Savannah to Deltaville (14 May - 5 June)

You will recall that our last adventure took placed in Savannah, GA where we had to replace our house bank of batteries. So far, the replacements are working well and we have had no more battery problems. We did find, however, a hole in a cabinet door about where, oh, I don’t know, maybe the corner of a battery might have hit the door and poked a hole in it! <Deep wistful sigh> If it isn’t one thing it’s another.

When we left Savannah the morning of the 14^th of May the weather was decent. We anchored in the South Edisto River that evening. The last time we anchored at this spot our generator failed; this time, we had no real problems.

When we left the next morning the weather wasn’t that bad, but as the day progressed and we cruised further north it began to deteriorate significantly. Between the South Edisto River and Charleston it was raining off and on driving us down to the pilothouse to drive the boat. That isn’t terrible, it just isn’t very comfortable. By the time we reached Charleston Harbor, it was not only raining pretty hard, it looked like there was some fog. Now, I did not relish running through Charleston Harbor with all those BIG boats entering and leaving while using only radar, so we decided that it the fog got any worse, we would head back to one of the anchorages in and around Charleston and wait it out. In the event, we didn’t have to hunker down at all; the fog dissipated and we continued.

When we got to the spot where we had decided to anchor – Minim Creek – the weather was looking even worse, but it wasn’t until Ann stepped outside to drop the anchor that the heavens opened up. Okay, maybe the heavens didn’t open and maybe it wasn’t even the worst rain we have ever seen (although I can assure you that Ann will swear otherwise). Still, it was raining pretty hard and Ann is the outside person when we anchor. I started to walk outside and help her – but, did I mention it was raining? I didn’t think BOTH of us should get wet. One of us might have to do things that only a dry person could do and where would we be If we were both wet? I mean someone might have to do something with electricity and we surely wouldn’t want a wet person to do that! Anyway, I got away with it, but throughout the night there was even more with a mixture of thunder and lightning.

While at Minim Creek we called to make reservations for the next night at Barefoot Landing Marina. We always make reservations at a marina if we know we want to stay there the following day. Barefoot Landing is kind of cool. It is a long dock (1000 feet?) on the ICW and it is right next to an outlet mall. It used to be free. You could dock your boat and go spend all your money at the mall. While we wish we could have stayed there then, it is now $1.20 per foot, which really isn’t that bad. We hadn’t been there before and both Ann and I were looking forward to staying.

As we approached the marina, I called on the radio – just like I always do. “Barefoot Landing Marina, Barefoot Landing Marina this is the motor vessel Traveling Soul.” I didn’t get a response, so after a minute or so I tried again. Then, someone answered. “Traveling Soul, this is Barefoot Marina. If you are calling about reservations, switch to channel 12.” I “rogered” them, switched to channel 12 and told them that we first wanted to get some fuel and then go to our slip. They said okay. It took us a while to find the fuel dock, but when we did it appeared to be on the wrong side of the ICW. Hmmm. We thought that kind of odd, but we figured that maybe they didn’t have room on the outlet mall side for all the slips and the fuel dock. After refueling, we asked where our slip was. It was back fifty feet or so and they would be glad to walk us back there. Hmmm. Well, maybe this is all one marina and they have shuttles to the outlet stores. When we asked the answer was, nope; we could ether walk a couple miles across the bridge or we could take a taxi. Suddenly it occurred to us. This wasn’t the Barefoot Landing Marine, it was the Barefoot Marina. My God, we had been Shanghaied!!!! Or Marina-haied!!! These guys must be honest-to-goodness pirates.

The next morning we were able to escape our captors at Barefoot, but about ten miles down the line we were almost captured again; this time by an inoperable swing bridge. We arrived at the Little River Swing Bridge at about 9AM. We called on the radio and asked for an opening. The bridge tender said he would open it, so we waited … and waited … and waited. Finally the tender came on the air and told us (there were two or three boats waiting by this time) that the bridge was experiencing mechanical difficulties and he couldn’t get it open, but he had called for a mechanic. Well, we knew that the bridge had opened thirty minutes earlier, so we figured either that the Barefoot shanghaiers had bought off the swing bridge operator – and they really wanted us badly – or that the bridge would be fixed in a little bit. It was over two hours before the bridge finally opened.

That kind of threw a wrench into our plans. We had been on our way to an anchorage near Wrightsville Beach, NC that was about 75 miles down the ICW. Actually, the only reason we were going there was because it was the only reasonable anchorage in the area. I was a little concerned because it appeared to be an urban anchorage very popular with locals and while it wasn’t yet the peak of boating season, if the weather was good I was afraid there would be so many local boaters that we wouldn’t have a decent spot to drop the hook. And if we didn’t have any place to anchor, what would we do then? We had also planned to drop by and see Shay and Elizabeth Glass on their boat Escape when we got to Morehead City.

Anyway, since we were now 2 hours behind, we would not arrive at Wrightsville until well after 6PM so we changed our destination. We would now head to St. James Plantation Marina just outside of Southport, NC. We had been there before. It has a little convenience store, a nice restaurant and is hardly ever crowded. It is nothing special, but it is a quiet place to rest. That also meant that we would miss seeing Shay and Elizabeth. We hope we have yet another rain check from them.  

After St. James we were on our way to Mile Hammock Bay. Mile Hammock is on the Waterway just outside Camp Lejeune. I think we have stopped here each time we have traveled the ICW. After Mile Hammock, it was on to Bonner Bay. Bonner has three anchorages that are really too far off the ICW (~4 miles), but they are just about the only decent places to stop in the area. Besides, it is quiet, pleasant and scenic.  In fact, it might be considered a destination anchorage for someone looking to get away from it all for a couple of days. The only problem with Bonner Bay is the bugs. Although we didn’t notice them when we went to bed, there were thousands of them on the deck and the windows the next morning.

The little spots you see are bugs -- thousands upon
thousands upon thousands of bugs -- after anchoring in
the otherwise lovely Bonner Bay.

 After Bonner Bay it was on to the Alligator River Marina. We needed to stay at a marina because we had sprung another fresh water leak – this time in the hot water hose. It is under the decking in the main passageway (under the flooring in the main hallway for you landlubbers) way back in a position such that, while I can touch it with one hand, neither Ann nor I can get two hands up there to repair it. Since we are taking the boat to a boatyard anyway, we figured we might as well have the technicians fix it rather than strain something trying to do it ourselves. Since, during the day when we seldom use water anyway, we turn off the water pressure pump and turn it on again when we need it. This technique, combined with a little water conservation, allows us to continue our journey. However, we do stop at marinas for water a little more often than we would otherwise.

