20091228 Highborne Cay Exuma Bahamas
We left Warderick Wells Cay Exuma Land and Sea Park just after the 9am announcements. There was a large exodus, with 6 yachts headed out. We followed the cresent arc of the moorings, keeping close to the center of the channel. Looking back, we will always remember our two days in the park. The trail to Boo Boo Hill, the beautiful deserted beaches, the colorful coral heads and new good friends met at the bonfire.
The wind was mostly on our nose, so we mostly motor sailed. Again, we put out fishing lures from our Cuban yo-yos, but we did not register even a nibble, during the 4 hour trip from Warderick Wells to Highborne Cay. We were lucky to get the last available slip in Highborne Cay. While I set up the electric service and adjust the dock lines, Cathy registered Angel, then went next door to the grocery. As usual in the Bahamas, the store is a mixture of t-shirts, fishing spears, grocery items, beer & sodas. Not a great amount of any one product, just a little of many things.
We treated ourselves to cold Diet-Cokes, sitting on the porch in rocking chairs watching boaters, sun bathers and swimmers. We then went back to Angel and fixed Tacos for lunch. For dinner, we have ordered a catered dinner. There was a sign on the dock, “Call Cool Runners on channel 16”. A complete menu for conch, grouper, steak or chicken dinners complete with Bahamian peas and rice, cole slaw or mac & cheese. We called Cool Runners, go to channel 14, then place our order to be delivered at 7:30pm ‘ish.
Around 4pm, the good ship Oceanis called Highborne Cay with a Pan Pan. They were taking on water from an unknown source. The radio reception was good for us and we followed the action. Highborne Cay coordinated a nearby fishing boat to go out and pick up the passengers. These were brought back to Highborne Marina, where they met a sea plane called in to take the people back to Nassau. The sea plane landed, pulled up to a swim float just off the beach, and within 10 minutes, after a telephone call and exchange of credit card information, the plant taxied downwind, then roared back into the wind headed west .
Another boat from Highborne Cay Marina, equipped with a pump, headed out to assist. We walked out to the end of the docks, where we could see the action with binoculars. In the water under the end of the dock were 10+ sharks waiting for the fishermen to bring in and clean there catch at the station there.
We watched as the pump was delivered, then after a little while, Oceanis motored under her own power into the protected cove, tying up to the fuel dock. An assembly of male “experts” have now assembled on the dock to assist in solving the water intrusion problem aboard Oceanis.
We plan to go to check the weather, go to bed early so we can get an early start to Nassau.
Cathy & Jim
20091226 Warderick Wells Cay - Exuma Land and Sea Park
We had a little trouble leaving Staniel Cay Yacht Club on
the day after Christmas. After settling
our bar bill, some new cruising friends helped us with dock lines. “Lucy B”
is a 100+ foot mega yacht that had pulled in behind us. With a beam of 25 feet, she took up most of
the deep water. Rick the captain, got
into their 25 foot Contender service boat and with a line attached to our
starboard stern, applied power to keep us away from the mother ship. Once past, he shifted his attachment to our
bow to spin us on the sandy bottom and point us into the deep water. This was nail biting tension for me, but we
eased into the channel, slowly passing Thunderball cove, and keeping close to
Pirate Beach, we felt the swell of the Exuma Channel entering Big Rock
Cut. Making our way to deep water, we
set sail, and with an easterly fresh wind, we headed northwest for an easy sail
to Warderick Wells – Exuma Land and Sea Park.
The 18 miles passed quickly and the sunshine chased away all
clouds, intensifying the blue of the deep water. We contacted Darcy by radio upon entering
Warderick Wells Cut, and were assigned mooring ball #8. Behind Warderick Wells Cay is a bay, where
the park has installed mooring balls to protect the seabed from anchor
damage. While the bay is circular, the
deep water is limited to a narrow channel very close to the moorings. I came in a little hot, and Cathy snagged
the mooring with the boat hook from the bow, but could not hold it. Backing up, I picked up the cork pendant,
walked it to the bow and attached ropes and made all secure.
Cathy came forward and we performed the, now well rehearsed,
launching of the dinghy. Removing the
sun cover, I attached the spinnaker halyard to the dinghy’s bow ring and with
Cathy tailing, raised the inflatable over the lifelines and lowered it
overboard. I removed the halyard and
Cathy walked the dinghy to the stern, tying it up ready to receive the motor. I hoisted the motor from its mount on the stern
rail, attached a safety line, which I ran through a fitting on the boom end and
to a snatch block and on to a mainsheet winch.
Again Cathy tailed the line, while I eased the motor over the side,
setting it onto the stern and locking it into place. Adding a life jacket bag to support the seat,
the gas tank, and gas line, we boarded and headed to the park office to
register.
As always, we were welcomed and met more cruisers with
advice on where to go, what to see and where to anchor. Examining our park map, we returned to Angel
to retrieve water shoes to allow us to take the trail up Boo Boo Hill. This is the highest point in the park and
cruisers have taken driftwood, written the names and dates of their visits and
built a memorial here. The spot also
provides a great vantage point to survey the park. I took many pictures of the Exuma Sound, Park
mooring field and afternoon sun falling to the western horizon.
On Saturday’s, the park rangers sponsor a bonfire and
“sundowner” on the beach. Promptly at
6pm, the driftwood fire was lit in a fire circle made of conch shells. We motored over, donating mixed nuts and
jelly beans to the fare and for the first time, carried insect repellent for
mosquitoes. Others brought dip &
crackers, cheese rolls and granola mix.
We chatted and got to know our fellow cruisers in the mooring
field. After 2 hours, all retreated to
their dinghys, and one by one, the outboards came to life slowing pushing their
owners home.
The mooring field was lit by a ¾ moon, the yachts bobbing
gently on the calm waters. Around the moon was a gigantic ring, appearing
as a target with the moon as the bulls eye.
Climbing back aboard Angel, we found all well, with the installed
screens, providing an insect free environment.
We fell asleep quickly and deeply on the calm waters.
20091227 Exploring the Exuma Land and Sea Park
Last evening, we slept soundly, hardly sensing the motion of
Angel on the mooring in the lagoon.
While warm, a breeze kept the boat comfortable. We arose, ate a simple breakfast of cinnamon
& raisin bread with butter and prepared for a day in the park. Cathy removed all the beer ( 8 cans) from the
ice box and I retrieved a bag of ¼ X20 stainless steel bolts from my hardware
stores to contribute to the park rangers.
We loaded up the dinghy added water and snorkel gear and headed out.
The beer and stainless hardware was well received and
appreciated. We asked for and received a
sketch map of the snorkel sites for the park.
