Royal Island To Georgetown

Upon leaving Royal Island, our intent was to go to Highborne Cay in the Exumas. This would normally involve going through Current Cut, which as the name implies, is a cut with lots of current, and it bisects Current Island.

This leg to Highborne is all on the banks, and as you near the Exumas you have to zig zag around a lot of coral heads. The day was overcast, with a moderate north wind (Highborne has no north protection), so we decided to anchor on the south side of Current Island and then head to Highborne the following day.

The current at Current Cut often flows faster than sailboat speed, so the ideal plan would be to go at slack current--or at least not at max current. Also, going our direction you have to make a hard right as soon as you go through. If you mess up the current can sweep you onto a shoal. The state of the tide was not working out in our favor, so we took the long way around. This involved going past the wreck we snorkeled on, out into Northeast Providence Channel, then back onto the bank through Fleeming Channel, then backtracking north to the south side of Current Island. We could have gone through Current Cut, but I really wanted to fish (only Barracuda on the banks).


This is what I caught. I forgot to set the reel alarm, so by the time we realized the line was running out, I had about 700 yards of line to real back in.


Beautiful sunset at Current Island.

We have had very few cloudless, sunny days since arriving in the Bahamas. Clouds are not your friend when weaving through reefs. So the following morning we crossed our fingers and headed to the Middle Bank reefs on our way to Highborne. With the wind on our stern, we had a wonderful sail. We turned on the motor and rolled in the sails when we approached the shallower, reef infested leg of our route. The clouds came and went, and it was very tedious steering around the reefs. It is by far the most reef congested area we've gone through yet. When the sun is out, they are easy to see, but there were a few times when it looked like there was no way through. In reality, I'm sure there were many we could have passed over, but we are not good enough or brave enough, so we dodge them all.

We made Highborne with no problems. We stayed at Highborne for a couple of days. The first day I wanted to continue working at cleaning the bottom of the boat. The water was a balmy 70 degrees. Better than the 67 degree water the last time I dove our anchor at Royal. I had all my cleaning stuff together, got in the water, went under the boat only to find a small 3 1/2 foot shark hanging out next to our keel. I had Lisa get my pole spear (at that point I had never used it), I approached the shark in hopes that he would swim away. Didn't work. I banged on the hull and that didn't work. I considered shooting it, but didn't want a shark to be my first target. Especially since a pole spear doesn't have near the power of a Hawaiian sling. They say that sharks and barracuda will retaliate--that's just not fair. Anyway, after about 30 minutes, he still wasn't interested in leaving, so I got out of the water.

There were some reefs on the north side of our anchorage, and I was determined to try out my pole spear. So we anchored the dinghy next to the reefs as I tried to become one with the sea. I keep telling Lisa that I swim like a fish, but she thinks I swim like a fish out of water.


My first victim. OK so it wasn't a tasty Trigger fish, but a Grey Angelfish.....OOPS.  Not exactly a headshot but sheesh, he was moving.

We planned on stopping at Normans Cay, but needed to find all around protection from the next front, so we headed towards the Pipe Creek, Bell Island area. It was a cloudy day so we anchored on the SW side of Bell Island with the plan of going into either Pipe Creek or the east side of Bell Island the following day.

Just before going to bed, I popped my head out to make sure everything was OK. There was a large boat (turned out to be a barge) approaching very close to us. He looked like he was going to go right through us, so I turned on all our cockpit lights and the deck light. At that point Lisa saw him flash his lights, and then he altered course. He ended up docking at Bell Island which is privately owned. Another barge came through the following morning, but he took a proper route. We can't figure out what the first one was doing--seems like he should have been aground at the angle he was approaching us.

The following day we moved to the east side of Bell Island which would offer all around protection for the front. The front didn't clock as quickly as forecast, so we ended up staying a bit longer than we had anticipated. We did dinghy to the Pipe Creek area, and I did some snorkeling. We were also able to clean most of the bottom of the boat.


This picture is not very clear, but this float plane would land very close to our boat, drop off people on the beach and then take off near this ketch. 

Once the front finished it's business, we went out the cut to Exuma Sound and headed for Farmers Cut and Little Farmers Cay. We wanted to go a bit further south to Cave Cay, but the wind for the night was to be from the Northwest, so we decided to anchor on the SE side of Little Farmers.

