Daily Logs

Windwalker Log

May 00 - June 00

05/01/00	Conception Island, Bahamas As we passed Rum Cay, we tried hailing Nautilus, with no response. We anchored at around 10am with 5 other boats in the anchorage. We rested until around 5 and then snorkeled to shore and walked on the beach. Pristine, white sand, with few shells. Conception is a Land/Sea Park and is uninhabited. It was nice to have dinner at anchor. Fred made some final course changes to Georgetown and we both crashed early.
05/02/00	Georgetown, Exumas, Bahamas Iris got up at 6 and saw a dolphin swiming about the anchorage. We had a much calmer night than the previous one. We got underway at 7 and talked with Between the Sheets. Nautilus and the 3 other boats were all there, anchored together and we talked about perhaps having dinner ashore tonight. Iris put out two fishing lines, but no success. Dolphins enroute. We got into Georgetown aroud 3pm. We were in a rush to put the dinghy in the water under continued blustery conidtions. We saw where the C1500 contingent was but wanted to anchor closer to Customs and downtown. We spoke with our friends who had all made several long trips to town and had gotten soaked each time. Dinner was out - they had it with the choppy conditions. As we rushed ashore around 4pm, another boat near us was waving us over. He wanted us to tow his dinghy into town so that he could pick up his outboard. We dropped him off at the marina and then proceeded to Customs, which was to stay open until 5pm. After circling the building a few times, trying to find the entrance (which was locked), we and another couple went into the police dept, who called Customs for us. Come back tomorrow morning at 9:30am! Great... we're still not cleared in, and have to stay close to town to avoid the wet ride. OK, we still went shopping at Exuma Market. No dinner out, either. We didn't think Georgetown has much to offer. It isn't the first time we were here either. We can't see the attraction for cruisers who 'park' here for 3-6 months, if not permanently!
05/03/00	Georgetown, Exumas, Bahamas We decided to jerry can fuel to the boat, so took the jerry jug with us and dinghied to customs at around 9. We got there at 9:15. Customs didn't arrive until after 9:30. Iris waited outside, nervously anticipating difficulty with cats on board. Fred was out of there in 15 minutes and then we headed to immigration. Animals never came up on any of the forms to Iris's relief!!! OK - we're finally cleared in! A few more items and diesel, and then another wet ride back to the boat. What's this? Nautilus and the other 3 boats all left! No reunion with anyone! We debated going out to lunch on the next fuel run vs. leaving that afternoon. Got the worst of both deals - no lunch out, and by the time the jerry jugging was over, it was too late to leave. The cook was feeling really cranky and ripped off and we had another rolly, uncomfortable evening and night. We did some trip planning, washed our offshore gear and quarreled. Other than accomplishing the clearing in, a totally unpleasant day. Fred ran into Peter on Sea Hero several times in town.
05/04/00	Galliott Cay, Exumas, Bahamas We left at around 7:30 am after a quick rainshower. We needed good visibility to leave through the reef. Winds were blowing over 20 knots and we were concerned about getting out of Georgetown, but it was easy. We had a fantastic sail up Exuma Sound - perhaps our fastest sail yet, marred only by very big swells from the continued strong trade winds. Iris lost one of the lures she'd purchased in Georgetown: we'd switched to a black and purple lure and it worked! Yep! It was a beautiful, large dolphin leaping out of the water. Then the undersized leader snapped. No fish - perhaps we'll finally catch some conch for dinner.... It was blowing and pretty nasty when we turned into Cave Cay Cut (one of the between island cuts between Exuma Sound and Exuma Banks). While the channel wasn't as narrow as the entrance to Hatchet Bay in Eleuthera, it was dicey as big swells followed us in. Fred held the boat steady and we rode the waves through, into Exuma Banks. We wasted no time in briefly running aground as we rounded Cave Cay. Going from 4000 feet deep water to 6 feet in just a few minutes was a little unnerving, but the shallow banks colors are so striking! We anchored off of Galliott Cay when little Galliott looked too rolly. There were two boats when we arrived but by evening there were 6 other boats. We snorkeled ashore, searching for conch. Lots of it! But alas, all were below legal age/size limits. No conch for dinner either. We had noticed a current when swimming ashore. Going back it was much stronger; we flew back to the boat. The current was running .6-.7 knots. A little later, some kids from a nearby boat had problems with the current and had to be rescued by dinghy. The winds continued to blow 20-25 knots throughout the evening. Iris started the generator after dinner to cool the fridge and run the watermaker. Before the refrigerator even turned on, the voltage dropped to zero. We shut everything down and Fred checked the fuse. It was ok. Bad news - that meant the failure was something more serious. It also means we'll have to run the engine for our battery needs until the generator is fixed- heavier fuel usage. We ran the engine for the fridge and went to bed quite depressed.
