Homeward Bound

Joining The Migration of the Snowbirds

    Tues April 22nd- Looks like the weather window that all the northbound sailors have been waiting for  is finally arriving. Lite winds and calm seas are predicted for at least the next four days and we join the procession of boats staging to cross the gulf stream to FL and points north. Many northerners will head into the gulf stream and let it's 4 kt current carry them as far north up the US coast as the weather allows. Much of the chatter on the radio is french as the Canadiens have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of this mild weather. We motor into lite west winds most of the day and anchor off of Foxtown, Abaco for the night along with 6 other travelers. Caught a big barracuda but released it since it was to big to safely eat. Explore the many rocky islets surrounding our anchorage by dingy spotting numerous turtles and small nurse sharks.

    Wed-Off motor sailing west most of the day, winds built by afternoon and we were motoring into choppy seas. Decided to cut the day short and stop at Great Sale Cay. Finally a good day of fishing, A nice Spanish Mackerel followed by a huge barracuda(released), then a giant mutton snapper and lastly a jack. Anchored along with 40 other boats, (3 powerboats), all are headed for the east coast.  This island is 30 mi from anything and uninhabited but a great stopover before heading out. At least a third of the boats are flying the canadien flag so have a long trip home ahead.

finally a great day of fishing

  Thurs- Headed out with the procession of boats under sunny skies but calm seas. Many of the boats headed directly north to catch the gulf stream and make an overnite passage to north FL.  Motor all day and anchor for the night off of West End, Grand Bahama. Normally this anchorage would be way to rolly as it is exposed to the open ocean but the seas are calm and winds are predicted to stay favorable. Celebrated our final night in the Bahamas by gorging ourselves on the last pound of our frozen lobster tail meat.

Back to Abaco

Lynard Cay-Little Harbor, Abaco
     Monday, April 14th- As predicted the skies have dawned partly cloudy and the wind has setteled down overnite to about E@12kts. We head out to cross the NE Providence Channel for the 60 mile trip to the Abacoes in the middle of an armada of about 12 boats. The seas are rolly with a 4 ft swell and we sail with the assist of our engine to keep our speed up. By the time we reach Little Harbor inlet the wind and seas have built and many of the boats are concerned about the conditions in the inlet. We are spread out over many miles and reports from the first boat are favorable letting all relax a bit. We are happy to anchor by 3:30 after what was a tiring day.

Treasure Cay
    Tues- We head north to find a protected harbor as the next few days are predicted to be unsetteled. Our plan was to pick up a mooring at Hopetown but the sailing was excellent and we kept running north covering 30 miles in the protected waters of the Sea of Abaco to anchor in Treasure Cay. Where we spent the afternoon on Chris' favorite beach. Ended a pleasant day with Scott and Donna from Saltine over for happy hour.

    Wed- Lots of clouds with showers off and on much of the day. We spent the day relaxing and catching up on chores.

   Thurs thru Sat- With the inclement weather around but still lots of sunny breaks we spend our time Biking with Scott and Donna, an impromptu boaters get together on the beach, Sitting around the pool, and another happy hour this time aboard Saltine. Saturday brought rain most of the day and Chris spent the day baking. She really outdid herself with pie, rolls, cinnamon buns and cookies for my birthday. No wonder we gain weight while cruising. Squall during the night had us up as the winds howled and the anchor dragged a bit. Thankfully we were able to wait until the storm passed to reanchor. we really hadn't dragged far but were closer to the seawall than I was comfortable with.

Birthday/Easter treats

   Green Turtle Cay

     Sunday and Mon- The skies have cleared and we decide to take advantage of the moderate breeze to pass thru the whale cut. To head further north we have to take a short hop into the open ocean to round the Whale. This can be a dangerous passage if the seas are running and even with moderate winds it still is a wet and rolly passage. Thankfully we had reserved a mooring at our old friend Donnies in Black Sound and as expected the place was full and their is no room to anchor. Happy hour at Pineapples where we enjoyed their conch fritters and rum punch. Spent the days enjoying long walks on the beach and wandering around town.