It was a beautiful trip, but the anchorage was a tad crowded. We had anticipated this since the Georgetown crowd is in the process of migrating north. The anchorage was rocky sand, and when the anchor grabbed, we knew it hooked on a rock. The winds were light that night, but I kept waking up thinking I was going to have to dive on the anchor to extract it from the rock--at high tide.

While weighing anchor we saw a huge ray go air born 2 different times. That was way cool. But the anchor would not come up easily, so I got to go for a 7:15 am swim. It was a bit chilly on deck, but the water actually felt good. After 2 tries, I had the trip line attached to the front part of the anchor (with the assistance of the deck babe on the bow feeding the line). The trip line basically lets you pull the anchor out backwards. It actually worked. I was relieved. With everyone in the anchorage watching, I could not afford to fail. It's a guy thing.

We had another great motorsail, and then motor to Georgetown. Were able to make lots of water and charge all our gadgets. Had a huge fish on the spinning reel, but he threw the hook.

When we entered the harbor at Georgetown, we were surprised at how beautiful the water is. Stocking Island beaches look good too, but we have stayed close to town to take care of business.


The exit/entrance to Lake Victoria (where the dinghies dock to go into town).

Spanish Wells to Royal Island

While wandering the streets in Spanish Wells, we came upon this interesting basketball hoop.

When I grow up I am definitely getting a bike like this.

We finished our 2 loads of laundry (only cost us 24 bucks), so we needed to get out of the marina with their high transient fees. Of course another front was a day away, so it was off to Royal Island which is one of the few places around that offers pretty good all around protection.


This leg was only an hour or so from the marina, but it felt good to move again.

Once anchored, we had 1 day that would be calm before the front moved in. We took advantage of the smooth water to dinghy out to a wreck just south of Egg Island. It is located just before the bank drops off to very deep water. You can clearly see the bottom the whole way to the wreck, so we were able to clearly see the large shark sauntering away from the wreck as we approached. There was a large catamaran that was anchored near the wreck with a couple of snorkelers in the water. That gave us enough nerve to jump in--even Lisa jumped in. It was quite cold but we were able to look around for a while.


Construction site on Royal. The Stauback Co. and someone else who didn't play football started a humongous project here, but I think like often happens in the Bahamas after a lot of money is spent, the investors backed out so the major work has halted.


Willow, the Valiant 42 anchored near us at sunset.

The front ended up being fairly mild with no excitement for a change. How wonderful is that?

Back to Spanish Wells

After a tearful, but wonderful visit with family as we remembered Dad, we had to get back to Spanish Wells to get our boat out of the marina.

Considering how long it takes to get a sailboat to where we are at, it's rather embarrassing how quickly a twin prop plane can get us there. Of course they didn't stow any food or fishing gear for us.


At this point Lisa and I are being yelled at. I guess they don't like us taking pictures of de plane mon.


North Eleuthera International Airport.

The short time we were here, the airport seemed very efficient. The ground taxi and the water taxi ride back to Spanish Wells went off without a hitch.


Spanish Wells is bit different than most places we've been. They
keep their houses freshly painted and everything seems well kept.

The fishing fleet in Spanish Wells is responsible for a large majority of the Bahamian fish and lobster exports, and there are no rusty, run down looking boats that we normally see around fishing communities. They are all brightly painted and kept looking good.


Supermarket parking lot with Yugos and BMWs Spanish Wells style.

This is a very large and well stocked supermarket by Bahamian standards. You will need to sell your house and your boat to buy enough groceries for lunch though.

Don't be fooled by this casual looking parking lot. The streets here are like rush hour in Dallas (well maybe just before or just after rush hour when the cars are still moving very fast). There are no sidewalks, they drive on the wrong side of the road, they drive like maniacs, and the concept of yielding to pedestrians does not exist. Also, most of these things have stereos. We did do a lot of walking while at Spanish Wells. Many of the locals are descendants from the Loyalists who settled here after we whupped them, so they are more European looking. They are a very friendly, proud and industrious people. We really enjoyed our time there.

We met a local lobster diver and his family one night at the local conch fritter hangout. The large lobster boats tow smaller launches that split up during the day with 2 divers each and they collect lobsters, then return to the mother ship. Apparently, a front that moved through while we were in Florida, sunk a couple of their launches, so the boat our new friend crews on was in port until repairs were made. Later on, we happened to walk by his house, and he gave us a bunch of bananas he had just picked from his front yard.


More peaceful walking on this beach than the roads. The house is not bad either.

