South to Eleuthra

Fri-April 3rd,  We head out into what seemed to be favorable winds and seas but after 2 hours the winds turned on our nose and we were pounding into rough seas. Caution prevailed and we decided not to beat ourselves up making this 70 mile trip and we returned to port.
    The following morning the seas had calmed and even though there wasn’t wind for sailing we decided to try again. We motored south all day making good time in the long swells. Hooked a huge fish that I apparently wasn’t patient enough with and lost it when the 150 lb test braided line parted on it’s first leap. Not sure what it was but judging from what we saw I can’t imagine getting it aboard. Had fuel problems again as we were closing on our first landfall of Egg Island but by then we had enough breeze that Chris was able to sail us into the cut while I changed both filters and primed the engine. Only another 6 miles brought us to the protected harbor of Royal Island where we have spent many peaceful nights in the past. Even with the engine problems we still covered the 65 statute miles in 9 hours.

Sunday - After a peaceful night at anchor I decided I had to tackle the source of our fuel problems that have plagued us since leaving Florida. Since the tank is only half full I am able to pump it dry with an electric pump into the spare cans I carry and then  flush tank clean. This entails unbolting it so I can tilt it to get all the remains out. Needless to say this means working in a very  confined space which is the reason I have put this process off. The end result was that I removed  1.75 ltr of water from the bottom of the tank. Hopefully this is the end of our fuel issues.
    Spent the afternoon snorkeling on the north side of the island then on our return were invited aboard a neighboring boat from Montreal for cocktails and interesting conversation.

Meeks Patch-April 7th, A short motor to Spanish Wells where we anchored out and made the trip to town for groceries and fuel.  This is one of the best kept towns we have found in all the Bahamas. The residents who are descendants of white loyalists are hard working fishermen and supply all the spiny lobster for the Red Lobster chain.  The boats, homes and grounds are all well kept and we always feel welcome when we visit.
    For the evening we motor the short distance to a small island called Meeks Patch where we anchor off a pretty sand beach.

Glass Window- April 8th, We  fly thru  Current Cut running with the tide adding an extra 4 kts to our speed, unfortunately as we exit the cut this means we pound into a steep chop for a while as we motor into the wind. We anchor off the beach at the Glass Window and enjoy the protection of the high hills.
  We hike to what has been one of our favorite spots, an abandoned castle looking house on the Oceanside cliffs with great natural pools kept filled by the seas. To our disappointment someone is in the process of renovating and building additions so we no longer have our private paradise.  Spent the afternoon relaxing on another pristine beach the in the morning made our way back to the Oceanside to enjoy the morning sun at the Queens Baths, more natural pools in a cove in the cliffs. This is a national park site but unmarked so it gets very few visitors.

Oceanside coast North Eleuthra

oceanside beach

Anchored off Glass Window

Hatchet Bay-  April 9th- motor south into a moderate chop with a stop at Hatchet Bay. This tiny town is perched on the hills looking over a natural harbor. We have made this stop to visit Island Boy, a fisherman we normally buy frozen lobster from. We find him with empty freezers as his boat recently burned when another boat caught fire and drifted into his resulting in a complete loss.  We move on to another favorite spot, Hatchet Bay where we anchor and go in to find John, who we normally buy Stone crab claws from.  We end up dealing with one of his workers and even though I brought him a 6 pack of beer the deal wasn’t nearly as good as in previous years. Still had a great couple of dinners.

Fri and Sat- The wind is still making travel south difficult so we spend two days wandering around and hiking to the ocean beaches.

Governors Harbor- Sun, Mon and Tuesday- Seas have calmed considerably so we motor south to Governors Harbor. This colonial town sits on the hills overlooking the commercial harbor. The homes are all well kept but appear to be mostly owned by seasonal residents.  We enjoy time on the pink sand beaches that line the ocean side. Are able to get our propane filled and provision with a few fresh veggies.

