British Virgin Island Trip - June 1997
In June of 1997, 41 intrepid souls flew out of Houston headed for the British Virgin Islands. We were all either members of the Port Arthur Yacht Club or guests of members. We had 11 large sailboats chartered and planned to spend the next week exploring the Islands. Our boat, the Loft, was captained by Ed Painton. A very close friend and although everyone on board had extensive sailing experience, he was the most experienced of the group. Other members of the crew consisted of Terri, myself, Tim Ledet, Andie Duquette, and Ed's sister-in-law, Norma Ann Tidrow. We had an absolutely great trip and we plan to do it again. The only thing I'd do differently is to bring half as many clothes and twice as much money. Its a little expensive down there.
Our illustrious Captain. Ed Painton. Notice his waterproof cigarette case around his neck. This man is serious about his cigs.
Here is my charming bride at the wheel of the Loft.
Tim Ledet at the wheel. Ed and Norma Ann relaxing. Yep, Ed has his cig.
Now we have Andie Duquette driving.
Before we left the states, we had shirts made up for the six of us on board the Loft. We weren't sure we'd remember everything so we thought we might solicit some help.
This bird was not a happy camper. I caught him while feeding him crackers with one hand and snagged him with the other. When I released him he sat on the water beside the boat and sulked. Funny thing was, before I caught him there were probably a hundred gulls eating crackers out of our hand. After I released him, none of the others would come close anymore.
Here's a shot of "the Baths" on Virgin Gorda. Kinda different. There were some over-hangs and arches to go through.
One more shot of "the Baths". I thought this rock looked a lot like a whale breaching.