We arrive in Road Town, the capital of the British Virgin Islands (aka BVI) at 7:00am as scheduled. The town has 15,000 residents, according to a 2018 census. It’s located on the south coast of Tortola, the largest island of the BVI. Road Town gas 13,000 residents The entire island only has 23,000 inhabitants; the total population of BVI is only 28,000.
The name Road Town, according to Wikipedia “is derived from the nautical term ‘the roads,’ a place less sheltered than a harbour but which ships can easily get to.” In another article, there is more info on this unusual name: “A roadstead (or roads – the earlier form) is a body of water sheltered from rip currents, spring tides, or ocean swell where ships can lie reasonably safely at anchor without dragging or snatching.” Naturally a name like that would be of great interest to Steve and Cathy, given our work history.
Tortola, as mentioned in a previous post, was a surprise visit for those on this cruise. It was a last-minute decision by Oceania, made just three days ago. Well, of course it was a complete surprise for our hosts in Road Town. This was to have been a day without a cruise ship for them, so they had to scramble to set up tours and such on very short notice. We looked at it as a bonus, and so did the people of Tortola.
Now, before we move on with a description of our day, we want to show you a series of photos taken from our balcony. Steve is enamored of series ever since he and Cathy attended a Monet exhibit years ago that centered around the series of paintings he made of a given subject in different light at different times of day.
Well, here are Steve’s amateur attempt to produce interesting “series” photographs:
Okay, back to the subject at hand. The excursion we signed up for is a 3 ½ hour drive around the island beginning at 9:00am. It’s a little confusing on the pier, which is understandable given the aforementioned short notice. But we are shepherded to a group of tour ‘buses.’ As can be seen from the photo below, our conveyance is actually a Ford Super Duty 450 pickup truck with open-air seating for 20-25 people. This rig is perfect for such a tour, as we will soon find out.
We sit in the front row, and our guide, who also is the driver, narrates through a speaker located near the rear seats. So, in addition to not understanding him because of his wonderful accent, the speaker is not loud enough to be heard over the engine noise. Hence, we gain little from his narration throughout the trip. Not a complaint, but an explanation as to why few of the photographs in this post will be labeled. So, Cathy strikes up a conversation with our seat neighbors, who are from Rochester NY, and Steve is constantly looking for photo ops.
Off we go in a small convoy of tour buses. It takes very few minutes before we get our first impression: this is a very prosperous island compared to others situated in the Caribbean. The houses are in very good condition, all made with poured concrete foundations and pillars, with walls constructed of concrete-faced block. They are painted every color of the rainbow, mostly pastels. Most of them are built on the sides of very steep hills, and must have cost a mint. The views from them are spectacular.
And there is a ton of residential construction going on throughout the island. While tourism is a the most important local economic driver, BVI is another place for people of means to park their money. As Wikipedia delicately says: “Provision of financial services is a major part of the economy. The International Business Companies Act, passed in the early 1980s, encouraged such businesses and has generated significant growth in professional jobs and related revenues. BVI residents are amongst the most affluent in the Eastern Caribbean. Numerous residents from other Caribbean islands also work here.”
Our next impression is that the island is one steep hill after another. The roads are narrow, barely able to accommodate cars passing one another, and are full of 180-degree hairpin turns. Our driver knows every single one of them, and we quickly gain complete confidence in his abilities. Our tour takes us completely around Totola in a counter clockwise direction from Road Town. We head east first.
Unfortunately, we did not have a map for our journey, so we ride along watching the beautiful scenery unfold before our eyes. It is spectacular, especially the islands, which, now that we consult the map above, are on the east side of Tortola. We do stop for a photo opportunity, with these two results:
A few minutes beyond our photo stop we come upon a fascinating sight, the Fahie Hill Mural. Here is some information about it from the Virgin Islands Traveller website: “Reuben Vanterpool was born and raised in the village of Great Mountain, a green and rocky terrain tucked in the hills above Road Town. Vanterpool’s memories of life in the 1950s and 60s come to life at the Fahie Hill Mural, created in 2001. The mural is a colorful piece of community art depicting large-scale images of island life from the last century.”
And additional information from the Virgin Islands Life & Style website:
“Vanterpool said the project idea was the brainchild of Eileene Parsons, at the time, Minister of Culture in 2001, under the government headed by Ralph T. O’Neal. Parsons had the idea that walls across the territory needed to be enhanced and not have just a stark appearance.
