Back across the Gulf Stream to Florida

Mon June 14th- Sunny and hot. Light winds found us motoring much of the way to Allens-Pensacola Cay where we anchored mid afternoon. Storms around much of the afternoon but we managed to avoid them. After Chris dove to check anchor I was set to dive in when I spotted a 6 ft shark lying on bottom just below swim platform. Needless to say a shower sufficed until later when a quick swim was in order.

Tues- Sunny and hot again, no wind so we motored to Great Sale Cay. Dinner aboard our buddy boat Integrity with Jane. Slept under the stars in cockpit. Very warm in boat. The water is 87 degrees so the boat doesn’t cool down much at night.

Wed- Sunny and hot again, thunderstorms around. Motor sail to Memory Rock arriving at 5 pm. Anchor in 8 ft of water with no land in sight. Another hot night spent sleeping in cockpit.

Thurs- Off at 7 AM for our gulf stream crossing. Sunny skies and calm winds made the crossing to Fl an easy one even if it was a bit boring. Caught 2 barracudas and a jack along the way. As we arrived at St Lucy Inlet storms over land had us on edge for a bit but we managed to make it to our old dock in Jensen by 7:30pm. A great trip has come to an end having logged 1200KM (1380 statute miles) with no major problems.

Nassau and north

Nassau

Wed June 2nd - Sail downwind wing/wing 38 sm to Nassau. Arrived late afternoon and after checking out the busy harbor decided to anchor at east end past cruise ship dock off of town beach

Thurs - We hadn’t planned on stopping in Nassau as considered it just another busy city but I must say we have enjoyed our stay here. Being able to spend a few days exploring lets you get a different perspective than when here for a day on a cruise ship.

Fri- Bahama Labor Day, Attended a local festival in the park next to our anchorage. All kinds of Bahamian foods, beers and a Junkanoo parade. Summer is here with lots of colorful trees in bloom and temps in the 90’s .



Sat- Another hot day and the beach is full of partiers. This is the first day we have stayed on the boat and I must say it’s time to find a quieter spot. Lots to see with the huge Cruise ships coming in right next to us. There have been 6 ships in port most days and downtown is very busy.

Back to Eleuthra

Sun- Had planned on an early start but had to wait on cruise ships before we were allowed to leave the harbor. Was another hot sunny day but light winds had us motoring most of the 36 st mi. to Royal Island, Eleuthra. Picked up one of the free moorings for a secure night even though there were storms all around.

Mon- spent most of the day lounging under the sun awning and swimming in the 86 deg water. The only problem with the water being this warm is that the boat doesn’t cool down much at night. The wind scoop and fan help but it has been very warm sleeping.

Tues- to Spanish wells for groceries and propane, we had planned on staying on a mooring in the harbor but was a warm spot and water wasn’t clean enough for swimming so it was back to Royal Island for the evening.

North to Abacoe

Wed June 9th-Off at 7AM for the 60 st mile trip north across the Providence Channel. Predicted winds never materialized and we motor sailed most of the way. Anchored at Lynyard Cay by 5 PM. Another very warm night. We now find ourselves looking for . anchorages where we get a good breeze as opposed to most of the trip where we were looking for protection from the winds.

Thurs- Back to Marsh Harbor dodging thunder storms much of the afternoon.

Fri- After a quick trip to town for fresh veggies we sailed north to Treasure Cay stopping at water Cay to wait out one of the many t-storms that passed thru. Apparently this is a fairly normal summer weather pattern but what we find difficult is judging the path of these storms as they seem to move very erratically and pop up quickly.

Sat- Another hot sunny morning and we headed out early to get ahead of the afternoon storms. The ocean passage thru the Whale was like glass and as we neared Green Turtle Cay we decided to stop and visit our friends at Donnies to avoid yet another blossoming storm. Spent a hot night on mooring in Black sound after a walk to town for conk fritters and beer then a swim on the beach.

Sun- Motor the short way north to Manjack Cay, where we spent a warm afternoon swimming and lounging under the sun shade watching storms build.

Time to point our bow northward

Wed May 26th- Started our way back north with plans to see some of the cays we missed on the way south. Our first stop was Musha Cay which is a posh resort owned by David Copperfield. Beautiful protected anchorage where we enjoyed dinner of fresh caught Spanish Mackeral.



Thurs-On to Little Farmers where we explored the cave on Great guana Cay. Apparently some more adventurious souls snorkle here with lights, but we weren't up to that much adventure.





