Sailing on Lucky Duck: Steve and Lynn on the High Seas

Home, Sweet Home

We are home now!

The Party Is Over at Last

So this is my final blog entry, at least for this year. I don't have a clue as to how to conclude my telling you of this exciting adventure. My mind is a mush of a thousand grateful reflections, blended with a hundred ongoing inevitable cost and boat concerns. (I was bound and determined that I damn well wouldn't sink the boat, at least not the first year.) 

As Lynn wrote in her final entry, leaving this life is exceptionally bittersweet. It's hard for me to believe that I have been living aboard Gustie for 5 months. Right now, it certainly seems the most natural thing in the world for me. 

Lynn and I have been challenged along the way. Challenged to learn new things, challenged to try our best (and sometimes--perhaps too often--bluff it) when we sure as hell didn't know what we were doing, challenged to overcome our fears, challenged to deal with occasionally officious officials, challenged to entertain and get along with each other, challenged to come to terms with boat problems, challenged to deal with separation from family and friends that mean so much to us. No report card gets issued here, but I'm kind of proud to reflect that we dealt with most of our challenges with good humor and goodwill 90% of the time. 

So, where does all this lead? I guess it leads, once again to some basic comments and observations. Here goes: 

1. Virgin Islands--Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Burt was right on when he twisted our arms to get down here sooner rather than later. One of the greatest things down here is the yin and the yang. The British BVI's have all the funky beachfront bars and restaurants that you could ever wish for. The US Virgin Islands have pristine beaches with very little, and mostly no, development. We have had some of our best snorkeling in the USVI's. 

2. God--His handiwork is everywhere. Just yesterday, Lynn and I went on our final snorkeling adventure. Within an hour we saw schools of Technicolor fish, flounder, a beautiful sea turtle (so graceful in its underwater environment), blue runners, a fish shaped like an upside down taco, and dozens of other wondrous creatures. The highlight, though, was to see reef squid. Strange and mysterious looking creatures. Iridescent eyes that appeared to show that they we as interested in us as we were in them. All in all, I don't think that anyone could have planned a better finale dive for us. 

3. Cruising Companion--I know I have mentioned this before, but it's so bloody important that I have to mention it again. I really lucked out in the cruising companion category. Most of you know that Lynn set out on this adventure on a wing and a prayer. This was my dream and she had enough love for me that she was able to lay aside her concerns and give it a shot. The flip side of her reluctance has been for me to watch the pride she now takes in her seamanship, in her distance swimming, and in her snorkeling. I think she has become a believer in this lifestyle, and that sure makes this a whole lot more fun for both of us. 

4. People--We've met some amazing people along the way. Kathy and Dave who have been aboard Aeolus for 6 years (Dave teaches school on St. John; Kathy is a park volunteer and Leinster Bay ambassador of good will), Laura and Bill who, with their 2 teenage sons, are close to completing a circumnavigation, and Bonnie and Adrian, a wonderful Dutch couple that are now on their way to Trinidad aboard New Life. Like I said, amazing people have opened their boats and their hearts to us. 

5. Pictures--I don't really know why, but we didn't take many. Maybe when you are gone as long as we have been, some of the novelty of the moment is gone. Next year I'm going to bring my 35mm camera down and take some great shots. Call me a fuddy-duddy, but it doesn't feel like real photography to me if you don't have a Minolta in hand. 

So, where does this all end? Well, hopefully it doesn't. God-willing, we'll be back next year for more adventuring. What this does mean is that we will seeing you soon (we get back June 8). 

It wouldn't be right to end this without a big thank you to Danielle for setting up the blog site, and for editing and maintaining it. This was a wonderful gift, Danielle; you have earned a permanent crew position aboard Gustie. 

Other thank yous are due to all the kids, and their spouses, and our grandbaby, Addy. We like to think that there were times when you may have wished to have us around. Also to thank is Lynn's sister, Gerry, who watered our plants, took in our mail and generally watched over our condo from her nest above us at the Aberdeen. Barb and Pat, also at the Aberdeen, generously did favors for us while we were gone. We know it doesn't work in perfect symmetry like this, but we hope to make it up to you in the next six and a half months.
It's been fun!

