A Great Day!

This morning we got up early and headed North. We were planning on just doing a half day and anchoring South of Georgetown, but when we got to our anchorage around lunchtime, the wind had piped up and the anchorage we had picked out was extremely choppy. With high tide still on our side, we opted to go ahead and press on towards Georgetown. We made it through the remainder of the shallows without incident and before we knew it, we were in the wide open river running by Georgetown.

We threw up our sails and killed the engine, eager to enjoy an afternoon of sailing. I had just settled in for a nap in the shade of the bimini when I felt the first flutter of movement from our little baby. The flutter turned to full on movement - apparently sailing was in his blood and he loved it as much as we did! He carried on for quite awhile as we made our way up past Georgetown. It was an all around fantastic day and we made it North of Georgetown, where we dropped anchor under sail along a wide stretch of the ICW. It was a perfect evening at anchor and we savored our final night out on the hook. Tomorrow we would stay at a marina.

The following day, we had a visitor bright and early when I took Koa out to pee. I snapped a few pictures of him as the sun was coming up.

Despite my early start, we had a leisurely breakfast and upped anchor by mid-morning. We had a great motor through some beautiful cypress swamps - the scenery was perfect. These waters were reputed to be some of the most beautiful on the ICW and we couldn't have agreed more. We even motored right by the building where we attended the wedding of some of our dear friends only 3 years before!

We made it to Osprey Marina in South Myrtle by early afternoon and tied up to the transient dock. The dock was quite a trek from the office, but that was of no concern to us because the dock master greeted us at our slip with a golf cart for our usage while we were there. Not only was that a first for us, but we were also given an awesome welcome bag - filled with information about the area, menus for the restaurants that delivered to the marina and some snacks and jars of locally made jelly. How's that for a welcome?!! This place was great!

We called Brad's mom and told her we had pulled in to a marina not far from her and would she like to come get us so we could all go out to dinner. We met up at the office and headed out for a nice dinner on land. We were happy to finally be close to our destination and turned in early for our last night on the boat.


Snapped some pics with our sailing mutt:

Georgetown Take 2

Well, here we are back in Georgetown. Even though we never thought we would end up back here, we have made the best of it and only stayed for a few days before heading farther North up the Exumas.

We did get to meet up with some friends that were still lingering around town (most of the cruisers start heading back to the States by now) and we sailed into town just in time for a poker night. I decided I would join Brad up at St. Francis for dinner since they make my favorite cracked conch (seriously...just like crack).

We made time to do a few repairs to the boat, stock up on food and water and refill our fuel jerry jugs. Then we relaxed and enjoyed some serious beach time with the mutt and hiked around Stocking Island a bit, including a trip up to the Monument, which looks out across the whole harbour.

Unfortunately, while we were there, the local straw market, which was a building housing about ten women's goods for sale, went up in flames. It was a devastating blow to this community, as so many of the local families rely on that business. We could see the flames from across the harbour - all the straw (including a thatched roof) made for quite a blaze. We went in to town the next day and walked past the remains - devastating. But, by 4pm that afternoon, all the rubble had been cleared and it seemed that the town was banding together to get it rebuilt post haste. We couldn't stick around to see the final product, but hope they get it done quickly, as the Family Island Regatta is right around the corner.

We left Georgetown at first light on Friday morning and headed out into open seas. We threw out a fishing line in hopes of luring in a mahi, but it was to no avail. We had a good sail in calm seas and were happy to make it to the Exuma Sound well before dark and get the hook down in time to go for a quick dip and enjoy a spectacular sunset.

All In is the first Sailboat on the left....so close to the beach we would swim ashore to take Koa swimming!

The Velcro Effect

They call Georgetown "Chicken Harbour" and with good reason. Traveling to the Bahamas can be daunting to the novice sailor (I can say this from experience) but traveling deep water passages to the Caribbean islands beyond can be downright scary! I prefer to think of it as having a Velcro Effect - we had been wanting to leave for about two weeks, but constant volleyball games and begging of friends to stay for "one last sundowner" had kept us firmly entrenched in the Georgetown social scene, thus delaying our departure date.

So, finally yesterday morning, we got our butts in gear and headed off towards islands more East. The wind was predicted to be 15-20, building throughout the day. We set a reef in the sail and headed for the cut. The waves were manageable and I maneuvered us through the twists and turns around the reefs with caution. It wasn't until we turned to the NorthEast and out the final leg of the cut that we felt the full force of the waves. 3-5 foot waves, in close intervals, straight on the bow. These waves are not that large, but having them so close together made it hard for me to keep her on course and we were taking every other wave over the bow; the anchor was even being lifted out of the chock and slammed back down in place (luckily we double lock it in place these days!). After 30 minutes of driving straight through the waves, we were able to make a turn to starboard where we could have the wind (and waves) more comfortably on our beam.

