Lake City, MN. Dragonfly is a sailboat again!

Yesterday, Kathleen and I had our first sail aboard Dragonfly since 2022, before this blog was created. We’ve cruised more than 4,000 miles over the past three years with the mast and sails in storage, and quite honestly, enjoyed being a powerboat more than we expected. But it was time to be sailors again, and we went out on Lake Pepin on a warm, gorgeous afternoon in light southeast winds and full main and genoa jib. Everything still worked, nothing (major) broke and we more or less remembered what to do. 

Dragonfly is now berthed in the Lake City Marina, a 635-slip municipal facility. The harbor was first opened in 1934, and its dedication was attended by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Map link: Lake City Marina.  Hansen’s Harbor, our former home on Lake Pepin and the location of our 2023 Great Loop departure and send-off party, was sold in February, following the unexpected passing of third-generation marina owner Allen Hansen. The site is now Pelican Point Yacht Club and Resort, and we observed significant redevelopment efforts on the grounds when we drove past yesterday. We thoroughly enjoyed our four summers at this marina and were saddened to hear of Allen’s death at the too-young age of 55.

Source: Visitlakecity.org

Bonus Question: Do you know the common names for the following medical conditions?

A. Sigmatism

B. Circadian disryhthmia

C. Cephalalgia

D. Sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia

Lake City, MN (population 5,200) is 65 miles southeast of our home in St. Paul and is located on Lake Pepin, a 40 square mile natural lake on the Mississippi River. The lake was named after Jean Pepin, a French explorer who settled here in the late 1600s, and the name first appears on a 1703 map of New France. Lake Pepin sits in a valley carved out by the last ice age, and was created when sediment from the Chippewa River dammed up the Mississippi and backed it up for 22 miles. Besides Lake City, a large part of the Minnesota shoreline belongs to Frontenac State Park, a 2,600 acre collection of river bluffs, prairies and forests with excellent trails, campgrounds and picnic facilities. The Wisconsin side is home to the villages of Maiden Rock, Stockholm and Pepin, which was our first stop in September 2023 after leaving Hansen’s Harbor. Post link: https://dragonflyboating.blogspot.com/2023/09/first-stoppepin-wi.html

Lake Pepin was the site of one of the largest maritime disasters on the Mississippi River, when the ferry Sea Wing capsized in an 1890 storm, killing 98 people. In 1922, Lake City native Ralph Samuelson invented the sport of water skiing, using a pair of boards and a clothesline—towed by his brother, Ben, at about 20 mph. Samuelson spent the next 15 years teaching waterskiing and performing in shows from Michigan to Florida. A large bronze statue of Samuelson is on display in a park adjacent to the marina and Lake City celebrates Waterski Days every year on the last weekend in June. 

Ralph Samuelson statue

Bonus Question Answer: 

A. Sigmatism = Lisping

B. Circadian disryhthmia = Jetlag

C. Cephalalgia = Headache

D. Sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia = Brain freeze

Acadia National Park, Maine

Thursday, May 21: Kathleen, Danielle, Jay and I left Boston at 9:15 AM, fought our way through the heavy city traffic and drove three hours north to Augusta, ME. Fun facts: Maine is the only U.S. state with a one-syllable name and the only state that borders exactly one other state (New Hampshire). Bonus Question 1: Which two states border the most other states? Hint: They touch each other (answer at end of post). 

Augusta (population 19,000) is the easternmost state capital and the third smallest capital city. Bonus Question 2: Which two state capitals are smaller? (answers also at end of post). Portland was Maine’s first capital city, but was considered too far south, and Augusta replaced it in 1827. The attractive statehouse was constructed of locally-quarried granite, hauled here by teams of oxen. After touring the building, which was mostly empty, we ate a picnic lunch in the 20-acre Capitol Park across the street on a sunny but cool and windy day. Map link: Augusta, ME

Number 32 on my state capitol quest!