Bittersweet Goodbye

Steve and I are at the tail end of our wonderful first cruise of the Virgin Islands. As odd as it seemed three months ago to leave land and live on a boat, it now again seems strange to be leaving the boat for land. Life is just one big conundrum. We are anxious to get back to our St. Paul kids and our lovely granddaughter Addy. We are also looking forward to resuming our friendships with those of you back home. After this experience, we do wonder if we will fit into what we once called normal life back in the Twin Cities.

We are busy little bees preparing the boat for storage on the hard. We weren't able to reserve a pit to put her in throughout hurricane season so she will still be on land but will be on those stilt-like devices, up high. She will be more vulnerable to wind but we have no choice in the matter. Mold and insects are the other enemies of a boat left on land in the heat and rain. To prevent mold, I have washed Gustie thoroughly with a vinegar and water douche. Steve will wrap his tools and other metal objects in rags wetted with oil. None of our food can stay on board over the summer. Canned goods can explode from the heat and packaged foods can be infested by roaches and other sweet but naughty creatures. We have done a good job eating most of our supplies and last night gave away the rest of our dried food. Bringing a duffle bag full of food is a unique hostess gift when arriving on another's boat for cocktails! 

Speaking of other boat people, over the past two weeks, we have had the pleasure of being guests aboard two beautiful large sailboats. In another entry I spoke about Laura and Bill. They are the couple who circumnavigated with their two teenage boys. Fortunately, we again found their boat anchored in Benure's Bay on Norman Island. We immediately swam over to chew the fat. The next night they showed up in their dinghy, minus the boys, for sunset drinks. Pulling up on the side of Gustie, they looked like an ad in a cruise ship catalog. Laura had on a stunning red tank top and matching sarong and at the head of the dinghy, she was poised as she held a shimmering glass of white wine. The next morning we enjoyed lattes and homemade banana bread as their guests. Their 62-foot Deerfoot sailboat is in near perfect condition. It is hard to believe it has circumnavigated the world three times as it almost sparkles. Their handsome boys put us to shame with their sailing acumen and not only that, it appears they really pitch-in around the boat. Their oldest son is close to becoming an eagle scout and both boys recently received their scuba certification. Mathew, who just turned seventeen, is hoping to go to Annapolis eventually. They have been home-schooled the past year as they traveled around the world and I give Laura and the boys enormous credit for taking on that challenge.

Last night we had cocktails on board Kathy and Doug's boat. I may have talked about them in the past as well. They are volunteer bay hosts in Leinster Bay and do a great job informing newly arrived boats about marine life in and around the water. The pamphlets they give cruising guests tell us also about the critters we may observe and how we may take care of the earth and water so the bay life can thrive. Their 60-foot schooner is almost their full-time home. For three months of the year they have to rent a house on St. John while the weather if iffy. Doug has been teaching math in a private middle school on St. John for the past six years. Kathy takes him to the shore every day at six a.m. in their dinghy so Doug can stroll on a park trail to his car and on to school. He loves teaching and after spending time with him, I certainly wish I had had engaging math teachers when I was in school.

Kathy loves living on the boat, and to complete their lives, they own a wonderful mutt named Hope. How they came about Hope is a blog entry unto itself. To summarize things, Hope was originally owned by an old man who didn't give a rip that she ran wild day and night and didn't eat three squares. She became dependent on visitors staying at a bed and breakfast and often slept on their vacation beds. They would feed her scraps to keep her going. Eventually she made friends with Doug and Kathy and they would find her sleeping under their car in a parking lot. She persisted in finding them and eventually, when the mean old man was leaving the country for some time, Kathy asked him if they could watch her while he was gone. He was glad for the offer and when he came home he never asked to have her back. Since then, Hope has been their little volunteer helper. She rides at the head of the dinghy wearing an official volunteer bandana around her neck as Kathy makes host visits to newly arrived boats. It is really too cute for words! 

Kathy has just about convinced me not to put toilet tissue down the head. Although I have disposed of tissue in waste baskets in public toilets, it's a big step for a city girl to make in her own home. The lime build up in our pipes could eventually cause big problems when paper consistently goes through the system. Well, I will just pretend I am in the Peace Corps and go about my business in a new way. I hope our future guests will jibe with possible new plan. Like Laura and Bill's boat, Kathy and Doug's 60-footer is spacious to the max. Their life aboard makes ours seem like camping. Can you imagine? They have an actual living room with sofas! To add to this picture they have several cabins for guests or crew and the flooring in these cabins is parquet teak. It is a very swank setting and they again like Laura and Bill, care for it with love.