Sunday, July 29, 2007

Beenie - 2007-07-29

Author: Beenie
Location: Norman Island
Today Quest joined us again and we went to go visit Conrad (a very unique local of the BVI's). We had a discussion with him about everything! After that we cleaned up the area around his home. In the afternoon we went turtling with the Quest guys. Cason caught the only turtle of the day! Then we motored to Norman Island and packed our bags. In the night we had a forum and wrote 'plane cards.'
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Beenie - 2007-07-29

Author: Beenie
Location: Norman Island
Today Quest joined us again and we went to go visit Conrad (a very unique local of the BVI's). We had a discussion with him about everything! After that we cleaned up the area around his home. In the afternoon we went turtling with the Quest guys. Cason caught the only turtle of the day! Then we motored to Norman Island and packed our bags. In the night we had a forum and wrote 'plane cards.'
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Saturday, July 28, 2007

Sarah K. - 2007-07-28

Author: Sarah K.
Location: Peter Island
Today we woke up and had shore time in Road Town. There were a lot of roosters and chickens in town, but everyone enjoyed their time ashore. After that we sailed to Salt Island and hiked around the salt pond. Then we went turtling with some people from ActionQuest. We didn't find any turtles, but it was still fun. Jim had Mexican night dinner with us and then we had a cake from Lauren/Tibb's birthday and last night.

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Sarah K. - 2007-07-28

Author: Sarah K.
Location: Peter Island
Today we woke up and had shore time in Road Town. There were a lot of roosters and chickens in town, but everyone enjoyed their time ashore. After that we sailed to Salt Island and hiked around the salt pond. Then we went turtling with some people from ActionQuest. We didn't find any turtles, but it was still fun. Jim had Mexican night dinner with us and then we had a cake from Lauren/Tibb's birthday and last night.

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Friday, July 27, 2007

Conner F. - 2007-07-27

Author: Conner F.
Location: Road Town
Today was a tough but very productive day! We woke up at 7 and ate oatmeal for breakfast before heading over to do a painting project for VISAR (Virgin Island Search and Rescue). From 9:30 on we washed, taped and painted our hearts out. PB and J for lunch revived us and we got to go for a ride on the rescue dinghy as a reward for our hard work. As a treat, we then got pizza and fries for dinner, which was scrumptious! A very long and hard day, but our work paid off and the rooms we painted look great.

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Lauren D.P - 2007-07-27

Author: Lauren D.P
Location: Road Town, Tortola
Today our project was to go to VISAR (VIrgin Island Search and Rescue) to paint all of the offices for the volunteers. It ended up taking all day to complete and I'm sure the volunteer rescue squad really appreciate our hard work. We were able to ride in their rescue boat which went 50 knots and was AWESOME! After we finished up painting we all went back to the boats and Torin bought us pizza and fries! Although it was a tough day of work it was still very fun!
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Conner F. - 2007-07-27

Author: Conner F.
Location: Road Town
Today was a tough but very productive day! We woke up at 7 and ate oatmeal for breakfast before heading over to do a painting project for VISAR (Virgin Island Search and Rescue). From 9:30 on we washed, taped and painted our hearts out. PB and J for lunch revived us and we got to go for a ride on the rescue dinghy as a reward for our hard work. As a treat, we then got pizza and fries for dinner, which was scrumptious! A very long and hard day, but our work paid off and the rooms we painted look great.

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Thursday, July 26, 2007

Niki G. - 2007-07-26

Author: Niki G.
Location: Road Town, Tortola
Waking up in Sandy Spit was amazing. What beautiful scenery! Mangrove planting in the morning, then shore time in West End, more mangrove planting in the evening and lots of sailing in-between. Tonight we'll be having a Lifeworks forum (looking forward to it). Today Jakey fell in the water at the mangrove planting site and we all laughed really hard (including Jakey). We all have fallen in before and know what it is like. The mangroves are so beautiful and I'm so glad that we get to help them. My favorite thing in the BVI's is probably the bioluminescence in the water at night. If you stick your fingers in the water late at night they make the water light up and glow. It's so pretty!
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Lydia B. - 2007-07-26

