Just Liming......

Francis Bay, St John looking west at St Thomas

One day melts into another here on St. John, USVI.  Life is an easy blend of lobstering, beaching, hiking, lunches ashore, minor boat projects and socializing with other cruisers. As this is the dry season, everyday is nearly the same with bright blue skies and puffy white clouds; with the obligatory afternoon spritz. The climate here during the winter months is ideal....daytime highs in the low 80s and night time temps is the low 70s.  (In contrast, the temps at night in Grenada don't drop below the mid 80s !)  If it were any easier here, I would be comatose !!  As Paul Simon sings, "we get all the news we need from the weather report".   As winds and sea swells change, boats are moved from the west side of the island to the southern anchorages and then back again.  As St John is a territory of the US, the postal service and rates are the same as in the continental US; making ordering supplies simple and inexpensive.  This respite in US waters has afforded me the opportunity to restock Persephone's inventory of spare pieces and parts. In addition, ATT provides cell phone service at the same rates as the US; including free nights and weekends. Being back in civilization is terrific...at least in the short term ! 

Simply, it is seductive to be on an upscale island with all the amenities of the US. It is going to be VERY difficult to peel away from this "Velcro Island" and return to the southern Caribbean; perhaps not returning to the VIs for 2+ years.  'Persephone' plans on remaining in the USVIs for about a month before starting the 500 mile trek south for hurricane season.... But, before heading south, the bottom paint must be renewed....more on that in the next posting.

Yup, plenty of cold beer aboard, looks like its going to be another great day !

Dave Goes Down with Mike......

The lobster in this story is the one
on top weighing 3 lbs 12 oz

So, there I am, Diver Dave, cruising along at 60 feet below the surface with my dive buddy, Mike. (Mike is a guest aboard s/v ‘Chimayo’). The lobster hunt wasn’t going very well on this dive….not a crustation was spotted (pun intended). We were both getting low on air, and our bottom time was limited. I was slightly ahead and below Mike when he poked me with his snare. I whirled around knowing that he must have seen something. Yup, it was a nice spiny lobster hanging out in his hidy-hole…unfortunately for him, he forgot to tuck in his antenna. Mike tried to get his snare into the hole and around the lobster’s tail. No luck, the hole was just too small and the lobster was firmly wedged in. So, in a macho move Mike grabbed the lobster’s antenna next to its head. The lobster went nuts !! A steel cage death match ensued ….mano-a-mano….it’s tail flapping wildly (the lobster’s that is), sharp spines slashing at exposed flesh, face to face, NO, eyeball to eyeball the brawl continued. Neither man nor beast blinked….then again, lobsters can’t blink… (just go with it, I’m on a roll here)… The lobster wriggled as far back into its hole as it could with Mike still holding it’s antenna. Mike was literally up to his shoulder in the hole. I was slightly above Mike and blinded by the bubbles from Mike’s SCUBA gear as the death match continued. Which one was going to emerge from the hole victorious ? At this moment it was dead even; or perhaps the lobster was slightly ahead on points. Finally, Mike is able to drag the agitated animal far enough from it’s hole for me grab it from behind. In the open, the lobster had more room to flail its tail in a last ditch effort to escape; Mike holding dinner from the front and me from behind. The lobster’s spines penetrated my gloves as the lobster drew first blood. Although it was two against one, the lobster was beginning to wiggle free. Instantly, Mike jumped him and wrapped himself in the fetal position around the pissed lobster. Picture a football player falling on the ball after a fumble in a protective curl…that was Mike. Immediately, I opened the catch bag and we stuffed the still battling bug inside. DONE !!

     With the few hundred pounds of air in our tanks, the three of us slowly made our way to the surface. Thankfully, the dinghy was only a few hundred feet away. Later, back on ‘Chimayo’, beer and bugs were served for dinner with friends. What could be better?!…

     “Excuse me, could you pass the drawn butter”….”another coldie, Dave” ? You bet !

NOTE:

((Geoff on "Beach House" asked if SCUBA gear is legal for catching lobsters in the USVI.  The answer is yes, as long as you are using snares and not spears.  Lobsters are plentiful here, so the restrictions are limited, even in the National Park.  Mike is in the US Coast Guard and was assigned to the station in St. Thomas; so we were careful to comply with all regulations.   So com' on up to America's paradise and snare yourself dinner !!  Geoff, we'll even let Canadians in !!))

Living off the sea......