Heading out we started near the ranger station, working our way south to
the deserted beaches and dinghy mooring buoys near the coral heads in the
park. As we slowly explored, we picked
up some plastic bottles, fishing line and a 5 gallon bucket, that had washed up
on various shores.
Along the way we discovered hundreds of baby conch and
larger, crawling slowly in the shallows, seeking sea grass. Many of the beaches have VERY shallow
approaches. I put a leg over the side of
the dinghy and when my foot touches, I know it is time to stop the engine. I tilt it up to protect the propeller, then
get out and pull toward shore. This
could happen 2 yards or 100 yards from the beach, depending on location. We saw NO other boats, NO hikers, NO
snorkelers during our travels.
The coral heads shelter a wide range of fish. Angel, sargent majors, grunts, grouper, and
numerous smaller fish populate these areas.
Swimming through these mixed schools, the fish move calmly away, then
reassemble in my wake. They seem to
exhibit the typical Bahamian attitude.
Returning to Angel, we heat up and finish our Christmas
dinner, turkey chunks & green bean casserole; except we ate these on an
open face sandwich. We were hungry and
made short work of the meal. Both of us
lay down in the cockpit, listening to Sirius radio. We finished the afternoon listening to NFL
football and napping.
Tomorrow, we head out early to Hiborne Cay, the next stop on
our trek north out of the Bahamas.
20091225 Merry Christmas from Staniel Cay, Exuma Bahamas
Cathy and I want to wish all of our friends and family, the most merry, safe and happy Christmas season. We feel blessed to be able to travel together, share many new experiences and celebrate the holidays together; however, we miss ya’ll.
Last evening, we attended the Stanile Cay Yacht Club Christmas Eve Dinner. Delicious surf and turf, well prepare and presented, was washed down with a couple Goombay Smash rum drinks each. We sat next to a couple, whom we met a couple days ago. They came to Staniel Cay to ship a generator part by air to Ft. Lauderdale for re-welding, then await its return for re-installation, so they can resume their trip. We talked sailing, anchorages, wish lists of cruising destinations, family, holidays past…It was a great evening, with fantastic food and great new friends.
They depart today for points south. We leave tomorrow for Warderick Wells and the Bahamas Land And Sea Park.
We will explore additional areas around Staniel Cay today, then pack our belongings against shifting and breakage in the late afternoon. We have our Christmas dinner planned…turkey chunks, stovetop stuffing , green bean casserole.
Please celebrate & enjoy your Christmas Day with families.
Please include us in your prayers for safe travels as we start back northward toward Charleston.
With fondest wishes,
It is overcast with scattered showers day in paradise. A good day to catch up on reading, boat
chores and personal hygiene. The Staniel
Cay Yacht Club does not provide showers or free water. Water sells for $0.40 per gallon. The rain is warm and under cover of the
bimini, one washrag plugs the scuppers, while the other is in use scrubbing
away body grime. Exchange, squeeze and
continue. Fresh clothes make all the
difference. Cat spent the morning
organizing and cleaning up our small world.
I brought a “Christmas tree” & and lights for the holiday. Really, this is just a cast net, hauled up on
a spinnaker halyard, with the bottom tied out in a circle to foredeck
hardware. This forms the “tree” shape. The addition of two strings of LED Christmas
lights make a fine, collapsible tree.
Since we are plugged into dock power, we run an extension cord to the
base and viola, “O, Tannenbaum”.
Dinghy’s passing by have been giving us thumbs up on the
creativity.
Yesterday, we were told of a lady here in town that bakes
delicious bread in her home. We found
her house, as we could smell the wonderful fragrance of baking bread all the
way out at the street. In the tradition
in the Bahamas, we just knocked on the back door. We were invited in and stating our
interest, she told us that all the loaves were spoken for except for a few
white loaves, which we purchased. We
found out that she also makes cinnamon raisin and cocoanut. We placed another order for these, paying the
$6 premium. Tuna fish and French toast
consumed ½ the first loaf, which we relished.
A couple of pieces of buttered bread and peanut butter & jelly
sandwich, seriously diminished the remaining.
Cat wandered uptown to gather our other loaves a few minutes ago. Unfortunately, just after she left, the skies
opened. She arrived back with one loaf
and soaked from the bottom of her foul weather coat down. Her spirits were undampened and we are again
snug and dry inside Angel, listening to satellite radio Christmas music.
I transferred all 12 gallons of gas from our Gerry cans into
the main tank. The fuel dock has diesel
but no gas. Many are waiting for
supplies on the 2:45pm plane or 3:00pm mailboat. I asked the dockhand when the delivery of
fuel was expected. He smiled and
said. “This is the Bahamas, mon. Not to worry.” Schedules do not matter much here.
20091224 Staniel Cay, Exuma, Bahamas
We awoke to our usual gentle motion in the v-berth,
however; today, something is
different. Glancing skyward through the
portholes, we spy blue skies and white puffy clouds. To celebrate, we ready ourselves with cheddar
cheese in the last two eggs scrambled with cocoanut bread and mango jam. Hot coffee & tea finish our morning
feast. Today is the day to explore the
waters around Staniel Cay.
I pull the dinghy around, and we jump aboard in our bathing
suits with food scraps and the camera.
Across the harbor is Big Major Cay, where locals say there are swimming
pigs. The water is fairly smooth, but we
get a steady spray of water as we push away the wavelets. Rounding the end of Big Major Cay, we see 20+
yachts in the anchorage and three isolated beaches. We head for the first beach. As we approach, I noticed one of the “rocks”
on the beach developed an ear twitch! As we neared shore, the pig arose and
calmly strolled into the water, then swam right up to the inflatable. When we were too slow throwing out apple
chunks, he attempted to put his hooves on the pontoon and hop aboard. I steered away and he fel l back into the
water as two of his buddies trotted out of the brush down to the water. We continued to throw old bread, some
leftover cheese and apple chunks ahead of the trio, who gobbled up the
goodies. With an empty bag, we hustled
away to the second beach for some uninterrupted shelling. We found a number of conch shells,
unoccupied, and selected three of the most colorful to bring back to Angel to
bake in the sun today.
We continued our circumnavigation of Big Major Cay, slipping
through the 30 foot cut between Big Major and Fowl Cay. The falling tide made the water in this
narrow & shallow area boil with standing waves. Clearly, the ships entering this area needed
to enter at high tide, slack water for safe passage. Entering the main channel into Big Rock Cut,
the water was rough and one wave was especially large, nearly capsizing
us. Only at the last minute did I see
the wave and turn the dinghy into it to ride over it. We continued on around Big Major taking water
over the side as we passed. Once back in
the lee of the Thunderball Cay, we paused and pumped out the dinghy, proceeding
on, looking for calmer waters. We headed
back to the dock to get snorkel equipment.
