Exumas

To say the water is turquoise doesn't come close to capturing the range of shades of blue.  The plethora of color hues ranging from white, turquoise, emerald, sapphire to the deeper water of deep blue to black. 
 I don’t have the vocabulary to truly describe these beautiful waters.   And just saying the water is clear isn't enough.  The joy of sailing through 15 feet of water  and looking down to see the coral, grasses and variety of fish is like sailing in a large aquarium.   Unlike the brown water sailing we are use to, here we are able to check our anchor’s grip, just by looking over the bow of the boat.  The camera can’t fully capture the colors but they are forever in our memory.

I recommend that anyone who enjoys the water,  take the time and sail around on the banks;  island to island. You'll glide over water that stays 10-15 feet deep for hundreds of miles.  Except for a few easy to see coral heads, there's nothing to interrupt the relaxation of cool breezes, blue skies and easy sailing. 

Our salty dog, Simon has been enjoying standing watch through the clear water for sea creatures.

At the Exuma Land and Sea Park we 

climbed Boo Boo Hill and placed a Panasea memento to mark our visit.

As we left the Park our friends gave us a Gumbie send off.

Next stop was Big Majors to feed the pigs.  Simon enjoyed looking for stingrays and we think he saw bacon as he watched the pigs. 

These pigs are feral and weigh approximately three hundred plus pounds and yet they swim like graceful giants…anything for food. 

In Staniel Cay we met with Steve’s cousin and fellow sailor Denis.  We enjoyed the afternoon at Thunderball Grotto.  Didn't see James Bond but did see plenty of Sargent Majors (fish).

Biscayne Bay to Exuma Land and Sea Park

Perhaps this entry should start with something profound like, "Call me Ishmael..."   My apologies for it’s length but  we have been awhile without internet connection capable of downloading pictures.  Thus this entry has been ongoing as we crossed the Gulf Stream and journeyed to  Bahama Exuma Land and Sea Park.  

Repeating myself…our plans are written in sand at low tide.  We were to have crossed the Gulf Stream to Bimini on Friday, 5/10.    Awoke at 3am to overcast skies and a storm off to our West.  There was a lot of lightening in the distance and the weather tracking looked as if the squall was moving away from us.  Our gut instincts said otherwise due the changing wind direction and cooler wind  temperature.  Didn't really matter since our Gulf Stream crossing was postponed due to the port engine overheating.   We thought it might be a simple air lock so the lines were checked and burped but the problem persisted.   We navigated north to Angel’s Cut planning to leave for Bimini Saturday morning.  I won't repeat myself about plans changing, but a few things happened along the way…the seas kicked up and we were seeing “marching elephants”, a jib sheet  roller block weld broke and the port engine continued to overheat.   On a good note, no one was hurt and we saw large (approximately 5’ ) sea turtles mating in the ocean. 

 Plans continued to change and we headed further north to Biscayne Bay’s No Name Harbor.  This Harbor provides good protection from the winds and because we were arriving early evening on Friday we beat the usual weekend crowd,  selecting a prime anchorage spot.   Simon loved the idea of terra ferma and a bike ride.   

 

  Steve worked on the engine issue and we biked to the local hardware store for supplies  to rig a temporary jib car roller.  With most of the issues resolved and the weather window still looking favorable we decided to head East to Bimini on Mother’s Day.

It’s been said that the Gulf Stream is God’s way of telling you that your boat isn’t as big as you think it is. Attempting to cross that 40-nm stretch of water under the wrong conditions is treacherous and foolish.  We have a minimum of three weather resources  utilized to compare projected forecasts.  Usually they are all similar; however, once in a while we will identify conflicting projections.   Since we are not on a time schedule  we prefer to wait for a favorable window  making for a  pleasant sail.  We were blessed with just that on Sunday and we made the 50NM trip in six hours, averaging 8kts  with small seas (2-3’) on close haul.   The Gulf Stream required change in our heading to close haul from beam reach due to drift created by the approximate 3kt current.     

After arriving in the Bahamas and clearing customs, Cappie hoisted the Bahama courtesy flag.  

Once settled in at Bimini Sands Marina we set off to explore.  

