J and B YACHT ULTRA CARIBBEAN SAILING AND OTHER TRAVEL ADVENTURES: YACHT ULTRA BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS TO THE SOUTH COAST OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC FEBRUARY 23

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS TO THE

SOUTH COAST OF THE

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

FEBRUARY 23 - APRIL 5, 2013

(NEW)

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS TO THE SOUTH COAST OF DOMINICAN REPUBLIC FEBRUARY 23 - APRIL 5, 2013

Ahoy, Everyone,

We hope this email finds all of you happy and healthy! This blog continues our adventures in the BVI, USVI, Puerto Rico, and South Coast of Dominican Republic.

We have had the great opportunity to practice our Spanish here in the D.R. The spanish is a little different, but we are having fun getting by. : ) The locals are very gracious and patient with our trying to speak the language after so many years.

Our adventures in this blog have included:

Bill's Birthday
Lots of Great Sailing Weather
Lots of scuba diving and snorkeling
United States Coast Guard Boarding
Mona Passage again
Lots of hiking
Skeet Shooting
First Polo Match
Road Trips
Lots of great history
Fun with friends
Lots of Boat Projects

The internet is very glitchy here, so there are probably quite a view weird things going in this blog post, but hopefully at least the photos come across okay. : ) We are keeping our fingers and toes crossed.

We look forward to hearing from all of you and how you are doing!: )

Cheers,

Bill and JoAnne : )

FEBRUARY 23, 2013

Today we sailed with Wild Thing to The Baths and then to Marina Cay to go to Pusser's for Painkillers. We had radioed Izzy R to see where they were. They were close, so they motored over. We had a great day of hiking and snorkeling and then onto Marina Cay.

FEBRUARY 24, 2013

Today we dinked over to Marina Cay and did some great snorkeling. We had a great Happy Hour at Wild Cat!

FEBRUARY 25, 2013

Tonight is going to be great. After a day full of boat projects, we will be going to the FULL MOON PARTY here in Trellis Bay. But first, Jeff from Izzy R came over and asked us to test drive his Ski Board. We both love to water ski, so we were ready to try it out! It is a board he made that you can waterski on. So fun! He pulled us all over the harbor. The Full Moon Party was complete with BBQ, drinks, Jumbies, Skydancers, and more! We will go with Wild Cat, Highland Fling, Izzy R and Motivator. It was sooo fun! :)

BILL BEING PULLED ON THE BOARD

BILL ZIPPING BY

THE FULL MOON

THE BURNING MEN METAL SCULPTURES

FEBRUARY 26, 2013

Today we gave George and Jan a housewarming gift for their new boat! It was homemade by us. Their boat name is "Wild Cat", so we collected a fish float on Haulover Beach for them in BVI and painted it up! : ) We sailed off towards the USVI. We left around 6:00 a.m. While under way, we decided to rig up and test our pole on our head sail. Good thing is, it worked and the first time, too. We were the only boat anchored at beautiful Sandy Spit, BVI.

HAPPY HOUR IN THE NETS AT SANDY SPIT!

FEBRUARY 27, 2013

We sailed to Soper's Hole and checked out of the BVI. We sailed to Watermelon Cay.

THE BEAUTIFUL HOMES AT SOPER'S HOLE

FEBRUARY 28, 2013

We woke up this morning and headed to shore to explore this beautiful island. We hiked and treasure hunted. All kinds of neat things to see! Along the way, we found all kinds of wonderful ruins of estates and forts. Old glass bottles, tiles, and china from the 1700s were just laying around. After hiking for almost 6 hours, we came home and got in the water right away, with rum and cokes and a floating bowl of chips and salsa.

DO YOU THINK THAT TAYLOR WOULD WARRANTY THIS ONE!
DEFINITELY NOT!

ESTATE RUINS

ANTIQUE BOTTLE

A SKELETON WE FOUND ALONG THE WAY

AN OLD CHRISTMAS TREE

LIFE JACKET

PORCUPINE FISH A LITTLE DRIED UP
CHECK OUT THAT TEETH/BEAK THING!

MARCH 1, 2013

Today we sailed to Caneel Bay, but first made a stop at the cay across the cut for some great diving, snorkeling and a hike around the island. After that, we sailed over to Caneel Bay after being joined by Wild Cat. We dinked around the harbor at bit and then headed into Cruz Bay with George and Jan for a walk around and drinks.

