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Drumbikers "First Timer's" Trip Report (with weddi
Drumbikers "First Timer's" Trip Report (with weddi
Sunday 5/24 For those that didn’t see my post “First Timers – Will We Ever Get There?” I’ll try to give a brief synopsis; our original flight had us leaving Cleveland at 6:10AM on Saturday the 23rd. Unfortunately the door on the plane would not latch, and after an hour of unsuccessful attempts we were removed from the plane. This, of course, took just long enough for us to not be able to connect in D.C. and find that no airline could get us to STT that day. Next stop (much to our dismay) home.
Sunday morning was “Groundhog Day” – back to the airport, this time connecting in Charlotte N.C. We touchdown safely in N.C. and all is on schedule…..until we watch our plane to STT get towed from the gate to the hangar with “mechanical issues”. Hmmm…..maybe we’re not supposed to get married?
A fresh plane is delivered to gate, putting us only a little over an hour behind schedule. Just enough time to arrive in St. John on the 6PM ferry. 30 min. after Denzil Clyne’s Jeep rental closes. This leads to my first real live exposure to “Island Time”. The exchange on the phone goes like this – “Good Afternoon this is Dave…..” followed by my travel saga and “might someone be able to hang on for us to get our jeep?” Reply; “…….ya, sumbudie might be here…….” To which I say; “might be?” Reply; “ya…maybe sumbudie be here”. I hung up, looked at Julie laughed and said “well we might have a Jeep when we get there!”
Finally, off the Red Hook Ferry at about 6:15.
Julie ran ahead to meet Molly from Valley View while I waited for the bags. As I’m dragging the luggage off of the ferry dock I hear; “Drumbiker?......Drumbiker?......” being asked of every guy that walks by, only instead of looking at the 3 women like crazy people – I get to say “that’s me!” For a change, the shoe is on the other foot and Julie is looking at me thinking “who in the hell does he know in St. John”!! Turns out I am lucky enough to have been treated to an extremely rare “Forum Welcome”. To protect the identity of those involved and not raise the expectations of all arriving Forum Members – I’ll keep the names to myself. After very brief hugs and introductions, we unfortunately had to run to Denzil Clynes to get the Jeep which Molly informed us was indeed waiting.
The Jeep was running, clean and in far better condition than I had anticipated. 14,500 miles on the OD, quite a bit for that tiny island! We followed Molly back to Valley View on what I described in my notes as a Roller Coaster ride. Who would ever think that 20 MPH could make you feel like an Indy car driver? Blind crests, switchbacks, 50 degree angles and all fun! Mental note; better take it easy on the Painkillers for the first couple of nights – gotta drive this home!
Arrival at Valley View. All I can say is: spotless clean, bottle of Rum with cheese and crackers in a picnic basket waiting for us and everything you could possibly need. Nice little deck with a gas grill, table and chairs. Perfect little pool to relax in after a day at the beach. Well appointed kitchen, very comfortable bed. If anybody wants more info PM me. Check it out here: http://www.acharminghideaway.com/valley-view.html The only thing I would say is that if you are not a confident driver, or have problems with night driving, this probably wouldn’t be the place for you.
After our brief tour from Molly, right out the door to The Beach Bar. Upon our arrival – the forum-ites have vanished. Hmmm….I suspect an early start led to an early end. Went across the street to the Banana Deck. Had decent burgers, watched the first ½ of the Cavs game and met a nice couple from NYC staying at Maho campground. After a long couple of days, back to the Villa for some sleep, results from the game would have to wait till tomorrow!
Sunday morning was “Groundhog Day” – back to the airport, this time connecting in Charlotte N.C. We touchdown safely in N.C. and all is on schedule…..until we watch our plane to STT get towed from the gate to the hangar with “mechanical issues”. Hmmm…..maybe we’re not supposed to get married?
A fresh plane is delivered to gate, putting us only a little over an hour behind schedule. Just enough time to arrive in St. John on the 6PM ferry. 30 min. after Denzil Clyne’s Jeep rental closes. This leads to my first real live exposure to “Island Time”. The exchange on the phone goes like this – “Good Afternoon this is Dave…..” followed by my travel saga and “might someone be able to hang on for us to get our jeep?” Reply; “…….ya, sumbudie might be here…….” To which I say; “might be?” Reply; “ya…maybe sumbudie be here”. I hung up, looked at Julie laughed and said “well we might have a Jeep when we get there!”
Finally, off the Red Hook Ferry at about 6:15.