During the past week, "Persephone" has teamed up with the crew of  "Chimayo" for an all out lobster safari.  In the USVIs you are permitted to use SCUBA gear and snares to capture the spiny critters.  Since last Tuesday, we have been averaging at least one dive per day, and on several days we have done double dives.  We have been diving so much, we had to get a special package rate for 25 tank refills  at the local dive shop (final cost was $5/refill).   As of yesterday, the count was 13 lobsters captured; the largest was snared by Mike (sv 'Chimayo') weighing 7 1/2 pounds !  Mike literally had to wrestle the beast into the catch bag. (None of us had a pot large enough to steam him !!)   Most of the tasty crustasions have been in the 3-4 pound range...not the small 2 pounders seen down island.  For the past week,  the menu has been 'lobster anything lobster everything'....lobster dips, lobster plain, lobster mac and cheese, and lobster hors d'oeuvres.  Sunday is 'pasta night' aboard 'Persephone', so Debbie made up homemade lobster ravioli for Sunday dinner.  Mike and Crystal  of  'Dancing Dolphin' are living and working on St. John to replentish their cruising kitty and joined us for dinner. Each of the boats brought a dish to share.  There was so much food, we were all stuffed as much as the ravioli !!   Thanks, Debbie !!  (It was a bit confusing as 'Chimayo's' guests are also conincidently named Mike and Crystal !!)

It hasn't been all hunting...last nite, we managed to enjoy a few sundowners on the beach at Francis Bay, St. John, USVI----->

From L to R:  Mike, Crystal, Bob, and Debbie of s/v 'Chimayo; Janice
and Steve of s/v 'Sailacious' and of course 'Diver Dave' 

THE CRUZATEERS

St Thomas, USVI

CA Harbor

On Thursday, Persephone motored  (there was no wind for sailing) the 10 miles from St. John  to Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas.  CA is the capital of the US Virgins, and the #1 cruise ship destination in the Caribbean. Enough said ??

So, why is Persephone in a tourist trap?  One reason...the shopping.  NO, not beads and bobbles; but supermarkets, Home Depot, and K-Mart. It was time for a major reprovisioning.  We haven't had access to "American Stores" since leaving Puerto Rico two years ago. (literally !)  You know that the credit card is in trouble when you can see the bottom of the freezer, or when you start to weep when you enter Home Depot !   It has been three days of solid shopping, and shopping some more....

But, before you start feeling bad, there has been lots of partying also.  We met up with  friends on "Foggy Mountain, who have been here for about a week.   "Chamayo" arrived Friday morning and on Friday afternoon, the radio crackled announcing the arrival of "Sailacious".  Plans were immediately made for burgers ashore.  The eight of us had a blast at a local waterhole.

Last night, the party was aboard 'Persephone.  The "Cruizateers" (named coined by Janice of 'Sailacious') were back together.  Mohitoes were the specialty drink of the night served aboard....an entire liter of rum was gone by the third round !  The "Cruizateers" were the "Hangoverteers" this morning !!

The sun sets on Charlotte Amalie

The shopping is done, so it is time to leave CA.  Tomorrow morning 'Persephone' will leave St. Thomas and return to the serenity and sanity of St. John...not for the benefit of THE CREW, but for my Credit Card !!!



Not to

Paradise Found....

For those of you freezing your butts off up north, here is a Post Card for you from Francis Bay, St. John in the  US Virgin Islands....

And for those you who are still working....please keep it up !  I received my first Social Security check last week, and I need you to keep paying your taxes to help support this lifestyle !!  (And a special 'thanks' to D. Grover)  Off to pick up dive tanks this morning....gotta run.

Diver Dave

Paradise Lost......

Twenty years ago,  friends and I rented a charter boat for a 10 day sail around the British Virgin Islands.  Again, ten years ago, I was crew aboard s/v 'Pride' for another visit to the BVIs.  On both visits, the BVIs were relatively uncrowded, natural, and beautiful.  I have always joked that Cane Garden Bay, Tortola, BVI  is the magnificent beach where God goes for a 3 day get a-way !

Last week, 'Persephone' returned to the BVIs.  What a disappointment !  The place is over-run with tourists and worse...hundreds of charter boats.  Cane Garden Bay is (was ?) a large, white sandy, crescent shaped beach which Jimmy Buffett beautifully describes in song.  The Bay is now jambed with twenty-two (yes 22!!) beach bars//tee shirt-junk shops built right on the sand at the waters edge.  In front of each junk shop are white plastic beach chairs three and four rows deep; which rent for $5 USD per day.  There are literally HUNDREDS of these chairs littering the beach.  Think of the seating at an outdoor cathedral for hundreds of pasty white sun worshippers. (You can actually hear them sizzling in the tropical sun as they try and get a deep tan in a couple of hours.....I want the a Solarcane distributorship for CGB alone...I could get rich, quick !!)   "Where do all these people come from"  I asked ?   I learned that passengers of huge cruise ships are bussed from Road Town across the island to CGB for day trips.  The place is just over-run with the 'condo-commando' types serenaded by a cacophony of different, loud music from each of the 22 junk shops.  Just a nightmare !!

