Location: Saba
When I went down to wake everyone up this morning, I was shocked to find everyone up and on task for the assignments, breakfast, and organizing for the upcoming day. This allowed us for a quick breakfast and was in dinghies heading for the forbidden shores of Saba. Getting to shore can be quite the task as you must time your landing with the swell, but all the students have paid keen attention in OCE class and understand the theory and patterns associated with swells and waves. The hike up the steep cliffs, affectionately called the “Ladder,” proved quite taxing. Still, Jon and I ignored the pain in our quads by making up outlandish stories “that they read in the guide book” about Saba and how the perfectly rounded rocks on the beach were sometimes used by pirates as cannonballs in battles to defeat their sovereigns. Soon enough, we had climbed our way up through, ironically named Bottom Town, and were on the trail towards Windward, our final destination. Three of our more intrepid hikers, Mollie, Ivy, and Brando, opted to make their way to the summit of Mt. Scenery and were rewarded with certificates upon completion that will no doubt be cherished and hopefully proudly displayed. We all met up at a favorite restaurant and ate fish sandwiches and headed to learn how to blow glass beads and buy souvenirs with Joe Bean, the local glassblower extraordinaire. Afterward, we all made our way back to Bottom Town and rendezvoused at a coffee shop for a quick caffeine and internet fix. We then headed back towards O-Star and were greeted by our old friend Irv at the shore for a quick pickup. Everyone, including O-Star, is amped as we prepare for our FINAL PASSAGE. Students are eager to show the staff what their capable of, and the staff is 100% confident in them. Winds are a bit lacking this evening, but spirits are not, it should be an absolute blast!