We had our hopes set on making it to Rum Cay, but the weather had other plans. The wind had come around to a more NorthEast direction instead of the predicted North and thus would have been right on the nose to get to Rum. So, we picked Door Number 2 and headed East to Thompson Bay, Long Island. The wind was on the beam and even with a reefed mainsail being our only canvas up, we were heeled over quite a bit and making good time. For a short period, the wind fell off a bit and we got brave and thought we would put out our jib. This worked well for about an hour and we were getting fantastic speed, but when the wind picked up again, we were well over-canvassed and heeled over at a steady 25 degrees. While we no longer consider ourselves "novice" sailors, I am by no mean a salty sailor either and in fact prefer my boat to be more upright that heeled over (I know, I know, I should live on a catamaran!). Unfortunately with so much air in the sails and reef on our starboard side, there wasn't really much to do about this except hang on. While I was talking myself out of a panic attack, Brad held the helm steady and kept reassuring me that the boat was fine (thank god for my captain!). In my mind, I knew the boat was nowhere near its limits, but I could not say the same for myself!

After passing by the reefs, we were able to bring in the jib and sail the rest of the way in relative comfort. The winds had piped up to 20 knots by the time we reached Long Island and we were happy that we had left as early as we did - being out in 20 knot winds is NOT my idea of fun as it turns out.

With every intention of only staying here for the night, we were much chagrined to listen to the weather reports today and learn that this heavy East wind is forecasted to stay through the week. So, we will tune in again tomorrow, check multiple sources and see if our best bet is to stay here or try to sneak in small sails to islands farther along our course.

For now, a drink to the Sea Gods that we made it safely is in definite order for both of us!


Oh Captain My Captain!

I snuck my head over the Lee side of the boat for a quick pic; you can see how close the rail is to the waves rushing by:

This is how heeled over we were - I was obviously on the high side with the water way down behind me. And we were so heeled over that Koa has head lodged on the side of the lee seat, because that was actually flatter than the bottom of the cockpit where his bed was!

Georgetown Overview

We recently met 3 young guys traveling on a boat together who had stopped here in Georgetown while waiting for weather to head to Cuba. A really awesome trio of guys who are embracing the cruising life and taking in as much of the cultures they encounter as they can. No idea where they were headed after Cuba, but we will definitely be following their travels - I definitely recommend checking it out! "No Land In Sight"

One of the guys does paramotoring and he brought all his equipment with him. He went up multiple times, cruising around the Georgetown Harbour and made this amazing video compilation of his trips.

For those of you who can't picture what exactly this place looks like, this will give you a better idea. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: If you are prone to vertigo, beware!

First Regatta Flags!

Monday was a busy day for us as we had signed up for two events. We started first thing in the morning with the Scavenger Hunt. This, of course, was my idea. I'm like a 12 year old when it comes to these things. I was so excited I could hardly stand it! We had teamed up with two other boats, whom we did not previously know, and were going to split the list into thirds. There were five other teams of 6 competing as well, so we would have to be fast!

The list was long - two whole pages - and we had two hours to complete the hunt. We quickly went over the list and separated the items into areas around the harbor. Meaning, one team went to town, one went South and Brad and I went North. Some of the items we had on our boat so we were able to run and get those and then others were things that we had to collect off of other people's boats or questions about buildings around the harbour - how many butterflies are on a wall, who is the contractor of this building, etc...

We made it back before the allotted time and were thrilled to find that our team had collected all but one very elusive item (a cruisers regatta tshirt from 2000?!). We gathered our items and had the judge check us in. Once all the teams had returned, they announced the results - and we came in First Place!!! I was so excited! We each got a blue Regatta Flag and a gift certificate to a local restaurant. It was already shaping up to be an excellent day!!

Next, we wandered over to the beach to watch the small boat races. These were very entertaining, especially the blind rowing race. Two people were in a rowboat, the rower was blind folded and the other acted as a guide. They had to row quite a ways out around two buoys and back in. It was hysterical, with boats ramming into each other and going far in all kinds of wrong directions; most boats ended up having to be towed back in, but it was very entertaining to watch. There were also kayak races and downwind dinghy sailing races (homemade sails only).

In the afternoon, we, along with our friends on Hello Texas, had entered into the Coconut Challenge. This involves four people in a dinghy with no outboard, rowing out to collect as many coconuts as you can from the 1000 coconuts that they dump into this little inlet. The kicker is, you can only use snorkel fins as paddles and there are over 30 other boats in this tiny area with you, all trying to collect coconuts. Every team member must wear a life jacket in some way. Sinking other boats and soaking other players is encouraged. Unfortunately, we got stuck in a bottleneck and couldn't get out fast enough. We did not get anywhere near enough coconuts, but we had a blast anyway. And I think it is just as funny to watch this event from shore as to participate, if not more so. Watching adults paddle with fins, flailing around in the dinghies and acting like 10 year olds has to be an amusing sight for all.

