Georgetown
Great Exuma Island,
Bahamas
23.30.409N
75.45.770W


The weather forecast wasn’t any better today so we moved in a little closer to town and ran in to get a WiFi connection code for the week.

Vagu and another boat decided to try to make Emerald Marina a little farther north before the bad weather took hold but then didn’t leave until about lunchtime. We hope they make it.

Dale and I dinghied across the harbor to Volleyball beach and dropped in at Chat & Chill for a couple of cheeseburgers. We spoke with the owner/proprietor about his plans on expansion and hope that his dreams come to fruition. Chat & Chill is a little wooden bar & grill but built solidly. He has huge barbeques on the back deck and a clean kitchen behind the bar. He hopes to add WiFi to his services but wants to do it right. Quality hardware in a separate, air conditioned and dry building. Sounds like he has the right ideas.

We came back to the Palace as the first of many raindrops started to fall. The wind picked up to 20 kts with gusts to 25 and doesn’t sound like its going to quit anytime soon. Dale and I have decided to pull out some of the DVDs we brought with us and start watching them.

If we're going to be stuck on the boat, we might as well enjoy it.

Georgetown
Great Exuma Island,
Bahamas
23.30.605N
75.45.490W


Another day of liquid sunshine and the forecast doesn’t have anything different for at least another week. Toucan Dream, NoCall and Aye Doc, bit the bullet and headed north hoping to get as far north as they could before being pinned down again. Our laundry wasn’t due back until after 4pm today, so we didn’t have an option of whether to go or not.

We listen to the weather broadcast in the mornings but also subscribe to the service that sends us the detailed report in written form via satellite. We were surprised that it took almost the entire morning before the written forecast was sent to us. However, once received, it caused us to pause and think about it a bit. The winds are within tolerable levels but the seas in the Exuma Sound are very high. We’ve been caught in 10’ seas before and done fine but we haven’t voluntarily gone out in them. We’ll listen again tomorrow morning before making our final decision. At this point in time, I suspect that we’ll opt to wait here for a week instead of going to another island where we’ll find good protection but little else.

If we do stay longer, we’ll trek in and find an internet service.

Georgetown
Great Exuma Island,
Bahamas
23.30.605N
75.45.490W


It was another day of rain, wind and reading.

Between raindrops, Bob came over and looked at some of the paper back books we had finished reading. We had planned on taking them to a book swap but it was rained out. We were having a nice little visit when dark clouds came over the island and the wind picked up to 30 kts. He made a hasty retreat back to his boat about 200’ behind us, barely making it before the skies opened up and let loose. Dale had let out an extra 10’ of chain yesterday when things picked up and we were glad of it today as the weather deteriorated quickly.

The squall had no sooner passed, when the radio livened up and we listened as people debated the age old “ to go or not to go”; most are waiting to hear what the weather report is tomorrow morning. The biggest factor is whether or not the bad weather over Jamaca and Cuba develops into a tropical low. If it does, it would be best to stay here, if not, most are willing to take the chance to run north a little each day dodging the squalls that are pouring out of the same area.

We have to wait around until we can get our laundry back tomorrow afternoon in any event but with weather in the Caribbean Sea exploding and no end in sight, we’ll probably head north as quickly as possible too.

Georgetown
Great Exuma Island,
Bahamas
23.30.605N
75.45.490W

After a good night’s rest, we finally met Nigel, Pelu and Juliette on Vagu this morning. Nigel had already told us that he was British but we learned that Pelu is French and their daughter, Juliette, was born in Italy. They speak all 3 languages on board. We have a hard enough time with English. They told us that they were picking up some friends tomorrow from the airport but that they were trying to get to the northeast US before hurricane season.

