After spending several weeks in Sint Maarten, we had finished our planned boat work and provisioning, so we were finally able to move slightly north to explore the island of Anguilla. Honestly, I was not very familiar with the island, as it seems to be one of the less talked about and less traveled (at least in my circles). We didn’t have much of an idea of what to expect, but were very pleasantly surprised on arrival. We arrived in Road Bay, as that is the port of entry by sea. Road Bay is a pleasant anchorage with a beautiful white sand beach lined with quaint little restaurants, bars and boutiques. The customs office was in a colorful building just at the end of the dock where Eryk left the dinghy, he quickly cleared us in and we were free to visit this beautiful island. We decided to start off our time in Anguilla by leaving the boat anchored and exploring the island by land, since there is no public transportation we rented a car for a few days.
On the first day we drove out to the eastern end of the island, picked up a couple of rotis at a local grocery store and had a beach picnic at Sandy Hill Bay. For those who haven’t tried rotis and were wondering what they were (Tia had mentioned them in her previous blog post) it is a either chicken or beef with potatoes in a curry ‘sauce’ wrapped in a fresh flat bread. The rotis were good, but the beach we found was even better. The scene was picturesque, a bay with white sand beaches and turquoise waters leading to waves gently breaking on a reef slightly further out. What was even more eye catching about this beach is someone had created works of art by spray-painting washed-up coral like cacti and creating a cactus garden. Further on, was a simple bench where I could see someone sitting for hours watching the waves break on the reef. This was a perfect photo op, so we pulled the cameras. Later we drove further west to go on a hike which was long and hot but led to two more amazing and secluded beaches. The first was Windward Point Bay, which had an outer reef break creating a calm kiddy pool on the inside. The second was Captain’s Bay, which had a great shore break that Eryk and the kids couldn’t resist trying to body surf.
The next day, we visited more beaches, did I mention Anguilla has 33 beaches to discover and explore. This time we went east and brought sandwiches for yet another beach picnic. This beach was called Shoal Bay (west) (yes, there is second Shoal Bay on the eastern side of Anguilla). This beach was lined with beautiful white abandoned villas. The beach was heavenly with shades of blue you can only dream about, fishermen were standing out on the reef hauling in their catch for the day. I couldn’t help but to imagine how amazing it would be with the villas restored and visitors basking in the beautiful sun, how it would feel to sit on the beautiful verandas under an umbrella, enjoying a little slice of Anguilla heaven. Later we drove to Shoal Bay (east this time) and enjoyed some snorkeling but left as soon as it started to rain. That night, Eryk was itching to take in some football games, it was Sunday and there were supposedly some important games leading up to super bowl. So, we headed back to our little bay, found a sports bar on the beach and Eryk and I enjoyed a couple of drinks as the kids played in the sand nearby. I would say that was a perfect ending to a perfect day.
The third day we decided to try another local fare, fish cakes. It was a fish filling in a pastry outer shell, we had the choice of Salt Fish or Kingfish, both were good, although I don’t think we would call them our favorite. We finished our lunch off with some banana bread from the local bakery, which was moist and delicious, then we headed for Little Bay. Little Bay is supposedly only accessible by water, but we had read in one of our tour guide books that there were paths leading there. I use the term “paths” lightly, as we did have to scale down the side of some rocks to get there. Little Bay was worth every bit of effort it took to get there, as it offered an amazing snorkeling spot off this tiny little beach, lined with granite cliffs. The only other snorkelers were brought in by boat, so it gave the feeling of having exclusive access to a snorkeling destination.
After that we returned our car and decided to spend a few days hanging out in Road Bay. The kids have taken to pier jumping and playing in the quiet beach. The winds and waves picked up, so we are just hunkered down waiting for them to pass so we can move on to our next destination. But not without a quick stop by Sint Maarten for more water and supplies, as it’s not possible to fill up the boat with water in Anguilla other than bottles or hauling jugs.
What an amazing adventure you are having! I’m really enjoying reading about the highlights. I love that the kids are involved in writing the blog. Enjoy!!!!
Great pictures Erin. What a wonderful journey you are on with your family. What changes, if any, do you see in the kids living in this environment? I can’t help but think everyone must be so calm and relaxed. I know I am just looking at the pictures.
I think the biggest difference at this point is they entertain themselves by making up games, reading and drawing. There is little to no electronics on boards. They are all very content and are enjoying one another’s company.
Looks all so beautiful, the events, the weather, the family. One question though. Why were the villas abondand?
Inquiring minds and all that!
That is a good question, we never really inquired. It could have been a hurricane and they weren’t restored afterwards. The architecture was really beautiful though.
Love the pictures. Keep them coming. How is home schooling going?
Homeschooling is going well, I will probably dedicate a post to that subject soon. Glad you are enjoying the pictures.
Great read Erin, missing you all though!