05/05/00	Big Major's Spot off Staniel Cay, Exumas, Bahamas We needed to stop at Staniel Cay or Sampson Cay for a couple of days for boat maintenance. We left Galliot at 7:15 and headed for Staniel inside the Banks. It was a lovely sail in flat seas over 10-12 feet of crystal clear water. We overheard the C1500 boats at Staniel making plans for lunch ashore and then a snorkel at Thunderball (of the movie fame) cave. We pulled into the pretty anchorage on the west side of Big Major's Spot with 50 other boats. We parked right behind Sea Hero (who had arrived the day before, as had the C1500 boats) and next to Nautilus. It would be about a 1 mile ride into Staniel Cay by dinghy. August crow came over to say hi and to invite us to lunch and the snorkel. Then Nautilus did the same. We hustled to get the engine on, get our dive gear and get to the Staniel Cay Yacht Club docks by 1pm, as did BTS and Sea Duty. The restaurant was as disappointing as it was 4 yrs ago when we had our anniversary dinner there. None of the seafood dishes on the menu were available (as they weren't then). But conch fritters were available and in the group we ordered 3 servings. Each one came out at 15 minute intervals as did the entrees. And none of the beverage orders were ever served. But we enjoyed the company.... Lisa (of BTS) and Iris went to do pocketmail. Iris attempted four times unsuccessfully before we figured out that the batteries were dead. We didn't want to dinghy back to the boat for AA cells, so while the rest of the gang went on to Thunderball, Fred and Iris trudged to the 'pink' store to buy new ones. We succeeded in reaching pocketmail as well as Pat, now home from the hospital. We got to Thunderball just as Lisa and Dick were leaving. But the cave was crowded with fins kicking in ll directions. The fish were as friendly as ever, and the reef on the other side of the island was quite pretty. Back at the boat we decided to snorkel off the boat, but our zeal was tempered by a large shark under a ledge we snorkeled by. It wasn't a nurse shark and it wasn't little! (Fred thought it was a small tiger shark but we aren't sure) Later in the afternoon we went for a dinghy ride to give August Crow a Valiant newsletter that mentioned them. Then we dinghied towards the beach, the home of the infamous 'swimming pig'. Yep - this was a big, ugly hog who maintained watch over the beach. Anyone who beached was immediately accosted and their dinghy was searched, even if they remained in the water. This hog could swim! We had a pleasant evening with less wind and no swells. Fred fixed clogged through hulls for the head; our generator was still a problem.
05/06/00	Big Major's Spot off Staniel Cay, Exumas, Bahamas August Crow, BTS and Sea Duty left promptly at 8:30 enroute to Norman's Cay and then New Providence Island. At 9am, Iris hailed Exuma Park HQ to reserve a mooring at Warderick Wells for tomorrow. We were put on the 'list'. Fred debugged the generator and discovered blackened wires in the junction box where corrosion had resulted in a mini-burnout. Wires burnt through. It was surprising that we didn't smell anything that night. Fred can fix anything!!! While Fred replaced the connections, Iris did various routine maintenance chores. Nautilus suggested lunch at SCYC again. Iris said, no - how about trying Happy People instead. We each had a very wet dinghy ride to the dock, and both Iris and Joan did Pocketmail and made calls. We had great conch burgers at Happy People and were served promptly. After lunch the four of us took a short walk in search of Thunderball Club (another restaurant site), but that could only be reached by dinghy. Back to the boat where we decadently took naps and then did trip planning. How are we going to reach the Abacos and Rod and Ann in Marsh Harbor by 5/14?
05/07/00	Warderick, Exumas, Bahamas We left at 8am for a brisk sail to Warderick Wells, the headquarters of the 22 mile long Exuma Land and Sea Park. At 10 we hailed the park for our mooring assignment. We were #4, the first of the small boat moorings. We arrived, had lunch on board and then dinghied ashore to register and hike. We got to the office at 1:10 and saw that they closed at 1pm on Sundays. But there seemed to be people in the office so we went on in. Evelyn Darville (HQ mgr and wife of the park ranger, Ray Darville) was there , quite perturbed at the folks keeping her there while she felt ill. We took a membership in the park (which also entitles a member to two free nights), picked up a trail map and headed out to explore. Fred wanted to hike to the end of the island. Our first destination was the ruins of a loyalist village destroyed by pirates and the area was said to be haunted. On the way we once again ran into Sea Hero, anchored off of Emerald Rock. After the ruins we headed to the other side of the island to continue heading south. Iris tripped a number of times on the coral 'moonscape' terrain and finally punctured a toe on her right foot. So now she was doubly disabled with a toenail about to come off on her left foot and bleeding puncture on her right. So much for Fred's hike. We still had quite a distance to return to the boat, following the cliffy beach back towards Boo Boo Hill. On the way, we found a beautiful telescoping boat hook, similar to one we'd purchased in Antigua, that must have fallen off a boat and washed up on the shore. We adopted it and continued on our way. Boo Boo Hill is the highest spot on the island and boaters leave mementos of their visit in various forms on the hill. Unfortunately, the hill was decimated by Hurricane Floyd, and so most of the signs and memorabilia were of year 2000 vintage. We searched for Windwalker or Leatherback - the Curtis's new boat. YES!!! Don and Gail had been in the Exumas in March and planted an indestructable sign with the years they'd visited the park with both Windwalker and Leatherback. We got back to the boat around 5, where Iris licked her wounds. After dinner, Fred made a little Windwalker, TX sign to hang over the pole on Don's masterpiece. We had a very uncomfortable evening with winds exceeding 25 knots and current passing 1.5 knots at the mooring.
