A23 Virgin Islands and St Croix Imray-Iolaire CHARTS FOR THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN ABOUT THIS CHART Compiled by DM Street Jnr This chart has been compiled by D M Street Jr using official sources and additional information acquired during more than 50 years of cruising, racing, exploring, chartering and charting the eastern Caribbean on his 46’ engineless yawl Iolaire, built 1905. He is the author of many yachting books and articles, first of which was ‘ Going South’ Yachting, 1964. His Cruising Guide to the Lesser Antilles is regarded as ‘the book that opened the Caribbean to the cruising yachtsman and made bare boat IMPORTANT chartering possible’. It is worth reading for its nostalgic view of the Caribbean in the 1950s and ‘60s. Over the years it has been expanded to cover the entire eastern For the latest chart Caribbean, from the western end of Puerto Rico east and south through the islands to corrections visit Trinidad, then westwards along the Venezuelan coast and offshore islands to Aruba. www.imray.com Use Street’s Guides for interisland sailing directions, harbour piloting directions and interesting anecdotes about people, places and history. They are the only guides that cover all the anchorages in the eastern Caribbean. Patience Wales, editor of Sail , once The information shown on charts is said, ‘Circle in red all the anchorages that Street describes that are not in the other liable to constant change; Imray guides and you will have a quiet anchorage’. ensures that every chart is correct to Street has also been in the marine insurance business, placing insurance for yachts of all sizes and ages sailing in all parts of the world with Lloyds, since 1966. Visit the printing date shown below. www.street-iolaire.com. Email [email protected]. The author and publishers believe that this chart is the most accurate and up to date Corrections received after this date available of the area it covers. It can, however, only remain so if mariners notify the may be downloaded from publishers of any inaccuracy or need for correction of which they may be aware. www.imray.com as Correction The pilotage information on this chart is taken from Street’s Guide to Puerto Rico and Notices. These are regularly updated the Spanish, US and British Virgin islands to which page numbers refer. It may be ordered and the website should be checked. from: Bluewater Books and Charts www.bluewaterweb.com Smartphone users Landfall Navigation www.landfallnavigation.com can link directly to Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson Ltd www.imray.com the Corrections Five popular sailing videos made in the late 1980s/early 1990s featuring D M Street Jr Notice for this chart are now available as DVDs. The most popular, Transatlantic with Street , the story of using the QR code. Iolaire’s 1985 transatlantic via Vigo, Madeira, Canaries, Cape Verdes has been highly recommended by Herb McCormick and Tom Cunliffe. TheSailingChannel.TV offers all five videos in one digital package, The Complete Street , at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/thecompletestreet Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson Ltd Anegada Wych House The Broadway St Ives Cambridgeshire PE27 5BT England ✆ +44(0)1480 462114 Jost Fax +44(0)1480 496109 Van Dyke Tortola Virgin Gorda www.imray.com Saint Road Town Thomas Culebra Charlotte Amalie St. Virgin John Islands Edition date: 2013 Corrected to June 2016 Vieques (ILNW 213/16) C a r i b b e a n S e a Electronic versions of this chart Christiansted Imray charts are also available as apps for iPad and iPhone in raster format in the Imray Frederiksted St Croix Limetree Chart Navigator series. The series also includes Bay chart sets from official hydrographic offices. Search ‘Marine Imray Charts’ on the App Store. 1 Speed made good to windward Pilotage notes by e d 1 i t Hr l DM Street, Jr ZENITH r u i g e o a e n d d l i f f AST TID i E E e t k g e n n e c n o d k k p a i a 1 T S N 1 t 1 Hr 90 4 1.83 2.83 3.83 100 1.56 2.56 3.56 W E E D I S 110 1.29 2.29 3.29 T T T T 120 1.0 2.0 3.0 S I A23 Virgin Islands and St D E E W 90 5 2.54 3.54 4.54 Croix 100 2.2 3.2 4.2 1 Customs and immigration in the US and Hr 110 1.87 2.87 3.87 British Virgin Islands are strict. In the US 120 1.5 2.5 3.5 Virgin Islands, customs and immigration EAST TIDE 90 6 3.25 4.25 5.25 clearance can be had at Charlotte Amalie (St 100 2.84 3.84 4.84 NADIR Thomas), Cruz Bay (St John’s) and at both 1 Hr 110 2.44 3.44 5.44 Christiansted and Frederiksted (St Croix). 