Calgary connection, twentyeightfeet, new dodger windows, dinghy ladder

It is now February 13^th, and I am in a much better head space.  Our mechanical problems are behind us (for now) and we have enjoyed a couple of new sights and snorkeling areas – I’ve gotten to swim more and worry less. 

We enjoyed the BVIs again, going to Waterlemon Bay, a favorite spot and met up with another couple from – Calgary!  Had happy hour on their boat with their buddy boaters  - also from Calgary and made new friends.  We had a longish, pounding day to get to Virgin Gorda where our new dodger windows were ready and were thrilled at the quality and agreeable to the price.  Our boat got a facelift and I am gradually getting rid of the old dated teal and black and updating everything with a dark navy and white.  We look pretty spiffy, for a 10 year old!

We have encountered some very interesting characters.  If you have a moment, look up twentyeightfeet.blogspot.com, where you will read about the exploits of two Nova Scotians, both under thirty, living on a shoestring and and having the adventure of a lifetime.  Dave and Evan are on Lizzie Bell , a 60’s something monohull in need of constant repairs.  We enjoyed their company one night when we played Phase 10; the night they showed up to play Balderdash, they were too far into their cherry rum to catch onto the game. 

At Norman’s Island, we snorkeled the caves, which are magnificent.  Bill always lasts longer and sees more but I truly enjoy the sights as well.  We used our new dinghy ladder, which allows us to board from the water in a dignified manner, even easier than the steps on our big boat sugar scoops.  With the new larger tubes and my deteriorating knees, I was getting to the point where I couldn’t board from the water.  Bill isn’t there yet, but he’s close too.  We watched another lady try to get on board her dinghy who required the very personal assistance of both people on board and in the water.  She flopped unceremoniously and comically into the bottom of the boat, and with good humor announced that she had “found the anchor”.  Meaning she landed on it, poor thing. 

We met another couple there from Australia who had brought their little 36’ monohull across the Altantic from the U.K. and were headed to Australia; planned to land there in November. She has to provision in Panama for 5 months before going through the Panama Canal.  5 months!  I have a hard time with 5 days!

At Lameshure Bay, we invited the Canadian couple over for happy hour drink who were hooked to the next mooring ball.  They’re from Lunenberg Nova Scotia and had been living aboard for almost 20 years.  They had to quit for a short period of time when they came to the conclusion that she shouldn’t have been 50 feet up the mast doing repairs when she was 8 months pregnant!   Interesting people we meet.

Government Building Charlotte Amalie Harbour

I never get over the sights here in Charlotte Amalie Bay.  We are accustomed to the float planes taking off and landing, the log jam of behemoth cruise ships, the constant buzz of dinghy’s around us, the clank of anchors being dropped and raised and the general mayhem of down town St. Thomas (which rings the CA bay), but yesterday, we witnessed an event that caused our jaws to drop.  A float plane came in for a landing OVER THE MAIN STREET.  He narrowly landed in the water next to the edge of the promenade and made a short touchdown and took off again, clearly with some problem.  He was less than 100 feet off the ground, and looked for all the world like he was going to scrape his undercarriage on the 3 storey government building.  It was breathtaking, and not in a good way. 

Crown Bay Marina, St. Thomas USVI, Jan 2012

We’ve been grinding away at our boat gremlins and are finally – knock on wood- relatively confident that things should stay working, at least for a while. We have our new dinghy, barbeque, and beefed up fuel filter system for the engines. Also, our water maker is performing well and we are no longer drinking that over chlorinated stuff that comes from the tap.

The political climate here in the USVIs is pretty scary. The only refinery in the Caribbean, located on St. Croix has announced they are shutting down. This means a loss of 1200 big jobs and $60M in tax revenue. For a population of less than 60,000 people, this is disastrous. Also, WAPA, the water and power supplier here, which from the looks of things is highly inefficient, lost some kind of steam engine and shut off the water to the island for about 10 days, which made everyone miserable and nervous. When tourism is your number one industry, it’s really hard to explain to visitors that they can’t shower, and that bucket under the sink is for them to fill the toilet with water before they flush. Less than optimal. The Governor gave a ‘state of the union’ address which was met with crowded vociferous protesting that ended without violence, but also left a foreboding feeling that things are about to get pretty ugly here. His first plea was to beg the people not to resort to crime, which is the immediate assumption that that is exactly what is going to happen. Paradise is a gorgeous place to visit but can be no fun if you live here.

In spite of all that there is lots of good stuff going on. We have discovered many first class restaurants and are looking forward to enjoying them again when our friends visit. The weather is lovely, although the locals are complaining about the cold. None of us is even mildly cool and the water is clear, clean and warm enough for us. A bit bracing when you first get in, and then very refreshing. We’ve been going to Buck Island regularly to Turtle Cove where we are always amazed to observe tons of sea turtles. Bill tried to hop a ride with one, but was rejected. They are very people-tolerant and it is suspected that they like to see their reflections in your mask, as they often look right at you. We were able to use the new Hero camera, which you strap to your head or arm and take really good HD video of the turtles. Awesome stuff. Patrick did some editing and added music and turned out a decent product.  I was informed very strenuously that if I did attempt to add this to the blog, the upload time would be over two days.  Who knew?

This is the first place we’ve been where we can swim everyday and snorkel at a variety of easy sites. We’ve decided not to venture any further than the USVIs and the BVIs this cruising season, and head back to Canada in May.

