December 2^nd, and here, sailing off St. Vincent it is 82 degrees like it always is.

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I’m Having the most beautiful time, but of course my feelings are mixed up like they usually are. I’ve been pretty happy for a couple days though, especially yesterday. I can’t let myself feel bad at a time like this, while staring across the water at a massive tropical volcano… I’m just so hungry all the time! Maybe I’m a little homesick too, and I’m craving freedom. Living on a boat is awesome, especially among friends, but functioning always as a team is hard, and at times it can feel like prison. Still, sailing the Caribbean I feel like I’m fulfilling some deep rooted dream. This is a long held desire of mine, so this feels right. This would probably be better if I had my own boat… but that’s a lot of responsibility… I’ve watched a rainstorm consume the volcano while writing this. I’m happy, but I think I might like to spend some time living in the rainforest and get some solitude for a while.

We’ve spent the last two days on the small island of Bequia. This place is an independent country called St. Vincent and the Grenadines, consisting of the large, rugged island of St. Vincent, and then a chain of small and lovely islands: Bequia, Baliceaux, Mustique, Canouan, Mayreau, Union Island and Carriacou. Those are the Grenadines and just the names are magic. Someday when I come here on my own boat, I’ll spend more time exploring the remote corners of this place.

The three ships, Joshua, Goma Rota, and Shalom sailed from Carriacou to Canouan one day and spent a peaceful night there. In the morning, I ran all over the tiny island. I climbed a mountain gazing out to beautiful views of jagged Union Island. The water was turquoise, and Canouan remains undiscovered by modern day society. There were no shops, just a small open air market with fruit. There seemed to be no cars and the people were friendly as always, all standing and walking around the small town center by the market at 7AM. My joy from seeing the exotic sights went uncontained to my friends, and it wasn’t long before the International Crew took off sailing like we always do. We set course for Bequia.

The night in Bequia’s harbor was serene like no place I’ve ever been. We were completely surrounded by lights which twinkled on the mountainside, and lights from the sailboat masts which reflected in the water like bright stars. It was possibly the cleanest water I’ve ever seen there in Admiralty Bay, like a rich turquoise glass. It was so clear we could see the sea floor at night in the moonlight. We watched strange fish, or plankton, or jellyfish (whatever it was) glow green slithering and transforming before our eyes in the water.

The morning in Bequia began with a rainbow, and the day which followed was a rare and perfect kind of day like a gift from God. I ran with Silvia, through a sun shower and towards another rainbow. We ran to a viewpoint and turned around, the ran through the town and up a large mountain. From there she had to turn around to go back and cook our classic breakfast. I usually help cooking too, but not today! I decided to skip breakfast and continue the rampage on foot.

Immediately after parting ways a man gave me directions to the “best view on the island,” a place called Spring Top. I kept running when a truck full of people pulled over to talk to me, said good morning, and when I told them my plan they let me hop in the bed of the truck for a ride to the trailhead! Before I knew it they were pointing me down the most peaceful ridgetop, and I hiked through jungle to the fantastic overlook. It showed St. Vincent gloriously, looking out over Bequia and beyond in the other direction. I ran from the summit, down the mountain on steep and crazy roads to get totally lost, find a mysterious beach and eventually hike/run back to town.

I was running because I didn’t know what time it was, and Silvia was coming to get me strictly at noon. Then, I found out it was only 9:30! Hooray, so I hiked off in the other direction through the most quaint and colorful mountainside neighborhood, feeling the balmy breeze as it rustled though the tropical flowers and jungle all around me. Ladies carrying laundry through their steep yards with children all yelling good morning as I walk passed. Every islander I met took a moment or two of my time to chat, I must’ve met three dozen people in Bequia! One lady told me to walk up to Camel, so I did.

The view was marvelous and at a house at the top I met a guy who showed me the trail to the summit. Then he decided to hike it with me, and he was a very cool guy. I continued hiking down the opposite side of the mountain on the peaceful, quiet road, when a passing truck offered a ride. It’s a good thing I took it, because it was actually a very far walk back. I made it back by 11, in time for ice cream and to meet my friends as they roamed town. Two mountains in one morning it was turning out to be a great day!

But then I was stopped by a man named Jefferson. He was an old seafaring man, a bit homeless/ crazy, and he pulled me away from my group of friends with his arm around my shoulders. Apparently he had seen me wandering around this morning, and he introduced me to his cousin who he said was in love with me. So I sat with them on the ground, puffing their peace pipe, and then Jefferson gave me a small, beautiful Barracuda steak. This I accepted with much gratitude, seeing as how I had skipped breakfast. Jefferson then tried to give me money! I completely refused it and gave it back to him. Eventually, he kidnapped me and my friends to take us to the local bar. We walked passed a woman’s house who was yelling to us out the window,

“Do not interfere with him! Do not walk with that man! He is a bad man!” she said.

“Shut up you black bitch!” Jefferson yelled back. “my ex-lover,” he said to us. He brought us back to his family’s house where we met all his family and sat on the porch through a torrential rainstorm where he assured us we’d always have a home in Bequia.

So that was my magical morning, then 6 of us went day sailing on Goma Rota! It was an energetic and perfect sail as always on that boat, and we anchored in a pristine bay on the south side of the island. Petra and I snorkeled on a reef, saw the third rainbow of the day, and then swam to a huge stone castle built into the mountain. We climbed up to it and went inside to find out it was someone’s house (we thought it was old ruins). The lady gave us a tour of the place, she had an incredible view of Isle Quatre and Mustique. After, we swam back to Goma Rota and during the sunset sail back, Petra, Francisco and I witnessed it for real – The Green Flash!!! What an ending to the day and I’ll never forget Bequia.

Anyway… I write this from bed at the breathtakingly beautiful anchorage in St. Lucia at the foot of the twin volcanoes, the Pitons. We sailed here from Bequia today, and when I began to write this blog entry along the coast of St. Vincent I was feeling low. Then the storm hit us and at that same moment we caught an enormous dorado! I reeled it in and killed it with the winch handle. The wind became wild, the storm coincidently slamming us at the same moment as the fish came, and the raging sea joined us in the cockpit. The four of us were beyond thrilled to have meat! I was just complaining to myself about being hungry, so God sent me a fish. We danced to the reggae music and sang, we fileted the fish and sailed harder than ever. Then a massive rainbow and it’s double erupted directly in front of us clear from one horizon to the other. It was bright enough to make a landing directly into the ocean in front of us, and the water was so crystal clear that the rainbow continued below the ocean’s surface.

That evening, darkness came to the distant Pitons in St. Lucia while we sailed to them, and the lights from Soufriere twinkled majestically. I fell asleep like the dead while still sailing…So, while I do experience many emotions out here, overall this trip has been one of the best of my life. Looking forward to climbing a Piton tomorrow!