Next we drove two more hours to Trenton, ME, arriving around 4:00 PM. Jay and I went grocery shopping, we ate dinner at our Airbnb, and spent a quiet night in. Our rental is on the west bank of the Jordan River, a tidal estuary which flows into Mt. Desert Narrows and the Atlantic Ocean. The tidal range here is a whopping 11 feet, big enough that you can see the moving water level in real time during the roughly six-hour cycle. The photos below show the change in the shoreline from high to low tide. Map link: Trenton, ME

At low tide you can walk out to the island behind
the trees on the right

Friday, May 22: We awoke to a beautiful, chilly morning, with blue skies, a moderate northwest wind and 47F outside; cool enough to need our bedroom space heaters. At 8:45 AM, we drove about 30 minutes to Acadia National Park, the first American national park east of the Mississippi River. Established in 1916 and renamed Acadia in 1929, the park encompasses about half of Mt. Desert Island plus many smaller islands and is one of the top 10 visited national parks in the country. The natural beauty, variety of activities and proximity to big population centers are the main reasons for Acadia’s popularity and the park does not disappoint. Its mountains, valleys, beaches, headlands, woodlands, lakes, streams, ponds, ocean vistas, hiking trails, and a 45-mile network of historic carriage roads draw more than 4 million visitors annually. Map link: Acadia National Park

Our first stop was Sand Beach and a hike up to Great Head, once the summer estate of Louisa and Herbert Satterlee, who received the land as a wedding gift from Louisa’s father, J.P. Morgan. We took in the spectacular views of the nearby islands and coastline from the summit, then descended to Sand Beach and ate lunch at the trailhead. Next we took the Ocean Path south to Thunder Hole, a natural blow hole, although it was low tide and there was no thunder. We continued on to Otter Point Overlook before we pooped out, got our car and drove back to Trenton. After showers and a little recovery time, Danielle and Kathleen drove to nearby Ellsworth and an L.L. Bean outlet store, then we all went to dinner in Bar Harbor, enjoying excellent Mexican food outdoors at Salsa Verde Grill, followed by ice cream on the Village Green in chilly 50-degree weather.

Thunder Hole

Saturday, May 23: Kathleen and I were up before 6:00 AM on another clear, cool day. We went through our morning routines (coffee/tea, Wordle, Waffle, crossword, etc.), then read and watched the tide go out, a mesmerizing and peaceful experience that became a new ritual. After breakfast, the four of us drove to Seal Harbor, where we rented bicycles and rode into Acadia National Park to ride on the carriage roads. Built for horse and buggy riding between 1913 and 1940 by philanthropist John D. Rockefeller, Jr., one of five children and the only son of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller, Sr., the 45 miles of crushed stone trails are an enjoyable and popular way to see the park’s interior. Only bikes, pedestrians and horses are allowed, motorized vehicles are forbidden, and the system is very well marked. We completed the 9-mile Jordan Pond Loop, which was hilly and challenging in places, but mostly fun. After our ride, we ate a picnic lunch at the crowded Jordan Pond House, a teahouse and restaurant serving vacationers since the 1870s. We returned our rental bikes, then hiked part of the way around Eagle Lake, a beautiful, unspoiled lake under the shadow of 1,530-foot Cadillac Mountain, the highest point in the park and one of the tallest peaks on the Atlantic seaboard. 

We stopped for groceries on the way back to Trenton, then ate in again. Our dinner preparation was interrupted by a large red fox hunting in the meadow behind the house and we all gathered around the kitchen window completely captivated. After our meal, we played Azul, a favorite board game, then watched Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Blake Edward’s 1961 hit movie based on Truman Capote’s novella. The movie was critically acclaimed and a commercial success, but out of the all-star cast of Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard, Patricia Neal, Mickey Rooney and Buddy Ebsen, only Hepburn was nominated for an Oscar. Composer Henry Mancini won an Academy Award for Best Musical Score and his classic song “Moon River,” performed by Hepburn, won the Oscar for Best Original Song as well as a Grammy for Song of the Year. 

