Back Home in St Augustine

We left George Town on Friday morning June 4th, right after a vicious early morning storm.  We got up to a spectacular, RED dawn, which was followed by a storm with heavy winds, gusts and buckets of rain.  We had steady winds in the 40 knot range for 40 minutes, and gusts to 50.  At least one Hatteras motor yacht was driven into the shallows, and the 150 foot m/v Man of Steel had to up anchor and maneuver under power.  Son of a Sailor pitched and bucked, but stayed secure.  Whew!

After this unwanted deck-scrubbing, we upped anchor around noon and headed up to Cave Cay.  A beautiful cruising day, but again, we motorsailed in light winds.

m/v Carleigh heading to Barraterre on Great Exuma

Friends Rita Kay and Clay on board “Carleigh” caught up to us around Barreterre, where they were going to spend the weekend.

Merry Kitty relaxing at Cave Cay

Sunset at Cave Cay

We went in at Cave Cay Cut and motored against nearly 4 knots of current to get inside, and anchored an hour before sunset off the northwest side of Cave Cay.  A very good anchorage and a beautiful night.

Next morning we decided that we would make a beeline for Florida, so we left early and made our way to Norman’s Cay, where we spent and uneventful evening.

Next morning we headed to Nassau; another uneventful motorsail.  We tied up at the Nassau Harbor Club and spent two nights enjoying our first air conditioning in five months.  Bettye did some shopping and I schlepped 45 gallons of diesel from the pumps to Son of a Sailor.  It was hot!  We really enjoyed our first ice cream treats in months, stopping at Dairy Queen for a fix.

Tuesday morning we headed west, with plans to go as far as possible before anchoring.  On the way, we called Miss Alice in Ft Lauderdale, and they were able to wangle us a reservation at the Las Olas City Marina for Saturday and Sunday.  We passed up the Berry Islands (Frazier Hog Cay) and continued on to the banks west of the Northwest Channel, and anchored near the markers for Russell Shoals.

Water Spout west of Russell Shoals

And we got hit again with a pretty good storm in the wee hours: twenty knot winds and good rain.

Rain smoothing off the seas

Left very early Wednesday and made a straight course to Gun Cay.  At Gun we turned northwest and tried to anchor off South Bimini, in an area called Nixon’s Harbor.  No luck.  Wherever we placed the anchor, it was shallow sand over hardpan.

So we called Bimini Sands Marina on South Bimini, and they recommended we stay at their Beach Club, whose entrance channel was 300 yards from where we were trying to anchor.  They were full at the main Marina, but empty save for one Canadian trawler at the Beach Club.  And what a good deal! We were met and assisted by the night watchman, since there were no dock guys at the Beach Club.  Anchored and surrounded by the Beach Club with it’s very nice restaurant, beach bar, inside Bar and restaurant, pool, beach and showers.

Mackay Bar at Bimini Sands Beach Club

Part of the Marina and Beach at Bimini Sands Beach Club

Bettye at the Beach Club

Son of a Sailor at the dock

All for 90 cents per foot per night, plus $10 for electricity.  We didn’t need water.  Although the docks were set up for power boats to back in, we adjusted and got secure for the night.

We enjoyed the bar ($1.50 Kalik beers; unheard of in the Bahamas) and a very good meal at the bar, met and talked to the folks on the trawler, and several of the locals who dominated the scene.  It was karaoke night, but we declined, being tired from two days on the water.  Next day we took a cab ride to the main Marina, which was hosting a power boat event.  Our cab was not air conditioned, the road was dusty, and we had to take a detour so that the lady driver could borrow a crescent wrench to re-charge her AC.  Another good meal at the Marina, and we toured the Marina and all the fancy boats, the majority helmed by people who didn’t know the difference between port and starboard.

