St. Croix April 26, 2006

Sailboat | Voyages | Log

Exploring St. Croix The Stars and Stripes welcome us to Christianstad, St. Croix, USA After a 19 hour overnight sail Refueling at St. Croix Marina Took on 111 gallons of diesel Tax free at $2.80 per gallon Getting a Veggie lunch Pumpkin soup and Johnny cakes Not exactly a tourist destination Omar cuts mine and Ray's hair Definitely a local experience Omar jumped the hoops for Oaklahoma State The most eastern point of the USA Overlooking Buck Island George and Norma's Domino Club With the world's only beer drinking pig Disgusting but hilarious Back in the USA, if only temporarily After sailing/motoring overnight for 19 hours, we were welcomed into Christianstad Harbor, St. Croix by the Stars and Stripes flying proudly over Fort Christianvaern. St. Croix (STX) is one of three islands in the US Virgin Islands along with St. Thomas (STT) and St. John (STJ). It sits by itself 35 miles south of the other two. Karen has returned home; I miss her. My new ship mate is Ray Strong, who turns out to be a darn good sailor. He is a friend from Annapolis who has agreed to sail with me to Luperon in the Dominican Republic. Other crew members will be joining me at various points along the way. Every night sail is an adventure. We had no moon to guide us and with the wind directly on our stern, sailing was impossible. After trying to sail wing-on-wing with a whisker pole, we aborted that effort and motored. Our boat speed was only three knots which would have meant a 33 hour sail – not good. We left St. Martin at two in the afternoon and arrived in St. Croix at nine in the morning the next day. With the wind and swells on our stern, we had a very uncomfortable ride. Full Circle swayed from side to side in a thirty degree arc as if she were line dancing across the ocean. We did three hour watches which allowed for little sleep so we were pretty tired after refueling, anchoring, and clearing customs. A nap was definitely in order. If you want to capture the flavor of the local culture, try getting a haircut in a local barber shop. Tourists don’t get haircuts; they have better things to do with their time on vacation. After three months on the boat, I don’t think of myself as a tourist but rather as a boat vagabond. I must still tend to the normal chores of life like haircuts and laundry. Ray had his doubts as I dragged him into Omar,s barbershop, but after he saw six foot five Omar work his magic on my hair, he gladly stepped up to the chair and got himself a trim. Omar used to shoot the hoops for the University of Oklahoma. Now he looks down at heads of hair and does his best to make them look good. We rented a car and saw the sights of St. Croix, which included the Cruzan Rum Factory and Norma and George’s Domino Club, featuring the world’s only beer drinking pigs. Now tell me, when was the last time you had a beer at a restaurant with a beer drinking pig? It was one of those disgusting but hilarious experiences, a must see if you ever get to St. Croix. We knew we were back in the USA when the girl who rented us the car was reading Pleasure: A woman's guide to getting the sex you want, need, and desire by Hilda Hutcherson. Tomorrow we press north to the island of Vieques, which is famous for its use by the US Navy for bombing practice. Previous | Next