USVI-On-Line

Let this be a lesson to all that think it is a good idea to come down to our islands and jump on a boat without a cursory glance at the marine forecast...I would call THAT your rookie mistake. A 5 yr old would know that it is not a good idea to go out in a dinghy in 7 ft seas. When me papa would want to tell me how I was acting whilst my mother was in the room, he would tell me 'you are not in tune with your environment'. With she gone, he would say 'get your head out of your a##'.

Wow, your dinghy experience sounds really scary! I am glad you got back safely. Thanks for sharing your trip with us.

being an avid boater myself, my curiosity requires me to ask what was attached to the "white line". I am asuming it was a tender.

It was not a tender - they had a dinghy attached and it was pretty tight to their boat - it was a taut white line which I could only assume was a fishing line - it ran out very far behind their boat - as I don't fish I am not familiar with what it was exactly. I would definitely say it was a fairly good gauge fishing line. The thing that really puzzled my husband and I was WHY was it above water so far out from the back of his boat? The only thing we could think of was when our paths crossed he was on top of the swell and we were at the bottom thus his line exposed itself from crest to crest of the waves. Too scary that is what I know.

Wow, what a way to end your vacation! That dinghy trip is some adventure, but you'll enjoy retelling that story. Now I know WHY my friends were afraid for me to rent one!

FYI -- for folks doing a Dinghy Rental from Crabbys (especially) they are not intended for island hopping, just intended for beach hopping on STJ.

If you want to island hop, folks should plan on renting a REAL power boat

Glad you made it back alive!!

Really enjoyed reading about your trip. What a scary dinghy experience you had but it looks like it all worked out in the end. Thanks for sharing.

Yikes! I'm seasick just readin' about it!

Great story!

By the way, my wife is from Shortsville. We went up there so I could meet her family when we got engaged, and her grandmother went on and on and on about the savings at Wegmans!

lavender, Thanks for the clarification. Judgeing by the sea conditions you describe I think the heavy line was likely attached to a Sea Anchor. This is a devise that resembles a parachute and is let out behind or sometimes infront of a boat to slow its drift or speed or add some control in heavy seas. This is a story worth repeating as this does create a very dangerous situation if you are not aware of exactly what could be going on. Best to always give a wide berth to any vessel, bow or stern wise especially in heavy seas or rough conditions. In Long Island Sound, where I do most of my boating, there are many Tugs pulling all sorts of Barges and often the tow line/cable is very very long and due to it's weight is submerged a good portion of the way between the Tug and Barge. Unsuspecting boaters have cut in-between and become hung up on the cable and subsequently run over by the oncoming barge never to be seen again. I would strongly suggest that anyone who intends to rent any form of watercraft take a safe boating course. It could well be the best several hours, safety wise, you ever spend. There are many other dangers inherent to the boating world which are all easily handled if you posses the knowledge you need to do so. Even in the best scenarios, shxx does happen as it did here and fortunately these folks had the experience to get them safely out of it. And tortola, if you read this, your "papa" would have done well to also teach you some civility and maybe a little diplomacy. Also I'm not sure what you meant by, " people coming down to OUR Islands" WOW!

Safe boating to all ,

Bob - thank you for your input - I really wonder if that could be what it was. I am very bad at guesstimating feet but we basically came to a halt - and turned out away from his wake when we saw it - it seemed like he was so very far to our left when we were approaching him that we couldn't imagine any scenario that would have this line in it!! Also my vision although 20/20 doesn't pick up really fine things so for me to see it CLEARLY indicated to me it was a pretty heavy guage and not any normal fishing line. I have taken a boater safety course and believe me they didn't touch on that for a minute. But what we have learned is we are clearly LAKE boaters and not ocean boaters!! Big difference (in my opinion). And lakes like the Finger Lakes of WNY not that big ole Lake Ontario!

At any rate thank you for that clarification and input - I appreciate it.

You are most welcome. Stay safe,

Quite adventurous of you. So glad that it all worked out for the best - must have been pretty scary. Glad the overall trip was fabulous! Ali~

Good information here. We are "lake" boaters, too (Madison, WI). I often have thought that would qualify me to handle boats in the islands...perhaps not. Thanks to this post, I now know, in advance, that I don't know that much...if that makes any sense.