The main marina at Bimini Sands, South Bimini

At dawn of Saturday, we were working our way out of the Beach Club and heading for the Straits of Florida, for a 50+ nautical mile crossing to Ft Lauderdale.  Again, light winds, motorsailing, and the Coast Guard didn’t board us.  As we made our way into Port Everglades, we had to carefully steer our way past a 600 foot container ship, which by size alone, had right of way.

Road Hog!

The big boat has the right of way!

Then we met ICE…

The minute we got through the inlet, we were hailed by a 34′ center console with all kinds of blue lights on its mast, crewed by four young guys with sidearms.  We of course agreed to be boarded in the middle of the busy harbor, on Saturday afternoon.

Your tax dollars at work...

They were very pleasant, and one of them went below to inspect for illegal stuff.  We were not allowed to accompany him. They had been experiencing problems with Bulgarians and Sri Lankans on sailboats.  Honest, that’s what we were told.  I guess our accents put them in a curious mode.

We made it to Las Olas Marina around 3:30, where Kathy (Miss Alice) was waiting with the dockmaster to help us tie up.  We plugged in and settled in.  Back home in the USA!

Toby (s/v Cariba) was helping John and Kathy with some electrical stuff, so we went out to dinner at the Quarterdeck with him.  Donna was in Texas. Miss Alice had other plans.

We stayed four days instead of two, shopping, dining, chatting and relaxing.  With a BoatUS discount, we only paid 70 cents a foot per night, plus metered electricity.  Great deal and great location.  Kathy continued her efforts (successful) to get Bettye involved in beading and jewelry making.  But it was time to go.

First mates

Captains!

On Wednesday we paid our bill and were underway at 8:15.  Waved goodbye to Kathy and John.

Goodbye! Goodbye!

We spent a pretty long day making 43 nautical miles to the north end of Lake Worth, where we anchored for the night.  From Ft Lauderdale to North Palm Beach there are literally dozens of bascule bridges, all on a restricted schedule for opening.  Most bridges only open every thirty minutes, so timing is important.  We missed a few, and that added and hour and a half to our day.

Mega Yacht Row at Palm Beach...

Please note the sign to boaters on the first bridge north of Lake Worth:  Telling us to stay left while the right span opens.  Only the right span opened, since their was maintenance going on.

The no sense sign....

Another long day and we’re at Vero Beach Municipal Marina, hooked to a mooring for the night.  And next door is Vern (along with daughter Katie) on trawler Love Lee, from Palm Coast.  We met him last year at lunch with friends on m/v Radio Waves.  A warm night but a couple of fans made it pretty comfortable.

Keeping tabs on traffic

Next day was very nice (and hot!) for our trip to Cocoa.  We got reservations at Cocoa Village Marina, and ended up staying two nights.  Our excuse was the forecast for severe afternoon thunderstorms. We had a nice dinner and drinks with Vern and Katie, and the second day we enjoyed a Brazilian brazier restaurant.  Expensive but very good.  The best part at the marina was the sparkling clean showers!  And a very attentive marina crew.

We’re anxious to get home, so early Saturday we head for Daytona.  It’s a long 68 statute miles, but we had another uneventful day and were anchored under the Seabreeze Bridge by 5:00pm.  It was a quiet and warm night, nothing going on.  During the day as we were passing Ponce Inlet, we (and several other boats) had a run-in with four guys on a ski boat, actually screaming at the sailboats to “get out of the %$&*# channel!  They were blocking the channel with a kid on a ski board, and going back and forth in the channel and dropping the kid right in front of boats underway.  Amazing.  We called the Coast Guard on them, who actually responded.

We made it back home to Oasis Boatyard & Marina on the San Sebastian River around  o’clock.  Couldn’t pilot us into our assigned slip because of current and wind and being chicken.  Didn’t want to spoil six months of cruising without an accident.  So we took the face dock and called Allan and Connie to come pick us up.  They took Dennis home to get the car and see his Mom, then we did one car load and got back home to the A/C and a big bed.

Happy to be home!

See you next year!