Back to the Alligator River Marina. I have described this marina before. It is basically a filling station along the highway that backs onto a deep creek leading to the river. The owner carved out the creek, added a few slips and a fuel dock and called it a marina. Actually, it is much nicer than that, now. It has good shower facilities, clean restrooms and a small restaurant so it has become a decent little marina. When the Alligator River is nasty (a frequent occurrence) the marina is full. When the weather is pleasant, there are only a few boats there. The night we stayed there were only three other boats, one headed south and the others, like us, going north.

Our next stop was the Atlantic Yacht Basin just outside Norfolk. We like stopping there for three reasons. First, it means we are in Virginia and have only one more day to go before we arrive in Deltaville. Second, they have really inexpensive fuel (well, as inexpensive as diesel gets). And finally, there is a huge shopping area about a mile away. We generally only go there to pick up one or two items, but it is nice knowing it is there.

Norfolk’s bridges are as uncoordinated as are those in North Carolina so no matter how much research you do and how much you plan, you are going to get caught in at least one node of Norfolk’s bridge network. For us this time it was only one railroad bridge. Bridge #5 is normally open, but as we were approaching it closed right in front of us. Hmmm, we wondered, what is going on here? Have the Barefoot Marina Pirates finally caught up with us? We called on the radio and got no answer from the bridge tender (yes, we know he was there because we saw him sitting in his office when we finally went under the bridge). Eventually, we put out a call for any railroad bridge tender in the area and got hold of a guy who gave us his best guess as to what was happening. Basically, we had to wait 20 or so minutes until a train passed over the bridge, then it would be opened again. It turned out not to be a problem, but this is the first time we have been stopped by a railroad bridge that is “normally” in the open position.

Our surreptitious photo of a US Navy submarine!

On our way out of Norfolk we passed some really big ships, but the most interesting vessel we passed was a submarine! It was surrounded by four or five coast guard vessels that reminded boaters to keep 500 feet away from the sub because if you didn’t they were authorized to use, “force, including deadly force.” Gulp. We decided to keep about 1000 feet away in case those coast guardians didn’t estimate distance well. But we also (shhh!) surreptitiously took a photo. Did we need to do it secretly? No, but I like saying “surreptitiously.”

Then we were into the Deltaville Marina in Deltaville, VA. After we got here and were tied up, a very strong thunderstorm came through. Right beside the marina is an anchorage and both of the anchored sailboats dragged anchor and took off. The anchor for one of them eventually grabbed hold of something on the bottom and stayed put. The other was still manned and the crew donned lifejackets and managed to get control of their vessel before it hit anything. Man it was a close call!

Red Marker Number 36: Statute Mile Zero on the ICW,
the end of our trip

Ok, for all of our faithful readers – and even for you fickle readers – I have some not-so-good-news. Remember that Achilles tendon infection that I had last year? Well, it came back. That much I have reported before. Well, it seems as if I am going to have to go back into the hospital so they can find and cut out the infection – again. Then I will have to undergo some kind of an antibiotic regimen. In short, this summer is going to look a lot like last summer where I am out of action for a month or more.  AAAARGH!!!!

UPDATE: We had intended to publish this update a week ago, but could not get our act together. Since then, I have been admitted to the hospital and had the operation. The doctor found a piece of the suture that had caused the problem before that had been hiding behind the Achilles. He has taken it out and feels that he now has it all. We’ll keep you posted, but it looks like I am alive, well and ready to go cruising again in a few weeks.

ANN’S NOTES:  I must confess I read this blog more than a week ago and have been so busy I never got a chance to add my comments. Right now my mind is elsewhere so my part will be rather short and Michael wants to get this out today.

One strange thing did happen while we were anchored in the South Edisto River in South Carolina. When I was getting ready for bed, I heard this loud humming noise. I know all the normal humming noises that the boat makes at night. (An example is the battery charger that is in the engine room next to our stateroom and the bilge pump that is in a small hatch on the floor …also in our state room.) After telling Michael about the noise we went on a hunt for the humming with flashlights.  After looking in all the easy places, I finally found the noise and the place. Believe it or not…the water current was so strong in the River while the tide was changing that it was turning our propellers. The noise was the shaft turning in the engine room. Once we knew what the humming noise was, we could both go to sleep. The boat stopped humming when we were facing the current slowed down. Every day is an adventure when you live on a boat.

Now for the Wildlife Count

Wednesday 14 May 2014

·         1 Pod of 3 dolphins fishing

·         1 Pod of 2 dolphins

Thursday 15 May 2014

·         1 single dolphin

·         1 Pod of 2 dolphins

·         FINALLY 2 very playful dolphins that likes to play in our wake!!!!

·         A flock of seagulls following us in a canal during low tide…our props were really churning up the water and I could see the small fish on the surface so the birds took advantage of this event. To the birds I am sure the formula looks something like this…Big prop during low tide=Large wake=Fish=Dinner=Very little work

Friday 16 May 2014

·         1 Turtle basking in the sun

·         Lots of fish jumping

Saturday 17 2014

·         Nothing seen…well a few birds

Sunday 18 May 2014

·         Osprey nest with babies

·         1 Pod of 2 dolphins

·         1 Pod of 2 dolphins

Monday 19 May 2014

·         1 Pod of 2 dolphins

Tuesday 20 May 2014

·         First sighting of the dreaded Jelly Fish

·         Thousands of mosquitoes…really thousands…ok….hundreds…I have pictures to prove it…

Wednesday 21 May 2014

·         Ospreys and babies

Thursday 22 May 2014

·         Mama duck with 9 ducklings

 

That is all…Thanks for following…

Traveling Soul…OUT

Traveling Outside (7 - 13 May 2014)

Leading off our description of events was our 300+ mile trip from North Palm Beach to Cumberland Island, GA. We then started the grind up the ICW, stopping at Fort Frederica National Monument and Savannah, GA where we had to stop for battery issues. Here we sit, hopefully on our way Wednesday but at the whimsy of repair people (again). I know. For some of you that is an adequate description but others want more detail. Okay, since we are waiting here for repair people – and have nothing better to do – more detail it is.


Sunrise at Sea -- an original photograph by Ann Brown

Our jump outside from Palm Beach to Cumberland Island Georgia is the longest trip we have taken in the ocean. We filled up with fuel, left our marina about 10:00 AM and sailed into the open ocean. Most of the way up the coast we stayed within sight of land – no more than 10 – 15 miles out – though occasionally we did go out a little further. The weather was absolutely beautiful. The waves were predicted to be about two feet and … drum roll, please … they were. Once in a while we might have seen a three-footer but for the most part they were exactly as forecast. The wind was a pleasant 10 knots and was behind us, creating following seas. In short, we could not have asked the mighty Atlantic Ocean for a better day to cruise.

