by Sailorman Chuck

Caribbean Adventures

Get Ready to GO!

Planning your trip

It is a great deal of fun planning your trip. The charter company will usually provide a Cruising Guide after you have signed the charter agreement and after you have paid the deposit. Purchase a navigation chart of the sailing area if you want to create an easy to view cruising plan.

 

Use the Cruising Guide to pick out points of interest and overnight anchorage sites. Use the navigation chart to plan and plot the cruise. You will find that you do not have enough time to do everything that sounds like fun. You can always add days or come back the next year to visit the missed opportunities. 

 

Make sure to include one or two marina stops during your cruise. You will need to take on water, ice and some fresh provisions. Take the opportunity to dump trash. It is also good to get off of the boat for a while. The marina showers are pretty luxurious in size and availability of water as compared to your charter boat.

 

The charter companies will usually let you have the boat at noon on the first day and you will need to return it by noon on the last day. If you are friendly with the charter company personnel, they may agree to let you sleep on the boat the night prior to your departure. There may be a fee. They may also let you have your checkout session on the day prior to your charter or early on the first day. This will let you get an earlier start than if you begin your checkout session at noon on the day of your charter. Being friendly and easy to work with goes a long way.

 

Have fun planning the cruise and make sure to include you crew in the planning. Have one or more cruise planning parties to keep everyone informed, to get to know each other a little better and to just have a good time.

 

Selecting the right sailing companions

It is more fun to have friends sail with you and you will need competent help handling the boat. Look for good friends that you have vacationed with and sailing companions. It is good to be somewhat compatible since any boat seems to shrink in size once you have shared close quarters for a while.

 

Have a few guidelines agreed to prior to the trip. A few examples follow:

1. Everyone does not need to do everything together. Don’t get your feelings hurt if no one else wants to do something that you have in mind.

2. Clean up after yourself and put away items not in use. This may also be a safety issue. Clutter on deck and in the cabin can cause injuries.

3. There are no rules, just a few guidelines.

 

Know the sailing competence of each person and allow everyone to contribute. Make sure that everyone is willing to share the less favorite duties. Make sure to find out favorite meals, deserts and drinks for each person.

 

Expenses

Charter fee, insurance, travel, hotel rooms before and after the charter, meals, ice, booze, beer, wine, and souvenir stuff need to be taken into consideration for an estimate of your total trip cost. The boat charter expenses should be settled prior to the trip since there will be a down payment when the charter is reserved and then a final payment some time prior to the charter date.

 

There will be a number of purchases of common use goods. A good technique is to keep a list of the common use expenses and then settle up at the end of the cruise. A simple list organized by couple or individual with amounts and a brief description of the purchase works very well. Personal items should not be included on the common use list of expenses.

 

Another technique is to create a pool of money for common use expenses and then add to it if it runs low. If there is any money left at the end of the cruise, divide it up equally and everyone will be happy.

 

It is important to have a clear understanding of what items may be included on the common use expense list. If only one person wants peanut butter, then that person should purchase the peanut butter and not include it on the expense list. On the other hand, it may be just as easy to put all food and drink items on the list and not worry. Many times, peanut butter may not sound good at first and then it is craved later.

 

Just have fun and be fair.

 

What to take

Don’t take more than you need. You will take too much anyway.  Storage is often a luxury.

 

Take duffel bags on wheels. These work well since they fold flat. The wheels are good since you will likely have some walking to do before moving onto the boat.

 

Try to limit each person to one large duffel bag and one carry-on bag for the entire trip. Remember that the local merchants have plenty of souvenir T-shirts, swimsuits, and hats along with just about anything else that you will need.

 

Very important, take all prescription medicine and any other personal items that are essential.

 

Medical Facilities and Medication

The medical facilities in the US and British Virgin Islands are very good. It is important to remember that they are not easily accessible since you are on a boat. Make sure that you know the locations of the medical facilities and how to get help when needed. Remember that channel 16 is the emergency channel. The local marine authorities monitor channel 16 and it should also be monitored by every boat.

 

Always know your coordinates or Island location and be able to give a clear description of your boat. If all else fails, call the charter company for advise.

 

Packing for your trip

Start packing next week and then remove something from your bag every day until you get on the plane.  This is especially true if you will charter a boat; however, it is a good practice anyway. You really don't need much.  Ladies should take a cool dress or two and a few swim suites.  Shorts are fine on the beach, but not appropriate for walking around town.  This is more important in the BVI. The guys should take a pair of cutoffs and a tee shirt. Well anyway, you get the message.  You'll find that you really don't need an extensive wardrobe.  I usually wear slacks on the plane and they double for formal dinner attire.  I hear some places require coat and tie, we have yet to find one. Otherwise, I wear shorts or jeans.  Deck shoes are required onboard the boat and sandals or reef runners are good on the beaches.

On the downwind leg for a smooth landing at St. Thomas airport.

      Somewhere in the Caribbean or

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