05/08/00	Hawksbill Cay, Exumas, Bahamas After breakfast Fred's favorite blue bucket departed the boat. The ghost must have taken it in trade for the wondrous boat hook. We were getting ready to go ashore to tell Evelyn that we wouldn't be spending another day and to snorkel the reef. Iris was in the head, Fred above, when we were struck by a trawler (About Time) as they were departing the anchorage. The captain, for some stupid reason, left the helm (while moving through a narrow channel in strong current and wind). His crew tried to call him while fending off, but they hit our anchor pretty hard. Iris heard yells and then the impact and came screaming out of the boat like a banshee threatening bad things. The captain regained control of his boat (their boat sustained some damage, we didn't) and left in a hurry. So now we had an additional reason to go to HQ. We reported the incident to Evelyn and got the name/address of About Time in case we later discovered some damage. She said that the type of boater she's seeing now is quite different from the ones from years past. She recounted some of the incidents that had occurred. Iris waited at the dock while Fred traipsed over to Boo Boo HIll to mount our little plaque at the Windwalker/Leatherback site. We then snorkeled, tying the dinghy to one of the blue 'dive' moorings. The current was very stiff, about 1.5-2 knots so we didn't stray far from the dink. However we saw at least a 10 pound lobster gaily come out from under some coral and wave his antenna at us, swimming around. Gorgeous! Back at the boat we got underway by 11am. Nautilus hailed us just as we were leaving the anchorage. They, like we, were headed to Hawksbill Cay. We had a nice sail and joined other boats already in the anchorage. (The first time we'd been there on charter 4 yrs ago, we were the sole boat). By nightfall there would be over eight boats both sail and motor. Nautilus and we dinghied ashore, explored the hill with the cairn on top, logged our presence in the logbook stowed in a mailbox on the side of the hill, and cut across a broad creek in search of loyalist ruins. We didn't go far enough, we guessed. Fred and Iris did a quick snorkel off of some small coral heads. There weren't a lot of fish or reef, but we did see a perfect Queen French Angelfish. We joined Nautilus for cocktails, keeping them from their dinner. No meal for any of us that night.
05/09/00	Highborne Cay, Exumas, Bahamas We left Hawksbill around 10am after Fred went in search of the ruins. Still not far enough, even though he rounded 3 "capes" and walked about a mile along the beach. Nautilus decided to go on to Highborne with us. Another nice sail and we were at anchor by 2pm. Both couples dinghied in around 3pm to a nice marina hidden in a cove. Joan and Iris did their pocketmail thing, each standing on a stool as the phone booths were mounted about 6 feet high. Iris made reservations at Yacht Haven Marina in Nassau, as we'd finally decided that we'd get to the Abacos via Nassau and an overnight passage rather than via Eleuthera. The four of us took a short walk about the island, which was pretty empty. Fred snorkeled by the boat until a large barracuda became entirely too interested in him. We then brought our dinghy up on deck in preparation for both the trip to Nassau and on to Marsh Harbor.
05/10/00	Nassau Yacht Haven Marina, Nassau, Bahamas We left Highborne at 7:15. We had to motor all the way to Nassau since the winds were too light. Sea Hero was near us for much of the way. They got into Hurricane Hole Marina, which Iris couldn't get us into by phone yesterday when she tried to make reservations. Oh well. Fred did a great job holding the boat off the fuel dock while we waited over half an hour for an opening and then getting us into our tight, angled berth. After checking in, cleaning up, and showers (wow!), we had a nice and expensive dinner at the marina's Poop Deck restaurant. Iris then did several weeks worth of laundry while Fred kept her company and we spoke with a couple of other cruisers until almost midnight.
05/11/00	Nassau Yacht Haven Marina, Nassau, Bahamas Iris got up early and called 1-800 Flowers via ATT direct (free) call and ordered Mother's Day Flowers. It was also Pat's birthday. We spoke with Nautilus on chat and made a date for 4pm, when they'd be arriving in the marina. At around 10:30 Fred went to marine stores and filled our gasoline tank while Iris bought liquor in the store across the street. We made a happy birthday call before noon and the flowers had already arrived! Then on to the supermarket a few blocks away where we were also able to drop off film for development. Back to the boat with the first load. Then we headed back to the shopping center to retrieve our film and to try getting $100 at the ATM there - which understandably, gave us Bahamian currency. We decided that if we needed more cash, we'd try at the casinos in Paradise Island. We took a cab with Joan and Ron to the Atlantis Resort at 4pm. We spent over 3 hours just walking through all the aquariums, marveling at the fish! The architecture of the exhibit was neat as well. We then had a pleasant buffet dinner at the Sea Grape, and took an after-dinner walk to the Atlantis marina, where we temporarily lost Joan. But all was well and we took a cab back to the boat by 10pm. Oh no - not another problem. Our A/C was busted. And no time to debug - we're off to Marsh Harbor tomorrow.