All in all a fantastic day and when we got back to the boat, we had a flag raising ceremony and hoisted our first Regatta Flags up. Tomorrow Holly comes and more regatta events commence!

The Gtown Workout

Coming to Georgetown is always a shock to the system. While we lead a somewhat active lifestyle, we are not against lounging around the boat for half the day after spending the morning at the beach. Once we get to Georgetown, there are so many activities and friends to spend time with that we barely even see the boat!

We definitely stay active here and have in fact been doing so much that we are exhausted by the time the sun sets and are frequently in bed by 8pm (mind you we are up with the sun...so don't judge!) Not only are we exhausted but we are finally realizing that we are no longer in our 20s and exercise comes with a price - pulled muscles, aching muscles that we haven't used in forever and bruises galore.

Regardless, we have joined the cruisers softball team and practice twice a week for a couple hours. We also wormed our way into the competitive beach volleyball group = a "prestigious" group of about 10 men who play 3 on 3 and are very good. Somehow we have been allowed to play and we do that every day for a few hours. Add to that at least an hour on the beach swimming and playing with Koa in the afternoons and before we know it, it's dinnertime and we can both barely keep our eyes open through an entire movie.

On the nights we have sundowners with other boaters, we come back from the beach, do a quick rinse off so we are presentable, grab a snack and some drinks and head over to socialize until just after sunset. On those nights, we don't even bother with dinner - some lite appetizers and a few drinks and we are good for the night.

In our "down time" we work on boat projects, blog, check the weather and explore all the trails on the island with Koa. Brad also participates in poker twice a week - he has to live up to our boat name after all....

So on those few days when we play softball all morning and then decide to skip volleyball and lounge on the beach all afternoon, we love to just relax and soak in the sun and the leisure. And although we stay busy here, we love it and wouldn't have it any other way. So bring on the sun, sand, muscle aches and pains, and bottles of advil - we are here to cram as many good times and memories into our short visit as we can!

Georgetown or Bust!

1.28.15

Today we left Lee Stocking early to ride the tide out of the cut and headed out into open water. The wind, as usual, wasn't exactly where we wanted it to be so we decided we were going to just do one long tack and go out about 7 miles offshore and then come back and make it to the Georgetown cut around lunchtime.

Usually we like to sail instead of motor, but today the waves were big and they were on our stern throwing us and I was not thrilled about this decision to sail the whole way. This would add an extra hour onto our time out in open messy waters and that was the last thing I wanted. I was bummed about heading to Georgetown so early anyway and then to have these seas behind us was not my idea of a fun day. But, Brad was intent on sailing the whole way, so up went the sails and out to sea we headed.

I decided that since we were going to be in deep water for so long we were at least going to troll for some fish. After talking to a few other sailors along the way, I had learned that the Mahi were biting on pink squid lures. Lucky for me, I had a pink and white feather squid lure in my tacklebox!! So, I rigged one up and put a cedar plug on the other line and threw them off the stern. We had gone about 3 hours into the trip when we got a hit on the squid line! I was ecstatic!! I ran to the line and started to bring him in.

Now, this is easier said than done on a sailboat with 6 foot waves on the stern quarter rocking you from gunnel to gunnel and with no autopilot. So, we switched places and Brad got in place to reel in the fish while I reeled in the other line with one hand on the wheel. In between waves, I was throwing cushions up off the benches and grabbing the gaff and generally getting everything out of the way for when he could get the fish on board. When he finally got the fish, a small but decent sized Mahi we could now see, to the stern of the boat, he couldn't gaff it because the leader was so long. So, again with one hand on the wheel and one eye on the waves, I leaned back and swung the gaff in the general area that I knew the fish to be. SUCCESS!! I am one good gaffer!! We drug him on board and poured some vodka down his gills and then rejoiced in our catch! Brad filleted him up and I was so excited to have fresh fish that I threw the line back out again (although Brad wasn't thrilled about having to fillet another fish). Luckily for him, we did not get another hit for the remaining two hours of the trip.

We made it through the cut at lunchtime and had a thankfully uneventful trip in and headed straight over to anchor near town. We were in desperate need of provisions and water. After a few trips back and forth in the dinghy, we had gotten groceries, dropped off our laundry and filled our water tank. Just before dark, we weighed anchor and headed over to anchor on the Eastern side of the harbour where we would be protected from the winds and closer to the other boats and the beach! Tomorrow starts our true vacation and we can't wait to kick back and enjoy our time in Georgetown!