Eagle Lake

Carriage roads

At Jordan Pond

Sunday, May 24:  We had a slow morning, and passed the time watching the tide and the birds—in less than three days we’ve counted more than 20 different species on the property. We drove to Bar Harbor and walked along the Shore Path, a public thoroughfare that crosses private land, then continued across the namesake “bar” of Bar Harbor. The rock and gravel strip out to Bar Island, which is part of Acadia National Park, uncovers at low tide and is a popular day hike. Hundreds of others had the same idea and the bar and island trails were very busy. On the island there are warning signs to mind the tide tables so you don't get trapped on the uninhabited island; there’s also a phone number for a water taxi if you want a rescue, or you can just wait the 6+ hours until the next low tide. After the walk back to town, we ate lunch at Side Street Cafe, then shopped at the Village Green Craft Fair before driving to Southwest Harbor, in a less-busy section of the park. There we hiked the Flying Mountain and Valley Cove Trails, seeing only three other groups on the trail. We returned to our Airbnb, made dinner, played Code Names, another favorite game, then read until bedtime. Map link: Bar Harbor and Bar Island, ME

The Shore Path

Balancing Rock

The bar at low tide. The dark line of seaweed at
Danielle’s feet is the high tide line,

Village Green Craft Fair

Lobstah pawts in Bah Hahbah

Monday, May 25 (Memorial Day): We woke up to light rain, which turned to steady rain for the first half of our drive back to Boston. Rather than take the interstate, we traveled on the more scenic U.S. Route 1, which runs 2,370 miles from Fort Kent, ME, on the Canadian border to Key West, FL, and connects most of the major cities on the East Coast. We stopped for coffee in Rockland and lunch in Portland, where the rain stopped and the skies cleared, allowing us to stretch our legs in a nearby city park after eating. Traffic wasn’t bad as we approached Boston, and we returned to Danielle and Jay’s around 4:30 PM. After resting and unpacking, we ate dinner, watched Jeopardy and Taskmaster on television, then read until bed.

Bonus Question 1 Answer: Missouri and Tennessee both touch eight states, including each other. See map below.

Number of states bordered by each state

Bonus Question 2 Answer: Montpelier, VT, population 8,000, is the smallest state capital city, followed by Pierre, SD, population 14,000. 

Road Trip: Rhode Island

Kathleen, Danielle and I took a quick trip to Rhode Island, the state where Kathleen and I lived briefly and the site of our 1988 wedding. We first stopped at the large, attractive state capitol in Providence, sharing the atrium and hallways with a number of school groups touring the building. Completed in 1904, the statehouse is made from Georgia marble and boasts the fourth largest self-supporting marble dome in the world, after St. Peter’s Basilica, the Minnesota State Capitol and the Taj Mahal. Map link: Providence, RI

We drove south for another 30 minutes, stopping at 8025 Post Road in North Kingston, the house we rented in 1988 and the location of our wedding rehearsal dinner and reception. Not surprisingly, it has undergone significant improvements since then, but the lines, bones and location were all recognizable. We stopped for lunch in the nearby Village of Wickford, enjoying the shaded deck and sea breeze at Wickford on the Water restaurant in the 90-degree heat. Map link: Wickford, RI

Next we crossed the Jamestown and Newport Bridges that span Narragansett Bay to Aquidneck Island (the original Rhode Island) and the city of Newport, population 25,000. Famous for being a sailing center and summer resort for the wealthy, Newport hosted the first U.S. Open tournaments in both tennis and golf and every America’s Cup sailing regatta from 1930-1983. It was a major hub in the slave “triangle trade” of early America, where Caribbean molasses was distilled into rum, which was then exchanged for West African captives. Today Newport is home to Salve Regina University, the National Sailing Museum and Hall of Fame, Naval War College, Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Naval Supply Corps School and Naval Station Newport, where Kathleen did her surface warfare training and where we were married 38 years ago next month. Our first stop was The Breakers, a 70-room, 138,000-square-foot mansion completed in 1895 as a summer “cottage” for Cornelius Vanderbilt II. The Breakers is the grandest and most-visited of a dozen Gilded Age mansions that are open to the public, most along the Cliff Walk, a 3.5 mile National Recreation Trail with stunning views of the historic properties and the ocean. The northern terminus of the Cliff Walk is at Easton’s Beach, which we visited briefly, but the stiff wind and chilly air coming off the ocean limited our enjoyment. Instead we strolled through Downtown Newport, with its waterfront wharves, hotels, restaurants and shops, until it was time to head home. Map link: Newport, RI

It was a two-hour drive back to Boston, interrupted by a vicious line of thunderstorms that brought thunder, lightning, heavy rains and road flooding. By the time we arrived at Jay and Danielle’s at 7:00 PM, the rain had stopped and the skies were clear. After dinner, we watched Jeopardy, and were excited that one of the questions on the show was about The Breakers in Newport!

