Ken, those pictures were magnificent! Jim Bittle almost front and center in the final! I can't imagine the thrill it must have been for the locals to come onboard and make some contact with the rest of the world (and be off the island) for a day, as I've read about Pitcairn and its isolation for those who live there. Your photos captured it all. I did read all the links that Marc led us to from an earlier thread on this island, and the long boat filled with locals was almost the same as I saw before, loaded with all of them! Who was the man accepting the plaque, the mayor/governor/PM of the island? And if you know, what is it with the guy in the kerchief on his head? I have seen him before!

Marc, it is about surge of the currents in getting on and off tenders, and landing with big swells, and avoiding injury in a remote part of the world. Even MedJetAssist couldn't help you here if you broke a bone. Think of how difficult it was for these people with native sea legs to even get out to the Mariner! Have you ever been on a small boat (with less draft than a meter) that suddenly came upon a sandbar....what happens if the surge carries a boat ashore or toward a rock? Not fun, and it can be dangerous. :mad: My lecture is over. I know you want to go there, and appreciate that. This time, I loved the vicarious experience of seeing the locals coming on the ship. Why else would the Voyager visit Manila, when it never did before a couple of years ago? I would bet that most pax get just as much enjoyment staying onboard there, when it is docked!

NOW, if I come to England for the Chelsea Flower Show in June, will you and Arlene still have dinner with me and Joanna?