Fri-Sunny and hot, motored to Staniel Cay where we enjoyed some fantastic snorkeling in the Thunderball Grotto. This is the cave where the James Bond movie was made. Chris amazed herself by actually entering the cave after saying "you expect me to swim into there?" Anchored off Big Majors where we fed the resident swimming pigs.





Sat-great sail to Cambridge Cay where we snorkeled in the fantastic Elkhorn coral reefs. We are back in Exuma Park and these reefs abound with colorful fish and some huge lobster.





Sun- After a quick stop to snorkle the sea aquarium on O'briens Cay we had a great sail to Wardrick Wells where we picked up a park mooring.





Mon-Memorial Day- Great sail to Hawksbill Cay where we once again picked up a park mooring. Hiked around in the afternoon. Temps have been in the hi 80's with water about 83. Quite a change from the holiday weather up north.





Tues-Started the day anchoring at a plane wreck on Normans Cay with plans to snorkle there but the current was running stronger than we felt safe in. Rather than wait for slack tide we took advantage of fair winds for a great sail to Allens Cay. This island group is known for it's resident iguanas that come out in force to be fed when you approach.

South to Georgetown

Fri,May 21st- Headed out early under blue skies and a brisk north wind. Great sail the 40 miles to Georgetown/Elizabeth Harbor. Trailed 3 lines and only caught 1 big Barracuda that we didn't keep (to big to eat, seems a shame but the big ones carry ciguatera which can make you very ill.) Lost a big fish but it probably was bigger than we would have been able to get aboard. Anchored at volleyball beach mid afternoon . The harbor is huge with at least 4 anchorages but hardly any crowd at all. We have been told that during the winter there were 400 boats here, now we count about 25 total.

Caves near Little Farmers

Beach at Stocking Island, Georgetown

Sat thru Tues May 25th- Have enjoyed a few sunny hot days moving about this great area. Spent a night at each of the popular anchorages: Hamburger beach, Sanddollar beach and Kidds Cove. Was great to be able to reprovision as our stock of fresh veggies, beer and wine were depleted. I can see why so many boats spend the winter here as the town really caters to boaters. Hiking trails and beaches on Stocking Island were great. It will be interesting to return here some day during the winter when the place is busy with regatta and all the resident cruisers.

Wed- After enjoy ing a great dinner of fresh caught grilled Mahi and sushi aboard Desdemona, a boat we have traveled with intermittently since Abacoe, we parted ways in the morning as they continue south and we are now headed back north. This was as far as we planned on exploring and the time has come to work our way back to Fl. After a day of motorsailing in light winds we anchored off the beautiful Misha Cay (Island Resort owned by David Copperfield) and dined on fresh caught Spanish Mackeral.

Thurs- Lazy day exploring our way to Farmers Cay. Stopped along the way for snorkeling at a few spots hoping for some conk but no luck.

Exumas

Fri, May 7th- After a walk thru town for shopping and laundry(oops- no laundrymat here) we sailed across to cape Eleuthera where we anchored for the night just off the marina there. There was a sportfish tournament going on with dozens of big sportfish boats at docks. The first boat we stopped at was cleaning dolfin and offered us a full fillet. Had a great dinner with balance going into freezer. They were after Marlin but apparently not having much luck.

Sat- Sailing by 8 am under warm blue skies and perfect wind. Trailed 3 lines hoping for fish in the 3000ft deep water of Exuma sound. 30 miles later never had a strike but was great sailing. Picked up a mooring at Warderick Wells which is the hq for the Exuma land & Sea park. Joined about 20 other boaters ashore for campfire and partying on beach.

Sun, Mothers Day- Another hot sunny day. We actually used fans during the night and put up sun awning to keep cool for the first time this trip. Hiked about the island in morning followed by some great snorkeling in 82 deg water in the afternoon. Feasted on conk fritters and the last of our frozen venision for dinner.

Mon, May 10th Thru Sat May 15th- After a few beautiful warm calm days the wind picked up and howled at about 20-25 kts for 5 days. Since we were in a great spot we decided to wait out the winds. We spent our days snorkeling on great reefs, many in protected spots close the anchorage. The variety of colorful fish is amazing due to the fact that no fishing or taking of any sealife is allowed in the 176 sq mile park that stretches along 22 miles of the island chain. I spent 4 mornings volunteering making up eye splices in 1-1/4 inch mooring lines. Hiking on the islands very rough trails and lounging around on some of the remote beaches filled our afternoons.
The Sat evening party on the beach was well attended as all 22 moorings were full with many boats having spent the week.