Bonus Content: It’s Walter Cup and Stanley Cup playoff time and I am watching as much of the action as my schedule allows. Ice hockey is by far my favorite spectator sport and is unique among sports, in my humble opinion. There are also many peculiar and little-known NHL rules and regulations—here are some of them:

1. The Blood Rule: To improve player safety and minimize the spread of infectious disease, players must leave the ice if they have blood on their jerseys. The rule applies regardless of whose blood it is. 

2. The Two-Stick Rule: Players may not carry more than one stick. They cannot pick up a dropped stick and pass it to a teammate or carry a replacement stick without dropping their own first. 

3. The Gretzky Rule: From 1985-1992, the NHL forced teams to play 5-on-5 rather than 4-on-4 during coincidental penalties, specifically to limit Wayne Gretzky and the Edmonton Oilers’ dominance on open ice. 

4. The Jersey Tuck Rule: Players may not tuck their jerseys into their breezers, so that player names and numbers are always visible and hip pads are not exposed. Famous former “tuckers” were Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals and Wayne Gretzky, who superstitiously tucked in the right side of his jersey before every game. 

5. The Brodeur Rule: Established in 2005, a trapezoid behind each goal limits the area that the goalie may play the puck. It was implemented to prevent talented puck-handling goalies, specifically the New Jersey Devils’ Martin Brodeur, from playing the puck in the corners on dump-ins, which limited offense and scoring. 

Other Goalie Rules: Teams may only play one goalie at a time. Goaltenders must use white tape on their sticks, to allow refs to see the puck better. Goalies may not leave their sticks in the crease when pulled in an empty net situation. The Emergency Backup Goalie (EBUG): Teams typically roster two goalies, and in the event that both are sick, injured, or otherwise unable to play, a local player is hired to fill in. Each NHL home team is required to have an EBUG in the stands—they are typically local amateurs, former college or junior hockey players or recreational league goalies. It is rare that EBUGS ever play, but it does happen, and has resulted in some legendary moments in professional hockey. David Ayres, a 42-year-old Zamboni driver and former American Hockey League goalie in Toronto, filled in for the visiting Carolina Hurricanes in February, 2020 and was credited with the win when the ‘Canes beat the Maple Leafs. He is in the NHL record books as the oldest goalie to win his regular-season debut. 

BVI sailing: AIRSHOW redux

It’s not unprecedented, but rather unusual that I ever sail on the same boat twice when chartering. Now, it is expected in the British Virgin Islands, with my standing invitation as First Mate aboard AIRSHOW, John McSherry’s (Mick) Leopard 4200 three-cabin sailing catamaran in The Moorings’ fleet. Here’s my trip report from our latest voyage:

Tuesday, May 5: Mick and I were up at 3:00 AM to catch a 5:30 AM flight out of Cincinnati, OH. The main airport serving Cincinnati is actually in Northern Kentucky, about 13 miles from downtown, and the airport code, CVG, comes from Covington, KY, the nearest town when the airport first opened. We planned to fly to the islands a day early, as the availability of standby seats was better and it would give us time to check on the maintenance punch-list for AIRSHOW. We connected through Atlanta to St. Thomas, USVI, without any issues, and were feeling pretty smug and satisfied by flying standby for free, one of the perks of Mick’s employment with Delta Airlines. In St. Thomas, we had to wait more than hour for the ferry to Tortola, BVI, then cleared customs and arrived at The Moorings base in the early evening. Mick and I stowed our seabags, then explored Road Town on foot, looked for a restaurant, but didn’t find anything to our liking and went back to The Moorings casual dining restaurant for dinner. 

