Green Turtle Cay

March 1, 2017 - March 6, 2017

We stayed on the mooring another night going into town by dinghy.  The forecast was for rain and high winds the next day so we moved the boat to Black Sound Marina thinking we would have better access to laundry facilities, wifi, showers and the settlement of New Plymouth.  The first evening we were there it was so hot we used the air conditioner. The front came through the next morning bringing high winds, rain, and cooler air.  We are now in the fourth day of this weather pattern and we are expecting high winds for a couple more days.  Consequently, it would be dangerous to continue on to Marsh Harbor on Great Abaco as planned.  Since we are here for the duration of this weather pattern we have been exploring the island and relaxing.  The biggest issue we have is getting on and off the boat.  The wind (up to 35 mph gusts) pushes the boat away from the dock and at low tide our deck is five feet below the dock.  We have to use a dock line on the winch to get the boat close enough to the dock so we can climb onto the ladder to reach the dock. 

We met some cruising friends (Nancy and Ken on s/v Hafli) we met in Vero Beach at Pineapples Bar and Grill for Happy Hour one night and they brought along another couple (Marion and Jonathan on s/v Eleuthera).  It was a great time of sharing stories about our adventures and challenges and plans for the rest of our trip.

Pineapples became our favorite Happy Hour spot
with two Goombay Smashes for $6.

One afternoon we rented a golf cart and explored the Ocean side of the island.

The ocean was at low tide and rough
because of the high winds.
You can see the waves breaking over
the barrier reef in the background.

We learned the history of the New Plymouth
Settlement in the bronze sculpture garden
commemorating prominent settlers.

One morning we enjoyed breakfast
at the Plymouth Rock Liquor Store and cafe
with some of the locals.

We came upon the bar where the
Goombay Smash is said to have been
invented in one of walks around town.

On Thursdays the mailboat delivers
everything the residents have purchased
on the "mainland" (actually Great Abaco Island).

We had lunch at Two Shorties Take Away
one day.  Bob said the conch fritters were
the best he ever had.

Mostly we just enjoyed the beauty of
the island and the fact that we have
no worries, man.

There are explosions of colorful flowers every where.

Houses painted with bright contrasting
colors are the rule not the exception.

Thank you for reading my blog.

West End to Green Turtle Cay

February 25, 2017- February 28, 2017

We Left West End at about 8:30 am after filling up with fuel and water.  I got my first taste of watching on the bow for the changes in water color to keep Bob informed so he could stay in deep water and avoid rocks and coral (I had studied the water colors and what they indicate about  the bottom while in West End).  Once we were on the Little Bahama Bank (a body of water between the barrier cays and Grand Bahama) we could relax as the water was 12-14 feet deep our whole trip to Great Sale Cay.  It was a long  day of motoring since there was no wind, but the view of crystal clear turquoise water in every direction was amazing.  

This picture gives you an idea
of the beauty of the water.

We anchored in Great Sale Cay at about 2pm.  Unfortunately, the water was cloudy and when I put on my snorkel gear and swam out to check the anchor I couldn't find it.  Not one to give up easily I tried every technique I could to locate it, but the water was just too cloudy.  I enjoyed the swim anyway.  The water just invited me to jump in, so I did that, too.

In the morning we decided to continue on to Powell Cay hoping to find clearer water.  I was able to see the anchor this time and enjoyed swimming around looking at the shells and vegetation on the bottom, but there were no fish.  We took the dinghy in closer to shore to explore a bit. In the morning the wind was too strong to snorkel the reef on the ocean side of the cay so we pulled up the anchor and continued east to Manjack and Crab Cays. It was a much more protected anchorage, but still too windy for me to get in the water for a swim.  The next morning we explored the cays by dinghy. I even got out to beach comb a bit.  I collected a perfect sand dollar and a tiny shell. On the way back to the boat we saw a green sea turtle and followed it for a bit.  They swim amazingly fast.

The next morning it was still too windy to snorkel so we motored over to Green Turtle Cay where we followed the narrow channel into Black Sound and took a mooring. Here we were protected on all sides from the wind and the water was calm.  Since we couldn't find the dock master of The Other Shore Marina (they owned the mooring) we walked to Pineapples Bar and Grill.  The bar is open air with a pool and picnic tables right by the Bay of Abaco. It was noon so we had lunch.  The meal was a little pricey, but delicious. I'm sure the fish in my sandwich was fresh caught grouper! No one seemed worried that we couldn't check in or pay the mooring fee.

