TURKS AND CAICOS

[kimberlite]

anyone out there cruised the turks and caicos. thinking of sailing down there in november from new york . best routes? where to stay for the winter? cruising guides and charts?
thanks
eric

[svdragonseeker]

Been there, The diving and snorkeling on the reefs at the eastern end is spectacular!
The anchorage at Provo sucks! It is an open roadstead, and can get very nasty in a norther. It is also far from town and the taxi''s charge a fortune.
The banks are shallow so take care. Routes are quite well spelled out in Van Zant''s book
SV

[jack_patricia]

Eric, the T&C are interesting in several respects and IMO worthy of a visit for sociological reasons as well as to dive. But it lacks more than a handful of foul weather anchorages and some of its most inviting spots are difficult to visit comfortably - kinda frustrating. The best single reference for you to examine IMO is Steve Pavlidis'' cruising guide on the T&C (Bluewater Books).

One of the best things about Steve''s book is that it also covers Luperon. If you make it to T&C and find you''ve had your fill, an overnight passage will take you S & E to the Dominican Republic and, probably for the first time since leaving NY, you''ll feel like you''ve stepped off the space-time continuum and are really cruising. Great people, lush land, multiple fascinating sites & cities to visit, and a core yachtie community in the Luperon anchorage that make it feel homey, too.

Jack

[mcarroll51]

I sailed from NYC to Provo last Dec.
From NYC southeast to 35N 70W (or was it 37N?...anyway crossing the Gulf Stream at a right angle), then due south, bearing off to the west the last day or so.
11 days

[helmsman]

TheT&Cs are a bit primitive. Unless you are specifically planning a dive trip, there isn''t much on Grand Turk... Amazing, since its the capital. There is no protected harbor. Haven''t been to Provo. There is an ongoing friendly argument between Grand Turk and San Salvador as to which island Columbus first landed on...