Sail itinerary Leeward Islands

[Nani Kai]

My son, my wife and I are chartering a Beneteau,Oceanis 41' monohull out of Oyster Pond, St. Marteen in July for a week long sail. We will be doing a little SCUBA diving as well.

I sailed and dived here in 2004 off someone else's boat so some of the logistics are a little vague. I would like to dive Saba especially and the Charlie Brown wreck off St. Eustatius and a few other sites as time permits.

Am I correct that in order to dive Saba we need to work with a dive operator based there? Can anyone recommend an operator?

Because we are only able to stay a week on this trip, I want to make sensible use of our time. We are not looking to race around checking destinations off a list. I just want to have a relaxed Sailing/Diving vacation, make a few nice dives, go ashore for provisioning (preferably a local market) and to experience some of the local culture.

We will start and end in Oyster Pond, St. Martin's. We arrive the evening of July 11th, spend the night on the boat and embark the morning of the 12th. We return sometime before noon on the 17th and drop my son off so that he can return to work then Mary Helan and I have the rest of the day and evening on the boat by ourselves, returning the morning of the 18th.

Does this itinerary make sense assuming leisurely sails:

Day 1: sail to St. Barts. Shallow reef dive offshore. Go ashore St. Barts. Overnight on mooring.
Day 2: sail to Saba. Dinghy ashore to connect with Dive operator. Make 2 dives at Saba. Overnight on mooring.
Day 3: sail to St. Eustatius. Dive the "Charlie Brown". Afternoon sail to St. Kitts. Overnight on the hook.
Day 4: morning dive the Tug Boat offshore St. Kitts. Afternoon Sail to Nevis. Go ashore to local market. Overnight on the hook.
Day 5: begin return sail island hopping, stopping as desired. Probably overnight offshore St. Bart's. Is Nevis to St. Bart's a reasonable day's sailing?
Day 6: Sail to St. Martin's to arrive before noon. Drop off passengers. Sail to Anguilla for last overnight.
Day 7: Return to St. Martin's by 11 am.

If memory serves, Days 1-4 are upwind sailing. Is that correct?

Just looking at Day 6's itinerary makes me a little skeptical. If we can't make Anguilla in reasonable time before sunset, does anyone have alternative suggestions?

Are there customs issues at any of the islands or are we good to go after passing through Customs coming and going at St. Martin's?

Any and all input appreciated.

[JstaRebel]

Originally Posted by Nani Kai

My son, my wife and I are chartering a Beneteau,Oceanis 41' monohull out of Oyster Pond, St. Marteen in July for a week long sail. We will be doing a little SCUBA diving as well.

I sailed and dived here in 2004 off someone else's boat so some of the logistics are a little vague. I would like to dive Saba especially and the Charlie Brown wreck off St. Eustatius and a few other sites as time permits.

Am I correct that in order to dive Saba we need to work with a dive operator based there? Can anyone recommend an operator?

Because we are only able to stay a week on this trip, I want to make sensible use of our time. We are not looking to race around checking destinations off a list. I just want to have a relaxed Sailing/Diving vacation, make a few nice dives, go ashore for provisioning (preferably a local market) and to experience some of the local culture.

We will start and end in Oyster Pond, St. Martin's. We arrive the evening of July 11th, spend the night on the boat and embark the morning of the 12th. We return sometime before noon on the 17th and drop my son off so that he can return to work then Mary Helan and I have the rest of the day and evening on the boat by ourselves, returning the morning of the 18th.

Does this itinerary make sense assuming leisurely sails:

Day 1: sail to St. Barts. Shallow reef dive offshore. Go ashore St. Barts. Overnight on mooring.
Day 2: sail to Saba. Dinghy ashore to connect with Dive operator. Make 2 dives at Saba. Overnight on mooring.
Day 3: sail to St. Eustatius. Dive the "Charlie Brown". Afternoon sail to St. Kitts. Overnight on the hook.
Day 4: morning dive the Tug Boat offshore St. Kitts. Afternoon Sail to Nevis. Go ashore to local market. Overnight on the hook.
Day 5: begin return sail island hopping, stopping as desired. Probably overnight offshore St. Bart's. Is Nevis to St. Bart's a reasonable day's sailing?
Day 6: Sail to St. Martin's to arrive before noon. Drop off passengers. Sail to Anguilla for last overnight.
Day 7: Return to St. Martin's by 11 am.

If memory serves, Days 1-4 are upwind sailing. Is that correct?