We’re going scuba diving tomorrow, the first time since last year at Abaco. Although…I did borrow a BC and tank and regulator and try to retrieve the part that Bill accidently dropped under the boat here at the dock. Unfortunately, at that time of day the water was dark, and the rain hit making the water very murky. I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face. When I let the air out of my BC, I had to watch my depth gauge to see if I was going down or not but could barely read it. I also didn’t have enough weight in my pockets to help me sink, and it didn’t take me long to remember that I don’t like diving in the dark. I didn’t see the boat bottom till I bumped into it, and that was it for me. I bailed. And then I showered extensively , because going into the water in a marina is, well, YUCK! Bill had already replaced the lost part and I was just trying to be a cheapskate and have a spare, but I’ll only go so far to save a buck. Turns out, it’s not all the way. I’m no scuba tramp!

Feb 3^rd

We really lucked out in our choice of dive suppliers. Blue Island Divers have a crew that is professional, courteous and attentive. Not always the case on some of the ‘cattlemarans’ who cater to the unsuspecting tourists coming off the big cruise ships for their shore excursions. Our dive was awesome! Best underwater scenery I have ever seen! Did not want to surface. Colors of jewels on the fish and the coral. Walls of gorgeous vibrant patterns, beautiful columns, it was like being inside the best aquarium in the world. On the second dive, Bill spotted a large sea turtle sleeping on the bottom and grabbed him by the shell – went for a very brief ride. The second dive was on a wreck – I vaguely remember the dive master saying something about army barracks being sunk after WWII. We were to all stay in single file going up and down the corridors and to frog kick instead of flutter so as not to disturb the sand on the bottom and cover over the polyps that need to open up to live. I was the ONLY one in the group who did that, and I bailed on the last corridor as the group in front of me clouded up the water with their fluttering fins so much that no one in the line after the second diver could see a thing anyway. The second dive was nowhere near the joy of the first one, but the first was so amazing that nothing could detract from it. Patrick (son) and Chris (on buddy boat Toucan Dream) did a ‘Discover Scuba’ thing as neither is certified. The instructor was terrific and both enjoyed their experiences immensely. They’re hooked. Pat took great pictures with the Hero video camera and put it to music after some editing. Sure to be a Cannes nomination. I can’t wait to go again.

We’re sitting in Charlotte Amalie Harbour, enjoying the scenery and the blue water, but for some reason, the weatherman here can’t get anything straight. When the prediction is for 10 to 15 knot winds, you get 30 to 40. When it is for rain, it stays dry and when it for sunshine and no precipitation, be prepared to get wet.

Charlotte Amalie Harbour, toilet troubles, cruising life not sitting well

We are sitting in Charlotte Amalie Bay observing our surroundings.   Tomorrow we are leaving here, after 4 or 5 days to venture off to the Virgin Islands.  This is an interesting place.

First of all, the St. Thomas emergency services are way too keen to use their sirens.  We hear them blaring up and down the main promenade day and night, and during the day at least 3 times per hour, madly trying to spur vehicles out of their way.  It would seem so frequent that unless there is an over abundance of calamity here, they use the siren for jaywalkers and cruise ship shoplifters, etc. 

Secondly, the radio was crackling with alerts from the (what the hell do they do, anyway?) coastguard about an overturned catamaran with three persons in the water – how do they know that without going to their aid? – and was saddened tonight to read on the internet that the boat was found adrift 20 miles off Vieques after leaving the BVIs two days ago with no sign of the occupants.  Sobering and scary stuff.  That could easily be us.

Our new electric toilet is acting up.  Not doing the job as well as it used to.  This is nothing to be sneezed at because we will soon be holding our noses (and using a bucket!!!!) if this continues.  A preliminary inspection (and believe me, this was a ghastly task) revealed nothing out of the ordinary, which is disgusting enough in and of itself. My fingers are crossed that this situation resolves itself without further ado.   Other body parts are also optimistic.

Our new, overpriced and highly anticipated barbeque has so far been beyond our capabilities.  It gets hotter than a firecracker - the portable oven thermometer recorded temperatures upward from 550;  it melted my spatula when I tried to flip a foil packet of potatoes.  It took some scrubbing to remove all the fused on melted plastic.  With all the f-bombs Bill used, you’d think it was a Microsoft product.

The cruising life is not sitting as well with me this year as in past.  Maybe its just my knees, but I’m having trouble working up the energy for routine cleaning tasks and find myself putting things off more than should be.  I have less enthusiasm for turning out something gourmet from a kitchen the size of a public bathroom stall.  While the sunsets and skies tend to be magnificent, I find myself yearning for some favorite TV shows, the luxury of endless hot water showers and the accessibility of goods and services, like fresh bread, meats, fruits and vegetables and reliable internet.  Also my lovely, convenient washer and dryer.  I have less patience for the challenges of living on a boat and worry more about the cost of this behemoth.  It is endless work, tough on our aging bodies, and more expensive than anyone who is not a boater can imagine.  And most of all, I miss my friends, family and the sense of belonging to something greater than myself; not just my ‘place in the universe’ but a sense of purpose.  I think I’m a bit lonely and I think that a partial consolation of the lifestyle is to befriend the people on the next boat so that you have someone and something to talk about at happy hour.