05/12/00 - 05/13/00	Enroute to Marsh Harbor, Abacos, Bahamas We confirmed that it would be ok to check out of the marina at around 3pm. We needed to time our departure for high tide and slack current; we also had to make sure we didn't get to the pass into the Abacos banks before daylight. Iris did a book exchange with Nautilus at 10; they also gave her some additional books to trade with at the marina book exchange. What a bonanza! We continued our passage preparations and Iris ordered takeout from the Poop Deck for our early enroute dinner. We left promptly at 3, with Joan and Ron handling our lines. We got to sail around 9 hours on the trip making a speedy 3 to 4 knots. Hah! But we motorsailed the rest of the way. We were surprised at how much traffic there was in the NE Providence Channel (tankers and a cruise ship). We wove our way into the very thin water of the Abacos after dawn, and were anchored in Marsh Harbor by noon on Saturday. On the way in, we listened to the quirky cruisers net on VHF 68.
05/13/00	Marsh Harbor, Great Abaco, Bahamas After resting up, we went ashore at around 5, after a very late lunch. We searched for a telephone and then made a brief stop at the Golden Harvest supermarket. We walked around a bit more to refamiliarize ourselves with the town and then took a dinghy tour of the harbor. On the way back to the boat we stopped by a nearby boat from Texas that had anchored after us. The crew of 'In Clover' were from Dallas, but the boat had been kept in Lake Texoma. Bonnie and Jim knew Glenna and Ed (Meridian - from Waterford), as well as August Crow and folks we'd met in Bradenton a year ago. Small world!! They had shipped their boat to Key Largo and had been cruising for 6 weeks. They had a rough gulfstream crossing but were thrilled with the Abacos. We had a late dinner at about 8:30.
05/14/00	Marsh Harbor, Great Abaco, Bahamas We were both up bright and early for a thorough boat cleaning and straightening. Things are looking pretty snazzy for Rod and Ann's arrival this afternoon. On chat, we spoke with August Crow. They'd used up a lot of fuel motoring in the gulfstream and thus were pulling into Ft. Pierce,Fl., as were Sea Duty and BTS. We agreed to continue to do check calls at 8am and at 6pm on 8104 while they were on passage. Tomorrow we'll have to remember to hail Nautilus who should be on passage northward as well. We went ashore around 1:30 and walked around Marsh Harbor, getting to the Conch Inn restaurant at 2. Rod and Ann were already there and were finishing up their lunch. We joined them, and had lunch out as well. It took two trips to take the four of us and luggage back to the boat. We had dinner on board, catching up with our respective adventures and planning alternatives for exploring the Abacos over the next week.
05/15/00	New Plymouth, Green Turtle Cay, Abacos, Bahamas Happy Birthday to Iris! We didn't tell Rod and Ann however, so we'd celebrate another time. We had to switch propane tanks mid-breakfast preparation. But the new tank should last us to Florida and then some. We got underway after breakfast and sailed to Green Turtle Cay via the Whale Cay passage. Anchored off New Plymouth by 2pm and the we went ashore to investigate. We made dinner reservations at the New Plymouth Inn, walked around the village, stopped in a grocery and a liquor store and got back to the boat in time to watch a dramatic thunderstorm across the island. Iris was unable to reach August Crow at 6pm. We'll try again tomorrow. Back to town for a pleasant dinner. The owner introduced us to other guests as we had cocktails and appetizers (a la Stonewalls), but we and the guests did not click and they rushed off to join others in their dinner party. Fine with us too! Green Turtle Cay was very pretty and downtown New Plymouth was quite charming.
05/16/00	Baker's Bay, Great Guana Island, Abacos, Bahamas Rod and Ann dinghied ashore to buy freshly made bread for breakfast at Sid's grocery. Then after breakfast we left for Great Guana Cay, making a quick stop at Noname Cay. Rod, Fred and Ann went ashore to explore. Back through Whale Cay Passage, a little lumpier this time around, but not the death-trap that it can be in a 'rage'. We anchored in Baker's Bay - a nice deserted beach which was once the out-island for The Big Red Boat. We and 40 other boats! We all swam off the boat, enjoyed showers, and dinner aboard.
05/17/00	Baker's Bay, Great Guana Island, Abacos, Bahamas We collectively decided to spend another day in Baker's Bay and laze around. Fred, Rod and Ann went ashore to explore the Disney ruins while Iris stayed aboard and ran the generator. The hurricanes have done a job on this place but what is left is neat. There is an open air theatre that could seat 300, abandoned shops, 2 or three abandoned bars and restaurants, childrens's playgrounds, and lots of overgrown hiking trails. After lunch, we all went ashore to hike across the island to snorkel on the Atlantic side reef. It was quite an excellent long reef with lots of coral in good shape and an assortment of fish and one very large barracuda. Back to the boat for a lazy late afternoon and dinner aboard. We both read an article in the latest Cruising World magazine that spoke of the difficulty, not of the cruising lifestyle, but of re-entry into 'civilization'. We fear the same thing. We'll see...