Author: Lydia B.
Location: Road Town, Tortola
Today we woke up at 7am and had delicious pancakes with flakes of dark cherry flavored chocolate for Michelle's 17th birthday. Then we went over to a site called Haver's, and began monitoring and replanting mangrove trees and seedlings Lifeworkers planted 3-4 years ago. The plants were doing really well for the most part. To monitor them, we measured their growth rate and tracked them with GPS tracking machines. Then we docked at West End, Tortola got some fresh water for the boat and got a chance to get some lunch at Harbor Market. Finally, we sailed to Road Town, and went to another mangrove site. We did some more monitoring as well as some beach clean-up. We came back to the boat, had a delicious tortellini dinner, did a Lifeworks forum, and ended the night with two cakes for Michelle's birthday. One was a cookie cake and the other was a chocolate cake. Great day!
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Niki G. - 2007-07-26

Author: Niki G.
Location: Road Town, Tortola
Waking up in Sandy Spit was amazing. What beautiful scenery! Mangrove planting in the morning, then shore time in West End, more mangrove planting in the evening and lots of sailing in-between. Tonight we'll be having a Lifeworks forum (looking forward to it). Today Jakey fell in the water at the mangrove planting site and we all laughed really hard (including Jakey). We all have fallen in before and know what it is like. The mangroves are so beautiful and I'm so glad that we get to help them. My favorite thing in the BVI's is probably the bioluminescence in the water at night. If you stick your fingers in the water late at night they make the water light up and glow. It's so pretty!
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Lydia B. - 2007-07-26

Author: Lydia B.
Location: Road Town, Tortola
Today we woke up at 7am and had delicious pancakes with flakes of dark cherry flavored chocolate for Michelle's 17th birthday. Then we went over to a site called Haver's, and began monitoring and replanting mangrove trees and seedlings Lifeworkers planted 3-4 years ago. The plants were doing really well for the most part. To monitor them, we measured their growth rate and tracked them with GPS tracking machines. Then we docked at West End, Tortola got some fresh water for the boat and got a chance to get some lunch at Harbor Market. Finally, we sailed to Road Town, and went to another mangrove site. We did some more monitoring as well as some beach clean-up. We came back to the boat, had a delicious tortellini dinner, did a Lifeworks forum, and ended the night with two cakes for Michelle's birthday. One was a cookie cake and the other was a chocolate cake. Great day!
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Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Jeremy L. - 2007-07-25

Author: Jeremy L.
Location: Sandy Cay
We began today with a great hike on a little island called Sandy Cay. We then had some time to play in the water and relax on the sand before we took the boat over to Jost Van Dyke. On Jost we enjoyed lunch at the famous restaurant called Foxy's (we even met Foxy himself!). Straight after lunch we zipped over to the next anchorage where we met with Colin, the owner of a local dive shop, to clean up a garbage enriched mangrove site. The cleanup was one of our most productive projects yet and I think we made a huge difference today. We finished our day at Sandy Spit (your typical Caribbean island of just a bit of sand and a few palm trees).

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Jeremy L. - 2007-07-25

Author: Jeremy L.
Location: Sandy Cay
We began today with a great hike on a little island called Sandy Cay. We then had some time to play in the water and relax on the sand before we took the boat over to Jost Van Dyke. On Jost we enjoyed lunch at the famous restaurant called Foxy's (we even met Foxy himself!). Straight after lunch we zipped over to the next anchorage where we met with Colin, the owner of a local dive shop, to clean up a garbage enriched mangrove site. The cleanup was one of our most productive projects yet and I think we made a huge difference today. We finished our day at Sandy Spit (your typical Caribbean island of just a bit of sand and a few palm trees).