Sun, May 16th- The trade winds have finally subsided and we had a great sail south to Staniel Cay under reefed main and jib. We anchored in the lee of Big Majors Island as one of the resident wild pigs roamed the beach. This area is where the James Bond film Thunderball was made and our plans were to snorkle the famous Thunderball Cave. I have been having ear problems so this may have to be put on hold until they clear up.

Mon- To town for supplies, dingy gas and propane. We found what Island time was really about when it took nearly 2 hours to get our propane filled, then a half hour wait for gas. Groceries were very limited and beer was $80 a case with wine being equally expensive(needeless to say we will make due with what we have). Sailed south in the afternoon beating into 15 kt winds to Black Point. Quiet anchorage off of cozy little town.

Tues- Black Point is the 2nd largest town in Exuma, something like 200 residents but it has a school, groceries, laundry and 2 restuarants with wifi. As I type this Chris is doing laundry and getting a haircut. Town even has a spigot with free R/O water(which has been $1.00/gal at many spots).

Wed- Overcast with squalls pred for the afternoon so we motorsailed south to Little Farmers Cay. Great protected harbor with moorings at $10/ night. Town of only 50 people but has broadcast tv and wifi.(unfortunately we didn't even try either until Thurs night). Showers much of day.

Thurs- Still overcast but no rain. Hike around Island, neighbor Bill over for dinner, he supplied Fresh fish that Chris fried up.

Southern Eleuthera

South thru Eleuthera

Fri, April 30th- Early morning showers cleared out by noon and we had a great sail south to Current Settlement. Anchored off beautiful beach and wandered about this tiny village. We will pass thru Current cut in the morning and I was trying to figure the timing of slack current. This deep narrow channel has tidal currents that run like a raging river. Apparently there are only a few minutes where the water is slack at the tide change and this was to occur at dawn. Rather than navigate its winding channel in poor light we decided to run with the flow mid morning.

Sat- After an exciting ride thru the cut we sailed into choppy waves to the glass window where we found protection for the night behind Mutton fish point. Another sunny warm afternoon spent exploring the cliff lined shores. The land here is quite hilly and much of the shoreline reminds us of Lake Champlain.

Sun- Off early to beat south into choppy seas and building winds. Exhilarating sail to Hatchet Harbor which is entered thru a 66 ft wide cut in the cliffs. Another exciting few minutes as the waves were throwing us about until we entered the protected waters of the harbor. Picked up a free mooring and met up with Karen and George aboard Sunseeker for a long hike thru the village and to the ocean side to explore the rocky beach. Cocktails later aboard Sunseeker.

Mon- Biked north stopping at limestone caves which apparently can be followed for over a mile. Our excuse for not exploring more than the entrance was no flashlight (likely excuse). Biked on thru very hilly terrain to Gregory town where we bought 5 conk from locals. Long hot ride back.

Tues- Rented a car with friends aboard Sunseeker and explored much of the southern end of the island. Arriving back at dusk the local crab boat was returning from his day pulling pots. We bought a dozen crab claws which made an excellent dinner. Chris even felt they were better than lobster.

Wed- Headed south to Governors’ Harbor sailing under bright blue skies and warm south breezes. Water in bay was 78 and crystal clear. Wandered about town then enjoyed sunset cocktails with John and Mary aboard Marylee, the only other sailboat at anchor here.

Thurs-Sailed south with warm breeze to Rock Sound. Caught 3 ft Barracuda and 16 in grouper we had for dinner. Made conk salad and froze cuda after checking with locals on if they are ok to eat. Large ones can carry a poison but these caught here are supposedly good. Swam in 82 deg water.

Fri-To town for groceries and wifi before heading across to Exumas tomorrow. Warm ashore but great on water. Breeze favorable for traveling but big winds are coming back next week.

Abacoes Pictures

phone home?
Biking down Queens Highway, Man-o-War

honoring the setting sun with my newly fashoned horn

beach at Mermaid reef, behind Jib room, Marsh Harbor

Raging sea off Elbow Cay
Hopetown Harbor

Diver Chris-no conk yet

Tahiti Beach

Wandering about central Abacoes

The past ten days have found us sailing from one great island to another. The weather has been mostly sunny and warm but the wind has howled much of the time. The protected waters of the Sea of Abacoe make sailing a joy even in strong winds.

Man-o-War- Spent time wandering about neat little town and basking in the sun on protected beach.. Harbor is very protected but no room to anchor as is's filled with moorings.