The only downside to the trip was the need to stay up 30 hours straight. You know, when I was younger I used to do it all the time. Sometimes I would pull an all-nighter prior to taking a test; sometimes I would travel all night; and sometimes (in a previous life) I would take part in military operations all night. When I did so, I was usually ready and rarin’ to go the following day. Anymore? Not so much.  When traveling on the boat, one of us is always awake and while Ann is certainly willing to take her turn, it seems I can’t really go to sleep while we are underway. So, on my watch I am up all the time and on her watch I am most of the time. It is true that I lay down while Ann is at the helm, and I may doze a little, but sleep? Nope, not gonna happen.

Some of the wild horses at Cumberland Island

Anyway, we made it all the way to Cumberland Island, Georgia. There, we picked a place to anchor and spent the night. For those of you who don’t know, Cumberland Island is the southernmost of Georgia’s barrier islands, part of the national park system and is part of the National Seashore. What does that mean? Anyone … anyone … Yes! They have a stamp for Ann’s “Passport to your National parks.” So, of course, we had to lower the dinghy and head to shore. They also have, as might be expected at a National Seashore, a beautiful beach that is chock-full of seashells. They have big ones, small ones and some in between. For those of us who are becoming “shellers” it is truly a remarkable find. In addition, Cumberland Island has wild horses! I don’t know exactly how many there are, but they seem to be all over the island – or at least their dung is. Also, the Revolutionary War General Nathaniel Greene – who was, according to some, second only to George Washington in military ability among American Revolutionary War generals– used to own most of Cumberland Island.

And finally, in one little known footnote to history,



Lighthorse Harry Lee's original gravesite on
Cumberland Island

"In 1818, an ill Gen. "Lighthorse" Harry Lee, a Revolutionary War hero and old friend of Catherine Greene (Nathaniel’s widow)  was returning from the West Indies when he asked to be taken to Cumberland Island. Catherine Greene had a mansion there named Dungeness. After a month of illness, he died on March 25 and was buried on the island. His son, Confederate General Robert E. Lee, had a tombstone placed over the grave and visited his father's final resting place several times. In 1913, at the request of the Virginia General Assembly, the body of Harry Lee was reinterred at Lexington, Virginia, to lie beside his famous son, but his gravestone was left on Cumberland Island."

 

After Cumberland we headed up to Brunswick, Georgia, where they have what is notionally the lowest priced fuel on the ICW. After filling up, we headed up to Fort Frederica. We visited the fort last year (and Ann already had her stamp), so this year we just planned on anchoring for a night and moving on. It was at Frederica, though, that we discovered that one or both of our huge house batteries (about 200# each) were going bad quickly.

Our house batteries are lead acid (which means you should check the fluid level periodically) and are located in our cramped generator room (which means you CANNOT check the fluid levels). The bottom line is that the batteries went bad and would not hold a charge. So, we needed to stop at a marina just outside Savannah to have the batteries replaced. To have the batteries replaced with the kind I wanted would have taken several days, so we decided to get some “cheapies” to get us through to Deltaville. Lord, I hope they last.

We arrived in Savannah on Saturday and, since no one worked on Sunday, we decided to take a taxi downtown and take a trolley tour of the city. Savannah is the oldest city in the state of Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. A strategic port city in the American Revolution and during the American Civil War, Savannah is today an industrial center and an important Atlantic seaport. It has become a tourist center because it has maintained a historic area consisting of 22 squares, those that we saw were well maintained and very attractive. There are all sorts of colonial era houses, the headquarters for the Paula Dean Empire (while Paula Dean may have lost some corporate sponsors, she did not lose any support from her fellow Savannah-ians), and the setting for the book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (I haven’t read the book, but MAN, what a cool title).

In addition, we linked up with Bill and Jeanie from the sailboat Nemo. We met them during our first trip to the Abacos while we were both staying at the Jib Room in Marsh Harbor. Ann and Jeanie have stayed in touch primarily via Facebook and the blogs that both of us keep. Jeanie and I have been fellow sufferers as she broke her ankle in several places at about the same time that I was trying to recover from my Achilles problem. We ate dinner at a place called Tubbies that wasn’t too bad. But mostly we enjoyed the company.

Speaking of my foot … yes, you guessed it. While the doctors thought they took care of the infection last year, some of the darn commie germs apparently managed to hide from both the knife and the antibiotics. They have attacked again and I have an open wound on my Achilles. So, this summer is not going to be as pleasant as we had hoped, but I’ll get through it, I suppose.

ANN’S NOTES: I am BAAAAACK…sorry I missed the last posting of the blog but I was swamped with my ‘to do’ list before traveling all night. I had to make a dinner that could be reheated quickly plus get all the charts in order. Also cleaning and laundry had to be done. I know it is semi-crazy to clean before a long trip but I feel so much better knowing that everything is clean and in place. By the way…we had meat loaf and mac and cheese…good meal to eat while in the Atlantic. I am sure that Columbus had this meal all the time.

The cruise over night was really good, I do stay up with Michael but usually I am in the salon reading or doing lat/long reading so we can keep track of where we are on the paper chart. Michael said he would work on trying to go to sleep but I doubt very much he will be able to pull that off. The counter to staying up all day and night is to plan on staying put for 24 hours to rest and re-set our body clock.

I have been busy doing all sorts of phone calls for Michael and his heel. In North Palm beach we had to get approval from our insurance for his MRI. The Northern region and the Southern region did not seem to understand that we live on a boat and that they had to talk to each other to get approval. Add the MRI office, the front desk, the manager and the head of billing and insurance and all that adds up to many, many, phone  calls. Geez… I am glad I have the patience of Job.

We now need to make arrangements with the doctor at Walter Reed and his scheduler. So far so good..no date set but approval for surgery is done.  All we have to do is get up to VA/MD. This little side trip to Savannah was not on the agenda …but it is what it is. I have always said that when you live on a boat…one never has plans…one has intentions.

I had a very nice Mother’s Day…we took the trolley tour and then met Bill and Jeanie for dinner. The conversation was excellent and just seeing them was a treat. I hope to see them again later this summer. I have been enjoying all the history there is in part of the South. It makes it fun to see how so many events are all connected to different people and the area they explored and lived in. Gotta  love Goggle and Wikipedia.

I am also back in the land of dolphins and other ICW wildlife…so here goes…

Tuesday 6 May

·         4 very large sea turtles in the Atlantic
·         6 single dolphins
·         Flying fish all over the place

Wednesday 7 May
·         Large pod of dolphins 10 or more chasing fish in the shallows
·         7 single dolphins
·         Cannon ball jellyfish all over the place

Thursday 8 May

·         Wild horses
·         Flock of 8 vultures, eating a dead fish…FYI…on land they hop sideways to get around???
·         Sea shore birds
·         Lizards
Lots of dead Cannon ball jellyfish washed up on the beach…just did not make that out going tide…darn…I bet they hate that when it happens…good thing they don’t have a brain

Friday 9 May

·         6 dolphins
·         1 pod of 3 dolphins
·         1 pod of 5 dolphins
·         1 Turtle

Sat 10 May

·         Cows…YES…cows grazing on an island…they actually have an island named Cattle Pen island…that was not the one we saw…just thought you would like to know that tid-bit.
·         Marsh birds
·         5 single dolphins
·         4 pods of 2
·         1 pod of 4
·         1 pod of 5
·         1 pod of 6
·         A very large Osprey nest on Red marker #60 with babies in the nest
·         AND … Those nasty damn biting swamp flies…I thank Dave and Joan for the battery operated fly swatter. I am getting very skilled…I can now get two or three zapped at a time. I really dislike those flies.