Dad

By Monday the 15th of February, the seas had laid down on the Northeast Providence Channel and it was time to head to Royal Island. Before we entered the bank, Lisa went below to check weather and grib files on the SSB. She came up shortly afterward to inform me that Dad had passed away. He went to meet our Lord on the previous day, Valentines Day Sunday the 14th. He had finished teaching Sunday School class, and was attending the church service when God called him home. He was surrounded by many who loved him, doing what he loved the most. As we have said many times over the last month, we miss him terribly, but are so grateful that he did not suffer.

We were able to alter course to a marina in Spanish Wells. From there we took a water taxi, then a land taxi (same driver) to the airport on the north end of Eleuthera. My sisters and Richard were already in Florida when we got there. Larry got there a day or 2 later.

The funeral was set for Saturday, so our whole group spent the remainder of the week preparing for that. So many people stepped up in a big way to help our family, and we are very grateful. The service was incredible, and was a testament to the positive impact Dad had on the lives of so many people.


The best mom and dad in the world.


Mom and Carol styling, as Dad looks on.


Dad on our previous boat on Lake Texoma.


Dad's family.


My beautiful bride before the service.

Dad, thanks for being such a great father, family man, godly man and role model. We love you and miss you.

Great Harbor Marina to White Cay

The nasty cold front was gone, and it was time for us to move on. It was a beautiful day, but there was no wind. We had done almost no motoring since leaving the US, and I wanted a calm day with no sails up to try out my fishing rods for the first time. We also wanted to make water (we can make water without the motor running, but it makes water faster with the motor on, and it doesn't drain the batteries). So we left the marina and rounded Little Stirrup (renamed Coco Cay by the Royal Carribean Cruiseline--I'm thinking they wanted it to sound less Texan and more South Pacific) and Great Stirrup Cays on our way to the east side of the Berrys. Our destination was White Cay.


At this point, Lisa is making fun of me because she can sense that I have no idea what I am doing.


About half way to our destination, the big real brought this in. After scrutinizing the fish book we decided that we were going to call this fish a Greater Amberjack. While processing him, he did change colors, matching the colors in the book.


He matches nicely my flip flop. The cockpit floor got a lot uglier in the 20 minutes that followed this picture. We did get some very nice fillets and stuck them in the freezer.

When we told a fellow cruiser that because of the size of the fish (and because it was an Amberjack), we were concerned it might carry the ciguatera toxin. He confidently told us there was nothing to worry about. So at happy hour, we gave him some fish. Since he and his 2 buddies weren't flopping around on deck the following morning, we figured it was safe to eat and cooked some up the following evening. Yummy.

Anchored near White Cay.

Is she cute or what.

The Berrys don't offer a lot of all around protection from weather fronts which is why not a lot of boats go there. Other than their 2 well protected marinas, White Cay offers the best all around protection from strong, shifting winds. Wednesday night brought winds in the mid 30s as a front passed by. At the time there were 4 boats in the anchorage. We were up around 3:00 am monitoring the situation when a catamaran dragged about 150 feet. He ended up very close to Mike's (our cup bearer for the fish) boat, but no crunching. Things calmed down soon after and we were able to go back to bed.

There was a much stronger front due in on Friday night. Weather guru, Chris Parker, was very concerned about this one. We either needed to sail to Royal Island (which might have been overcrowded, and we had not been there before), sail to Nassau and go to a marina (the marinas may be--and actually were--full), or stay where we were at. We couldn't go back to Great Harbor Cay Marina, because we would have had to pound into large seas to get there. We decided to stay put and hope that no more boats would show up--by that time, we were the only boat in the anchorage.

The forecast was for sustained winds of 35 to 40 knots with gusts over 50. We knew there would be no sleeping Friday night. Because we were the only boat there, I was able to let out 185 feet of chain in 10 feet of water. The problem with these fronts is the wind shifts. You can set your anchor well, but if the wind is strong enough, and it shifts from SE to W and then N at some point your anchor will need to reset--hopefully by itself. Our Delta does a wonderful job at this, but you still get butterflies until--well, until you eat something. I don't like using multiple anchors unless there is no swing room. They often work against each other, and more often, the rodes twist around each other. The last thing I want is to be on a pitching deck with tangled rodes in an emergency. Plus, I like having 10 fingers. My 10 cents is get the biggest anchor you can hang off the bow. It's not big enough unless other cruisers laugh at it. We have a 55 pound Delta and would have their 80 something pound one if it fit one of our twin rollers.

