A cab came by around 6:30 am to take J.B. to the airport. I woke up a bit after 7 am and noticed it wasn't raining any more. It seemed like all throughout the trip we could see rain all around but it somehow magically avoided us. This morning we took advantage of the weather and fresh water and we all showered. The water definitely felt great after three days of life on the sea, plus it was nice and cool which I love. Laurel and Danielle, on the other hand...

After breakfast we departed and had plans for a wreck dive. However, they were quickly shot down once we got out to sea because it was a bit rough. Instead we set course for Whale Cay where we would be staying the night.

Whale is a privately owned island. We actually saw the people who live there as we anchored near the shore. Marion suggested that, since they looked like two men, we should send Laurel and Danielle as group ambassadors - that's the youngest two bikini-clad females, in case you're wondering. Then we pointed out it was a man and a woman, so she suggested Laurel, Danielle, Jonathan, and I should go. While we went about this silly nonsense, Joe had already swam over and was talking to the couple. Once back, he said it was ok for us to walk along the beach and check out the abandoned lighthouse. With that, a group of us under Wayne's direction put together the dingy in about an hour. Most everyone had swam over by now so all that was left was a pile of dry stuff for the dingy crew (i.e: Wayne and I) to take over. I rode and brought my camera - and the pile of stuff.

The owners had already left the beach. Once there, I got my first pictures of the Shark 14, and then joined Linda, Laurel, Ryan, Isabel, walking down a small dirt road which dead-ended into another one. There were signs indicating the way to the lighthouse and to the private home. We went on towards the lighthouse where we met up with Greg and Luke who was being his wacky self and climbing up and down walls like the force was in him or something. I got a couple of neat snapshots of the boat, the beach, and the scenery in general. Eventually the rest of the crowd started to make their way up there. All together we probably spent a good hour and a half on the island.

Wayne's Shuttle Service eventually started to bring everyone back to the boat for lunch. Afterwards, Greg, Luke, and John saw a large group of seagulls flying around a particular spot not too far from the boat. They figured there must have been plenty of fish there, so they decided to take the dingy to try and catch something.

About 20 minutes later they returned and dropped John off. As he explained it, they got out there and the fish were biting, the birds were flying all over - it was just great. John and Luke were sitting on opposite sides and were about to throw their lines in but happen to have done it at the same time so they got tangled up. After fighting it for a while the decided there were too many people on board so somehow John lost and had to be dropped off.

We watched Greg and Luke head back out towards the seagulls. Then, the birds seemed to slowly shift to a new spot. We watched the dingy move over following them. Then it happened again.. and again. It was rather entertaining so I decided to play with the zoom a bit. However, they were so far away it was very hard to get a good shot given the rocking of the boat.

After a brief nap, dinner was served. This was followed by Wayne, Greg, John, and Luke taking the dingy out - once again - to try and catch something. Linda, Laurel, Isabel, and Joe stayed above deck telling jokes and hearing Joe's and Isabel's stories from previous trips including the infamous one that gave him the nickname Run-aground Joe. Don't ask. Joe was also having a kicking time recapping the day's fishing events.

The fish crew returned this time with a catch. After sundown, Wayne mentioned he needed someone to watch the dingy since it was constantly losing air. I volunteered to check on it around 3am that morning. We stayed up talking for a while and watched lights moving back and forth around the island - lights on a four-wheeler that is. It seemed like the owner was just making rounds to make sure everything was ok around there.

Finally, bed time.