December 19, 2017 - December 20, 2017
We got up a 2:30 am and weighed anchor before 3:00 am to start our Gulf Stream crossing. At first, I was a bit freaked out by barreling ahead at 6 knts/hr into what seemed like a black hole. However, once I got my night vision and could make out the horizon I started to relax. We had an easterly wind of about 3 knots per hour which made for some rollers. The rollers were hitting us at an oblique angle causing a bit of rocking and rolling, but I was fine as long as I could see the horizon. I took the second watch at 4:00 am. Looking out over the bow to the ocean, watching for other vessels, and guiding our vessel on its course gave me the feeling of a real adventurer. At that point it seemed as if I could go anywhere. On my second watch (6:00 am-7:00am) I was blessed with watching the sunrise from the first light tinting the horizon with a reddish hue to the vista of the sun peeking over the horizon in all its range of colors. I can’t think of any other time in my life that I have observed this phenomenon.
Once the sun was well up into the sky the deep ocean water (our depth sounder quit registering the depth at 468 feet) became a gorgeous indigo blue. If you have ever been on a cruise ship you have probably observed this shade of blue. We watched for flying fish that leap from the water spreading their aerodynamic fins to sail for hundreds of feet above the water. The flying fish use this technique to escape the jaws of the dorado fish that like to eat them. We didn't see any dolphin on this crossing. The crossing was long but uneventful until we motored into the turning basin of the Old Bahama Bay Resort and Marina in West End, Bahama…
When Bob tried to shift into neutral to slow down and tie up at the fuel dock the shift lever didn’t work. With some quick decision making he immediately lowered the anchor to prevent us from crashing into the rocks of the break wall. I went below and tore apart the drawers that give access to the engine compartment. We experimented a bit with the gear shifting and determined that something was wrong with the control cable. Bob called the marina to get our slip number, explain our situation, and get some dock hands to help us into our slip. I was below manually shifting the gears as Bob yelled out the gear he needed the boat to be in as he guided the boat gently into the slip. As soon as the dock hand grabbed our stern line I was up on deck to help complete the docking. I was rattled, to say the least, and could not think of how to tie a bowline knot to create a loop at the end of the line. The dock hand took over and skillfully tied us to the piling.
Okay, major crisis avoided…Bob checked us in through customs and we registered at the marina office. When we took the pedestal apart to look for the transmission cable problem (foolishly hoping it was something simple) we discovered that the cable we had just replaced was broken. Bob got on the phone to Advantage Marine Supplies in Vero Beach to locate the cable we needed while I walked back and forth (about a quarter of a mile one way) to the marina office to figure out a way to get the part to Freeport and then to the Marina (FedEx, etc. does not deliver to West End, Bahamas). By the time we located the part I was ready to go back to Florida for the winter. I was exhausted, discouraged, and hungry. Bob nixed that idea even though the shipping the part was going to be a convoluted process involving a rental car to pick the part up in Freeport. We headed off to Teasers Tiki Bar for lunch and a Kalik (Bahamian beer). I was feeling a little better, but still stressed about the situation and the uncertainty of the part arriving in Freeport with any kind of promptness.
After a good night’s sleep I was feeling a bit better. We had breakfast at the Marina restaurant (vowing only to eat one meal out a day, LOL) and then came back to the boat to do some chores. Bob walked over to the hotel office to use the WIFI and post his blog while I took a relaxing walk to the pool to test the water temperature (it was cool but pleasant) and to explore the beach.
It’s hard to stay pissed off by the curve balls life throws you when this is the kind of place your “stuck” in waiting for a boat part. By the time I got back to the boat I had accepted our situation and realized that being flexible is a great part of this cruising lifestyle. Sure we wanted to spend Christmas in Marsh Harbour, but is West End a bad alternative? Most cruisers claim that cruising is just boat repair in exotic ports and I am swiftly learning this is a true statement.
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| Here's the pool... |
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| the beach... |
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| the view from our pier. See what I mean? |
My next blog post will chronicle our stay in West End and our boat repair. In the meantime, have a great holiday!
Thank you for reading my blog.
