Day by Day Adventures
You arrive St Lucia and venture along a mountain road to the stunningly beautiful Rodney Bay to meet your fellow crewmembers. You learn about your 46-foot sailing catamaran and then we cast-off, raise the mainsail, and head to Anse Cachon reef for a quick orientation dive. We explore the beautiful reefs of Anse Cachone, where large groupers and a sea floor of garden eels await us. Have some fun stand up paddleboarding (super) in the calm, protected anchorage. Next you learn Drift Diving at 'Supermans Flight', a high-current coral wall underneath the Pitons in the SMMA marine park, then relax with a hike through jungle-covered botanical gardens for a soak in the volcanic hot springs.
You sail on your first blue-water passage to St Vincent, usually accompanied by a pod of dolphins playing in our bow wake, and arrive at the Soufriere volcano. We look up at the rim of the caldera for a view of primordial Earth. St Vincent has spectacular wall dives including the lava flows of 'Mystery Reef' where you may find camouflaged frogfish, batfish, flying gurnards, and more, we even dive through a bat cave! Anchor and spend the night in the most beautiful place known as Petit Byahaut Ashore we explore the Pirates of the Caribbean movie set and hike to a beautiful waterfall. You learn about Night Diving and nocturnal marine life as well as conducting underwater research activities on coral reef and fishes and contribute to conservation projects. For those interested, we begin our optional Freediver training, learning relaxation techniques as we turn on our 'mammalian diving reflex'.
The Grenadines offer us many small keys with rolling hills and picturesque villages. We visit Bequia, a relaxed island with gingerbread-trimmed houses and home to the traditional fishing and whaling industries. The diving in the Grenadines is exciting, with encounters of large pelagic fishes and pristine reefs. We explore throughout the many islands, diving, hiking, and watersports as well as shopping and a few visits ashore to eat amazing local cuisine. You continue developing your freediving skills, learning to easily and comfortably hold your breathe for three minutes or more and breath hold dive to over 60 feet!
The Tobogo Cays are the quintessential postcard-perfect paradise with palm-lined cays and white sand beaches. We assist the Tobogo Cays Marine Park rangers with REEF surveys as we explore this horseshoe shaped barrier reef, and watch hawksbill and green sea turtles forage in the shallow sea grass beds. Venturing ashore we spot wild iguanas and tortoises. We are getting quite adept at Freediving, with new skills you never thought possible! For the adventurous, try your luck stand up paddleboarding in the calm waters behind the reef. We dive at the remote bird nesting colony at Sail Rock where spotted eagle rays and sharks glide overhead. You are learning quite a lot of the running of your catamaran and can now navigate, trim the sails, anchor, and watch the helm while learning all about sailing and seamanship.
You will investigate bioluminescence during night dives and witness the changing of the guard of the reef fishes from the diurnal herbivores to the nocturnal predators as we dive some of the worlds best reefs. Learn a bit about digital underwater photography as we continue our investigations in marine biology. Analyze the feeding habits and life cycles of the coral reef fishes and learn about fish count methods, transect lines, and other tools of marine research. The reefs here are optimal for perfecting fish identification while exploring their unique niches and behaviors. In the southern Grenadines we dive the Sisters, Big Blue, and Kick 'Em Jenny, which offer fantastic opportunities to see pelagic fishes, swim in underwater caverns, and look over the abyss. The sailing is fantastic, and we are becoming quite accomplished sailors.
The diving ramps up the excitement upon arrival to the 'Spice Island' of Grenada. Dive in an underwater art exhibit of hundreds of statues as you investigate the world's largest underwater sculpture garden. We have a choice of a few more amazing shipwrecks to dive before heading ashore towards the fragrance of nutmeg, ginger, and cinnamon. Beautiful mountainous Grenada has rich culture and history to discover as we explore quaint colonial towns, visit Fort Frederick high in the mountains, and shop in traditional straw markets for unusual gifts. We have explored an arc of the Caribbean, contributed to reef conservation, and made great friends! For those still seeking adventure, you may optionally go zip-lining through the rainforest canopy. Lastly, enjoy a farewell pizza party ashore.