   Bimini means “two islands” in the native Lucayan Indian language.   These islands have a  history of swashbuckling pirates and were completely de-populated between 1492 and 1520 due to Spanish raiders removing the aboriginal people (Lucayan Indians) and carrying them to other West Indian islands to work as slaves in Spanish gold and silver mines.   Some famous residents include Sir Francis Drake,  Capt  Henry Morgan and Blackbeard.   In more recent times, Colorado Senator Gary Hart’s presidential bid was derailed when pictures surfaced of him  in Bimini on a yacht named Monkey Business.  This sleepy little set of island’s is hoping to pick up revenue with a soon to be opened Bimini Bay Resort & Casino.  This Resort's primary investor is artist Guy Harvey, most noted for his Marlin prints.  It is interesting that so many of the locals are learning Spanish in an effort to better serve the increasing number of  Miami  tourist.   I can hear it now, "Hola Mon".

   

Bimini is known as the “Big Game Fishing Capital of The World”.  The town is currently a buzz with cleaning, painting and landscaping activity in preparation for an upcoming Fishing event scheduled Memorial Day weekend.   The slips around us are starting to fill with various size fishing boats and some seriously expensive looking rods on board.  

  This tiny little set of islands has a beautiful Nature Trail we explored .   Simon our tour guide and was quick to flush out any lizards and geckos.  

The nature trail leads to the ruins of what was once Australian professional swimmer, Percy Cavill’s home. 

                                         The home has a “perfect window” to the ocean.    

The Nature Trail is home to the Bimini Boa, numerous racing lizards, gecko, termites and beautiful plant life.  Conch shells abound on the beaches here and we have enjoyed evenings of beautiful sunsets on private beaches.

After leaving South Bimini our passage took us across the Great Bahama Bank  to Chub Cay for a quiet night of anchoring. 

For a second long day of transit we journeyed along the NE Providence Channel to Nassau.  We dropped the hook outside of the Nassau Harbor on the NW side of Athol Island.  There was only one other boat anchored at this anchorage with a sunset view.

Left Nassau heading SE to Highbourne Cay Sunday 5/19.  Unfortunately the winds were mostly on our nose so sailing required long tacks.   Fortunately we have averaged 5-6 kts while on close haul in 10-15 kt winds.  We anchored on the western shores of Highbourne Cay and were surrounded by several boats of various sizes.  The  anchorage is  large enough that it doesn’t feel crowded.  

One large vessel had a flume off the top deck (approximately 30+ ft) with various other water toys (2 jet skis, 2 paddle boards, 2 kayaks, floating dock, etc).   

Took the tender into Highbourne for Monday Brunch, to visit the local grocery and take a look around.  There are no cars or buses on the island only golf carts and bicycles.  The beaches are beautiful and the trails interesting with a sense of humor thrown in. 

Later in the day Steve rode the tide in as he snorkeled Octopus Garden  while tethered to the dink. 

 Once we returned to the boat we were all in the water enjoying a refreshing dip, Simon too.  The mega yacht had a big beach side Tiki Party our last night at Highbourne and entertained us with fireworks.

Sailed to Wardrick Wells Exuma Land and Sea Park Tuesday,5/21.  A storm threatened so it was nice to be on a mooring ball in protected anchorage.  

There was no lightening and the soft gentle rain allowed Steve the opportunity to wash our salt lick of a boat.  The sky is to clear later this afternoon and we will take to exploring the island’s trails.  

Bahama Bound

The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.

                                                               ~William Arthur Ward

A good period of weather is called a “weather window.” Weather windows have a habit of forming and collapsing like soap bubbles. The 10-day forecast says there’s good wind and speed direction for a long enough period of time.   We make plans to make that window then, six day forecast shows the desired wind-shift might be four days out but becoming shorter in duration. Four days later that desirable wind-shift has disappeared altogether. But wait...there’s another window that looks promising just seven days out, and that’s how it goes.   We would ideally prefer 10-20kt winds out of the S or SW so we can sail.    All conditions are looking favorable for going to Rodriguez Key Thursday, 5/9 and crossing to South Bimini Bahama,  Friday 5/10.  In the Bahamas we will have limited (probably weekly) email access and receive text messages for free.  Since our response to text messaging has a fee, dependent upon the situation, we may delay response until email service is available.

