Week 26:
Wed. Mar. 27,
2013—Day 176:
Destination: Manjack Cay to Northwestern Harbour, Great
Sale Cay
Departure: 0750 hrs. Arrival:
Distance: 58.5 NM
Winds: NNW 15-20K increasing to 10-15K after sunset
+/-15K
Seas: 1 ft. & whitecaps to < 1 ft. chop
Weather: mostly cloudy in am, mainly sunny with clouds
in
 |
| Trying to capture the aqua blue of Bahamas water |
The bouncy motion seemed to settle down sometime during
the night as the wind shifted slightly more to the north. It took some time to tune into hear Chris at
all; if we heard right Sunday’s window has closed & it is favourable to
cross midday Friday & Saturday.
‘Second Option’ & ourselves decided then to bypass Crab Cay &
head directly to Great Sale Cay, a 10 hrs. trek but with long daylight hours in
our favour. We set out & were able
to carry a partial jenny for a short time as we motorsailed along (6.5K) until
the wind was directly on our nose (5.2K at 3000 RPM). We passed Crab Cay at 1045 hrs., bore off the
wind & deployed a full jenny (6.0K at 2500 RPM). A fair bit of seagrass was on the water
today. Also, generally speaking, the
water was clearer & cleaner in the Exuamas than here in the Abacos. We passed Fox Town at 1230 hrs. as a family
of dolphins played only a short time in our wake; such joy! About 4-5 boats from Fox Town either
travelled to Carters Bank Waypoint or travelled south of Veteran Rock to Sale
South Waypoint & finally Great Sale Cay Waypoint. We were one of the very last to arrive & also
one of the furthest out, anchoring in 8 ft. with 100 ft. of chain. It was a rather easy & comfortable day
with plenty of reading, although I did take a turn at the helm. The clouds filled in late in the afternoon. And as the sun was setting amongst the clouds
it was a big red ball with rays of red light radiating down through the cloud
& clear sky, followed by a peachy coloured sky between the cloud patches. A patchy cloud & clear sky night with
stars & the official full moon reflected off the water, which may have been
the reason for the lovely firework display tonight.
Thurs. Mar. 28,
2013—Day 177:
Destination: Great Sale Cay
Winds: NW-NNW +/- 10K, N 15K at night
Weather: cool breeze, mainly cloudy with sunny periods
in am & mainly sunny in pm
 |
| Full Moon rising over Great Sale Cay |
Calm water & calm winds during the night; a cool
night so had to pull the duvet into service.
Chris confirmed the crossing to Florida best midday Fri. through
Sat. Eight or so boats moved on in the
morning & we watched several boats arrive in the mid to late afternoon; a
total of 23 tonight very widely spaced
out. A bit more of intense cleaning of
the main cabin. Otherwise it was a lazy
day of suduko, reading in the cockpit until it warmed up, even laying in the sun
on deck reading wearing long pants & a long sleeve sweat top. Graeme topped up the diesel tank in prep for
our departure for Little Bahama Bank waypoint tomorrow as soon as Chris’
weather report is completed. We lowered
the dinghy & rowed over to ‘Second Option’ for an early happy hour & a
short discussion of the 1
st few days when we are State side. A red sunset with a fair amount of clouds typical
of a cool night . A couple of conch
blowers tried their talent or lack of—this was the last time we will here that
sound for awhile, maybe forever. A
mainly clear, dark night & thus the most fabulous stars. A full moon was late rising tonight.
Fri. Mar. 29, 2013—Day
178:
Destination: Great Sale Cay to Little Bahama Bank Waypoint
26o 55’N 79o 03’W
Departure: 0730 hrs. Arrival: 1615 hrs. Distance: 50.8 NM
Winds: N to NNE 10-18K Seas:
1-2 ft. waves, 4 ft. NE swells
Weather: mainly sunny & a bit warmer
 |
| Last Bahamian Sunset-- Little Bahama Bank |
Good Friday! And
Happy Anniversary Terri & Bill! No
church & no anniversary celebrations.
The northerly winds picked up after dark to +/- 15K, but
by dawn they settled down to +/- 10K.
SSB report at 0630 hrs. reported the weather as still favourable to
moving to the Little Bahama Bank waypoint today & on to Ft. Pierce
tomorrow; now Sunday was added as a good day as well, so our plans now have a
day of grace built into them. Several
boats departed early, some in direction of Memory Rock, some to Little Bahama
Bank & others further north ie Cape Canaveral. There were a few whitecaps on the 1 ft. waves
as we got under way under sail with a full jenny at +/- 6.0- 6.5K on a beam reach & motoring in idle to
charge items. The waves increased to 2
ft. with sustained winds of 15-18K till well after noon, then they slowly
decreased to 8-13K & shifted slightly more easterly. At 1230 hrs. we crossed onto the Little
Bahama Bank where the water was a striking clear colour of turquoise. We were the 3rd boat to anchor at
the Little Bahama Bank waypoint (26o 55’N
70o 03’W), anchoring in not so shallow but 19 ft. & 140 ft. chain,
with the bank shelf of turquoise water’s edge meeting & dropping to near 75
ft. depths of the cobalt or indigo blue water of the Straits of Florida, just
shy of our anchorage. But like our sail,
it was quite rocky & rolly due to the NE swells. Four of us anchored at this spot but not for
long…..