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Kelly D. - 2007-07-25

Author: Kelly D.
Location: Sandy Spit
From Cane Garden Bay we motored to a tiny island once owned by the Rockefeller's and took a nice walk around the island followed by some beach time. After that we sailed to the notorious Foxy's where we ate lunch and explored the little beach shops. Then we did a mangrove clean-up near Sydney's Peace and Love bar and grill. We then had a very informative environmental session with Colin, (who works with the government) regarding issues in the BVIs. We ended the day anchoring is Sandy Spit with the rest of Actionquest. It was a busy but awesome day!
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Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Katy L. - 2007-07-24

Author: Katy L.
Location: Cane Garden Bay, Tortola
We woke up at 5:45 in the morning and dinged over to a beach to look for turtle nests. We didn't find any so we spent some time body surfing. We then picked up anchor to go turteling in Brewer's Bay. One turtle was caught by Beanie! We then motored to Cane Garden Bay to spend the night. All in all it was quite relaxing and the sailing went really well.


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Katy L. - 2007-07-24

Author: Katy L.
Location: Cane Garden Bay, Tortola
We woke up at 5:45 in the morning and dinged over to a beach to look for turtle nests. We didn't find any so we spent some time body surfing. We then picked up anchor to go turteling in Brewer's Bay. One turtle was caught by Beanie! We then motored to Cane Garden Bay to spend the night. All in all it was quite relaxing and the sailing went really well.


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Abby S. - 2007-07-24

Author: Abby S.
Location: Cane Garden Bay, Tortola
We woke up at 5:45 and took the dingys over to a really pretty beach to look for turtle nests. When we got back to the boat we sailed for 2 hours to Brewer's Bay. We spent the afternoon tagging turtles. When Michelle and I were snorkeling behind the boat looking for turtles, we saw a huge spotted eagle ray. No one caught any turtles but it was still fun to snorkel behind the dingy. We sailed over to Kane Garden Bay, which is where we are anchoring for the night.

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Monday, July 23, 2007

Alison B. - 2007-07-23

Author: Alison B.
Location: Sommer's Beach, Tortola
We woke up at 7:15 and were joined by the shipmates from Quest after breakfast. We went turteling at 2 different locations, Lee Bay and Monkey Point. After, we met up with the rest of the boats from Actionquest and had a BBQ on the beach. We did team activities and ate hamburgers and hotdogs.

Alison B. - 2007-07-23

Author: Alison B.
Location: Sommer's Beach, Tortola
We woke up at 7:15 and were joined by the shipmates from Quest after breakfast. We went turteling at 2 different locations, Lee Bay and Monkey Point. After, we met up with the rest of the boats from Actionquest and had a BBQ on the beach. We did team activities and ate hamburgers and hotdogs.

Ella - 2007-07-23

Author: Ella
Location: Sommer's Beach, Tortola
It was a very hot and eventful day! First we went turteling which was fun, we didn't see any turtles, but we saw stingrays, barracudas and tonnes of fish. After, we had by far the worst lunch ever. It was supposed to be Mac n' Cheese, but it ended up a cheesy glob that made the entire boat nauseous. After more fun turteling we went to play games with Actionquest , that ended in a beach BBQ . Great food, and fun conversations. Overall, a great day!

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Sunday, July 22, 2007

Evan P - 2007-07-22

Author: Evan P
Location: Muskmellon Bay
Today we woke up at 7am to clear skies. The staff then went to a quick meeting while we got breakfast started. After then came back we had about an hour of shore time. Then we had a nice 30min sail in the warm blue skies to Muskmelon Bay. The ocean was beautiful and different shades for blues and greens. We anchored in a small bay near and cove and did some water sports and swarm and snorkeled for most of the day which was lots of fun. Overall it was probably on of the best days of the trip so far.

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Evan P - 2007-07-22

Author: Evan P
Location: Muskmellon Bay
Today we woke up at 7am to clear skies. The staff then went to a quick meeting while we got breakfast started. After then came back we had about an hour of shore time. Then we had a nice 30min sail in the warm blue skies to Muskmelon Bay. The ocean was beautiful and different shades for blues and greens. We anchored in a small bay near and cove and did some water sports and swarm and snorkeled for most of the day which was lots of fun. Overall it was probably on of the best days of the trip so far.

