USVI-On-Line

Pia - all I know is your "Charlie" was huge AND thick in circumference. I was GLAD he left rather than do the typical barracuda creepy hang around/stalk you because I would have swam like hell too.

nothintolose

I read about "Charlie" in one of my books about STJ, I can't remember which one. It said that he hangs out at the Trunk Bay trail and that is exactly where I saw him. He was 4-5 feet long. I nver did get a real good picture because he was hidden between some rocks and it was a little cloudy there. Here he is.
I did get pretty close and I don't think I will do that again!
I tried to edit the picture but it didn't help.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sea-nile/698862487/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1204/698 ... 02cf01.jpg" width="500" height="281" alt="STJ June 2007 174"></a>

All this talk about barracudas is freaking me out! Re: your question about the hot sauce -- was it Valley girl or Valley doll or something like that?

The picture doesn't look so big, but believe me he was very big with big teeth! He didn't have the black stripes like you describe though.
It was the biggest barracuda that I have ever seen though and I have seen some big ones in the FL Keys.

I hope that I don't run into your Charlie at Maho!
(We'd better be quiet or CypressGirl won't go snorkeling).

Pia - that was definitely like the big barracuda I saw at Maho - I am telling you it was thick too!

It also looks nothing like the other one I was trying to decribe that we saw around the point on the big Maho side. I saw "Charlie" on the little Maho side.

As for the hot sauce, I have NO clue what the name of it was other than that it's $10 a bottle there but you can get them to ship it to you, but they will only ship it if you order $60 worth.

I thought I would get Ruth to ship it to me, but couldn't remember the name of it when I got back to Cruz Bay. They gave me a card with the name on it and it is long gone. It was AWESOME! I doused my fish in it and even dipped some fries in it.

If anyone knows what the name is and is going anytime soon, I will send you $$$ to pick me up some and pay for the shipping.

nothintolose

I knew you should have gotten some of that sauce while we were there!

OK, I hope this link turns out as this is closer to what was floating with me - told you he is a big boy

WOW he is big! I will be looking out for him at Maho. It looks over 6 feet long! My Charlie was 4-5 ft.

Hi Nothingtolose
I would check for you next week but they are closed.
Tom

Holy toledo Pia that barracuda is HUGE! If I saw a fish like that I would be walking on water to get out of there.

Thanks for the thought Waterguy!

nothintolose

p.s. guess I'll just have to go back and get a bottle next summer.

I am the biggest shark chicken in the entire world. I have nightmares involving sharks and I've never seen one, BUT on my last trip in Aug. I was snorkeling alone on the left side of Francis and went over a rocky ledge that dropped off sharply. As soon as I crossed the ledge I saw this.........

http://marinebio.org/species.asp?id=495

Be sure to read the section called World Range and Habits.

Thanks to a lot of alchol, I did not have a stroke or heart attack. He stayed perfectly still and I got the heck back to shore. And now I have a shark story. I hope it's the only one I ever tell.

I'll take the nurse shark we saw, the huge ass barracuda and whatever that permit thing or whatever it was over what you saw cypressgirl!

I saw a shark that wasn't a nurse shark at Cinnamon two years ago and the dang thing came back for a look see after the first swim past. I am happy just to see nurse sharks.

I don't like the ones that check you out; although, I guess that's what we're doing to them

nothintolose

Thank God this guy didn't check me out. He just laid motionless on the bottom. If I ever come eye to eye with something like that, I think I just sit in a chair and look at the pretty water.