Ask any seasoned sailor about the most famous tropical bars
in the Caribbean, and they will invariably mention a watering hole on the
water known as “Foxy’s”.
As you approach the island of Jost Van Dyke, in the
Caribbean Sea north of Tortola, you are seeing a jungle enshrouded tip of a once
volcanic mountain rising from the sea.
It appears to be without human presence until you
settle yourself in Great Harbour where you note a few scant shacks along the
shorefront. Tucked into a corner on the east, at the end of a rickety dock, is
Foxy’s.
It is a blue roofed, open air structure, dogeared and weather beaten,
with a few tables and a small inconspicuous bar. It
is nondescript except for the fact that every square inch of the ramshackle
structure is adorned with license plates; plates from every conceivable corner
of our planet where vehicles must register.
When Foxy Caldwell first opened his then lemonade stand
sized establishment, he could not have foretold what was to come. He would not
know that the Beach Boys, the Jimmy Buffetts and the Kenny Chesneys of the world
would make this place famous; a virtual
pilgrimage. A place where New Years eve rivals Times Square. The attraction, it
seems to me, is its remoteness; if you are imbibing at Foxys, you are doing so
only after considerable time, expense and effort. You are celebrating not only
the fact that this is Foxy’s, but celebrating yourself for accomplishing the nearly
impossible in getting here.
Which is why, four years ago, with my son Evan at my side, I
proudly and ceremoniously added my license plate “FRE8LAS” to a predominant
position on the seagrape gnarled front gable of the entrance to Foxys. It was,
for a sailor like me, a rite of passage.
Which is also why, upon returning to Jost yesterday, Joe and
I were astounded and excited to see FRE8LAS hanging at Foxys, just where we left it.
Dingier and rustier, but there nonetheless. I imagined all the sailors who took
a rum sotted tour of the licenses over these last four years, and who seeing my
plate, might have pondered the backstory of this anonymous sailor who was, for probably some wonderful reason, free at last.
December 5th, 2016
