Day 2: Exploring Tortola
I wake up around 7AM, giddy with anticipation and immediately go for a swim. I've seen some people comment that the Fort Recovery beach is too small, but I thought it was a nice size for a small, private resort. The water is warm as the sun starts to poke out over the east end of the island. Juliet is on the beach snapping lots of photos. Off to the west a pair of gorgeous rainbows appear. We take it as a positive sign and prepare to explore the island. Before taking off we have some breakfast of locally baked bread, hardboiled eggs and juice. We hit the road and make way for the north side of the Island via Zion Hill Road, watching out for goats, chickens, horses and donkeys along the way. These animals tend to make their way into the road. The first hill is very steep, like a big roller coaster and the first of many more to come. Going up and down is a thrilling (and sometimes a bit scary) experience.
Once on the other side we reach a flat, seaside road with Apple Bay to our front. I take a right turn and head to Cane Garden Bay. We pass by the Bomba Shack, and Carrot Bay on the way to Cane Garden Bay. The roads between the bays are steep, but the views are magnificient. We continue back up into the mountains driving east along ridge road at the top of island and take a left onto Josiah's Bay Road. After a few minutes heading down toward the sea we get to a sandy parking area with a great view of the hills to our rear. We walk around the shack to our front and are treated to an amazing beach with spectacular waves rolling in. We have arrived at Josiah's Bay.
Juliet and I grab our beach gear and head for the surf. It starts to rain so we get some cover at Josiah's Bay beach bar, the only structure in the entire bay. The nice lady running the place serves up a couple of burgers and I grab a couple of Carib beers out of the cooler. There are two guys there who seem to be nursing their hangovers and waiting out the rain. The rain stops by the time our burgers are finished and into the surf we go. I get knocked around by the waves as I try to body surf. The water is blue and very warm. The guys with the hangovers left their dogs on the beach and we start running up and down playing with them. There are less than ten people in the bay area and the area is huge. After walking the beach for a while we dry ourselves off and continue the journey.
I hop into the Suzuki, wet, sandy and feeling like a veteran "on the left" driver. I head back towards the east end of the island and miss the turnoff for Lambert Bay so we end up at the bridge to Beef Island. I turn the Suzuki around and we decide to head for Road Town then complete the circle as it's mid afternoon. On the way we stop at a grocery store to pick up some fresh fruit then walk across the road to the Mangrove Bakery for pumpkin bread, coconut bread and a chicken pattie to snack on later. The drive through Road Town is unimpressive as it's easily the busiest place on the island and there's quite a bit of traffic so I focus on avoiding other cars. The road heading west from Road Town towards Fort Recovery provides more amazing views of Sir Francis Drake Channel and St. John since the road is right at the waters edge.
After arrival at Fort Recovery we spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing with our home made rum drinks. After enjoying the sunset on Fort Recovery's great boat dock, we gather motivation and head out for dinner. We end up heading a few minutes west to Pusser's Landing at the Sopers Hole Marina. We feast outside on the deck on fish and jerk chicken accompanied by rum drinks and the requisite local cats. The air outside is very warm and all the catamarans make a nice backdrop. After dinner we walk along the docks and enjoy the catamarans. It's a great first full day on the island.
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