Where have people taken their dinghy?

islandcat · Post by **islandcat** » Sun Apr 01, 2007 4:04 pm

Long time lurker here. The wife and I will be on STJ the middle of July. We are planning on renting a dinghy for one of the days. We would like to use the time to stop at some of the beaches that aren't as easy to get to by car/feet. We would also like to get to one or two of the cays. I thought I had read somewhere that some of the cays were accessible by dinghy, but I can't find it. If anyone has done this, can you tell me which cays are accessible, private and/or has decent snorkeling?

Thanks in advance. This is our third trip to St. Thomas/John and have been more excited for each one. I hope it never wears off.

Jorge & RickG - I hope I didn't get your hopes up with the thread title.

Islandcat

Xislandgirl · Post by **Xislandgirl** » Sun Apr 01, 2007 4:16 pm

I had my hopes up

sea-nile · Post by **sea-nile** » Sun Apr 01, 2007 4:48 pm

Pretty risky title there.

Unfortunately I have never taken a boat out in the USVI, but I will be interested in hearing the serious responses.

Buddles · Post by **Buddles** » Sun Apr 01, 2007 5:27 pm

hi,

We did not rent a dingy, but went on a Sadie Sea snorkeling trip to Henley Cay. There is a strong current from the northwest side of the cay to the southwest side. I would land at the NW side, then snorkel with the current and walk back up on the island. The coral there is absolutely amazing. Read my Trip Report: Part 2: Snorkeling, Boat Excursions for more detail.

Buddles

DELETED · Post by **DELETED** » Sun Apr 01, 2007 9:36 pm

DELETED

waterguy · Post by **waterguy** » Sun Apr 01, 2007 9:52 pm

Jorge I'm just glad all the heat stays on you 2

Bug · Post by **Bug** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 2:56 pm

Hi:

We take a dingy out every year and it's one of our favorite days.

We have always rented from Noah's Little Arks which is located directly in front of the Beach Bar. We go around the North side of the island hitting Solamon, Honeymoon, Gibney, Hawksnest, Truck, Peter, Cinnamon, Maho, Francis, Leinster, abd finally Waterlemon Cay. It is amazing how different the beaches look from the "other" side. Waterlemon Cay is really only accessable by a pretty good walk and swim unless you have a boat so it is definetly the easiest way to get there.

Hope the info helps!

Michele

Yo

SoCaTraveler · Post by **SoCaTraveler** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:36 pm

bugblu98 wrote:
We go around the North side of the island hitting Solamon, Honeymoon, Gibney, Hawksnest, Truck, Peter, Cinnamon, Maho, Francis, Leinster, abd finally Waterlemon Cay.

Hi Michele - How long does it take you to do all those beaches? Do you stop a while at each or just select a couple of them for snorkeling??

Thanks!

Carole

b-as-u-r · Post by **b-as-u-r** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:51 pm

We rented from Noah's Little Arks in December and headed out to Waterlemon Cay as our starting point. We rented the smaller dingy, as it was just the two of us (it's a little lighter and easier for 2 to manage) and we did the full day rental. They give you this great little map and all the boating instructions for where to enter (red and green go between), where not to enter, etc. and you watch this short video that covers everything you need to know. We found the waters through the final channel to be a little rough, but would not hesitate to do it again. It was just a matter of slowing down the motor. We stopped at several of the beaches on the way back. It was a great day and are planning to do it again on our next trip. Ali~

Bug · Post by **Bug** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 9:22 pm

We always rent the dingy for a full day so we usually start by going to the fartherest point (Waterlemon Cay) and come back from there. We pack a cooler with drinks and lunch. We usually hit at least 4 or 5 beaches and pick one to have lunch on. If you don't stay too long in any one place, I'm sure you could hit them all. Be aware though, you don't want to leave any of them!

Michele

DonnaC · Post by **DonnaC** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 9:04 am

We have also stopped at Caneel Bay (twice) and to our surprise were treated like royalty..You would have thought we had arrived on the QE2..Grabbed a bite to eat, lounged on the beach, and swam to the swimming platform..Fun stop..

DonnaC · Post by **DonnaC** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 9:12 am

This trip we plan on renting our dinghy from Calypso..their dinghys have a center console and BACK RESTS..www.calypsovi.com/dinghy..In years past we stayed at the Westin and rented from there..

SoCaTraveler · Post by **SoCaTraveler** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 10:10 am

DonnaC wrote:This trip we plan on renting our dinghy from Calypso..their dinghys have a center console and BACK RESTS..www.calypsovi.com/dinghy..In years past we stayed at the Westin and rented from there..

These look great! I see a price of $125 for 1/2 day; $195 for a full day. How do these prices compare with Noah's? I don't see prices on the Noah's website.

Also, I can't tell if there is also room in the front... can these dinghies hold 4 people (2 adults, 2 teens)?

Oh, this is the actual link:

http://www.calypsovi.com/dinghy.html

DonnaC · Post by **DonnaC** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 10:53 am

Hi, I cannot imagine any of these dinghys would hold 4 unless your children are very small...It is tight..We rented last year from Cruz Bay Water Sports at the Westin www.divestjohn.com and rented two,,my older son was about to turn 17 so he took one out with his brother, while hubby and I took the other..Neither Cruz bay waters sports or Noah's has the dinghy's with the back rests..You sit on the side and hold onto ripped handles..lol, which why I am going with Calypso this trip..If it becomes too pricey..a half day is still fine..

SoCaTraveler · Post by **SoCaTraveler** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 11:24 am

Thanks Donna... that's what I figured. I'm going to email them and see what they have for 4.

Thanks!

Carole

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Where have people taken their dinghy?

Where have people taken their dinghy?