Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A Bermuda woman walking on a beach with her kids said finding a message in a bottle washed up on shore was a longtime dream come true.
Trina Davis Williams of Hamilton Parish said she and her kids, daughter K'ah, 7, and son Kazai, 4, were walking on a small beach in their neighborhood when they spotted a bottle among the trash that had recently washed up on shore.
"While I was taking pictures of the trash-filled seaweed, I noticed the bottle sitting there. I jokingly said, 'I wonder if it's a letter in there.' As a geocaching enthusiast, I am always looking for that 'special find.' Today was our lucky day," she told The Royal Gazette.
Williams said she had to break the bottle to get it open, and was pleased to discover it contained a letter, a photograph, a postcard and a set of ear plugs.
Williams said she has long been on the hunt for a message in a bottle.
"Every time I go to the beach I keep an eye out for one," she said. "I am always on the lookout for treasures."
The postcard displayed a ship called the Albatross VI, and the note was signed by Orlando A. Thompson, who revealed the vessel was a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration boat and the message in a bottle was dropped into the water during the ship's final voyage on Nov. 3, 2008.
"This is our last time with the Albatross VI. Scientists and crew on the ship had become like family," Thompson wrote. "We have had lots of good times. I will always talk about my engineering family. I will miss you all coming aboard the Albatross VI."
The coordinates on the letter revealed it was dropped into the ocean off the coast of Rhode Island.
The address Thompson listed in his letter was no longer valid, but The Royal Gazette was able to help Williams get into contact with him. Thompson said each member of the crew launched their own message in a bottle during the final voyage in 2008.
Williams said she is getting married in the summer and she previously decided on a nautical theme for the ceremony.
"I told him about the wedding and that his bottle will be apart of the decor," she said. "He said he will try and come down in July for my wedding."
A North Carolina couple recently revealed they are trying to solve their own message in a bottle mystery. Ann and Roy Huntley said they found the bottle on a beach in Ocracoke, and discovered the letter inside was badly damaged by water.
The Huntleys said they are hoping the author of the message, which traveled 1,200 miles from Prince Edward Island, will come forward to help them figure out what the note said before it was damaged.