Our tentative route will take us from South Bimini to Chub Cay (Berry Islands) south to New Providence (Nassau),  Exumas (Allen’s Cay to Staniel Cay) then return north to Eluethera (Spanish Wells) and further north to Abacos (Lynard Cay to Allans-Pensacola Cay) on to Grand Bahama (West End).    We anticipate returning to the east coast of Florida by late June and will post updates to the Blog as circumstances allow.

Why did the chicken cross the road?  Don’t know the answer to that, but we do know why Panasea is crossing the Gulf Stream….to see beautiful turquoise waters.

Hope all the Mom’s reading this have a

         Happy Mother’s Day

Conch Republic

While awaiting the “bloody battle” we did the remaining tourist attractions missed on our last trip here.  Went to Earnest Heminghway’s Key West Home and learned about six toed cats.  These cats are the descendants of Ernest Hemingway’s six toe felines.  A veterinarian has long visited the museum once a week for routine procedures such as ear mite treatment, flea spraying, worming and annual vaccination.  To keep the cats “on display”  the museum had to obtain a license and keep the cats in individual cages each night, tag each cat for identification and build elevated resting surfaces for the cats.  The Museum sued to challenge the federal government’s assertion of jurisdiction over its cats but the US District Court in Miami ruled, on appeal,  in favor of the US Government and stated the museum was an “animal exhibitor”.   Our tax dollars at work.   I digress...six toed cats are thought to be good luck thus Ernest Hemingway liked to have them around for positive karma.  It must have worked because Key West is where he wrote  Farewell to Arms, To Have and Have Not,  For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Green Hills of Africa, The Snows of Kilimanjaro and a couple of other lesser known works.

Hemingway was known for his fishing here and his record catch of 54 marlin in one day.  Fishing is plentiful and we were located near several charter fishing vessels.  We recently  had Yellow Fin Snapper thanks to the local fisherman who  was generous to give the fish along with the proper cracker crumb batter ingredients.

 The Butterfly Exhibit/Conservatory was enchanting and a rainbow’s spectrum of color.  The beautiful winged ones were very playful and friendly.

Went to some of the event celebrating the Conch Republic.   The “bloody battle” is a fun dramatization of the founding of the Conch Republic.   The Conch Republic website notes "dedication to the fundamental American spirit of a people unafraid to stand up to ‘government gone mad with power’ that embodied the founding of the Conch Republic in 1982. As the world’s first fifth nation, a sovereign state of mind seeking only to bring more humor, warmth and respect to a world in sore need of all three, the Conch Republic remains the country who succeeded where others failed.”   The Key’s succession was in response to a Hwy US1 blockade established to show proof of  US citizenship prior to entering  Florida mainland.   Mayor Wardlow proclaimed secession 4/23/82 and establishment of a new independent nation, Conch Republic.  After one minute of rebellion (stale Cuban bread was the weapon of choice), the now, Prime Minister Wardlow  surrendered to the Union Forces and demanded one billion dollars in foreign aid and War Relief to rebuild the nation after the long Federal siege.  Nothing short of PR genius, was this 1982 event.    

The week long celebration includes the “bloody battle” where planes and boats throw stale bread, toilet paper roll bombs and shoot water cannons.  There is a craft fair, Bed Races, Longest Parade and various other activities which culminated for us in the “Taste of Key West” venue.  All a lot of fun and good eats!

The fun continued as we were on the Committee Boat for the last Wrecker’s Race of the season.   The Wrecker’s Race is a seven mile (to Sand Key)  reenactment of the time in Key West history when wreckers would race to a disabled ship, rescuing the crew and laying claim to the cargo. The day of the race,  winds were averaging 15kts and conditions were perfect for sailing, thus a large participation  of 50+ boats.    Thank you Jeff, Diesel and Capt Kelly for the great experience! 

Boat projects continue but now occupy less of our time.  We are busy preparing for our much anticipated trip to the Bahamas.   Fellow cruisers who have returned from wintering in the Bahamas and USVI report  it has been an unseasonably cooler and windy winter.  Perhaps our delay in going will be to our benefit.   We feel like kids anticipating a trip to Disney World.  As I write this we have returned to the mooring field in Boot Key Harbor at Marathon Key.  We will transit to Rodriguez Key one or two days prior to a "weather window" to cross to Bimini in the Bahamas.  Once the weather window has been identified we will post an update with our float plan.