“ ‘The idea Parsons had for the Fahie Hill wall—which was one of the largest—was that it could be a repository of cultural images, pertaining to the area, hence the name Ridge Road Mural,’ Vanterpool said. The wall, with 23 panels, depicts a journey of life in the Virgin Islands, long before there were roads, electricity, communications, conveniences and the many amenities we enjoy today.
“Among the scenes reflected were agriculture, fishing, farming, cooking, baking, school, music, transportation, construction, cane cutting, and breeding cattle. One is dedicated to Dan Farrington as a courtesy for accommodating government in cutting the road by giving up sections of his land. Additionally, there’s one with Bobby Freeman, who did the same thing.”
Here are photos of just some of the twenty-three scenes painted on the wall, which is repainted about every five years to keep it fresh:
We continue our journey. Now the road is getting steeper and steeper and the hairpin turns more numerous, and the ride has aspects of a roller coaster ride. Everyone is amazed that roads could even be built in such topography, and we continue to admire the skill of our guide. Within about twenty minutes, we arrive at the highest point on our journey, which Steve estimates to be about 1,500 feet above sea level. We pass by an elementary school and the begin a five-mile descent, ending at Cane Garden Bay on the western end of Tortola. The road is incredibly steep, and we both surmise that the wealthiest people in Tortola might be mechanics that replace brakes and automatic transmissions on Ford Super Duty 450 pickup trucks!
We arrive at a series of beach clubs and park. The time is 10:30 and we will be here for one hour to relax, which is a welcome respite. Because a beach chair and umbrella will cost $10 for the hour, Cathy chooses to park herself at a table overlooking the beach and bay at one of the open-air restaurants. It is too early for lunch, so the place is practically empty. Steve, with camera in hand, wanders up and down the beach looking for photo opportunities. Cane Garden Bay is the most popular beach destination in Tortola, and it is easy to see why. A gorgeous beach with lots of hotels, bars and restaurants. Apparently, it’s a great surfing spot as well, when high wind blows from the northwest. Today is not one of those days.
Both of us are entertained by a pair of pelicans that are fishing the shallow waters very close to bathers:
We climb back into the buses and continue our tour. We travel along the coast, past Ballast Bay (which got its name because sailing ship captains stopped there to load rocks used for ballast), Carrot Bay and Apple Bay. We cut across the west end to the south shore and head east. We pass through what appears to be the infrastructure area. A large concrete plant, the island’s electric plant, and the like.
Then we come to Sea Cow Bay (isn’t that a great name!) and begin to see something startling: severely damaged yachts almost in piles. We pass by two more three of these sights, and it is truly disturbing to see. At the end of the tour, Steve asks our guide about this, and he tells him that the wrecks are due to a huge 2017 storm. Having heard the same story on Sint Maarten, we research and find that, Hurricane Irma is the culprit.
Wikipedia’s entry on Tortola says this: “On 6 September 2017, Tortola was extensively damaged by Hurricane Irma. A report by Sky News summarized the aftermath of the storm as: ‘The scale of the damage on the island of Tortola is truly shocking. You have to see it to appreciate just how massive this storm really was. The East End area of Tortola looks like a war zone; no building is untouched, the debris of entire houses destroyed, yachts, cars and enormous cargo containers is scattered in all directions and this is just one area.’ “
Soon we are back in Road Town and at the end of our bus tour. Cathy had heard from a tourist assistant brought in to a Cane Garden Bay resort to help us cruise passengers on short notice that many of the stores in town, and especially at the cruise pier, may be closed. Why? As mentioned before, Riviera’s arrival was not scheduled, and these stores may have trouble staffing up at such short notice. We certainly hope some are, because the cancelation of so many stops has left us short of gifts for family.
We luck out. There’s a very well-stocked gift shop and a nice food shop open at the cruise pier. We spend a half hour browsing and buying and board the ship. Lunch at Waves Grill. Naps for both of us. Cathy takes care of some accounting at the ship’s Reception Desk. Lounging on the Pool Deck for Steve.
Because of Covid, many of the larger receptions for passengers have been canceled. To make up for this, Oceania Cruises has an open bar event at the two largest bars tonight from 6 to 8pm. Needless to say, this draws a large crowd. We go the Grand Dining Room at 6:30pm, and, of course, the place is empty. By the time we leave, it’s packed.
We head back to the room having had a wonderful day on Tortola. The fact that we took a bus tour has led to a long post. So much interesting information that gives us such a great introduction to the place we are visiting. This may very well guide our excursion choices in the future.