Towel art on our bunks

Wednesday, May 6: We slept until after the 5:45 AM sunrise, then Mick did charter/owner business and checked up on the yacht’s maintenance and repair items. The main issues were a leaking barbecue grill and an inoperative wind instrument, which the base maintenance folks got to work on. It was later in the spring than we’d ever visited here before and while the air temperature was in the mid-80s, about the same as on previous trips, the dew point was an oppressive 74F, far more humid. 

Starlink antenna above the helm
spoiled us with satellite internet  

We shopped for provisions at several grocery and liquor stores to get most everything on our list, then awaited John Prosen and Tim Chisser, our last two shipmates and Mick’s neighbors in Hayward, WI. When they were settled aboard, we went to the base’s pool bar for a complimentary rum punch, then ate a spectacular dinner at Charlie’s, The Moorings’ fine-dining restaurant. Map link: The Moorings, Road Town, Tortola, BVI

Tropical humidity, as seen in the grocery store coolers

Thursday, May 7: I awoke at 6:00 AM; it had rained overnight but I slept through it. I was the last one out of the bunk, and Mick, John and Tim were already at the helm training. We had coffee and tea aboard, went to the Island Roots Cafe on the base for breakfast burritos, then met Chartermaster Brad for our pre-underway checkout aboard Airshow. There were two more maintenance items that kept us at the dock: the cabin’s forward door latch fell off last night, and the starboard jib car broke during our morning orientation. Both were fixed within an hour or so, then we cast off the lines at 10:30 AM in 83F temperatures and a 15 mph east wind. We beat upwind into a light chop on the Sir Francis Drake Channel, known as Freebooters’ Gangway during the Golden Age of Piracy in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. The waterway was later named in honor of Drake, the most renowned privateer of the Elizabethan era. 

Bonus Question: What are the differences, if any, between pirates, privateers and buccaneers? (answer at end of post)

Mick set our initial daily speed record of 6.4 knots, we ate sandwiches for lunch underway, then motor-sailed past The Dogs until we arrived at the entrance to North Sound, Virgin Gorda. Around 3:30 PM, we picked up a mooring ball between Saba Rock and Bitter End Yacht Club at the far east end of the harbor, then called Rum Runner, a floating drink delivery service based in the Bitter End mooring field. Mick discovered them on his last trip in March, and had the silicone souvenir cups to prove it. Orders are taken over the phone, radio or by flagging down the delivery dinghy (which we did), then the frozen drinks are made to order in a solar-powered, soft-serve ice cream machine aboard the mother ship and brought to your boat, typically accompanied by rescue dog Drake or Sandy. After our ice-cold Rum Runners and Bushwackers, we swam and relaxed before taking our dinghy ashore to Saba Rock Resort, where we had a dinner reservation. Set on a one-acre island, the resort has been around since the 1960s, and includes a marina, waterfront restaurant, bar and sunset deck, spa, guest rooms, old phone booth, aquarium, and nautical museum, complete with a 16th-century boat anchor. Map link: Saba Rock, North Sound, Virgin Gorda

Rum Runner delivery w/ Sandy

Saba Rock Resort

The view from our dinner table

Friday, May 8: The trade winds blew steadily all night and the boat’s motion was familiar and made for easy sleeping. Our tank water tasted off before we left port and we were trying to use it up quickly, contrary to the cruising norm of always conserving water in the tropics. Another tenet that we willfully violated was running our watermaker in the mooring field. Many ports have dirty water that will clog the system’s membranes, but we were in 30+ feet of clear-looking water near a channel open to the Atlantic with few other boats around, so we went for it. John made eggs and sausage for breakfast, and we were entertained by watching the local diver conduct mooring ball maintenance. 

