March in the Bahamas came in like a Lion but I'm not sure if it is going to go out like a Lamb yet. We have had our share of fronts come through and the temperature has been cooler than we had from mid January until the end of February. Not that it has been cold - it has been in the mid to low 70s F instead of the low 80s. But it can make a difference when deciding whether to swim or not (yes I know it is a tough life when that is one of the biggest decisions of your day). The big news is that we have been doing a lot of (and this will come as a surprise)... sailing. In the past 10 days we have gone about 130 miles and only motored a total of 6 hours, and most of that has been getting in and out of anchorages. We decided to go in whatever direction had favourable winds and it has been great sailing, with no deadlines or time pressures.
My last blog ended when we were at Norman's Cay sitting out a front. We had a nice picnic at the beach that afternoon and then dinghied up into Norman's Pond in the north end of the cay to have a look. The next day the wind blew hard from the north and although we were comfortable, there was quite a chop, so we didn't even get off the boat. I made Dave's birthday cake, ready for the following day. Unfortunately I hadn't completely thought it through, and when I was finished icing it, I realized I didn't have anything to put it in. I made a cover out of a plastic basket wrapped in grocery bags taped to the plate, but figured there was no way it would hold up under way. What to do? Well, in true cruiser fashion, we had saved a plastic domed container from a cake we had bought months ago in the US, which we use as our speaker stand, for the external speaker we have for watching tv series and movies on the computers, so I thought we could use that for it's original purpose - to put a cake in. Unfortunately, said cake was a bit too big for said container. That problem was solved when we cut the end off the cake and ate it for dessert that night, scooping up the extra icing (the recipe made a lot of icing) and putting it on the end that we had cut so you couldn't tell and voila - problem solved.
Even when you are marooned on the boat in bad weather, you can often count on having something to keep you busy. A catamaran had passed south of us through some shallow water and gone aground. Unfortunately the wind was blowing so that the boat would be pushed into shallower water as the tide came up, so the skipper and one of his crew jumped into their dinghy and set a couple of anchors to keep them off. They weren't far from us, so Dave watched the entire drama as it unfolded, and then helped them get one of their anchor lines around our boat when they were taking it up. Later in the afternoon they got off, after the tide came up. We heard on the radio the following morning that wasn't the only drama during the front. A boat had dragged overnight into another boat, so we were glad that we had an uneventful stay.
The following morning the wind had calmed down enough for us to leave Norman's and since we had decided to go in whatever direction would be good sailing, we headed south. We had heard our friends C-Spirit on the radio, so we arranged to meet up with them at Hawksbill Cay. We had a great sail down there with just the jib out and we met up with C-Spirit as planned. C-Spirit is the boat we met in Bimini with the family from Hawaii with the four daughters aged 3, 5, 8 and 10. We spent a nice afternoon with them swimming and then hiking across to the east beach before heading back to get supper ready for Dave's birthday.
I cooked chicken curry and the C-Spirit crew brought chili and corn bread with them and we had a little birthday party, complete with homemade cards from the girls for Dave. The chocolate cake went over pretty well with everyone and it was a fun evening. The next day we waved goodbye as they headed back towards Bimini and the States to finish up their cruise and move on to other adventures.
We were getting a bit low on fresh food and the wind was from the east, so we decided to head south towards Staniel Cay and try to get there before the stores closed. It was Saturday, so if we didn't make it, we would be out of luck until Monday as the stores are closed on Sundays here. Again we had a great sail with one reef in the main and a slightly reefed jib. We were beating and our autohelm wasn't doing a great job, so we decided to hand steer. We don't often hand steer but we took turns and it was a lot of fun. We sailed all the way into the anchorage at Big Major's, arriving there just before 4 p.m. We quickly got the dinghy down and the engine on and bombed off over to Isles General store, where we left our propane bottle to be filled (hoping we could pick it up on Monday) and got what we could for fresh food. It was a bit picked over as it had been a few days since the last mail boat, so we went over to see what we could get at the Pink Pearl and the Blue Store. Between the 3 of them we managed to get pretty much everything we were looking for (the list no longer includes such exotic things as raspberries, or pate).