CANEEL BAY BEACH

CANEEL BAY RESORT

WILD CAT MOORED NEXT TO ULTRA, CANEEL BAY, ST. JOHN

JAN AND JOANNE ARE BOTH HAT GIRLS! NOW THESE ARE HATS! : )

MONGOOSE JUNCTION, ST. JOHN

THE CUTE TURTLE THAT GEORGE BOUGHT JAN FOR HER BIRTHDAY!

RUM PUNCHES WITH GEORGE AND JAN IN CRUZ BAY, ST. JOHN AT A
LOCAL BAR OWNED BY TEXANS

MARCH 4, 2013

We sailed around the island to Lameshur Bay. Here there are the ruins of an old sugar mill, caves with petrolyphs, fort ruins, and fantastic vistas. Bill, George and JoAnne set out for a hike. We were only a few minutes into the hike when Bill spotted deer. We must confess, we have not deer in many years! After our hike, which was only supposed to be 2 miles, ended up being 5 miles, we quickly raced home to put on snorkel gear and snorkeled the harbor.

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PHOTO, YOU CAN SEE AT LEAST 2 DEER
THEY WERE EXTREMELY TAME

LOOKS LIKE AN OLD SISTERN FOR THE SUGAR MILL

GEORGE WITH ONE OF THE OLD IRON POTS

REMAINS OF THE SUGAR MILL

WOW! THAT IS A HUGE TREE, AND BILL PEEKING OUT OF IT!

WE ARE AT THE TOP OF ONE OF THE MOUNTAINS

POOR SIGNAGE
WHICH WAY, NEITHER ONE OF THESE SIGNS SAYS ANYTHING ABOUT WHERE WE JUST CAME FROM OR ARE GOING!

BEAUTIFUL ESTATE REMAINS

WHAT A RIG! THAT LOOKS LIKE SOMETHING WE WOULD DO!

WE SWAM THROUGH BEAUTIFUL PASS THROUGHS

BILL IN THE CAVE

JOANNE IN THE CAVE

GEORGE

DINNER ABOARD ULTRA WITH GEORGE AND JAN

MARCH 5, 2013

Today we were having breakfast outside, and a HUGE sea turtle was close to the boat. It was half the size of a Volkswagon! Unfortunately, the photo does not do it justice. We sailed onto the next harbor. While on our way, the magnificant M/Y RISING SUN, cruised by us.

HUGE SEA TURTLE

MARCH 5, 2013

Today we sailed to Haulover Bay with Wild Cat for a day anchor and then night anchor in Maho Bay. While there, we collected all kinds of wonderful things on the windward side. That is cheap entertainment. Lots of balls, floating cushions and watertoys to give out to kids that we meet throughout the islands.

MARCH 6, 2013

After a day of boat projects, we headed in the afternon with George to hike around.

THE CABINS AT CINNAMON BAY
THE ARE WOOD AND CANVAS

WE HIKED FURTHER TO THE SUGAR MILL RUINS OF THE
ANNABERG SUGAR PLANTATION

MARCH 6, 2013

Today we say our sad goodbyes to George and Jan, but first they have a gift to deliver us this morning.

MARCH 7, 2013

Tonight we had Haaken and Anna of S/V Unicorn aboard for Happy Hour and Dinner. Bill made his yummy conch fritters for starters. It was great to catch up!

HAPPY HOUR IN THE NETS

MARCH 8, 2013

Today we departed Maho Bay, St. John for Road Town, BVI. Our generator is acting up again so back again we go. Big Bummer! We awoke this morning to an empty bottle of propane. NO BUENO! This means no way to heat the water to make the coffee in French Press. Then we remembered, we have a heating element just for this purpose. We dug it out and plugged it into the inverter! WOO HOO! Instant coffee! We were off to Soper's Hole to check back in again and then off to Road Town. Two cruise ships in Road Town.

BILL IS LOOKING ON WHILE THE MECHANICS ARE ONBOARD WORKING AWAY ON THE PROBLEM

ULTRA ANCHORED IN THE LAGOON AT ROAD TOWN

ROWS AND ROWS AND ROWS OF CHARTER BOATS ARE HERE

OFF TO VILLAGE CAY TO GET SOME BOAT PARTS, BEER AND BANANAS
HEY, THAT SOUNDS LIKE WORDS TO A SONG!

