Virgin Islands to Dominica – Summer 2013

We're still anchored in Gorda Sound. This morning, we practiced sailing on small sloops rented for us by the staff. I still can't figure out what half the commands mean, but we're all improving. Everyone got a turn driving. As long as we remember that steering right makes the boat turn left, we're fine. Six crew members practiced, while six others stayed on board and took their Open Water Diver exams. After each group finished, we switched off. During lunch, Tor told us that everyone passed his or her exam, so we are all officially certified as scuba divers! After lunch, our poor Sydney took a hit. We eat and wash dishes above and pass dishes through a hole in the deck, also called the hatch. Today, she was below deck when someone tried to toss down a bottle of bleach. She's fine, but she had to rinse off. Tor tells us that today's lesson is: Don't toss things down the hatch. After that, we kept practicing sailing on Hobie Cats' awesome boats with two sails and two hulls connected by a mesh tarp. Once, we saw another group capsize. It was funny, not scary. Hobie Cats are easily righted again and designed not to sink. That group had time to scramble to the top of one hull as it rose into the air. They were physically fine but embarrassed. We are proud to say that none of our Cats capsized, though. Were awesome that way. Beyond that, we had free time to study, work on tans, or whatever. Tonight we're going to a Beach Barbeque with other ActionQuest crews and having our first night out at Saba Rock. Pretty good day!