Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
6
THE WRECK OF THE RHONE &
OTHER TOP DIVE SITES
The one site in the British Virgin Islands
that lures divers over from St. Thomas
is
the wreck of the HMS
Rhone
that begins at around 3.6m (12 ft.) and
slopes gently to 30m (98 ft.). It abounds
with marine life such as lobsters, crabs,
rainbow-hued fan coral, and mammoth
mushroom-shaped coral.
Spyglass Wall
is another offshore dive site dropping to
a sandy bottom and filled with sea fans
and large coral heads. The drop is from
3 to 18m (10-59 ft.). Divers here should
keep an eye out for tarpon, eagle rays,
and stingrays.
Blue Water Divers,
Road Town
(
&
284/494-2847;
www.bluewater
diversbvi.com), is a PADI outfitter that
offers various dive packages, including
one to the wreck of the
Rhone.
A resort
course costs $105; a PADI open-water
certification is $410.
,
which sank in 1867 near the western
point of Salt Island.
Skin Diver
magazine
called it “the world's most fantastic
shipwreck dive.” The wreck teems
with marine life and coral formations,
and was featured in the 1977 movie
The Deep.
Although it's no
Rhone,
Chikuzen
is
another intriguing dive site off Tortola.
It's a 266-foot steel-hulled refrigerator
ship, which sank off the island's eastern
end in 1981. The hull, still intact under
about 24m (79 ft.) of water, is now
home to a vast array of tropical fish,
including yellowtail, barracuda, black-
tip sharks, octopus, and drum fish.
South of Ginger Island,
Alice in Won-
derland
is a deep-dive site with a wall
the natural highlights of Tortola (a minimum of four participants is required). The
cost is $32 to $45 per person. The company also offers 3-hour
snorkeling tours
for
$64 per person (with snacks included). A full-day
sailing tour
aboard a catamaran
that goes from Tortola to either Peter Island or Norman Island costs $165 per person;
a full-day tour, which goes as far afield as the Baths at Virgin Gorda and includes
lunch, costs $125 per person. And if
deep-sea fishing
appeals to you, book a half-
day excursion, with equipment, for four fishermen and up to two “nonfishing observ-
ers” for $900, or a full-day excursion for $1,260.
A
taxi tour
of the island costs $65 for two passengers for 2 hours, or $85 for 3
hours. To call a taxi in Road Town, dial
&
284/494-2322;
on Beef Island, it's
&
284/495-1982.
No visit to Tortola is complete without a trip to
Sage Mountain National Park
,
rising to an elevation of 523m (1,716 ft.). Here, you'll find traces of a primeval rainfor-
est, and you can enjoy a picnic while overlooking neighboring islets and cays. Cover-
ing 37 hectares (91 acres), the park protects the remnants of Tortola's original forests
(those that were not burned or cleared during the island's plantation era). Go west
from Road Town to reach the mountain. Before you head out, stop by the tourist
office in Road Town and pick up the brochure
Sage Mountain National Park.
It has a
location map, directions to the forest and parking, and an outline of the main trails
through the park. From the parking lot at the park, a trail leads to the park entrance.
The two main trails are the Rainforest Trail and the Mahogany Forest Trail.
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