Location: English Harbour, Antigua
We woke up this morning back at our starting place in Nelson’s Dockyard, and after a yummy cereal breakfast, we started the day’s BA or boat appreciation. Heading into race week, we want Ocean Star to look as beautiful as possible. We also want to tell Ocean Star how much we love her by taking care of her and keeping her nice and clean. We split into groups on deck and down below to start tasks. I was working down below in the galley with Steph and Will. We cleaned out all the cabinets and wiped them down, as well as cleaning the fridge, stove, and everything else. I had the fun job of taking the stove burners off and scraping them, washing them, and letting them dry in the sun. It was a long job. That stove was dirty. On deck, crew members were washing the deck and cleaning/tidying all the deck boxes and the lazarette (laz), where we keep our scuba gear and other important stuff. We also did a deep clean of our bunks, and oh goodness, we all really needed it. After surfing in St. Barts, I tracked so much sand back into my bed; it was crazy sweeping it all up this morning. And after dinner, we get clean sheets!! I cannot express how happy everyone on the boat is after changing sheets.
We worked until lunch of BBQ chicken, one of my favorites, and once we all finished, we mustered in the cockpit and learned a new plan for the day. Wiggy told us we were moving to Falmouth Bay, right next to Nelson’s Dockyard, where Antigua Yacht Club, which hosts Classics, is located. We prepared for a short passage and waved goodbye to Argo, who was headed out for her passage to Florida. While on passage, the best gift in the world came, and we got a new part to help raise our anchor. Ian M. installed it, and now we have a working windlass and will be able to anchor without any more trouble and without having to send Scuba Steve down to float the anchor. Once we made it into the bay, we maneuvered backward into a nice spot on the dock. Wiggy did it perfectly, as usual. I think he must be able to speak boat as Ocean Star always seems to do exactly what he wants her to do. Next up was Seamanship class with Ian M. We began our Navigation Master last class, and this class, we continued with talking about speed, distance, and time, as well as being able to plot a point using latitude and longitude. It is all super fun to know as long as we have a chart, we can navigate, and that if the GPS ever stops working, we are safe and know where to go. After class, we had some free time on land to shower and pick up clean laundry. It is a luxury on this boat to be able to pull out a shirt and have it not smell musty. Mom, I have a ton of stuff that does not smell very good, sorry. We made it back to the boat for dinner earlier than usual and had cake after singing to Matty. Now we are preparing for a night out to meet crews from other boats and socialize. I am excited to see pretty boats and talk to people who like pretty boats. I am so ready to race Friday.
xo Lucy