May 21- I’ve got butter in my pocket and the movie started at 6!

 

My first glimpse of St Lucia as I sat on deck early this morning with hot tea in hand was a vision of giant mist covered mountains in the distance rising straight up from the sea. As we moved closer to the island I could make out trees on some of the mountains with the occasional house peeking out to take advantage of the spectacular view. The ship entered a pretty harbor between two of the mountains where we saw a small airstrip and a town in the small valley on the waterfront. The mountains above the harbor were filled with colorful houses and lots of trees, and notably far less Palm trees than many of the other places we’ve seen. We went to meet our dive group and besides the one other diver with us the other day in St Thomas, there were 4 more people joining us, including a man and his daughter originally from Mississippi now living in Houston. Our divemasters Charlie and Curtis welcomed us aboard their small boat and we headed for the Pitons. The Pitons are the twin peaks that are the tallest (and I believe the most beautiful) on the island. Under the surrounding turquoise water at the base of the mountain, the rock face continues in a gentle slope covered with coral and an amazing variety of sea life. The trip to the Pitons showed off the natural beauty of this island. There doesn’t seem to be any flat land at all here, save the small beaches formed at the edge of some of the mountains and the valley by the harbor. I was not prepared for the site of the Pitons. Twin peaks rising straight up out of the water with the larger reaching a height over 2100 feet. Palm trees and small beaches near the twin peaks gave way to steep mountains covered in more hardy trees. I couldn’t stop taking pictures, hoping to capture even a tenth of the magnificence around me. It was the first dive spot I’ve ever been to where I would have been happy to stay on the surface and enjoy the scenery, I couldn’t imagine that whatever awaited us below the surface could rival the majesty of the view of this spot. I would soon find out just how mistaken I was!

Being on a very small dive boat, it takes a little time for everyone to ready their equipment solely because of the lack of space. Divemaster Curtis gave us thorough 15 minute lesson (with illustrations) from our guide on some of the sea life we would see, and although it was fascinating, after the 15 fish I knew I would never remember all the names and I was getting more excited to get a look at these exotic fish myself. This dive site is called Superman’s Flight because this Piton is the location where Superman was filmed picking a flower for Lois Lane in the movie. We took turns gathering our fins, weight belts, BCD and tank with regulator and we each fell backward (on purpose) over the side of the boat one at a time. I was the first one in and I was happy just to float in the water and admire the scenery while slowly each of the divers made their way over the side. It was finally time to descend and I could not have been prepared for the underwater landscape that rivaled the beauty of the one above the water. As far as the eye could see there was a gentle slope covered with rock formations and the most colorful coral I’d ever seen. The fish were not as thick as they are at some dive sites, but the variety more than made up for it. We saw different colored eels, long graceful trumpet fish, more sea urchins than I’ve ever seen with their long black quills making them look a little like small, round underwater porcupines. Inside the vase sponges we glimpsed lobster and crabs of more varieties than I can name. The very beautiful, but dangerous and destructive lion fish were also visible, as well as rainbow flounder, yellow tail snappers, butterfly fish, parrot fish, and at least a hundred more types I can’t identify by name. Because we weren’t too deep, we stayed on this dive about 50 minutes. The last 10 minutes, instead of a safety stop we swam at 15 feet along the more shallow part of the slope and continued to be amazed by the view.

We returned to the boat excited and chattering about what we had seen. Since our small boat did not have room for fresh tanks, we made a short stop at Sugar Beach. This beach nestled between the grand and petit Pitons is stunning. There is a resort perched on the hillside that adds to instead of takes away from the beauty. The divemaster tells us that Matt Damon rented this entire resort and beach for 1.5 million for several days and the marine guard wouldn’t even let them near the beach. We took a short walk on the beach while tanks were exchanged. The sand here is almost black because of the volcanic nature of the island, which is also the reason for the famous black sand beaches in Hawaii. We got back in the boat with our feet covered in these large grains of black sand (each about the size of a grain of cous cous) that stubbornly stick to you skin even when you attempt to brush them off.