On our way into town, we dropped by and said hello to Caren on Toucan Dream. She had invited us to join them and their guests for dessert later in the evening . We know that one of Bob’s favorite toys on board is an ice cream maker, so we needed a time to make sure we weren’t late.
In town, we dropped off our trash, searched for a laundry but decided that the laundry service would be a better use of time considering the darkening skies. We bumped into Nigel and the family on our way back to the dinghy dock and on our way to the grocery store. Most of our shopping today was for fresh produce since I’m trying to use up our canned provisions at this point. Dale made the observation that the last time we were in Georgetown we were surprised at how small everything was at the rather famous cruising spot. This time we were delighted with the selection that was available at the grocery store. Our perspective has changed considerably over the last 18 months.

We returned to the Palace and while I put groceries away, Dale ran the laundry back in. He got back just before the skies opened up and the rest of the day was liquid. As we’ve done over the past week or so when it rained, we read, played on the computer or took naps. In fact, we weren’t sure that the invitation was still open on Toucan Dream but after a quick call we grabbed our rain jackets and headed over with spoons in hand.

We met Tom & Barbara on their last night of a month long visit with Bob & Caren. We sat around telling sea stories and eating homemade ice cream with chocolate syrup and coconut rum topping. Yum!!!

We learned that a lot of the boats in Georgetown have been here for over a week, Toucan Dream among them. Most are anxious to get moving again. We, on the other hand, figure that although the weather may have us socked in here for awhile, at least we have a grocery store with fresh produce available. Its all perspective.

Georgetown
Great Exuma Island,
Bahamas
23.30.605N
75.45.490W

185.3 NM
32.4 Hrs.
5.8 Avg
7.9 Max

Current Odom: 7689.7 NM



The dawn finally crept up and erased the cloud to cloud lightening from our view. In spite of the storm, we were still on schedule for a 9-10am approach to Rum Cay. However, once again, as the sun rose higher in the sky, the clouds cleared out, the winds filled in and we debated our situation.

We knew that more bad weather was coming up from the south originating around the Jamaca/Cuba area and was supposed to cross the Bahamas with squalls containing high winds. If we stopped at Rum Cay to rest, we could leave on Saturday morning for Georgetown and make it in a day. The 6:30 am weather report indicated that squalls were still in the area but that the really bad weather would most likely occur on Saturday night. If the weather came in quicker than expected, we’d be stuck at Rum Cay; good holding but exposed to the south and west which is where the weather would be approaching from.

We radioed back to Vagu that we were going to keep on going to Georgetown and expected to arrive about 5pm if we maintained a 6 kt speed. Nigel, a Brit, told us that he had never been to the Bahamas before and was leery to approach the bank on his own. However, he also had guests that were flying into Georgetown on Monday and he had to get there by then. He decided to keep going with us.

We had fairly decent winds as we approached Long Island but as we rounded Santa Maria point (where Columbus lost his ship,) the winds died out and a long line of dark clouds could be seen coming in our direction. We took ourselves about 20 degress off course and scooted along the side of them and only had a light shower to contend with. Vagu opted for an even more conservative course and probably didn’t even get a sprinkle.

As hoped for, we reached our first way point to approach Great Exhuma at 4:30pm. We slowed and waited for Vagu to fall in behind us and then with Dale on the bow, we made our way onto the bank, entered the cut in the reef and transited between the islands. Our original intention was to anchor at one of the outlying islands until the morning, but since we still had good light, we continued on and made the main anchorage at Georgetown by 5:30pm.

Bob & Caren on Toucan Dream (friends and neighbors from our home port) had radioed us earlier in the day and told us where they were anchored, so when we approached, we spotted our sistership and headed for a spot in front of her. Bob had seen us coming in and came flying up in his “dinghy”, a 15’ Boston Whaler. He yelled across that he had 500’ foot of chain out and not to drop our anchor anywhere near his. Of course, this was a joke and we knew it. Unfortunately, Vagu didn’t and veered off at such an acute angle that half the anchorage was drawn to commotion and got quite a chuckle out of it.