So,  we put CGB astern vowing never to return and circumnavigated Tortola clockwise to find less crowded harbors and good snorkeling areas.  Each and every harbor is now wall to wall mooring balls...set up primarily for the charter boat industry; which rent out between $25 and $30 US per night !!  What a rip-off !!  Simply there is no room to anchor as the prime anchorages are a carpet of moorings at outrageous prices.  The place is so crowded, you can't get away from the crowds even while snorkeling.... 

"Hey, Harold !!...I don't see no fish here"!!  "You dragged me here to see d' fishes" !!  'I told you that we should have gone to Miami" !!   Even the fish are disgusted and have left the crowds !!

So, we decided to move on to Norman Island in the southwest corner of the island chain; hoping to lose the crowds...wrong !  "The Bight" at Norman is a deep,  V-shaped anchorage with a great beach. When we arrived, again we found the entire anchorage carpeted with mooring balls....well over 100 !  Once we hooked up, I started counting charter boats from companies such as Moorings, Sunsail, and Horizons.  I conservatively counted 81 chartered boats in this ONE anchorage...all willing to pay big bucks for moorings and beers ashore.  (With 81 charterers boats in one anchorage in one night....how many hundreds of charter boats are plying the BVIs ?)   The charter business is a HUGE industry in the BVIs which has swallowed the natural beauty and laid back nature of the island.    What is left is a floating trailer park with a Disney atmosphere.  We couldn't wait to GET OUT...or should I say escape !!  We will never return to the BVIs; there is NOTHING there for cruisers. 

On Sunday, Persephone fled back to the sanity of St. John.  What a relief to be free of the maddening crowds of charterers.  Two-thirds of St. John is a US National Park.  Although there are mooring balls in most of the bays, they are very limited in number, and affordable ($7.50 per night).  As St. John is US, the hordes of charters in the BVIs  must clear US Customs to enter St. John and then re-clear back into the BVIs.  Most charters are unwilling to clear in and out of customs, so St. John remains relatively free of the hordes of charterers.  There is such a stark contrast between St. John and the BVIs....one is a shining example of resource management through the US Parks system versus the unregulated commercialization of  an entire island nation by the charter industry. 

For once, the US really got it right by preserving our chunk of paradise in the Caribbean !!      

d' Plane, d' Plane.....

After several small (and annoying) boat projects at St. Marin, the 'Persephoneies" were hanging out at Barnacles;  the local cruisers bar for happy hour.  Our friends, Bob and Debbie (S/V "Chimayo") suggested, "tomorrow afternoon, let's go to the Sunset Beach Bar at the end of the airport !"  Now, Bob and Debbie are both retired air traffic controllers so I figure that they are just missing being near airports....   "Why do we need to go there....we can drink pretty cheaply right here..." I questioned.  (Presidente Beer were only $1.
25)   "No, we HAVE to go and watch the planes land and take off !!"   Ok, I relented.....thinking they were both jonesing for an airport fix and we would be the enablers.   

The next afternoon, off we went to the Sunset Bar....little did we know that the bar was nearly ON the runway !!

The beach is right at the end of the runway...The planes are literally landing 50 yards away.  The bar has a chalkboard posting the schedule of the landings and takeoffs.  In the late afternoon, the jumbo jets start arriving from Europe.  I it amazing watching these monsters landing only yards away !  Then,  there are the takeoffs....!   The planes sit at the end of the runway reving up their engines.  The jet blast is so strong that traffic stops (see car above) and people on the beach run up and hang on to the fence so they don't get blown into the water....REALLY!  It's NUTS !!  The yellow umbrella in the photo above is about to go airborne into the water....

This is the jet blast......

You can see the blowing sand, and the people hanging onto the fence getting sandblasted as the planes spool up their engines.  In fact, I think some of the pilots put on a show by increasing and decreasing the RPMs several times before takeoff just to please the crowd.

The bar had speakers strategically spaced tuned to the tower frequency so that we could hear the air traffic controllers....Bob and Debbie were in their glory !   We had a great afternoon; and I actually thought about    hanging on the fence during a takeoff of a jumbo jet...but, nawh...didn't want to get sand in my beer !!

Brings a whole new meaning to the term True Grit !  

The Persephoneies