The Last 100 Boats [George Town, Bahamas 2020 Sailing Lockdown Song]

In the spring of 2020, as the world faced the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, sailing and cruising boats in the Bahamas tried to make the most of life under lock-down while aboard their boats in George Town, Exuma. Some stayed because they couldn’t return to their home countries, or were trying to head south before hurricane season. Others stayed because they couldn’t imagine a better place to weather the storm.

Restrictions increased week by week. In March, it became illegal to move inter-island. Beaches were closed down to boaters, even for individual exercise. Borders were closed and travel restrictions increased, leaving some family members and partners locked-down and separated hundreds or thousands of miles apart from one another. In April, a new protocol decreed boaters could no longer take their dinghies ashore or to the docks, even to obtain groceries, fuel, or fresh drinking water. For many, it became a lonely time, trapped aboard their small vessels, with no company, no transportation, and no social interaction.

But as the final departing boats left Elizabeth Harbor and numbers dwindled to 100, a new and unique community emerged. The VHF radio became the central hub of social interaction, with morning nets, storytelling, lectures, trivia nights, comedy hours, and even murder mysteries. Volunteers and business owners ashore found ways to supply foreign boats with water, trash removal, and fuel. And we all found ways to occupy ourselves with boat projects, exercise, and new hobbies.

In the midst of all this change and isolation, a feeling of strength and determination began to emerge—a feeling that we were all in this together, that we would endure until things got better, and that we had formed a special community bond that we wouldn’t soon forget.

This music video is a gift to the cruiser community as a way to commemorate our time together here in George Town.

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“The Last 100 Boats” Song
Music and lyrics by Dale (S.V. Sixth Girl) and Emily (S.V. Temptress)
Performed by Dale (S.V. Sixth Girl) and Emily (S.V. Temptress)
Video clips from the boats of Elizabeth Harbor.
Video and music editing by Emily (S.V. Temptress)

T-shirts & Swag
“The Last 100 Boats” George Town anchor lights design by Shelley (S.V. Mohini)
Order T-shirts and other swag here: https://teespring.com/stores/last100boats

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LYRICS
I’m not gonna lie and say it’s easy,
trapped like this on a boat,
When your dreams are turned clear upside down
and it feels like a prison afloat
When you look into the eyes of your loved ones
thousands of miles away
You crave their touch like oxygen
But your trapped here in this bay

CHORUS
When you’re feeling lost and lonely
Just look across that dark bay
You’ll see white lights shining in the night
As pure as the coming day
And each of us is a brave soul
Making our home afloat
We’re meant to last, we’re holding fast
We’re the last one hundred boats

And in the morning, voices reach out,
To see if everyone’s okay
Sharing the news and the this and that
But really the voices say
is we’re thinking of you, and we care about you
No one will be left behind
We’re gonna get through, like we always do,
We’re all gonna be just fine

[CHORUS]

You spend the days reflecting
On the beauty all around
The big blue sky, the salty air
And even when you’re feeling down
You know your home is where your boat is
And it’s where you want to be
And you’re grateful to have chosen
This life upon the sea

[CHORUS]

And when all of this is over,
We’ll all laugh about that year
When we all swam in circles around our boats,
And everyone ran out of beer!
We played trivia, solved mysteries
And called all our friends back home
And even though we all stayed six feet apart,
We didn’t feel so all alone

[CHORUS]

La,
La la la la,
La la la la,
La la la la,
So even though we can’t meet at the beach
We’ll still laugh and smile and sing
And look out for each other
That’s the most important thing (so)

[CHORUS]

La,
La la la la,
La la la la,
La la la la

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