Although we wanted to visit some of these islands we missed on our way south, staying safe has been more important to us on our way north. We’ll have to see them on another trip.

Right now, we’re safely anchored in deep sand, surrounded by islands with at least one grocery store and laundromat within dinghy distance. Our only casualty was a little bird (like our last hitch hiker) we found on our forward deck this morning. We’re not sure if he was trying to ride out the storm and drowned or if he flew into our mast mistaking the steaming light for something safe. He was unceremoniously buried at sea.


Photo: Toucan Dream (sistership to Gypsy Palace) at anchor in Georgetown, Great Exuma.

At sea
Atlantic Ocean
North of Plana Cays

We woke to blue skies clearing to the south and west of us this morning which wasn’t expected for another day. We listened to Chris, the weather guru, and elected to move to the western side of anchorage and take a peek around the island before deciding whether to continue on or not.

We made a pretty direct track across the anchorage without having to really dodge too many patches of reef or coral heads. As we approached the western side, the skies continued to clear to the north, so we decided to take the chance and go for it.

The two boats anchored at the western end of the island, Vagu and Stillawaw, hailed us and asked where we were headed and if they could tag along with us. Of course not, the more the merrier. We told them that if things blew up in our faces, we’d tuck in at Atwood Harbor along the way.

As it turned out, the skies continued to improve. Unfortunately, Stillawaw was the slowest of the 3 boats and could only do about 4.5 kts. Vagu could keep up with us but he didn’t like to run his engine at very high RPMs; not sure why. Stillawaw had an 8’ draft, SSB but no GPS; Vagu had GPS but his SSB wasn’t working, so he couldn't pick up weather forecasts.

As we passed the Plana Cays, Stillawaw broke off, radioing us that they were going to anchor behind West Plana Cay for the night. Since the skies were still clear, we told Vagu that we were going to continue northward to make Rum Cay by morning. Famous last words, of course, because as soon as night fell, lightening lit up the skies and there was no way we could bail out at that point.

The lightening was primarily on the western side of us. We dodged one cell that we saw on radar but in what appeared to be a single sweep of the radar, another smaller cell blossomed around us and kept us in rain, wind, thunder and lightening for the next 3 hours. It was not fun. Vagu didn’t care for it either. About the time we decided that the cell was attached to our mast and there was no way of shaking it, the lightening passed in front of us, moved off toward the east and left us only wind and rain to contend with. We figured our only options were to either push through it or turn around and head back. Considering more of it appeared to be behind us than in front of us, we kept pushing through.

Thunder and lightening continued throughout the night but thankfully, we could see the band of clouds that held the majority of the nasty weather was behind us now.

Abrahams Bay,
Mayaguana,
Bahamas
22.21.553N
72.59.068W


As predicted, the weather continued to deteriorate throughout the day but we and the trimaran anchored next to us are anchored securely and weathering the conditions nicely. Unfortunately, the two boats that were anchored in Betsy Bay didn’t fare as well.

We first heard them hailing us on the radio about mid-morning when they asked about the conditions in Abrahams Bay. We relayed back to them that although we were registering about 20 kts winds with gusts to 25 kts, the seas inside the reef were only 1’ wind driven waves and that we were riding comfortably. The boat we were speaking with reported that they had an 8’ draft and were leery about tucking too far inside in shallow waters. They said that they were going to check their charts and most likely move back to the western side of the anchorage where the water was deeper. We assumed that meant within the next couple of hours.

However, during the day we would hear them talking to each other about getting together and reviewing charts together. It seems that the boat with the 8’ draft doesn't have a GPS and the second boat with the shallower draft, does have one.

As I described earlier, the day got progressively worse with pelting rain and visibility falling to a couple of hundred feet. About 5pm, with light fading, pouring rain, and the winds picking up, we heard them say that they were leaving Betsy Bay for here. With all of the reefs and coral heads around, we considered that a daring move in good conditions.