As usual Chris was right on. The winds came with a vengeance. We had a lot of 50s and some 60s, with a high of 72. Some sections of the Abacos saw 70 knot gusts as well. Our sustained winds were 35 to 45. During the worst part we had the engine running as a precaution. For a while I actually had it in gear to lessen the load on our anchor gear. It was pitch black, so we had the chart plotter on very large scale so that we could monitor our exact position and make sure we weren't dragging. We were finally able to go to bed at 5:00 am.

Coconut Grove to Great Harbor Cay

Our time in Coconut Grove was spent provisioning, watching Olympic sailors whiz past our boat to and from the race course, and many wet and cold dingy rides to shore and back. We finally left our mooring, slid across the bay, and anchored just off Key Biscayne. It was a pretty spot to wait a few more days for good weather to make our crossing.

On February 2ND, we finally got our favorable forecast--winds SSE 15 to 18 with 5 foot seas.

The anchor was up @ 7:00 am and we slowly made our way past the reefs through the Florida Channel. And it was slow, because we were leaving on a flood tide.


Lighthouse on Key Biscayne.

To help compensate for the north flowing Gulf Stream, we headed a few miles south to Fowey Rocks before turning east. Once we turned east, we had a fabulous sail. Our intent was to spend the night at a marina in Bimini, where we would check in with Customs and Immigration.

Coast Guard plane flying a grid pattern. We think they were looking for containers that had fallen off a ship headed for South America.

While crossing the stream, we crossed paths with Liberty, a Morgan 41 that hails from our home port of Kemah, Tx. In October we enjoyed conch fritters on their boat while anchored off the Chesapeake, on Mill Creek.

When we neared Bimini, the weather was too perfect to stop, so we just kept on going. We kind of wanted to see Bimini, but there really is no advantage for a slow sailboat to stop there. If your goal is to only sail in day light, you can't make it all the way across the banks in a day anyway--at least not in the winter. For a faster stink pot (as a sailor I am obligated to call them that, but in reality, I often have stink pot envy--especially on the ICW) it makes sense, but not a sailboat.

At 4:50 pm we entered the indescribably beautiful water of the banks, then rounded North Rock which lies just north of Bimini. We kept on sailing as the wind continued to die down. By 7:00 pm the wind died to 3 knots, so we reluctantly turned on the engine and motor sailed. We did not want to motor, so we decided to anchor off our rhumbline near some other anchored boats. Since we had passed up on Bimini, we had decided to check in with Customs at Great Harbor Cay Marina on the west side of Great Harbor Cay (which is in the Berry Island chain). We did not want to go to Nassau, and Chub Cay is a rip off. So, the next morning we were on our way before sun up. The wind was not from the forecast direction, and they were quite a bit stronger. We ended up sailing close hauled (as close to the wind as possible) all day into 25 knot apparent wind. Not fun. Our plan had been to sail all day, then anchor in Bullocks Harbor which is only a couple of miles from the marina. Then we would go to the marina and check in with Customs the following day (and weather a front that was supposed to hit).

Because of the conditions and our point of sail, it became apparent that we would not quite make Bullocks Harbor in daylight. We hadn't been to Bullocks Harbor before, and were wary there may be some reefs waiting to bite our unsuspecting keel, so we didn't want to do that part in the dark. So we found a place on the chart where we could spend another night on the banks--Brilliant! We had protection from sand bores all around, and no other boats, so I let out a bunch of chain and we went to sleep. Had we gone to Chub Cay or Nassau like normal people, we would have had a fantastic and very fast beam reach.

The next morning was beautiful as we tacked our way to Bullocks Harbor and then turned on the engine to enter the marina. We were tied up by 11:00 am.


Our slip at Great Harbor Cay Marina.


This yacht belongs to Jack Nicholas. It was just a couple of slips down from us. He had flown in on his jet while we were there, then he flew off on his jet before we left. He must have found us boring.


While we were wandering around the cay's small airstrip, this nice couple invited us to see their beachfront house. They drove us to their home in their newly painted VW bug, and we had a very nice visit.

Another lady insisted on driving us to the 3 available grocery stores, and then she loaned us a book on the storied history of Great Harbor Cay.

Lisa and I made Friends with a couple of Bahamian guys, and they were going to teach me how to fish off the bank Bahamian style. But alas, the front blew in on their day off, so my loss. They did teach me a pretty cool trick though. I would love to tell you, but then I would have to kill you.