June 28, 2010 | Categories: 2010 Cruising | 1 Comment

Heading North or West?

We’re finally leaving this part of the Bahamas. We’ve spent time in the Exumas, Long Island and Conception. We’ve been in the George Town area for the past couple of weeks, playing poker, visiting friends on-shore and on-board, and relaxing. Without any idea how many are going to completed, Bettye keeps cranking out the baskets. Oh, and we celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary. Wow ! Who knew?

We played poker at least three times a week. Twice a week in “open” tournaments sponsored by St Francis Resort, and once a week with “locals.” These folks are Canadian, U.S., South African and others here to make a living. Read Herman Wouk’s “Don’t Stop the Carnival.” It is a hilarious look about trying to run a business in the Carribbean — So true to life after hearing tales from these folks.

Texas Holdem with on-shore friends…

New friends have a home on top of the ridge overlooking Elizabeth Harbor. What a view!

Lots of lazy days, especially with Bettye weaving, weaving, weaving. Don’t know where she gets the patience, but it’s been there for decades.

Some completed projects and one work in process…

We’ll be heading north soon… No, maybe west back to the keys. Heck, we just don’t know yet. We’ll pick up anchor tomorrow and start. We’ll head up the Exumas and at some point decide whether to go straight or turn left. Any ideas????

Local turtle coming up for air…

40th Anniversary Celebration

St Francis Resort, Stocking Island

Met at the Natchez Trace Restaurant in Nashville on April 7, 1969.

Bye……

June 2, 2010 | Categories: 2010 Cruising | 1 Comment

Conception Island Trip

Well, we took a side trip to Conception Island, with plans to return to Thompson Bay. We had a great few days, enjoying one of the jewels of the Bahamas. Conception Island (CI) is a national park with no development and no taking or leaving of anything. The waters are as clean and clear as anywhere.

We left Thompson Bay and Salt Pond with “Miss Alice” and “Barefootin”. We decided to go to Calabash Bay on the northern tip of Long Island, and visit the Cape Santa Maria Resort.

Cape Santa Maria Resort, Restaurant and Bar

This was a very fancy place, peaceful in all aspects. Rasheed, the bar tender, is a master of mixed and frozen drinks. His frozen dacquiri was a masterpiece, as were other creations.

We met a bunch of folks there from around the world, and had a long and interesting conversation with Navy Lt Scott, an F/A-18 pilot from California, and his beautiful wife. A young couple taking time off together after his third deployment to the middle east.

Dennis, Bettye, Kathy, John, Francie, Bobby

Barefootin’ and Son of a Sailor took off the next day for Conception, an easy 20nm northeast run. Of course, the wind was on the nose all the way. Miss Alice headed northwest for the 60 mile run up to the central Exumas, hoping to get there in time to meet guests at Staniel Cay.

Passing Cape Santa Maria and the Columbus Monument

The first day, Bobby led us about a mile and a half south of our anchorage to the mouth of a tidal creek that went all over the interior of Conception.

Wide, shallow creek on Conception (from Barefootin’)

We circled all the way around and came back to the backside of a beach that we combed for a couple of hours.

All new shades of blue around Conception Island

Bettye and Franci combing the beach

After leaving the beach, Bobby spotted a deep hole in the creek, and anchored his dinghy to take a swim. What a spot! We played in the water for an hour, like a bunch of kids.

Friendly shark sharing the deep hole

Bettye finally gets wet!

How clear!

Bobby, Franci and the boat dog, Kippin

The camera’s tiny lens really fractures the subjects below the water!

Peaceful…

Francie and Bobby — BAREFOOTIN’

Get it? Their boat’s name is “Barefootin” and they’re barefootin’!

Bettye barefootin’ too…

Gotcha!

What an afternoon. Later we enjoyed snacks and sundowners on board Barefootin.

Next day was a short walk to the ocean side of CI, and some exploring of the reefs.