MARCH 9, 2013

After two days of mechanics onboard, we are ready this afternoon to depart Road Town and off to check out and then onto the USVI again. Beautiful silhouette of these islands.

MARCH 10, 2013

We anchored at beautiful Watermelon Cay. This was our company while we were making our way there. That is the 30 ft. tender they are towing behind them. It is surfing away back there.

THIS BOAT IS WHAT GAVE BILL THE IDEA TO BUILD A CHARTER BOAT
OVER 35 YEARS AGO, THIS WAS HIS
FIRST CHARTER BOAT JOB ABOARD KON TIKI

TEXAS BBQ STAND
BILL IS HAPPY!

SEAPLANE LANDING JUST BEHIND OUR DINK

BILL HAS THE BBQ SPECIAL OF THE DAY "A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING!"

MARCH 11, 2013

Today we worked on boat on boat projects and did last minute shopping. Bill cleaned some conch that we had dove for back in St. John. Tonight is outdoor movie night at Water Island. They are showing the movie "Argos". We had fun tonight seeing cruisers that we had not seen in a while and then the biggest and best surprise of all! We saw Morgan from St. Simon's Island, Georgia. We have not seen her in over 3 years. What a wonderful surprise. She looked as beautiful as ever and is now living another island life in St. Thomas.

OUTDOOR MOVIE
THE SCREEN IS TIED TO THE PALM TREES AND THE SUNSET BEHIND!

US WITH MORGAN AND HER BOYFRIEND

MARCH 12, 2013

Today we did some last minute wifi at Hooters. We had never been to a Hooters, so today was the day. We had a beer and wifi and then grabbed a pizza to go at the pub next door and had dinner on the cruise ship dock at Yacht Haven Grande to watch the cruiseships sail away.

DISNEY CRUISE SHIP

DISNEY AND CARNVIAL SHIPS ALL LIT UP

MARCH 14, 2013

MARCH 15, 2013

Our generator is still having the same problem, so we had to pull into Palmas Del Mar Marina to get another mechanic to work on it. We arrived in Palmas Del Mar and had a great surprise. Our friends from M/Y Front Page, that we have not seen in 3 1/2 years, since the Bahamas the first time, are now docked a few slips down from us. We had a great time visiting with them and catching up! The other great surprise was, M/V Motivator is also here! : )

OUR FELLOW IGUANAS A REALWAYS OUT AND ABOUT!

DRINKS AT THE BAR WITH MOTIVATOR

DINNER WITH FRONT PAGE

ULTRA AT THE DOCK

THE POOL AT PALMAS DEL MAR MARINA

HAPPY HOUR AND WONDERFUL VISIT WITH ABOARD
FRONT PAGE WITH GENE, KATHY AND PETE

MARCH 16, 2013

Today we left Palmas Del Mar. The generator is working correctly. We are keeping our fingers and toes crossed. We had a great sail! We anchored at Isla Caja De Muertos.

BIG SURF FOLLOWING US!

THIS ISLAND IS CALLED ISLA CAJA DE MUERTOS
( COFFIN OF THE DEAD ISLAND)
IT LOOKS LIKE A BODY LYING ON ITS' BACK WITH THE HEAD AT THE LEFT AND THE ARMS CROSSED AND THEN THE FEET.

OLD LIGHTHOUSE

MARCH 17, 2013

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY~

Today left at dawn from Caja De Muertos to make our appointment at the Customs House to get our Local Boater's Option cards. We arrived and dropped the hook and launched the dink right away. We thought it was a hike away according to the map. The bad thing was, it was far, really far. We arrived at the dock and were asking where to put the dink and ran into our friend, Ronny from S/V COMANCHERO from Grenada, that is from Ponce. He offered to give us a lift in his car to the Customs House. So great! We loaded up and had plenty of time to make our appointment. He offered to pick us up, but since he had company, we told him we would catch a taxi home. What a small world!

THE CUSTOMS HOUSE IN PONCE, PUERTO RICO

PONCE YACHT CLUB

MARCH 19, 2013

We decided to drop the hook along the way, but it was no bueno. For the first time in 4 years, we got our anchor chain all wrapped around piles of rocks. Nice sandy spot to drop it, no sign of rocks anywhere, except where we were. JoAnne got in the water to untangle the mess, while Bill worked the wheel. After the crazy anchoring experience, we pulled up the hook and headed to another anchorage. We ended up anchoring in a beautiful mangrove with crystal clear aquamarine water and good white sandy bottom. We had a great dolphin show on the way to it.

