Simply the Best. *Independence day sail*

[robhil]

We arrived in St Thomas via the Celebrity Millennium. Arrival in port was approximately 7:00 am and we were off the boat by 7:25.

 

For us this was our best day in a port. We decided to pass on the ship board excursions and we went with an independent day sail. For $115.00 per person we hooked up with Pat on her boat the Independence. Let me tell you this lady knew how to treat a group of people. Her boat allows for 8 people in total. So with her and Ray, probably one of the most knowledgeable surfer dudes you will ever come across, we joined 2 other couples for a day of sailing.

 

We caught a cab at the pier and for a price of $11.00 pp one way we arrived at Red Hood for about 7:55. A quick walk around this harbor and up to Molly Malone’s for a cup of coffee and a tea. For once we sat down with out any food.

 

We still had about 30 minutes to kill so we took the time to walk through the different docks and then we just sat down and relaxed. Believe me this was nice.

 

We left Red Hook at 9:00 on a beautiful sail boat and headed for St John. The day we went out the wind was strong and the waves were high. But as one who gets motion sickness easily it was never an issue. You quickly learned that our Captain Pat knew how to not only work the boat, but take full advantage of the wind.

 

Once we reached our dive site we hit (heaven) the coral was beautiful, the fish were plentiful, the water was perfect and we had plenty of snorkelling time. Only three rules. Don’t touch the coral. Don’t swim off on your own. And don’t touch the coral.

 

Surfer Dude Ray made sure to show us everything we wanted at the first dive site. He would dive down and point at the coral, the fish and anything that one could think of as interesting. He would then come up and give us the details. After about an hour or more it was time to get out. (By the way I would love to describe the color of the water for you but I can’t. You can send me an email and I can send you some pics or answer any specific questions at notlih@canada.com)

 

From there we had the most delightful and satisfying lunch, washed down by some of the smoothest rum punch possible. Pat prepared it all while we were in the water. We then had some rum cake, emphasis on the rum.

 

From there we went to another inlet where we were off to find a sea turtle. Ray has a turtle friend named Cecil and we were looking to be introduced to him. Prior to finding the turtle we came across a bed of Konch’s (I don’t know about the spelling) Ray piced some up and showed us how to tell the evolution of one. After that we went looking for a turtle. Half the team found one, while the other half spotted a nice size sting ray.

 

It was now time to head back so that we would all make it in time for our Debarkation. Note we were out from 9 – 3:30, with lunch and drinks included and an effective tour guide for the same price as a 4 hour excursion offered on the boat.

 

Now to tell you how expert a captain Pat is. As I said I do get motion sickness easily, and the water was rough. Her sailing technique was so good that I fell asleep on the stern of the boat for the trip back. How I don’t know as I only had 1 drink but this boat moved smoothly for me.

 

Trip back to the Cruise liner from shore was another $11.00 pp and took about 20 minutes. This left us time for some great shopping in the port of call we enjoyed the most.

 

Thanks Pat

 

If you want to find out more please feel free to contact me at Notlih@canada.com, or contact Pat directly, www.independence44.us, or write to Pat at independence44@pocketmail.com and let her know I sent you.

 

Rob Hilton

Barrie, Ont.