Location: Great Harbor, Peter Island
At a time when all other campers were deep in slumber, and the moon shone a silver cast on the ripples of the Caribbean Sea, students on Good Times were awaking from sleep and stirring with excitement. The hand on the clock was nearing 3 am, and our plan to get back at the boat “Second Wind” was in full swing. With our pranking materials prepared (tampons and pads dipped in a mixture of tomato sardines and ketchup, leftover risotto, and other plans in hand), our counselors, Mac and Jake, corralled a few of us into the dinghy to make our way over. Once on the boat, we executed our carefully orchestrated plan, taking some of their PFDs (personal flotation devices), pocketing sunglasses, messing up their couches and sail lines, spreading the tampon concoction, and retrieving peanut butter, Nutella, and their silverware. The exhilarating operation went by quickly, and we rushed (ever so stealthily, of course) to climb down the side of the boat into our getaway dinghy so that we could do a very loud victory lap around Second Wind to let our presence finally be known! We celebrated with peanut butter and Nutella sandwiches once back on our own boat, Good Times, before we fell back to sleep to replenish our energy for our otherwise busy day ahead. Around 4 hours later, the sun and sound of “Makeba” awoke us from our quite short sleep, prompting us to put our PFDs on and prepare for our departure from our anchorage from Sandy Spit. Our trip to Westend consisted of a modge-podge breakfast of cereal and oatmeal and a relaxing-ly windy ride of basking in the morning sun on the hard top. Excited to explore the area when we arrived, we buzzed off the boat and into the shops of West End, buying souvenirs and snacks and sipping smoothies along the Dock. After a few fun-filled hours on the shore shopping and spending time with friends, we returned to our boat to head to our first dive location of the day: The Wreck of Willy T. The story of the wreck was unique, as it was a floating bar that went down during Hurricane Irma, which was then moved to a different location post-sink and embellished with sculptures to become a diving attraction. We equipped ourselves with our underwater cameras and descended, not knowing how much of a blast we’d have exploring the wreck and observing the sculptures. Next on the agenda after the Wreck of Willy T was a dive specifically for the Dolphins. We spent time together socializing and relaxing before heading to Great Harbor Peter. Here, the Dolphins completed their final research dive while the Neptunes stayed on the boat to prepare one of our favorite meals, “Mexican Night”! Dinner was delectable, and almost everyone went for seconds. After we finished eating, Soul Rebel joined us so that a few students could go for a makeup night dive while others prepared a Birthday Cake for Emily! Although our day has been honestly crazy, we are still full of energy and are savoring every last moment together as the trip slowly comes to a close. See y’all tomorrow for another day of sunshine and shenanigans!
PS. Dad, listen to Concrete Jungle by Bob Marley. It’s really good.