Resurfacing

December 19, 2011

  Swam in the pool this morning with SwimVacation President, Hopper. He saw our slideshow last night, and throughout our workout, I keep thinking of more things to tell him about the trip…”Oh yeah and….” “Oh yeah and….” That will … Continue reading →

Day 6

December 16, 2011

TBIF = Too Bad It’s Friday. I don’t remember the last time I wished it wasn’t Friday, but today was sweet-bitter-sweet. Can it be we’ve come to the end of this amazing week? But first, another jam packed day to … Continue reading →

Special Edition: Our Promenade Family

We at SwimVacation know only too well that we could not do what we do without our friends on SV Promenade. We started as their guests, but over the years, they’ve become to feel more like family. Captain Bazza keeps … Continue reading →

Day 5

December 15, 2011

The wind came on last night full of itself, all bluster and big talk. Pretty incredible, considering we haven’t even sailed up till this point for lack of wind. Luckily we were holed up in White Bay, Peter Island, out … Continue reading →

Day 4

December 14, 2011

Guest blogger Alison writes: Hello again – it’s return SwimVacationer, Alison. After just 9 months, Ken and I are back in the BVI with Heather and Will! I was worried that my love of the first trip arose from the … Continue reading →

Day 3

Judy wakes up to Bob talking in his sleep: “You have to anchor!”. I guess Will made an impact with his stroke technique session last night. As I type, our swimmers are huddled around Will’s computer, looking at the videos … Continue reading →

Day 2

December 12, 2011

TGIM = Thank God It’s Monday. You’d say that too if you’d been here….What a day. Woke up to coffee and sunshine and the flat calm of Great Harbour, Peter Island. Everyone got ready for a 730 swim briefing – … Continue reading →

Day One

December 11, 2011

11:20am. Village Cay Marina. Paul sits at a table, waiting. Twenty feet away from him, Jamie is sitting on a stone wall with his bag. Just a few meters away in the open air restaurant, Alison & Ken are finishing … Continue reading →

One more Sleep…

December 9, 2011

  Pool. Chlorine. Black line. Wall. Flip turn. Lane line, hair ball. Repeat. Doesn’t sound very appealing, does it? How about this: Aqua blue fading to turquoise, salt and sun, coral reef. Circumnavigate Pelican Island, or swim across Little Harbor, … Continue reading →

Packing up for SwimVacation

December 8, 2011

Hello Future SwimVacationers! I’ve developed a little ritual I like to do as I prepare for a SwimVacation trip: I arrange all of my equipment and stuff for the week on the floor of my studio and snap a quick … Continue reading →

Day 7 and beyond

April 11, 2011

  I’m still rocking. Saturday – guests begin to drift away from us on Promenade early in the morning. Hugs and thanks and promises to stay in touch. I pack up all the gear i’ve spread all over the boat … Continue reading →

Day 6

April 8, 2011

Our last full day – very full indeed. Big swim in the morning at Norman Island, which brought us to the southern most tip of the archipelago of the British Virgin Islands. Back into Privateer Bay, to the caves – … Continue reading →

Day 5

April 7, 2011

We woke up in Muskmellon Bay to a bright beautiful warm sunny awesome day. Before I go any further, a note on how we do breakfast on SwimVacation: there are two. The first one is rather simple; yogurt, toast, fruit, … Continue reading →

Day 4

April 6, 2011

Staying flexible….Baths not possible today, so we went to another of our favorite swim spots – Guana Island. We decided it was time for a big swim that would allow this crew to show themselves how far they’ve come in … Continue reading →

Day 3

April 5, 2011

Today, the wind. The wind howled all last night and much of the morning. It made for a rough morning swim in the relative cover of Beef Island, but we did it.  As open water swimmers, we know that sometimes … Continue reading →

Day 2

April 4, 2011

Monday means something different on SwimVacation. No meetings, a commute by sail, and a couple of swims in clear blue water.  It often marks the start of some big changes that happen to people when they get some exercise, some … Continue reading →

Day 1

April 3, 2011

What a strange day I had yesterday – said goodbye to new found swimming friends in the morning, helped Kerry & Bazza get the boat ready for our next charter, picked up my best bud Hopper, met our guest Total … Continue reading →

Day 7 Departures

April 2, 2011

It happens every time. Strangers come together from across the miles, they make a leap of faith and try this thing called SwimVacation which sounds like it must be a great time….they board a boat and live together for 7 … Continue reading →

Day 6

April 1, 2011

I’m blogging again, blissfully (Alison). This morning might have been my favorite swim! We’re moored at Norman Island – the most southerly tip of the BVI. We set off to the rocky craggy point – the view was humbling, making … Continue reading →

Day 5

March 31, 2011

Alison here….with every day here, I cannot imagine anything better. That is, until the next day arrives! This morning we woke for the sun rising over the hillside, illuminating the blue green bay on Guana Island. We had the bay … Continue reading →

Day 4

March 30, 2011

On every SwimVacation we have a day when a challenge sneaks up on us and everyone rises to the occasion. Today was that day. Normally Wednesday is our single swim day – we give our swimmers the afternoon off from … Continue reading →

Day 3

March 29, 2011

Ahhhh, The Baths, Virgin Gorda. One of my favorite places on Earth, and a lovely view to awake to this morning. The day began with underwater video taping of each swimmer’s strokes. Our experts Fitzy and Will will be pulling … Continue reading →

Day 2

March 28, 2011

A full and fabulous day. We awoke in Great Harbour on Peter Island to a beautiful sunrise. Oohs and ahhs all around. Coffee and a cold breakfast and we were in. A long circumnavigation of the harbor ending in our … Continue reading →

Day 1

March 27, 2011

Launched! The weather, perfect. The water, perfect. The swimmers, chomping at the bit to get wet. A slow start – everyone slept in a little, slept away the jetlag and came up for coffee. The reports from all were “I … Continue reading →

Arrivals

March 26, 2011

  There is almost nothing I like more than flying over the Caribbean sea. I especially love flying into the BVI’s – figuring out which island is what, remembering the great swim we did here or there, seeing it from … Continue reading →

Day 7: Departures

March 14, 2010

Yesterday, going home day. I hate to leave, but am looking forward to getting home to my family. It’s the pesky goodbye thing that makes it so tough. We hug all of our new friends, big squeeze for Rich and … Continue reading →

Day 6: Leaving it all out there

March 13, 2010

Woke up at Marina Cay and headed out to Guana first thing. Guana Island is one of my favorites (I think I have a lot of favorites here) because it is so unspoiled. I don’t think I ever remember mooring … Continue reading →

Day 5: True Blue Waters

March 11, 2010

Hopper here. We swam the Baths today, a geologic/oceanic wonder on Virgin Gorda. It was an out-and-back swim, meandering through the massive boulders strewn in a crazy jumble along the shore. I have done this swim enough times now to … Continue reading →

Day 4

March 10, 2010

Crazy day. First, more sunshine. I think we own it now. We all had a lot of fun dancing the night a way at Willy T’s in The Bight of Norman Island last night, so we got off to a … Continue reading →