Charlotteville 2015:

Had a great time here! We enjoyed it so much we decided to use this as our base for hurricane season. Good snorkelling/diving/fishing. Friendly locals, sleepy town.
Customs and Immigration were very friendly, and “bay hopping” permits are easy to acquire at the customs office. Plus Roxanne John from the tourism office is a wealth of local info and a great welcome committee for the visiting yachts. She is in the same offices as Customs and Immigration, behind the health clinic.

There is a petrol station with easy access to the beach, but sometimes they run out of diesel. Always had it again within a few days.

The ATM also runs out of money too but is restocked once a week.
Several small markets and veggie stalls, but not the place to do major re-provisioning.
Fresh water taps on the town jetty, safe for drinking. Also, there is a fresh water spring on the Pirates Bay beach where you can fill your jerry cans.
Laundry can be left with “Workshop Tours” by the bus stop.

Bus transport to the city is unreliable, but local transport is easy. Just hang out by the bus stop, ask the locals there which car/van you should take into the city. It should cost around 14-16TT/person and takes 1-1 1/2 hrs to get in depending on traffic and road conditions. If you are lucky enough to catch the rare bus, tickets are 4TT and can be bought at the “red” market nearby.

Anchoring is good but deep. If you go in too close to shore (less than 40′ of water) you will be in coral. 45′-60′ has you on a nice sandy ledge with good holding with proper scope. It is a little shallower if you go by the town beach, but more exposed to any swell. Also, if you try to anchor in the cove at Pirates Bay, the fishermen will ask you to move.

**Dinghys** while we did not experience any problems, many cruisers there with us did. It is best to drag it up on the beach on the inside of the town jetty. If you tie to the lower dock, and it does not get damaged by getting pulled under the pier, then you run the risk of it becoming a new play toy for the dozens of children swimming off the dock. The police are now patrolling the dock in the afternoons to chase the kids away.

One or two dinghies tied by the steps for a short time is ok, but any more than that overcrowds the dock and blocks it for use by the local fishing boats, which is why it is there in the first place. Dragging it up on the beach is the best practice.

We had no problems with crime, theft in town or at anchor while we were there. Really nice community of cruisers in this bay.

Travis and Joanne
s/v Calico Jack