Christmas in Little Exuma

Since we were supposed to be already in Georgetown with our boat, my family decided Christmas in the Bahamas sounded great. So they booked a house on Little Exuma, booked their flights on Bahamas Air and were excited to spend December in the Bahamas! Unfortunately, we didn't make it on the boat, so last week we scrambled around and found flights and pet care for our babies and made the arrangements to join them over there. Of course, the day we left on an airplane, the weather was perfect for a crossing....but we try not to dwell on that....

The vacation was great! My parents were delayed on Bahamas Air, which was frustrating to them, but Brad and I were able to fly directly from Miami to Georgetown, pick up the rental car, get groceries, and scout out the house before we went back to pick them up. Unbeknownst to us, however, they had not made their flight from Nassau to Georgetown. We waited at the airport for four hours, waiting for the last flight in, in hopes they would be on it. We made friends with the airport workers who invited us to sit out front with them and enjoy beer and local food while they waited for the last flight as well - gotta love the Bahamas! When they weren't on the last flight, the locals we had befriended were able to track them down and let us know they would be on the morning flight. They even gave us their direct number to call in the morning and confirm my parents had boarded before driving all the way back to the airport again.

The next morning, after a call to our new friend, we headed to the airport to pick up my very tired parents, who were in surprisingly good spirits after their ordeal. Once we got in the car and started heading towards the house and they were able to see the surreal turquoise waters, they were in heaven!

The house was great and the weather was perfect. We stayed on Little Exuma in The Orange House on the Tropic of Cancer beach, purported to be one of the most beautiful beaches in the Bahamas, and swam, snorkeled and kayaked our days away. We were able to take them over, via water taxi, to Chat and Chill, a bar on the barrier island across from Great Exuma. They had a great time, except for when we accidentally sent them across a channel to snorkel and my mom almost got run over by a boat. Woops! We also toured around Little Exuma, as it is too far to reach as a cruiser unless you rent a car. We bought bread at a local bakery, shopped in some of the small stores and drove around searching out other perfect beaches or snorkel spots. We showed them the salt fields and they were able to climb up a little hill and look out at the beautiful water from an unobstructed view.

My sister and her boyfriend, David, were able to join us on Christmas Eve, and we spent Christmas day together on the beach. We swam the mile out to Turtle Rock and snorkeled around in hopes of finding some good coral. We were disappointed however and on the way back, I was exhausted and wishing I hadn't been so adventurous! When we got all the way back to the beach, Brad realized he had dropped our camera somewhere along the way. So.....back out we went. We snorkeled all the way back out to Turtle Rock and back again, where Brad promptly found the camera, sitting in 4 feet of water right off the beach where he had dropped it when we stood up the first time we came in. HA! At least we got our exercise for the day and were able to enjoy our delicious Christmas dinner.

We packed up our bags and left the house Friday morning and headed back into Georgetown to check in to a hotel in "downtown" Georgetown. The hotel was almost completely empty besides our family and the owners (who were in the process of fixing the place up) were delighted to have us! We inadvertently stumbled upon Junkanoo festivities that night, which we were excited to experience. Although they were not doing their typical parade celebration, there was a small gathering of locals drummers and some tourists who marched a few blocks down to the park across from our hotel. We watched them for a bit, danced along to the beat, had a few beers, then decided to turn in for the night. We all went to our separate rooms when we realized that the drums sounded louder, and were getting closer. We stepped outside and saw that the party had moved from the park to the little outside bar at our hotel.....and showed no signs of stopping. We all stood outside and watching for awhile before heading back to our rooms to try and get some sleep. The party wound down around 11 pm and we were all happy to hear the drums finally end their repetitive chorus.

My parents had to leave Saturday afternoon, so following breakfast together, Brad took them to the airport while Whitney, David and I took the water taxi over to Chat and Chill on Stocking Island. They were able to explore the island a bit and feed the stingrays. Brad, who joined us later, and I played volleyball with the cruisers and were able to catch up with a few old friend there on the beach. It made the desire to be back there on our boat even stronger!

The four of us had a nice dinner at Exuma Yacht Club and following breakfast the next morning, headed out on our flight back to Miami. My parents were delayed again on Bahamas Air (in case you aren't catching on....don't fly Bahamas Air!!) My dad insisted my sister switch off Bahamas Air and join us on our American direct flight to Miami. We rented a car and drove them up to Lauderdale so they could make their connecting flight to Charlotte and we could pick up our dog from our friend who watched him over the holiday.

We are finally safely back from the Bahamas and back on the boat, busily getting her ready for our big trip across the Gulf Stream. No window in sight yet, but we are determined not to miss the next one!