Just looking at Day 6's itinerary makes me a little skeptical. If we can't make Anguilla in reasonable time before sunset, does anyone have alternative suggestions?

Are there customs issues at any of the islands or are we good to go after passing through Customs coming and going at St. Martin's?

Any and all input appreciated.

Yes. Hang out in SXM and enjoy yourself on the last night of your vacation... Aint nothin goin on in Road Bay until August 7th which is August Monday in Anguilla.. Then there be something going on!

[Nani Kai]

Thanks for the prompt reply. We were actually thinking a quiet night on the hook watching the sunset offshore a nice Beach would be just the ticket but a nice dinner in SXM without the rush might be preferable. Hmmmm.......so many decisions.

[Zanshin]

I believe that you have a pretty aggressive itinerary planned and that your days will need to begin at sunrise and on some days you will be cutting it fine to arrive at your destination in daylight.

You'll have to clear into and out of each destination. While you can get away with not clearing out of St. Martin (assuming you'll be starting on the French side) you will be expected to clear into the Capitainerie at Gustavia on St. Barths.

I'd start off with a sail to Ile Fourchue on your first day and 1 or perhaps 2 dives at one of my favorite dive sites (this is just outside of the Ile Fourchue anchoring area and has little current, lots of wildlife, few divers, and is only 50-60 feet deep at max depth). There's nothing ashore so it would make a good night's stay and a chance to test the BBQ aboard that night.

If you leave early and head to Saba you could possible get away with cheating and not clearing into/out of St. Barths. I haven't been to Saba yet, but think that they would need your outbound clearance from either SXM or St. Barths and you'd need to clear in there. Since you only plan on staying or one day they will let you do the inbound and outbound clearance at the same time.

From Saba to Eustatia is a short sail/motor but last time I cleared in there it took about an hour and the anchorage can be a bit rolly, but the island is quite nice. I doubt that the day is long enough to let you make St. Kitts if you spend any time at Statia, even if you depart Saba at sunrise. The anchorage off Basseterre in St. Kitts is untenable and highly uncomfortable much of the time, so you need to continue on to White Bay or even Pinney's Beach on Nevis which adds some miles to your total distance. You might want to skip Statia...

There is a nice market in Basseterre on St. Kitts, and Brimstone fort is worth visiting; I rented a car for a couple of days last time there and that gave me a lot of flexibility and it wasn't expensive.

I often do the trip from Nevis to St. Barths (either Colombier or Ile Fourchue) and it takes me from sunrise to close to sunset, and I either go through the Narrows to get to the windward side of St. Kitts to get some wind or motor in the dead calm you almost always get in the morning on the leeward side until rounding the headland. But I've got a much faster boat than you do, so I'd hazard a guess that unless you are willing to arrive after sunset you cannot make that journey in one day. I believe that the charter companies prohibit night sailing, but it they do allow it then both Colombier and Fourchue are pretty easy to sail into at night and you can anchor in 20 feet and 40 feet respectively.

[bluesboy72]

Planning a bareboat charter to the Leeward Islands in April 2019 and looking for some general feedback on a possible itinerary. I liked the questions and answers in this thread so hoping you all can be of help. Experienced sailor and frequent charterer here but never been to Leewards. Picking up in St. Martin. 8 full days/drop boat off morning of day 9. Our group isn't as much into the bigger ports, towns, shopping, etc. as much as the more off the grid, smaller, quaint, relaxing spots. We are hoping to do 2-3 quality dives on the trip.

Day 1: Stay in St. Martin area: lunch Tintamarre; overnight Orient Bay
Day 2: Sail to St. Barts, overnight Anse de Colombier
Day 3: Sail to Statia, afternoon dives; overnight
Day 4: Sail to Saba, afternoon dives, overnight
Day 5: Sail to St. Martin, overnight Simpson Bay
Day 6: Sail to Anguilla, lunch Prickly Pear Cays or Sandy Island, overnight Road Bay
Day 7: Stay in Anguilla, morning or afternoon dives Dog Island or somewhere else, overnight Crocus Bay
Day 8: Sail to St. Martin, spend day & overnight Marigot Bay
Day 9: Return boat to base by 11AM

Day 8 is sort of a freebie and one I could swap out for something else or use to compensate for delays or if we find somewhere we want to spend an extra night. Statia is also one I am not sure on due to not being a great overnight spot.

Thoughts?

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, bluesboy.