LOTS OF DOLPHINS ALL AROUND THE BOAT AND THEY ARE
DOING FLIPS AT THE BOW. SO FUN!

MARCH 20, 2012

The beautiful mangrove we anchored in is glowing the bluest of blues this morning! We departed today for Cayo Enrique. There are beautiful boat houses all around the mangroves!

MARCH 21, 2013

Today we departed and were ready to make the Mona Passage to the Dominican Republic. We will be traveling the South Coast of the D.R. this time and will be meeting up with Ocean Star. They currently have their son and his girlfriend aboard. We do not know where they are, but will meet up with them somewhere in the D.R.

We would like to say that we had an uneventful crossing of the Mona Passage, however, that is not to be. We were having a great sail and flying our spinnaker all the way to Mona Island. We saw a USCG cutter out in the distance. We were happy to see that they were patroling the waters. However, after a wonderful quadruple green flash, we were still flying the spinnaker and then saw the coast guard launch making B-Line to us. They asked to come aboard and do a safety inspection in the Mona Passage. We were already going to be awake for several hours and now had this to deal with. We brought in the sail and stowed it and put fenders out. It was a training exercise. We welcomed all 6 of them aboard. They checked all of our equipment: life jackets, fire extinguishers, bilges, lights, flares, whistles, horns, USCG Regs book, etc. We passed with flying colors. They were extremely appreciative for allowing them to do the training exercise. After this inspection, they departed and we still had several tiring hours under way. We arrived in Saona Island,D.R., at around 7:30 a.m. To our surprise, Ocean Star was anchored here. We dropped the hook and immediately went to bed. Around 8:30 Ocean Star came by in the dink and asked if we wanted to go scuba diving with them. They had made arrangements and all we needed was to load up our equipment in the guy's boat and go diving. Bill was still sleeping and JoAnne woke him up to ask if he wanted to go diving. He thought she had lost her mind, no not totally until JoAnne told him we had to be ready in 30 minutes. They were great dives and it was great to get in the water.

ULTRA FLYING SPINNAKER IN THE MONA PASSAGE

ISLA MONA (MONA ISLAND AS IN MONA PASSAGE)

MARCH 21, 2013

Ready to go diving with the Ocean Star Family!

SEAN

BILL AND JOANNE

GIANT LOBSTER

GREEN MORAY EEL AT LEAST 1 1/2 TIMES THE DIAMETER OF A 2 LITER COKE BOTTLE AND 6 FT. LONG

GREEN MORAY EEL

TRUNK FISH

BILL HAVING FUN

SEAN AND CARRIE

BILL FOUND AN EMPTY BOTTLE OF WINE DOWN UNDER

ANOTHER GREEN MORAY EEL

THE BUBBLES FROM ALL OF US AT OUR SAFETY STOP BEFORE SURFACING

THE SUN IS STARTING TO SET IN THIS BEAUTIFUL BEACH

JUST BEFORE THE GREEN FLASH

DINNER ABOARD ULTRA WITH ALICE, STEVE, CARRIE AND SEAN (STEVE'S SON)

STEVE BROUGHT BACK SOME BOAT STUFF FOR US WHILE HE WAS BACK HOME
HE IS A HUGE TEA FAN, SO WE GAVE HIM A BAG OF VARIOUS TEAS!

MARCH 22, 2013

Today we sailed to Casa De Campo Marina to check in. In the Dominican Republic, we have discovered it is a much easier process to clear in and out of marinas with all of the authorities. This is our team that came aboard today to clear us in. Immigration, Tourism, (2) Navy, Port Authority, Agriculture/Sanitation. They were great. Casa De Campo is a beautiful resort. We had no idea. The price was right was all we knew. $50 USD for us to stay per night with all of the amenities. Tonight they are having a welcome party at the yacht club and all are invited. It is also for the sportsfishermen that have come to do their tournaments.

OUR TEAM THAT CHECKED US IN: IMMIGRATION, AGRICULTURE, NAVY, TOURISM, AND PORT AUTHORITY

PIZZA AT LIMONCELLO

MARCH 23, 2012

ULTRA MED MOORED AT CASA DE CAMPO ON J-DOCK
WE ARE INTHE SLIP NEXT TO BARNEXT .
LAST TIME WE SAW THEM, THEY WERE IN THE SHIPYARD IN ST. MARTIN.