The second dive was at the base of the Grand Piton (the first had been at the Petit Piton). The underwater landscape was similar but none of the awe of the magnificent view was lost just because we had done one dive already. There seemed to be even more sea urchins and glowing purple vase sponges lighting up as the light filtering through the water hits them like a spotlight. We hovered around 50 feet and dove for about an hour, with the last 15 minutes being spent above 20 feet. We were no less excited this time upon returning to the boat, and as we shed our dive gear everyone talked loudly and over each other about the dive. Next was the long (rather rough) ride back to the ship. The spectacular view made up a little for the rough ride and constant cold sea spray. Many volcanic islands are beautiful but the difference with St.Lucia is that most of the peaks rise very dramatically from the sea. There are occasionally areas of more gentle slopes, and this is where houses are situated on this small island, but there are many more that rise steeply like the Pitons.

By the time we made it to the dock, we had only an hour and a half before we were required to be aboard the ship. We found, however, that the small ferry that travels back and forth to downtown would pick us here. We decided to make a quick trip into town to see what we could. A small, very “broken in” boat picked us up and we made the 10 minute trip across the bay. We were deposited at a small shopping area where we browsed a few shops but were most interested in getting something to eat after our long day. We chose an open air restaurant above the shops with views of the ship and surrounding area. We ordered drinks and appetizers to snack on and our very friendly waiter immediately noticed my left arm with its sizeable scar. He seemed stricken, he asked what happened and I gave him the abbreviated version I tend to use most often. I am accustomed to questions about my arm and people’s reactions at seeing it, but they are usually able to let it go after I answer their questions. But somehow he couldn’t, I can only guess from his reaction that he had never seen a scar like this. He continued to stare, not in a particularly offensive way, and I felt the need to assure him it was ok. We talked a little more about my accident and my current function. His last comment was that I better be glad I live in the United States. Then I understood, there is little advanced healthcare on these small islands, and anyone who sustains such an injury would be left with a non-functioning limb or no limb at all. So I agreed with him, it is a good thing I live in the States where this injury is concerned.

We soon had to return on the little ferry to board the ship. Our day in St.Lucia had exceeded any expectations we could have possibly had. The beauty of this island (both above and below the water’s surface) make it a likely option for a longer vacation in the future. But in that moment, we only wanted showers to get rid of the salt coating our skin. One of the ways the girls came up with to combat the problem of 4 people getting ready in one room is to take their shower in the spa’s locker room. They actually seem to enjoy wearing the big fluffy robes and using the showers that are 3 times the size of the one in the cabin. It’s amazing how quickly we can all get ready when they do this. Once we were at dinner, Christian realized he had forgotten to make his nightly trip to the Lido deck for butter. He preferred the little foil wrapped butter from the Lido over the small bowl of whipped butter in the dining room. (Who knew he had such a delicate palette?) Our attentive waiter James noticed he did not have his usual stash of butter packets with him and sent someone to the Lido to retrieve some. We all munched happily on the French Bread with the preferred butter before dinner. After dinner, we had so much left over we decided it might seem an insult to leave it. Mallory quickly stashed it in her jacket pocket and she and Olivia were about to leave to see a movie on the big outdoor screen when we double checked the schedule. Dismayed, she lamented “I’ve got butter in my pocket and now I find out the movie started at 6!” My children do lead tragic lives. Actually, we all laughed until our sides hurt and we went off the find something else to do. In the end it was the fatigue caused by the long day of sun and diving that won, and we turned in for the night.

I laid in bed and thought, it’s a great day when I both add something to my proverbial bucket list (because I had not previously been aware it was magnificent to be included) and I check it off at the same time. Seeing the Pitons and diving them is without a doubt one of the most spectacular things I’ve ever done. How could tomorrow possibly measure up? I guess it’s best not to compare, and just enjoy each day for what it brings.

Sugar beach and the Grand Piton
Sugar beach and the Grand Piton
Mallory enjoying the view
Mallory enjoying the view

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Christian's rear entry
Christian’s rear entry
Spectacular views above the water
Spectacular views above the water
Docked at St.Lucia
Docked at St.Lucia
Petit Piton
Petit Piton

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Coral landscape
Coral landscape

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Grand Piton
Grand Piton
Black coral
Black coral

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