We got underway at 9:15 AM and motored a couple of miles to Prickly Pear Island for anchoring practice. The anchor didn’t grab on our first attempt and Mick heard a metallic noise coming from the port side when the engines were reversed. Concerned that there was a problem with the port engine, transmission, or sail drive, we called The Moorings base, and got their on-call North Sound mechanic to come check it out. Like our trip in January, the response time was impressive (less than 30 minutes) and we were relieved, and more than a little embarrassed, to get the diagnosis—the noise was coming from our barbecue grill. Before we left Road Town, the leaking grease tray had been replaced and the grill remounted to better clear the dinghy davits, but now something was rattling inside while the boat backed up. We probably could have figured this out for ourselves, but the mechanic was good-natured and also relieved that he didn’t have to do anything further. We resumed our anchoring drills, then went sailing, broad and beam reaching, with Tim tying Mick’s 6.4-knot speed record. 

Our intended anchorage for the night, Lee Bay on Great Camanoe Island, was attractive and deserted, but a foul odor coming off of an upwind pond quickly drove us away—John unofficially renamed this location “Loo Bay.” Our next choice was White Bay on Guana Island, but it was crowded and the mooring balls were too close together, with a significant risk of hitting another boat. Plan C was to anchor at Monkey Point, but we had to avoid coral heads close to shore and stay out of the way of the national park day moorings. We were careful and patient, finding a nice sandy spot in 12 feet of water, and when we snorkeled over the anchor, it was dug in textbook-style and guarded by a small yellow ray. Teachable moments: Always have a Plan C when cruising, and include it in your morning crew briefing. And inspect your anchor, if possible, to ensure that it’s set properly. Some late-afternoon rain squalls rolled through, a few boats came and went from the park moorings, and one tied up for the night (illegally)—I was somewhat irked by this but minded my own business. I’m pretty sure that we had a great evening, played Farkle (a dice game), Mick mixed drinks and made something delicious for dinner, but I really can’t remember. Teachable moment: Take better notes for the blog. Map link: Monkey Point, Guana Island

Ready to drop anchor

Rain squall, and the scofflaw that parked overnight 
on a day mooring. Yes, it’s a Moorings’ vessel. 

Saturday, May 9: It was a lazy morning, with carbon-copy weather from the day before—temperatures in the low 80s, east winds at 10-15 knots and blue skies dotted with puffy cumulus clouds. We ate yogurt, granola and berries for breakfast, then Tim and John swam in to shore near a small landing with a beach on the other side of the point. The anchor was hauled up at 10:15 AM, then we practiced some motoring drills under the protection of Monkey Point. We set sail, cleared Guana Island, and got into the open Atlantic Ocean and its two-foot seas. Mick hit a new speed record of 7.5 knots during a mostly-downwind leg, with plenty of jibing practice (“gybing” if you’re British). We stopped for lunch at Diamond Cay, enjoyed a nap, then Tim, John and I took the dinghy ashore to hike to the Bubbly Pool, a natural tidal pool with waves coming through an opening in the rocks. Map link: Bubbly Pool, Jost van Dyke, BVI. It was busy, with a large group of Americans present, but not at all bubbly, with very little surf coming in, presumably due to calm conditions and low tide. We hiked back to the dinghy, grabbed a drink at Foxy’s Taboo before returning to AIRSHOW. We motored over to Little Harbour on Jost van Dyke, picked up a mooring deep in the bay and sheltered from the waves. Mick made gin and tonics for happy hour, John cooked an amazing dinner of red snapper, pesto pasta and salad, followed by more Farkle until bedtime. Map link: Little Harbour, Jost van Dyke (Garner Bay on some charts and maps)

Sunday, May 10: I don’t remember exactly why we decided to sleep without air conditioning, but we left it off, which meant no generator running all night long. I enjoyed a peaceful night’s sleep, until the boat drifted and began banging against the mooring ball, and a passing rain shower woke me up again, but only long enough to close the overhead deck hatch. The overnight low was 77F and it stayed humid, but the steady breeze kept me comfortable and it was delightful to sleep aboard without the noise and vibration of the generator and air conditioners. 

