The Big Turnaround

The day after my last attempted entry at Staniel Cay we anchored the boat a couple hundred yards from Thunderball Grotto. This underwater cave was made famous in the James Bond flick "Thunderball". We donned our snorkeling gear and jumped ship. It was spectacular. The water here is in the low 80's-perfect. Schools of fish swam right up to us looking for food and it was such a sight: swarms of electric blue, purple, lime green and bright yellow fish amongst the varied and equally colorful coral. We went at low slack tide in order to swim right into the cave and also with hopes that the current wouldn't be too swift. Going was a piece of cake, trying to swim back against the current was severely humbling. Needless to say we made it back alive but it was quite a vigorous workout. I can't remember ever being so thankful for my strong yoga lungs!

Later that day we moved down to Great Guana and found a nice quiet little anchorage with hopes of relaxation. The long weekend at Staniel Cay was possibly the most fun I have had yet-it was a party! Just by chance we arrived as the James Bond /Casino Royale weekend bash was kicking off. Everyone was in high spirits and got dressed up either like Bond or a Bond girl for the festivities which included dancing, poker (I won the first night at my table!) and blackjack. After two nights of dancing into the wee hours I was exhausted and it was time to move on. That's kind of how we've been arranging this trip. For ten days or so we explore the beaches and trails of the lesser inhabited islands and then we're ready to once again enter civilization, get fresh water, and liven it up a bit. After a couple of days of that we're ready to embrace the peaceful solitude of the winds and waves. It's a good life.

So, anyway, back to Great Guana. The only thing to report here is that Chili took his first fall overboard. It was the last day of lobster season and Chip set off with his Hawaiian sling to bring home dinner (no luck). Whenever anyone gets in the water Chili freaks out so I was trying to distract him with treats and scratches down below in the cabin. That worked for about ten minutes, but he is no fool. He bolted up top and I could hear his nails tick-tacking up on deck for a bit...and then I noticed no more tick-tacking. I went up to check things out and there was no Chili. No Chili on the boat and no Chili in the water that I could see. I was frantic! Did a shark eat him? Did he drown? Terrible thoughts. I screamed for Chip, he came rushing back and spotted Chili doggie paddling back by the rudder under the steps leading from the stern to the water. Poor little thing! I jumped down and rescued him. He seemed to forgive me instantly. It's amazing. He was totally unfazed and I don't think he learned his lesson at all.

We decided to book it down to Georgetown and maximize on a good weather window to make the necessary off shore passage. On the way, one night was spent at Lee Stocking Island where there is the Bahamas Marine Research Center. I was interested in taking a tour but they require six people to a group and as we don't have the ability to replicate ourselves on we went! It was a long trip down to Georgetown on Great Exuma mainly due to the fact that the wind is perpetually coming from the direction we are trying to go. In any case we made it without any major hitches-there are always minor hitches.

We only spent one day anchored off Georgetown where we filled up with water, made a few phone calls to our loved ones to let them know we had reached our most southern point and to check the grocery situation. Back in the States I never thought that fresh produce could so thrill me, but it does! I happened to pop into Exuma Markets on the very day the produce boat came in and I really stocked up on the leafy greens and fruits. It makes me smile just thinking about it. After our errands were taken care of we moved Tranquility over to Stocking Island-just east of Georgetown. This is where all of the cruisers hang out and it has developed its own sort of hippie community glory. In the guidebooks it says that the people who come here stay here and do nothing but plan cocktail parties and pot luck dinners and talk about why it is impossible for them to go anywhere else. It's true! There is a lot of radio chatter (one of my favorite things is to follow conversations on the radio) and there seems to be a very firmly established water village. I personally met a guy whose boat broke down three years ago; he has no intention of going anywhere anytime soon. I don't blame them one bit-it is paradise realized. We were there from last Thursday until Monday and would have stayed much longer but we are excitedly anticipating company in the Abacos starting at the end of April.

After the weekend we finally made the big turnaround and began heading north. Naturally we had to travel off shore and retrace our path back up. The weather gods were not so kind this time around. Winds were about fifteen to twenty miles an hour higher than predicted and it was ROUGH. Early in the day, Chip managed to catch two fish within five minutes on lines he was trolling- a skipjack tuna and a mahi-mahi. He let the tuna go free and kept the mahi for dinner. We only take what we will eat and are very grateful. Later in the day the seas really became intense- so intense in fact that I got seasick for the first time ever. I didn't throw up, but really wish I could have. It was immobilizing and so miserable. During the worst of it dishes were broken due to heavy rocking and gallons of water made it into the cabin! We didn't make it as far as planned and went back inside the lee of the islands to sleep overnight at Rudder Cut Cay and recuperate. The next morning I was good to go so we set off for Black Point on Great Guana Cay.