Marsh Harbor-Have stopped back here twice trying to get replacement engine part. The saying "island time" really hits home when a part that was to be delivered in 2 days still hasn't arrived after ten days. This small city has plenty of shopping and a protected harbor but the town itself is dirty and not at all well kept. Again purchased a couple meals of Conk from local diver.

Hope Town-We picked up a mooring at Hopetown on Elbow Cay for a week to wait out the windiest weather. This Bahamian village was clean and well kept. Cute pastel colored homes on tiny lots line the narrow lanes that surround the protected harbor. Miles of beautiful beaches on the ocean side and brightly flowered vegetation made spending time here a joy.

Tahati Beach-Anchored off great protected beach between Elbow Cay and Lubbers Quarter. This beach is adjacent to Tiloo Cut where the Raging ocean seas were keeping all the fishing boats in port.

Treasure Cay- Yesterday found us following the wind for a great day of sailing. Ended up anchored for the night in the protected harbor after a stop to explore Water Cay. Many of the tiny islands contain remains of homes and piers that apparently have been abandoned following past hurricanes.

Hub of Abaco

Tues march 30th- Sunny and warm, run south under full sail to Marsh Harbor. Busy harbor with small city (5000 residents) and good shopping.

Wed-Fill propane in town then snorkeling at Mermaid reef. Dinner at Jib room where we met niece of Glen and Ellie.

Thurs-Quick shopping trip for fresh veggies then sail to Guana Cay where we again anchored off the great beach at Bakers Bay then enjoyed a long walk on the ocean beach. On Fri we spent another glorious day biking about the island.

Sat- Sunny and warm once again, burst fuel line on engine had us scrambling to shut down and clean up before there was to much mess. Jury rigged a repair, then had a great sail back to Marsh Harbor for parts. Easter holiday lasts from Fri thru Mon so Yanmar dealer was closed until Tuesday. While biking in town found a local selling conk out of his truck. He cleaned them while I watched and we had a great dinner of cracked conk.

Easter- Decided weather was to nice to spend in harbor, Sailed to Man-o-war where we anchored in a small cove with a nice beach with ocean beach 50 ft across rocks. Biked around a great little town. Has to be the prettiest we have seen yet. Easter feast of cracked conk for dinner .

Treasure Cay and Guana Cay

Thurs,Fri, 3-25-10, spent the past 2 days as typical boat bums. Walked the beach and wandered around town. Fri brought rain much of the day so we hung out doing chores and reading.

Sat- Sunny skies are back along with a brisk east wind. Beat to Bakers Bay on Guana Cay under a reefed main and full genoa. Spent the afternoon lazing on the protected beach. Anchorage was protected from the east wind but rolly during the night with swells coming in from the Loggerhead Channel.

Sun- With another cold front expected we sailed back to the protected anchorage at Treasure
Cay. Great run under just genoa. Now that we are in the central Abacoes numerous great anchorages are only a short daysail away.

Mon -As predicted winds are up around 20 and cloudy, squalls rolled thru late afternoon with 40 mph winds and heavy rain. Was able to catch enough rainwater to top off our tanks. Still experimenting with a raincatcher that works in the gale winds that seem to accompany the rainstorms. Lots of boats moved in to the anchorage(mostly 40+ ft charters) and we stayed on board all day.

Manjack, Green Turtle and Treasure Cays

March 17th- Manjack Cay, met couples from 2 neighboring boats ashore for a tour of the Island where we were welcomed by the owners and spent the morning hiking the extensive trails and the beautiful beach. headed to Green turtle in the afternoon as another front is expected. Arriving in Black sound all the moorings were taken and anchoring isn't advised due to poor holding. We able to get a space on the dock at Donnies for the price of mooring.

Thurs & Fri, March 18,19- Green Turtle, Spent days biking about and enjoying the miles of deserted beaches.

Sat & Sun- beautiful day so we headed back to Manjack, Spent lazy day on deserted beach, saw 3 sea turtles while dingying about, on Sun we took a long walk on the beach before heading back to Green Turtle and our dock at Donnies.

Mon & Tues- rain all day with another passing front, weather cleared Tues and we enjoyed a BBQ put on by Donnie that evening. I had been working on a conk horn and we had a great time learning how to blow it at sunset.

Wed- Beautiful day with lite winds. We motor sailed south thru Whale Cay Passage in long easy swells. This short detour in the open ocean around the shallow Dont Rock area can be treacherous in any seas, so we were waiting for just this type of day. Anchored in the protected Treasure Cay harbor then enjoyed a stroll on yet another gorgeous beach.