Combing the ocean side…

Bettye relaxing…

Reefs on the north end of Conception Island

What a great time. We left on Friday to return to George Town, hoping to meet s/v Palladin, who had been trying for months to get over here. We got back, met Keith on Palladin, and Dennis promptly came down with John’s cold! (Miss Alice) So for the last 5 days, Dennis has been face down in the berth, while Bettye plays Texas Holdem and weaves her baskets, something she is doing very well.

George Town is quiet, maybe 40 or 50 boats in the entire harbor. Wind is up, and won’t lay down until next week, when we plan to return to Long Island, then work our way north. Wish you were here!

May 14, 2010 | Categories: 2010 Cruising | Leave a comment

Regatta Time in the Exumas

Such an enjoyable month in the Exumas and Long Island! Activities include beachcombing/shelling, Texas Hold’em, Bahamas National Sailing Championships, cruising, karaoke, and sailing. But the focus for April is the National Family Island Regatta, aka the national sailing championship.

Before, during and after Regatta we spent our time relaxing with friends.

Dolphins playing around our boats in Elizabeth Harbor

Bettye and Kathy shelling on Stocking Island

Playing dominoes at the Sand Bar

Janie, Jan, Kathy, Bettye, Francie and Kippin at Sand Bar

Bettye and Gillian at St Francis Resort

We always feel welcome at St Francis. George and Gillian do everything they can to accommodate cruisers, providing a great bar and good restaurant and a number of sponsorships and activities.

http://www.stfrancisresort.com/

Happy Hour on board Miss Alice’s dinghy

The National Family Island Regatta is a huge event with every motel room, mailboat, and guest bedroom taken up by visitors from all of the islands and the crews for the Class A (28′), B (21′) and C (17′) sailboats. Between 50 and 75 boats show up each year. These uniquely Bahamian workboats from the past 100 years are all home built, wood hulls and spars, cotton sails, very lightweight, very difficult to control, and FAST! As an example, the Class A boats are about 28 feet long and the masts reach up to 60 feet and the boom can be 32 feet long. Depending on the wind, a Class A crew can be as few as seven, as many as 17!

CLASS B start, Second Heat

A note on the starts: The boats start from anchor. They all line up behind the starting marks, the gun goes off, and they haul in the anchor like a bunch of wild men, looking for that little edge off the mark.

CLASS A downwind leg

Close Encounter at the Windward Mark!!

There is some provision for a few foreign crew on the Class A and B sloops and there is rarely a woman on the crew. A century ago, when these boats were used for travel, trade and fishing, women were the chief captain and crew. There are races for the kids on the Class C boats.

The government dock is converted to a boulevard of shanties, selling food, booze, and food and booze. The partying goes on for five frantic, LOUD days, capped by the Royal Bahamian Police Marching Band, and the awards ceremony on Saturday night. We have never experienced/witnessed amateur (?) competition as intense or prideful as these. Favorites are cheered relentlessly, and laggards are cheered relentlessly. Some of these boats have been racing for more than four decades. The Ragged Islands have only 100 residents, but they enter three boats each year, one in each class.

“Arista” flying celebration colors at Regatta

Bettye’s favorite – Conch Salad

Francie (Barefootin’), John (Miss Alice), Dennis, Bettye

Bettye, Dennis, John & Kathy (Miss Alice)

Regatta is finally over, and most of the remaining cruisers leave the George Town area and head home. A few of us stay and continue exploring. We chose to return to Long Island for a few days, and learn more about this sweet island. This time we got to experience a little more of local living, and got a really good look at what it takes to buy and live on this island, either part-time or full-time.

Bettye, Kathy and Francie singing at Midway Bar & Restaurant

On a Friday night, Gary’s Midway Inn had a karaoke party, knowing the “winter residents” would show up for a last happy hour. They did and we did, enjoying Paula’s cooking and drinking and pool and singing. Mike from Long Island Breeze Resort got us down there, and helped us get in the swing of karaoke, and Gary the owner belted out a bunch of country tunes.