On Sunday we spent a lazy day at Big Major's just hanging out on the boat, although we did have a visit from LeeAnn and Brad on Baccalieu just before sundown. That night, despite the light wind, there was quite a roll in the anchorage, and although it wasn't really uncomfortable, it was annoying. We woke up the next day grumpy from rolling around all night and decided to get the heck out of Dodge. We had planned to leave Monday anyway to get westerly protection from the next front; we just decided to leave earlier and pick the propane up later in the week.
The wind was in our favour again and we had a downwind sail up north to Cambridge Cay, which was pretty good, although a bit rolly as we were almost going dead downwind. I was glad when we were anchored in Cambridge and out of the roll. While we were in Cambridge we took a few walks and went for a couple of swims and we even started doing some cleanup and odd jobs on the boat. The front bought damp, sticky conditions with it and uncomfortable sleeps, but once it cleared things dried out quickly, which was a relief. It has even started to warm up again - we are back to 80F during the day.
Wednesday morning the front had passed and it was calm. We headed south, this time motoring instead of sailing. We wanted to pick up our propane at Staniel Cay and then head down to Black Point, but we knew the store would be closed from noon until two, so when we got to Sandy Cay, a few miles north of Staniel, we quickly dropped the anchor and got the dinghy down and the engine off and Dave zoomed in to the store to get the propane. Half an hour later he was back with the full bottle and we were on our way again. With a bit more wind and no time constraints we put the jib up and sailed slowly down to Black Point. We arrived in time to get laundry done, pick up a bit of water, dump our trash and go out for the buffet supper at Lorraine's Cafe.
We had run into the crews from Baccalieu, Kamouraska, Airtime and Challenge, who were all heading in for the supper too, so we had a big table for the buffet. It started with conch fritters and sauce and then the buffet had barbequed chicken, ribs, fried fish, beans & rice, mac & cheese, carrot and peas and coleslaw. For dessert they served pieces of rum cake and they were pretty well soaked in rum. It was a fun evening out with a nice group of folks.
We took off the next morning to get south a bit so we could sail to Georgetown on Friday, when the winds looked good. Again we sailed, although there wasn't much wind. We weren't in a hurry, so we just drifted downwind with the jib up going about 3 knots for most of the trip. It was such a calm trip that we worked on cleaning stainless and the lifelines while under way. We arrived at Big Galliot Cay to find our friends on Windflower anchored there and they came up to see if we wanted to go for a drift dive even before we had the hook down. Once we were anchored we quickly changed into our bathing suits and got our snorkels and fins and jumped into their dinghy with them. They took us to the cut just north of the island and we snorkeled with the dinghy. It was pretty deep, but we saw lots of coral, some fish and a turtle, so that was neat. Hyde and Joe took their spears to see if they could get any fish, but the current was still a bit strong for fishing.
Friday morning we got up early to head to Georgetown. We put up the main before we left the anchor and got out through the cut in very calm conditions. As soon as we turned south we unfurled the jib and had a fantastic sail down to Georgetown. We were on a broad reach, with about 15 knots of wind, one reef in the main and most of the jib unfurled. We averaged over six knots on the trip, including the part where we were taking sails down and putting around looking for somewhere to anchor. By 2:30 we had dropped the hook just off Volleyball Beach and we heard a band playing on shore. They finished just after we got there, but Dave heard them say they would be back for another set, so we decided to head in.
Georgetown being such a cruiser's hub in the Exumas, when we got to the beach we met up with crew from Providence, who we met first in The Great Dismal Swamp, Dejarlo, who we met first 11 years ago in Oriental, NC, Jumasi, who we had dinner with in Black Point about a month ago, Adamant, from Cape Breton, and we had an interesting chat with Ken, the skipper of Grateful Red, who was responsible for the band being here. Apparently he has been cruising for a while and he often flies his friend from highschool and his band into wherever he is to give impromptu concerts to the local cruising community. We just happend to arrive the day of the concert in Georgetown. We enjoyed the music and danced on the beach, had a few drinks, caught up with friends and then had supper at the Chat n Chill afterwards. What a great day!