We took the dinghy into the only settlement on Green Turtle Cay, Plymouth.  This unique little village was settled by loyalist who left the American Colonies during the Revolutionary War.  

In this tiny settlement I counted five
very well maintained churches.

This is one of the two liquor stores
in town.  The other one serves breakfast.

Colorful houses and white picket
fences line the sides of the narrow roads.

Since we will be staying on Green Turtle Cay for several days my next blog post will be about our continuing exploration of this picturesque cay.


Thank you for reading my blog.

West End, Grand Bahama

February 23, 2017 - February 24,2017

Our crossing was less than smooth.  The predicted 4-5 knot winds never materialized and we were slammed with 10 - 12 knots with gusts up to 18 knots until the last two hours of our crossing when the winds calmed down slightly.  Since the winds were out of the WSW the waves it created were hitting the boat obliquely on the right rear corner.  They were 5 - 6 feet in height.  Consequently, we were rocking and rolling the whole 10 hours of the crossing. I managed this condition well in the beginning praising myself for getting my sea legs already and feeling great even though I had spent some time below deck making coffee.  When Bob asked me to take over the helm for awhile my stomach began to rock and roll too.  At the helm the brightness of the chart plotter ruined my night vision and I was unable to focus well on the horizon line mainly because I couldn't see it.  When Bob took the helm back I was quite queasy and green around the gills.  That initiated my first two bouts of "feeding the fishes" (an euphemism for puking over the side of the boat).

We were getting beat up by the waves, but the beauty of the deep indigo water was stunning.  About 1/2 way across the Gulf Stream we started to see flying fish.  It's amazing how they sail right out of the water and continue sailing through the air for up to 500 feet or so.  

As we got closer to West End and Old Bay Marina I was reading the guide book for tips on how to enter the marina and watching boats ahead with the binoculars in order to locate the entrance. This caused another round of "feeding the fishes".  I wasn't much help to Bob on this crossing, depending on him to go below for snacks, ginger ale, etc. But WE MADE IT!!!

We tied up at the marina at about 12:30 exhausted, beat up, but exhilarated by the turquoise water, colorful buildings and calm harbor (finally).

Old Bay Resort and Yacht Harbor

We spent most of the rest of the day recovering from our trip across the Gulf Stream.

Our first full day in the Bahamas was a day of contrasts.  We explored the marina and resort that we were docked in enjoying the perfect weather and beautiful scenery.

We are ready to explore the area.

Yes, the sky is really that blue
and the water that turquoise.

Here's the resort directory.

I enjoyed swimming and sunbathing
at the infinity pool later in the afternoon.

After walking on the beach
Bob waited at the bar for Happy Hour.

After touring the marina complex we borrowed beach bikes and rode into the settlement looking for a restaurant called Ellas's Take Out.  On the way we saw evidence of the devastation of Hurricane Matthew.  The eye of the hurricane passed right over Grand Bahama and many residents are still displaced.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

This small home was blown completely off its foundation

We will be leaving in the morning to sail to a more remote island and anchoring out.  We could get very spoiled and very broke staying at a marina like Old Bahama Bay in West End.


Thank you for reading my blog post.

Final Days in Florida

February 8, 2017-February 18, 2017

After leaving St. Augustine we made a quick 3 day trip to Vero Beach stopping in quiet anchorages along the way.  Vero Beach is a popular stop for cruisers and I can see why. It is our first sub-tropical stop and has the wonderful weather we have been looking forward to.  The nickname for this town with cruisers is "Velcro Beach" because so many people get stuck here.  Our neighbors in the marina stopped for a few days and are still here three years later.

With sunsets like this every evening
you can see why people stay here.

After taking the dinghy over to the Riverside Cafe for lunch I decided to find the beach.  I checked my compass (on my iPhone) and headed east.  I stopped to buy a cupcake from an enterprising young boy who had set up a stand and got some more specific directions from his mother.  It was about three mile walk (including the return trip), but so worth it to finally see turquoise water lapping a white sand beach.  Such a fabulous beach day for walking the beach and playing in the waves.  I can see us staying here for an extended stop sometime in the future, but since we lost so much time having the engine replaced we are only here long enough to make some repairs, provision, get the cat's health certificates, and rest up a bit. 

Can you believe the color of this water?