05/18/00	Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Abacos, Bahamas We left Baker's Bay for Hopetown. Enroute, Fred reserved a mooring via VHF (anchoring not encouraged in the crowded, small harbor). We got in around lunchtime and picked up an empty mooring although we saw another sailboat circling near us;. After we were secured, we noticed that the other boat seemed to have a prop wrap with another mooring and were unable to free themselves. Fred dinghied over and helped them clear their prop and tie up to another mooring. We were all in very close quarters and they appreciated the help. We then went ashore to check into the marina, deal with our trash, and hike to the Hope Town Lighthouse. Then we dinghied across the bay to check out the town, do pocketmail, make dinner reservations at the Abaco Inn. We also discovered a newly opened internet cafe where Fred and Iris were able to quickly check for new e-mail and the status of the latest NASDAQ debacle. Shoreside drinks at the oceanside Hopetown Harbor Lodge. The entire town was very picturesque. Back to the boat for showers and we dinghied back to the dock for pickup by the Abaco Inn van. This van was quite unbelievable - it didn't look like it was going to make it the 5 miles to the inn as both the front window posts were rusted through. On top of the state of the van, part of the roadway was washed away by Floyd and was marked by signs saying that one shouldn't traverse this stretch of roadway after dark. Huh?? We got there safe and sound and had an excellent dinner in the pretty, oceanside dining area. We had a choice of either of the two vans; the second van looked like it had been parked in the ocean through Floyd, so we opted for the one we knew for our return trip!
05/19/00	Settlement, Man O War Cay, Abacos, Bahamas We tried heading towards Tahiti Beach further south on Elbow Cay. But when we were in less than 8 feet of water at high tide we decided that it wasn't going to be viable. So we turned around and headed for Man O War. We negotiated the very narrow cut into the harbor without incident, as it was quite calm. The anchorage was quite full with moorings, making it difficult to find a good spot to anchor in the very shallow water. A catamaran was leaving a rental mooring, which we picked up as they departed. Pay Darvin. OK. After lunch, we went ashore. The settlement is very quaint, very close knit, and a working village. We visited the Sail Loft, walked to the beach, found a bakery (person's house) for some fresh bread, stopped at a grocery, found someone who would take money on Darvin's behalf, enjoyed ice cream cups and returned to the boat. We opted to stay aboard rather than dinghy back for dinner. This let us enjoy our last night with our guests!
05/20/00	Marsh Harbor, Great Abaco, Bahamas We left Man O War at 8:30 for a short motor back to Marsh Harbor. Rod called a cab via VHF at around 10:40 and we all went ashore to meet the cab. We bade Rod and Ann farewell and a safe trip home. We also disposed of garbage, did some pocketmail, some quick provisioning. Fred stayed aboard to review our mail, which Rod had lugged from Lexington. Our mail service decided to send the catalogs they'd been holding onto when they noticed the US mailing address. Great for us. Heavy for Rod! Meanwhile, Iris went ashore to replenish our bar, and to visit the Long's Landing seafood store for conch and dolphin. Finally - we had conch for dinner. We unwound as we got back to normal. Having company was great - however it involves a major change in routine in a very small space. Rich Miller from a 1978 Valiant, Reborn, dinghied over. He came to the Abacos for 2 weeks, 2 years ago and never left!
05/21/00	Fisher's Bay, Great Guana Cay, Bahamas Major decision time. Do we go south and visit the Berry Islands and get to Florida via Bimini? Or do we head north around the top of the Abacos and get to Florida via West End? We opted for the latter, which would perhaps offer nicer anchorages but would be quite remote. It also would bring us further north in Florida since we wouldn't be able to buck the gulfstream. It would make getting to Ft. Lauderdale to deal with Village Marine and the watermaker an extra trip south. After breakfast we went ashore for a 'final' e-mail. We'd be out of phone contact for several days; perhaps until West End. Back at the boat, we got the outboard engine onboard and made ready for departure. The engine wouldn't start. It sounded like the starter was weak. Fred started the generator to charge up the batteries as we cranked. Then it acted like it had an airlock. We did the air-lock manuevers and it roared to a start. Phew! We headed towards Whale Cay passage, but decided to stop at Great Guana for the pig-roast at Nippers Beach Bar and Grill! We anchored, or tried to, in a very grassy bottom. Nope - we kept dragging. We moved to what was obviously a sandy spot and the anchor bit right away! Ashore, we walked around and made our way to Nipper's Pig Roast. This Sunday even reminded us of Shirley Heights in Antigua. A big, rowdy, happy crowd. We enjoyed the buffet beachside and the one man band. Fun! We then walked around the harbor, checked out the Orchid Bay Marina and went back to the boat. We swam off the boat, saw a few conch, a nice parrotfish and a large grouper hiding under a rocky ledge. No dinner for either of us - we were stuffed!
05/22/00	Manjack Cay, Abacos, Bahamas We departed Great Guana after hearing the Whale Cay Passage reports - all clear! It took us 3 1/2 hours to get to Manjack, where our anchor held well. We were in quite a chop and the winds were brisk. After lunch we did some dinghy exploring, and a brief beach walk. Manjack is deserted except for one residence on its southern end. By nightfall there were about 8 boats in the roomy anchorage. We swam off the boat; jelly-fish were a turn off for Iris but it wasn't an interesting bottom either.
05/23/00	Manjack Cay, Abacos, Bahamas It was quite a squally morning with strong winds from the southwest - not a good direction for our next anchorage. So we stayed put for the day, doing chores and working on the web-site. Many of the other boats stayed at anchor as well. We remained aboard all day.