That about wraps it up for me…we will keep you posted on future events …mostly Michael surgery and boat upgrades and repairs.

Thanks for following us…

Traveling Soul…OUT

Bahamas to North Palm (21 Mar - 6 May)

On 21 March we decided it was time. The weather for crossing the Gulf Stream looked like it was going to be pretty good for at least a week and the weather from Nassau to Bimini – for us that’s about two days – looked good as well. Besides, we had been in the Bahamas for nearly five months. It was time in more ways than one. So, at 9AM on the 21^st we put 300 gallons of fuel in Traveling Soul and took off.

Different people make the jump from Nassau to Florida in different ways. Some leave from Nassau and don’t stop until they arrive at a destination in Florida; that can take them at least two and possibly more than three days. Others go from Nassau to Bimini in one day, then spend a second day crossing through the Gulf Stream to Florida. We are kind of lazy. We like going forty miles from Nassau to Chub Cay in one day, taking a second day to travel the hundred or so miles from Chub to Bimini, then cross the Straits to Florida on day three.

I was initially going to write about these three days separately, but so little happened – the seas were calm and the skies delightful – that I just don’t have that much to say. Suffice to say that while the days were a little long, the cruising was wonderful. The only interesting little tidbit was the push the Gulf Stream gave us. We left Bimini early because we thought it might take us 10+ hours to make it to West Palm Beach. We were wrong. The Gulf Stream gave us a push of two to three knots – we were at times moving at well over 12 knots -- putting us at the Lake Worth Inlet (just outside Palm Beach) at 2:30 PM on March 23^rd. Finally, we were home.

We had arranged to berth in the Old Port Cove Marina. We arrived, checked in with US Customs, then checked on the arrangements we had made for the immediate repair work we needed to have done. The list wasn’t extensive, but it was important. I’ll offer just a few words on each.

·         Radar and electrical connections. Some of you may remember that while crossing over to the Bahamas last December our radar went out. Radar isn’t that important for us unless we are planning to travel in reduced visibility or outside in the ocean. Since we didn’t do either one in the Bahamas, we decided to wait until we got back to the State to have it fixed. Now that we are back, however, we are going to need it.  I was hoping that our problem was a simple loose wire or corroded connection, but alas, that would have been too good to be true. Apparently Garmin (the manufacturer of our radar) allows local technicians to check for bad connections, but any work on the radar itself has to be performed at the factory. They charge a flat $500 for fixing a radar, regardless of whether it is a little problem of a big one. Since we are in a bit of a hurry, to that we would have had to add about $150 express shipments both ways for a total of $800 – and even then it might not be back in time for us. The alternative was to spend $1100 and buy a new radar – which is what we did.

We also had some electrical problems. When Tim and family were here and we were at a marina, one of the outlets through which we connect the boat to shore power started smoking – literally. Now, we have several other connectors so we could live with it, but it was something we wanted to get fixed when we got back to Florida. To make a long story short, that problem is now fixed.

Overall, the Florida marine electronics industry made a little over two boat units on us, baby. That’s two big ones, two grand, 2000 smackers. I guess you get the picture.

·         The second problem we had was the washing machine. It went out a week or two before we started back. Most marinas have Laundromats to it wasn’t THAT big of a deal, but it was certainly inconvenient.  Luckily for us, our washing machine is an apartment-sized Whirlpool, so the repairman could fix it pretty easily. This only cost us about a quarter of a BU.

 

·         Third, we had to get the air conditioners fixed. Although there were a couple of nights in the Bahamas when it would have been nice to have had an air conditioner, we really didn’t need them. That was a good thing because shortly after we arrived in the Abacos last December we learned that three of our four systems were on the fritz. We had some of local experts over and they suggested that we just “gas and go,” meaning they add some Freon (actually R22, a very pricey substitute) and take off. Six hundred dollars later and we did – take off that is.

 

·         And finally, the heads. The master head, the one that Zimmerman’s Boatyard in Deltaville put in, has never worked correctly.  Marine Plumbing Services in the Palm Beach area (out favorite head repair people) believe they have fixed it for us. I sure hope so. Also, the Lectrascan we had put in a year ago is acting up; not so much that we expect Raritan to honor their warranty obligations, but enough so that we got out the paperwork to check on the time period (we still have a year to go).  We haven’t yet received the invoice on the heads.

 

·         The worst thing that happened, however, was that my Achilles tendon is acting up again. Actually, it is not the tendon itself, it seems to be the original surgical site. It has opened up again and appears to be infected. I had an MRI taken last Saturday and have sent the results to my surgeon at Walter Reed. We’ll just have to wait and see what he says. If it is important, I’ll let everyone know. Total cost – ZERO Boat Units. J

In addition, of course, we changed the oil today. We are getting better, it used to be a day-long chore for us. Now it only takes half-a-day. The rest of the time is spent scrubbing ourselves in the shower trying to wash off some of the oil.

Well, the Good Lord willin’ and the Creeks don’t rise (BTW - thanks, Allie, I think of you every time I use that expression!) tomorrow we are heading to sea. We are planning on spending about 30 hours on the high seas heading north. That will let us cover about 300 of the 1100 +/- miles we have to go to get to Deltaville where we plan on leaving the boat and making a trip out west. It will also allow us to miss some of those darn Florida bridges … that slow us down even more than the slow-as-puddin’ sailboats. (Sorry Sailboat Friends, I just had to say it!)

ANN’s NOTES: Sorry, Ann's busy getting ready for the trip tomorrow.

 

Traveling Soul .... Out!

 

Tim, Carrie and Crew

Our son (Tim), daughter-in-law (Carrie), 6 year old granddaughter (Caylin) and 3 year old grandson (Gavin) came to visit us from 11 – 17 April. I was a bit concerned that if the weather didn’t cooperate it might be difficult to get them out into the Exumas and to the Atlantis Resort Marina – the Bahamas answer to Disneyland – in six days. To be honest, the weather was some of the best we have seen all winter. It was a bit blustery the day before the family arrived, but from then on the weather was just about perfect.

