The captain and crew of the Rebel Yell were the same people featured in the Youtube video of the excursion.




Ah, money shot!





Though uncomfortable, the ride over was quite scenic.



Check out this cliffside house/resort - 



We were the first group of tourists to arrive at White Bay Beach at Jost Van Dyke that morning. It was really early.






Talk about a postcard-worthy location -




The excursion description did note that you may need to swim a short distance to shore. Thankfully, we didn't need to swim, but we did have to step down into waist-deep (well.... waist-deep to me) water to get off the catamaran.


I was really pumped about the vacant beach.

We broke away from the crowd and walked out to one of the farther beach bars.


Pour your own drink?!

Gertrude's wasn't open, yet, but we went ahead and sat down in the chairs and figured we'd pay for them once someone got there to open up.

Cute fit -





Aaron and I decided to go exploring. The only place that was open was the Soggy Dollar.



The Soggy Dollar also had lots of picnic tables and chairs.... I guess there was a good reason that everyone else stopped here.

Hendo's Hideout looked very cute, but it wasn't open, yet.

We ventured on and found some bungalows under construction -








Victoria on Vacation in the Wild -



We ventured up some stairs and saw this sign for "Ivan's Stress Free Bar." We did not enter the stress-free zone.


But it did look like there were more venues on the other side -

We turned around and headed back to where we left the family -


Aaron, Rachel, and I ordered Painkillers from the Soggy Dollar Bar. Apparently the drink originated here. Then we grabbed some beach chairs and took them to the water.

Apparently someone came to open Gertrude's, and he really wasn't sure what to do about us. Landon and Stove tried to order some drinks from him, but I don't think he was ready to open, yet. We ended up taking our stuff and moving it down to the Soggy Dollar area.


Also got some of the local beer, Carib -

Aaron ordered the Conch Fritters from The Soggy Dollar to share. They were really freakin good.




Just like with Great Stirrup Cay, we were not ready to leave!

Headed back, Rachel asked if we could sit in the front, and they said sure. So we got a prime catamaran location!

We did not interface with the captain who keeps her boat clean, but the crew was really friendly.


It was much more enjoyable riding in the front on the way back. And they served rum punch!



After some Internet sleuthing, I learned that this giant cliffside house is Steele Point Villa, and for just $3500/night, you can rent this vacation home -

See, much better seat -




Overall, it was a great excursion (Rachel for the win, again!), and I would definitely like to go back to Jost Van Dyke.

Back to the Encore!




The excursion did maximize our port time. Not too long after we boarded, they were already packing up to leave.



Good-bye, Tortola!







We had an early dinner time tonight, so we decided to go ahead and get cleaned up. Also, it's always a great time for champagne on the balcony -






We went down to The Waterfront for pre-dinner drinks at The Cavern. The Cavern on the Encore takes the place of Margaritaville Bar on The Escape. I much preferred the Caribbean vibe of Margaritaville.


Dinner tonight was at Le Bistro, the French specialty restaurant. It's located on Deck 17 Aft (opposite of American Diner) and has great views. The good thing about the early dinner reservation is that you actually have a view while you dine - at least until the sun sets.
Someone told me to photograph this bottle of wine, but I don't remember why. I do remember that I really liked the salt and pepper grinders.

First up, Escargot a la Bourguignonne. It's a French restaurant, so we had to.




Not too rubbery. Much better than your typical oily dining room escargot.


This is the Cromesquis de Chevre salad. I ordered it primarily because of the goat cheese croquettes and horseradish. It also has beets and granny smith apples.


Aaron ordered the Soup aux Quatre Champignons (Cream of Mushroom Soup) -



And the Salade d'Endive.... interesting presentation -


Aaron ordered the Filet de Canette Roti, the roasted maple leaf duck breast. He said that it was chewy, and he didn't think they cooked it properly. It wasn't very good.

I ordered the Carre d'Agneau Roti et Souris d'Agneau aux Saveurs Marocaines which is the braised shank and roasted lamb chop. Mine was okay. Rachel ordered the same thing, and it was really fatty. She said, "I don't like anything with fat on it."

Now time for dessert. Aaron got the Fraisier, strawberries with diplomat cream and pistachio -

As dessert was being delivered, Landon and JUDY started snickering!!


The Marquis au Chocolat had very interesting presentation -


I pulled a Judy and ordered Assiette de Fromage, the assortment of cheeses -

Since we dined so early tonight, we didn't even know what to do with ourselves after dinner. We went back to our rooms to regroup later. Rachel and Landon decided to call it a night. Aaron and I were debating whether to go out or not... we figured we might as well get up and go before we fell asleep.

We left the room and Judy popped out into the hallway to see what we were up to. We decided to go check out the Glow Party (the new "White Hot" party) by the pool deck.

The setup for the Glow Party was pretty cool. Instead of using the built-in stage in the corner, they built a platform in the center of the pool deck. This provided more room around the stage for dancing.

The guy in the green was going HARD.


This was probably the most lively deck party. By Day 5, all of the teens and young adults had found each other and banded together in their little posses. The teenagers started jumping together in sync and also formed a little mosh pit. But the older adults (like us lol) were also having a fun time.

It started to rain, so we headed for cover. Then as the rain picked up, we decided to head inside.

We headed to Maltings Liquor Bar. It's a low-lit space, so I don't have really great photos, but I liked the decor in maltings. The dark orange velvet bar stools are nice.

Stove was snoozy, so he and Judy decided to call it a night. Aaron and I headed to The Social where the Glow Party crowd had migrated. It's a good spot for people watching.

Also, I took some photos of the feature light fixtures around the ship -


This one looks kind of like plastic bags -