Dennis and his backup group

Gary (the owner) and the Gals…

Mike, Bettye, Francie and friends

We’ll be hanging around Long, Rum and Conception for awhile, then heading up to Cat Island and north. The weather is really getting beautiful. It will be hard to leave…

Long Island Breeze Resort, Salt Pond, Long Ivesland

Jackie and Mike have turned a small plot of ground into a first class resort development. While development is underway, they have taken the time to provide a welcome cruiser’s stop. Their dinghy dock, great food and beautiful bar and access to Salt Pond community, all overlooking Thompson Bay have been a nice spot to spend a few days.

www.longislandbreezeresort.com

May 3, 2010 | Categories: 2010 Cruising | Leave a comment

Late March, Early April

Not too much going on… We both endured and enjoyed the Georgetown Cruiser’s Regatta, 30th Annual. We focused on the volleyball, poker and sail racing. Two blue flags, by the way. First place in class for the around-the-bouys race in the harbor, and first in the 20-mile around Stocking Island race. Captain Mike with mate Carol on board Kanaloa did a fine job. First time sailboat racer Wayne from My Sharona did the grinding, Dennis was responsible for jib trim, and Carol managed the mainsail. This Tartan 37 with center board almost beat out the big boats, losing on corrected time to a Beneteau 50 for first overall.

On the 22nd, Bettye traveled home to St Augustine to spend a week with Mom, and take care of some business and personal items. Dennis spent the time doing minor upkeep on the boat, played poker and going to a rake ‘n scrape and a final cruiser’s dance at Chat n Chill. Bettye came back LOADED down with spare parts for cruising friends, including engine controls, head gaskets and valve springs. Also spares and replacement parts for Son of a Sailor.

Irish friend Chris from Dublin and Beaufort, SC

Then it was on to Long Island, trying to get away from the crowds of the George Town area. We would spend Easter weekend there. Easter holiday is four days in the Bahamas, sort a. Good Friday and Sunday are national holidays, and so is the following Monday. And the Long Island Mini-Regatta would take place on Monday. What a great time!

Met 41 years ago in Nashville…

Four local Class C boats raced three heats for the crowds at Regatta Site, including one brand new boat called “It ‘int Right.” These small boats are so light and so tender and the sail is so large, it is a gymnastic event for the sailors, constantly moving and adjusting weight distribution to keep the boats upright. Long boards calle “pries” are used to hike out over the weather side of the boat, providing movable ballast. Winds were in the 15-19 knot range and gusty.

The dj kept the music going, then a rake n scrape band came in. Crowds enjoyed the races, music, food, drink and “sky juice.” Sky Juice is coconut milk, condensed milk and gin. Wow! Late, another band came in and we heard the bass out on Son of a Sailor, a half mile off shore.

Pad & Doug (Scallywag) and Penny & Bob (Pretty Penny)

April 6, 2010 | Categories: 2010 Cruising | Leave a comment

To the Jumentos Cays & Ragged Islands

Early morning, February 16^th we weighed anchor at Elizabeth Harbor and set out for the Jumentos Cays and Ragged Islands. This is a chain of very small cays and islands stretching south about 80 nautical miles from a point about 20nm southeast of George Town on the eastern part of the Great Bahama Bank.

You need to be self-sufficient there. A number of cruisers enjoy these islands for their remoteness and the fact that only one of the islands is inhabited — A community of 100 or so live and work in Duncan Town on Ragged Island, almost at the southern end of the chain. Of course we didn’t make it. Not right away.

Winds were much higher than predicted as we experienced gusts to 34 knots, almost 40 miles per hour. Since the winds and waves were off our port quarter (left rear) it was a very rolly ride and wore us out. Instead, we and My Sharona bailed on our plan and headed for Thompson Bay on Long Island, one of our very favorite places to be.