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Julia - 2007-07-22

Author: Julia
Location: Muskmellon Bay
This morning we got to sleep in until 7:30 and started cooking a delicious French toast breakfast. While the shipmates had a crazy time at breakfast, the staff left for a short meeting. We then motored over to Muskmellon Bay to meet up with all of the other Action Quest boats. Today we got a day off and spent the day water skiing, swimming, sailing, wakeboarding, snorkeling and tanning. Everyone had a fun and relaxing day in the perfectly sunny weather with the exception of a few toilet problems. For dinner, Connor and Noah made some super b chili and we all hope to end the evening with a long-awaited game of Mafia!!!
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Saturday, July 21, 2007

Sydney E. - 2007-07-21

Author: Sydney E.
Location: Marina Cay
Today we woke up to clear skies at 7:45. We sailed for 2 hours in order to get to the dock for fresh water and to do laundry. Then we proceeded to a gorgeous beach to help clean it. We then returned to the boat for showers and dinner. After an early dinner we were joined together with Actionquest for a moving talk about "living like you'll die tomorrow."

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Sydney E. - 2007-07-21

Author: Sydney E.
Location: Marina Cay
Today we woke up to clear skies at 7:45. We sailed for 2 hours in order to get to the dock for fresh water and to do laundry. Then we proceeded to a gorgeous beach to help clean it. We then returned to the boat for showers and dinner. After an early dinner we were joined together with Actionquest for a moving talk about "living like you'll die tomorrow."

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Lauren S. - 2007-07-21

Author: Lauren S.
Location: Marina Cay
Today we woke up and had cereal and oatmeal for breakfast. We then motored to a beach and did a clean up for a while. Then we came back and sailed to Marina Cay where we refilled our water. After that we showered and had chicken Caesar salad, rice, and pasta for dinner. It was delicious! Next we went ashore on Marina Cay and met up with the rest of Action Quest . We all listened to an inspiring tape which discussed everything from depression, self-identity, and family troubles. A lot of kids shared their stories in the tape. After the forum we all came back to the boat and hung out for a little bit before we went to sleep.
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Friday, July 20, 2007

Jake B. - 2007-07-20

Author: Jake B.
Location: Anegada
Today we took Tony's Taxi down to the Iguana Conservation center where we fed, measured, weighed and worked on the cages of the highly endangered Anegada Iguana. Later we went to Cow Wreck beach. We had some cold drinks and ice cream and played in the water. My personal favorite was the Chicken Fights with pretty much the whole crew playing. But always my favorite part of the day was the night when we got to just talk and hang out.

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Jake B. - 2007-07-20

Author: Jake B.
Location: Anegada
Today we took Tony's Taxi down to the Iguana Conservation center where we fed, measured, weighed and worked on the cages of the highly endangered Anegada Iguana. Later we went to Cow Wreck beach. We had some cold drinks and ice cream and played in the water. My personal favorite was the Chicken Fights with pretty much the whole crew playing. But always my favorite part of the day was the night when we got to just talk and hang out.

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Noah - 2007-07-20

Author: Noah
Location: Anegada
We woke up this morning to an overcast day that never really cleared. After some delicious eggs, we set off to visit the iguanas of Anegada. We went for some food for the iguanas and found some delicious food for ourselves, (tamarin and coconuts.) We also measured and weighed the iguanas and some one accidentally dropped one but some one saved it just in time, and then someone else got a little love bite from one of the iguanas. Finished with the lizards and we taxied to Cow Wreck beach and hung out and ate ice cream. Patrick and Lauren won the Chicken Fights, (they cheated!) It was a bit cold but then we came back to the boat and had some delicious Summer Thanksgiving dinner.
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Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Jess C. - 2007-07-18

Author: Jess C.
Location: Peter Island
We woke up at 7 this morning anxiously awaiting our shore time. After quickly eating our cereal and muffins, we dinghied over to Road Town. We got to spend about 2 hours in Road Town buying souvenirs and gelato (it was delicious!). After returning to Bigorneau we set off for about an hour sail to Salt Island. There we took a short hike to see the salt ponds and the ruins of the Rhone (ship) on the opposite side of the island. We went turtling afterwards and although unfortunately we didn't see or catch any turtles, Ella and I saw 3 sting rays (one huge one!). We then had to motor again to Peter Island and enjoyed a very yummy Mexican dinner with Mike. Apparently there's a lot of bioluminsence in the water that we will have to check out later. (sorry for the excessive amount of 'we then's' or 'after's'. today was a busy busy day!) Over and out- Jess

