We left Charlotte Amalie a couple days ago and rounded the corner and headed toward Water Island, aptly named for its natural ponds of fresh water. Many islands lack potable water, so this place was a frequent stop way back when for pirates seeking to replenish their ships' stores of freshness. Thankfully, with a fantastic water-maker onboard
Banyan, we didn't have to raid and plunder any of the island's water stash.
We spent a great evening (at a good anchorage) with a rather commercial view of Honeymoon Beach. The snorkelling in these murky waters not the greatest but it was decidedly nice to be out of the hustle and bustle of "the big city" and exploring once again.
The next morning, in high winds and building seas of almost 10 foot swells, we opted to leave what was going to be a rolly experience, and see if we could sail towards Buck Island, barely a few miles away. Owned by the National Wildlife Refuge, this is a very small island with a landscape that is nothing but shrubgrass and plenty of thorny cactii (how do they grow, and thrive to such large sizes on top of rocks?), spectacular reefs and pounding surf, a rocky beach with a view of (but not sure about a path to) the lighthouse at the top of the "hill".
This is reportedly a great snorkelling spot (as evidenced by morning and afternoon clock-work arrival of charter boat tours), and after a few days "in town", we were ready to dive into the water...
Not even an hour later we were picking up one of the (free) orange coloured mooring balls and then there was instantaneous yelps of "oh my, look", and "wow, over there... " and "there's another one... "
And then it got even better...
Never in my entire life could we have imagined a snorkelling experience as fantastic, mesmerizing or captivating, as swimming with the turtles.