We noted that the gas pump was again in service and paused
our explorations to get our Gerry cans filled.
The gas boat came in late yesterday afternoon without our notice. We are again fueled, ready for our departure
on 12/26.
With our snorkel equipment on board, we motored the dinghy
over to Thunderball Grotto. Cat decided
to stay in the dinghy tied to a mooring ball, while I snorkeled over to
photograph the grotto entrance and fish.
Brain coral, sea fans, yellow tails, sergeant majors, parrot fish and
especially beautiful angel fish were abundant and colorful. Back aboard the dinghy, we traveled around
Staniel Harbor, passing over a dark spot, that we first thought was grass…but
it moved. Reversing course, we
discovered the dark spot was a sting ray, six feet in diameter. I snapped a quick picture, then left it to
travel on.
Salty and hungry, we returned to Angel for a cockpit
shower. Using the foot pump, Cat placed
3 tea kettles of cold water + one boiling water into our garden sprayer. Pumping it up, we rinse the salt off, soap
up, rinse off the soap, shampoo, rinse off the shampoo; all with comfortable
warm water. Toweling off, we go into the
salon to remove our bathing suits and exchange for dry clothes. Simple and refreshing. We pause for crackers, cheese and mango
marmalade snack. We do not want to eat too
much, as we are scheduled to enjoy the Staniel Cay Christmas Evening surf &
turf feast tonight.
20091220 Sailing from Nassau, New Providence Island, Bahamas to Staniel Cay, Exumas via Allens Cay
We listened to the weather and discussed possible routes to the Exumas from Nassau with the cruisers in Nassau. Overall, they were equally divided…stay another day and go Sunday. Our decision was made when we went to the dock master to settle our bill. A local was there drinking coffee, and with great conviction and experience convinced us that the sail out of Nassau harbor, over the Yellow Bank to Allens Cay would be easy, even with larger waves and winds predicted over the open ocean. He stated matter of factually, that the wind direction from the northwest, with our travel to the south east, with the following seas would simply push us along. We quickly got back to Angel, secured our gear and with help on the dock from others, cast off in a 15 knot wind.
We needed fuel, so we stopped at the Texaco, two marinas down for gas. With the wind and current, we managed to get tied up, when the dock hand arrived and told us the gas pump was not working, but the other pump closer to the shore could fill us, “no problem.” The only issue was the other pump was located on a dock 100 yards up a narrow channel between two rows of docked power boats. We inched up and tied off. The high speed gas nozzle was difficult to control on our low speed fill tank, but we managed to get topped off. Amazingly, this gas was the same price as the gas in Bahia Mar Marina in Ft. Lauderdale, $4.02 per gallon. Our next challenge was to back out of the alley of boats without crashing. All sailboats have lousy reverse performance. Angel is no exception. Fighting the cross wind, “prop walk” from the motor and a current, we slowly,..Oh, so slowly backed into an area to swing and realign for forward progress again. We swung into the channel, careful to stay close to the docks, since there is a clear submerged sandbar running from just past the bridges almost to the end of the channel. Angel threaded the narrow passage, swung north to our first waypoint at the eastern end of Paradise Island. We observed large homes behind security gates on this end. Reportedly, Michael Jordan, Tom Cruise, Tiger Woods, etc. have homes in this area. Past the end of the island is Porgee Rock, our waypoint, where we adjusted course form east to southeast, headed across the Yellow Bank to Allens Cay.
The Yellow Bank, southeast of Nassau, is a large area with plenty of depth for Angel, in fact most of it is 4-7 meters (14-23 feet). With a draft of 5.5 feet, Angel could easily pass. HOWEVER, there are numerous coral heads, rising from the sea floor to within 3 feet of the surface. These present a real hazard to navigation. The common practice is to place a crewmember on the bow, who points at coral heads as you approach. The helmsman simply steers away. The coral heads appear as dark areas, contrasting from the lighter surroundings. These are difficult to see when going into the sun or when clouds create shadows on the ocean surface, so care must be taken. The first coral heads on our charts appeared ~ 2 hours into our trip. Cathy moved from the cockpit and perched herself, sitting on the overturned dinghy on the bow. There with binoculars and radio, she called out the hazards and I steered away. We were able to see many coral heads, but only had to adjust course a few times to avoid them.
Along we puttered and sailed.
This was a short day, with a transit of 30 nautical miles from Nassau, to the Allens Cay group of cays. This group, consists of Allens Cay, the largest, Leaf Cay to the east and SW Allens Cay to the south, which combine to form a natural harbor with protection on all sides. We approached Allens Cay at 3pm, entered through the narrow cut between Allens Cay and SW Allens Cay, the kept close to Leaf Cay, avoiding the sandbar that runs up the middle of the channel. When the water color changed to a lighter color, we dropped anchor in 8 feet of water, laying out 75 feet of chain, then backing down to set our reliable Delta anchor. Little did we know at that moment, how important that anchor would be?
About an hour later, Dave and Janet sailed Auspicious into Allens Cay. Auspicious is an immaculate vessel. Forty feet of Scandinavian design, simple and gorgeous. Dave and Janet invited us over to discuss charts, routes and anchorages the day before. They went past us, then tried to circle behind our stern and ran aground perhaps 10 feet behind us. He tried to power out, but on a falling tide, was stuck. He dropped his dinghy over the side, attached the motor and came over to discuss tactics. He decided that we should drop the anchor and all his 200 feet of chain rode into the dinghy, then motor away into deep water laying out the chain as we traveled. There we would drop the anchor, he could pull it taught and wait the 6 hours for high tide. In addition, we attached a line from Angel’s stern to Auspicious’ bow to prevent the wind from driving her more into shoal water.
While we waited, Cat and I fixed breakfast for dinner. We purchased some eggs in Nassau and scrambled some with cheddar cheese, toast and jam. This was a great end to a good day for us. Around 9pm, Auspicious floated free and her entire weight, plus Angel was loaded onto our anchor and rode. We did not budge an inch. Boy, I love my Delta anchor. In a few minutes, Dave powered into deeper water and adjusted his anchor chain scope to settle 40 yards to our stern, a safe distance away. We went to bed secure that all was ok. Next morning, Dave motored over with a bottle of wine as a thank you. We plan to drink it in Georgetown on Christmas.