This was the last of aqua to turquoise water, the last of
quiet, tranquil & peaceful Bahamian anchorages & lifestyle, the last of
some of the friendliest people I have met, both cruisers & locals. And guess what? The last Bahamian sunset with patch work
clouds only above with a very slight
Bahamian green flash! Or was it
my imagination, or greater yet that desire to see my last Bahamian green flash?
Sat. Mar. 30,
2013—Day 179:
Destination: Little Bahama Bank to Ft. Pierce, Florida
Departure: Fri. at 2100 hrs. Arrival: Sat. at 0900 hrs. Distance: 63.4 NM
Winds: E 6-10K, increasing 15-20K Seas:
3-1/2 ft. swells, decreasing near dawn
Weather: mostly clear & stars +++, 7/8 moon light
up the night sky, mainly sunny day with cool breeze & clear starry skies
 |
| Removing the Bahamian Flag |
It was a unanimous decision between the 4 boats that we
would not stay here overnight as it was too bouncy, but leave at 2100 hrs.
& do an overnight passage. It wasn’t
till after the passage that we learnt that Terri & Bill felt seasick at
anchor. It was too bouncy for Graeme to
refuel & he felt it was not necessary, so he tried to sleep, but sleep did
not come. Grilled cheese sandwiches for
supper at 2000 hrs., sandwiches & a pot of coffee made for overnight. We up anchored in the pitch dark under
zillions of stars; the 7/8 moon did not rise until 2200 hrs.—a huge orange ball
until it was high in the sky. We all
agreed to maintain about +/-6K but 2 of us travelled towards St. Lucie Inlet
with expectations that the Gulf Stream would push us north (proved to be the
slightly, less ongoing corrective course) & 2 boats motored directly to Ft.
Pierce waypoint, adjusting position as necessary along the way. We were unable to set any sails as the wind
was too light & directly behind, whereas those that departed from the Issac
Rock area likely had a beam reach sail. The
NNE to NE swells made it a bit bouncy & rolly. Phosphorescence was seen on the waves off the
boat. We took 2 hour shifts to begin
with but Graeme did 0200 hrs. onwards for some reason; I slept in the cockpit
till 0400 hrs. Everyone checked in to
the group every hour. About 10 mi. (0530
hrs.) from shore our GPS lost it’s fix a couple of times. Our intent was to pass through the inlet at
slack tide (0806 hrs.), therefore we were all going too fast & had to slow
up. The American flag was taken down
& the ‘Q’ flag took it’s place at dawn before entering port. Daybreak put a more familiar perspective on
the sea. Ft. Pierce is a nice wide &
deep inlet. Being a weekend & Easter
weekend at that, there was a fair number of recreational boat traffic
especially fishing boats + local earlybird fishermen. The dolphins were swimming, eating playing
all around us as we passed the entrance to Harbortown Marina & prepared to
anchor. We anchored in the small &
shallow anchorage south of the North Bridge (bascule), outside of Harbortown
Marina—strong current. Other options
were City Marina or the anchorage by City Marina or Faber Cove. A good thing we anchored early because in the
afternoon there would have been no space; as it was it was too crowded. I called Mom in Ottawa, we showered, launched
the dinghy & tied up to Terri & Bill’s boat as they took a slip in
Harbortown Marina. We were unable to
rent a car (none or too expensive), after 3-15 min. attempts unable to get our
long digit number from Border & Homeland Security to check into Customs
& Immigration & to add to our frustrations we were rudely spoken to on
the VHF when making plans for the above.
To my American friends I apologize, BUT welcome to the US! In the long run we took a taxi to the St.
Lucie County Airport-- $13.00 each way.
It was mandatory that we have the long digit number; finally after
waiting 25 min. on our cell we were successful & cleared our way into the
USA. A light lunch at the marina
restaurant, then we all walked a few blocks to the West Marine & the
Publix. I called Lynn & Larry to
find their whereabouts & plans. A
reddish sky after sunset; someone tried to blow a conch but it just wasn’t the
same. A clear starry night with gusting
winds.
 |
| Last Bahamian Sunrise |
Sun. Mar. 31, 2013—Day
180:
Destination: Ft. Pierce (Mile 964.8)
Winds: SE calm to gusty 10-15K to S by sunset at 10K
Weather: mainly sunny but a cool breeze, H= mid 70’s
& L= mid 60’s
Happy Easter! But no proximity to any Church!
