December 8, 2019
Gun Cay, Bahamas
25.34.995 N
79.18.26 W



Our overnight transit from Ft. Pierce to Miami was as calm as any we’ve ever made.  The few “big boys” (cruise ships) were mostly located around Ft. Lauderdale and behaved in an orderly fashion that we could weave through without undue stress; Dale disagrees and says there was plenty of stress.  One of the few sailboats we encountered, hailed us on the VHF and said that we might want to have our AIS antenna checked out as we weren’t putting out a signature until within a mile of another vessel.  I thanked him for the heads up and then thought “Great!, I haven’t worried about anything new in almost 10 minutes”. 


We entered the Port of Miami jetty at 7:40 am and proceeded to Miami Beach Marine for fuel where the manager on duty, Keston Superville, seemed unusually impressed to see a woman at the helm.  I had a nice chat with him about our long range plans and left with his telephone number as he has family in Trinidad that he promised to put us in touch with when we needed to make marina arrangements there. 


Once again we were underway at 8:45am but this time heading due east to Cat/Gun Cay in the Bahamas.  As nice as the transit was yesterday, today was sloppy.  The 12-15 knot winds ended up being 20-24 knots and the 1-1.5’ waves were decidedly taller.  All cats pound regardless of what the salesman may have told you and today, I thought my teeth were going to jar loose.  The occasional misbehaving wave would sneak though the hulls and slap against the bridge between the hulls causing a pounding that would raise the salon table.  I can take a bit but after a couple of hours, it really wears on your nerves. 


The “big boys” we met on this transit were mostly on the east side of the Gulf Stream and were going in both directions at the same time in a relatively narrow path as if they had their own street they were following.  I was on watch when one passed from south to north in front of me but using the AIS, I was able to see that it was going to pass behind us with a couple of miles clearance.  I then saw 2 more approaching from opposite directions and although I could see that they too would pass with plenty of clearance, the one that appeared from behind the one seen heading south, showed that it would only pass with a .5 mile separation.  I start to really watch anything passing within a mile of us.  As luck would have it, this was exactly 4 pm and shift change.  Dale came up and took over.  Then he got excited when the 4 ships became 5!  He kept our course and speed until the ones that were clearly going to pass us did so, then slowed to allow more clearance for the 2 that appeared to be a bit too close for comfort.  Whew! 


Normally we do not like coming into an unfamiliar anchorage after dark but due to the conditions and nightfall descending

at 5pm these days, we were forced to do so this evening.  Dale stood out on the bow with a flashlight and headset directing me in as I concentrated on the chartplotter’s suggested route calling out depths to Dale until we snugged into 13’ on what was supposed to be clear sand.  Dale played out the anchor and we waited for the tug to say that it was set.  What we got was a sound that we interpreted to be a rocky bottom.  After the hurricane this past summer, its possible that it was cleared of sand and this was what was left.  We let the anchor drag a bit and then the familiar tug was felt.  Hopefully tomorrow, we’ll be able to retrieve it without drama as we really don’t know what we set it.  In any event, we’re snugged behind Gun Cay which blocks the easterly trade winds from rocking us too much and as long as it stays quiet, we’ll get a good night sleep before checking in at Cat Cay in the morning. 


Now!  Time for a hot shower!