The day after they got here, we were off to Shroud Cay. We arrived about 3PM and shortly after that, Tim and the grandkids were in the water swimming off the swim platform. Carrie is the official family photographer and took a bunch of pictures. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves – even though they were accompanied most of the time by a juvenile nurse shark. Tim and Grandpa kept an eye on the shark and decided not to let the kids know. We were afraid they might get a bit panicky. In the event, everything worked out very well and everyone had a blast.

You may recall from last year that Shroud Cay is a set of islands that have what seem to be “rivers” running from the Exuma Sound on one side to the Exuma Bank on the other. Actually, they are just channels connecting the two bodies of water. They are 40-50 wide in most places and while the channels can get very shallow at low tide, they are generally about 10 feet deep. While I continue to think they are very, very cool, the little ones were less than impressed. They just wanted to get to the beach I had promised them was on the other side of the “river.” Eventually we did make it to the beach where both of the kids spend most of their time looking for shells.

Although they weren’t enamored of the river ride, both Gavin and Caylin fell in love with a beach that was inside a lagoon on the Bank side of the island. The water was so clear, the sand so fine and the slope so gradual that the kids could freely walk 50 feet or more into the lagoon before the water was up to their waist. They liked it so much that, although we were only at Shroud for two days, they kids insisted on returning several times. 

After Shroud, we were off to Highbourne Cay. Tim and Carrie went ashore and to visit the (very) little store and the marina facilities while the rest of us anchored off the island and rested. Later that evening, though, Caylin insisted on one last beach trip so she and her dad could look for shells. Speaking of shells, I forgot to mention that both Caylin and Gavin turned into very good conch shell blowers! I have seen grown men (and women) fail in the specialized art of blowing the shell, but with a little instruction from Grandma and Grandpa, they turned into serious blowers!

On Tuesday we left Highbourne and headed for Nassau. We had reservations at the Atlantis Resort and Marina on Paradise Island for the last two nights the family was visiting. Atlantis is kind of the Bahamas answer to Disneyland. (Okay, for you purists, I realize fully that there is nothing quite like the Disney parks. However, the entertainment at Atlantis, the wonderful water parks, the several different beaches and the very cool underwater exhibits make Atlantis a wonderful place to visit -- for three and six year old children AND for sixty something grandparents.

Now the Atlantis Marina is a bit pricey at $4 per foot per night. On the other hand, all six of us could get into any part of the resort. If you aren’t staying at the marina or in one of their many overpriced rooms, you have to pay $100+ to use the facilities. Moreover, I won some money at the casino that defrayed some of the expenses J. Did I say casino? Yes I did! As some of you know I enjoy an occasional game of chance – especially when it is called “21.” And yes, I did win a few bucks. I probably only paid for one of the two nights we spent at the marina. But hey! Every little bit counts!!

I almost forgot to mention that, at my request, Tim brought us a device called a Rogue Wave. He also did most of the installation. Rogue Wave is a WIFI antenna and router combination that increases the distance – by several times – from which we can receive a WIFI signal. That doesn’t necessarily mean that we will always be in contact – some of the transmitters are quite a distance from the area where when anchor, but it does mean we will have a better chance of getting a signal. We also get a stronger signal than we used to get.

The kids departed on Thursday and we are planning to leave Nassau as soon as a weather window opens. We have three day trip in front of us. On the first day we will cross about 40 miles of deep (a couple thousand feet), serious ocean and will spend the night at an anchorage at Chub Cay. The second day will be very different. It will be across a part of the Bahama Bank and will be about twenty feet deep at the deepest and about five feet deep at the shallowest. That night we will spend at a marina in Bimini. The third day we will get up very early as we have about a hundred (statute) mile trip across the Gulf Stream. That night we should be at Old Port Cove Marina at North Palm Beach.

It has been fun, but it is time for us to get back home. We have both repairs and improvements we want to make to the boat, we need to do some personal maintenance (among other things, I need to get a decent haircut), Ann needs to get back to being a Facebook regular and making her wildlife counts. Plus, we both need a serious Big Mac! We’ll let you know how all this works out … stay tuned.

ANN’S NOTES:  Ok…it is late and I need to get my part of the blog written so we can send it on the way tomorrow…as normal…I am pressed for time…

I will have to say I had a wonderful time when the “little ones” came to visit”  We were vey well prepared with all the snacks they liked..the list being sent by  Carrie. I really do love spending time with my family no matter the age. The time really did just fly by

Caylin is 6 years old…she will be 7 on the 26 of May…I am sure she would want all of our followers to know that. Now her father is a swim couch and have been for a long time  and Tim is also a strong swimmer and scuba diver. That did not prepare me to watch my little Caylin depart the dinghy and swim to the boat. I must say I was very impressed and proud….granted she had one a life vest…our rules…as grandparents we want to keep the grandchildren we have…never the less…she swam to the boat and it was a fair distance to swim for someone her age and ability. Well done Lady bug..

Gavin…was also a little super hero fish. He mostly like the land portion of the trip. He is such a beach guy.. I was not present ..but  I have pictures of him doing “sand angles”. Now…as you know he did NOT get that gene from me. I tolerate the sand and enjoy the feel of it in between my toes…but to lay down and actually move around in it…NAY…not going to happen.

The scene from ‘Here to Internity” will also not happen..

The sum it all up..everyone had a great time and I am ready to head back to the USA.

We left the VA/MD in October…went across in December and Now it is time to come HOME!!!

See you very soon..

Traveling Soul…OUT

 

 

Exuma II: March 2014

On 6 March our friends Dave and Joan Wolf came to visit. They regaled us with stories of the snow and of the c-o-l-d back in Northern Virginia; we offered stories of our own cold fronts – at times it got down to 75 degrees!! I actually had to put on a sweater one morning just before they got here. Brrrrrr!

The plan was for the Wolf’s to arrive in Nassau, stay with us for eleven days, then to depart by small plane from Staniel Cay, which is about 80 or so miles down the Exuma chain. On the way from Nassau to Staniel we hoped to be able to stop at Emerald Rock, the northern mooring field at Warderick Wells, Cambridge Cay and Big Major Post (yes, that’s the name of an island) and to end up at Staniel – all places we had enjoyed over the past couple of months.

They arrived on Thursday and we had planned to set forth on Friday. Unfortunately, the wind was pretty strong and gusty and it was blowing in the wrong direction for our trip. So, rather than take off, we went to downtown Nassau, visited the Straw Market and had lunch at Senor Frog’s.  For those of you who don’t know, Senor Frog’s is a chain of drinking places built wherever kids of the appropriate age might congregate – in Acapulco, Nassau, St. Thomas, etc. Dave, Joan, Ann and I went last year and enjoyed a couple of beers, their to-die-for guacamole and watching kids enjoy themselves. This year – eh, not so much. I am not sure what the difference was, but I don’t think we’ll be going back to Senor Frog’s any time soon.