05/24/00	Powell Cay, Abacos, Bahamas The wind is still blowing from the southwest, but it feels light enough that we decide to make a go for Powell, another deserted island 10 miles away. There were 2 other boats there when we got there and another 3 came in as we were anchoring. Once again we tried 3 or 4 times unsuccessfully on grass and searched for a patch of sand in which the anchor would take. Success. After lunch we went ashore to explore. The Atlantic side beach was beautiful, altho' covered with storm debris (mostly plastic bottles and fishing lines and ropes). We saw what looked like a shark fin (but could have been a tarpon) slowly patrolling the shore. Both sides of the island showed a lot of damage from Floyd, with overturned causarina trees. Further north on the island we looked at two wrecks and a shrine to a young woman who died at 23, and who loved Powell Cay most of all. We checked out some short paths to higher points on the island and went back to the boat. We spoke with Glenna and Ed of Meridian on SSB and planned to speak again in the morning.
05/25/00	Alans/Pensacola Island, Abacos, Bahamas We spoke with Ed in the morning. Meridian was making a passage to the Dry Tortugas that morning. We then spoke with Mark on Chasing Rainbows who was on passage to Bermuda. We decided that we'd explored all that Powell Cay had to offer and would head on to Alans/Pensacola - two islands who have become one over the last few hurricanes. The island is also uninhabited. We were the second to last boat to leave Powell. The anchorage was unprotected from the west, so of course the winds were out of the SW over night. We motorsailed to Alans, known for poor holding. Yep. It took us 4 times before we felt somewhat good about the anchor. A later dive on the anchor would not boost our confidence; it was mostly chain holding us in place. Rain showers and anchor uncertainty kept us aboard in the rolly anchorage as other boats arrived. 12 in total. Around 6:30 a couple of guys dinghied over to us. SEABIRD with Buck and Phil were out of Waterford Harbor, our marina in Clear Lake. Iris had first met Buck in the West Marine store in Austin. Fred later met him in Clear Lake. They came aboard and gave us the latest scoop on the various boats we knew of. They too knew Glenna and Ed and asked for them. SEABIRD had just arrived in the Bahamas 3 days earlier after taking their time to get from Texas to Florida since January. They left us around 7:30. Late dinner. The watermaker salinity is deteriorating again. We had a sticky night aboard, using mosquito coils in the cockpit to deter the no-seeums.
05/26/00	Alans/Pensacola Island, Abacos, Bahamas Fred and Iris's 27th Anniversary!! We decided to make it a relaxing day at anchor. Iris spoke with Delphinus (another C1500 boat) who told us that Nautilus was safe and sound in Hampton. Good thing, since we hadn't been able to reach them on the radio. We had a celebration breakfast of pancakes served with Irish butter and French strawberries in syrup (purchased in Marigot, St. Martin). We went ashore to find the site of an abandoned missile tracking station. The trailhead was prettily marked with conch shells and the path was well-maintained, passing through an arbor-like section of low, scrubby trees. We came out at a splendid beach, absolutely gorgeous at low tide. It was flat calm. The trees at the trail end were festooned with debris hung there by cruisers marking their presence on the island. Driftwood, mooring balls, all was fair game and labelled with boat names, dates, etc - a Boo-Boo Hill-like ritual. Fate handed us a sharpened pencil in the sand and we labelled a plank and a container with our boatname, names and date. We left the pencil for another and proceeded in search of the ruins. Not much there. But the totally deserted beach was too wonderful to pass up. We skinny-dipped in the crystal-clear water with very soft sand underfoot. Perfect! We returned to the boat for showers and a lazy afternoon. Heavy showers, the most we've seen in weeks, made for a steamy evening. We had an elegant dinner in the cockpit after the storms, once again accompanied by mosquito coils. What a great anniversary!
05/27/00	Moraine Cay, Abacos, Bahamas We motored over to Moraine, another deserted island surrounded by a large reef. It was said to be protected in all but south winds. We once again had difficulty getting the anchor to set in grass. There were six other boats in the small anchorage by evening. We explored the beach ashore - no comparison with yesterday's perfect beach. While there were thousands of empty conch shells, and quite a number of very large live conch around, the old conch were too old, covered in moss and barnacles. We checked out our anchor - we weren't thrilled with how it looked, altho' it was somewhat set and had held when tested. After we got back in the boat we saw quite a large nurse shark swim under the boat. We'd already decided that we'd leave the next morning, so we went out to the surrounding reef late afternoon. What an amazing reef. We could have spent days snorkeling there; it was an excellent scuba site as well with caves and ledges and tunnels. It was pristine coral, with no signs of damage by anything. Large groupers and parrotfish, a couple of large rays flying through the water, and a large assortment of schools of reef fish. We'd have to say that the beach at Alans and the reef at Moraine were the best we'd seen in the last year. Back to the boat for a bug-free dinner in the cockpit. The winds were picking up after dinner. We discussed what our plan might be if the anchor dragged at night (premonition)? It had never happened to us yet in the last year.... The generator flow looked diminished; probably a clog due to the heavy grass everywhere we'd been in the last few days...
