Captain Mike Calhoun holds a U.S. Coast Guard Masters License, 100 ton, with aux. sail, radar and commercial towing assistance endorsements and is STCW-95 certified. He is an American Sailing Association (ASA) sailing and coastal navigation instructor and holds a lifetime General Radio-Telephone Operator license as well as a Technician class amateur radio license (call sign: KI4KIC).

Born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Virginia and Vermont, Mike has traveled over 75 thousand miles under sail from Maine to the Caribbean, Mexico, Tahiti and Australia. He has delivered boats in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. He is a CPR/AED and First Aid Instructor and an Instructor Trainer for the American Red Cross. He is President of the Board of Directors of the Comprehensive Community Care Network, a non-profit corporation that provides medical care, support and social services for the medically uninsured in Palm Beach County, Florida.

Mike is a career broadcast journalist (which means he has loads of stories to tell!!) and has covered City Hall to Congress, the O.J. Simpson trial to the White House. He has worked for several radio and television stations as well as CBS and NBC News. His voice can be heard on documentaries and commercials worldwide. His hobbies include skydiving, photography, snorkeling and rescuing abused and abandoned companion birds.


Mate/Dive Instructor Zachary Smith is a PADI certified SCUBA Instructor. He speaks three languages fluently (English, French and Spanish) and spent more than a dozen years living in Paris where he studied International Business Administration. Born in New York City, he has traveled all over the world and has lived in France, Tahiti, California, Hawaii, the Caymans and Galapagos islands.

Zack is an avid diver and amateur marine biologist. He was literally shipwrecked on the Galapagos Islands while serving as part of a trans-Pacific delivery crew and promptly volunteered at the Charles Darwin Research Station studying and tagging sea turtles as part of a conservation project.

He has taught English as a second language and has certified more than 140 divers since obtaining his PADI Dive Instructor qualification. He is a member of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and a volunteer for marine conservation projects in the Virgin Islands. His hobbies include digital underwater photography, historic preservation and building restoration.


Chef Ashley Hotchkiss came to the Caribbean from Austin, Texas where she began working as the Sous Chef in an historic hotel overlooking Charlotte Amalie Harbor. She obtained a degree in Culinary Arts in Austin where she worked and trained in fine dining restaurants, country clubs, and gourmet catering. She is a Certified Culinarian (CC) and has her STCW-95 certification.

Ashley's culinary training has been very diverse, working with some of the finest chefs in Austin. She will gladly accommodate your special dietary requests and will design a menu according to your tastes. She has a vast repertoire of recipes including many regional cuisines. Her menus range from the most elegant fine dining experiences to casual fair. She specializes in fresh flavors and beautiful presentations. She can also help to pair a glass of wine with your meal if you so desire.

When Ashley isn't cooking, she loves to travel and spends as much time in the water as possible. Most recently, she has taken up surfing!