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 Lisa, and on our way. Cab ride, two planes, a bus and a car ride later, I’m home. It always amazes me how I can wake up on a boat in the Caribbean sea and go to bed in my own home in Maine.

Fortunately, Hopper and I were traveling together, which made a long day much easier. We talked about the week mostly - the swims we liked best, the challenges we faced, the great group of swimmers we have come to know. The thing we focused on the most is difficult to put into words - how all of our guests exceeded their own expectations and are leaving the BVIs stronger and more confident in their abilities. I feel so lucky to be a part of that.

Some notes about this awesome group of SwimVacationers:

Joyce just loves being in the water. She was always the last one out and spent hours rolling in the waves.

Tom gave us the gift of his smile by about day three - I even managed to catch it in a picture.

Emma swam farther than she ever has before on Friday. 2.4 miles through chop and swell and she never complained once. She just kept going.

Laird has a beautiful butterfly and amazing freestyle, and he is sneaky fast.

Leighann was somewhat new to open water swimming and tackled her fears above and below the surface. She always took the time to take pictures of me too - even mastering my underwater camera to do it! Thanks, Leighann!

Krista came to SwimVacation to train for another open water swimming event coming up in May - she’s about to tackle the Mediterranean.

Amy gave herself a chit to take one swim off if she needed to at the beginning of the week. She never cashed it in.

Jeff appreciated that so many of our group are also in life transitions - a bonding point for all. He and Amy also showed up to our first dance party wearing flashing head lamps - perfect ambiance for our boat deck disco tech.

Rob stretched his already seasoned open water muscles and proved that he’s just as smooth on the dance floor. He also swam through a personal loss and managed to stay in the moment through it all.

Chess has great style both in the water and out, loves to laugh, and can’t help but flash her bright smile when I’m photographing her while swimming.

Thanks for a great week you guys - it was an honor to be part of this adventure with you. Hopper and I will be swimming in the pool tomorrow. It will be a shock to the system after the week we just had.

Remember to keep your head down and dig deep. Keep it long and strong. Wishing you all great swimming until we meet again.

-Heather PS. Pictures soon!.

Day 7: Departures

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