Category: 1st Mate Forum

Inspiring, encouraging words-hopefully about our travel adventures!

Saint Lucia Land and Sea

The Pitons are unmistakably St. Lucia. The sea is unmistakably Caribbean.

January 2017 found us on a land and sea adventure with our friends, Tim and Kelly. Prone to sea sickness, it took us years to talk Tim into a sea vacation at all. However, after researching the electronic sea sickness wristband, shockingly, he was ready to jump onboard, for at least for part of the week.

The first days of our trip we stayed at Coco Palm Rodney Bay Village, in Gros Islet. This hotel is comfortable, with a nice pool, inviting restaurant, and within walking distance to the beach. That checks all of our boxes! Everyone in St. Lucia is kind and welcoming; however, our breakfast waitress was exceptionally so. After discovering Kelly’s and my love of coconut, she personally baked us a coconut cake and brought it from home! Love her!

We spent leisurely days at the beach, and every evening enjoying the sunset from Spinnakers beach bar.

Climbing a mountain and soaking in sulfur mud baths were required, well, pretty much just because Kelly and I can never pass up an opportunity for adventure.

One highlight of our trip was our visit to Millet Infant School. Through our contacts at Hands Across the Sea, we spent a day promoting literacy at a local elementary school. We handed out rubber wristbands, pencils, and fun bookmarks as we read to the students. In a kindergarten classroom, Bill read a book about animals in St. Lucia followed by a lively discussion about which animals St. Lucia and the United States have in common versus which animals are different. The students were so fun and really kept us on our toes!

In obedience to our Savior, we strive to be a blessing to others everyday-some days we do great, other days we fall short. We did great that day! We hope you will find it in your heart to promote literacy through Hands Across the Sea, or to be a blessing in another way that tugs your heart strings today.

Following our time at Coco Palm, we charted Cobain, a Sunsail 41, from their base in Rodney Bay. The boat was perfect for the four of us. We were all ready, willing, and able as we set sail for the Pitons. By “ready, willing, and able” I mean that Kelly and I chatted on the foredeck while the guys did pretty much everything else.

We spent 3 days and nights enjoying the trade winds and the starry nights. The snorkeling was fantastic! The winds were consistent, and actually a little more than we had expected, given that we had a newbie onboard. However, Tim’s bug zapper wristband worked magnificently. In fact, the only time he was even a little woozie, was the morning he forgot to turn it on.

We spent the last couple of nights on island at The Treehouse Villa 2 just outside of Soufrière. This place is literally perched on the side of a mountain, in the treetops, with gorgeous views of the Pitons as well as the sea. The house manager had prepared a traditional St. Lucian meal for us, which awaited our arrival.


A 15 minute walk down the “road”, lead us to Jade Mountain Resort and Anse Chastanet beach where we were welcomed by a refreshing dip in the sea we have become so accustomed to now. Oh, yeah, and maybe a nap.

We all had a great time in St. Lucia. So much so that even the time we spent combing the beach for Kelly’s “lost” credit card, was enjoyable. Kelly later found the card right where she had cleverly placed it-in her hat! It’s ok, a sigh of relief, an umbrella drink, and a good laugh later, all was well.

The end of our St. Lucian vacation soon became the beginning of many more sailing adventures with Tim and Kelly. Yay! We need them, and not solely because Tim is our underwater photographer…

He takes some good landscape shots, too!

Miracle at Pelican Cay


Pelican Cay Land and Sea Park is a scenic beauty to behold. Known for an impressive tropical reef system and pristine beaches, it is truly a place to enjoy God’s creation. Sit back, relax, and enjoy God’s creation from the soft sandy beach. That sounds like it might have been a good idea, except that Bill and I were sailing with Tim and Kelly.

We have been doing life with Tim and Kelly for ten years now, and love to vacation with them. On any given day, I’d describe us as reasonable people. But something exciting always seems to happen when Kelly and I are left unsupervised.

The day began aboard Liberty, anchored just west of Elbow Cay, Abaco, Bahamas. While enjoying breakfast and coffee, we planned a short sail south, past Tahiti Beach, to enjoy snorkeling in Pelican Cay Land and Sea Park. The sea breeze picked up a bit before we arrived and the water looked a little rough for my snorkeling comfort. Kelly and I decided that we would simply kayak near a small island and hang out on the beach while the guys took Liberty out a little further to snorkel.

I do have to say that Bill warned us about the possibility of breaking waves and shallow coral and the potential danger they could pose. Yeah, yeah, yeah, we are seasoned kayakers…..

