Thursday, April 28th

Well, today flew into the running as the best day yet. Started the day off with gingerbread for me and apple/pear coffee cake for Jim from Marina Market. Complemented with our very own Dunkin’ Donuts coffee that we brought from the states. “Mmm – mmm – yum” (as Rachel Ray would say).

Off to Sapphire Beach Marina to catch our 7:30 departure for New Horizons II. It was a 7:30 – 4:15 4-island excursion. 1st stop – The Baths on Virgin Gorda, 2nd stop – lunch at Pusser’s Restaurant on Marina Cay, 3rd stop – snorkeling at Guana Island and 4th stop – Jost Van Dyke for a drink at the Soggy Dollar Bar.

At the time of booking this trip, we were a little concerned that the boat might not be too comfortable (it is a 44ft. Scarab). But, we were so wrong. It had great cushioned seats, a good-sized bimini top and was very comfortable for the 18 passengers on board. We saw its sister boat, The Breakaway, loading up with passengers. We were so glad that we were on this boat. That boat was filled to the gills with 28 passengers and looked pretty crowded from our vantage point.

Good news number 2 – we were so thrilled to see that our crew mate was our very own Lauren from our New Horizons trip on Monday. She was as sweet, informative and hard working as she was on our other trip. She was awesome! Our captain was John – and he was really good, too. As on our many other adventures, we met wonderful people who made the trip even more enjoyable. It was nice to hang out with some fellow over 45ers.

First, a little side trip to St. John to pick up a couple to join our excursion. Then we started out for our hour to an hour and 15 minute fantastic cruising trip to Virgin Gorda. John and Lauren were great pointing out the islands that we were passing & doing a great job of keeping us in the know. Of course, again, our day started out with delicious breads, this time chocolate, blueberry and banana nut. And, of course, whatever you would want to drink.

After a quick stop at Customs on Virgin Gorda, we headed to The Baths. We did have to swim in, but it was really close – plus, they had us wear our fins and we were welcome to use swim boards or noodles. Using the noodles worked great. Plus, we loved getting in the water – it was beautiful there. Lauren was our friendly and knowledgeable tour guide. It was nice that there were some of us who had the same physical makeup and we helped and looked out for each other.

So glad that we didn’t miss seeing The Baths – they were really neat. The warnings were true. There is a fair amount of ducking and climbing & it was a bit snug and slippery in spots – but, well worth the effort. We had a great time. Of course, I was looking for a stand selling “I conquered The Baths T-shirts” – but, none to be had. Truthfully, it was a great stop & we had fun seeing the boulder shapes – particularly the one that looked like a whale. It was a beautiful stop – The Baths were awesome.

Next stop, lunch. Our orders were faxed in while we were at The Baths. Very well organized trip. Marina Cay is a lovely little island. The restaurant was really nice & the food was great (so was our well-deserved Margaritas). We sat around a big table with all our boat-mates and had a great lunch under the shade of the open-aired restaurant. Jim had a grilled Mahi Mahi sandwich, I had grilled chicken sandwich (a little spicy for my taste – but, good, none-the-less).

Next stop, a 10 – 15 minute ride to Guana Island for snorkeling. The snorkeling here was fabulous. Lots of Blue Tang & tons of other species of fish. Many schools of many varieties & I often saw one fish chasing another. Dozens & dozens of fish nibbling on coral & vegetation. Iridescent blue fish, black fish, striped parrotfish. We could have stayed there forever – but, unfortunately we only had about a 45-minute stop. Of course, near the end of our time, a young boy spotted 2 turtles. Unfortunately, we weren’t close enough to his location to see them. Darn!!

Off to Soggy Dollar on Jost Van Dyke. Shortly after leaving our snorkeling spot, our crewmate Lauren came around again with a little treat. A tray filled with slices of fresh fruit (cantaloupe, pineapple and watermelon). Yum, yum!

Beautiful sight approaching Jost Van Dyke. Quite a lot of boats anchored there. We have our own 19 foot bow-rider at home. So, needless-to-say, we really enjoyed seeing all the different shapes and sizes of boats there. Had a bit of a hard time locating Soggy Dollar Bar, itself, – it was nestled amongst the trees. We ordered the specialty Painkillers. They were absolutely THE BEST! Our banana daiquiris from Mountain Top still rule as #1 drink of the week – but, these Painkillers firmly hold the #2 spot. We had a great time walking on the beach & people watching. Quite a few people obviously had been there for more than an hour or so. Lots of fun & frivolity. We even found a cute little rope hammock to do a little limin’ in and to just sit and enjoy our “beverage du jour”. The funniest thing is that when we booked this excursion, the trip to Jost Van Dyke was something that we felt we could live without. But, as it turned out, even though we hated leaving our snorkeling spot – we thoroughly enjoyed out trip to Soggy’s. Great drink, great beach, great water (we got to swim for awhile) and fun people watching. Again, we were really surprised at how much fun we had!

As we left Jost Van Dyke, Lauren again, asked if anyone would like a drink. They were served in the most adorable Sippy Cups (like our grandchildren have) – but, very practical for the boat that we were in. The last culinary treat of the trip was shrimp cocktail. Boy, they make every attempt to give you your money’s worth. It is an expensive trip. But it is hard to put a monetary value on all of these new experiences. (Again, we had a discount coupon from our Budget Car Rental that helped to ease the pain, a little.) All in all, an amazing trip and well worth doing. We loved it & would highly recommend it to all!

Back to Secret Harbour – for a much loved shower. Of course, couldn’t head out to supper before one more sunset shot off of our balcony!

Decided that we had to hit Duffy’s Love Shack. (I had never eaten in a parking lot before.) It is something that all must experience. Luckily someone order a Volcano – so we got to see & hear the tribal volcano fog and music to accompany the special event. Really a lot of fun! The food was great, pulled pork sandwich for Jim & I had chicken skewers with peanut sauce & fries. Jim said that the flavor of his sandwich was fantastic & I loved mine. Great food, great prices and the ambiance was too cute – tiki torches, and all.

It was close to 9 – but, we noticed that a shop or two across the street were open. Lauren had showed us a cute little Hook Bracelet that she was wearing. The tradition is that if you wear your bracelet with the hook open away from your body – then you are “open” or looking for love. But, if the part away from your wrist is closed – then it means that your heart is already “full” or “closed” and you are taken. It sounded like a really cute idea. Lauren said that she had gotten her bracelet a Dolphin Dreams in Red Hook.

So, after supper – there we went. They had tons and tons of hook bracelets. So many different styles and the woman running the shop was so patient & helpful. I got an absolutely beautiful one – silver band with a gold, heart-shaped hook. I absolutely love it!! So, I would highly recommend this shop to anyone looking for that special hook bracelet.

This was truly an awesome day!! From start to finish! Tomorrow finally some R & R at Secret Harbour. Hoping to see the elusive “snorkeling” sea turtle tomorrow. One can only hope!!