda.

A two-day pitstop in Bermuda was next!

Bermuda

I made the best of what little time we had there. Rather than wander with the group without a plan, I went to the post office, purchased a set of local bus/ferry tickets, and was off!

First, a ferry to the Royal Navy Dockyard to see the lasting effect of the America’s Cup. There was none! Other than a couple shops selling AC t-shirts you’d never know.

Next, a ferry to Hamilton where I placed an order for a case of duty-free Goslings Rum, had a dark n stormy at the RYBC, went shopping for a kettle (we had been boiling water in a saucepan for coffee!), and finally took a bus back to St. Georges in time for a crew dinner at my favorite spot – Wahoo’s.

Our initial “plan” to stay for two days, morphed into a day and a half and unfortunately, once again, I had to leave Bermuda without my rum!! This time, luckily I was able to cancel the order. Last time, I imagine the customs folks enjoyed a very nice party!!

Final Leg

Our departure from Bermuda was somewhat influenced by a calendar and people’s schedules. That’s never really a good thing. We left knowing that we were going to have to cross a front that looked like 12 hours of wind, rain, and generally uncomfortable sailing.

Luckily, by the time we got to the front, it had “worn” itself out a bit. We had 25-30 knots of wind for about six hours, but just a bit of rain, and no lightning!!

The rest of the trip was easy. The winds generally faded after the front, the gulf stream crossing was a non-event, and then we ended up motoring the rest of the way home.

Overall

The trip was a great way to start my Summer sailing season with a beautiful boat and a very compatible, safe crew. I enjoyed the detour to Bermuda (even without my rum!), but I think that is the last time I fly to the Caribbean and leave without taking some time to enjoy the area.

The extra fringe benefit was that Bounty stays at the same boatyard where Morpheus spends the winter. So, this was a very indirect route for me to return to my boat, and get her ready for another season (or more) of sailing.

But, that’s a story for another blog post!!