Kelly and I quickly abandoned the “hang out on the beach” plan and set out to kayak over the incoming waves! It was great fun-imagine a water roller coaster. We were screaming and laughing and going around to catch another wave when I noticed the biggest, brightest, most beautiful coral I’ve ever seen. As I heard a loud roar behind us, it dawned on me that the coral was very, very shallow and the oncoming wave was very, very big. I started to warn Kelly, but the words couldn’t come out of my mouth fast enough…

All I really remember is seeing the pink, yellow, and purple coral right before my eyes! And I mean right up close! When I popped up in 15 feet of water, I grabbed the first thing that was floating nearby and yelled to check on Kelly. She had surfaced and grabbed onto the other side of the kayak, which was now upside down. Grabbing onto something that floats and checking on my buddy-can you tell that we are former Girl Scout leaders? I’m even certified in water safety, although it’s getting harder and harder to tell… Still laughing, we were somehow able to right the kayak, get ourselves back onto the kayak, and retrieve all of our belongings.

We were tired, but still laughing and still loving every minute of our adventure. We were discussing what just happened while checking ourselves for scrapes and chipped teeth. We decided that maybe Bill was onto something about the breaking waves; breaking waves mean that the water is shallow. We also decided that maybe if we had tied all of our belongings onto the kayak like our husbands always do then we wouldn’t have had to retrieve them from the sea. So we started stringing our water bottles, shoes, snorkel equipment, etc. onto a line when I heard another roar behind us. The wave was high, but I assured Kelly that we wouldn’t flip this time because we were in 15 feet of water.

Hmmm…I was wrong. We flipped again! I couldn’t believe it! A second time, we both surfaced, grabbed something floating nearby, and checked on each other. Still laughing, and now exhausted, we found ourselves in 15 feet of water, clinging to an upside down kayak surrounded by all of our belongings floating by. I guess I didn’t quite get that knot tied in time.

Here is the part of the story where I have to tell you that in normal circumstances, sufficiently rested and well hydrated, I couldn’t right a kayak and get myself back into it even if you promised me a spa day and a chocolate shake.

Merriam-Webster defines a miracle as an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs. Hmmm…I wonder…

Unbelievably, Kelly and I, again, successfully righted the kayak, hoisted ourselves back in, collected all of our belongings (and this time we tied them on) while assessing our situation. No worse for the wear-no cuts, no bruises, no broken teeth. While discussing whether or not to attempt another close up look at the coral, we decided that we better kayak toward the guys because they would surely be concerned if they had witnessed any part of our great adventure.

Paddling toward Liberty, Kelly said that we shouldn’t have flipped that second time because we were in deep water. I reminded her that Bill is a kayak instructor and I’m sure that he can tell us how to avoid that in the future. But, I suggested that today probably isn’t the best day to ask him.

Suddenly, out of no where, I hear someone calling my name. It’s Bill, swimming toward us with all of his might. Yep, they must have witnessed all of the fun. I smiled at Kelly and said, “He’s coming to rescue us. No matter what the guys say, we’re spinning this to say that we found Bill in the middle of the ocean and rescued him in our kayak.”

Home Sweet Home

Bill and I lived comfortably in a nice, normal house in a nice, normal neighborhood for the first 10 years of our marriage. We both love the adventure of travel, and carefully planned for our retirement to be, well, a little less of what most people consider “normal”.

We found The Marina at Ortega Landing (an Island Global Yachting destination) pretty much by chance. Because we love the Bahamas and the Caribbean, and wanting to facilitate ease of travel to and fro, we knew we wanted to move somewhere on the southeast coast of the United States. We first considered Charleston, South Carolina. We were familiar with the area and have friends there. (Shout out to Julie!) However, Bill became aware of an opening at The Marina at Ortega Landing after helping a friend move his boat from Charleston to Jacksonville, Florida. After a short tour, Bill reserved a slip and called to assure me that I’d like it. He knows me-I like it!

The marina boasts awesome amenities, which I love; however, it’s the community of people here who make The Marina at Ortega Landing a great place to live. But first, the amenities. The salt water pool and hot tub, as well as the deck, are always clean and well cared for. We have found this to be a great place to meet our new neighbors and swap information about boats, the local area, past and future travels, and everything else boaters like to swap stories about.

The marina has several different places where people can gather with family and friends to barbecue, enjoy dinner, or perhaps drinks topped with little umbrellas.

The clubhouse is open for air conditioned relaxation or small get togethers.

The laundry room, bathrooms, and showers are cleaned twice a day every day. I can’t say that I’ve ever become accustomed to finer facilities.