The following day we were off. The weather was good and the trip to Highbourne Cay relatively uneventful. That evening we ate at Zuma, the restaurant at Highbourne, and had a great meal. The real story, though, is what happened just outside the anchorage at Highbourne. Just as we were making the turn into the anchorage, we saw a boat named “CV-9.” Now I knew that in US Navy nomenclature, “CV’s” are aircraft carriers, but the boat we saw wasn’t even close to an aircraft carrier. Dave, much more knowledgeable about military history that I, knew that CV-9 was the aircraft carrier Essex, of WWII fame. We surmised that the owner had named his boat after the carrier, so I called “Essex” (not “CV-9”) on the radio. The captain answered and told us the boat was indeed named after the WWII carrier. The next morning a young crewmember of CV-9 came to the boat and gave us CV-9 T-shirts with the captain’s compliments. She told us that the first owner of CV-9 had flown off the Essex during WWII and subsequently named his boat CV-9 – but that is just where the story gets interesting. He had also flown off another carrier, CV-6, the Enterprise – after which he named his car company. You got it; the first owner of CV-9 was the owner of the car rental company, Enterprise. Cool, huh?

After Highbourne we headed to Emerald Rock in the Land and Sea Park. From there, we took a walk hike to Boo Boo Hill, and later to the Loyalist Ruins, both of which I have discussed before. We also saw a the endangered Bahamian Hutia –the only mammal, I believe, indigenous to the Bahamas. They are nocturnal, but Dave saw one just sitting on a rock. We also saw a nurse shark just off the back of the boat. Nurse sharks are commonplace in the Exumas, are generally about 6 feet long (though they can grow much bigger) and are not usually aggressive towards humans.

I think it was the next day that we moved into the northern mooring field at Warderick Wells. From there, we took some more hikes and went snorkeling. Joan, especially like snorkeling and once, even saw what we believe was a reef shark in the water with her!

The northern mooring field at Warderick Wells

Just as we were getting ready to leave Warderick Wells, the weather forecast some significant westerly winds. For those of you who don’t know, the Exuma Bank doesn’t have much protection from westerlies, so you have to kind of adjust your itinerary to the direction from which the wind is blowing and the protection you need. Warderick Wells has some pretty good protection and we were already there, so we decided to stay in place until the wind calmed down and/or changed direction.

We ended up staying a total of five days, doing some more hiking, a little more snorkeling, but mostly just lounging in paradise. When we did leave we headed to Big Major Spot, an island near Staniel – the airport from which Dave and Joan would leave. Now I don’t know why most of the islands in the Bahamas are “cays” and why Big Major is a “spot.” Nor do I know the particular major for which big major was named. I do know, however, that what makes Big Major semi-famous is that there are feral pigs on the island that will happily swim to your boat or dinghy and take bread or other foodstuffs from visitors.

We stayed at Staniel Cay Yacht Club (read Staniel Cay marina – I don’t think the docks would qualify as a true “yacht club” the last night Dave and Joan were with us.

After Dave and Joan left, Ann and I spent one more day at Staniel, then headed to Black Point Settlement to do laundry. Why do the laundry at Black Point? Water is a precious commodity in the Bahamas – depending on where you are it can cost 40 to 50 cents per gallon. Now, we carry 200 gallons of water in our tanks and we make water in our reverse osmosis water maker almost every night. The water we make plus the water we conserve is enough to do almost anything we want – except the laundry.  For those of you who don’t know, laundry takes a LOT of water. So, when we need to wash clothes we head to a local laundromat, the most popular of which is at Black Point Settlement.

Our "White Cliffs of Dover (or Bitter Guana Cay)"
You can see some of the white, the rest  is in the shade, but
 I assure you is normally as white as the rest of it.

I mentioned going to Black Point not because I think you ought to know about our laundry situation, but because Ann and I have discovered a very cool anchorage at Bitter Guana Cay which is between Staniel and Blackpoint. The anchorage itself was uncrowded; there was only one other boat besides us. Besides a nice little beach, the coast line was white limestone like the White Cliffs of Dover. Ok, they weren’t quite as grand as Dover’s cliffs, but they were probably fifty feet high. You could (and we did) walk to the other side of the island to some interesting coves and wave action on the Exuma Sound side. We also hiked a portion of the island. The next time we come, we’ll give ourselves more time and do some more exploring. The island itself is one of two populated with the endangered Bahamian Iguana. These are big, ugly creatures that grow to somewhere around three feet long. They kind of look like small dinosaurs.

This big, ugly guana tried to hide under our dinghy!

After Bitter Guana Cay we headed back to Big Major Spot for a couple of days, then we departed for Cambridge Cay. Cambridge, like Warderick Wells North, is within the Exuma Land and Sea Park. You have to traverse some skinny, narrow nerve-wracking waterways to get there, but once you arrive, it is another of those idyllic mooring fields for which the Park personnel care. It is also fairly well protected from west winds – and we were going to have some westerlies within the next few days according to the weather forecast. 

We waited at Cambridge for about five days. The first two days we explored the area by dinghy and on foot. The last three days we waited for the wind to calm down and/or change direction. The saving grace is that while we were there we met two other power boaters; Sandy and Valt on Amber Isle (a 53’ Tolleycraft) and Sue and Greg on Fat Bottom Girl , a 47+ foot Endeavor power catamaran. In fact, the first of the “weather nights” we invited both couples over for drinks. The six of us got along so well that the second night we all went over to Fat Bottom Girl for heavy hors d’oeuvres, and the third night we went to Amber Isle for after dinner, drinks and dessert.

When we finally left Cambridge we moseyed up to Highbourne Cay. We downloaded the dinghy and went ashore to get some exercise (we had been pretty much stuck on the boat for the past several days at Cambridge) were going to have dinner at the local (excellent) restaurant the following night, but at the last minute decided that we should point the pointy end of the boat north and head for Nassau.

We are now in Nassau and have been for several days. We are waiting for Tim, Carrie, Caylin and Gavin to arrive on Friday afternoon. Depending on the weather (which looks pretty good right now), we’ll head down island for a couple of days, then return to the Marina at Atlantis. The Marina, of course, is located at the famous Atlantis resort on Paradise Island. It is pricey ($4+ per foot), but from what everyone tells it is a lot of fun – for 6o year olds as well as 6 year olds – and we are looking forward to it.

Immediately after the kids leave (on 17 April) we will start looking for a weather window to get across the Gulf Stream and back to Florida. We have been gone over four months and are looking forward to a Big Mac, a real mall and streets wide enough to both ride a bicycle and a car. We’ll probably write our next entry from somewhere around Palm Beach unless we get caught in the Bahamas waiting for the weather.

 

ANN'S NOTES:

It has been a while since I have sat down at the computer to write my part of the blog. Michael has giving you a pretty good idea of what we have been up to.