On Tuesday we rented a car from Enterprise and started the provisioning process.  On Wednesday I drove to Sarasota to check in on my dear friend Claire who has been in a rehabilitation center for the past two weeks after a bout with pneumonia.  She looked so much better than when I last saw her in the hospital, but she was still on oxygen.  Her care team had a meeting with her while I was there and they discussed her progress and have scheduled her discharge for March 1st, but are doubtful that she will be able to stop using the oxygen.  Having to continue the oxygen at home was a big disappointment for her.  It's uncomfortable and hampers movement because of the long tubes involved.  I left the facility after multiple hugs and "I love you's".  It was a difficult parting since it will be at least three months before I see her again.

Checking the long term weather forecast we have determined that the best time to cross the Gulf Stream will be late next Tuesday night (February 20, 2017).  We will travel all night in order to reach the Bahamas when the sun is high in the sky so we can see and avoid any coral reefs.  We've been planning this trip for three years and have been on our way to the Bahamas since October 4, 2016 so it's almost unbelievable that our crossing is so close. We will leave Vero Beach early in the morning and travel to Lake Worth to wait for the right weather to cross.

I'm excited and a little apprehensive.  This will all be totally new to me, anchoring in beautiful clear waters close to uninhabited islands, snorkeling every day, eating the provisions we have put by to compensate for Bahamas lack of provisions (not many stores on uninhabited islands), and being wifi and iPhone free in many areas.  I'm looking forward to this dream of ours to finally come true, but leaving the mainland and all its advantages is a big step.  I'll happily make the leap!!

You can see why it's hard to leave the
beauty we have right here in the USA!

If all goes as we have planned my next blog will be from the Bahamas.

Thank you for reading my blog.

From Jekyll Island, GA to St. Augustine, FL

February 1, 2017-February 7, 2017

We anchored last night just outside of Jekyll Creek. Since Jekyll Creek has extensive shoaling the best time to go through it is at high tide. This strategy lessens the chance of going aground. Unfortunately, when we awoke we were completely socked in by fog.  We couldn't leave the anchorage until 9:30, but all went well anyway. When we called Fernandina Beach marina to make a reservation we discovered that it was still recovering from damage caused by Hurricane Matthew and did not have any slips available.  Decision time - we chose to anchor across from the marina and take the dinghy into the marina to use the facilities for $7 a day.  No matter what WE WERE FINALLY IN FLORIDA!!!

Near our anchorage we saw three sail
boats that were damaged in the hurricane.
This one was completely sunk.

Fernandina Beach is on Amelia Island and is a great town with plenty of restaurants, shops, and transportation options.  We stayed there two nights and were able to take showers, get our mail, buy groceries and rest up a bit.  

On our last night in Fernandina Beach at about 4:00 in the morning the wind picked up and it became cold.  Sleeping was impossible so Bob and I got up and tried to figure out what we would do that day.  Rather than stay put and get beat up by the wind all day, we decided to head for Jacksonville Beach Marina.  Since the wind was behind us all the way the trip was cold, but reasonably smooth.

We stayed in Jacksonville two nights.  Bob did the engine maintenance and I did the laundry.  There was a large sports bar on the premisses so we had a great place to watch Super Bowl 51. An advantage of this cruising lifestyle is its flexibility.  We don't have to slavishly follow our float plan and can stay put if we feel like it.

After getting fuel and water on February 6, 2017 we continued south to St. Augustine.  We got there at about 4 pm and took a mooring ball.  After registering at the office we headed into St. George Street to our favorite pizza restaurant Pizza Time.  They were voted the 2nd best pizza place in the USA by Trip Advisor and we both agree. We ate there three times on this visit. I love St. Augustine with it's beautiful architecture, fascinating history, great restaurants, and warm weather.

This is St. George Street that is closed
to traffic and is lined with shops
and restaurants.

I found this hidden courtyard
while strolling around old town.

I took this shot of downtown
as I was walking back across the
Bridge of Lions.

Two Lions guard the entrance to the
Bridge of Lions that connects St. Augustine
to St. Augustine Beach.

We toured the Castillo de San Marcos
that has guarded the town since 1672.

This is a spire of the grand hotel built by
Henry Flagler in the late 1800's and is
now a part of Flagler College.

Our next major stop will be Vero Beach.


Thank you for reading my blog.

From Beaufort SC to Jekyll Island GA

January 28, 2017 - January 31, 2017

I should have named this post "Going Aground in Fun Places" since that seems to be the theme of our travels in the final days of January, except going aground is no fun at all.