As soon as the sun came up, the wind began building to 15-20 knots. We got underway at 8:30 AM, sailing under jib only for the five-mile hop to Soper’s Hole on the western end of Tortola. We grabbed a reservable mooring, but did not reserve it, and took the dinghy in for provisions two at a time, in case we had to vacate the mooring quickly. Map link: Soper’s Hole, West End, Tortola

We left Soper’s Hole (West End to locals) and got back into the Drake Channel between Tortola and St. John, USVI. Sailing under reefed main and full jib, Mick set a new speed record of 7.6 knots in 1-2 foot seas and 20-25 knots of wind. In the lee of Norman Island, we practiced heaving to, one of my favorite sailing maneuvers, then moored at Privateer Bay, trying out a new mooring ball pickup method—we grabbed the mooring pennant from the starboard hull rather than the main crossbeam at the centerline, which gave the skipper better visibility of the buoy on the final approach. There was excellent snorkeling at the southern end of the bay and we had plenty of free time to enjoy the water and scenery. Mick made old-fashioneds for happy hour, then jambalaya for dinner. We all played Farkle, then Mick and I stayed up late playing cribbage. Map link: Privateer Bay, Norman Island, BVI

Monday, May 11: Mick and I both logged online for the 7:00 AM BoatyBall scramble to nab a mooring at Cooper Island, probably the most popular anchorage in the islands. The excellent restaurant, cozy resort and proximity to Road Harbour make it a popular first or last night stop for a charter and the mooring reservations are typically gone within a minute. We both missed our first attempt at 7:00, but I got one on the second click and sure enough, everything was booked by 7:01. There are first-come, first-served moorings available, and they’re cheaper, but knowing you have a spot is comforting, and you aren’t watching the clock all day to get in early enough and not know for sure. It’s also safer, having witnessed (and participated in) boat drag races through the mooring field to get the last vacant buoy. 

At underway time, Mick practiced picking up a mooring ball by himself, which he made look easy, then we raised the sails. We turned northeast and beat upwind into a stiff 15-25 knot breeze in the Drake Channel, getting plenty of tacking practice and AIRSHOW pointing closer to the wind than I expected. Speed records were repeatedly smashed, topping out at 9.4 knots with yours truly at the helm.  

The vertical red lines on the jib are reef
points for higher wind speeds

At my request, we did a close approach of uninhabited Dead Chest Island, a legendary location in BVI pirate lore. The story goes that the pirate captain Blackbeard (Edward Teach) marooned a group of his men on the island as punishment, with nothing but a cutlass and a bottle of rum each. Thirst and hunger eventually drove those that hadn’t killed each other to escape by swimming to nearby Peter Island, but all drowned and washed up on the beach, known as Deadman’s Bay. The tale allegedly inspired Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous pirate shanty from his 1883 novel, Treasure Island:

Fifteen men on the dead man's chest—
...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!
Drink and the devil had done for the rest—
...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!

In fact-checking this story, I found no evidence that any of it was true, and couldn’t even verify that Blackbeard ever sailed in the Virgin Islands. Furthermore, charts existed with the name Dead Chest Island long before Blackbeard’s time—the name coming from the island’s profile, which somewhat resembles a coffin, called a “dead man’s chest” by seafarers. As for Stevenson, I found it far more probable that his novel—and the fictional peg-legged, parrot-toting antagonist Long John Silver—inspired the Blackbeard tale, rather than the other way around. It is also widely believed in the BVI (and promoted by the Board of Tourism) that nearby Norman Island was the inspiration for Treasure Island, which is possible, although Stevenson never visited any part of the Caribbean. Map link: Dead Chest Island, BVI

Dead Chest Island (center) and Deadman’s Bay (right)

We tied up to our BoatyBall, ate a late lunch, napped, swam and showered. Later we dinghied ashore for drinks at the Cooper Island Beach Club Rum Bar, followed by an amazing dinner with outstanding service at the club’s restaurant, probably our favorite place to eat in the islands. Back on AIRSHOW, we played more Farkle and enjoyed gin and vodka tonics before turning in early. Map link: Cooper Island Beach Club, BVI

Tuesday, May 12: Our alarms went off at 5:45 AM, and we cast off of our BoatyBall before 7:00 AM, arriving back at The Moorings base when they opened at 8:00 AM. We quickly offloaded, debriefed and caught a taxi to the ferry terminal for the one-hour ride back to St. Thomas, passing Little St. James Island, now infamous as a major location in Jeffrey Epstein‘s underage sex trafficking network. Map link: Little St. James Island, USVI

