Following the departure of our father and Uncle Larry, we are now a crew of two. After exploring the town of St. George and the city of Hamilton, we have established the locations of key facilities for survival on the island. Among these:
- A lagoon of broken rocks and coral less than a mile away is sufficiently hidden from the golf course and hotel on the hill for us to bathe. Though somewhat protected from strong winds by boulders and large coral formations, the water is still of the cold Atlantic variety. The shallowness of the pools, however, allows the sun to heat the water to a just tolerable level.
- The public bathroom is but a few paces from the dinghy dock, which makes it easy to motor over from the boat. Besides the obvious upgrade in comfort from our vessel’s head, it also limits the amount of waste we pump directly into the bright blue waters of our harbor.
- Small tourism offices in St. George and Hamilton offer free dixie cups of water, a hugely precious commodity on the island. A gallon costs nearly $3 in supermarkets, so we have curtailed our consumption, and a free, cold cup is a boon on hot days.
We’ve managed to repair the autopilot and port-side running light, which readies us for the next passage south to Antigua. We celebrated that success last night by grilling up two steaks, opening a $15 bottle of Merlot, and settling the meal with two fine Cuban cigars. It was a true indulgence, and one not likely to be repeated due to the prohibitive costs of everything on the island(e.g. the US$40 hamburger on the menu at a restaurant in Hamilton). Our ever-helpful grandparents have sent us the charger for our camera’s battery, and once it arrives, in about a week, we will leave at the first open weather window.