Note from Aubrey: Hi Folks, We are enjoying a luxurious mooring here on Culebrita just off the coast of Culebra. We have snorkeled the area (only OK), circumnavigated the island in Wave Dancer, and enjoyed the company of Wayne and Stevi on Stephana, a 47 foot Vagabond ketch, and Craig and Jan on Seabbatical, a 47 foot Bavaria, both US boats. The Spanish Virgin Islands of Vieques and Culebra and their offlying islets have extremely good anchorages, free moorings, good grocery supplies, and a laid back, small town atmosphere with crystal clear waters, isolated scenery, and OK snorkelling around shallow reefs. Tomorrow we will go over to St. Thomas of the USVI's, and hopefully send this from there, and spend a few days in the area as we await the arrival of Judy's nephew and niece, Michael and Sarah. We hope to get a few repairs done there as well as some materials for Veleda. All the best, Aubrey This image is taken from Shirley Heights and is a good one overlooking English Harbour in the foreground with Freeman Bay, then Ordnance Bay (where we would have left Veleda at anchor had we returned to Antigua with Veleda), and Falmouth Harbour in the background. Nelson's dockyard is that projection between Freeman Bay and Ordnance Bay, a very strategic well defended fleet anchorage in Falmouth Harbour, and supply and repair ship yard facility for the Royal Navy in English Harbour in the late 1700's and early 1800's.

Log #43N Back to Puerto Rico

Culebrita, Spanish Virgin Islands, May 5, 2007

As we had a couple more days before our flight to Panama City from San Juan, and since we knew we could leave Veleda at Roosevelt Roads Naval Station, we wanted to check out sail makers to get our spare mainsail outfitted with full battens. We went to Puerto Del Rey only to be informed their sailmaker was not into sails, only canvas work for dodgers, etc., but were informed there is a sailmaker at Fajardo. So up we went to Villa Marina, and checked in for the night to be surprised that this less preferred marina charged 50% more than Puerto Del Rey, $1.50 per foot (per day, but their monthly rates were cheaper then Puerto Del Rey). Oh well, it was only for one night and was next door to Fajardo Canvas and Sail, where Chuck the owner was most helpful. He came down next morning to pick up the sail, gave us an acceptable estimate, and allowed us to use his address to receive our repaired depth sounder sent off to the US. This marina was one where we had considered leaving Veleda, but now were glad we didn't, as the place was infested with blackbirds that sat on the rigging of the boats and messed all over them. However, the marina was convenient not only to Fajardo Sails but to a couple of chandleries and grocery stores.

Late the next afternoon we went over to anchor off Isla Palamino (18 20.96N, 065 34.34W), a private island belonging to one of the large resorts on the mainland (ie Puerto Rico) because of its sandy beach. From there next day, March 21st, we motorsailed the 12 miles down to Roosevelt Roads to secure to a buoy (18 14.03N, 065 37.65W) at the marina where we would leave Veleda for three weeks to return to Panama City, then Toronto, and back to Antigua (remember, we could not get our tickets exchanged for Puerto Rico). We were to fly out next day, March 22nd. It was cheaper to rent a car for the day and drop it off at the airport than to get a taxi. We found the Avis people most accommodating, and rented from them on our return as well.

We made our flight OK, except the road signs are poorly placed and we missed the final turnoff to the airport, causing us to have to cross a long causeway across a lagoon, paying a $2.00 toll to get off it and another $2.00 to return. We noted that at least four other cars made a similar U-turn after the tollbooth to return to the airport. The flight was fine, except no meal was served, and we had a 7 hour layover at Orlando before our final leg to Panama City. Both our bags were delayed! One showed up next day, and the other the day after that. Not the first time we have experienced this!

We had a good visit with Judy's sister and her family, then a few days later drove with Henry, Judy's dad, back to Canada in two days to Ottawa, where we stopped for a day to go through the Canadian War Museum. It is a new museum and has very good and current displays. It traced Canadian military history from the Indian wars amongst the tribes, to the French and British conquests, wars and colonization, the war of 1812, the Fenian raids, the Boer War, WW I and WW II, Korea, and our peace-keeping missions from Cyprus, and the Golan Heights to Kosovo, with a special exhibit on our troops in Afghanistan. It included a dramatic relic of a destroyed armoured SUV where the entire engine compartment was demolished, but the troops in that one were saved as the reinforced passenger compartment withstood most of the blast. It also showed the troops helping restore the civilian infrastructure there. Some of the individual paintings were quite moving, including one of Kyle Brown (linked to the torture/murder of a Somali teenager), and especially one of General Romeo Dallaire haunted by the massacre in Rwanda which he was powerless to prevent due to inadequate funding and support by the UN (will Darfur be a repeat?).

Back in Toronto we settled in to the family home with Henry, and enjoyed family visits on both Judy's and my side. In a bit of nostalgia, we went to the Easter Sunday service at St. Paul's United Church in my home town of Dundas 50 miles west of Toronto, where I grew up, went to Cubs and Scouts, and sang in the choir. None of my family live in Dundas any more, but it was a good trip back to my childhood and adolescence. We got a clean bill of health from our medical check ups, and gave a half dozen slide (digital) presentations of our cruising experiences to various sailing groups.

Our return flight went direct to Antigua, where we stayed with Mark and Lindsay, Tot Club members, and of course enjoyed the tot of rum at the Calabash restaurant with friends of the Royal Naval Tot Club of Antigua and Barbuda we made last year. As we rented a car from the airport, we travelled over much of Antigua in that 24 hours, enjoying the barbecue, steel band and spectacular view from the military bastion at Shirley Heights (see attached picture). Next day on our way to the airport we stopped along Fig Tree Drive, which wends through the tropical rainforest, and did an abbreviated Rainforest Canopy Tour, soaring above the lush jungle across 5 aerial zip lines spanning the verdant valleys and gorges (see attached pictures). It was fun, and when next in Antigua with more time we will do their challenge course, which involves not only a dozen zip lines but also aerial wires to walk across, suspension bridges and treetop "Tarzan" swings.

The flight to Puerto Rico was uneventful, and we enjoyed the clear weather giving us a terrific view of Antigua, Barbuda, Vieques, and San Juan Harbour. We had no trouble entering the Naval Station with our Avis rental car and were glad to get home to Veleda, placidly waiting in good condition on her mooring buoy.



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