We listened as the deeper draft boat without GPS led the way into the anchorage, with the shallower draft boat with the GPS guiding him in from behind. At one point it got a little exciting when the lead boat apparently turned too soon and wasn’t responding when the other boat tried to let him know. With us being on the far eastern side of the anchorage and not being able to see them through the rain, we could only sit and listen. Finally, we heard them say that they were dropping their anchors. A couple of hours after that, one said goodnight to the other saying that he’d had a harrowing day. We’re guessing, of course, but we suspect that in view of where they were located, wind and waves, a bit of dragging might have been involved.

Abrahams Bay,
Mayaguana,
Bahamas
22.21.553N
72.59.068W


It rained. It blew. We read. How are you?

When I sat down to write this evening, Dale sugested that this is what I should write as there wasn’t anything else that we did today. Technically, he’s right but surely I can add something else to it.

As he implied, we woke to heavily overcast skies this morning and by the time we finished listening to the weather forecast and learned that the earliest we can consider moving would be Friday, thunder could be heard rolling in the distance. Dale dove our anchor to make sure that it was still set in spite of all of the turning we’ve been doing over the past 24 hours and came to back to report that it was still well dug in. He added another 10’ to our scope as the forecast suggested that some of the cells heading in our direction could pack as much as 40-50 kt winds within them.

Once again, we checked our charts to see if there was any other option available to us and decided that we were in the best possible place considering what was approaching.
We were surprised to see the boat that had been anchored to the west of us in the same anchorage decided to move further north along Mayaguana to Betsy Bay. From what we could gather from the radio, they were getting some swells wrapping around at their end and thought that if they put more of the island between themselves and the storm, it might take some of the punch out of the winds and waves. Unfortunately, the bay where they moved to has a hard bottom and clearly states (at least on our charts) that it has poor holding. Granted, we’re more exposed to the wind here and it has gotten choppy inside of the reef but we have deep holding sand beneath us in our favor.

With the rain pouring down most of the day, we picked up our books and escaped to whatever drama evolved between their pages. I suggested to Dale that he prepare dinner tonight trying to convince him that the family favorite potato soup he’s famous for was just what was needed for a nasty day like today. When he started puttering around the galley, I thought that the hearty soup was on its way. Well yes and no. He made a hearty soup but it ended up being a type of chicken stew. Still, it was quite tasty and I got out of the galley one night.

We heard from Gerry and Nicky that they are preparing to leave Cartagena tomorrow for a direct transit to Panama. We also heard from Bob & Caron Bass, who used to be our neighbors at Whitney’s Marine. They are stuck in Georgetown, about 3 days from here, waiting for weather as well. Who knows? Maybe we’ll catch up to them.

In the meantime, keep your fingers crossed that we’ll be able to make a quick trip north on Friday and Saturday; at the rate we’re reading, we’ll going to run out of books.

Abrahams Bay,
Mayaguana,
Bahamas
22.21.553N
72.59.068W

We awoke to cloudy skies again but they quickly burned off. The weather guru wasn’t very optimistic with regard to the weather over the next couple of weeks. In fact, if we aren’t able to move further north by the weekend, we might be stuck here for another 2 weeks. Personally, I think Dale’s already getting antsy. We noticed most of the other boats high tailing it to the Turks & Caicos today when the weatherman said that today was as good as it was going to get for the next 3-4 days. Those of us heading north are stuck.

Mid-day we saw a couple of large Southern Stingrays to the side of our boat. We guesstimated that each of them had an approximate wing span of 4 feet. Dale volunteered to jump in and take a couple of pictures because I was a little leery of their size. He followed them for a little way and got a couple of good shots but then one of them took an interest in him and started following him back to the boat. According to our book on fish behavior, rays aren’t supposed to be aggressive unless you step on them or corner them. In spite of the literature, this one didn’t want Dale anywhere near it. Dale obliged and fought Rocky, our attack triggerfish, to get back on board quickly.

