Trip Report

Troop 331 took two crews to BSA’s Florida High Adventure Sea Base for a week long adventure the week of June 6th. Florida Sea Base is located in the town of Islamorada in the Florida Keys but most trips only begin and end there. They offer various out island, sailing, and scuba trips - all based around the underwater wilderness. Our crews went on the “Coral Reef Sailing” adventure, where each crew’s home for the week was a 42 foot sailing vessel.

The Trip

Upon arrival, each crew was prepped for the trip and was assigned a boat and a captain. We then provisioned our boats and set sail for the open sea that same day. We actually just sailed out into the harbor, but we still slept on our boats. For the next couple of days we sailed south down the keys, anchoring in safe harbors during the night. We prepared our own meals from our provisions which was sometimes a challenge on the pitching seas. When we reached Key West, we got to stay in a slip in a really nice marina. We got to take showers too. It felt odd to be back on land, but we took advantage of the stop and toured the town of Key West. Our crew visited a shipwreckers museum and then found a restaurant that served authentic Key Lime pie where we all enjoyed a delicious slice. The next day we set sail and took our time over the next few days to sail back to Sea Base.

The Adventure

The brochure was right - this was an adventure of a lifetime. All the members of the crew got a hand at doing the various jobs on our working sailboat including helmsman. Some of us adults even got to get a taste of what it takes to plot and follow a course. We motor sailed a lot, but we had good enough winds to keep our sails up as well. The water was fantastic - warm and clear - which made for some pretty amazing snorkeling. We snorkled a couple times a day. The underwater trips revealed coral and underwater creatures that were stunning and much more beautiful than any underwater pictures that I had ever seen. The sharks and barracudas were a little intimidating though. During the trip our captain spent lots of time teaching us about sailing and about the history of the Keys and the pirates. The captains at Sea Base seemed to be abnormally patient. We also did a little fishing and got to tour one of the historical Keys.

The Crews

I was really proud of our boys. They worked together to create a truly unselfish team and maintained a great attitude during the whole trip.

Crew 1 - "Floaters" (photo album)

Henry C (adult) Gary K (adult) Robin L (adult) Tyler K Brian C Steven L Ben W Spencer R

Crew 2 - "Hairy Crabs" (photo album)

Chris S (Adult) Rod V (Adult) Jake S Matt T Dusty V Ben H Winston B

To Summarize,...

...this trip allowed us to enjoy things that we never have a chance to enjoy here in the Midwest - the underwater wilderness and the chance to sail a 40 foot sailboat in an ocean. And this memorable trip would not have happened without all the leaders and other volunteers who helped out.

Thanks so much.
-- Chris Saunders