 On January 29th after a hot shower, we left Beaufort early since it was our plan to make it to Georgia.  It was cold and windy, but we were bundled up for that.  Things went fine until just before the Savannah River where the chart we have been following showed skirting a shallow area by staying to the left when we really should have stayed to the right.  We went hard around and all the maneuvers Bob and I tried didn't help.  About an hour later we flagged down a boater who helped pull us off. After that harrowing experience, we decided to stay at Thunderbolt Marina in Thunderbolt, GA rather than anchor out as planned.

The next morning we both still felt beat up by yesterday's grounding and weighed the pros and cons of staying in Thunderbolt another day.  We decided to keep going and Bob assured me there was no chance of going aground today.  We travelled the ICW through some beautiful areas with magnificent homes.

This home is a great example of Southern architecture
with Corinthian columns and a wide front porch, 
all in the shade of live oak trees.

Right after lunch I was looking ahead on the chart and found a spot called Hell Gate - this can't be good.  I looked it up in the guide book and found out how really bad it was, but we were upon it before we could make the decision to do anything else.  Bob piloted through the mile long area carefully at slow speed and when the shallow water alarm started beeping we only scraped bottom a bit.  We arrived safely at our anchorage in Kilkenny Creek just off the ICW and celebrated our "no going aground" day with a bottle of champagne.  I've found that sailors celebrate just about everything on a journey like this.

It was still very cold and windy in the morning, but we left our anchorage by 7:30 in order to cross the next shallow section of the ICW at high tide.  Things went smoothly until a missing navigational marker caused Bob to cut a turn  too short and that alarm went off again and before Bob could change directions we were aground.  Again he tried several maneuvers to no avail.  I suggested backing up and that did the trick.  It was smooth going until we anchored.  The scenery all day had been stark marsh grass with a few trees.  The natural beauty was marvelous and it lead to an exquisite sunset.

The most stark and natural scenery 
can be the most beautiful.

This morning it was still cold, but we had the prediction of a 70 degree day.  Mud River was our challenge today. We left at 8 am so we would traverse the 15 miles of shallow areas ahead of us during rising and high tide.  We have learned our lesson from our previous incidents of going aground.  We took it slow through the most treacherous areas of the ICW and came through safely.  The scenery now included homes and boat docks as well as marsh grass and trees.  We anchored in St. Simon's Sound just before the entrance to another tricky section of the ICW.  By the time we anchored I was in capris and t-shirt.  This weather is closer to what I expected on this trip.  Tomorrow looks challenging, but we can do it!!!!



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Rockville to Beaufort

January 14, 2017 - January 27, 2017

We had expected to have the re-powering of the boat completed by January 18, 2017, but several delays prevented that from happening.

1. The engine shaft seal leaked when the boat was underway.  This was corrected by changing the forward flexible motor mounts to slightly stiffer motor mounts.  
2. Anthony Back (the owner of Marine Propulsions) noticed that the boat was under propped for the new engine (all that means is that the propeller was too small).  This was corrected by ordering a new propeller and doing a short haul to switch the propeller.  
3. When the propeller was being switched the bushing (I don't have any idea what that is) was too small.  This was corrected by ordering a new bushing and doing another short haul.
4. Our battery charger was not working.  This was corrected by buying and installing a new battery charger.

All of these corrections took time which delayed our departure until January 27, 2017.

On top of all of this, my "surrogate mother" (actually my ex-mother-in-law and very dear friend) became ill with pneumonia complicated by her existing condition of congestive heart failure.  On January 20, 2017 I rented a car and drove to Sarasota, Florida to be with her in the hospital.  I stayed with her until I was sure her condition was improving and she would be moved to a rehabilitation facility soon.  

When I returned to Folly Beach on January 24, 2017 I had to help with packing up all of the items we had brought to the apartment for our 6 week stay and transport them to the boat.  It was a busy day with the bright spots being lunch at Black Magic Cafe and dinner at St. James Gate Irish Pub. 

The next day we packed up the rest of our belongings and the cats and moved onto the boat.  

Finally, on January 27th we got up early and headed south.  Since it is late January and the temperature was expected to be in the low 60's with 15 mph winds out of the west we bundled up. I mean gloves, hats, scarves, down vests, warm socks, the whole nine yards.

Bob at the helm.

Lizzy is a big help while we are
under way as you can see!

We made it to Beaufort, SC by 4:00 and got a slip at the Downtown Marina.  It was a long, but wonderful day getting back on the water.  I think I smiled for at least the first two hours of the trip.  I'm thrilled to be back on our journey.

Thanks for reading my blog.