3 mile beach -Treasure Cay

photos-Green Turtle Cay

Party at Donnies Dock















another deserted beach













Sundowners bar sunset

photos-Manjack Cay

anchorage

photos- Grand Cay

Provisioning the important stuff

Back on the Water

Sun. March 7th- After spending the past 3 months on land in Jensen Beach with a few weeks in Piercefield at Christmas we are finally back on the boat for a new adventure. The weather since New Years has been unseasonably cold and windy. We had planned on heading out early Feb but decided to hold off until the cold fronts abated. Today we motor sailed down the ICW to N Palm Beach where we spent 2 nights anchored in the north end of Lake Worth. This is a very popular area for sailors staging to cross over to the Bahamas as the inlet here is excellent and major shopping is a short walk away. The weather has finally turned summerlike and we were able to explore a little and meet a few of the other boaters. An enjoyable evening was spent having Cocktails with the crew of Soulmate. On Tues we moved close to the inlet so we could get an early start.

Bahamas Bound


Wed 4AM- The weather looks promising to cross the gulf stream and we were out of the harbor by 4:30. The plan was to head to West End but that was not in the cards with this wind. Unlike in the anchorage where we had a south wind, the wind on the ocean was SE and right on the nose. We decided to motor on and without sails it was a very uncomfortable ride. By changing our course for Memory Rock we were able to hoist the main and steady the motion of the waves.

Dolphins, whales and flying Fish


As we approached the Bahama Bank we were entertained by numerous dolphins, amazing schools of flying fish traveling at least 100 feet thru the air and numerous sitings of huge whales we have yet to identify coming straight up out of the water and crashing down with a tremendous splash. We tried getting close for a better look but to no avail.

On the bank


Crossing onto the bank we left behind the deep blue 2000 ft deep waters and are now in calm 10-15 foot deep aquamarine waters that are “gin clear”. We anchored for the night at sunset off of Mangrove Cay and spent a very peaceful night.

Thursday- Winds weren’t favorable to head to Great Sale Cay so we decided to head to Walkers Cay to clear customs. As we approached the entrance channel the winds had built to 20 kts and the prospect of entering a long shallow channel at low tide led to another change of plans. We proceeded to change course for nearby Grand Cay where we anchored in its protected harbor. Gale winds and driving rain had us up much of the night resetting anchors in the poor holding. We were relieved to have the winds back down to 20 kt by dawn but heavy rains persist. A very trying couple of days for the crew of the little ship Andros. Hopefully things will improve from here.

Fri- Heavy rain all day, winds clocking around from all directions had us on anchor watch much of the day and thru the night. To wet to think about going ashore.

Sat- Another storm with gale winds at 6 am had us re-anchoring again. Later in the day after winds had dropped to 20kts marina suggested we pick up mooring rather than trying to get into dock. If we had realized it was there(just had a fender for a float) we would have picked it up sooner. Walked around tiny village after drying out boat in the welcome sunshine. Beers at Rosies (almost everything in town is owned by Rosie- Rest/bar, marina, cottages, fish processing, grocery). We bought fresh bread at local bakery.

Sun- Took water taxi (driven by customs officer) to Walkers Cay to clear customs. Exciting 4 mile ride in open fishing boat at 30mph. Winds still howling about 20 but sunny. Walkers was a fancy resort that was abandoned after hurricane Floyd and still sits idle. The airstrip is still in use but the resort is abandoned. Our friends in Tupper Lake will find it interesting that this group of islands was owned by Robert Abplanalph and was used as a vacation retreat by President Nixon, as was The Abplanalph camp on Big Tupper. Apparently the family still owns the Islands but makes little use of the beautiful estate. Spent afternoon wandering about Grand Cay followed by a great dinner at Rosies (local cracked conk and Grouper)

Mon-Sunny and still windy, one fishing boat went out but all others still at docks. To town to try for wifi, Stopped at school where principal offered the use of his office and computer during lunch, then later Phone Co manager offered the use of his home wifi. Am amazed at how friendly evreyone is. We were the only visitors (read the only whites) on the island. Apparently by next month the place will be crowded with fisherman from the states.

South to the Sea of Abaco

Tues- The winds have finally calmed down and we headed south at daybreak. Motor sailed the 55 nm to Manjack Cay where we are anchored along with 12 other sailboats. The islands owners supply free wifi and welcome use of the extensive trails and ocean beaches.