Location: West End, BVI
It was quite the full day on the Argo. This morning, Leah woke me in my hammock, where I had been sleeping on deck; we had an early morning hike to take care of. A handful of the more adventurous early bird Argonauts joined us. This was our first full day in West End, and several of our early bird Argonauts went on a morning hike over the mountain to Smuggler’s Bay, where we did some body surfing and enjoyed the sunrise and the water breaks. We made it back just in time for breakfast, and I am happy to say that we were in luxury mode: Fruit Honey Bunches of Oats, Cinnamon Cheerios, and Cocoa Puffs all in one bowl. Call me cuckoo, but that was a winning combination of breakfast foods in preparation for a grueling BA. Following Scotty’s how-to on Sport Fishing, the crew was divided up into jobs, and the Boat Appreciation began.
From my vantage point in the dinghy, I could see Andy and Kimmery silhouetted against the sun as they were both perched like Frigate birds in the upper reaches of the masts. Other crew members were scraping and varnishing wood, and we did a feat that had yet to be completed on our Journey. We waxed the entire length of the Argos hull. The required contorting into awkward shapes along the dock to find the bottom reaches of the hull and hanging down from the bow spirit. Keep in mind all of this was happening in the middle of a busy harbor, with many people-watchers stopping by to figure out just what we were up to. Sam, being the amazing captain that he is, brought us soda to refresh us on this hot, sunny day. Following BA, I borrowed the ship’s bicycle and headed for Road Town. This would be my greatest undertaking on a bicycle in my life. I don’t know why Mack Trucks think they can drive you off the road. Share the road! The road was quite scenic, and I had a view of the other Virgin Islands and the Ocean pretty much the whole time. It reminded me of a lot of home, which for me is a landlocked lake. It must have been the limestone. Oh, and there was a large troop of goats that I ran into that climbed up a cliff like it was nothing… impressive, to say the least. I got into town and explored. There were many shops that we have right here in West End, so I imagine that the crew largely had a similar experience to mine. I spoke to many different locals and met a woman from Great Britain who moved here a few months ago to be a lawyer in a more beautiful place. I thought that was something worth noting. This was the first place I had loose-leaf tea, a major plus; I got Hibiscus, Eucalyptus, Mango, and something called Golden Seal (I have no idea). It must be all the British influence. The BVIs are something special for certain, and although we are only in Tortola for one more night, I can see the light in everyone’s eyes for this upcoming night out. Pusser’s, a famous bar right off our dock, is most likely where we will enjoy a few drinks and some relaxation from all that studying and work we do every day. I also want to shout out to all of those future boat captains who passed their Collision Regulations Exam and Hayley, the world’s brightest and newest Divemaster.