Bravo 1, Charlie 1, Delta 1, Foxtrot 1, and Sierra 1 Day 4: Village Cay Marina… Our 1st Docking!
Day 4
Another beautiful morning in the BVI! The sun made its way over the Marina Cay movement stirred onboard as crews awoke for the day ahead. Breakfast was prepared and boats sat together to enjoy their morning meal and discuss the day ahead.
First on the docket for our group, a snorkel at Marina Cay’s lively Diamond Reef. Unfortunately, due to jellyfish numbers, the snorkel of the reef is now postponed to a later date. But, that meant more time to hone in our sailing skills! Crews mustered together to drop their moorings and head out to the channel and hoist their sails and head to Village Cay Marina.
As Village Cay is downwind from Marina Cay, students refreshed their knowledge on points of sail and learned some a new skill to accompany their downwind path… jibing. Jibing is a sailing maneuver in which a sailing vessel heading downwind turns its stern (back of the boat) through the wind, which then causes the wind to exert its force from the opposite side of the vessel.
With their newly learned skill, our vessels made their way down the channel practicing their new technique until it was time to drop sails and prepare for our first docking at Village Cay. Students huddled together to learn the docking procedures from their captains and mates. Once crews were all set with their positions for docking, vessels waiting for their dock instructions from our Fleet Captain, Adam Grant. One-by-one, boats made their way into the channel and onto the dock. As all lines were made-fast (secured), crews cheered in celebration as they realized what they had just accomplished.
With the celebration over, it was time for a boat clean. But not just any boat clean, a DEEP clean! As they say, a clean boat is a happy boat. And a happy boat makes for happy Captains and Mates! Students hooked up the freshwater hoses and gave their boats a good scrubbing, tidied up their rooms, and made sure all the dishes glistened and were stowed away.
From working up a good sweat from the clean, it was time for showers and dinner prep. With dinner now secured inside our crews’ bellies, it was time for staff to reveal a special desert to help celebrate a successful day… ICE CREAM! After a well deserved treat, students partook in a “boat buddy” social. Crews were paired with one other vessel in the fleet to mingle and socialize with. As we were in our last day of quarantine, students weren’t able jump off their boat to mingle with their paired boat buddy, so the interaction was held from everyones home vessel. The great part about being on the docks was we were right next to each other, even though we had space between. Some buddy pairs played games of charades and even a competitive round of Pictionary ensued. As the evening hours grew, and eyelids began to close it was time for a quick boat meeting and and even quicker lights out.