Reefed jib on Son of a Sailor

We spent of couple of enjoyable days waiting for weather, including visits to Long Island Breeze Resort and a feast at Trifina’s Thompson Bay Club…pigeon peas and rice, Bahamian macaroni and cheese, cole slaw, potato salad, barbecued ribs, fried chicken wings, cracked conch and grouper fingers. Perfect, except that there were no fried plantains (Bettye’s favorite) and all this for $16.00 (Dennis still has Bettye on a boat budget)! It was windy in Long Island, too. So windy that the dock at Long Island Breeze had been removed to keep it from being damaged.

After the winds died some, we attempted our venture to the Jumentos Cays. Our trip was pretty rolly again, but the breeze was light, so motor sailing was the order of the day. Forty-four nautical miles later we anchored on the west side of Water Cay in the northern Jumentos behind 60-foot white cliffs. Local fishermen came by and traded us lobsters for beer. Thanks Wayne (My Sharona)!

The next day we had a 46nm sail down to Raccoon Cay, where we anchored with Orient Moon, My Sharona, Scandia and Kumbaya. We spent a couple of hours walking a very small portion of the Cay where we visited a small house ruin, a very large inland salt pond, and discovered the sluice ways that controlled the flow of ocean water into the pond. See the photo of the ruin, and note that the filler in the tabby walls is conch shells. Not sure “tabby” is the correct term, but the “cement” was locally made by burning shells and making a sand/limestone mixture for cement.

Sunday we made the short trip down to Hog Island, only a few miles from the southern end of the island chain and only about 70 miles to the Cuban mainland. We anchored at Lobster Point Bay and promptly were invited to a pot luck and cocktail hour on shore. In the early afternoon we played horseshoes and Kadima, or beach paddle ball. The pot luck was great and we met cruisers who stay down here for months at a time.

At Raccoon Cay

The village grocery in Duncan Town will order anything you need from Nassau, and it will come on Thursdays with the mail boat. All supplies from the mail boat have to be unloaded from the freighter and transferred ashore by small skiffs. Needless to say, supplies are pricey down here. The folks here are friendly and helpful in any way they can and getting seafood is easy, by fishing, diving or purchasing.

Next day was exploring Hog Cay. We dinghied about three-fourths of a mile north with Wayne (My Sharona) and hiked across the island to the ocean side of the island. It was gorgeous, but somewhat spoiled by being a trash beach: a place where flotsam and jetsam washes up from all over the Atlantic. Wayne was happy to build and open the island’s first shoe store. We also found the ruins of a locally built skiff made using naturally curved wood, we presumed locally found. Bettye was successful in finding a number of sea beans which are purported to float across from Africa. After drying and polishing, they’re used in making jewelry.

Kokopelli with Allan and Liz on board were down here waiting for the weather to calm down so they could make a run south to Columbia and Panama. They have become good friends and we will miss them as they travel south. As an aside, we never did make it the last couple of miles to Duncan Town. Just too rough!

We spent the early evening playing Mexican Train with My Sharona and Siya Sinana, then made it back to the boat in a pretty stiff breeze. We left the dinghy in the water, which turned out to be a mistake.

Note on Siya Sinana: Gary and Lisa are realtors from Buffalo, NY. A couple of years ago, they purchased Hull #1 of the new Admiral 40 catamaran, and took delivery in South Africa. Their first obligation was to get the boat to Annapolis for the upcoming boat show, eight weeks hence. With a hired, professional captain, they left the Cape Town area and headed north up the west coast of Africa. Three days out, the water maker failed; a damaged membrane. Also, Lisa was seasick, and would remain so for two weeks. They made the choice to continue, and traversed the Atlantic and made it to Eleuthera in the Bahamas is 42 days and 8,000 miles later, with only 90 gallons of water. At one point, they were under Spinnaker for 22 days straight. Lots of stories about that crossing!