At the St. Thomas airport, we encountered the slowest and most frustrating security experience that I’ve ever had. The line wasn’t that long, but it took almost three hours to get through the USDA agricultural and TSA screenings, even with Pre-check. The area was hot, humid and overcrowded, the line moved slowly and people were on edge, worried about missing their flights. Airport officials advise passengers to arrive three hours before their flights, which seemed ridiculous for such a small airport, but we saw firsthand that it was sound advice. Because of the ferry schedule, three hours wasn’t possible for us;  2.5 hours was, and Mick and I missed our intended flight to Atlanta by 10-15 minutes. We arrived at the gate, watched the plane roll away and checked in with the gate agents about getting on the next flight. Things looked good, until they didn’t—the plane wasn’t full, but it was overweight, and couldn’t take extra passengers, Our only chance was if ticketed passengers were delayed by the slow security line and missed the flight, and I felt awful hoping for that outcome. It happened, and as we investigated other options to get off the island, our names were called. John and Tim were on the same flight and all four of us agreed that this was a terrible experience and that we would avoid flying out of STT airport again. We had a tight connection in Atlanta, and after saying goodbye to our shipmates, Mick and I made a mad dash through ATL’s huge facility, making it to our Cincinnati flight with about ten minutes to spare. We returned to Mick’s place in Kentucky around 10:30 PM, microwaved some White Castle sliders for dinner and went straight to bed. 

Casting off at Cooper Island

Making everything shipshape

Bonus Quiz: Test your knowledge of the seas (answers at end of post)

1. What sea does not touch any coastlines?

2. Which sea is really a lake? Hint: It’s extremely salty.

3. What modern sea is now nearly dry?

4. Where is the Sea of Serenity?

5. What do you call a lover of the seas and oceans?

6. What were the original “Seven Seas”?

More sunset pics:

Bonus Question Answer: A pirate is anyone who robs or attacks ships at sea. A privateer was a state-sponsored, quasi-military marauder licensed by a government to attack and plunder their enemies. Privateers occasionally violated their orders and seized vessels of nations not designated in their commissions, blurring the lines between privateering and piracy. Buccaneers were a type of pirate specific to the Caribbean. The name was derived from the French word “boucan,” an indigenous meat smoker. The original buccaneers were nomadic hunters on the island of Hispaniola who sold preserved meat to ship’s crews. When the Spanish tried to drive them out in the 17th century, the “boucaniers” turned to piracy and preyed on Spanish ships. The term was eventually Anglicized to its current spelling. 

Bonus Quiz Answers: 

1. The Sargasso Sea in the North Atlantic is bordered entirely by oceanic currents rather than land masses. It contains the islands of Bermuda and is recognizable by its bright blue water and yellow-brown floating Sargassum seaweed.

Source: Wikipedia

2. The Dead Sea is a landlocked, hypersaline lake bordered by Jordan, Israel and the West Bank. It contains 34% salt, 10x more than the ocean, and lies 1,443 feet below sea level, making its shores the lowest land on earth. Map link: The Dead Sea

3. The Aral Sea on the Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan border, began shrinking in the 1960s, when water from feeder rivers was diverted for Soviet-era irrigation projects. By the 2000s, it was 90% dry and its 1,100 islands gone. Map link: Aral Sea

Aral Sea before and after. Source: Wikipedia

4. The Sea of Serenity is located on the visible face of the Moon. It is a smooth plain, about 420 miles wide and was the site of the Apollo 17 landing in 1972.

Sea of Serenity (circled). Source: Wikimedia Commons

5. A thalassophile is a person with a deep love and emotional connection to the water. The word comes from the Greek thalassa (sea) and phile (love).

6. The phrase “Seven Seas” dates back to as early as 2,300 BC and was popularized by the ancient Greeks, who mainly sailed the Adriatic, Aegean, Black, Caspian, Mediterranean, Red Sea and Persian Gulf.