Location: Rodney Bay, St. Lucia
Phew, good morning! This day started early – or did yesterday never really stop? Nobody knows. What we do know is that the crew was up in the weeee hours of the morning doing one of the coolest things I think I’ve ever done on these boats – sailing onto our anchor! As in, we used only the power of the wind to get us all the way to our anchor point and then simultaneously dropped the anchor, and the sails = SO COOL!!!! Not to mention, there was a v beautiful sunrise happening in the background. But let’s back up a little bit – we spent the night sailing Ostar to Rodney Bay, and given the troubles we had with the foresail (see Graham’s blog yesterday), we got to use the jib! We did lots of tacks (ok, only three successful ones – but there were many not-so-successful attempts in between). And let me tell you, each tack is a whirlwind of an experience with the jib. Huge shoutout to the crew for their amazing sail handling and just general overall enthusiasm for our sail adventure. I’d say we all had a blast and also have a newfound appreciation for truly harnessing the wind.
Also, huge shoutout to the large rock just outside of Rodney Bay that looks like a large container ship coming straight at us. Did we think it was a large container ship coming straight at us at full speed while we were on only sail power and hail it on the radio? Yes. We did. Was it, in fact, a rock that did not answer our radio call but also, turns out, did not come straight in front of us? Yes. It was.
A short while after our epic anchor drop, we scampered over to the dock, and most people (myself included) took a much-needed nap. However, while I was enjoying my slumber, our amazing chefs whipped up some delish fajitas – no easy task. Then we rolled into a few classes – half the group worked on seamanship while the other half-finished up their knowledge reviews for EFR (emergency first responder). We love learning!!! Next up was FRESHWATER SHOWERS IN THE SHORE HEADS!!!! People were excited. Then, notably, Jaden paused to get some valuable data for his oceanography research project. However, at this time particular moment, it was bucketing down rain. Did that stop Jaden? Of course not – concerned about the sensitive, electronic bit of the YSI, Jaden valiantly covered his own head and the instrument with a large blue bucket. They commenced collecting data while trying to keep his notebook and the electronics dry. It was hilarious to watch, and of course, everyone was too busy laughing and getting drenched themselves to get a picture. But please do picture Jaden standing over the side of the boat with a large blue bucket on his head, attempting to write data on a completely soaked notebook.
For dinner, we opted for a rare treat – choose your own adventure dinner on shore! Some people chose sushi, some got pizza, and just about everyone finished up with ice cream.
All in all, it was a very exciting day full of fun and exciting adventures.
Oh! I forgot to mention the title. Our squeeze question was, “what’s the coolest thing you have learned/done so far.” However, there seemed to be a bit of a mix-up, and people weren’t quite sure what the question was, so people kept saying what they were proud of (still cool), and then we veered into which superhero you love and are most proud of. So to conclude, the coolest thing we have learned is that we are proud of Tom Holland as Spider-Man. Obviously.
Photo Captions:
1. Sunrise. Or Sunset. Who knows. Either way, beautiful.
2. Some goons
3. Very wet laundry trying to try (but failing given the buckets of rain)
4. Amelia giving us the look she always gives us
5. Happy people in the saloon
6. Spaghetti?
7. French fry (are they even French?)
8. Teags sitting alone… where are her friends?
9. Is that people on land? What a thrill