The big open field is a great place to play volleyball, fly a kite, light a bonfire, or let the little ones just run around. We plan to host our shrimp boils here.



Our new neighbors are quickly becoming our new friends. We offer hospitality by meeting up at the pool, at the barbecue grill, or at a local diner. We join each other on day sails, and bless each other in many tangible and intangible ways. My husband and I now fill our days sailing, kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, enjoying our student captains, and planning our next adventure to the Bahamas. All while happily calling Liberty “home”.

Isaiah 32:18 assures me that, as children of God, we live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.

Knowing that, I sleep well at night. Feel free to contact me with your questions or comments about full time cruising or finding rest.

November in Bimini

The tiny islands of Bimini, Bahamas, were perfect for a short get away from Nebraska in November. Nebraska in November=cold and dreary. Bimini in November=warm and beautiful. And by “warm and beautiful” I’m referring to the people, the culture, the water, and the sunshine.


At the time I was still working, so to save a few vacation days I arranged to fly in to the South Bimini Airport (BIM) and meet up with Liberty in North Bimini. That turned out to be a wise move, because Liberty, on her way from Jacksonville, Florida, experienced a weather delay. In Bimini a day before Liberty’s arrival, I checked into the Hilton at Resorts World Bimini for one night. This resort is luxury at its finest, appearing to have been dropped from the heavens right smack dab into one of the most beautiful places on earth.

After clearing customs and immigration, Liberty, captained by my husband Bill and his crew member Justin, picked me up dockside at the Hilton at Bimini World Resorts.

Captain Bill

Brown’s Marina on North Bimini became “our marina” for the rest of the trip. Brown’s Marina is the first marina as you enter Bimini Harbor. We didn’t choose Brown’s because of it’s close proximity to the ferry, customs and immigration, the straw market, restaurants and more, we chose it because the people at Brown’s extended a very warm welcome upon our arrival. That is also the reason we will return to Brown’s Marina on our next trip to Bimini.

Justin entertaining us with his ukulele

The S.S. Sapona was a concrete ship that ran aground a few miles south of South Bimini during a hurricane in 1926. It now sits in 15 feet of crystal clear water and is a fantastic scuba diving and snorkeling location. We anchored and took to the water! Bill and Justin snorkeled while I kayaked. The shipwreck is more than a little eerie, especially when one is actually inside of it, but we did it anyway! (I can’t believe my friend, Kelly, wasn’t here-she’s the really adventurous one.) However, we were rewarded with close up views of many colorful tropical fish.

The S. S. Sapona

The Gun Cay Lighthouse was established in 1836. There’s just something peaceful about looking at a lighthouse…

Gun Cay Lighthouse, Gun Cay, Bahamas

We spent one morning at the Bimini Shark Lab on South Bimini. The Bimini Shark Lab was established in 1990 to study sharks and rays. The sweet college interns who hosted our tour explained that the Bahamas is home to one of the largest number of shark species, which makes it a great place to study sharks. (A fact I wish I didn’t know!) These young ladies are actually responsible for “shark wrestling”, which they explained as going out, locating, and somehow wrangling juvenile sharks into the boat for the purpose of tagging and studying them at the lab. Following two weeks of study, they return the young sharks to where they originally found them. And, get this, they somehow even talked their parents into funding this part of their college educations! Bill and I went into the juvenile shark pen with our hosts and even touched the sharks. That’s the closest I hope I ever get to a shark-cross your fingers because we swim in the Bahamas a lot!

Bimini Shark Lab

And, although I have been duped by many fountains of youth during my years of travel, I can’t resist…

Angie, on South Bimini, trying yet another Fountain of Youth

We all had a great week. As I write this post, I can’t wait to dip my toes into, I mean dive right into, the beautiful Bimini blue water again.

All Part of the Team

A valued member of the team. Everyone wants to be included. In Romans 12:3-6 the apostle Paul describes that, although we are different, we are all one in Jesus. We have been given different gifts (talents), and when we all come together and use our individual gifts we all benefit, and Jesus is honored.

Liberty has a rather small team, each one performing his or her function. Captain Bill is, well, the captain. (I suppose that’s fair since he actually studied for years and passed the test).

I am the First Mate (mainly because I’m married to the captain and I chose that title). We live aboard in Jacksonville, Florida.

During long passages, we might require additional help…

My daughter, Becky, designs and produces t-shirts. Wearing the shirts she designed for us reminds us that we are “on the team”, chosen, wanted, loved, and that our contributions are valued. Hmmm…that kind of sounds like what the apostle Paul was saying earlier…

Whose team are you on?

Special thanks to Becky Bagwell for her designs.