Fun (and learning) in the sun

by kiwilog

Zoe on the Erin Go Bragh II

I don’t know about your kids, but nothing gets mine going like a long swim on a hot day. Just watching them splash and giggle and point at the fish in the ocean makes me pretty excited, too.

A swimming outing might seem easy enough . . . except that we live in Philadelphia, a city socked with more snow than Everest this winter. Our solution? A few weeks ago, my daughters and I headed to Puerto Rico with my best friend for an all-girl, all-sunshine vacation. And the highlight of our week on the island was a day sail on a 50-foot wooden sailboat, the Erin Go Bragh II.

We set sail in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, about an hour or so outside of San Juan. Once on board, Ingrid, the earth scientist-turned-sailor who owns the boat, started right in with teaching my kids about ocean life. Once they were secure in their life jackets, she took them out on the bow to look for turtles, dolphins, and other sea creatures (while I relaxed with a cold drink in the stern). And when we were an hour or so offshore, she got them snorkeling with the best of them, right over one of the best coral reefs in the Caribbean. For an entire day, my children did not once ask about watching TV or playing online. And the longer term result? Since our return home, they have checked about a million ocean books out of the library, and they’ve started a penny collection to save the dolphins.

While our sail was about eight hours long, Ingrid offers overnight trips of up to a week – an amazing opportunity for a family who wants to learn about the sea and all its creatures firsthand.