Pionting our bow back north

Eleuthra-Tarpum Bay

Sat, April 5th
    Having decided to start working our way back home we head out to cross the open waters of Exuma Sound back to Eleuthra. Seas have calmed to an easy roll and winds are fairly light. Motor sailed all the way across along with 6 other boats. Anchored off of Tarpum Bay by 3 PM. Had never stopped here and enjoyed a walk around town stopping off for Conch fritters at a local stand.

Sun- Another sunny day with light SE winds. As we slowly made our way to Governers Harbor we actually tried out a spinnaker we have had for a few years but never used. A trip to town for cash at the ATM, a couple of jugs of Diesel and a quick stop at the grocery.

Mon- With yet another cold front coming our way we head for the protection of Hatchet Bay Pond. The winds and seas have built and we were glad the trip was only 16 miles. Catching the first fish in a while added excitement to the trip but unfortunately it was a huge barracuda (about 40 inches) and I cut the hook off after getting him alongside. As I have mentioned in previous years large Barracuda build up a toxin from eating reef fish that can make you quite ill. They are fine eating mild firm fish but we are advised to only eat them if under 30 inches.    Luck was with us as as we entered the harbor looking for an empty mooring as a boat was just leaving and we snatched up their mooring.  The front is expected to bring big winds and Chris always sleeps better knowing we are secure. Off to town for a hike about with a stop for a beer then later for the treat of Ice Cream. Off after dark to pick up Stone Crab Claws from John the Crab Man. A real deal at 4 lbs for $20 but not as good  as usual since I failed to bring him any beer or rum.

Tues, Wed- Nasty weather has us hanging out on the boat but by Wed evening the skies were clearing and Bently and Jim on Salty Paws organized  a get together at the town dock that was attended by about 15 boaters with great entertainment provided by Jim and Bently.

Thurs-Sunny and still breezy we headed north to anchor off the glass window. A stop at Gregorytown where we purchased a couple of pounds of frozen lobster meat from Islandboy. Lobster season is over so fresh is no longer an option. Spent the afternoon relaxing on the protected beach after a hike to the Queens Baths.

Fri- Winds are still brisk as we cross over thru Current Cut and on to Spanish Wells. Running with just the working jib we flew along nicely. Picked up a mooring from Bandit in the harbor then wandered about town. Met up with fellow cruisers for happy hour at a new local restaurant in the harbor.

Sat- Move to Royal Island where we picked up a mooring then spent the afternoon snorkeling and hunting conch on the north side. Warm and sunny.

Sun-Lots of clouds around with showers threatening.  Hiked around in afternoon then prep boat for crossing to Abaco tomorrow. When we make an open water crossing the dingy gets stored on deck with the outboard stored on the stern. We take this precaution having heard a few stories of boats being hit by a rouge wave that has torn the dingy and davits right off the boat The anchorage is filling up as many boats have been waiting for weather to make the crossing and this is a great staging point.

Exumas

Highborne Cay

     Fri March 21st-Headed out under sunny skies and a north wind of 12 to 15 kts to make the open ocean crossing of 36 n miles.  Our original heading was to the cut at Wardrick Wells but this had us heading directly downwind making for a course that the autopilot couldn’t handle. We decided to turn west and make for the cut at Highborne. This was a much faster and easier course to steer but it meant entering a cut that I swore 4 years ago never to attempt again with seas running against the tide. We made great time and entered the cut by 3 pm on the exiting tide  rocking and rolling like crazy.  The entrance would have been smoother if I had kept some sail up but you make 2 sharp turns around the reefs and we didn’t want to deal with sail handling at the same time.  Quiet night at anchor after a great sail.

 Wardrick Wells
     Sat-Sunny and warm with much calmer seas. Decided to head outside to fish the deep water as we make our way to Exuma Park at Wardrick Wells. Motor sailed to keep our speed up and hooked a huge bull dolfin(Mahi) that exhausted me in his fight to stay free. After a half hour and numerous leaps finally had him alongside only to loose him just as Chris was ready with the gaff. Later in the day hooked another Mahi but it only stayed on for one leap then was gone. An exciting day of fishing that was closed out with the Sat evening boaters cocktail party on the beach that was attended by at least 30 boaters.