Each day we seem to attract more and more fish under our boat. Most of the time, the wind is negligible and fish watching can be done from the deck. Today we saw several squid (looking like commas in the water from above), a cloud of silversides (always fun to swim through), the Southern Stingrays (the biggest I‘ve seen to date), and several trunkfish (they seem to like hanging around our anchor chain). I told Dale that if we stay here long enough we’ll have our own little ecosystem below us.

By mid-afternoon, it started clouding up again and the thunder rolled in the distance. We sat in the cockpit and watched two separate cloud formations meet right above us as a trimaran came in and selected a spot off to our port side to anchor. By the time the rain fell in earnest and the wind picked up to 20 kts, we could no longer see him. A couple of hours later the rain moved off north and we could see that they were still where we left them.

I’m not looking forward to the next couple of days of stormy weather but I do feel comfortable in where we’ve chosen to ride them out. The wind (when we have it) continues to circle around and forces our anchor to reset with each cell that passes by. Like mini hurricanes, the wind blows first from one direction then the opposite. We have fairly deep sand below us and plenty of room to drag should that happen. Now if we can just get a couple of days of good weather in order to move north.

Abrahams Bay,
Mayaguana,
Bahamas
22.21.553N
72.59.068W

Happy 1st Birthday Heather!!!

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Dale was already up when raindrops splashed on my face from the hatch above my head bringing me into the morning rather rudely. We ran around closing all of the hatches and then went up into the cockpit to get a bearing on where the offending clouds lay.

Most of the sky was cloudy but the really dark clouds lay to the north of us and a couple to the south of us. Seven of the 11 boats that had anchored here last night made their way out of the anchorage and in the direction of the Turks & Caicos. We listened as they debated which direction would take them around showers and wished them well on their transit.

Once again, we were lucky that we only had light sprinkles and the nasty squalls went around us. However, throughout the day, the Palace swung through every point on the compass submitting to the winds that swirled from every direction.

I jumped in for a quick swim mid-afternoon to cool down and was literally chased by a Gray Triggerfish that has taken up residence under our stern. He’d nip at my fingers and toes when I tried to climb up the swim platform to chase me away. He had the audacity to look me straight in the eye before darting after me through the rungs of the ladder and wasn’t very intimidated when I tried to shoo him away. I swear he was swimming out from under the boat to peer up at us waiting to for us to jump in again so that he could make his next strike. Dale said that when he when he lowered the dink in the water, the little guy came out to attack that as well. I think we’ll name him Rocky; he’s not afraid of anything and doesn’t know when to quit.

Most of the day we read again. We’ve both been averaging about a book a day. Good thing we have a large selection to choose from.

Dale pulled up some weather information this evening. We were hoping that all of the nasty weather would clear out by Wednesday but it looks like it might be as late as Thursday now.

Abrahams Bay,
Mayaguana,
Bahamas
22.21.553N
72.59.068W

We had another night of lightening flashes and some thunder but again were blessed that no storms came our way. Listening to weather on the SSB this morning, we learned that we are simply in a pocket of clear sky and that nasty weather is surrounding us, so we’ll just stay put until it passes.

The husband and wife crew off the catamaran nearest to us came by this morning to say hello and ask about what there was in “town”. They were looking for a telephone and we were able to tell them that there were two next to the Customs office. In spite of the weather, they plan on heading out tonight for the Turks & Caicos. We chatted for a little while before they continued their exploration.

Dale jumped in for a little swim and came back with a couple of little shells that we’ve not seen before. He said that he saw some rays in the water but so far, we have not seen Seymour again.

The rest of the day was spent reading. Dale even put up the hammock for me. Occasionally we’ll get a little breeze for a few minutes but on the whole, the air is terribly still and humid.