Around 9am on Monday, December 21, 2009, I used my manual windlass, (hand over hand, strong back, weak mind) to slowly pull in the anchor rode. This had become remarkably easy. I set my feet securely on the rails, sitting on the dinghy, grasp firmly and pull as if rowing a boat. The chain comes up over the anchor roller and goes down the hawse pipe into the chain locker and the boat moves forward. If pulling against a strong current or wind, I signal Cat to engage the transmission to forward to give some slack and we slowly pull toward the set anchor. When the anchor rode is vertical, the anchor pulls out and 5 quick rowing motions seats the anchor back into its roller for travel.
The exit from the Allens Cay group to Exuma sound is a little tricky. Shoal waters abound. We slowly motored, reading the chars, water color and depth sounder to get to deep water. The 20 minute trip to the Allens Cay Cut Waypoint in the Exuma sound seemed to take 2 hours, but we emerged pleased at our skill and luck. Setting sail, we tracked south to Big Rock Cut, just off Staniel Cay. This is a long day for us, 40 miles of sailing. We needed all speed possible to make our anchorage by dark.
Under full sail, we headed south with an easterly 15 knot wind. This made for a beam reach and comfortable sailing. Seas however, we from our stern quarter, with pushed us off course as they passed. I found that the pattern of the waves was predictable and soon was able to anticipate their overtaking us. By turning the boat slightly, I was able to “catch” the waves as they passed and surf down their 3-4 foot faces, increasing our speed dramatically for a few seconds. Three waves would pass, then a pause, then another three waves. We were making 6 knots under sail, then accelerate to over 7 knots surfing. Several times, I was able to achieve 8.6 knots briefly. A thrilling sail. We watched the GPS with the arrival time at Big Rock Cut off of Staniel Cay drop from 7pm to 6pm to 5pm to 4pm.
You may know Staniel Cay, as this is the site for filming the underwater scenes of the James Bond movie Thunderball . We contacted the Staniel Cay Yacht Club and were delighted that they had a slip available for us. Entering the harbor, the deep blue waters of the Exuma Sound changed to aquamarine blue of the shoals. As we tied up, Cat saw movement in the water below us at the dock. Sand sharks and rays passed in review to welcome us to Staniel Cay. Tired , I secured the boat while Cat registered us. The Staniel Cay Yacht Club has a bar, which provided rum drinks to celebrate our passage. They also serve dinner, with a single seating at 7pm. We signed up and gorged ourselves on Bahamian fare. Mahi-Mahi, grilled chicken, peas and rice, grilled vegetables, fresh bread and butter, with carrot cake and apple pie for desert. It was all so delicious, we waddled back to Angel and lay on our backs in bed for an hour of digestion before dropping off to sleep.
Tomorrow, exploration of Staniel Cay and Thunderball grotto.
Jim and Cathy
20091219 Wind Gusting to 35 Knots! Seas 8-10 Feet – Staying in Nassau
After two days in Nassau, we continue to wait for favorable
winds to continue our voyage. The last
two nights have produced consistent 20 knot winds as the bottom part of the
weather front that is dropping snow on Washington, DC and rain on Miami, FL
approaches. With an easterly wind flow,
down the channel between Nassau and Paradise Island, there is significant swell
passing through the harbor. The first
night, I was awakened at 4:30am when Angel “kissed” the dock piling on her
starboard rail. I arose from a deep
sleep, dressed and was on the dock before she could get a second kiss. I adjusted the dock lines to solve the
immediate threat, then went deep into a lazarette to acquire 4 more lines to
double up our security on all quarters.
I must admit, Cathy and I have mixed feelings about the New
Providence Island area , where Nassau & Paradise Island are located. The harbor is beautiful, where the government
has spent millions to efficiently attract and moor tourist carrying cruise
ships. They now have dock space for 6
mega liners and a channel depth of 100+ feet.
The docks are adjacent to the main shopping district and the straw
market. The ships can unload tens of
thousands of cash carrying tourists directly into a district designed to
extract their due.
Paradise Island is a world of its own. High rollers and curious tourists wander
around with logoed T-shirts, including “I’m with Stupid è”, “If you see da’
Police..Warn-a-Brother”, and various NFL or NBA jerseys. We have met people from cruise ships that
departed Houston, Miami, Jacksonville, Ft. Lauderdale, but there are other
points of departure. People from Texas,
Toronto, Montreal, Annapolis, Breckenridge (CO), Chicago, just to name a few.
Cruising couples that have sold everything and are now
living aboard their sailboats are common.
Their boats are nicer, newer and more expensive. Motivations are many, but tend to be along
the idea that early retirement was possible, so why not. Some have itineraries, others no plans. Some have friends flying in for the
holidays. Others, specifically have no
contact with their former lives and entanglements until, e.g. 6 months
away.
Yesterday, I as taking an afternoon nap, snoozing in the
salon with the gentle rocking of the boat in the swell at the slip. I was awakened by an unusual thump and was
instantly on deck. Two slips down, Dave
from Annapolis had observed that an incoming rental sailboat, with French
speaking crew was having difficulty managing the wind and getting into the slip
next to us. He leaped from the dock onto
our boat to push off the offender. The
boat backed away and tried again. I
armed Dave and myself with fenders and the whole dock community instantly
organized to handle fore and aft dock lines and keep the 42 footer off the dock
and away from Angel. Soon spring lines
were secured and all was calm again. No
harm & no foul was incurred.
The cruising community is unique. Everyone has run aground. Everyone has miscalculated a docking and hung
the stern out into the wind. Everyone
has lost power at a bad time. The
cruising community mobilizes with the approach of a vessel to the dock or call
for help. No compensation is
expected. Only a word of gratitude and
expectation that the kindness will be passed on in the future. Imagine if the whole world operated like
that…Sounds like a John Lennon song.
My list of boat repairs is not growing any longer. I can tweak and fiddle and get most things
done in just a few minutes each day. We
have invested our time in Nassau, not only in sightseeing, but also in
organizing our floating home. Cathy dove
into our food stores and got out liquids and dry food organized. We separated our pasta and egg noodles into
smaller packages, storing some in less accessible areas, saving several
packages for daily use. We went into our
bow storage area and inventoried our canned goods and bulk dried goods, moving
some to the galley for easy access.
We have enjoyed great food on the voyage. The restaurants available to us when we have
docked at a slip in a marina have been great.
All the way down the intercoastal waterway, we enjoyed salads, seafood
and great beverages. In the Bahamas,
conch fritters and cracked conch are mainstays, but there have been Greek
restaurants with great Greek salads and gyos.
