A unique island

While much of the nation is dealing with bone-chilling temperatures, St. John isn't. The weather forecast today is for a slight chance of showers and a high of 82 degrees. Nice.

With a high in the low ‘80s, chances are you wouldn’t run air conditioning.  And, mindful that the price of electricity is out of sight, that’s a good reason not to.  But while you can run from the Water and Power Authority, you can’t hide.  You still have the ceiling fans turning, the microwave warming, and the TV set on.  So, you’re using electricity.

P-600, whose family recently rented a house and moved to the island, from New England, is finding out first-hand to deal with the high price of power. In her latest online post, she said last month’s bill was the biggest so far: $702. “It must have been the one strand of 30 Christmas lights around our tiny tree that put us over the top,” she wrote.

This month’s bill is $527.85. “We haven't been using the Central AC at all,” but a power company adjustment for rising oil costs went up. “Never thought I would be so happy to have a $500 Electric Bill,” she said.

Bottom line.  P-600 is paying 51 cents a kilowatt hour.  Find your own electric bill and see how it compares.

Jamison Witbeck, captain of the hand-built 55-foot catamaran Kekoa, says the reason he has an all-woman crew is simple: "Guys don't do any work, and the girls do."  His wife is cool with the idea.

Witbeck talked about his crew, boat, and his wife and kids and their island adventure, in the second episode of Reserve Channel's Ex-Pats, an online show produced in partnership with Travel+Leisure.

Originally from Vermont, he and his brother built Kekoa in the states.  On its maiden voyage to the islands, the folks who leased it ran into horrible weather and abandoned ship.  It was found five days later. Witbeck realized he had to be the one to own, care for, and sail her.

This is Witbeck's second experience with St. John.  About 10 years ago he and his wife kind of washed up on the shore, had a child, then another and began making a life.  Eventually, they moved back to the mainland.  But he didn't like the life his family was having.  "In the states, the kids would hide out in the air conditioning, play video games and stay inside."  He preferred the life they had on St. John, outside, active, self reliant.

• Web site for Kekoa on TripAdvisor

Registrations from off-islanders are selling faster “than ice cold beer at happy hour,” according to Peter Alter, founder and organizer of the 17th annual 8 Tuff Miles race.

This year’s race will be the biggest ever, with 1,500 competitors.  The sign-ups for visitors began Oct. 1, and nearly half the 600 slots are now filled. The balance, 900 entries, will be open to Virgin Islands residents on Dec. 1st.

Alter posted on Facebook his Top Ten States for registrations so far.

• #1 Massachusetts, 42. “Easy flights from Boston to STT.”
• #2 New York, 215. “No surprise here, there’s 8 million people in NYC.”
• #3 Virginia, 23, “CJ. Cross is responsible for this.”
• #4 Florida, 22, “People from FL. just want to see what a hill looks like.”
• #5 Georgia 20, “We’ve never had so many people coming from GA.”
• #6 North Carolina, 19, “Asheville, NC. is our Sister City.”
• #7 Minnesota, 18, “Can’t blame ya for not wanting to be there in Feb.”
• #7 Texas 18 “They heard we’re BBQing/roasting three pigs this year.”
• #9 Pennsylvania, 14,  “Always well represented at 8TM.”
• #10  New Jersey, 12, “They heard that Skinny Legs opens at 8:30a.m.”
• Signup here.
• 8 Tuff Miles on Facebook

"Return with me now to the thrilling days of yesteryear” is how the old Lone Ranger radio shows began.  

The Inquiring Iguana couldn't help thinking of that phrase when he stumbled across an eight-minute travelogue about St. John, produced in the ‘60s by Midwest Film Studios and available online.

About three-quarters of the film focuses on the development of Caneel Bay, new at the time. There are shots of the sand and the surf, of course.  The deep-voiced narrator explains,  The “slave quarters (have been)  remodeled as pastel-tinted cottages …the old Sugar Mill is now a shop.”

There was a golf course pictured (which Capt. Doug, in a comment, said is on St. Croix).

If you rented a car you could explore the island, including the waterfront where there multi-masted sailing ships appear to be anchored.

The film is available at the Travel Film Archive, which appears to be a real trove of treasure for travel veterans. Here's a link.

Everybody likes fireworks!  But if you weren’t on the island Wednesday night, you can still enjoy the show.

On YouTube, VoVislicer uploaded a video of the 17-minute pyrotechnics.  Admittedly, it's not as exciting to watch as it was being there, seeing it live.

Meanwhile, lots of other people were taking videos and pictures, too. Some of them were really talented, like Yelana Rogers, one of the better photographers on the island. 

She specializes in weddings and commercial assignments.  But she’s not all work, work, work.  So, Rogers was high above Cruz Bay when the big show began.  

In fact, she spent several days this week capturing the fun and the color and excitement of the final days of St. John Festival.  You can see lots more of her week's work here.

More than 70 couples crowded the Trunk Bay beach at sunset Tuesday to renew their marriage vows as part of the annual Valentine’s Day “Celebration of Love.”

The event is organized by Cathy Dove and Anne Marie Porter, a non-denominational minister and wedding planner.  Each couple receives a certificate of marriage re-affirmation

“Our National Park beaches are among some of the most beautiful in the world and ideal for our marriage vow renewal ceremony,” Porter said.

Karin and Bob Schlesinger, owners of Tropical Focus Photography, provided these photos. (BTW, Bob and Karin celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary last week.)

Among the renewal participants were Henry and Betty Costabel of Cornwall, N.Y.  The secret of their 57 years together? “You’ve got to know how to play cards,” he told the St. John Source.

Anne Marie Porter