Five perfect days in Anguilla

It was an overnight motor from Virgin Gorda to Anguilla, the wind was a bit stronger than we expected for the first couple of hours but by 11pm it dropped off to under 10 knots, and was a little rainy and squally but perfect conditions for the 75 mile trip east, directly into the normal trade winds. We slowed right down to make landfall at 6.30am, anchoring virtually in the same spot as the last time we were here two years ago.

We had a bit of breakfast and then went to clear in. Anguilla gets a bit of a bad wrap from the cruising community as they charge quite a lot if you want to take you boat anywhere other than Road Bay; much of the island is national park and you can visit the park only with a permit. Last time we came we bought a permit and went to the other islands and anchorages but actually ended up coming back to the great anchorage at Road Bay every night. This time we decided to stay and explore the rest of the island with a hire car. The cost to be here was therefore nil and we found plenty to do.

Just cleared customs and look back where we are - pinch myself

 Anguilla has amazing beaches but also really good restaurants and super friendly people. It's pretty fancy as a holiday destination and it's cost to cruise around means only a few boats come and many of them are the biggest Super Yachts. First stop was the fabulous Elvis's beach bar for a light lunch, we ran into the Alkemi crew again and shared a few beach games before getting a lift to the main town, called The Valley, from random strangers that were on holiday.

Road Bay - main street

The next day we hired a car for a couple of days and went to explore the south of the island one day and the north the next. We found beautiful beaches, stunning panoramas and several totally abandoned resorts - that made us a bit sad.  Abandoned development is widespread across the Caribbean as developers start projects without full funding in place, hoping to finish construction by selling off the plan during the construction phase.  It really is short sighted of the government to allow this to happen as it destroys the enviroment for the next generation. We've literally seen hundreds of examples of this on our travels. 

We might have taken the car to some off the beaten track spots!

Abandoned resort near Rendezvous Bay

Beautiful Rendezvous Bay with a view of St Martin

Just outside The Valley we climbed up Crocus Hill, Anguilla's Highest point to find the old court house and jail which was destroyed by a hurricane in 1955

Old Court House ruins

Meads Bay - one of many stunning yachts we saw anchored of Anguilla

We ate lunch at the fantastic Blanchards, local restaurant on the beach with this view.

Back at Sandy Ground, the lovely yacht Tradition, out for a sunset cruise

Walking the beach Road Bay - Sandy Ground

On Sunday afternoon one of the restaurants hosted a fund raiser and BBQ for the local sailing club, we met up with the Alkemi crew and had a nice afternoon eating, listening to music and watching the sailing. Wilbur and Sophia went for a sail and got a bit wet.... Wilbur taught Andrew how to make a soft shackle while Nellie dug holes.

learning soft shackles....

music afternoon

We totally loved our time in Anguilla and Andrew only spent one day working on the outboard - the new carb didn't fix the problem so he is now systematically working through all the parts on the outboard. We managed to buy new fuel hose in Anguilla from a lovely man who ran the automotive shop - he offered Andrew a job and tried to sell us his boat.... We were torn about staying or using another light wind period to head to St Barths for some diving and then Antigua by Christmas - the plan won over anxious that the 'Christmas Winds' might set in and we would no longer be able to make it further east.