Sailing with Old Crocs…
It’s possible. That’s the bottom line. We recently took my octogenarian parents with us for 5 nights around the BVI onboard Artemis. I was nervous; wasn’t sure what to expect. While one of my parents is quite active, the other has 3 replacement lower body parts and is a little skeptical about her ability to spring from boat to boat or boat to shore.
The bottom line was this… make the most of alongside marina berths.
The first night we went to a ball in Cooper Island and planned to eat ashore at the Beach Club. This meant use of the dinghy. This was a challenge and made for some white knuckle moments. All turned out ok, but it provided the necessary evidence that while stepping from the sailing boat onto the dinghy was one thing, getting from the dinghy dock back into the dinghy after dinner was a bigger challenge. Rum may have confused things, but we were lucky to complete the exercise without a swim! It set the tone for the week a little…
The next night we had planned to eat onboard. We took a ball at Marina Cay and grilled ribeye steaks. No one had to face the challenge of moving around too much and the meal onboard was wonderful. Having spent the entire day in the wind and the sun people were pleasantly tired, and with plenty of rum to send them along, most turned in for a leisurely early night.
The third night we took a dockside berth. This was by far the most successful solution and everyone was easily able to step ashore onto the dock from the stern platform. This meant that any anxiety of dealing with dinghies and ladders and independently moving vessels was pushed aside, and everyone enjoyed a relaxing afternoon drink of rum, and dinner at the convivial Bitter End Yacht Club. The boat was on the T-dock at the marina of the same.
While the most favored option, these docks were not without issues. Another stay later in the week at the Yacht Harbor in Spanish town was complicated by the tidal fall. When we returned from dinner we realised that the ‘simple access’ earlier enjoyed was now a 1 foot step down, as well as a 1 foot step across a gap. That created some issues… we looked enviously at the boat next door with the hyrdraulic passerelle, but our only option was a step into the unknown. A few moments later, when we had even contemplated a firemans’ lift for my mother, she took the ‘leap of faith’ and all worked out fine… well done to her!
Overall the trip was a success, but there is a lot to think about when sailing with people who are not only unused to boats, but also unused to the agility needed to move around unheeded. That said with liberal use of rum to oil the joints so to speak we all had a great time. Roll on the ninety’s!