Delivering a 52' Sloop from Saint Thomas to Bermuda to Sag Harbor NY (part 1)

Where to start, where to start? Well, I got the opportunity to crew a delivery finally, a 2006 Beneteau 523 Oceanis, the S/V Sled. Here she is at Sapphire Bay in St. Thomas:



Here's the crew: First Mate Sherry Burger--a captain herself most of the time--Captain Jerry McCarthy in the middle--260k sea miles, 11 ocean crossings, 2 circumnavigations--and deck hand Me.



And here are provisions for 12 or so days at sea, just in case we needed to skip Bermuda ($641 USD):



Jerry and I flew out of Myrtle Beach on Spirit Air, where they charge extra for water and pretzels. We met up with Sherry in Fort Lauderdale for the second leg, landing at the bustling aeroplex in Saint Thomas:



Before leaving, we ferried over to Tortola in the BVI to hang out with friends, Cris and Thorpe:



Both of them are also experienced captains, so I just kept quiet and listened. The club was a jazzy little place with a visiting band from...New Jersey! And they rocked.

After spending the night at Cris' condo on Nanny Cay, we ferried back to Saint Thomas...or so we thought. Our return tickets got mis-keyed and we ended up at the wrong ferry stop with no way to ferry to the right one. We spent 55 minutes waiting in the Customs office, standing in line while they had lunch or something. After that, we grabbed a ride in one of the $3 taxis shuttles that cruise around the town. The shuttles are neat: pickup trucks with bench seats bolted into the bed and a bimini top overhead.

But finally, we got underway! A quick stop to fuel up and top up fresh water, and off we went. Saint Thomas behind us, next stop Bermuda:



To be continued!