We left the NW side of Antigua (Deep Bay) at 7 am (yes, sometimes I do get up way too early when we need to make an island crossing). Once past the north side of Antigua, we had easy seas of 4' coming from the side with the side slightly behind us at 18-20 mph. This made for a delightful sail.

We got into the south/south-east side of Barbuda close to noon. The huge bay
where we planned to anchor is full of coral heads and patch reefs all around.
It was definitely a visual navigation only situation. For best visibility, the
sun should be directly overhead or slightly behind you (never in front where
the glare would hide the stuff you don't want to hit). Hence our departure
time. The rocks & reefs were easily motored around until we reached an area
recommended for anchoring. I dropped the anchor into 12' water & watched as it settled on the bottom & then dug into the sand as I applied a bit of
tension. Our friends Robyn & Barry on Smart Move (a 47' Benateau) came in
behind us & anchored about 50 yds away. The only other boats in sight were
four other sailboats over a mile away at the very SE point of the island.

We ended up snorkeling 2 afternoons off the stern of the boat to a nice-sized
patch reef about 300 yds away. I saw lots of (small) fish life, what seemed
like a viable coral reef & even a couple of rays.

After 3 days we moved around to the west side of the island. After motoring
back out of the patch reef area we sailed the rest of the way around the
island. Just Imagine used their cell to contact a guide (George Jeffries).
George picked us up that afternoon for a brief water-based tour & then took
us to the Frigate Bird Sanctuary. On the west/northwest side of the island
is a large bay (Codrington Lagoon), which is 7 miles long & 2-3 miles wide.
Enclosing the west side of the lagoon is a strip of the island that's less
than 1/4 mile wide. We walked across to a dock on the lagoon where George
picked us up.

The Frigate Bird Sanctuary was amazing. The chicks start out all white, then
the body turns black. They don't finally leave the nest until around 2 yrs
old. The birds cannot take off from the water, so catch fish by scooping them
out of the water while flying.

The next day we headed back to Antigua. The swells were a bit larger and
instead of the wind behind us, we were more into it. In spite of that, it
was a nice sail back to Antigua.

The picture is of a young Frigate bird in its nest.