all your senses are on full blast when you’re in the middle of the ocean…
WHO: Duncan Molesworth
WHERE: St. Thomas, Virgin Islands
WHAT: Business Owner, Boat Captain
In part 1, we learned about the leading Jeep adventure company in the Virgin Islands, IslandBuddy. For part 2, we take a deep dive into IslandBuddyβs founder, Duncan. A business owner and boat captain, read on to find a glimpse of what island life is like, the intricacies of being a charter boat captain, and feel what itβs like to truly trust your friends when alone on a small sailboat for seven days.
Me: Tell me about island life.
Duncan: It can be extremely exhausting and extremely relaxing. Itβs all sorts of extremes sometimes. Depending on what youβre looking for, it can either be very enjoyable or very frustrating. When youβre looking for a day off, itβs not a terrible thing to turn your phone off for the day. No one is going to complain that they canβt reach you. And that is very refreshing because I think weβre always raised to be on time, to be punctual, things like that, so we put a lot of stress on ourselves to always be around to answer the phone. That stresses you out and wears you down even if you donβt know it. So one thing I learned is island time, which everyone talks about, but itβs a real thing.
Me: What is βisland timeβ?
Duncan: It goes deeper than just βyou canβt find thingsβ. Sometimes the power goes out. Sometimes there are days where you just canβt get ahold of people, but what you start to realize is, maybe these people needed time away from their phones to catch up on work or catch up on their mental health. And when you do finally get around to talking to them, thereβs no hard feelings or arguments. Itβs hard to articulate but itβs definitely what you make it. You can be who you want to be and you donβt owe anyone an explanation. Youβre able to stop for a moment and just take some time to enjoy the place.
clear water, white sand beaches, swimming with sea turtles.
Me: Youβre a boat captain, among other things. Whatβs that like? How hard is it?
Duncan: When I was in high school, we lived on a lake and we had a pontoon boat. So thatβs where I got my training wheels, on the boat almost daily in the summer for years. Then I moved down to the Virgin Islands and I was working at a restaurant on a hill looking down at all these boats and all I wanted to do was be on the water. So thatβs when I decided to invest time and money into becoming a boat captain, so I can not only be on the water but get paid to do it. I signed up for classes, got all sorts of certifications, and after almost a decade of putting in hard work, on the lake and in the Caribbean, I became a licensed captain. Then I just started reaching out to help out in any way. Then that turned into picking up captain shifts. It was a lengthy process but nothing impossible.
Me: What kind of boats do you captain?
Duncan: Iβve gotten a lot of unique experiences learning different vessels. Iβve captained 26-foot center consoles with outboards, to larger in-board mini-yachts, multiple 300-HP engine center consoles, and I even started out running a small shuttle from beach to beach in a 14-foot zodiac inflatable. Itβs been a lot of fun.
Me: Describe to me a normal day in the life of boat captain Dunc.
Duncan: Wake up, eat a little breakfast. I try to take the mornings slow and to myself. Get to the boat about an hour early so Iβm not in a rush. Guests show up right at the dock, go over safety precautions and equipment, and then we go over a map and see where they want to go. I want them to have a unique trip each time theyβre with me. So set out with a loose plan and from there, after each stop, we reconvene to check in on the plan. We spend a lot of time snorkeling, beautiful clear water, white sand beaches, swimming with sea turtles. Then weβll hit lunch, maybe find a place to tie some pool noodles and kick back with cocktails, beers, and wine down before heading back to the dock to end the day.
Me: Clean the boat and done?
Duncan: Clean the boat, gas up if we need to, then set the boat up for the charter the next day.
Me: Not a bad day.
Duncan: Not bad. We work from 9 to 4 and when weβre done, we still have plenty of sunlight left. I can go run errands and get other projects done, or take my dinghy to St. John to catch happy hour.
Me: Have you ever had any scary situations on a boat? Any guests that have just been terrible?
Duncan: Yes and yes. The pandemic has really changed travel. A lot of people are coming down for the first time, which is good, but it seems like thereβs a lot of people that donβt know anything about this place, donβt understand how to stay safe in the water. Like maybe theyβve never swam in the ocean before, and theyβre going on boat trips. So lately weβve been more than a captain. Weβre lifeguards, bartenders, snorkel and swimming instructors, which is kind of what a boat captain is anyway, but itβs just a little more labor intensive lately. And it requires a lot of patience.
