The End

November 19, 2007 - Freeport, Maine:

April 23, 2008 - Red Hook, St.Thomas USVI:

At the risk of invoking the world's most overused cliche hippie mantra....
"What a long, strange trip it's been."
____________________________

I flew home yesterday. Many of you out there may be wondering why.... a few of you have actually asked. Well, on the amazing journey of the past five months, all three members of Team Audax have learned much about themselves; from each other, from strangers..... and from the sea. One of the many things I have learned about myself, is that I just plain wasn't cut out for long, multi-day, offshore bluewater passages. This is not a speculative assumption; I learned it first hand during the four day bluewater passage from South Caicos to Puerto Rico. That was only four days, and it went very smoothly, with pleasant conditions. The trip home from the Caribbean back to New England entails being hundreds of miles offshore for over 1000NM, which at 6kts boat speed equals about two weeks at sea. I can't do it.... the four day passage to Puerto Rico was about the limit of what I could handle. I never would have suspected this about myself. It's quite humbling..... and that's a good thing for me. I learn by doing. As my dad used to say to me as a kid: "It's gonna hafta hurt before you'll learn!". Truism, that.

So now I sit at Chelsi's house in New Hampshire, typing up my final blog entry, and I'm trying my best not to cry. Led Zeppelin's "Houses of the Holy" is playing in the background, and Chelsi's two dogs are whining because I'm typing instead of entertaining them. What an incredible journey this has been.....

A few years back, Adrienne and I were hiking the Morse Mountain trail, and Adrienne accidentally and unknowingly dropped her cel phone on the ground. It was found by another hiker later, and this hiker tracked us down and returned it to us. This kind stranger was none other than Team Audax founder John "Triggs Huntington" Herrigel. We became acquaintances. He attended the 5th annual St.Jean Holiday Bash. In the spring of 2007, John asked me over to his house on York Street to discuss.... stuff. During this discussion, in an unrelated tangential comment, John made reference to "....this boat trip I have coming up in the fall....". "What boat trip?", I asked. A fantasy was born right then, right there, that day on York Street. He informed me that he and his longtime friend Jordi (who's family, ironically enough, owns the Morse Mountain property where the cel phone was lost) were planning to somehow spend the next winter cruising the Virgin Islands on a sailboat. I had been fantasizing for years about doing the exact same thing.

Bam!

What resulted, is the adventure chronicled in the blog you are now reading.
So, now that it's over (for me)... where do I start? It's overwhelming. hhmmm.... how about a tribute..... to....

TEAM AUDAX
When John, Jordi and I were discussing this adventure over spaghetti / fresh bread dinner in the cockpit during my final night aboard, we all concurred the following:
The fact that three totally different guys, with three male egos, three different backgrounds, and three different life agendas were able to co-habitiate on a 38ft sailboat for five months without punching each others' lights out, is just plain INCREDIBLE. Think about it, people.... what are the odds?? It's a true blessing. Open mindedness, willingness to compromise, and an open forward communication style all teamed up to make it possible. Add to this the following yin/yang balance: Jordi and I are two opposite styles of people, which we have openly acknowledged to each other, with mutual respect. On the spectrum of plan-everything-in-advance vs just-go-with-the-flow, Jordi is at one end, and I am at the other. Throw John right in the middle to oscillate back and forth between the two ends of the spectrum as the swing-vote, and what you get is the perfect yin/yang balance in the Team Audax mojo. X=0. It just plain could NOT have worked out any other way. What are the odds of getting this combo by luck of the draw? They are astronomical. There is a Higher Power at work here, folks. I truly believe this in my heart.

JORDI ST. JOHN
Like the younger brother I never had. I have a lot of respect for this guy. He is very ambitous, meticulous, thorough, with a saucy competitive streak that can get him in trouble but is fun as hell to watch. Reminds of me when I was his age, when Ski Instructor Certification and attending as many Phish concerts as possible were my burning ambitions. He has his Captain's license, and was made for a career on boats. He's a natural, and he would make the best ever delivery/charter captain, if he chooses to do so. I have no doubt in my mind that he will excel in whatever he chooses as a career (I hope it involves boats), just as he has excelled at nordic skiing, the Spring Summer and Fall Days competitions, beating Josh and John at tennis, and last but not least, the card game of "hearts". I know this epic journey has solidified a strong bond between us which has only just begun. "Zat was a spicy-a-meat-a-ball!" will always make me chuckle. Love ya, Bro!

JOHN HERRIGEL
Like the other younger brother I never had. John and I had so many deep Ego vs Spirituality discussions that we could burn them on CD and sell them as a career. And I mean sell them to Comedy Central, not Oprah. We have both embarked on the same spiritual journey, at roughly the same pace, with similar ups and downs, guided by our new spiritual quasi-mentors Ekhart Tolle and Michael Brown. This has produced a very special bond between us that will never be broken, regardless of where our respective journeys take us. Did y'all know that John Herrigel is a serial entrepreneur? That's right. He once started his very own ice cream business! And sea salt, too! That's right! That kicks ass. His newest post-cruise endeavour has lots of potential to be "the big one", and I wish him the best of luck with it. "That's a good call." Love ya, Bro!

S/V AUDAX
Our favorite lady. She has treated us so well. I have no doubts whatsoever about her abilities to carry my brothers home safely. Much love and thanks to this sassy lady. More cruising to come in the Gulf of Maine Summer - see ya then!

