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TCC territory number two! Number one is, of course, my home of the continental USA 48.
This isn’t really number two as I have traveled to over two dozen territories. I want to start the count over as a solo woman age 50+ though, since in this chapter of my life I can do exactly what I want to do when I want to do it and truly appreciate everything I see and experience.
Bermuda has a special place in my family history. In 1609, my ancestor Henry Bagwell headed from Plymouth, England toward the new & floundering Jamestown on the Virginia Company’s Sea Venture. The ship was blown off course during a hurricane and wrecked off the coast of then-uninhabited Bermuda. All 150 people on the ship survived. They spent ten months in Bermuda building two ships with salvaged Sea Venture materials and Bermudan cedar. Bermuda had game and great weather, and many decided they didn’t want to continue on toward Jamestown..a couple of those men were hanged for attempted mutiny, and three others managed to be left behind when everyone else continued on to Jamestown in 1610. Those three greeted the colonists who came back to Bermuda a few years later, and together they began the first continuous human occupation of Bermuda.
Shakespeare heard about the horrible storm, shipwreck, and subsequent life on Bermuda from his friends in the Virginia Company. His play The Tempest was inspired by the detailed accounts of the Sea Venture’s survivors.
My ancestor, Bagwell, did not return to Bermuda but instead stayed in Jamestown. He helped rebuild the colony after it barely survived the Starving Times and, later, moved to the nearby Eastern Shore and sired a family that eventually begat me.
I have mixed feelings about Bagwell. Yes, it is cool that he was an adventurer on the Sea Venture, and that The Tempest was inspired by that shipwreck. Yes, I admire his survival skills. BUT, he went to VA to seek a living growing tobacco and was a member of the Jamestown and Eastern Shore community, which means he was there when the first slaves arrived in Virginia. The first Africans were treated like indentured servants, but by the time Henry’s son Thomas (my ancestor) was a grown man, slavery was in full effect. So there’s that.
These photos below show the exact beach where the Sea Venture folks arrived. The oldest part of the fort was built in 1612 after some of Bagwell’s shipmates returned to Bermuda. The hotel overlooking the beach is the St. Regis, built just a few years ago. And yes, I absolutely treated myself and stayed there (I had planned and saved for that).
St. George is the oldest continuous settlement in the “New World” – friends of Henry Bagwell returned three years after the 1609 shipwreck and founded the first town in Bermuda (Bermuda was previously uninhabited). Took a bus to the other end of the island to the museum at the dockyard so I could see actual artifacts from the shipwrecked Sea Venture.
Also saw nearby Tobacco Bay (photo five), where, in 1775, fighters for American Independence snuck onto Bermuda and stole a significant amount of gunpowder from the British Magazine. Ships took the needed gunpowder to the colonies, where gunpowder had been running low.
Highlights of my stay in St George, besides the bits relating to my family history, included doing backstrokes in the St Regis heated infinity pool while looking up at the clear and starry sky just before sunrise, walking the narrow sidewalks of St George in the late mornings, and talking to various locals as I wandered about.
Scenes from Bermuda, April 15-18, 2024
Humpback whale migration happens off the coast of Bermuda in March and April, so I booked an adults-only tour from the Aquarium. I highly recommend this. Camilla, the scientist on board, gave a ton of info as we headed toward the southeastern portion of Bermuda’s waters. I chatted with the other passengers – it was a good group. Everyone was friendly and easy going. We spent over two hours watching a baby frolic in the water with mama very close by. There was apparently a “guardian” third whale, but I never saw that one. We could see other whales much farther away flipping their tails up. I posted a video of the baby having fun in another post.
Other photos (not mentioned in order) are:
typical Bermuda houses seen from the water
Somerset Bridge, the world’s smallest drawbridge wide enough for just a sailboat mast
Bermuda’s rail trail, which I walked on for a couple of miles
Bus stops – pink poles mean the bus goes to Hamilton, the main city in Bermuda’s center. Blue poles mean the bus goes away from Hamilton. Some stops are right on narrow roads with no sidewalks or space to move away from the fast moving cars…you just have to hope all the drivers are paying attention and have good reflexes. Other (most?) stops are nice little shelters with shade, benches, and space for the bus to pull away from traffic.
I find the buses here a wonderful way to get around. There are different bus lines that get you pretty much anywhere in Bermuda you’d want to go. It is $62 for a weekly pass, and I use mine multiple times daily. Buses are air conditioned, and most have USB ports by the seats for charging your phone.
