The last time we wrote you we were getting ready to cross
from Eleuthera to the Exumas. Doing so involves crossing about forty miles of
serious (3000+ feet deep) ocean so we had to wait for decent weather. And we really
timed it right – the weather was just about perfect. I dragged a line a line behind
the boat hoping to catch a fish. About 1/3 of the way across, I did get a
strike. I got to the back of the boat, got settled and started slowing the fish
down by increasing the drag on the reel. I am not sure whether I increased it
too much or the fish just got lucky, but he got away. My line didn’t break,
however, and I still had the lure – a lure which I continued to use for the
rest of the trip – though it was to no avail.
The Exumas are an island chain in the Bahamas consisting of
365 islands with a population of about 7000. The islands themselves are quite
varied. Some are large, some are small; some are inhabited and some are
uninhabited; some are lush and some are arid. The one thing they have in common
is that, taken together, they provide some of the most beautiful scenery in the
world and are surrounded by more shades of blue than E.L James has Shades of
Grey. Our first stop in the Exumas was at a particularly beautiful spot – just
off O’Brien’s Cay – that we discovered last year with our friends Dave and Joan
Wolf. (You may remember that just as we were getting ready to lower our dinghy
so we could go snorkeling, the generator broke. This year we have had no generator
problems J).
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| The view from O'Brien's Cay. |
After a night at O’Brien’s we reserved a mooring ball at
Warderick Wells, an island that serves as the headquarters of the Exuma Land
and Sea Park. We have been there several times in the past and continue to be
amazed at the beauty of the place. It is nearly impossible to capture these
tremendous sights in a single photo because it is not the simple 2x2 or 4x4
picture, it is the fact that the entire horizon is so magnificent. Anyway,
while we were at Warderick we also walked up to Booboo Hill and looked for boat
signs of our friends – sorry, guys, we didn’t see any.
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| One of the many views from Warderick Wells. |
Before leaving Warderick, we knew weather was coming. We
also knew we had to take care of a couple of maintenance items. I think I said
in the last entry that we had solved our battery problem. Well, I jumped the
gun. We certainly made the batteries better, but I decided – based on advice
from the manufacturer – that I would equalize the batteries one more time. To
equalize, we needed to be at a marina. There was a second maintenance item. We
often check the purity of the water coming out of our faucets and out of our
water maker. I have noticed a bit of a decline in the quality of the coming out
of our water maker over the past several weeks. I think I can improve its
performance by flushing the membrane. Basically, that means putting a hundred or
more gallons of fresh water through the system to clean it out. I can best do
that at a marina where I can replenish our water supply after I flush. For
those reasons, we decided that we would go to the marina at the Staniel Cay
Yacht Club before anchoring and preparing for the Big Blow.
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| The Staniel Cay Yacht Club. Can't you just see Sidney Greenstreet in one of those Adirondack Chairs? |
The Staniel Cay Yacht Club is very difficult to describe.
Remember the movies we used to watch where a group of expats, usually Brits,
would congregate at the local watering hole? The movies would usually star
people like Sidney Greenstreet or maybe even the great Bogey. They were usually
set in Africa, sometimes in South America, or once in a while on some exotic
South Seas island. Anyway, that is what I see when I look at the Staniel Yacht
Club; expats at some local watering hole. Maybe it is because some of the
pictures on the wall are of the James Bond movie Thunderball which was filmed in local waters – and the crew used
the Yacht Club as the local pub. Now, don’t get me wrong. The SCYC is probably
THE tourist destination in the central Exumas and I have no doubt that it makes
money hand over fist, that there are more mega-yachts than expats, and I
haven’t seen a Sidney Greenstreet lately.
Now, our original intent was to go to some anchorages about
which we have heard a great deal, but that we have never used. There are a
couple places near Pipe Cay, in particular. Alas, the Pipe Cay anchorages were
pretty full so we went on to Big Major Spot. Some of you may remember Big Major
as containing the semi-famous Pig Beach where the pigs will swim out to your
dinghy for food. Anyway, we picked out spot, dropped our anchor and hunkered
down. The first day, winds were 35 – 40 knots, gusting to 45. On days 2, 3 and 4 they were 25 – 35 gusting
to 40. We were beginning to wonder if this was going to be one of those forty
day and forty night things that the Lord visits on man once in a while, but it
eventually started letting up. The island, though, provided very good
protection and while we felt a bit of a chop, the anchorage was generally calm.
Even more importantly, Big Bertha, our 110 lb. anchor held very well.
Okay, so let me return to the topic with which I started the
blog. What do you do with four days aboard a boat with winds outside such that
you cannot leave? Well, you read, play computer games, do a few boat projects –
and you eat. You eat especially well if your first mate is one of the best
chefs on a cruising boat anywhere. I sometimes kid Ann about all the pots, pans
and cooking gadgets she has stuffed into the galley, but I am here to tell you
that woman can cook! Here is our menu for the four dinners we had while at Big
Major Spot:
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Thursday:
Rack of lamb, seasoned with the perfect mixture of Dijon mustard, rosemary,
fresh lemon juice and olive oil. Served
with lightly buttered summer squash and seasoned Israeli couscous
o
Critics comment: This was Ann’s first try at rack
of lamb and it was scrumptious. I am serious. I have had rack of lamb at some
top-notch restaurants and Ann’s was among the best I have had.