WE UNLOADED THE BIKES AND HEADED TO EXPLORE!

THIS IS A PRIVATE HOME

CALABASH TREE

THE POOL BAR AT THE CASA DE CAMPO RESORT HOTEL

POOL CABANAS

COMPLIMENTARY RUM PUNCHES

MARCH 25, 2013

TODAY IS BILL'S BIRTHDAY! We took the dinghy and explored the Chavon River and then birthday party dinner aboard Ultra with Alice and Steve.

MARCH 26, 2013

Today we took the bikes and went to explore Caso De Campo some more! These homes are AMAZING! We went to shoot skeet today, too. After the pool, we met Alice and Steve at the marina. They had rented a golf cart and we headed for the polo match. This is our first time to see a Polo Match. After that, we headed to the beautiful medieval village replica, Altos Chavon.

DINNER OUT AND SURPRISE BIRTHDAY CAKE FOR BILL!

MARCH 27, 2013

Today we sailed to Santa Catalina. It is beautiful. We snorkeled and then walked the beach. This is the boat that brings the employees back and forth. On Cruise Ship days, this place is packed. Thank goodness it was not today!

MARCH 28, 2013

Today we departed Santa Catalina and sailed to the Cumayaso River to check it out and then onto Zar Par Marina to check in again.

THE BEACH AT BOCA CHICA FOR EASTER WEEKEND!

OUR BOAT NEIGHBOR AT ZAR PAR
WE WERE ON A MOORING BALL AND THEY AT THE DOCK

MARCH 29, 2013

Today we took a bus to Santo Domingo. We need some boat parts, but also wanted to see the wonderful historical sites. The price of the very nice bus, about $5.00 US.

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS

ROWS AND ROWS OF GARGOYLES

THE HOME OF THE BISHOP

CANNON GRAPE SHOT HOLES

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS' HOME

SUN DIAL IS ACCURATE!

BILL HOPING THAT THE CARD WORKS, SOME IT DO, SOMETIMES IT DON'T

BLACK CORAL AND LARIMAR

THIS BANK DECIDED THAT THE ELECTRICITY WOULD SHUT DOWN AND THE
EXTREMELY BANK ALARM WOULD GO OFF WHILE WE WERE IN THE ATM AREA INSIDE

HOMEMADE SWIMMING POOL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET! GENIUS!

MORE SWIMMING POOLS

THE BEACH PARTY AT BOCA CHICA, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE!

HELICOPTERS FROM THE NAVY ARE PATROLING THE CROWDS HOURLY

CORN ON THE COB FOR 2 CENTS usd.

ALL THE DOGS ARE EXTREMELY FRIENDLYAND CUTE!

APRIL 1, 2013

Today we headed to Santo Domingo again for some additional parts.

OUR HERO!

STOP AT OLE SUPERMARKET FOR SOME CANNED GOODS BEFORE WE HEAD OUT AGAIN

APRIL 2, 2013

We departed Zar Par Marina for Salinas. While heading out of the channel there were several surfers.

APRIL 3, 2013

Today we departed Salines for Barahona.We had our check in with Mojica of the Navy and then headed to town for the adventure of getting fuel. It was an all day adventure. We got home around 3:00 p.m. We had quick lunch and then headed to see the Salt Pond/Mill.

JOANNE AND ALICE WITH MOJICA

FUEL,FUEL AND MORE FUEL. YES, IF YOU CAN BELIEVE IT, WE ALL 5
FIT INSIDETHIS SUPER SMALL TRUCK.

THE FUEL GUY WRITES THE TOTAL PRICE INVOICE ON HIS HAND. TOO FUNNY!

MAHI MAHI LUNCH!

DARIAS, OUR LOVELY WAITRESS!

THIS IS ALL SALT! AND PINK SALT!

THOSE ARE THE SALT PONDS IN THE BACKGROUND

RAW SALT

BACKBREAKING WORK!

APRIL 5, 2013

Today we did boat projects and then headed to the beach for a great beach day! While at the beach, Mojica took us to meet some friendly fishermen that were bringing in their catch. They are covered in clothes headed to toe to protect themselves from the sun and the wind. After that, dinner and card games aboard ULTRA. The net cost approx. $800 USD and have had it for 4 years. They have repaired it numerous times with the needle/stick below.