05/28/00	Hawksbill Cays across from Foxtown, Abacos, Bahamas 1:30am - the anchor alarm starts in. This often happens when we spin around due to wind shifts. Not this time. Our position seemed to be changing. By 2:30 we were definitely dragging, and into very shallow water quite close to two of the boats. We were in 4' of chop and the winds were from the south (of course) at a steady 20-25 knots. We had no choice - we would have to move. We put on our nav lights, brought up the anchor and decided where we could move to. Great sky, nice milky way, but no moon. The anchor lights on the other boats helped us identify where we were. We used flash light signals instead of our usual hand-signals to anchor. Our first attempt - no good, we were dragging with 10:1 scope before we even got to test it. Our second try felt a little better. We tested it lightly but didn't want to pull it out. Iris took the first anchor watch from 3:30 to 4:30, while Fred, exhausted, took a nap. At 4:40 we hadn't changed position, so we both slept until 7. It remained very choppy. Where to go? We left at 8:30 for Foxtown. We hoped to be able to make some phone calls since it had been a week since we'd made contact and the next anchorages would also be uninhabited. The engine was running very hot as we motored the 10 miles to Hawksbill Cay, just across from Foxtown, a settlement of 900 people. All of the docks were decimated by Floyd and have not been rebuilt. It was also a Sunday. We dinghied back and forth along the harbor, which was a mile away from the deserted Hawksbill Cay (uninhabited and we were the only boat there). We finally beached the dinghy along the ruins of the government dock and found 1 working (sort of) pay phone out of two in the town. No success. Since it was Sunday, no operator answered. Iris guessed and got the police department who said without a phone card, there was no other way to make a call. We wanted to at least make a semi-local call to make a marina reservation at West End, Great Bahama Island for the next couple of days. But the remaining 25 cents on Iris's only phone card was insufficient. And the additional coins Iris put in the slot jammed. There was no way to make a call, and after several inquiries, no place to buy a phone card. When tomorrow? 9am? Back to the boat at around 1:30pm. It was too late to get to our next stop 35 miles away. We'd have to stay put. The anchor was feeling good and we were in a slightly more protected anchorage than this morning. And it wasn't all bad. We'd seen four dolphin when we'd dinghied in to town. OK - let's make the best of it and snorkel off the boat. Iris jumped in with snorkel gear. Fred, in the buff to rinse off from lathering up, jumped in as well. He was immediately met by a 8-10 inch long yellow and black striped fish who became quite fond and aggressive. Fred got out to get his gear; meanwhile the fish turned to Iris and the keel - having difficulty in choosing which was more attractive. Was this a baby remora??? Iris kicked at its face everytime it approached her. The fish then opted to hang out on the dinghy bottom. We swam on the anchor; the water was quite murky but the anchor looked set pretty well. We both were leery after our previous night's adventures and the winds were still kicking up. Fred spent a lot of the night in the cockpit. The chop started to pick up as well. We decided that rather than lose several hours going in to try and make a phone call, we'd head over to Great Sales Cay. It, like West Plana on our passage to Conception, is a non-descript deserted anchorage used primarily as a mid-passage spot by cruisers coming to/fro the Bahamas.
05/29/00	Great Sales Cay, Abacos, Bahamas We got up early after a farily sleepless night and departed at 8am as planned. It was a very squally morning. Iris consulted with David/Misstine, at 9:30. He continued to recommend that we wait to cross the gulfstream on either Wed or Thurs. The combination of a low pressure system, a ridge, and a tropical wave were making for very unsettled weather. We motor-sailed for the refrigerator, and then to make progress. We successfully dodged one thunderstorm off of Carter Cays. But a squall got us as we rounded Little Sales Cay; the downpour lasted about 10 minutes with zero visibility. But the boat got a good rinsing! When we arrived at the large anchorage, there were only 2 motorboats rafted together. We anchored in 15-20 knot winds. The water was too murky to see the bottom in even 7 feet. But the anchor felt great! We anticipate a frontal passage and a rough night if not a rough day tomorrow. Fred spent the afternoon getting some weatherfaxes and then Iris continued to work on the web-site. After dinner, the weather started to deteriorate and the winds picked up to a steady 20-25 knots. Our only unprotected direction was once again from the south. You guessed it. The predicted westerly winds were from the south! We're hoping the wind will shift as the cold front passes. The rafted boats separated at dusk. Good thing. By now the chop is about 4' again and we're pitching and bucking like a bronco. By nightfall there were 3 other sailboats and 3 motorboats. One of the boats was having difficulty getting his anchor to set. Fred gave his some suggestions over VHF when he put out a general call for assistance. This is the only anchorage in the area that is OK for sitting out a norther. So it's not like we can go anywhere if we drag. We're here for the night, for better or worse. We jammed the microwave full of the hand-held electronics as well as the cell-phone (now that it should become useful again as we approach Florida). On the bright side, suddenly our Datamarine wind indicator instrument is fully functional again. Just in time to tell us that we're in steady 22-25 knot winds. Perhaps the heavy downpour cleaned up some mast-top connection?
