dlatin

We honeymooned in St. Thomas 20 years ago and did a day sail over to St. John and was blow away. We took the ferry back on another day and rented a jeep and explored the island and fell even more in love. It is an easy day trip there and back. That being said, we've never spent more time in STT than it takes to get from the airport to the ferry to get to St. John since that first trip. The vibe of St. John is pretty different than STT. Note that if you plan to take the ferry and rent a jeep to explore you'll want to get one reserved because I'm reading rentals are in very short supply these days. We are sailing out of STT in late July for a 10 day sail, probably spending the entire time around STJ. Here's the boat we rented. https://www.virginislandsyachtcharters.com/ndoto

I like the shorter boards. The one I use is maybe nearing too small for me, my bro-in-law surfs a longer board, maybe 5’9”. It’s better for bigger guys but I find it too fast for my taste. I should try it again to see if I like it. I couldn’t imagine going 9’.

Happy Father’s Day to me. Dropped the kids off at camp, quick outing to see sunset. 2 nights in a row, last night as a fam.

I wish we had a chef!

We rented this boat for 10 days in July weather permitting…it was new being built and they’ve taken delivery and finally posted some actual photos. Looks great! https://www.virginislandsyachtcharters.com/ndoto

2011 Kia Optima I know I need it programmed, dealer was saying $140. I was curious if others had done any other way?

I only got one key fob when I bought my car. About to give my son the car and am worried about not having an extra. I bought a non OEM fob off eBay and need it programmed. Does anyone have any experience having this done? This is for keyless push start button cars.

A couple other random thoughts… I loved cooking at the Villa after spending the day at the beach. Groceries are crazy expensive on the island as I heads up. I often check a cooler of frozen meats to bring in. I mentioned above, 1 time my wife and I stayed in Cruz Bay, it was only a couple nights but we really enjoyed being able to walk to breakfast and dinner and happy hour. Not sure this would be ideal for an entire week, but we really enjoyed ourselves for that quick trip.

There are so many Villa options in St. John. The hardest part is trying to decide which part of the island you want to stay. The Coral Bay side is quieter and fewer options for dining. Cruz Bay is a nice area with lots of eating options. The downside of St John is there are very few options on the water. If you find a Villa, you can message me and I’ll give you my thoughts. https://www.caribbeanvilla.com/vacation-rentals/st-john-villas/ https://www.destinationstjohn.com/villa-rentals

First run of the season for my son’s 16th birthday coming up.

I fell head over heels in love with LH and the Lonesome Dreams album back in the day. Still love me some LH but that album is their best start to finish IMO.

I was sitting at the table doing a puzzle last year during quarantine with my daughter when this song came on Pandora. Towards the end when it really starts to groove I took notice and was hooked immediately. Love these guys.

I tried the search feature and couldn’t find anything. The wife and I are thinking about Antigua next year for our 20th. Anyone been and have any recommendations? We’ve done the US and British VIs a lot, done St Lucia and St Marteen. St John is probably our favorite. The water and beaches look amazing in Antigua and this last season of Below Deck is there and it looks great.

That moment the engine is shut off is magical. I started with 0 experience, took ASA 101 basic keelboat and spent a year working through my certifications and about 16 months after starting I chartered my own 46’ boat in the BVIs with my wife and 2 young children. It only took that long because of my busy schedule. It’s really not that hard to learn to sail. The experience of a seasoned sailer obviously takes a long time.

The best! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

What type of boats are you considering?

BVI - White Bay BVI Jost Van Dyke - White Bay BVI Jost Van Dyke - White Bay, Soggy Dollar BVI Jost Van Dyke - White Bay Trunk Bay Hansen Bay (Cora Bay side) Hansen Salt Pond - Best Snorkeling, quiet beach

Tortuga Cottage (coral bay side) Leinster Bay (Overlooks from sugar mill ruins) Waterlemon Cay Trunk Ram Head Hike Pics (Coral Bay side from Salt Pond)

DejaView https://www.dejaviewvilla.com/

I’ve made many posts of detailed trip St. John trip reports on longhorn boards of old. We stumbled upon St John while honeymooning in St Thomas 19 years ago. I can’t imagine spending any time in St Thomas when St. John is right there. Pros: About 3/4 national park, so very pristine Unbelievable beaches and water Some nice hiking Very laid back A ton of gorgeous reasonable villas to choose from Cons: Difficult to get to, lots of travel time Not many villas are on the beach, short drive required Some don’t love driving the hills and on the left side. You get used to it IMO We’ve stayed at Carnival Beach House, Villa Capiz, Tortuga Cottage, DejaView (5 king suits with an insane kids bunk room), and a hotel in Cruz Bay while in for a quick trip to look into buying a sail charter business. All the North Shore Beaches are amazing and each offer something different. Trunk bay is the most famous, Maho had incredible snorkeling with turtles, Honeymoon & Solomon are so pristine and gorgeous, Hawksnest is my wife’s favorite and my least favorite, Francis is long and uninhabited. Hike to Waterlemon for great snorkeling. The Coral Bay side of the island is quieter and a bit more arid. We stayed on that side and explored over there a few years ago and fell in love with Salt Pond (I think the best snorkeling on island) and Hansen Bay. We are renting a catamaran in July and will be mooring/anchoring around St John for 10 nights. Would love to hit BVIs but are happy to stay in St John the whole time if we have to. Trunk Bay Hawksnest Maho Francis (left) / end of Maho on right View from DejaView - Rendezvous Bay Honeymoon Honeymoon The Lime Out (floating taco bar) old location in Hansen Bay

We hope to jump on a catamaran and live in the Caribbean. We have 4 years! I think it may end up being 6. We are enjoying the lake in the meantime.

It’s a pretty good fishing lake. That’s originally why we bought the place, for me to fish. We bought it 2 weeks before we found out we were pregnant with our first. Both kids grew up going on the weekends.

We love it, we moved out here full time 6 years ago. Not sure I could live in the city again.

Lake Holbrook - East Texas