120 2.0 3.0 4.0 Inform the harbourmaster 48 hours before entering US waters. The entire crew must show up at immigration, all non-US citizens If you plan your passages so that you have must have a valid visa if coming in on a yacht the flood tide helping you it can make a because the visa waiver program works on Current (knots) large difference to your sailing time. There is common carriers, aircraft and ferries but not Boat Speed 1.5 1.2 1.0 0.8 a brief, rule of thumb method. The tide starts on yachts. In 2005 new regulations came into (knots) running to the east soon after moonrise, effect regarding pre-clearance/notification. 2 37 º 31 º 27 º 22 º continues to run east until about an hour Check these regulations carefully before 3 27 º 22 º 18 º 15 º after the moon reaches its zenith (overhead) entering US waters. 4 21 º 17 º 14 º 11 º then it runs westward, reinforcing the Clearance in the British Virgin Islands can 5 17 º 13 º 11 º 9º westerly current. Then as the moon sets the be had at Great Harbour, (Jost van Dyke), 6 14 º 11 º 9º 8º tide again starts running to the east, turning West End and Roadtown (Tortola) and Virgin 7 12 º 10 º 8º 7º westwards again about an hour after the Gorda Yacht Harbour. 8 11 º 9º 7º 6º moon passes its nadir (directly underneath), 9 9º 8º 6º 5º see sketch. GENERAL CAUTIONS 10 9º 7º 6º 5º In the eastern Caribbean during the Those anchorages marked with * should not Degrees of set leeway winter months, the wind will vary from east- be entered unless you have Street’s Guide southeast to east-northeast, occasionally (see below) on board as this chart is not It is most important on interisland going all the way around to north. The detailed enough to permit safe entry. passages to allow for the set of the current. current sets generally west at a knot or more. It is also important to read the sailing and Stay to windward of the rhumb line. Take Thus the greatest problem encountered by pilot directions for the area concerned the back bearings until you can see the island the yachtsman new to the area is that of night before, in order to plan the next day's ahead. Then continue to take bearings, stay allowing his boat to sag below the rhumb run, and calculate your departure to windward of the rhumb line. As GPS is now line course. At the end of the day, he guarantee arrival at the next anchorage more prevalent than hand bearing suddenly realises that the anchorage is well whilst the sun is still high. compasses, take GPS readings every half to windward - a hard slog against wind and These are general sailing directions. When hour and plot them on the chart, make sure tide. To avoid this situation keep a hand- approaching harbour, the relevant large- you stay to windward of the rhumb line bearing compass handy and take continual scale chart must be consulted. between your starting point and your bearings; if you cannot see the island ahead, Most of the Eastern Caribbean has been anchorage. take stern bearings. GPS positions should be officially surveyed during the last 50 years All courses given in the text are rhumb recorded hourly. but topography above and below the water lines. It is extremely important to allow for the may well have been altered by natural causes When heading westward, downwind the set of the current, which is made up of the such as volcanic eruptions, sandbank tide is not that important, but heading easterly wind blown equatorial current, movement and coral growth amongst other eastwards especially in the Virgin Islands it is reinforced by the ebb tide or partially (and things. This chart must, therefore, be used very important, playing the tide correctly can occasionally completely) negated by the with caution and prudence. Inshore considerably reduce your sailing time. flood tide. Tides in the Caribbean are navigation should only be undertaken in When proceeding eastwards through the complicated, but here follows a simplified good light when the sun is high. Aids to Virgin Islands it is important to try and figure method of figuring tides that usually works. navigation (buoys, beacons and lights) are the tide and to take advantage of it. It must The tides from Antigua south are semi- notable for their absence and/or be remembered that beating to windward is diurnal (two tides a day) but from Antigua unreliability.