A131 Puerto Rico - Isla Culebra and Imray-Iolaire Isla de Vieques 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 in 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 with Lloyds since 1966, placing insurance for yachts of all sizes and ages sailing in all parts of the world. 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 Edition date: July 2001 Wych House The Broadway St Ives Corrected to October 2015 Cambridgeshire PE27 5BT England (ILNW 393/15) ✆ +44(0)1480 462114 Fax +44(0)1480 496109 www.imray.com Culebra Electronic versions of this chart Imray charts are also available as apps for iPad and iPhone in raster format in the Imray Chart Navigator series. The series also includes chart sets from official hydrographic offices. Vieques Search ‘Marine Imray Charts’ on the App Store. C a r i b b e a n S e a 1 the anchorage is well to windward - a hard Pilotage notes by slog against wind and tide. To avoid this 1 situation, keep a hand-bearing compass DM Street, Jr Hr ZENITH handy and take continual bearings; if you T EAST IDE cannot see the island ahead, take stern bearings. 1 It is extremely important to allow for the Hr set of the current, which is made up of the W easterly wind-blown equatorial current, E E D I S T T reinforced by the ebb tide or partially (and T T S I occasionally completely) negated by the A131 Puerto Rico - Isla D E E W flood tide. Tides in the Caribbean are Culebra and Isla de Vieques complicated, but here follows a simplified 1 Customs and immigration in the US and Hr method for figuring tides that usually works. British Virgin Islands are strict. In the US The tides from Antigua south are semi- Virgin Islands, customs and immigration diurnal (two tides a day) but from Antigua EAST TIDE clearance can be made at Charlotte Amalie north, the tides are diurnal (one tide a day). NADIR (St Thomas), Cruz Bay (St John’s) and at both 1 However, if you check very accurate tidal Christiansted and Fredricksted (St Croix). Hr gauges you will discover two tides, one Inform harbourmaster 48 hours before major, a second one so small as to be barely entering US waters. The entire crew must noticeable. Thus the tide tables refer to it as show up at immigration, all non-US citizens diurnal. must have a valid visa if coming in on a yacht Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands area is as the visa waiver program works on When proceeding eastwards from Puerto further complicated by the fact that on the common carriers, aircraft and ferries but Rico to the Spanish Virgin Islands it is south side of Puerto Rico and St Thomas, does not work on yachts. In 2005 new important to try and figure the tide and to there is one tide a day, while on the north regulations came into effect regarding pre- take advantage of it. It must be remembered side of both islands there are two tides a day; clearance/notification. Check these that beating to windward is slow. If you are the east coast of Puerto Rico has two tides a regulations carefully before entering US tacking in 90° you must sail 1.4M for every day as do Vieques and Culebra. waters. mile you go to windward, if tacking in 120°, During one part of the year, the highest British Virgin Islands clearance can be had which knowing the average cruising man’s tide is during the day, at other times it is at Great Harbour, (Jost van Dyke), West End helmsmanship and the windward-going during the night. Schomburg, the Danish qualities of the average cruising boat, is a and Roadtown (Tortola) and Virgin Gorda naturalist, explained that during the equinox probable tacking angle, you must sail 2M to Yacht Harbour. (September and October, March and April) get 1M to windward. the evening tide is the highest; the rest of Customs and immigration in Puerto Rico Doing 5kn against a 1kn foul tide, the year the daytime tide is the highest. are also very strict, especially regarding guns; progress will be agonisingly slow, whereas make sure you declare them. It is possible to with a 1kn fair tide, progress will be made. WARNING clear in Mayagüez ✆ 831 33 42/43 where you Study the following table: The Caribbean is 0·4m to 0·6m lower in May, should go ashore and find customs and June, July and early August than it is in immigration. Yachts should not go to winter. In these months, shoal channels into Boqueron. d various harbours should be used with e e When coming from the US Virgin Islands it e caution. Nanny Cay to Tortola, Jolly Harbour d p i S t l to Antigua, Rodney Bay to St Lucia, Blue is necessary to enter, similarly when leaving r u e i g d o a d for US Virgin Islands you must clear, in both n Lagoon to St Vincent, and Secret Harbour/ i f f e i e t l k e e n n Mount Hartman Bay, the Lagoon St Georges cases customs only. g c o d p k k n i a N 1 S 1 t to Grenada do not have tide gauges and a Note All foreign vessels arriving in Puerto T Rico must first obtain a cruising permit upon require particular care. arrival and report to customs at every port of 90 4 1.83 2.83 3.83 Yachts are increasing in size and in call. 100 1.56 2.56 3.56 summer, especially at low water springs, 110 1.29 2.29 3.29 there have been incidents when large yachts GENERAL CAUTIONS 120 1.0 2.0 3.0 have grounded, completely blocking the 90 5 2.54 3.54 4.54 channel for others. I have campaigned for It is also important to read the sailing and 100 2.2 3.2 4.2 pilot directions for the area concerned the many years for gauges to be introduced to 110 1.87 2.87 3.87 prevent these incidents. night before, in order to plan the next day's 120 1.5 2.5 3.5 run and calculate your departure to 90 6 3.25 4.25 5.25 HIGH WATER FULL AND CHANGE guarantee arrival at the next anchorage 100 2.84 3.84 4.84 whilst the sun is still high. The time of High Water at each location 110 2.44 3.44 5.44 during full and new moons (full & change) These are general sailing directions. When 120 2.0 3.0 4.0 approaching harbour, the relevant large- occurs at a set time after the meridian scale chart must be consulted.