Abrahams Bay,
Mayaguana,
Bahamas
22.21.553N
72.59.068W

After listening to the weather report this morning, it appears we’ll be here for awhile. We’re caught between two systems that are creating havoc for those caught out in them. So far for us, we’ve been watching the show from a distance. Others haven't been as fortunate. We’ve heard that one boat with a crew of 4 is missing and several others were dodging and running most of the night trying to evade the storms and lightening strikes forming right above them.

In fact, one boat reported that they were trying to make the Turks & Caicos so that a crew member could seek medical attention. They were hoping to make Mayaguana today to rest before heading out again. We gave it a couple of hours and when we saw several boats coming in we hailed them and Dale identified himself as a physician if there was an emergency. Apparently the man’s wife suffers from a nervous stomach and was afraid that she had developed an ulcer. However, from her symptoms, Dale didn’t think that was the problem. Since they have elected to stay here for a few more days, we’ll see what develops.

We made our way in to the island and found the Customs/Immigration office about a ½ mile down the road from the dock. We spoke with a woman behind the counter who indicated that the customs officer wasn’t in and to return in the afternoon. We walked further down the road and found an intersection where we looked in all directions but didn’t see anything of interest in any direction. This is one quiet island.

We returned to the Palace where we swam a little, read a little and napped a little. In the afternoon, we returned as requested and this time stood in line so that the same woman who had dismissed us earlier in the day could process our paperwork. Dale surmised that the “boss” wasn’t in during the morning, so she sent everyone way until he was there and could witness for himself that she was a very busy person.

On our way back to the boat on this trip, we passed 3 fishermen that had a bounty crop of conch they were cleaning as well as several very large grouper. They said that they had caught everything along the reef at the far end of the island. Several young boys were swimming in the area but then saw a large barracuda interested in the scraps left over from the fish cleaning and made a hasty retreat from the water. I was impressed with how polite they all were as we passed by. They even offered to help us get off the pier when we got into the dinghy.

This time on our return trip, we kept going out past the Palace and explored the wreck that is on the reef. It is the rusted out hulk of a steel boat that obviously had a bad day.

We’ve noticed that Seymour hasn’t made an appearance today, so I’m guessing that the blood in the water from the meat was what attracted him to our boat last evening. Still, we make sure that we are out of the water by sunset just in case.

Abrahams Bay,
Mayaguana,
Bahamas
22.21.553N
72.59.068W

57.3 NM
9.01 Hrs.
6.4 Avg.
7.6 Max

Current Odom: 7503.0


We dropped our lines and eased out of our slip at 6:20 am, waving farewell to Chris & Laura who were in the process of doing the same thing. We slowly zig-zagged out of the marina entrance, following the chart plotter bread crumbs we had left behind when we first arrived and required the services of a guide. The surf was breaking on the reef but the entrance was navigable so we punched through, turned north and set a course to Mayaguana. The water depth immediately fell away and the water changed to a deep clear indigo blue. We looked back and saw Maltimia break through safely and turn south.

For the next 9 hours, we tried to motor sail periodically by raising our main. This worked for a short time but with the light winds shifting from one aft quarter to the other, proved worthless, so we rolled it back in and waited until the winds picked up a bit. We tried again when we saw double digits reflected on the wind gauge but still no joy, the direction was just too variable.

A line of dark clouds, apparently streaming all the way from Panama (according to our weather guru,) reached us and sprinkled enough rain that we dropped our enclosure for the first time in ages. It was just enough to turn the warm air into a sauna. However, as it passed us, it opened up the sky above Mayaguana and we had perfect visibility for entering Abrahams Bay at Guana Point, which is a very narrow opening in the reef and strewn with coral heads.

We dodged and weaved our way in, selected a spot behind the reef and dropped the hook. We backed down and felt the familiar tug of a well set anchor. Dale jumped in to confirm the set and on his way back to the boat, I noticed that he kept diving down here and there along the way. When he climbed back aboard, he had a fist full of dollars. Sand dollars. He said that the water was extremely clear and that he could see what was left of our completely buried anchor as soon as he jumped in.