Now we are going to re-provision in preparation for a visit from our friends Bill and Deborah, who are flying in from Quebec on Monday. They will be with us until they fly out of Nassau on April 4th, so we plan to go back up the Exumas one last time and then start making our way north to the Abacos. We'll have to see if March co-operates and goes out like a Lamb, allowing us to go north when we want to. My next blog will be after we drop our guests off.
My last blog ended when we were at Norman's Cay sitting out a front. We had a nice picnic at the beach that afternoon and then dinghied up into Norman's Pond in the north end of the cay to have a look. The next day the wind blew hard from the north and although we were comfortable, there was quite a chop, so we didn't even get off the boat. I made Dave's birthday cake, ready for the following day. Unfortunately I hadn't completely thought it through, and when I was finished icing it, I realized I didn't have anything to put it in. I made a cover out of a plastic basket wrapped in grocery bags taped to the plate, but figured there was no way it would hold up under way. What to do? Well, in true cruiser fashion, we had saved a plastic domed container from a cake we had bought months ago in the US, which we use as our speaker stand, for the external speaker we have for watching tv series and movies on the computers, so I thought we could use that for it's original purpose - to put a cake in. Unfortunately, said cake was a bit too big for said container. That problem was solved when we cut the end off the cake and ate it for dessert that night, scooping up the extra icing (the recipe made a lot of icing) and putting it on the end that we had cut so you couldn't tell and voila - problem solved.
Even when you are marooned on the boat in bad weather, you can often count on having something to keep you busy. A catamaran had passed south of us through some shallow water and gone aground. Unfortunately the wind was blowing so that the boat would be pushed into shallower water as the tide came up, so the skipper and one of his crew jumped into their dinghy and set a couple of anchors to keep them off. They weren't far from us, so Dave watched the entire drama as it unfolded, and then helped them get one of their anchor lines around our boat when they were taking it up. Later in the afternoon they got off, after the tide came up. We heard on the radio the following morning that wasn't the only drama during the front. A boat had dragged overnight into another boat, so we were glad that we had an uneventful stay.
The following morning the wind had calmed down enough for us to leave Norman's and since we had decided to go in whatever direction would be good sailing, we headed south. We had heard our friends C-Spirit on the radio, so we arranged to meet up with them at Hawksbill Cay. We had a great sail down there with just the jib out and we met up with C-Spirit as planned. C-Spirit is the boat we met in Bimini with the family from Hawaii with the four daughters aged 3, 5, 8 and 10. We spent a nice afternoon with them swimming and then hiking across to the east beach before heading back to get supper ready for Dave's birthday.
I cooked chicken curry and the C-Spirit crew brought chili and corn bread with them and we had a little birthday party, complete with homemade cards from the girls for Dave. The chocolate cake went over pretty well with everyone and it was a fun evening. The next day we waved goodbye as they headed back towards Bimini and the States to finish up their cruise and move on to other adventures.
We were getting a bit low on fresh food and the wind was from the east, so we decided to head south towards Staniel Cay and try to get there before the stores closed. It was Saturday, so if we didn't make it, we would be out of luck until Monday as the stores are closed on Sundays here. Again we had a great sail with one reef in the main and a slightly reefed jib. We were beating and our autohelm wasn't doing a great job, so we decided to hand steer. We don't often hand steer but we took turns and it was a lot of fun. We sailed all the way into the anchorage at Big Major's, arriving there just before 4 p.m. We quickly got the dinghy down and the engine on and bombed off over to Isles General store, where we left our propane bottle to be filled (hoping we could pick it up on Monday) and got what we could for fresh food. It was a bit picked over as it had been a few days since the last mail boat, so we went over to see what we could get at the Pink Pearl and the Blue Store. Between the 3 of them we managed to get pretty much everything we were looking for (the list no longer includes such exotic things as raspberries, or pate).
On Sunday we spent a lazy day at Big Major's just hanging out on the boat, although we did have a visit from LeeAnn and Brad on Baccalieu just before sundown. That night, despite the light wind, there was quite a roll in the anchorage, and although it wasn't really uncomfortable, it was annoying. We woke up the next day grumpy from rolling around all night and decided to get the heck out of Dodge. We had planned to leave Monday anyway to get westerly protection from the next front; we just decided to leave earlier and pick the propane up later in the week.
