Our longer A to B swims often require some planning and coordination among guides, crew, and guests. This morning, on the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, we set our sights on a swim from the wreck of the last remaining vessel from the attack on Pearl Harbor to Savannah Bay, almost 3 miles away.

This wreck, the Kodiak Queen, was a fuel carrier for the Navy. During the attack, it was ordered out of Pearl Harbor, as it was filled with aviation fuel. After the war, it was sold into service for the oil industry, and it worked the offshore fields in Alaska. At some point in the 90s or 00s, it was brought by some entrepreneur to Road Harbor in Tortola, BVIs with some crazy idea that I’m not aware of. It sat rusting among other hulks, but it stood out from the others with some tugboat-like curves. I’d look for it every trip down here.

Richard Branson’s photographer took interest, and a committee was formed to figure out how to preserve this piece of history. Getting it back to working vessel status was not feasible, so it was decided to sink it as an artificial reef for wildlife and diving. Richard Branson wanted a bigger idea. The committee came back with “what if we built a giant Kraken out of steel rebar and attached it to the Kodiak, making it look as if it was brought down by this mythical beast?”. Branson said yes, that’s perfect, and so it was sunk off Mountain Point, Virgin Gorda.

Back to the swim. 3 guides, one in front, one in back, one on a stand-up paddleboard in the middle of the pack. We brought water along. The plan was to stop every 30 minutes to gather the group and switch up the guide positions. Our first leg brought us over the Kodiak Queen, resting in the depths below. From there we headed south, east winds whipping up the surface. Richie had Yacht Toucan (Tulkas) just offshore, following along. We were swimming over some pretty nice reef - nobody anchors here and there’s a nice fresh flow of water, which keeps the reef healthy. Turtles, a few jellyfish, southern stingrays were spotted.

We reached the entrance to Savannah Bay at the third stop, and cruised in smoothly. There are some saddles in the island here that let the winds shoot through, but it served to push us to our boat, which Richie and Lisa had anchored at the other southern end of the bay. They had also placed a buoy line in the water at the stern, easing our exit from the water. It’s really gratifying when a plan works like this, thanks to great teamwork and our swimmers’ faith in us.

As we are without Zack, our trusty and irreplaceable deck hand, swim guides are also working as crew. Here, Alina and Hopper help Lulu and Richie with anchoring at the Baths. Highly efficient and color coordinated.

Next, to the Baths, where slaves were once dropped from ships after grueling voyages from Africa. Today it’s a popular spot where massive granite boulders form natural grottoes on land and in the water. There’s a path through the land side, but it’s often too crowded for us to enjoy, so we’ve developed an underwater trail we guide our guests through. We slip between tiny gaps in the boulders, surge pushing and pulling us through the fizzy water. It’s one of those things that feels dangerous but really isn’t. We kept this swim on the shorter side, as our guests had reached well over 3 miles at this point in the day, in varying conditions.

The big sails came out for our trip down to Little Harbour, Peter Island. Lisa put out some hot appetizers and I prepared a batch of mojitos. I like tending bar on SwimVacation, and I often zip out of the water before everyone else on our last swim to start squeezing limes or mixing liquors. This group of guests has the best sense of humor I’ve seen in any group, and this yacht is constantly filled with laughter. Lisa made the most delicious pasta shrimp primavera with garlic bread, followed by an apple tarte tatin for dessert. Faaaaancy.

*Lulu, Richie, Alina. Heart Heart Heart.*

Hopper loves muddling mint and squeezing limes for mojitos. Lulu passed our dishes with lovely little thai packets for canapés.

We all sat around the table, shared stories, laughed more. The moon is setting early now, and the stars are getting more dense every night. We’ll ease up on the swim schedule a bit tomorrow after the significant effort of today. Perhaps even sleep in a bit. No one seemed to mind that idea as they made their way to bed. The cool breeze and exercise will sleep us well tonight.

Hopper

Pearl Harbor Day.

Connect