As I made dinner, we could occasionally hear the distant rumble of thunder. We knew that nasty weather was predicted, so we finished eating and went up into the cockpit to watch. The dark clouds were well to the north of us and the air was deathly still. The water, although already calm, slowed to a standstill and we appeared to be anchored in a bathtub. I was marveling at being able to see sand dollars and sea shells on the bottom while standing on the bow, when a dark figure approached. My first thought was that it was a barracuda. However, as it came closer, it was clearly a reef shark.

Seymour Teeth, the shark, clearly likes to loiter around boats. He has a gash on the right side of his head that appears to have come from a fairly recent encounter with a prop. I suspect that he was attracted to the blood from the pork chops I made for dinner but who knows. He hung around the Palace well into the night, so there will be no midnight swims for us in this particular harbor.

We tried to watch a movie but the lightening to the north kept grabbing our attention. We could no longer hear the thunder but the cloud to cloud and cloud to ground lightening was spectacular. Constant flashes of light; one over the other. Only a second or two was ever devoted to the darkness of night. It reminded me of the lightening storm that blacked out New York when I was a child. We could still see Seymour circling. I wonder if he knows something that we don’t.

Turtle Cove,

Providenciales,

Turks & Caicos Islands
21.47.141N
72.13.605W

For some crazy reason I couldn’t sleep last night and ended up getting up to readjust the lines to keep the Palace from dancing around in the slip so much. I kept hearing her fender smack the piling on the finger pier and then bounce off. When I climbed outside, I could see her swing from one extreme to the other both at her bow and her stern, so she was all over the place. Dale, of course, slept through everything.

When morning finally dawned, it was overcast and humid. The weather report states that the storm we’ve been hiding from has been upgraded to a sub-tropical status and has been named Andrea. Yesterday, we had the distinct impression that we were going to miss most of it but now I’m wondering about it. We have a window of about 24 hours in which to move north before tucking in again before the next predicted storm passes through. Mayaguana is protected by a reef system too and is on the southern side of the island which should afford us better protection. It will take us approximately 10 hours to transit if we motor all the way. The vessels that arrived late today said that the swell had diminished to 6’ with 12 second intervals; in other words, big rollers.

While I updated the blog, Dale hiked into town to access an ATM machine and buy some tomatoes. By the time he returned, I had just about finished up.

We’ve spent some time getting to know our neighbors in the slip nearby. Chris is from South Africa and Laura is from Alberta, Canada. They just purchased their 47’ Leopard Catamaran and will be taking it to Trinidad for hurricane season and to prepare it for crewed chartering. Apparently they’ve been in the charter business for some time but this is the first time that they will be using their own vessel for the enterprise.

Late afternoon was marked by the arrival of two more sail boats which were berthed on either side of us. One, a single handler, arrived from Rum Cay and the other had a crew of 3 men who plan on leaving tomorrow about the same time as us but making a straight shot to Georgetown. Chris & Laura will also be leaving at the same time but will be heading directly to the BVIs.

June, the Customs/Immigration officer came by a little after 5pm with her 3 daughters in tow to sign all of us out of the country. Chris & Laura invited us and June and her family aboard for drinks and munchies. At first the children were very quiet but after a while they warmed up to us and were soon babbling away. June is a native to the TCIs, born on Grand Turk, although she has lived on just about every island throughout the TCIs at some point or other in her 19 years as a Customs officer. Her husband, a policeman, is a St. Vincentian. All of her children, however, were born in the US. Although I didn’t ask how she managed that, I suspect that she is one smart cookie and planned it that way.

After June and the girls left, we told Chris & Laura that we were heading over to the little Italian restaurant across the harbor for dinner and they were welcome to join us. They agreed and we had a wonderful evening discussing everything from the differences (pro and con) between cats and monohulls to whether it would be better to maintain a boat over a long period of time versus buying a new one when you were ready to take off at a later point.