Weather forecasts were predicting at least three more fronts coming through in the next ten days, so we decided to leave the Jumentos by fleeing back north. There is very little protection from the southwest, west and northwest. The banks are pretty deep, so strong winds equal pretty good waves; three and even four feet. We planned to head back to Long Island the next morning, Tuesday.

We woke up at 0530 (5:30 AM) to 30 knot winds out of the southwest. The boat was pitching, yawing and rolling. Dennis had to go up to the cockpit to keep from getting seasick. It would be difficult enough to get the anchor up, but getting the dinghy in its davits would be even tougher with the stern of Son of a Sailor pitching up and down three and four feet. So, we waited while a couple of squalls came through. Around 1100 we were able to secure the dinghy, up anchor and head north to Flamingo Cay. The wind moderated and we had a good sail averaging over 6 knots. We got in at dark and spent a half hour trying to get the anchor to bite into the marl bottom.

Wednesday AM was beautiful, and the entire day was perfect for sailing… cruisers’ sailing, that is. We sailed in 10-12 knot breezes the entire 56nm back to Long Island (31 mile run and 25 miles close-hauled) and anchored around 1500, then took time to have a nice dinner with other cruisers at Long Island Breeze.

Son of a Sailor

More wind on Thursday, starting in the middle of the night: steady winds in the mid-twenty knot range with driving rain. It must have rained 3 inches by early morning. We used the day to clean the boat and bake brownies, expecting Friday to be very busy.

Friday was busy: laundry, grocery shopping and hauling diesel fuel to Son of a Sailor. Dennis even helped the owner of Long Island Breeze to put the dock back in since it had been removed again. Cook at Long Island Breeze took our request and made a pot of Bahamas style lobster bisque and it was delicious. We took two servings back to the boat. We treated ourselves to long, hot showers at the resort, $5 each, but worth it. Friday evening was pizza, Texas Hold ’em and then back to the boat.

Note on water: Most all the water on Long Island comes from rain collected in cisterns, or from the reverse osmosis plant located about 20 miles south of Salt Pond. The water lines only cover about a quarter of the length of Long Island. So most folks have to have water delivered by truck. Now if you used 4,000 gallons a month for your home, and the cost was 15 to 25 cents a gallon, well, you do the arithmetic. Long Islanders get by with a lot less water than most of us. And you rarely see a car or truck not covered with dust.

We decided to use the last nice day of this weather cycle to return to George Town. It was motor sailing with the light wind off our port quarter but another beautiful day and we got back to Elizabeth Harbor before 1300 hours. We anchored in the Red Shanks area with 20 or so other boats, waiting for yet another front to come through. And it did… once again in the middle of the night.

The catamaran "Siya Sinana"

March 8, 2010 | Categories: 2010 Cruising | 3 Comments

In the Bahamas

CHAPTER TWO: GETTING TO THE BAHAMAS

After a week tied up at “Bruno’s Zoo”, we decided to make a break for Miami and get across to the Bahamas. We stayed a couple of night in Miami, touristing in South Beach and visiting Publix. On Monday the 18th we moved down to Hurricane Harbor in Biscayne Bay, then left at 0700 Tuesday to cross to the Bahamas.

This year we just kept moving. Instead of stopping for the evening in the Bimini islands, we kept going across the banks all night. It took us 26 hours to get to Nassau.

During the evening, we passed or overtook several boats in the pitch black darkness. Kind of spooky, but the radar made a huge difference.

We also spent hours mesmerized by the the lights in the water: bio-luminescence. I thinks that’s spelled correctly. It was as thick as rocks on a gravel road. Bettye let the captain sleep three hours during the night, so we were both in good shape to make landing in Nassau early on Wednesday. We tied up at Nassau Harbor Club and checked in with Customs and Immigration.