Such a sweet town. We arrived this past Wednesday and the Easter weekend celebration was already in full swing. Are you noticing a trend here? It is all about the celebrations! The streets were filled with delicious smells and we met such genuinely nice people. Life is lived differently in the Bahamas. The people seem so fully alive. Family is important, people chat and play in the streets all day, they work a little, enjoy a lot and are pleased with the simple blessings of life. It's wide open. I love it.

We read in our books of the protected iguana habitat on Bitter Guana Cay and had to go see. What weird, huge reptiles! These are not the little green iguanas we sometimes see as pets in America, these are positively dinosauresque (my own word). They aren't the slightest bit afraid of humans and came right up to us. It was a little scary at first, I admit. We took along some celery to feed them. Some liked it and others turned up their scaly noses at our offerings. As my little cousin Hannah used to say "I wanted to kiss them on the lips!" But I resisted; I don't think they have lips. :)

 

 

  

The Exumas are beyond words!

Right this minute I am in the bar of Staniel Cay Yacht Club. The music is fantastically loud and there is the dull roar of masses of people talking and laughing. It is awesome! However, not really conducive to a long, thoughtful entry. The Exumas are truly beyond words to describe. So, I will let these pictures speak for themselves. Thus far we have spent time at Highborne Cay, Norman's Cay, Hawksbill Cay, Warderick Wells in the Land and Sea Park of the Exumas and Staniel Cay. I promise to relay some of the details of our travels when I can think straight!

Cruising the Bahamas in my pajamas

We had a last minute change of plans and instead of visiting Hopetown we decided to take advantage of a good weather window to make the offshore passage from the Abacos to Eleuthera. Friends on another Island Packet (hi Chuck and Trudy!) buddy-boated with us and we made the crossing with no problem. It took us from sunrise to moonrise (full moon!) to make it to Royal Island off the northern tip of Eleuthera. I did spot a waterspout that was maybe a little over a mile away. In the picture here it looks tiny, but trust me, it was quite menacing in real life-we could even see the upheaval on the water's surface. We were about to adjust our course to avoid intersecting its path, but just as quickly as it appeared it was gone. Royal Island was a calm, dependable anchorage, but that was it. Quite a depressing place actually, so the next morning we moved on. That's the nice thing about living on a boat: if you don't like where you are for any reason, you can go somewhere else! I have been cruising the Bahamas in my pajamas. We sometimes sail for days without seeing another soul, so who cares? :)

I read wonderful things about our next stop-the independent, lovely island of Spanish Wells-and a layover was definitely called for after three days of consecutive togetherness. All three of us were driving each other bonkers so we struck out in different directions to refresh and exercise. The homes here were brightly colored (Bahamian style) and well taken care of, the people were talkative and kind and I have never seen a cemetery that had more love lavished upon it. Each island is quite distinct from all the others. The people have varying accents, different architecture, some cays are prospering and others are deteriorating. That evening we anchored off of a beach at Meek's Patch.

The next morning we sailed a good ways to Hatchet Bay. Eleuthera is definitely more remote than the Abacos. It's not so much a tourist destination and the safe anchorages are farther apart. Hatchet Bay was praised in our books as a good place to see, caves to explore, etc. They were wrong. Hatchet Bay is an industrial wasteland. There was garbage everywhere, creepy abandoned boats, even creepier trashed dark caves and the water was brown! Everywhere else we have seen absolutely pristine waters and it has seemed as if people have pride in and respect for the beauty of their homeland.

Our next destination was Governor's Harbor and it was exactly what was needed to remove the bad aftertaste of Hatchet Bay. There were picturesque roads galore to hike up and down, miles of beaches to walk, and the whole place smelled like blooming flowers. There are dogs everywhere around here just smiling and roaming around looking to make friends with whoever comes along. Chili is very popular and they get to romp all over the sands playing together. We stayed in Governor's Harbor for two nights and then heard that bad weather was moving through, so we decided to get to a marina.

We are currently at Cape Eleuthera Resort and Marina close to the bottom of Eleuthera. We have been here since Monday evening and have only seen one rain shower. Wouldn't you know it-the rain finally came this morning (Thursday) when I was about two miles away from the boat on my morning run! It felt amazing actually and made all of the island smells even more potent. Nature is spectacular. It is quiet here this time of year. We have been playing at the beach, reading, watching movies on our portable dvd player (electricity!), going for walks, and sprucing up Tranquility. When we are sure the high winds have passed through we are leaving for the Exumas. I am excited! The Exumas are said to be one of the most beautiful stretches of earth and a large portion of the cays are protected as a land and sea park. Everything that I read leads me to believe that we will be really isolated there. I will take lots of pictures and keep a log of our explorations so that when I come across Internet access I will be ready to share with you!
-Caitlin