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Jess C. - 2007-07-18

Author: Jess C.
Location: Peter Island
We woke up at 7 this morning anxiously awaiting our shore time. After quickly eating our cereal and muffins, we dinghied over to Road Town. We got to spend about 2 hours in Road Town buying souvenirs and gelato (it was delicious!). After returning to Bigorneau we set off for about an hour sail to Salt Island. There we took a short hike to see the salt ponds and the ruins of the Rhone (ship) on the opposite side of the island. We went turtling afterwards and although unfortunately we didn't see or catch any turtles, Ella and I saw 3 sting rays (one huge one!). We then had to motor again to Peter Island and enjoyed a very yummy Mexican dinner with Mike. Apparently there's a lot of bioluminsence in the water that we will have to check out later. (sorry for the excessive amount of 'we then's' or 'after's'. today was a busy busy day!) Over and out- Jess

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Sunday, July 8, 2007

Day 20

Author: James
Location: West End, Tortola
I woke up and continued to wake up the rest of my crew. We had to make it to the top of Spyglass Hill before the sun rose. Once at the top we saw the sun break through the horizon. After sitting and watching the sun rise we reflected on the days past. Once we got back to the boat we cleaned and are now getting ready for the night activities.


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Wednesday, July 4, 2007

Brielle S. - 2007-07-04

Author: Brielle S.
Location: West End, Tortola
Today was a very productive day. We got to wake up late (7:45!). We then made pancakes for breakfast and everyone dressed up in red, white and blue. After breakfast, we sailed off to the most beautiful secluded island called Sandy Cay. After anchoring, we dinghied to shore and cleaned up the coast of the island. Then after a nice break at the beach, we headed back to the boat for PB and J. BUT, we realized that there was a shortage of jelly and eggs (we wanted to make cake tonight). So we sent 4 shipmates on a hunt for eggs and jelly. They stopped at 3 ActionQuest boats and got what we needed. We sailed to West End where we anchored and walked down the shore to a place where past Lifeworkers planted mangroves. We monitored their growth while getting stuck in the 'quicksand' mud. That was fun! So finally after a long and muddy day it was time for showers and dinner and perhaps some fireworks for the end of a great day.

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Monday, July 2, 2007

Carey G. - 2007-07-02

Author: Carey G.
Location: Lee Bay, Great Caminoe Island
This morning our crew woke up anchored in Sommer's Beach, where we had a BBQ the night before. The cooks got right to making a quick breakfast of cold cereal. Afterwards we motored over to Marina Cay to take on freshwater. Meanwhile, the crew got to go to the one small general store where we stocked up on various items. After everyone had returned to the boat we headed over to Beef Island where mangroves had been previously planted. But due to the long dinghy ride to the site we ate an early lunch. When lunch was done, we dinghied to the mangroves. There we took the GPS locations, the height, and the conditions of each mangrove. Then we picked up some trash from the beach and returned to the boat. Again we motored a shore distance to Lee Bay when we anchored, showered, and played in the water for an hour until dinner was ready. When dinner was done, a group of us made some brownies. Now everyone is relaxing after our day of many adventures.

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Sunday, July 1, 2007

Alex R. - 2007-07-01

Author: Alex R.
Location: Sommer's Beach
Today the Quest students from ActionQuest joined us for turtling. We caught FIVE turtles at Lee Bay and Monkey Point. That brings our total to fifteen, which is only two turtles away from the record of 17 turtles in one session!! After turtling, we went to a barbeque on Sommer's Beach. We did different games, like the human knot, for team building. After a great barbeque on a private beach on Tortola, we headed back to our boat for the night and enjoyed some great phosphorescence in the water behind our boat.

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