This trip wouldn't be all fun and relaxation however. The group was volunteering to help the Chesapeake bay Foundation during the Midshipmen Action Group's annual Spring Breakout.

"It just looked like something that was going to be a lot of fun," said Midn. 3/C Peter Dorn. "It was inexpensive, relatively close by and it didn't take up the entire break which was nice."

The crew left March 13 at 7 a.m. for Crisfield, Md., where they met a boat that took them on a 12-mile ride to Port Isobel Island, where they would live and work for the next four days.

The group didn't waste any time getting started. Arriving at the island at 10:15 a.m., they received a general orientation of the islands and what they would be doing. Then they went to work.

"We basically did spring cleaning," said Professor Peter Gray, director of the Academic Assessment Department. "We polyurethaned the conference room loft. We washed every single window in the dormitory and in all the other facilities on the island. We cleaned up the tool shed and did basic maintenance to the buildings."

Other work included cleaning out water drains, making shelves for the washrooms and setting up nests for birds.

The biggest project for the group started March 15 on Fox Island, about seven-miles from Port Isobel. Two crews worked on reconstructing a teaching facility that was torn up by Hurricane Isobel.

"Fox Island is nothing more than just a marsh, and at high tide there is not much land to it at all," said Professor Howard Ernst a supervisor on the trip. "The lodge was built on stilts out there on what is left of the island. It is a rather large hunting lodge, and about a quarter of it was completely washed away with the storm. What we did was cut and attach the plywood. It was a tremendous group effort from everybody who was involved. We were really a big part of a larger volunteer group that has been steadily going out to the island after the storm, trying to help as much as possible to get the facilities up and running by June."

"Other volunteer groups had realigned it on the foundation and put up the two-by-four beams," said Dorn. "We used circular saws and jigsaws to cut everything out and then nailed it all into place, making the walls by hand. It was a lot of hard work, but we got everything accomplished we set out to do. We put sheets of plywood up on the walls and made measurements. We chalked the lines where the beams were so we could hammer in more nails later and just did a lot of manual labor. We put more than 50 sheets of plywood up in two days."

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation staff estimated that MAG volunteers completed around $12,000 worth of work at the Fox Island site.

"It feels good to know that we helped out and actually accomplished something is wonderful," said group leader Midn. 2/C Timothy Smiley.

The group accomplished a great deal of work, but still had opportunities to have some fun.

"Folks went out on canoe trips at the end of the day and enjoyed a beautiful sandy beach on the island," said Gray. "The stars on Sunday night (March 14) were just incredible. You could see the Milky Way and a lot of the planets. Venus, Saturn and Jupiter, the stars out there were just unbelievable.

"People had a chance to relax and play Frisbee, football or go for canoe rides," he said. "We took some kites down, and it was really fantastic kite flying, because there is always a nice wind blowing on the bay. Monday night (March 15) we went on a canoe trip all the way from Port Isobel to Tangier Island and through one of the little channels out into the bay and back. It was beautiful because the bay was as smooth as glass and it was right around sunset."

The crew also interacted with a group of kids that joined them on the island March 16. It was a chance to meet the people who would actually benefit from the work the midshipmen had done.

"One thing that was different this year from the past was the CBF started their education program while we were still out there and had brought in a group of students," said Ernst. "The kids put on some skits about the bay, and the midshipmen had an opportunity to act as judges and were involved in the environmental education of the children. It was neat for the midshipmen to get a chance to see how these educational facilities are used and how they benefit young kids throughout this region."

"Some of the stuff was educational and absolutely drop dead hilarious," said Dorn. "We had a really good time that night. We got to see exactly what the educators do aside from the work we were helping them with. We got to see how they work for the CBF and how they make a huge difference in the kid's lives. It is just really nice to know we contributed to that."

The trip ended March 17. Participants became closer friends and and shared positive experiences, said Dorn. "It was a really gratifying experience, knowing that I took some time out of my spring break to go help somebody else. I saw some of the most amazing sunsets I have ever seen. It was just a beautiful place and an amazing environment. No regrets at all and I am planning to do it again next year."