Julie ran ahead to meet Molly from Valley View while I waited for the bags. As I’m dragging the luggage off of the ferry dock I hear; “Drumbiker?......Drumbiker?......” being asked of every guy that walks by, only instead of looking at the 3 women like crazy people – I get to say “that’s me!” For a change, the shoe is on the other foot and Julie is looking at me thinking “who in the hell does he know in St. John”!! Turns out I am lucky enough to have been treated to an extremely rare “Forum Welcome”. To protect the identity of those involved and not raise the expectations of all arriving Forum Members – I’ll keep the names to myself. After very brief hugs and introductions, we unfortunately had to run to Denzil Clynes to get the Jeep which Molly informed us was indeed waiting.
The Jeep was running, clean and in far better condition than I had anticipated. 14,500 miles on the OD, quite a bit for that tiny island! We followed Molly back to Valley View on what I described in my notes as a Roller Coaster ride. Who would ever think that 20 MPH could make you feel like an Indy car driver? Blind crests, switchbacks, 50 degree angles and all fun! Mental note; better take it easy on the Painkillers for the first couple of nights – gotta drive this home!
Arrival at Valley View. All I can say is: spotless clean, bottle of Rum with cheese and crackers in a picnic basket waiting for us and everything you could possibly need. Nice little deck with a gas grill, table and chairs. Perfect little pool to relax in after a day at the beach. Well appointed kitchen, very comfortable bed. If anybody wants more info PM me. Check it out here: http://www.acharminghideaway.com/valley-view.html The only thing I would say is that if you are not a confident driver, or have problems with night driving, this probably wouldn’t be the place for you.
After our brief tour from Molly, right out the door to The Beach Bar. Upon our arrival – the forum-ites have vanished. Hmmm….I suspect an early start led to an early end. Went across the street to the Banana Deck. Had decent burgers, watched the first ½ of the Cavs game and met a nice couple from NYC staying at Maho campground. After a long couple of days, back to the Villa for some sleep, results from the game would have to wait till tomorrow!
Counting down the minutes.....
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Monday - Day 2
Monday 5/25 What is that terrible sound?!? I forgot to turn the alarm off on my cell phone, and the day is off to an early start. We headed in to Starfish Market for breakfasts, lunches and a few dinners for the week. Spent around $100, figure we’ll be back for more later. Some food items are similar to home in cost; some are at least 30 to 50 percent more. Back at the villa, we unload groceries and load up the beach chairs and cooler for our maiden trip to the North Shore. First stop, Mongoose Junction. What a very cool place! We have to make a point to come back to The Tap Room, at least. We rented our snorkel gear from Hurricane Alley and headed out for our first trip on North Shore Rd. Beautiful, fantastic views form the overlooks of Cruz, and Caneel bays. Using Gaffin’s book as our guide, first stop Gibney Beach. Several people suggested this beach for a wedding site. Bad day to visit, a group of locals had the house reserved and the beach was crowded. Back to the Jeep, we drove through the parking lot of Trunk – way too many cars and people for our taste. On to Cinnamon, where we would spend the day. Beautiful beach and very good snorkeling around the Cay. Unfortunately, we both had difficulties with our snorkeling masks leaking around the glass. Julie gave up in short order, and I being much more comfortable in the water (and stubborn) decided to stick it out. I eventually emptied the mask only when the water filled up to enough to make my eyes burn. Big mistake on my part. Salt water was continuously going up my nose and into my sinus’s, leading to a nasty infection for the rest of the week. We left the beach as the sun was going down and the mosquitoes were coming out. We continued east to Coral Bay for a stop at Skinny Legs. The horseshoe pits were right up my alley. Felt like a hillbilly bar in the Caribbean. Cleveland Browns and Indians flags hanging in the bar too! In the parking lot after a shopping stop, Julie runs into what appears to be a mother and son pair of wild donkeys.
After a little petting and a photo op, its back Centerline Rd., up to the overlooks for more photos. Then once again, into Cruz bay for a stop at the Beach Bar, which is quickly becoming our “neighborhood watering hole”. Second day in a row, we run into the couple from NYC! After a few drinks and several games of Connect Four, they offer to be witnesses at our wedding and serve as video / photographers! What fun!
We then proceeded home to the villa to grill chicken sandwiches.
A stiff Cruzan 151 and coke later, and good night St. John!
After a little petting and a photo op, its back Centerline Rd., up to the overlooks for more photos. Then once again, into Cruz bay for a stop at the Beach Bar, which is quickly becoming our “neighborhood watering hole”. Second day in a row, we run into the couple from NYC! After a few drinks and several games of Connect Four, they offer to be witnesses at our wedding and serve as video / photographers! What fun!
We then proceeded home to the villa to grill chicken sandwiches.
A stiff Cruzan 151 and coke later, and good night St. John!
Counting down the minutes.....