Something scary that happened? I was leaving the dock on St. Thomas. I put the boat in reverse and backed out of the slip, then put the boat in forward but it kept going backward. So I had to cut [the engines] and Iβm dead in the water. Turns out there was a broken throttle cable. And thankfully there were no guests on board, but it had me startled. When your boat is stuck in gear in tight quarters near other beautiful, beautiful boats, itβs definitely a nerve-racking situation. But I was able to get it back in the slip, all untouched and everything in one piece.
they’ve got your life in their hands.
Me: You sometimes find yourself on adventures with connections you know. Tell me about some other cool things youβve done.
Duncan: I did a delivery from St. Thomas to Ft. Lauderdale on a mono-hull sailboat, and that was a very sobering experience. It makes you realize how small you are on this giant world. We did eleven hundred miles in 7 days all under sail, 24 hours a day. We had planned our route using the tides and the weather and just tried to enjoy the ride. I got to see a sunrise and a sunset every single day.
Me: And people donβt really do that, right? Stop and watch the sunset. You just kind of go about your day and the sun rises or the sun sets.
Duncan: Right right. When youβre out sailing, youβre completely in tune with nature. Youβre paying attention to what the water is doing and what the wind is doing because each little change affects your sailing, your speed, your course, so when sunrise and sunset came each day, it took the main stage. When I say we watched it every single day, we paid attention to every single second of its performance. They were very sobering and very, very beautiful. Each day it was different, with different clouds and conditions and colors. And to be with two other humans for a week straight on a 40-foot sailboat out in the middle of the ocean, you kind of develop a bond with those guys. Theyβre the only interaction you have and if something were to happen, theyβve got your life in their hands.
Me: So youβre with these people 24/7 and the boats not huge, right? You probably canβt go 30 minutes without bumping into someone I imagine.
Duncan: We were so close quarters that if you coughed, the other guy would hear you and wake up. And all of your senses are on full blast cause youβre out in the middle of the ocean and thereβs this sense of survival going on. Youβre one bad turn from being stranded out at sea. So youβre very alert, thereβs tons of coffee, trying to stay awake. And even when youβre resting, you canβt, because youβre so nervous.
Me: Whatβs that like? Entrusting these people that youβre with when you do try to sit down to rest?
Duncan: I took the delivery because of who the captain was. My buddy I was with does 5-6 of these a year, so when he asked me to go along, I said yes, knowing that he had thousands and thousands of miles under his belt. I knew it was another walk in the park for him. Because of that I felt safe enough to go on this adventure. That allowed me that piece of mind knowing he was in control and I was just along for the ride.
(Have the time? Check out 16 Days at Sea on YouTube, or read about it here)
it’s just God’s country man.
Me: Where all have you been?
Duncan: Hawaii, St. Martin, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Grand Cayman, Aruba, Key West. Iβve been to the Smokyβs, the Blue Ridge Parkway, really the whole Appalachian chain. Iβve been to several national parks, and my favorite is probably Glacier.
Me: Why?
Duncan: I think Montana is just a whole different, itβs just Godβs country man. Itβs just landscape after landscape, untouched earth. And the topography is insane, and the sky is insane, and itβs all untouched and undeveloped.
Me: Where do you find inspiration? What keeps you inspired to keep saying yes to adventures?
Duncan: You donβt know whatβs going to happen, and thereβs a chance youβre going to learn something along the way. And the thing I enjoy the most in life is seeing new places, meeting new people, and learning new things.
Me: Whatβs next for you?
Duncan: Iβm developing a small property I own here in St. Thomas into small luxury cottages with a large central common area where I can host travelers from all over the world, give them a beautiful place to stay. So building that and bringing people together is whatβs next, using the view, the breeze, the tropical climate as the focus, providing a place to host and gather while enjoying the landscape and everything that it has to offer. The fruit trees, the lizards, things like that. Iβm really looking forward to it.
Give Duncan a shout on Instagram at @duncan_nm, and read part 1 of his story here.
And as always, stay tuned to this space for more of the best stories of adventure.
Live Lost. Find it on the way.