05/30/00	Great Sales Cay, Abacos, Bahamas Not a pretty night. Thunderstorms all around but fortunately none upon us. We were both up and about much of the night. The winds continued from the SW at 25 knots for most of the night, only weakening and shifting to the northwest at 6am. We listened to weather forecasts on NMN at 5:45 am. Then the BASRA forecast at 7am. Then the local forecasts out of West Palm. Iris spoke with David again. He still continued to advise we wait until Wed. or Thurs, when the winds would be Northeast (not great for gulfstream), but light. Lots of conflicting info. We were the only boat that remained in the anchorage and we hoped to have the place to ourselves. Not for long. We used the day cleaning stainless, cleaning the interior, updating the web-site, doing passage planning and passage prep. So it was productive and now we're positioned to either stop at Old Bahama Bay tomorrow afternoon, after 50 miles, or continue on for an overnight gulfstream crossing. We'll see how things look as we near West End. It sure would be nice to have a hot shower and get rid of 10+ days of garbage, plus dinner out, coupled with a daytime gulfstream crossing. On the other hand, if we continued, then we'd have the crossing behind us..... The anchorage is getting filled up. The first sailboat was a singlehander who decided (of course) to anchor 200' away from us in this mile-wide anchorage. He set the precedent for distance, so now all the other boats coming in are anchoring close to each other as well. At least yesterday everyone kept their distance. Oh well... Late evening, a small Boston whaler, coming from who knows where (did this thing cross the gulfstream?) anchored a few boat lengths away. Shortly thereafter, a larger power boat, his friends, proceeded to anchor 2 boat lengths from us, right over our anchor. It took three attempts at shouting about our 100 feet of chain out, and 30 knot winds last night before they got the idea that we didn't want them on top of us. So they moved a little bit further away (still closer than any other boats had come) and dropped (but didn't set) three anchors! Fortunately, it was a calm night.
05/31/00	Enroute to Fort Lauderdale, Fl. We raised anchor at 6:15 am and headed out for the Memory Rock Passage out of the Little Bahamas Banks. The weather forecasts were still mixed, but David said that either Wed. night or Thurs. night were still good for the Gulfstream crossing. We decided that we'd exit Memory Rock and if conditions were bad in the stream, by 4pm, then we'd turn around and head to West End. We had very little wind and motor-sailed all day. Our ability to motor was hampered by an overheating engine whenever we got above 2200 RPM. We had to limit cooling the refrigerator to when we had enough wind to move under sail. A dolphin entourage accompanied our approach to Memory Rock, swimming on our bow wave for about 10 minutes. We entered the Straits of Florida around 2:30. By 4pm we were in the gulfstream, and also out of range of the West End marina. OK - we're committed now. Next stop, the east coast of Florida, hopefully around West Palm Beach. We should get there at around mid-night and decide if we want to anchor in the dark off Peanut Island in Lake Worth, or hug the coast and reach Fort Lauderdale early in the morning. We had very light wind for our crossing. The seas got a bit lumpy for much of the passage, however they were following seas and some of the swells were 8 footers. It would have been much less pleasant going east. Our winds were from the northeast. The engine didn't permit a speedy crossing. It wasn't until we reached the outskirts of Lake Worth inlet that the winds picked up. We opted to continue on to Ft. Lauderdale, and thus needed to ensure we got there late enough so that the marina we wanted to go to was open. At around 11:00pm, our cell phone picked up roaming. Iris tried to re-activate her America Choice plan but after 30 minutes of being on hold, was informed that the GTE customer service hours were 6am CDT to 9pm CDT. She then called her mother, at whatever the exorbitant rates will be on her minimal plan, to inform Lilly of our safe arrival. We hadn't been in contact with anyone other than David Jones and boaters via SSB in 11 days.
06/01/00	Bahia Mar Marina, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida We had a lot of traffic hugging the coast. The light pollution is amazing after our last seven months away from the 'mainland'. We could have anchored easily just from the ambient light. We neared the Pt. Everglades sea buoy around 6:30am, and Iris once again tried contacting GTE. The rep and her supervisor said, nope, can't have the same plan back with the analog phone. Mrs. Patience, a bit cranky from no sleep, got more than a little irate and threatening. But the supervisor's manager wouldn't be in until 10am edt. Welcome back to the US! And we thought the petty little irritations at Customs/Immigration in various countries was a pain. Once again at the exorbitant rates, Iris called Bahia Mar Marina, who happily could put us up for a week (or more if we like). We were through the 17th street bridge at 8am, and docked and cleared through Customs (via phone/decal) by 9am. After checking in to the marina, it was time for showers! OOps - forgot - first order of business was to remove 11 days worth of stinky garbage from the boat. Yech!!! Then long showers with hot running water - which continues to be the thing we've missed most! After lunch - Iris tried GTE again. This time, the 2nd line still wasn't available, but she got another supervisor, who listened to her 'case' and reinstated the phone plan. All right! We're connected again. That, together with the land-line phone at the dock - we can communicate! Fred made an appointment with Village Marine to have someone come out on Tuesday morning. Today, we'll take it easy. The marina facilities will rate high on Iris's marina rating chart (an update to the web-site to come) as will the customer service. We'll update the web-site either tonight or tomorrow. It's been two months and people probably think that we're lost at sea! Another priority is to get our air conditioning up and running if possible. The Bahamas and Florida are much more humid and sticky than was the Caribbean.