Pink snad beach, oceanside Governors Harbor

oceanside Governors Harbor

Rock Sound- Wed and Thurs-Motor south with light winds and calm water. Anchor off of town where we bought Conch from the local fisherman.  They gather at the town dock nightly to clean their catch and the locals flock down to buy dinner. A staple of the locals are small snapper that they fry whole.  Some shopping and hiking about filled our time. Thurs evening the boat Floridian pulled in and we friends Lynn and Paul for drinks. They brought us fresh caught Mutton Snapper fillets which made a great dinner.(I didn’t have the heart to tell them we still had a freezer full)

Wandering about Abaco

Wed March 17th thru Mon March 23rd--
   With warm sunny days in the mid 80's and nights around 70 we find ourselves being lazy relaxing on the many area beaches. On Wed morning in dead calm Chris climbed the mast to take care of some chores we had been putting off.  I havn't been able to do any strenuous work since Oct as I have been batteling a herniated cervical disk and still have trouble looking up or using my arms above chest level. Chris was able to replace our broken windvane and reave a new spinnaker halyard. Note that even with our new mast steps we still use a safety harness.

Chris enjoying the view from 55 ft up

     Later that morning we decide to head south which requires a  jog out into the ocean to round Whale Cay. As we approach the cut the swells are rolling in with alarming size and we decide to play it safe and return to Green Turtle Cay. The next morning we head south again but with a full moon(supermoon) giving an extra high tide we take the inside route called don't rock passage that I have always wanted to try. We could never make it at low tide but with an extra 3 ft we see no less than 6 ft of water. The ocean waves were still making their way into this area but just a gentle 4 ft swell.
     Spent Friday night anchored near Water Cay taking advantage of the extra low tides to explore a few backwater areas on foot. After spending the day Saturday exploring in the dinghy and a day on the beach we head into the protected anchorage at Treasure Cay where we can use the resorts facilities for a minimal fee.
Sunday was another glorious beach day and today(mon) we were able to get to the Batelco (phone co.) office to get sim cards for our phone and computer. We now should have internet wherever  3g service is available (a surprising number of islands).

   Monday March 23rd thru April 4th

Settled weather allows us to visit many different anchorages we have missed the past couple of years. We spent time at Fishers Bay on Great Guana Cay, Water Cay off of Great Abaco, Man-o-War Cay, then back to Treasure Cay to ride out the latest cold front.
Our next stop is Marsh Harbor where Chris got to stock up on fresh veggies at the supermarket there.  This is the only small city in Abaco and boasts most everything a boater would need.  Picked up a case of our favorite rum “ Fire in da hole” it being one of the few things that is a bargain compared to US prices. Also a visit to the fish market for frozen Conch and Lobster tails without shells.  We always thought that buying from the local fisherman was the best deal but find that since we freeze most for future use the price is just as good and sometimes better.

Snake Cay-  On wed April 1st we made our way to a spot that has always attracted us but is only favorable in west winds.  We anchor in the lee of what at one time was a huge port complex and is now abandoned.  We spent an enjoyable afternoon on 5 mile dingy excursion into the back waters of the numerous cays that dot this coastline.  Hundreds of sea turtles along with many huge rays were the highlight of this trip. Thankfully I brought along the gps map to guide us  as we wound our way thru miles of shallows dotted with many small islands.

Lynyard Cay- Tranquil weather has been with us for much of the trip thus far but with the predicted return of strong trade winds next week we decide to prepare to cross open ocean to Eleuthra while we can. We spend a quiet night anchored close to the Little Harbor inlet where we exit the Sea of Abaco.

back to the bahamas 2015

Bahamas Bound, Spring 2015

After spending a quiet winter enjoying the sunshine and warm Florida temps we are finally ready to set sail on our annual Bahamas Cruise. Chris has been busy provisioning for a three month sail and the boat is loaded and just awaiting favorable weather.
The winds over the past few weeks have been blowing strong from the east and the ocean has been very rough.  The weatherman has promised a break by this Sunday so we are off on another adventure.

Friday March 13th- Going against sailors superstition of never starting a journey on a Friday, never mind the 13th we head south to meet up with friends Greg and Duwan on Blue Wing at Pecks Lake.  They normally winter in the Bahamas but have opted this year to stick around and are now heading for the Keys.