Aboard, we have created many dishes from our stores. I purchased canned meats for the voyage. These are not fancy in name or
consistency. They are named simply
“chicken chunks”, “beef chunks”, “turkey chunks” or “pork chunks”. With the addition of spices and other
ingredients, they are really tasty. Chicken
noodle soup with multi-colored spiral pasta was really great. Pork
chunks with black beans and couscous needed more seasoning. After a couple of meals, we offered the rest
under cover of night to the fish, who seemed to enjoy a change in diet. We also created pork chunks with dried
vegetables and potatoes, which we enjoyed many meals. The addition of fajita spice made this a hit
as well. Of course our pasta with canned
hamburger in Prego sauce (mentioned earlier) was finished off with gusto. We have sufficient food stores to last much
longer than the time of our voyage.
This evening, we were invited by some new cruiser friends to
a “sundowner” aboard Siggy Dancer, a 30’ C&C sloop. We knew the marina was close, so we started
out on foot, calling them on our portable VHF radio for final directions. We met the owners, Dave & Jan Richards,
who welcomed us aboard. Our gracious
hosts are 6 year veterans of traveling to George Town, Exumas and after others
had left, invited us to view their pictures of the events there. This retired couple keep their boat in
central Florida, then drive down in October and sail to the Bahamas until April
or so. Cathy and I hope they will stop
by Charleston on their trip north, so we can show them some southern hospitality. Of special note is their cat, Rusty. This male puffball has a mashed in face and
weighs ~ 15 pounds. He spent the evening
in a cat bed over the companionway, behind the dodger. He raised his head for a scratch and rub from
all who came near. Other attendees were
Dave and Janet from “Auspicious” out of Annapolis, MD and another gentleman who
gladly took time to point out the best lobstering holes and snorkeling areas in
the northern Exumas.
We are enthused again about starting our trip south.
Wish us luck passing over the coral heads of the Yellow
Bank.
20091217 Nassau, Bahamas
We rested last night, sleeping soundly for 10 hours after our all nighter from Lucaya, Grand Bahamas. We awoke and rose slowly, muscles sore and joints aching. Our plan is to see Nassau today, leave tomorrow, weather permitting. Some fruit for breakfast, plus a couple of bottles of water in a shoulder bag join us on our journey. We are perhaps 30 blocks from the famous Nassau Straw Market, so a taxi is required. $10 poorer, we step into the busseling streets around the Cruise Ship terminal. Remember, we followed two large cruise ships into the harbor and were followed by a third cruise ship yesterday at daybreak. Those three are now gone and three more have replaced them. Perhaps 8,000 new tourists to wander through the shops and street vendors.
At 8:45am, the Straw Market is just getting started, with many proprietors still setting up. We stroll straight through and catch a water taxi over to Paradise Island. The shuttle is little more than a pointed bow barge with bench seating. As we take the 10 minute ride, a “narrator” gives us the short tour of the harbor & history. Movie stars and sports celebrities own many of the waterfront homes on the private areas of the island. We ignored the crowd that marched directly to the Atlantis Hotel & Casino. Instead, we took our own path to the Bahamas Craft Centre. Here artisans sell their own work. Wood carving, straw baskets, beaded bracelets, etc. Cathy found an unusual purse for herself and a bowl for the boat to keep our fresh fruit.
Stopping in to a small grocery, we refreshed our water supply and got some snacks to hold us over until lunch. Walking up the hill, we approached Atlantis Hotel and Casino. Just behind their own marina, where huge mega yachts are berthed, the pink hotel rises above all else on the island. The 10 room “bridge suite” on the 25th floor rents for $25,000 per night, 4 night minimum. We walked through the casino and instantly thought we were back in Las Vegas. The spinning roulette wheels, pinging slot machines and blackjack tables taking their toll from the visitors. The up-scale shopping mall was next, offering Rolex, Gucci, Fendi, Coach, Dooney & Bourke, jewelry stores galore, etc. This emptied into the registration area with a 5 story high vaulted ceiling painted with sea scenes. Beyond was a staircase leading down to fountains with 8 foot diameter sculptured clam shells, each containing a 1.5 foot diameter black granite “pearl” spinning in the flowing water. Impressive!
Down another flight of stairs, we were in the saltwater aquarium area. Here is a scene of Atlantis’ underwater ruins with sting rays, grouper, yellow jacks, grunts, and other reef fish behind the 5 inch thick plexiglass windows. We spent quite a while here gawking at the fish just swimming by.
We walked and strolled the property, stopping into shops that interested us, passing others by. It is a beautiful day, warm, but pleasant with a sea breeze. Back at ferry, we rode back to the Straw Market, but with aggressive vendors were a real turn-off. Once through and we were back on East Bay Street. We found another Greek restaurant for lunch, sharing a salad w/ gyro meat. Delicious.
The town is preparing for Junkanoo, the day after Christmas celebration. Large stadium bleachers are being assembled along East Bay for the parade, which starts on 20091226 at 10 am, lasting until 2 am next morning. Take that Macy’s!
A quick taxi ride back to the marina and Angel, we logged onto the internet and have found our plans once again disrupted. Bad weather coming in. We may be here for a couple more days.
Good time to get to my boat repairs…
Cathy & Jim
20091216 Transit from Lucaya, Grand Bahama to Nassau, Bahamas
The plan was simple, leave early from Lucaya, anchor that evening in Phantom Cove, Little Stirrup Cay, then up early again for a second 50 miles to Nassau, Bahamas…We were ready, but things change. Up early at Port Lucaya Marina, we moved the boat to the fuel dock to top off the tank. I then went up to the dock master office to settle our account. Unfortunately, the only individual, who knows the computer system was scheduled to come in at 7:45 am. She arrived on “Island Time” at 8:15. We were now 1.5 hours behind and could not make our anchorage, so we changed marinas and decided to strike out on December 15th.
With a pre-paid bill, we got up at 6:30 and left at 7am. Motoring out of the Bell Channel, we immediately encountered a heavy chop and the wind on our nose. Unable to sail to our intended anchorage at Little Stirrup Cay, we motored onward. After 3 hours, with an average speed of 3.5 knots, it was clear we had to again change plans. Our fallback position was to motor onward, bypassing Little Stirrup Cay, and continuing south to Nassau. This would entail another all-nighter, but put us a day ahead, and allow us to see the city.
The seas were from 3-4 feet and confused in the morning. It was during this time that natured called for my morning constitutional. Cathy took the helm, but is just learning how to steer, compensating for the wind and waves. She did her best, but it is challenging for her. In order to stay in contact with the head, I was forced to take an unusual position. Right foot firmly wedged against the sink, with prehensal toes firmly gripping the top edge, ~ 3 feet off the floor. Similarly, left leg wedged into the door jamb, with a toe inserted in the latch for security. Both hands gripping tightly the latches under the top of the head. So perched, I noted the sun’s rays sweeping my outstretched legs, left to right then reversing, as the boat swung through a 60 degree arc along her path. This combined with a 2 foot drop from the swells. This was an interesting experience.
