Anchorage· Bird· Seychelles
Bird Island Anchorage (West Coast)
3° 43.3′ S · 55° 12.0′ E · approximate
An open roadstead off the west coast, in front of the lodge, which the lodge describes as the side sheltered from the southeast winds.
Practical
No anchorage for Bird (listed as Ile aux Vaches, Cows Island, in Pub. 171) is described in the 2010 US sailing directions, and no depths have been published; approach slowly in good light and anchor on sand clear of coral. A shoal of 7.3 m, Bar Silhouette, lies 4 nm S of the island. Exposed to the NW monsoon (December to March). Special Seychelles Ports Authority authorisation is needed for charter yachts, and the lodge asks visitors to contact it before arriving. Coordinate is approximate: about 0.25 nm off the west shore from the OpenStreetMap outline. No NW-monsoon alternative anchorage is published for Bird: Pub. 171 notes only the airstrip on the SE side and a 0.2 nm sand spit off the N end, and the island is under 2 m high, so it gives little lee. In the NW season (December to April, generally 10-15 knots with squalls December to March per the Moorings eGuide) treat Bird as a calm-day stop only and keep Mahé or Praslin as the overnight refuge.
Best for
A day stop to land at Bird in the SE trades
Season
SE trades (May-Oct); calm days only in the NW monsoon (Dec-Apr)
Nearby
- Bird Island West Coast Snorkelling0.1 NM away
- Bird Island0.3 NM away
- Esmeralda the Giant Tortoise (Bird Island)0.3 NM away
- Bird Island Airstrip and Lodge0.4 NM away
- Bird Island Migrant Bird Season0.5 NM away
- Bird Island Turtle Nesting and Hatching0.6 NM away
- Bird Island Sooty Tern Colony0.7 NM away
- Hirondelle Bay (Bird Island)0.7 NM away