Jost Van Dyke

The first island we visited on our cruise was Tortola. Many years ago we did a whole family adventure to the US Virgin Islands: St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix. Bob and I renewed our vows on St. John, officiated by a friend of Leigh’s. We chartered a sailboat with a captain and crew, swam from the boat to a secluded beach, owned by the several donkeys who joined in the ceremony, and swam with turtles until returning to St. Thomas and our ship. It was a great trip, and one of the things that attracted me about our current itinerary was a chance to go to a British Virgin Island. We docked in Tortola, but decided to spend the day at Jost Van Dyke, because of its history.

JVD is known today for beach bars, like the Soggy Dollar, named for the sailors who stuffed their dollars in their pockets and swam ashore to partake of the Painkiller, a tropical cocktail made with dark rum, pineapple juice, orange juice and cream of coconut, then shaken and topped with nutmeg. But in the past, the island’s claim to fame was pirates, who buried treasure on this small island. Being Disney fans, we love us some pirates, so we chose a beach excursion on JVD for our first full day.

I admit that we are somewhat spoiled beach goers. We have been to many beautiful beaches in the US, Mexico and the Caribbean, and live about two hours from Nags Head, North Carolina, with its perfect beaches for relaxing and exploring. And we once hung out on a deserted beach on the Great Barrier Reef, so we have high hopes for a beach day. I can’t say our JVD beach was in the top 10. The beach itself was no more than 20 feet from the shore; the entry was rocky (but we brought our water shoes), the beach bar seemed to be a family affair, in a rickety shack with a scary bathroom, but the drinks were cold and delicious, and the lunch was hamburgers and hot dogs served buffet style which hit the spot. We scored beach lounges but couldn’t open the umbrella as the trade winds were lively. But no matter. The sun was shining, the water was refreshing, and the chartered boats close to the shore were beautiful. We were driven to the beach in open air buses, and like all roads in the Caribbean, the drive was exhilarating and edgily dangerous. It was a nice day, just what we wanted to shake off the winter blahs, and we returned to our cabin in time for dinner, and a peaceful night watching the stars.