My two new brothers, and two new additions to Team Audax are undertaking a HUGE adventure with the bluewater passage home. Think about it: over 1000NM, 12 or so days at sea, hundreds of miles offshore with no land in sight. That's huge. (Follow all the action at http://www.caribbeanendeavour.com/ ) If there were ever a suitable context to invoke the term "Godspeed", this is it:

GODSPEED, TEAM AUDAX!

Last, but certainly not least, words cannot do justice to the huge amount of GRATITUDE I feel. I feel so very blessed to have experienced this adventure of a lifetime. There is simply no way that my mortal human mind could have orchestrated such an incredible experience. I truly believe it could only have been created by a Higher Power.

So, from the bottom of my heart:
THANK YOU John!
THANK YOU Jordi!
THANK YOU S/V Audax!
THANK YOU to all the friends and family who visited us in Caribbean paradise and/or faithfully followed the blogs!
THANK YOU God!

Sincerely, with much love and gratitude,
Steve M. St.Jean

[NOTE: This IS, in fact, my FINAL blog post. Hence the title of this entry: "The End". A very special thanks to all the loyal readers out there - you truly made the blog worth writing. I appreciate all of your comments and/or emails along the way.]

My Final Cruise: "Amandalie"

At John's Chatham NJ 10th year high school reunion, he was reuinted with his old friends, Amanda and Natalie. He invited them down for a Caribbean cruise aboard S/V Audax. They accepted. Jordi was delivering a Beneteau 50 from Florida to Boston, so it was just the four of us. I collectively refer to Amanda and Natalie as "Amandalie".

They treated us to dinner at our favorite posh poach - Peter Island Resort! Gold Stars CAN be BOUGHT:

They did well at the Hooters Top Ten. Although, I was dissapointed at how quickly they downselected. I don't think they put much thought into it:

We DESTROYED Foxy's. They weren't ready for Amanda's pro-caliber dance routines. Neither was I:

Reuniting with Jordi! Welcome back, Bro!:

I finally made johns birthday cake, ten days late. It was still pretty yummy, even though it was made with olive oil and chocolate milk ingredient substitutions:

The Baths.... this time, in the SUN:

Dagnyandymattrosie

Cool new guests over the last week! John's friends Matt, Rosie and Andrew. Also, Jordi's mom Dagny.

Our tender fuel cell was stolen in Cane Garden Bay, Tortola. We got a new one in Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda. Here, Andy can be seen dancing with it:

Andy surfs! Well! He brought his board. I brought him to Josiah's Bay Beach on Tortola. He surfed. This is not him in this pic, as HE took it. But trust me, he's good. The cab driver tried to get $120 for this trip. We gave him $80:

It RAINED. All day and all night at The Baths and to Peter Island. The FIRST and ONLY extended precipitation of the whole trip!:

Chili dogs below, as it POURS on us at Peter Island:

A day-after-Foxy's induced power nap:

Matt and Andy play the "rate the Hooters Girls" game. They did well - way better than Rodger and Jillian:

The Baths in the pouring rain. It was fun and refreshing:

Jordi's mom, Dagny St.John. A very special person whom John and I were fortunate to have on the boat. A very Present and spiritually grounded individual. We had some great deep discussions as well as a few laughs. She is a medical intuitive, and performs energy readings "through the ether". See http://www.dagnystjohn.com/ for more info:

Poaching vs. Legit

POACHING: The "art" of attempting to utilize various amenities of a resort, without actually paying to be a legitimate guest at said resort. Subject amenities may include, but are not limited to: showers, beaches, beach chairs, swimming pools, wi-fi, tennis courts, coffee etc.

LEGIT: The status of being an actual, welcomed, paying guest at a resort. This allows one to fully enjoy all amenities listed above, with pride. No stealth aspect or shame involved whatsoever.

Rodger and Jillian Herrigel, aka "The R & J Train", aka John's Parents, treated us to two days at the PETER ISLAND RESORT! Just plain awesome.

That's right! I'm in the POOL! Room 113 - Herrigel! In your face!!:


Poaching entails hiking to and from Sunset Point, packing your own food & drink. Legit guests get a ride to and from, and food and drink is provided:

Look at the smile on Jillian's face. She was SO PSYCHED to be at the helm under full sail. She marveled at how the boat "tips over" when the sails power up. She's a natural. I see a sailboat in their future:

They got the "pimp pad" aboard Audax. Livin' large:

Peter Island Resort:

They gave us a ride to a private beach on the far side of the island, and delivered "picnic lunches" at the time of our choosing. I never saw a "picnic lunch" like this:

The lobster pants make a triumphant return. Two nights in a row. That's right!:

I laughed at these signs. That's right - in your face. Herrigel - room 113. Check it:

Rodger and Jillian try their hand at picking the Audax/Hooter's Top Ten. There were very few overlaps. As a matter of fact, Jillian picked #52 (D.F.L.) "Elisamonique" as one of her TOPS. We had to stop and go to dinner.... good thing.... tempers were flaring within ten minutes as John and I defended Brodine and Mandy respectively:

They loved Matouk's! True Audax crew:

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU Rodger and Jillian!! Your generosity knows no bounds. Pleasant memories that will be with me for a lifetime. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. THANK YOU!