http://saltspringsoapworks.com/products/category/salish-sea-soap/

I also think that a soap on a rope (which you can hang to dry) and easily take with a towel to a shore-side base usefull, since this avoids the need for a soap dish.

The biggest threat to your skin at sea is drying, due to the elements.

Re the life vest: I would check with Fair Winds before investing in one. They would be required to have life jackets on board to take passengers, although, if they are going to require students to wear them under way, then you might want to get your own. Definitely go for an SOS-style inflatable vest. It doubles as a harness and is much more comfortable to wear for extended periods.

I hope you find the BVI to be as much a change-your-life experience as it was for me. The water is gorgeous, and the islands are pure layered beauty. It’s been eight years since my last visit, but I lived there for almost twelve.

> Have a ball!

> Gwen

I did find a shampoo/body gel called Savon (I think) that is supposed to lather up in salt water and is not harmful to the ocean. Bathing in the ocean with a quick freshwater rinse sounds like the easiest/best option to me. My hair is long and thick and can turn into a rat’s nest pretty handily!

All this is new and I’ve been trying to educate myself as much as I can ahead of time but my learning curve right now is huge. I’m spending a week onboard as a student with FairWind Sailing to do my Bareboat. Up to now, I’ve taken a small craft course and crewed several times with local clubs so this is definitely a step up! I’ve had many people tell me – “Don’t overpack!” I found a good list in a book I bought about women and sailing and I can’t remember the authors name but it’s been quite helpful.

I’ve also been wondering what to do about a PFD. I have a jacket style vest but one friend told me I should consider investing in a CO2 vest while another told me not to worry about the vest on this trip. Being not too far from Lake Erie, I wouldn’t think about going out there without one but several people have told me whatever is already onboard will suffice for what we’re doing. I know water is water and you can run into trouble anywhere so I’m under no illusion that just because it’s the BVI’s means it’s “safe”. Although, I have been spending money hand over fist to be able to go on this trip so the approx. $300. for the vest that fits me is substantial. If I do take a vest with me, the CO2 would be much easier to pack and US Air does accept them. I know I’d use it eventually, but any thoughts there would be appreciated, too.

I can hardly wait! I’ll be leaving March 4th – onboard the 5th -11th – then on Jost Van Dyke till the 16th when I’ll head back to Columbus for my 10th (and hopefully final) back surgery. This is my little gift to myself for having endured all that.

Thank you so much for taking your time to write to me and I’ll let you know how my waxing experiment goes! If you think of anything else, resource-wise, to pass along I’ll be grateful.

All the best from snowy, 18 degrees Ohio to sunny Florida!

After a wax, your legs should stay clean for at least two weeks. By the third week you begin to get slightly hairy — the hair growth usually much diminished and noticeably softer with little stubble — for another week or two. I often went 5-6 weeks.

If you want to consider waxing for your week in the BVI, I would plan to do it 4-6 days before you go, to make sure any irritation you might experience from a first time experience will have gone away.

The thing about waxing is once you start, you don’t really want to go back and forth, because you tend to lose the long-term progress you make when you shave again.

I started waxing in my 20s, and managed to keep it up throughout my cruising career. I was very hairy after shaving in my teens, and now have almost nothing.

If long distance cruising is your ultimate aim, you will find you can get legs waxed pretty much everywhere outside the US for half the cost, and have some pretty interesting experiences in the process. It’s a great feminine forum for exchange of local information.

Eventually, I bought my own waxing system and got my husband a lesson or two from my then favorite aesthetician. This worked fairly well for when we were hanging out in remote locations, although humidity can complicate the procedure.

If you choose to stick with shaving, you want to avoid doing it inside the head. Those little tiny hairs can a mess to clean up (probably why so many guys grow beards!) and then they turn into gluck down in the shower sump. Lots of women shave in a bathing suit on the sugar scoop, using salt water to rinse it off.

In warm climes, salt water baths are a pleasurable alternative, but there’s no need to do it naked, just bathe in your swim suit. Jump in, climb out, later up, jump back in, then either towel off immediately (and change suits) or squander a few pints of fresh water for a rinse from the deck shower, esp for hair and then towel off.

Many boaters work very hard to avoid using water in their below-deck shower areas. Others don’t care for the claustrophic dimensions of many boat bathing spaces. Some simply don’t have a below-deck option.

We certainly used our shower liberally as we cruised. We were LIVING ABOARD, not camping out!

If your boat’s shower area is available for showering, good after-shower eitiquette would have you dry the area down post shower with a squeegee or chamois to combat mildew and wet rot on wood trim…and to make it so whoever follows you into the head for other purposes does not get wet.

Hope this is helpful. I urge you to try waxing. That way you won’t have to give it a thought throughout the your week. You’ll have plenty enough else to be thinking about! Have fun!

Of course I have friends who wax, perhaps they will chime in here too.

Just a thought.