The confused seas calmed to 1-2 feet swells from noon through the night into the next morning. The wind shifted along with our direction of travel, always on our nose. We motored on, with increasing speed as the seas fell quiet and night engulfed us. The darkness out at sea is a very special experience. As we moved slowly away from land, lights flickered and were doused by the horizon. At 3am, we were miles from any land. No lights were visible from any direction. There were no clouds in the sky. The Milky Way was brighter than I have ever seen. The usual heavenly constellations were painted with millions of distant twinkling background stars. Without land to block the view, the tinseled counterpane of stars on the blackest background extended from horizon to horizon on all points of the compass. This is a unique and moving experience.
At the end of the night, we were traveling at 5.8 knots, but had to reduce speed to arrive after sunrise. The final injustice was a brief, but intense rain shower to wet me thoroughly before dawn. As the sun rose and the sky brightened, one cruise ship left the harbor entrance, then two more immediately filed through the channel. We fell in line behind the second cruise ship, only to discover it was Royal Caribbean’s Monarch of the Seas, the same ship that Cathy and I took on our honeymoon 16 years ago.
We made our way up the harbor, under the two bridges that separate Nassau from Paradise Island, arriving at Nassau Yacht Haven Marina. We tied up to a face dock and had to wait for a slip to clear, then moved over and secured our lines for our stay.
Tomorrow we will tour and visit the city.
Jim & Cathy
20091213 Lucaya, Grand Bahama
We have spent 2.5 days at the Port Lucaya Marina, Lucaya Grand Bahama. The first ½ day after our all nighter transit from Ft. Lauderdale, we ate, returned to Angel, then we slept like mummies. I awoke slowly in the morning, my unconsciousness lifting like a heavy fog from valleys with no wind, using only ambient sunlight to remove the mist. I remember waking in the same position in which I fell asleep. As I moved a foot and leg, I noted that only the sheets directly under my body were warm, all other areas cool to the touch. My body and mind were stirring, but not in synchronization. Joint stiffness was notable, especially in my overworked hands and shoulders. My hands were cramped and fingers curved in the same fashion as if the tiller was still grasped tightly in them. My mind was not ready to make even the simplest decision. I knew only great thirst. Two bottles of water just started my days water rations. I drank glasses of water at every meal, along with coffee, diet Coke and tea. By nightfall, my thirst had abated.
The first full day in Lucaya, was one for exploration. We dressed and went into the market area, where we found a restaurant for breakfast. Cocoanut pancakes and a gyro omlette were shared with tea and a really good cup of coffee. On the way to the head in the restaurant, I met Sam, a regular and native, who was a merchant seaman for 50 years. He described our proposed route to the Exumas, suggesting harbors with good holding and protection.
We next wandered the shops of Lucaya Village. Straw baskets and hats, T-shirts, jewelry, bangles, conch shell trinkets and other tourist goods were everywhere. The artisans in the booths were friendly and conversant. When asked, many said business was slow with the US economy down. We also saw many restaurants, noting the ones we would visit before our departure. Conch appetizers at the Cappaccino. Here we snagged 2 Bahama Mamma’s each, plus fried conch with Dijon mustard dipping sauce. The next conch appetizer, consisted of conch fritters, similar to hush puppies containing bits of conch. Other notable meals were Greek Souvlaki and salad and fish gyros. Instead of lamb, these Greek dishes used traditional sauces, with onions and pita bread around chicken or fish.
I also made a list of boat repairs, and systematically moved down the page to get the boat ready for travel again. The list included, removing and restoring the anchor chain into the anchor locker, adding a grommet to the hawse pipe cover and securing it to the opening, finding and fixing a short in our running light circuit, add lines to two flat fenders, organize bow and stern dock lines, organize additional spring lines for docking, remove frayed section of main sheet (need to replace, next stop), move small oil lamp to v-berth and install large oil lamp in main salon, install cheater blocks for genoa sheets to get better angle onto main winches, WD-40 tools, clean deck, clean dodger and bimini, fix main depth sounder, and finally find and mend the slow leak in the inflatable dinghy.
The two most important are the depth sounder and dinghy repairs. This morning, I visited UNEXSCO, a local dive operation, explained my need for an air tank, bouancy compensation vest (BC) and regulator, to inspect the depth sounder, installed in Angel’s keel. They were very helpful and agreed to rent me the equipment. I pumped up the dink, dropped it in the water, added the engine and gas tank and motored over across the harbor. Keith helped equip me and I motored back. Cat steadied the tank on the gunwale, while I balanced in the dink. In a few minutes, I was under Angel, finding a tenacious barnacle on the depth sounder transducer. Removing it with a wire brush, the random numbers settled down to give stable and accurate readings. As an added benefit of this adventure, I inspected the bottom of the dinghy pontoons from below, discovering a stream of Champagne size bubbles from a pinhole on the port side. After restowing the dinghy and engine. I rinsed both with fresh water and allowed to dry as Cathy and I again made ourselves presentable with shower and clean clothes. Later, after the pontoon was limp again, I scrubbed the area clean with a new kitchen sponge, and applied a patch. We shall see if it holds.
The weather during our stay has been mixed. The first ½ day, we had partly cloudy skies and some light showers. The second day, was bright and sunny and warm. The second night was rainy and very windy. Our dock lines strained and Angel swayed in the gusts. The weather forecast predicts good winds and light seas for our travels tomorrow.
Lucaya is a place of tourists, great restaurants, markets and friendly people. For us, it is a place of repose, renourishment and recovery.
Tomorrow, we head south to the Berry Islands, on the way to the Exumas.
Jim and Cathy
PS Pictures are loading very slowly with this wifi. We will update,when we have a better internet connection.
20091211 The Crossing from Ft. Lauderdale to Lucaya, Grand
Bahama (CET Version)
The Crossing! As you
know Jim has written most of the blog. I
have typed some of it, but for the most part Jim has been the author. I have been the photographer, the navigator
and at time the nervous Nelly as we have proceeded from Charleston to Lucaya,
Bahamas. Jim has asked me to write
about our crossing. I think he wants to
know if I want plane tickets for Christmas.
We left Bahia Mar Marina around 9:30 a.m. on December 10th
with my seasick patch in place! We
only had one bridge to navigate through, which we were lucky enough to fit
under without an opening, thanks to the bridge operator information! We then proceeded to the Port of Everglades
channel out of Fort Lauderdale and into the Atlantic Ocean. My second visit to the Ocean in “Angel.” Leaving we had to navigate around several
large container ships coming in to port, fishing boats and many power boats
going to the ocean to play. We had very
calm seas and a nice south wind. We
proceeded about 5 miles out and Jim slowed the boat and for the first time on
our adventure, put both sails up on Angel.