A note on Bermuda bus culture. Everyone is expected to make space for others. No bags on seats once the bus gets full. I saw one woman loudly fuss at another, younger woman for leaving her bags on the seat next to her when a bunch of people got on. Men give up seats for women. Everyone gives up seats for the elderly or people with small children/babies. Everyone says hello and thank you to the bus driver, and many riders greet the entire bus once they get on with a “good morning/afternoon, everyone!” It’s lovely.
April 2024. Horseshoe Beach, and art at the Princess Hamilton
Being an introvert who melts in direct sunlight, I am not one to lay about on a crowded beach. I do, however, enjoy experiencing beaches when it is cloudy/cool and when no one else is there. I therefore visited Bermuda’s famous Horseshoe Beach in the morning on an April weekday.
The beach is free to visit and close to bus stops. There is a restaurant and changing rooms, and I think umbrellas etc to rent (I was there before anything opened). The beach is known for pink sand, though during my visit the pink wasn’t that pronounced. The water’s beauty and various shades of blue were breathtaking, though. To the right of the main beach is a little cove where a local was enjoying a wade. We exchanged pleasantries, and before she left she took my photo (thanks, kind woman). I took her place in the water, bringing my backpack with me and placing it on a rocky outcropping, and enjoyed a little swim. Multicolored fish darted here and there, and life was beautiful.
After my swim, I walked about the beach area. Small groups were arriving, but the place still felt fairly empty. Highly recommend going early on a weekday if you do not like crowds or heat.
The other photos are of some of the many pieces of art on display at the Princess Hamilton. That hotel is a gallery unto itself. Many millions of dollars worth of modern art is on display there.
Spittal Pond Nature Reserve, Bermuda. April 21, 2024
Spittal Pond contains freshwater, though storms bring the nearby ocean into it from time to time. The area is a bird sanctuary and has a nice walking loop that affords views of both the pond and the ocean.
The walking path leads to Portuguese Rock, where Portuguese shipwrecked sailors carved the year 1543 and initials into the limestone before rebuilding their ship and moving on (unlike the later Sea Venture crew, none of them returned to permanently inhabit the island). ET apparently also visited this area before returning home.
Close to Portuguese Rock is Jeffrey’s Cave, where an escaped slave hid for weeks before eventually being found.
The path also leads to the “Checkerboard,” a natural flat limestone area with tessellated pavement formed by natural weathering processes. Whalers used to haul carcasses here to strip the animals of their blubber.
Last couple days in Bermuda. April 21-23, 2024.
Note – I do not use filters, the water really is that blue
Went on a shipwreck snorkel tour. The wind was too strong to do the original plan, but we still got to see a couple cool shipwrecks in our glass-bottom boat. There are over 300 shipwrecks off the coast of Bermuda spanning from the late 1500s through the 1990s. The shipwrecks can be attributed to the 200 square miles of coral reefs that surround the island. If you are a diver and like to see shipwrecks, this is the place to be.
We did manage to snorkel closer to shore, but I don’t have photos of that. The water felt cool but glorious. Half the time I just swam around and enjoyed the feel of the ocean.
Bermudans generally avoid going in the water until May 24, which is when they feel the water is warm enough. There’s a parade that day, and everyone celebrates and jumps in. That’s what a few locals told me, anyway.
Massive cruise ships stay at the Dockyard. To get an idea of their size, zoom in to the left of the cruise ship photo below and you will see Bermuda’s largest fort, The Keep, dwarfed by that ship.
The view from my AirBnB was spectacular. It is situated in Paget Parish directly across the water from Front Street/Hamilton and was inexpensive for Bermuda. It is an air-conditioned tiny-home structure big enough for just one bed, a mini-fridge, a microwave, a TV, and a small counter/cabinet. That was all I needed…and I had that view. I sat outside and watched the sun set over the water and Hamilton every night. It was quiet, beautiful, and peaceful. The hosts were great, too. Nice family.
At the airport, security opens at 7am even if your flight leaves at 8am. People lined up starting at 6:15. A bit nerve wracking, but everyone made it to our plane on time. There is only one terminal, it’s a small airport.
I loved this trip. I needed this trip. This was the first time in over two decades that I had been able to go anywhere and feel like I was having a relaxing vacation. I took care of my needs and wants and only my needs and wants. After two decades as a caregiver and support person, this felt wonderful. Yes, I am grateful for my last chapter…and I am so ready for this new one.