I arrived in Anguilla just in time to see Picton Castle sail into the anchorage at Road Bay. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the ship sail up to an anchorage from the shore perspective before, so it was interesting to see it from another angle. Once the ship was anchored, the skiff came in to the public wharf with two teams of people – Donald, assisted by Jackie and Charlotte, was off to the nearest market to get some fresh provisions while the Captain and Lynsey, along with Clyde and Flemming, were heading to Customs and Immigration to get the ship and crew cleared in.
Once the clearing in and first provisioning was as complete as it could be, the crew who were off duty were able to come ashore. I went the opposite way, heading to the ship to get on board and say hello to the crew. I received a very warm welcome from all, even Chibley. It was great to finally meet some of the trainees in person – I have corresponded with all of them as they prepared to join the ship, even interviewed some, but there are a few who have joined on later legs of the voyage whom I had never actually met before.
Life on board seems to continue on as it always has. Donald continues to create excellent meals, last night’s dinner included breaded fish, roasted potatoes and a fresh salad. Lynsey had told me how musical some of the crew members are, and as a guitar, mandolin and drum were played on the hatch last night by Mike, Sam and Gunner, I could see that she was right. There’s a lot of this voyage for me to catch up on, Donald started last night by showing me the photos he has taken along the way.
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