Christopher Columbus Missed Anegada Island

By George Medovoy, Editor

I could give you dozens of reasons to visit the British Virgin Islands, lovingly known as the BVI: friendly people, miles of soft, sandy beaches, some of the best sailing in the Caribbean.

But there’s another important reason — it’s Anegada, one of the 60 island of this British territory that rise up out of the turquoise waters like stepping stones created for some primeval giant.

Anegada, A Flat Coral Reef

While the rest of the BVI is volcanic and mountainous, Anegada is by contrast a flat, coral reef, missed by Christopher Columbus when he discovered these islands in 1493. Measuring 11 miles long by three miles in width, Anegada is only 27 feet above sea level – probably the reason they named it Anegada, or "sunken island" in Spanish.

For quiet seclusion, Anegada is THE place: just you ands the island’s 180 permanent residents, some pink flamingos, wild orchids and rare rock iguanas.

Wine enthusiasts will appreciate Anegada for its sea grapes (Coccoloba uvifera), which grow profusely bear beaches on plants about eight feet high. From these grapes, the islanders make sea grape wine, a traditional favorite for the Christmas holidays.

We set out for Anegada one glorious morning from Beef Island Airport, which is located on the principal island of Tortola. Our 10-minute flight on Gorda Aero Service’s nine-passenger Cessna afforded a great view of some of the islands of the BVI, most of which remain uninhabited. Looking down from the clear skies, we imagined pirates of yore playing hide-and-seek behind the mountainous islands.

Is there any doubt why more sunken galleons lie off the BVI than anywhere else in the Caribbean?

Where Sailing Is Wonderful

Nowadays, the only sailing here is wonderful, in everything from large catamarans and trimarans with plush staterooms to more basic two-passenger sailboats that one can rent, with or without a skipper, on Tortola. As we approached Anegada form the sky, our pilot pointed out Virgin Gorda Islands, where giant, odd-shaped bo8lders at a secluded beach called "The Baths" create hidden pools in the green water.

We landed at Capt. Auguste George Airport, which is all of one landing strip and a solitary, little terminal building with one telephone…and not a single living soul around! Anegada’s "official" tour guide, middle-aged George Anthony Smith – "Tony" for short – showed up at the airport in his van.

Tony was born on the island and has always lived here. We doubt he will ever leave. After all, why would you want to leave paradise?
Off we went down the island’s dirt road, past a handful of colorful, simple homes and plenty of open space, for Loblolly Bay, a sandy beach where Aubrey Lettsome operates the open-air Loblolly Beach Bar and Restaurant.

At Loblolly Beach, sea grape plants grow in the sand. Hanging in bunches, the grapes look every bit like ordinary wine grapes. But on closer inspection, they are a lot different, with large pits that make them seem more like olives than grapes. The grapes are mauve in color when ready to pick in December.

Making sea grape wine, brandy and jelly is a popular pastime on Anegada. Lettsome offered us a taste of his own sea grape brandy under his thatched-rood bar. The golden liquid carries a real punch! Sea grape wine and brandy constitute a kind of "cottage industry" on Anegada – everyone seems to make it, but it’s hared to come by any hard and fast recipes.

What I gathered was that, in general, people fill a gallon jug with a small percentage of water, one cup of alcohol per jug, some local spice, and the grapes will make sea grape brandy. In making either brandy or wine, the grapes are not crushed.

"You have to give the grapes at least two to three years in the jug," said Lettsome, "so you can really feel the character of the grape." The rather dry, golden-colored liquid is more like a fortified wine than a brandy, but the islanders feel they can call it whatever they like.

Sea Grape Brandy and Wine

Both sea grape brandy and wine are traditional favorites here at Christmas time, when islanders go from house to house serenading and toasting their neighbors.

Lettsome, a third-generation, guitar-playing Anegadan, entertains guests with joyful West Indian melodies. His restaurant serves lobster, ribs and conch, a popular BVI shellfish with a decorative shell. "Entertainment makes everyone happy," said Lettsome.
"That’s the way I look at it. I have fun everyday that I meet different people. I try to get them out of stress and show them love and understanding."

Free of stress, thanks to Lettsome’s sea grape brandy and a swim at the beach. we said good-bye and jumped into Tony’s van again for a short drive to Lowell Wheatley’s Anegada Reef Hotel at Setting Point for more stress-free fun. Wheatley’s hotel has 16 air-conditioned rooms; its restaurant features barbecued ribs, chicken, fish and lobster.

Wheatley, cooking on the beach, favors a converted 54-gallonoil barrel with local wood. The barrel is cut in half, allowing for a hinged top. "There’s no comparison," he said, "to cooking on an open wood fire in the old West Indian way. We take the wood, burn it down to coals, and then cook on the coals."

We dined on tasty fish, lobster and rubs, plus deep-fried potatoes, salad and Wheatley’s specialty, delicious ratatouille made with eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes, richly flavored with spices.

A Gentle Downpour

By meal’s end, clouds had opened up with a warm, gentle downpour, sending everyone running for shelter under Wheatley’s thatched-roof bar. Well, what better way to end our meal than with a "Pink Smoothie," made with Pusser’s Rum – a BVI product and official rum of the Royal Navy – nutmeg, and other ingredients Wheately wouldn’t divulge.

Next stop: Pam’s Kitchen and Bakery, on the water between Pomato Point and Setting Point, where a husband-and-wife team, originally from Oregon, sells chutney, jellies, papaya hot sauce, and chocolate chip cookies from their small blue-and=white shop under a row of palm trees.

All along, we were curious about the possibility of boredom on the island. "No," said Tony, our diminutive guide, "we’re happy with what we have here. We have a little action going on now and again. We go to dances at evening time, mostly on weekends. We have get-togethers and we have good fun."

PLANNING YOUR TRIP:
General information: British Virgin Islands Tourist Board, call 1-800-835-8530, or visit www.britishvirginislands.com.

Getting there: by air, from Miami via San Juan Puerto Rico to Beef Island, Tortola, or from Miami via St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, connecting via ferry for a 40-minute ride to Road Town.

The BVI is a British territory. A U.S. passport is required. Currency is the U.S. dollar.

Climate: averaging 80-90 degrees and can be slightly humid.
Winter season: Dec. 16-April 15; summer: April 16-Dec. 15.
Total population: 17,000, most of it on Tortola.
Other principal islands: Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke, each with about 200 permanent residents.

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