    Sun thru Tuesday
Two days of warm sunshine and calm winds allowed us to spend our days snorkeling on the fantastic coral gardens that surround this anchorage. All flora and fauna in the park are protected making for the best snorkeling around. Swimming among schools of colorful fish, rays, sand sharks and lobster among the colorful plantlife and coral brings us back to this favorite spot each trip.
Monday night the anticipated cold front arrived  bringing high winds and storms that lasted thru Tues but we were snug on our mooring.

Pipe Cay

Wed thru Fri
     The north winds are still blowing at around 20kts but we decided to run south ending up at the abandoned US base at Pipe Cay. This is a great spot that we discovered last year and we were the only boat there for 3 days. Being tied to the seawall gave us a secure feeling as the wind howled for 3 days. We spent our time exploring the many creeks and bays hiking the sand flats during low tide. Collected conch for two dinners during these excursions.

Cambridge Cay

Sat and Sunday
     With another cold front expected to bring strong west winds we move back to the Park to pick up a mooring at Cambridge Cay. Our normally serene harbor at  Pipe Cay is exposed only to the west and wouldn’t be a fun place to be as the wind switches. Sat evening joined a group of boaters on the beach for an impromptu party and jam session they called the ARG meeting (alcohol research group). Most of these boaters had spent the winter together at Georgetown where these meetings are a regularly scheduled event.  The expected weather was a non event but with the west winds we were able to snorkel at Rocky Dundas Cave, a spot we have always wanted to try but was always exposed to the surf.  Our next stop was at the coral garden that has huge growths of elkhorn coral.  Timing swimming at both these spots for slack tide is important as the current flows swift with the tide as it does in most of the Exumas.

Bell Rock, oceanside Cambridge Cay

Salt pond with anchorage in background, Cambridge Cay

Oceanside beach, Cambridge Cay

Black Point

Mon and Tues
     With the winds back out of the northeast at 18 kts we run south with just the big genoa making record time to Black point anchorage. We haven’t had internet since leaving Eleuthra as there are no cell towers in the remote parts of Exuma where we have been traveling.  Our airtime had expired for our internet connection and we had planned to purchase another month at the phone co office here.Shouldn't have been   surprised to find that the office is only open on Wed. but we are able to get wifi at the local bar. Picked up a few perishables at the grocery and Chris spent a morning at the laundry as we are about out of clean sheets and towels. Clean clothes aren’t much of a problem as most of our time is spent in bathing suits.Three nights a week the local bar hosts a happy hour catering to the boaters. With nearly 40 boats in the anchorage we joined a good crowd and spent the evening with friends Ron and Karla off the boat Island Breeze whom we met early this trip.

Staniel Cay

     Wed- After spending the morning dealing with batelco getting our data card (internet) topped up (nothing is ever simple here) we decided to make the short run north to Big Majors Spot and Piggy Beach. In the morning we were off at 8 to snorkle at the Thunderball Grotto. This is where the James Bond movie Thunderball filming took place. Unfortunately we were to late for slack tide and decided the current was to swift for our abilities so we went into town in search of fresh veggies. You probably have noticed a recurring theme here.  The problem getting produce on most of the small islands is that the markets only get a delivery when the mailboat arrives and sell out very quickly. The mailboat schedule seems very arbitrary as does everything here. As we sat at anchor in Black Point we watched the mailboat Captian C run aground during an extremely low tide as the radio was filled with chatter of people from Staniel sat waiting for their deliveries. Hard to blame the ships pilot as the harbor was crowded with cruising boats blocking his path and I'm sure us cruisers weren't his favorite people that night.

Black Point school field trip to see the swimming pigs

swimming pigs of Big Majors Spot

Hawksbill Cay

    Thurs-Moving north with a brisk east wind we anchored back in the park at Hawksbill Cay. Spent the afternoon hiking the oceanside beach. Our original plan was to head directly north to Current Island then on to Royal Island but once again a change of plans due to the weather prediction. Decided to instead head across to southern Eleuthra and work our way north to be in Hatchet Bay for some extreme weather expected Tuesday of next week.

oceanside beach- Hawksbill Cay

Wardrick Wells

    Fri, April 4th- Motor south to Exuma Park HQ where we picked up a mooring and will have an easy shot out the cut to the ocean. Snorkle and hike in the afternoon. Then prep the boat for the mornings ocean passage. This is to be the first day since our fishing trip on March 22nd that the ocean has been calm enough to venture out.