Most systems seem to be working again, we had a head problem when Dave and Joan visited but that did not happen until they were almost ready to depart. We have since had it fixed in Nassau. So we are ready for Tim and family to arrive with all three heads working…well…sort of…they work well enough for the visit anyway.

The famous bananaquit. I didn't think its antics were quite
as cute as did other members of the crew!

While we were in Wardrick Wells, during Dave and Joan’s visit we had a very friendly Bananaquit flew into our salon and look around. They are a small chickadee size bird with beautiful yellow markings on their chest and crown on their heads. This bird took a liking to our boat and would visit several times a day, fly around inside the boat to look around, land on the chairs around our table or anywhere else his little wings would take him. After a few short conversations with him, he would fly away and return at his whim. You all know by now that I want to have a pet…this bird would be a fine pet and it would be free…but I did not want to take him away from his friends and besides I did not have a cage on hand.

Snorkeling  was fun and we saw some very colorful fish. Michael bought a small ladder for the dinghy that hangs over the side if the rather large pontoons . We can now get in and out of the dinghy to go snorkeling. I must say we all did some practice runs before actually leaving the safety of the big boat and the swim platform. It is not a pretty sight getting in and out of the dinghy , but it can be done, not at all gracefully but we are not looking for any extra points on how we look. I just want to get back into the damn dinghy!!!

I know we need to get this blog sent out today so I will stop typing.

Thanks for reading…

Traveling Soul…OUT

 

 

The Exumas I: 1 Feb - 11 March 2014

Some of you may have been wondering why we haven’t published a blog entry for over a month. The answer is simple … my computer is broken. I don’t mean there is a little software glitch or that the screen isn’t as bright as it should be. I mean the darn keyboard is screwed up. It refuses, for example, to print a “c;” instead, when you press the “c” key, it prints “xc;” Instead of printing an “s” it prints “sd;” an “e” becomes  an “e<return>” … I could go on, but you get the idea. So, my advice is never, never, never buy an HP computer. Yes, it is still under warranty and if we were in the States, I am sure they would respond immediately. But we are in the Bahamas which makes things inordinately complicated. It would (literally) take weeks to get a new one back and, warranty notwithstanding, I would have to pay a small fortune in FEDEX charges … and we do not want to stay in Nassau for weeks.

I know. Some of you are thinking “so why didn’t you use Ann’s computer?” Well, in the first place it is PINK. I mean former infantrymen do not use pink computers! In the second place, it is the principle, man. I have not been without a computer since I bought my first Commodore 64 in 1982. The fact that Hewlett Packard made me break that string is a bit upsetting.  (I am sorry, have I already said, “Never, never, never buy an HP computer.”)

Okay, now that I have vented, I guess I should explain, in general terms, what we have been doing for the past month, then I’ll cover some of the more interesting adventures in more detail.

After leaving Eleuthera we headed for Warderick Wells, part of the Exuma Land and Sea Park (about which, more later). The day we crossed the sea that separates Eleuthera from the Exumas – Exuma Sound – the weather was wonderful. The sun was out, there was just enough of a breeze to keep us cool, the ocean swell couldn’t have been over three feet, the period between the swells was at least ten seconds and there was little or no chop on top of the swells. In short, it was a great day to be a boater.

The Exuma Land and Sea Park.

“Created in 1958 this 176 square mile park was the first of its kind in the world and is famous for its pristine beauty, outstanding anchorages and breathtaking marine environment. It is the first marine fishery reserve established in the Caribbean.”  AND it is really cool. Warderick Wells is the Park’s headquarters and, as you might remember, we briefly visited last year. While we returned to some of the same island locations we had already seen, we also went to two new places.

The first new place was the ruins of a loyalist plantation. For those of you who don’t know, after the American Revolution many loyalist planters found they could not live in the new United States – they didn’t like the government and, quite frankly, the government didn’t like them. So, with grants of Bahamian land from the King of England, many of these Loyalists headed to some of the islands to re-establish their plantations. We have visited a number of these supposed “plantations” and the absence of any kind of topsoil has long made us wonder how the heck those planters thought they were going to establish plantations. We have since learned that many of the islands were timber-rich in the old days. But about 100 years ago, companies started “harvesting” Bahamian lumber by clear-cutting the islands. As a consequence, between the regular trade winds and periodic hurricanes, with nothing to hold it in place, the topsoil has been blown away. Now, many of the islands are semi-arid – and certainly couldn’t support a plantation. Nevertheless, we did get to see the ruins of the house, the kitchen and, we think, the slave quarters. It sure was a different day and time.

The second location we visited this year for the first time was the southern mooring area, called Hog Cay, for the island across the narrow straits. We were the only boat there and the scenery was magnificent. In addition, we also went snorkeling for the first time this year – though next time we need to keep a little better track of the currents flowing though the mooring field and where they are going!

When we left Warderick Wells we had intended to drop our hook in one of the many anchorages indicated in the Explorer Chart Book that we use. We passed a few of them deliberately – they didn’t look like anchorages to us. We dropped our anchor twice in areas that were marked as anchorages, but when we settled down, we decided that we were not comfortable in these locations. On we went. We were getting a bit concerned. It wasn’t getting late, but we had no idea where we were going to spend the night. At about that time we heard Salty Turtle come up on the radio.  We had met the captain and first mate of the Turtle (Gigi and Vic) several times in the past and they told us they were going to stay at Big Majors Spot. After a quick check of the charts, we decided that would be a good place for us to stay, too.

Big Major Spot, Little Farmer’s Cay and Georgetown

Big Major Spot is a very popular anchorage and there must have been 50 boats there. We only stayed one day, however, because our dinghy had sprung an air leak. We knew what we were supposed to do, so we covered the leaky pontoon with soapy water and looked for bubbles – which would indicate from where the air was leaking. We spread soapy water and checked the pontoon three or four times and saw nothing. We probably spent an hour or more until we decided that we needed some help. So we headed to Staniel Cay Yacht Club (the only marina in the area), took a slip for the night and asked for someone who could help us. A guy who captained charter boats out of Nassau volunteered, so we took him up to Traveling Soul. I swear, it was no more than three or four minutes before he found our leak. And when he pointed it out to us, it was obvious. How did we miss it?!?!?! He also knew how to repair it – and fixing a leak is about a 24 hour process when time for “curing” the glue is included. Ok, follow me here. We came in the Friday before the Super Bowl and were going to have to stay until Sunday morning anyway – wouldn’t you go ahead and spend one more day to watch what-we-were-hoping-would-be -one-of-the-best-football-games-of-the-year-that-turned-out-to-be-one-of-the-worst-Super-Bowls-ever? Well, we did. B-O-R-I-N-G.

After the not-so-Super Bowl, a bunch of people headed down to Little Farmer’s Cay for the 5-F (First Friday in February Farmer’s Festival). Although we followed the crowd and went to the Festival, I will say that it wasn’t one of the most enjoyable times we have had, except for one thing. We met Ken and Barbara on their boat Barbara. We’ll write more about them later, but after 5F, it was on to Georgetown.