She glided through the water with ease and grace. We spent the day appreciating the beautiful
blue water of the ocean, looking for sea life and watching the skylines of Ft.
Lauderdale and Miami disappear. Before
we left I prepared some quick lunch and dinner items, fruit and water so it was
within easy grasp. We watched the sun go
down around 5:30 to a beautiful sunset.
The ocean and winds were gentle.
We were waiting for the winds to turn from the south to the north as
forecasted to get us to the correct course for our arrival in Lucaya around 10
a.m. on December 11th. The
weather man forecasted that the winds would change course around midnight to
the north. This would push Angel in a
southerly direction to get us to the course direction we needed. We checked our position using gps coordinates
every two hours to ensure we were on track.
After the sun went down I watched the horizon for lights, as I am also
the lookout for other water traffic, so we don’t get run over. The clouds in the sky were big and white;
however, the lightening in them should have been my first clue. But the clouds were north of us and keep
moving away, so I quietly calmed myself as all would be fine. I got out our foul weather gear just in case,
secretly hoping this would chase away all the weather. I have to omit from 7 p.m. until all hell
broke loose at 10 p.m., it was peaceful watching the stars above, picking out
all the constellations, and watching many planes as the winked by us. We took our last 2 hour reading at 10 p.m.,
finding we were close to where we needed to be and when the wind changed to the
north it would push us to exactly where needed to be.
Jim then asked me for his fleece and immediately changed to
his foul weather coat as it was starting to rain. And the adventure begins……! I gave Jim his coat and put mine on hoping
for a brief shower and we would continue sailing. I am not exactly sure what happened between
10 and 10:05 p.m., but I do know that I never want it to happen again! I was in the salon putting on my coat and
before I could get up the steps to the cockpit, we went from calm seas to a
howling northerly wind and 6-8 foot seas.
I have no doubt that I now know what it feels like to be in a washing
machine, on high speed! As I tried to
take my seat, I was thrashed around and sat down. I looked at Jim and he was busy trying to
keep Angel on course. We got that North
wind the forecaster promised and much more he forgot to tell us about. The north wind pushed Angel south,
unfortunately a little too far. At 10:30
Jim pulled in the Genoa sail to cut some of our speed and help with a little
more control. At mid-night it is not only raining, but
pouring, Jim decided the main sail had to come down. He started the engine and asked me to turn on
the spreader lights that he fixed the day before (the picture of him on the
mast). Great that meant in this mess, I
had to handle the tiller. My least
favorite thing to do on Angel is man the tiller and now I had to take over the
tiller in 6-8 foot seas and not toss my husband off the boat as he secures the
main sail. I did this with my eyes
CLOSED! Don’t you think for a moment
that I am kidding! I was freaked. Jim is taking down the main sail, let me
remind you in 6 to 8 foot seas with strong winds and he is bare foot! Ice is not as slippery as Angel’s deck when
wet. Man overboard is not in my
vocabulary and my eyes are tightly shut holding on to the tiller –
PRAYING!
My eyes were shut a lot, I cannot pray with my eyes
open. I know Jim thought I was
sleeping. Not a chance. Around 3 a.m. Jim said he needed to get some
rest. He then shows me his idea of auto
pilot, tie a rope around the tiller and secure it to each side, turn the boat
speed to idol and put it in neutral. My
job was to watch for lights and if any got close to wake him or if anything
changed. My stomach could take no more and I chummed the fish, so they got to
enjoy my first ever peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I guess at least one fish wanted more. This flying fish jumped aboard decided that
Angel was a better place to be than in the sea.
I was not touching him, so he got a free trip to the Bahamas, if we could
make it! Around 7 a.m. it finally got
light and now we can see the 6 to 8’ seas as they hit the boat. But it is light!
Jim continues to push us towards our destination of Lucaya,
Grand Bahama Island, but it is a constant struggle. We found the entrance to the channel for the
marina we wanted and Jim radioed the Lucaya Yacht Club for a slip and we pulled
safely in at 10 a.m. Jim went and
registered at the marina office and I got the immigration paperwork together
and filled out. I, as the crew, am not
allowed off the boat until the Captain has checked us in according to the
rules. Jim put up our yellow quarantine flag,
which has to fly until you have passed customs, and went up to the customs
office. We are finally in the Bahamas
safe and sound! Fixed docks (not
floating docks) are not made for sail boats!
This is the 3rd or 4th marina that I can stand on
the boat and the dock is almost over my head!
Off and on is pretty comical when you are 5’ and the dock is at eye level. We
named our boat correctly “Angel” watched over us all night and even though she
was getting thrown around, she made sure we were safe.
20091210 Passage to
the Bahamas (JRT Version)
“It was the best of times…It was the worst of times…” best describes
our transit from Ft. Lauderdale, across the Gulf Stream, to the Bahamas. We decided that going to the northern
Bahamas, with cooler water and weather is not for us, so from Ft. Lauderdale,
we plotted a path from Port Everglades at 84 degrees heading (True) to Lucaya,
Bahamas. After resting, we planned short
hops further south to the Exumas, saving the Abacos for the next trip. Cathy has prepared peanut butter and jelly
sandwiches and lots of cold drinks for the passage. The weather report is excellent for the day
passage, with a front moving in for the last couple of hours of the trip, which
may make the arrival in the Bahamas a little uncomfortable, but the wind change
will help us make the trip faster; or so I thought.
Casting off from our slip at the Bahia Mar Marina, we
motored to the gas dock and filled up for the trip across the Gulf Stream. The gas at Bahia Mar was the most expensive
on the trip so far at $4.03 per gallon.
Turning south again in the ICW, we dodged water taxis, mega yachts,
fishing charters, an incoming mail boat, a container ship and an incoming
Princess passenger cruise ship to make it to the Port Everglades channel. On the way, we encountered one bridge, but
just missed the opening. While the
bridge had clearance of 50 feet on our chart,
the bridge operator noted that it was low tide, giving us 56 feet of
clearance and just enough to sneak under without requiring an opening. This saved us a half hour of circling in a
busy water highway.
Moving out into the ocean, we found the predicted calm seas
with 1 to 2 feet waves. The sky was
clear and as we moved away from shore, the warm wind freshened to 15 knots from
the south. I unfurled and set the 130%
genoa from the cockpit easily, which heeled the boat to port slightly, but
stabilized its motion. Going forward
with a winch handle, I removed the sail cover from the mainsail and tossed the
cover down the companionway into the cabin.
