Into the Deep aboard Ellen B

Wednesday - we leave the Wharf in Somerset Village in the North-West corner of Bermuda, motor past Teddy Tucker's home, a great Bermudan treasure diver who was friends with Peter Benchley and inspiration for the book and movie THE DEEP - based on a real shipwreck called The Constellation, which was carrying a cargo of drugs during World War II. That particular ship sits on not one, but two old Spanish ships, wrecked hundreds of years earlier than The Constellation. Near the wrecks, outside the outer reefs, we catch Bermudan Chubb, Corny Grouper (red fish) and Speckled Rock Hind - note the latitude/longitude on the GPS.

What do you do with a 1,000 lb Marlin?

What do you do with a 1,052 lb Marlin? We arrived back at the RBYC (Royal Bermuda Yacht Club) dock to find a deep sea fishing contestant bring in his prize catch for weighing. It turns out a Marlin this size is quite unfit to eat because of the high mercury content! The fish is cut up and sold for bait! ... and then it appears the fishing contest final day was yesterday??

The Remains of HMS Vixen

Monday we rented a 24 foot pontoon boat and circumnavigated the harbor, starting with the homes on the South Shore. After lunch at the Dockyards Bone Fish, we headed out to the wreck of HMS Vixen - she had been placed across one of the channels on Bermuda's North Shore in 1896, as a defensive measure against torpedo boat attacks. Her keel was broken, and she settled in her final resting place. Vixen now lies in 33 ft of water about 0.2 nautical miles offshore from Daniel's Head. She lies in a narrow gap in the coral reef, with the bow just above water and surrounded by abundant schools of fish.

Room with a View - Agar's Hill

Our room with a view - to the left lies Agar's Island, the British Army built Bermuda's largest gunpowder magazine on it in 1870, entirely underground. Now the island is privately owned by British author and multi-millionaire James Martin who wrote The Wired Society and is a much-respected futurologist.

Problems in Paradise!

Nice Pied a Terre #4 - Bermuda

Near Southampton on Bermuda's Harbour lies the historic home Spithead, once the home of American dramatist Eugene O'Neill, Charles Chaplin and British playwright Sir Noel Coward, after he became a UK tax exile. [Click on pictures to expand to full size]

Grand Pied a Terre #3 - Bermuda

This is Agar's Island viewed from the South - James Martin's huge mansion features a multi-level atrium which the Royal Bermuda Gazette reports he received "retroactive" planning approval for!

Pied a Terre #2 - Bermuda

Pied a Terre #1 - Bermuda

Warbaby Fox Hits the Gas

Bermuda's Hamilton Harbour is criss-crossed by high speed catamaran ferries that reach an impressive 35 mph - we have monitored speed and direction with our iPhone GPS apps en route to the Royal Naval Dockyards and to St. George's on the North-East tip of the island.

Catamaran Cruises Outside our Apartment

After three days of resting, we noticed that there were regular cruises going past our apartment overlooking Bermuda's Hamilton Harbour. Later that day we stopped by the Bermuda Tourism Office and discovered that our creek is an exclusive location of the rich and famous so we made a reservation with Ronnie O'Connor and took the mandatory cruise.... So to our left is the house of Dr. James Martin, famed futurologist (he has the entire Agar Island for his estate), to our center is John Lennon's last retreat where he wrote his last album Double Fantasy before returning to New York and being shot, under us is one of Bermuda's past Governors, and to the right is a multitude of other well heeled souls including a leading architect and a bunch of international financiers and lawyers. I think RYC is moving up in the world!

Twins in Times of Trouble

Sitting here in Hamilton Bermuda against the wharf at the Royal Naval Dockyards are two identical ocean-going tugs... sitting here in mid-Atlantic waiting for disaster to strike.... waiting for that rescue where they can offer Lloyds Standard Form of Salvage Agreement for a percentage of the value of the stranded vessel...

July 3rd Celebrations

Bermuda Triangle - North Tip

This month's RYC expedition takes us to the very North end of the Bermuda Triangle - safely established on solid rock we watch the setting sun and plan a couple of weeks of water born activities... more to come..