Tortola, BVI
This trip felt right on time. I (katie) turned 30, we sent our sweet foster buddy home to mom and dad, and winter was on its way out. Pulling away after a bittersweet goodbye and being in a complete paradise in the midst of a gray winter felt liek a long awaited deep breath. We stayed in a cliffside home and watched every sunrise and sunset over the water. We played games, shared beautiful meals, swam, explored, snuggled, and laughed.
THE CLIFF HOUSE ;
We’ve gotten to the point with our family where sitting still isn’t something we enjoy. If you’re going to go somewhere besides home, why not get out and explore? What we love about going to the beach in the Caribbean is that so long as you pick a new island, you have more beaches to find and trails to hike on.
The Baths National Park
This was the best part of the trip. The national park is touted online as one of the top spots to visit in the BVIs, and it lives up to the hype. It’s located on a small island called Virgin Gorda. Getting there takes a bit of effort—you catch a ferry from whatever island you're staying on over to Virgin Gorda, then grab a cab to the park. Once there, you hike down to the water, often spotting lizards and snakes sunning themselves along the path. Crazy cactus formations and wild plant life drape the trail as you go.
Down by the bay, you're rewarded with the clearest water I've ever seen. Soft, warm sand and jagged rock formations contrast beautifully with the bright blue sky. It's paradise.
Continue along the trail, and you'll come across beautiful small pools teeming with little fish and random wildlife. Pretty sure I got sea-urchined while stumbling around. Keep walking and you'll find caves you can climb into and crawl through shallow pools. It’s truly something to behold—and if you're anywhere near the BVIs, it’s worth the trip.
The rest of the trip was littered with trips to a few beaches, namely smugglers cove and brewers bay. Snorkeling, beach snacking, and reading were the highlights.
10/10 would do it again.