Removing the sail ties, the sail flopped into the lazy jacks, which kept
it under control. I attached the new
wire rope halyard from the new mainsail winch and even on a beam reach, cranked
the sail up the mast. It caught the wind
and we accelerated. Adjusting the genoa
and the main sheets, releasing the topping lift; I fiddled and tweaked the sail
trim to maximize our speed and comfort of motion. Angel settled into a 15 degree heel (tilt),
with a little weather helm (tiller toward the south wind). Literally, the wind blew with a 5 – 15 knot
wind speed from the south, clocking westward over the next 12 hours. I did not adjust the sails, and only small
tiller movements to check our trim and speed.
This was GLORIOUS sailing. Bright
sun, clear skies, warm wind, easy boat motion all combined to make the start of
our passage an idealic treat. The ease
of travel did not foreshadow the coming night’s events.
Just after 10pm, the cloud chasing us from the east caught
up. In less than 2 minutes, the world
changed for the Angel and crew. The wind
shifted from southwesterly to north. The
seas grew from 1-2 feet to 6-8 feet and were confused. For a couple of hours the battle versus the
weather raged, with good progress on our route, but uncomfortable and
tiring. Around midnight, I had to reduce
sail to better control the direction and speed.
I tried reefing the genoa, but little changed. I then furled the genoa completely and we
proceeded another 2 hours with difficulty, under mainsail alone. The house battery, which had powered the
running lights and navigation instruments since 6pm, showed low voltage, so I
started the engine; then went forward to furl the mainsail.
It was raining hard and the deck was slippery. During my work, I slipped; grabbing the boom
hard with a bear hug. The solid spruce
boom is 5 inches in diameter and 15 feet long…it is hefty. As I got my grip, a wave rolled Angel to port
and I “kissed” the boom. It did not
respond to my affection and split my lip.
No time for self pity. I got back
to the cockpit, applied power and we motored on towards Lucaya, Grand Bahama. My split lip was not the only injury during
my long night in the cockpit. A winch
handle fell from the cockpit seat onto my right big toe. I slipped in the cockpit, landing hard on my
butt, slamming my back into the
seat. Initially, I thought that I had
cracked a rib, but after regaining my breath, I decided that only my back
muscles and pride were bruised.
All night long, we motored on through confused seas. I kept the lights Westend, then Freeport,
then Lucaya on my port side. With the
coming dawn, we appeared to still be miles away. The progress was slow with Angel’s 25 hp (50+
year old) Atomic 4 engine and captain.
My energy low, I was hallucinating, seeing sea buoys and markers in the
main shipping channel as we approached Freeport. By 8am, we were approaching our destination,
but the charted buoy and channel eluded us.
Finally, re-examination of the chart and the shoreline, Cat spotted the
Bell Channel, through the binoculars. As
we moved closer, the path was clear. We
contacted a marina on the VHF radio, received directions and proceeded to tie
up at the dock. Fortunately, the marina
office, customs office, showers and bathrooms are all in the same building at
the head of the dock. This area also is
the main shopping and restaurant district for Lucaya, only a few steps from our
slip. I went in and registered for the
slip, while Cat filled out our custom forms.
We had to re-fill out the forms (they need two copies) and received our
cruising permit, fishing license and permission to take down our yellow (Q)
quarantine flag, replacing it with our Bahamian courtesy pennant.
We were exhausted, both mentally and physically. A great lunch was enjoyed at AGAVE
(Bahamian/Mexican) restaurant. Cat’s
shrimp quesadilla was so huge, that we could not finish it. My fish tacos were fresh and delicious. We tried to walk around, but the call to
sleep could not be ignored. We returned
to the boat for a well deserved nap.
After 2 hours of sleep, we rose, still groggy and sore from our all
nighter. Cathy prepared pasta with Prego + (must maligned)
canned hamburger. It was delicious. Sated, we tried watching a movie, but after
half; we were both sleeping and we went to bed.
Exploring can wait until tomorrow.
20091209 Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Both Cathy and I slept without dreaming or moving from 9pm until 7am, when the call of nature stirred us both. As Cat organized the interior of the boat for departure, I took the shower key back to the dockmaster, where I was greeted with a complementary cup of hot/black coffee. The coffee was not especially good, but it was hot and fresh. I savored it as I strolled back to the slip. Upon arrival, I disconnected the electrical service, coiled the cords and secured them in their place. I untied the two bow lines and stern line, adjusting the forward and aft spring lines to keep the boat centered in the slip. Without wind or current, this was no problem. Before departing, I finished my coffee and asked Cathy to stand on the starboard rail to remove the spring lines. Placing Angel in reverse at idle engine speed, we backed slowly from the slip, into the Lighthouse Point channel, pulling the tiller hard to port pointed her nose for the exit and we were able to easily make our way past waiting sport fishing boats at the fuel dock and re-enter the ICW headed south.
From Boca Raton to Ft. Lauderdale is only about 10 miles, but with 4 bridges, this took 3 hours. The weather is warm, in the mid-70’s overnight, with a high of mid-80’s by early afternoon. We called ahead and got a slip at the Bahia Mar marina, arriving around noon. As I re-connected the electrical service and set fenders, Cathy organized laundry. We took the laundry, including sheets and towels, and started all loads (sheets, darks, lights). Upstairs in the same building is a second story pool and outside snack bar, where we had Caesar salads with chicken and a Cobb salad with jerk chicken. I left Cathy to cycle the clothes, while I walked over to the dockmaster to register. Part of the registration is a welcome package with upscale magazines including “Show Boats”, exhibiting the benefits of the mega-yachts we have been observing on our trip.
I then returned to the boat to do some repairs before our crossing to the Bahamas tomorrow. The bow light (up the mast) has not been functional. I got out my mast mate steps, a nylon webbing ladder that attaches with sail slides, so it can be hoisted up the mast. Attaching the spinnaker halyard as a safety, along with a bosun’s chair, I ascended the mast, finding the light housing and bulb missing. I replaced both and checked the light for function. To secure the light housing, I drilled a pilot hole through the base into the housing and added a sheet metal screw. It may break off, but it won’t come undone. Descending, I was glad to be down as the wind was whipping me back and forth as the mast rolled 2-3 feet port, then starboard. It took a while to re-roll the mast steps, and store it all in its proper spot. Cathy got back to the boat in time to document me up the mast.
We are meeting Harvey and Nanette Gordon for dinner.
Tomorrow is the crossing.
Jim & Cathy
This is the adventure of two lovers, friends & companions that embark on a classic (45 year old) sailboat to learn about themselves and plan the 2nd half of their lives together. Please come follow their progress, regress, challenges and accomplishments.
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