 |
| Pelican in Flight |
A calm, quiet night with
some bridge traffic & a nearby train, but slept soundly. A calm start to the day; the Coast Guard
message warned of increasing winds to 20K & rough seas from Jupiter Inlet
to the south & Sebastien Inlet to the north; mid morning SE winds gusted
up. It was certainly shallow here in
this anchorage; we saw 5’4” to 5’6” at low tide & ‘Second Option’ in their
slip in Harbortown Marina were well aground at 3’4”! For the second time in 2 consecutive days
I’ve been rudely told to get off the VHF 71, a pleasure channel & use a
cell or landline as today the excuse was that I was interrupting his
fishing! I blew it & told him to
quit listening to my conversation or turn his radio off if I was interrupting
his fishing & happy Easter! I knew I
needed to reacquaint & readjust to mainland living but this was ridiculous. If I could I would never come back to
Florida! It’s amazing, we did not have
even 1 person that was rude or unpleasant or even unfriendly throughout the
Bahamas! There are always a few that
spoil it for the majority! Graeme added
2 diesel jerry cans & 1-1/2 water jerry cans to the boat tanks; he sprayed
clean water on the dodger & enclosure side windows which were heavily laden
with salt. We spoke to a fellow cruiser
from the U.K. who had 3 yrs. spent with his wife cruising in the Caribbean,
then this winter Puerto Rico & the Bahamas & now the US; because of the
US Cruising Permit Laws it is not feasible for him to cruise in the USA X 1 yr.
as his cruising permit will expire & he would then have to leave the US for
15 days before renewing the cruising permit, therefore he is forced to sell his
boat & not cruise & spend money in the USA. That applies to us as well but with Graeme
being an American citizen the Virginian Border & Homeland Security thusfar has
waived that 15 days. After lunch we
dinghied to Terri & Bill’s boat, walked to the West Marine, tried
unsuccessfully to walk to the City Marina, charged my computer & checked a
few emails, while Terri did laundry & Bill switched to a Bruce anchor &
washed his chain locker & deck; at the laundry prices here I will wait till
Vero Beach which are expensive enough. We
saw a sea otter swimming through the marina.
Lynn & Larry Morrow had a hell of a sail with 22K winds & 4 ft.
seas from Marathon. We returned to the
boat late afternoon & had a nap. I
have not quite adjusted to DST & eating until dark which isn’t till after
2000 hrs. Sunset was obscured by low
level clouds; an orangey pink sky just above the clouds followed & the
winds were slowly decreasing. With all
the lights around it was hard to detect how much cloud there was but some stars
were visible.
Mon. Apr. 1, 2013—Day 181:
Destination: Ft. Pierce (Mile 964.8) to Vero Beach (Mile
951.7)
Departure: 1020 hrs. Arrival: 1240 hrs. Distance:
Winds: W 8-18K & gusty
Weather: cloudy, threatening rain clouds, few sun & blue
sky patches & mostly sunny afternoon
A sleepful night &
woke to a warm, slightly humid, cloudy morn.
After breakfast Graeme took the 3 empty diesel jerry cans to refill at
Harbortown Marina. We pulled the motor
& dinghy on the davits & waited a bit for the tide to come up a bit
more. We went through the Ft. Pierce
North Bridge (bascule) with 2 other northbound sailboats & 1
southbound. A few spits of rain as we
motorsailed under ¾ jenny with west winds gusting up & down from 8-18K at
an average speed of 5.5-6.8K. It took a
long time for Vero Municipal Marina to answer our hail to receive our mooring
ball assignment. Eventually we were
assigned to the empty #2 mooring ball (south anchorage) close to the entrance
with ‘Second Option’ as our neighbours.
We learnt that ‘Whiski Mak’ was still here. Some supper preparations were done for dinner
guests, Terri & Bill this evening.
We saw a sea otter by shore & dolphins gracefully swimming amongst
the boats. Late in the afternoon we rode
to shore to officially sign in at the marina office, took a lovely long hot
shower & read just a few emails. We
discovered that other people we had met earlier in the trip in Staniel Cay were
also here. We had a lovely dinner on a
lovely warm night in the cockpit. Thank
you Terri for baking a golden cake with dark chocolate icing—delicious! A simple delightful evening. A glorious evening sky, light winds, dark
night sky with few stars.
Tues. Apr. 2, 2013—Day
182:
Destination: Vero Beach (Mile 951.7)
Winds:
Weather:
 |
| Ibis |
It was an early morning
rise, to shore for a shower after breakfast & climbed on the 0810 hrs. Go
Line #1 bus from the marina to the transfer point, then the #2 bus to
Target. First order of business was a
haircut ($15.00)—not great. We shopped
the specials at Bells; Tues. is senior discount day + store specials + new
customer discount. We walked to Walmart
for reprovisioning of beer & most food; will purchase fresh fruit &
meat closer to departure day. We took
‘Anywhere Car Service’ (Johnny) who taxied us, Terri & Bill & all our
groceries to the marina for a total of $12.00 + tip ($9.00 for 2 persons). Bill, Graeme & I returned to town by bus
to West Marine & ABS Liquor & back.
We organized a gathering of at Riverside Café—‘Second Option’, ‘Whiski
Mak’, ‘Cocoon II’, ‘Plan B’ & ourselves.
We all returned to our respective boats before sunset. No internet today. The red sun setted behind the land of west
Florida. A clear night sky with stars
& calm.
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