Now Georgetown is supposed to be a Cruiser’s Mecca.  And maybe it is. For some people. Not for us. Some folks go straight to Georgetown and spend the entire winter there. The must love it.

First the good things:

·         There is an excellent grocery store.

·         There are several nice beaches.

·         And there is a beach bar named the Chat and Chill.

·         I’m sorry, that’s about it.

On the negative side:

·         There are about 250 boats many of whose captains seem to want to anchor very close (in my mind a bit too close) to all their friends.
·         High School cliquishness has nothing on the cliquishness among boaters at Georgetown.  
·         EVERYTHING is organized. Volleyball, softball, conch-blowing, etc. There just isn’t a lot of just cool things to do, like hiking, snorkeling and swimming.
·         Although there is a nice grocery store, there aren’t many other stores. The town is only about 1000 people.
 

One night we were there, the weatherman predicted pretty heavy winds from the west. Most of the anchorages (ours included) offer reasonable protection from the east, but not much from the west. So we checked our anchor and decided that it was in solid so all we did was to let out a little more chain to ensure we would not drag. A little later in the evening a small French sailboat came and dropped its anchor about 200 feet from us. That in itself wasn’t so bad. But I want you to imagine an anchorage of about 50 boats. Imagine further that the wind is coming from the east. What you should be seeing in your mind’s eye is that all the boats are a couple of hundred feet apart and all facing in the same direction. Now imagine what happens when the wind changes 90 degrees. If all the boats have the same amount of anchor line (rode) out, they will all swing with the wind and should stay approximately the same distance apart. If, however, some small French sailboat whose captain doesn’t know what he is doing only puts out about ¼ of the rode he should have, then the rather large boat off his starboard beam is likely to swing into him – or to come very close. In fact, we came so close and I was so concerned that we might hit him that I turned on our engines for about a half-hour (in case we had to move quickly) and Ann showed our spotlight into his windows. Eventually, a very sleepy, very stupid Frenchman came out and let out a few more feet of rode.  He never, of course, apologized or even acknowledged our existence.

 

Earlier I mentioned Ken and Barbara aboard Barbara. Ken is another one of those very handy boaters, so he studied our generator (with which we are still having problems). He tried a few fixes that helped a little, then gave me a solenoid to take the place of the one we had jury-rigged in Marsh Harbor. Thanks, Ken!! Even more importantly, Ken is a big time fisherman. He gave me line and lures so I could try my own hand at fishing when we went into deep water. (Ken, I tried everything but haven’t caught anything – yet. Don’t worry, I am going to keep trying until we feast on Mahi-Mahi.) Anyway, Ken and Barbara kept us sane through our Georgetown interlude.

 

After Georgetown, back we went to Emerald Rock. There we found a fresh water leak. For those of you who read this blog frequently, you will know  that this has happened before – and that we are usually very good at repairing them. This time, though, the leak was between two compartments and was very difficult to get to. At this point, our generator was still acting up and our fresh water system was no longer functioning – and our provisions were running low. It was time to head to Nassau.

Nassau to the Exumas and Back Again

Of course we arrived in Nassau on Friday, which meant we could not get anyone new to look at our generator until Monday. Meanwhile, I went out, found the hose we needed for our fresh water system and, rather than repair the leak, we ran a new hose from the fresh water pump to the second water filter – the forty feet of hose that we had repaired at least five times in the past year. It took a while and we had to contort our bodies a number of interesting ways – and sixty year old bodies don’t contort as easily as some thirty year old bodies do – but we did it. It has now been two weeks and we are leak-free (knock on wood). As far as the generator is concerned, I am not sure our repairman fixed it, but it is working better than it did before. At least that is a step in the right direction.

Finally, we were ready to head south again – then three things happened. The first was our fault. For the past month we had enjoyed such good weather that I forgot to check the wind direction before choosing an anchorage (or in this case, a mooring field). The field was well-protected from the east and from the north. Unfortunately, the wind and waves were from the south and west. Although I would have to check our log closely, I think this was probably the worst night we have spent on the boat – ever. For one of us (moi) it was – quite literally – nauseating.

After recovering the next day we found that something else had happened; our watermaker had stopped working. So … back to Nassau. On the way back, though, a third thing happened: we hit some nasty weather. It didn’t start out badly, but the further north we went the more those three foot waves on our starboard beam gave way to five foot waves on our starboard beam. One of them was particularly nasty. Ann was on her way up the stairs just as we hit one of those waves. It threw her forward into the lamp and end table. The result? A broken lamp and a whopper of a bruise on Ann’s leg.

Anyway, here we are back in Nassau with our generator seemingly running well, our water maker fixed, our dinghy repaired and our fresh water system working like a top. Our friends Dave and Joan Wolf arrive tomorrow and, after that (and a day to let the “big blow” pass, we’ll be on our way south again, back into the exotic Exumas.

 

 

ANN’S NOTES:  Michael had told you the highlights of our adventure so far. It is my job to add a few comments and some more details from my point of view to the events.

I am beginning to understand how remote some of these islands really are. Once you leave the bigger cities like Nassau, and the few marinas that are in the area, you get the sense that you are really on your own. Our fellow boaters  that we meet all know what I am talking about. I do need to plan ahead in almost everything we do and need on the boat. I am thankful  that I am a well organized person and can plan ahead pretty well.

I love being able to visit and explore all these beautiful islands from the comfort of our floating home. I am sure I have not been on an island that I would want to live on full time. The Bahaman people are wonderful, but the ones that live on the out islands really do live in a third world environment.

We have met so many wonderful people and have revisited friend we have made on past trips here and on the ICW. That is what makes cruising fun….

The weather so far has been rather nice, you may think I am crazy but I do miss the four seasons and that does include snow. Our son sent video clip of our grandchildren sledding down the hill next to their home and I loved to hear how much fun they were having and wanted so much to be part of that day.

I will have to tell you that when the waves and the boat went in one direction and I went in another…it scared the he** out of me. The sound of the lamp breaking and me not being able to stop it from happening was not a good day for me.  It will take a little longer for the bruise to heal but I as long as I do Reiki on the bruise, put Arnica on the area and work my reflexology magic, I should be up and running soon. The lesson learned with this fall is…nature and power of wind, water , waves and currents will always win over a human being no matter how careful that person is.

Wild Life Report:

• Flying fish
• Sea Rays
• Nurse Sharks
• Star Fish
• Yellow tail snapper
• Turtles
• Small reef fish
• Dolphin
• Hutias…Michael will tell you about them…his love of rodents will shine when he explains what they are…

Thanks for reading…

This blog was typed on my Dell computer with a beautiful PINK cover … my computer still works… Just saying …

Traveling Soul…OUT