CHAPTER THREE: TO THE EXUMAS

We made it over to Norman’s Cay in the Exuma chain on Thursday the 21^st, and anchored on the southwest side of the island. We’d heard that Norman’s Cay Beach Club (formerly MacDuff’s) was pretty good, so we went for dinner. Average food, WAY overpriced (burger and fries $16, beer $6), and way too many employees (turned out to be friends and family) working the restaurant. Won’t be going back anytime soon.

Early Friday Dennis dove on the prop to check for fouling; there was some weed wrapped around the prop, but nothing serious. Water was in the mid-seventies, quite warm. We then sailed the 40nm to Black Point to spend the night.

Next day we continued south, planning to “camp” near Cave Cay for the night. But the weather looked so good, we went ahead and went outside into Exuma Sound for the run down to George Town. So our trip from Miami to George Town of about 300 nautical miles was only five days. And it is WARM!

Guess what. Bettye is playing poker. Texas Hold ’em to be exact. We’re also walking these gorgeous beaches, playing fun volleyball and tennis, learning Bocci, engine maintenance, and visiting with friends. Over the next days, we did laundry, grocery shopping and helped one boat that dragged its anchor. On Tuesday we all heard a cry for help on Channel 68. Ron on s/v Seadancer had gotten his fingers between the anchor chain and the windlass, mauling three fingers pretty good. A number of boaters were right there providing assistance, and Ron was quickly flown to Ft Lauderdale for general then specialist surgery. All fingers were saved.

While home this past year, Bettye found a design for a riding sail. She made the triangle, about six feet on each side, and we launched the new sail on the aft part of the boom. See photo. This really worked well, as one of our neighbors commented how the sail really decreased our swing on anchor.

On Monday, February 1^st, a group of 35 boats participated in the 3^rd annual George Town to Long Island Rally. We raced the 35nm over there, doing VERY poorly. Dead last, but first Hunter to finish. Actually, we quit sailing when we realized we would finish two hours after the stated closing time. We were on a beat all the way from George Town, and were… all tacked out. So we dropped sails and motored in. An hour and a half later, the race committee announced the finish line would be kept open until all boats finished! Too late for Son of a Sailor… We forgot about the complete disregard for written race rules down here, where rules are constantly bent and completely changed to meet cruiser’s conditions! Muuuccch better overall!

On Tuesday, 40 of us boarded a school bus driven by Dave Harding and assisted by his 17-year old “beautiful daughter.” His words, and she is! We toured the Adderly Plantation ruins (circa 1790) at Stella Maris, and learned much from Dave and Tiffany and the placards placed there by local historians.

We then continued to the north end of the island to Cape Santa Maria, named by Christopher Columbus on October 17, 1492. Beautiful, beautiful cliffs and ocean waters and lagoons. Memorable.

We all had a late lunch with Trifina, owner and excellent cook at Thompson Bay Club.

Next day was visiting with our friends Mike and Jackie of the Long Island Breeze Resort. They are working very hard trying to get through this very slow economic time. Their development has stalled, but is holding its own. Later on there was a potluck dinner at the Breeze, with awards and good music and dancing. Of course, we made it to midnight. Cruiser’s midnight: 2100 hours.

The race back was so much better, with a reach all the way back to George Town. We made it back in five and a half hours, with an exciting finish among the pack of cruisers anchored in the harbor. Tired again, but we had enough energy for a night of poker at the St Francis Resort.

At the end of this chapter, we’re anchored in the area called Red Shanks. It has great all round protection, but you have to anchor in fairly narrow channels. We waited all morning for and have now experienced a strong front which came through around 1400 hours, with rain and 30-40 knot winds. We battened down everything, turned on the navigation gear, started the engine, and waited. Since we were only 65 feet from a rocky lee shore, we had to be ready. The other five boats lined up with us were all out and ready, too. No worries; the front passed, the wind came, and we held fast. Then several hours of rain. Very unusual for this time of the year, as this is the dry season.

Tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday, and we plan to spend it with lots of folks at St Francis resort.

February 9, 2010 | Categories: 2010 Cruising | 6 Comments