Sat- As much as I hate traveling the Intracostal on a weekend we head south for Lake Worth (Palm Beach) where we will anchor near the inlet for an early start.  As expected tons of boat traffic has us bouncing along most of the trip. About at Jupiter I realized I left our spare propane tank sitting in the shed at home, not a disaster but nice to have a spare as most of our cruising is away from the populated areas. A call to our long time friend  Bob LaRoy was all it took for him to rush down and meet us with the tank. As we call it an early night the winds are finally subsiding but I can’t imagine the seas will calm down by morning.

Sun- Up at 3 AM under starry skies and calm wind. We head out and much to our amazement the ocean has settled down to a manageable 3 ft swell. The south wind that we had hoped for barely materialized but we would much rather motor across than pound into rough seas.
   In the past one of our greatest concerns as we cross the shipping lanes has been trying to calculate how close we will be to the giant freighters and Cruise ships in our path. In the dark we both have trouble telling distances and these ships are the size of 3 football fields and moving at 20 mph.  My solution this year was to update our chart plotter/fishfinder with a larger unit that I was able to add Radar and AIS (automatic ident. System) to.  The AIS is amazing in that all commercial vessels broadcast a signal that gives their name and ID # and the unit then displays a ton of data most importantly their course and how close we will approach them.  This along with the radar really took a lot of the anxiety out of the crossing as we were in the path of at least 8 huge ships during the crossing.
All went smoothly until about 25 mi out I notice a steady stream of water coming from our bilge pump. As I step below I am greeted with the sight no boater wants to see of water flowing across the floor. This led to a few anxious seconds until I realize the water is hot and coming from our water heater. A broken fitting and 35 gallons of our precious drinking water was all that resulted from what at first seemed like a major catastrophe.
Not long after the engine, which had been purring along smoothly faltered and died. It only took a few minutes to find our diesel filter/water seperator was full of water, but the fix took about an hour of sweaty work replacing both filters, purging the bad fuel from the system and bleeding the system.  I have been thru this procedure on other occasions but this time it took a major effort to get running again. Never mind being nervous wondering if we would be stuck 30 miles offshore with no wind.


sailing into the sunrise



the admiral (napping) at the helm

Our luck turned around when I decided to wet a few lines. The first fish on was a nice skipjack tuna (bonita) which are very bloody and not good table fare  but make great bait.  Within minutes of the bait hitting the water  the rod started to scream.  After a long battle we were able to board a beautiful Mahi (dorado or dolfin fish) which is one of our favorites. With hardly any extra freezer space this early in the trip I called a halt to fishing.  We treated ourselves to a feast of fresh dolfin for both lunch and dinner and still froze fillets for 8 more dinners.



this will fill the freezer



hurry up I can't hold it!

Even with our engine troubles that had us drifting north about 3 miles in the gulf current we still made landfall at our anchorage at 5:30 making the trip of 77 nautical miles(about 88 statute miles) in under 14 hours.  We topped of a near perfect day with a dip in the warm clear water and a few cocktails as we enjoyed a beautiful sunset.


 Monday-  After a peaceful night we set out under brisk winds and full sail. All to soon the winds veered to the east and we were now what beating into wind and seas, this called for a change of plans and after 24 miles we headed for the protected anchorage at Great Sail Cay. This uninhabited island is a favorite stopover for boats along this route and we spent a peaceful nite at anchor. Adding to the excitement of this sail was catching a huge barracuda (released) and a fat mutton snapper that made a great dinner plus 2 dinners in the freezer.

Tuesday- Light winds find us motor sailing east for most of the day. Thankfully there was plenty of exciting fishing to break up the trip. We brought aboard  two big barracudas and a Spanish mackerel. The barracudas were both way to big(any over 30 inches can build up toxins and are not fit to eat) but we had a fine lunch of the Spanish mackerel. Spent a rolly night anchored in Allens-Pensacola Cay as the wind that was promised all day finally materialized.


another few dinners, where do we keep it?

Wed- Lite winds plague us yet again as we turn south along the Abacoes. Motor to Green Turtle Cay where we clear customs, pay for our cruising permit then head in to a mooring at our old friend Donnies. Caught another nice mutton snapper and another Spanish Mackerel which may have to go into chowder as the freezers are overfull.

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.