Delta 1: Day 6 – Cooper Island
Written by Megan Deevy, Mate
Greetings! We are currently moored off the shore of Cooper Island Yacht Club. The group of comrades on the Torne Vessel have bonded closer and closer each day on board this ship. There have been numerous laughs, nights under the stars, and new learning opportunities everyday. Living on board a 46 foot boat is quite an adjustment. The kids are learning skills that will challenge them and shape them along the way. They are adapting the methods of cleaning, ocean showers, boat terminology, and just the act of living in close quarters amongst 13 other people. It really bonds a group quite well!
The past two days have been the scuba diving portion of our trip. On board our boats, we have kids getting their open water certification, their advanced certification, and kids doing discover scuba diving (DSD). Today we sent off the advanced divers to a fun dive around the area of Cooper Island. One of our divers claims to have seen 6 sharks! Including nurse sharks and black tip reef sharks. Our open water divers continued their skill practice in the confined water this morning, then got to have their first fun dive this afternoon. The discovery scuba divers enjoyed their intro to diving by learning some safety skills then getting to do a low intensity dive in the afternoon as well. For our friends not diving, they partook on a hike on Salt Island. We hiked up to a viewpoint of the channel and got a brief history lesson on the salt pond that beamed below our view. We practiced anchoring skills with high winds in the Salt Island Bay prior to the hike.
The kids are gaining many skills on board our Sail Caribbean boats. There will be learning curves, but they are getting opportunities and friendships of a lifetime. We ended the day today with a Sail Caribbean tradition – the Chili Cook off. Every boat chooses a theme, costume, and decorations while preparing whatever type of chili they desire. Four special judges come around and watch the show they put on with the chosen theme, and rate their chili. Our boat chose the theme of a red-neck wedding, which as you could imagine was very lively and entertaining. Wherever you may be reading this from, the Delta Fleet staff wishes you well from the waters of the British Virgin Islands. Helms a Lee!