As we walked back to the dock, lightening was flashing in the night sky pretty frequently. We wished each other good transits and most likely will make the journey out of the marina and to the cut in the reef together in the morning. I hope our luck holds with regard to weather but I have a feeling these next two months are going to be a challenge with the persistent lows that seem to be developing around us.

Turtle Cove,
Providenciales,
Turks & Caicos Islands
21.47.141N
72.13.605W

You know, I miss sleeping in dry, air conditioned comfort. You get acclimated to living without some of the creature comforts we’ve become accustomed to living with on shore but it doesn’t take any time at all to adjust to air conditioning. This particular marina charges you a minimum amount for water and electricity whether you use it or not , so . . . We’re plugged in and turned on. By the time we leave here, I’ll be so spoiled, Dale will have to let me run every single fan on the boat until I can re-acclimate to living without again.

After listening to the weather this morning, we figure that we’ll be here until at least Thursday when the waves are predicted to moderate to something we can travel in. Our slip neighbors on a 47’ catamaran came in late yesterday evening and told us that although things are extremely calm inside the marina, the outside was deteriorating rapidly. In fact, he said that the cut we had come into earlier in the day will most likely be impassable by this afternoon or evening. He said that waves were breaking over the fringing reef and that they left their anchorage further to the south to come in for protection. They plan on leaving the same time that we do but will be heading in the opposite direction toward the BVIs.

I spent the better part of the morning, collecting my hand written notes of our travels over the past couple of days and organizing them so that I could update this blog. Dale went in search of an internet connection for me and came back with a credit card looking thing that has a scratch off pass code. Good! Maybe I’ll do some banking too.

We took another walk around the boardwalk and stopped for a couple of salads at a place called the Tiki Hut before wandering through some of the shops along the road. I got directions to the nearest grocery store from the waitress and maybe tomorrow morning we’ll head in that direction for some fresh produce as its about a mile away starting with an uphill climb.

Back on the Palace, we tucked away our Caribbean charts and pulled out our Southern Bahamas charts to plan the next leg. Our calculations reflect that it will take us a full day to head north to the next island of Mayaguana. This means that we’ll have to head out of the marina very early in the morning and most likely have to motor the whole way in order to arrive before dark. It also means checking into the Bahamas. We can now say, with authority and experience, that this is the most expensive country in all of the Caribbean to clear into and we’ll need to find an ATM before leaving here in order to do so. I guess we’ll add that to our list of things to do tomorrow.

We ended our evening being entertained with fireworks right off our starboard side. We’re not sure what the holiday might be (Hero’s Day?) but we had ring side seats for the celebration. The big finale had sparks landing on boat decks, condo roofs, and grass all to the inside of us but I think everyone enjoyed the display regardless of the sudden stomping at the end.

Turtle Cove,

Providenciales,

Turks & Caicos Islands
21.47.141N
72.13.605W

32.0 NM
5.17 Hrs.
6.1 Avg.
7.2 Max

Current Odometer: 7446.0

We lifted anchor at 7 am and headed out to Sandbore Channel in beautiful clear water that was the color of Windex in the deeper 20-30’ areas. Even at these depths, you still could see clearly the corals, sponges and the occasional barracuda on the bottom.

We rounded north to Northwest Point which is located outside the reef that lies off Providenciales and then back south to Turtle Cove on the island’s northeast shore (the bank is roughly shaped like a triangle in this area.) Although our chart plotter reflected deep water for the entire trip, there were a couple of times that we jumped up and made quick turns to deeper water to avoid the reefs that extended out in our direction. Nothing like getting the ol’ ticker pumping when your depth finder goes from over 500’ to less than 20’ in a minute.

We radioed ahead for an escort through Seller’s Cut, then waited with a 57’ powerboat until a little skiff came out and led us through the circuitous route onto the bank, through the reef and coral heads and finally through the very narrow zig zag entrance into Turtle Cove Marina. