Willy T, The Bight, Norman Island, British Virgin Islands

The William Thornton aka Willy T is a floating bar and restaurant that has been anchored in the Bight off Norman Island since 1985. The original Willy T was a wooden Baltic Schooner built in 1935, which sank at its mooring in 1995. The Willy T is most famous for some of the outrageous activities that regulatory occur aboard, especially during and after their popular Happy Hour. I’m talking ladies with no bathing suit tops,  group activities such as body shots, shotski’s (shots lined up on a water ski) ladies and gentlemen publicly having Willy T Temporary Tattoos applied to various body parts and of course, the now forbidden, but done anyway, jumping off the deck, more often topless than not.

- shotski’s- topless jumping off the deck – tattoos – body shots

St. John News

NOAA to Hold Public Meetings on Proposed Endangered Corals
By Lynda Lohr — February 1, 2013

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will hold meetings next week to discuss the agency’s proposal to include 66 coral species on the Endangered or Threatened Species List. Seven of those proposed for the endangered list are in the Caribbean. Two are proposed for the threatened list…. read more

St. John Weather

Clear with rain showers in the morning, then partly cloudy
High of 82 degrees F.
Breezy: Winds from the East at 10 to 20 mph.
Sunrise: 6:51 AM AST – Sunset: 6:14 PM AST
Water Temperature (Charlotte Amalie Harbor, St. Thomas) 82.9 degrees F

St. John Live Music Schedule Sunday February 3

Aqua Bistro
Lauren Jones
3:30 – 6:30
776-5336

Beach Bar
Get Right Band
4:30
777-4220

Concordia
Bo
Sunday Brunch 10:00 am

Cruz Bay Prime
Mark Wallace
7:00 – 10:00
693 -8000

High Tide
Lemuel Callwood Steel Pan
4:00 – 6:00
714-6169

Miss Lucy’s
Sambacombo
10:00 am – 2:00 pm
693-5254

Ocean Grill
David Laab
6:30 – 9:00
693-3304

Rhumblines
T-Bird
7:00 – 10:00

Shipwreck Landing
Hot Club
7:00 – 10:00

Sun Dog Cafe
David Laab
11:00 am- 2:00 pm
244-9713

See Weekly Schedule

The Baths Virgin Gorda British Virgin Islands

St. John Film Society Press Release:

SPOTLIGHT ON CUBA

Tuesday, February 5, 7:30 pm
St. John School of the Arts
Cruz Bay

ADOLPHO

Directed by Sofie Delaage, 45 minutes, Comedy, 2006.
Poor Adolpho yearns for life beyond his broken-down taxi and plots a journey across the sea in this contemporary Cuban comedy of errors.

CON EL TOQUE DE LA CHAVETA

Directed by Pamela Sporn, 28 minutes, Documentary, 2007.  In the cigar factories of Cuba, a unique tradition persists: ‘la lectura de tabaqueria’. Every day, specially employed workers read aloud to hundreds of tabaqueros as they sit rolling the country’s famous cigars. From classic novels to national politics and local baseball results, for centuries this daily tradition has been an education for the workers, or chavetas. But after years of listening, they are knowledgeable and demanding, and the readers must be at their very best if they are to keep their discerning audience interested.

MAESTRA

Directed by Catherine Murphy, 33 minutes, Documentary, 2011.

Cuba, 1961: 250,000 volunteers taught 700,000 people to read and write in one year. 100,000 of the teachers were under 18 years old, over half were women.  The Bay of Pigs invasion impacted the women and the literacy campaign.  The young women who went out to teach literacy in rural communities across the island found themselves deeply transformed in the process. This documentary includes the oral history of one of contemporary Cuba’s greatest achievements in present day interviews with the volunteer teachers, archival footage, and still photos from the sixties.

St. John Film Society

St. John Weather
Mostly cloudy with rain showers in the morning, then overcast
High of 81 degrees F.
Breezy: Winds from the West at 10 to 20 mph shifting to the NNW in the afternoon
Sunrise: 6:52 AM AST – Sunset: 6:13 PM AST
Water temperature (Charlotte Amalie Harbor, St. Thomas) 82.9 degrees

St. John Live Music Schedule, Friday February 1

Aqua Bistro
Stephan Sloan
5:30 – 8:30
776-5336

Barefoot Cowboy Lounge
Michael Beason
7:00 – 9:00
201-1236

Beach Bar
Don Dilego Band
9:oo
777-4220

Castaways
Mikey P 8:00
Dance Party 11:00
777-3316

Cinnamon Bay
Eddie Bruce Drum Circle
6:30 – 8:00

Concordia
Bo & Lauren
6:30 – 9:00

High Tide
Mikey P
9:00
714-6169

Inn at Tamarind Court
Steel Pan
6:00 – 9:00
776 6378

Island Blues
Get Right Band
8:00
776 6800

Morgan’s Mango
Lauren Jones
6:00 – 9:30
693-8141

Ocean Grill
T-Bird
6:30 – 9:00
693-3304

Rhumblines
Erin Hart
7:00 – 10:00

Spyglass
James Milne
5:00 – 8:00
776-1100

Shipwreck Landing
Mitch Woods
7:00-10:00

Skinny Legs
Chris Carsel & Company
6:30 – 9:30
779 4982

See Weekly Schedule

Photo by Jack Boucher 1960

2009

2011

2012

(1933 photo by Jack Boucher, 2009 photo by Gerald Singer, 2011 and 2012 photos by Shaun O’Boyle)

Reef Bay Great House
The Reef Bay Estate House, also known as the Par Force Great House was built in 1832 and reconstructed in 1844. In 1994, it was partially renovated by the National Park Service. After being cleared in 2009, the condition of the historic estate house has been left to deteriorate.

The great house can be accessed via a spur on the Lameshur Bay Trail

Love City Live Tonight
Love City Live – The Ultimate Power Boat Party – White Bay, Jost Van Dyke BVI 11:00 am – 6:00 pm. It’s a beach party only accessible by boat. As one writer put it “A late night of live music and quality rum deserves a proper cool down the next day.”

St. John Weather
High Surf Advisory
Partly cloudy with rain showers
High of 82 degrees F.
Winds from the North at 10 to 15 mph shifting to the ENE in the afternoon
Chance of rain 20%.
Full Moon
Sunrise: 6:53 AM AST Sunset: 6:10 PM AST
Water Temperature (Charlotte Amalie Harbor St. Thomas) 82.9 degrees F

St. John Live Music Schedule

Aqua Bistro
Lauren Jones
3:30 – 6:30
776-5336

Concordia
Bo
Sunday Brunch 10:00 am

Cruz Bay Prime
Mark Wallace
7:00 – 10:00
693 -8000

High Tide
Lemuel Callwood Steel Pan
4:00 – 6:00
714-6169

Miss Lucy’s
Sambacombo
10:00 am – 2:00 pm
693-5254

Ocean Grill
David Laab
6:30 – 9:00
693-3304

Rhumblines
T-Bird
7:00 – 10:00

Shipwreck Landing
Hot Club
7:00 – 10:00

Sun Dog Cafe
David Laab
11:00 am- 2:00 pm
244-9713

See Weekly Schedule

West End Tortola, circa 1967

Photo of West End Customs 2001

My first visit to West End (Sopers Hole) was in the 1970s. I was tied up along the seawall at Charlotte Amalie and approached by an agent from St. Thomas Dairies who hired me to deliver a load of milk to West End on Tortola. For some reason they couldn’t do it themselves that day, presumably due to one of the many contingencies that was, and still is, likely to occur here in the islands.

Arriving at customs at West End, I noticed a monument dedicated to the arrival of the Queen of England on her first visit to Tortola. A brass plaque read something like “where the Queen first stepped foot on the BVI.” Interestingly enough, the dedication was located far enough away from the edge of the dock that the Queen would have to have a have taken a mighty leap to set her royal foot down that far away from whatever vessel she was on that tied up to the dock.

Commenting on this to a BVI local, it was explained that the original monument was indeed erected at the exact spot where the Queen actually stepped foot. (see above photo) In actual practice, however, this was an inconvenient place for the monument as it interfered with the loading and offloading of cargo on the dock.

It was in response to this difficulty the dedication was moved away from the loading area, explaining the British monarch’s seemingly extraordinary disembarkation at Soper’s Hole on the island of Tortola, BVI.

St. John Live Music – Friday April 13

Aqua Bistro – Steve Sloan – 5:30 – 8:30 – 776-5336
Beach Bar – Jon Beninghof Band – 9:00 – 777-4220
Castaways – Mikey P – 9:00 – 777-3316
Cinnamon Bay – Eddie Bruce Drum Circle – 6:30 – 8:00
Cruz Bay Prime – James Cobb – 7:00 – 10:00 – 693 -8000
Driftwood Dave’s – John W Lee -7:00 – 10:00 – 777-4015
Island Blues – Slammin – 776 6800
Morgan’s Mango – Lauren – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-8141
Ocean Grill – T-Bird – 6:30 – 9:00 – 693-3304
Rhumblines – Erin Hart – 7:00 – 10:00
Spyglass – James – 5:00 – 8:00 – 776-1100

See Weekly Schedule

Virgin Islands Photo of the Day

The Bight, Norman Island, British Virgin Islands (BVI)

St. John Weather

Partly cloudy
High temperature: 88 degrees F
Water temperature: 80 degrees F
Winds: east southeast at 12 -16 mph
Sunset: 6:26 pm

St. John Live Music Schedule for tonight, Sunday, March 4

Aqua Bistro- Lauren – 3:30 – 6:30 – 776-5336
Beach Bar – The Fiddler – 5:00 -777-4220
Concordia – Bo – Sunday Brunch 10:00 am
Driftwood Dave’s – Live Music – 1:00 – 4:00 – 777-4015
Miss Lucy’s – Samba Combo – 10:00 am – 2:00 pm – 693-5354
Ocean Grill – David Laab – 6:30 – 9:00 – 693-3304
Shipwreck Landing – Hot Club of Coral Bay – 7:00 – 10:00

See the weekly St. John live music schedule

Bubbly Pool Jost Van Dyke, BVI

Surf’s Up! Good time to visit the Bubbly Pool on Jost Van Dyke, natures own Jacuzzi.

St. John Live Music Schedule for tonight, Tuesday, February 7

Castaways – Karaoke Night – 9:00 – 777-3316
Driftwood Dave’s – James Cobb & Michael Beason -700 -10:00 – 777-4015
High Tide – Erin Hart – 4:00 – 7:00 – 714-6169
Miss Lucy’s – David Reed – 6:00 – 9:00 – 693-5354
Morgan’s Mango – Greg Kinslow – 6:00 – 9:30 – 693-8141
Ocean Grill – Rascio on Steel Pan – 6:00 – 9:30 -693-3304
Shipwreck Landing – Chris Carsel – 6:00 – 9:30

See the weekly schedule

St. John School of the Arts Presents: Free Film Night

Concrete, Steel and Paint
7:30 pm at St. John School of the Arts, Cruz Bay

White Bay, Jost Van Dyke, British Virgin Islands

White Bay Rainbow

When I first arrived in the Virgin Islands, turtle sightings were rather rare. At that time turtles were hunted for their meat, their shells and their eggs. A 1973 law, protected the turtles in US water and prohibited the harvesting of their eggs. Since then, most other Caribbean nations have either banned or limited turtle hunting and now, at least for the Green and Hawksbill species, they seem to be rather plentiful

Nonetheless, the illegal poaching of turtles continues to some degree and some nations like the British Virgin Islands have established a legal season for hunting turtles for subsistence purposes. In the BVI turtles are used primarily for their shells as decorations, while their meat is consumed mostly by indigenous islanders.

Turtle season In the BVI runs from December 1 through March 31 and allows for the harvesting of both Hawksbill and Green Turtles, but hunting Loggerhead or Leatherback turtles is prohibited and the collection of turtle eggs is banned.

The hunting, storage, and slaughtering of turtles is a cruel business and in today’s modern Caribbean where turtles serve better as tourist attractions than for decorations or dinner, many people would like to see Turtle hunting completely prohibited.  A Facebook group has been established to try to End Sea Turtle Hunting Season in the British Virgin Islands

BVI Law Concerning Turtles
1) No person shall

(a) disturb, remove from the fishery waters, expose for sale, sell, purchase or have in his possession any turtle’s eggs;
(b) interfere with any turtle nest or turtle that is nesting;
(c) remove from the fishery waters, expose for sale, sell, purchase or have in his possession any undersized turtle or catch a leatherback turtle or loggerhead turtle on which there is a moratorium;
(d) set within 100 meters of the shores of the Virgin Islands any net, seine or other article for the purpose or with the intention of fishing for, catching or taking a turtle; and
(e) fish for, remove from the fishery waters, or at any time have in his possession, expose for sale, sell or purchase any turtle from 1st April to 30th November in every year or as otherwise stated by the Minister by notice published in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating the Territory.
(2) In this regulation.
(a) “turtle” means the whole or any part of a turtle;
(b) “undersized” means a carapace (shell) length less than
(i) 24 inches for green turtle
(ii) 15 inches for hawksbill

Sandy Cay, British Virgin Islands

Laurance S. Rockefeller purchased Sandy Cay in the 1950s, around the same time as his purchases of vast tracts of land on St. John. On St. John, Rockefeller turned this land, with the exception of the coastal area and beaches from Salomon to Hawksnest Bays, over to the National Park. The land that he kept was developed and eventually became the exclusive Caneel Bay Plantation, managed by Rock resorts. (The word “Plantation” was later changed to “Resort” probably because of its inherent political incorrectness.)

Meanwhile Rockefeller managed Sandy Cay creating his own little botanical garden. For many years the man on the ground there, doing much of the actual work, clean up, trimming and planting was Jost Van Dyke’s own “Nippy,” who to this day maintains a small business selling his wares to captains, crews and passengers of visiting yachts from his little dinghy “the traveling salesman.”

On May 1, 2008 Sandy Cay was transferred from the Rockefeller’s estate to the government of the British Virgin Islands and the island is now managed by the BVI National Parks Trust.

Rats were eliminated from the island in 2002 and in 2010 moorings were placed off the beach on the west side of the islands.

My modeling debut - Sandy Cay circa 1996

The above photo is an outtake from a photo shoot on Sandy Cay around 1996, when I filled in for the “old” male model, who didn’t make it down for the shoot.

Caribbean Flamingo

This colorful flamingo lives all by itself on a pond at Brias Creek, on Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands.
He or she must have come from either Anegada, where there are a flock of flamingos living in the big salt pond in the center of the island or from Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island upon which some 200 flamingos make their home.

Because of its size, my guess is that it came from Anegada as the Necker Island flamingos appear to be smaller than than those from Anegada.

Apparently it has been on Virgin Gorda for some time now, living a solitary existence, which is unusual as flamingos are generally highly social birds and live in large flocks.

An outcast? A loner? Can’t find its way back home?

I’ve also posted a series of photos of the flamingo in flight.