·
Friday:
Four cheese tortellini lightly brushed with a mixture of olive oil, butter and
parmesan cheese served with salad using Ann’s Grandmother’s special salad dressing
o
Critics Comment: Although it was made with
store-bought pasta, I am here to tell you that Ann always makes superb tortellini.
·
Saturday:
Baked Eggplant Parmesan: Sliced, breaded, baked eggplant layered with mozzarella and
parmesan cheeses served with organically grown fresh Arugula salad from Hope
Town
o Critics
Comment: It has been a long time since we have had eggplant parmesan. As an
avowed carnivore, I will only eat it when it has lots of cheese and is
perfectly seasoned – and Ann has absolutely broken the code on this meal.
·
Sunday:
Lamb Chops served with Provencal-style
cassoulet consisting of white navy beans, Italian sausage, bacon, rosemary, bay
leaf, onions, and carrots in a white wine sauce. Homemade Rustic bread was also
available.
o
Critic’s Comment: Ann’s mother is French and taught
Ann the secrets of making a good cassoulet. Ann took that recipe and those
techniques and improved them by about 500%. It is to die for. And with
perfectly cooked lamb chops? What can I say??
·
Monday:
Cornish Game Hens lightly seasoned and basted with butter served with
pan-roasted zucchini and succulent mashed sweet potatoes
o
Critic’s Comment: The Game hen was ideally
cooked with the perfect seasoning and just the right amount of butter.
·
Tuesday:
Pork medallions marinated in a special Bahamian barbecue sauce, consisting of
Kalik beer with fresh tomatoes, onion, garlic, herbs, coconut rum, Worchester
sauce, fruit, hot pepper, red wine vinegar, sugar and sea salt.
o
Critic’s Comment: Sometimes BBQ sauce can be too
sweet for pork; not this BBQ sauce. Mmmm pork medallions. Mmmm barbecue sauce.
Mmmm Kalik beer. What is not to love?
After stuffing ourselves for several days, we moved on to
Black Point. There are two reasons people go to Black Point. The first is to do
laundry. Ida’s Laundromat has something like twelve washers and twelve dryers –
plus the cost is reasonable. There is a second reason. When you go to Italy you
think of pasta; when you go to Paris, you think of luscious pastries. When you
go to Black Point, you think of Mama’s bread.
Ann’s Notes: Soooo…my
galley may be on the small side compared to my wonderful kitchen in our condo
…BUT…I can create some very tasty meals. Plus I know how to provision our boat
after five years of practice. Add some windy weather, our dinghy secured on the
second deck, and lots of time on my hands, it is the perfect culinary storm for
me. I did try a few new recipes and improved upon a few old ones. I did lots of
reading and kept busy with my other hobby, cross stitching. I tried to keep Spot
busy by playing with her. She can get bored and cause all sorts of havoc if not
entertained properly. Since she could not prowl around out on the deck, it was
blowing like stink outside and since she only weighs eight pounds, her chances
of being blown away were on the high side. We also started to watch the X-Files
in the middle of the day. Dave and Joan got the whole TV series on DVD and let
us borrow them. I was not sure I would like it at first but I got sucked into
it after a few episodes. Go figure … now that the wind has calmed down, we need
to do some beach walking, I think you can figure out why.
We have been able to meet up with some good friends when we
departed our anchorage at Big Major Spot and moved Traveling Soul to Black
Point. As Michael said, the reason we go to Black Point is that they have a
Laundromat and a sweet little Bahamian women that everyone calls Mama. Mama is
known for her coconut bread and her fresh white or wheat bread. You call her
daughter Loraine and put your order in over the VHF radio, and like magic pick
up your bread the next day. We also had
a nice Happy Hour with our friends Vic and Gigi on Salty Turtle. Vic had his son, daughter-in-law and six year old
grandson visiting them. It is always fun to catch up with those two, they have
been cruising the Bahamian waters for many years. They know all the locals and share
their cruising knowledge with us. I found something pretty interesting. The
grandson during the day went to the local island school and went to class with
the island’s children. That will be a memory he will always have while growing
up. Also the daughter-in-law was French and grew up in Brittany. I had a
wonderful conversation with her, since that is where my mom and grandfather
were born. I have many wonderful memories of visiting my great grandmother and all sorts of aunts
and uncles in that part of France. It
was so nice to reminisce and share my experience with another French woman. My
mother would be so proud of me, I have very fond memories of the time I spent
in France as a child and young adult.
Thanks for following us…
Traveling Soul…OUT
Lots of love 💕💕💕
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