The wind was in our favour again and we had a downwind sail up north to Cambridge Cay, which was pretty good, although a bit rolly as we were almost going dead downwind. I was glad when we were anchored in Cambridge and out of the roll. While we were in Cambridge we took a few walks and went for a couple of swims and we even started doing some cleanup and odd jobs on the boat. The front bought damp, sticky conditions with it and uncomfortable sleeps, but once it cleared things dried out quickly, which was a relief. It has even started to warm up again - we are back to 80F during the day.
Wednesday morning the front had passed and it was calm. We headed south, this time motoring instead of sailing. We wanted to pick up our propane at Staniel Cay and then head down to Black Point, but we knew the store would be closed from noon until two, so when we got to Sandy Cay, a few miles north of Staniel, we quickly dropped the anchor and got the dinghy down and the engine off and Dave zoomed in to the store to get the propane. Half an hour later he was back with the full bottle and we were on our way again. With a bit more wind and no time constraints we put the jib up and sailed slowly down to Black Point. We arrived in time to get laundry done, pick up a bit of water, dump our trash and go out for the buffet supper at Lorraine's Cafe.
We had run into the crews from Baccalieu, Kamouraska, Airtime and Challenge, who were all heading in for the supper too, so we had a big table for the buffet. It started with conch fritters and sauce and then the buffet had barbequed chicken, ribs, fried fish, beans & rice, mac & cheese, carrot and peas and coleslaw. For dessert they served pieces of rum cake and they were pretty well soaked in rum. It was a fun evening out with a nice group of folks.
We took off the next morning to get south a bit so we could sail to Georgetown on Friday, when the winds looked good. Again we sailed, although there wasn't much wind. We weren't in a hurry, so we just drifted downwind with the jib up going about 3 knots for most of the trip. It was such a calm trip that we worked on cleaning stainless and the lifelines while under way. We arrived at Big Galliot Cay to find our friends on Windflower anchored there and they came up to see if we wanted to go for a drift dive even before we had the hook down. Once we were anchored we quickly changed into our bathing suits and got our snorkels and fins and jumped into their dinghy with them. They took us to the cut just north of the island and we snorkeled with the dinghy. It was pretty deep, but we saw lots of coral, some fish and a turtle, so that was neat. Hyde and Joe took their spears to see if they could get any fish, but the current was still a bit strong for fishing.
Friday morning we got up early to head to Georgetown. We put up the main before we left the anchor and got out through the cut in very calm conditions. As soon as we turned south we unfurled the jib and had a fantastic sail down to Georgetown. We were on a broad reach, with about 15 knots of wind, one reef in the main and most of the jib unfurled. We averaged over six knots on the trip, including the part where we were taking sails down and putting around looking for somewhere to anchor. By 2:30 we had dropped the hook just off Volleyball Beach and we heard a band playing on shore. They finished just after we got there, but Dave heard them say they would be back for another set, so we decided to head in.
Georgetown being such a cruiser's hub in the Exumas, when we got to the beach we met up with crew from Providence, who we met first in The Great Dismal Swamp, Dejarlo, who we met first 11 years ago in Oriental, NC, Jumasi, who we had dinner with in Black Point about a month ago, Adamant, from Cape Breton, and we had an interesting chat with Ken, the skipper of Grateful Red, who was responsible for the band being here. Apparently he has been cruising for a while and he often flies his friend from highschool and his band into wherever he is to give impromptu concerts to the local cruising community. We just happend to arrive the day of the concert in Georgetown. We enjoyed the music and danced on the beach, had a few drinks, caught up with friends and then had supper at the Chat n Chill afterwards. What a great day!
Now we are going to re-provision in preparation for a visit from our friends Bill and Deborah, who are flying in from Quebec on Monday. They will be with us until they fly out of Nassau on April 4th, so we plan to go back up the Exumas one last time and then start making our way north to the Abacos. We'll have to see if March co-operates and goes out like a Lamb, allowing us to go north when we want to. My next blog will be after we drop our guests off.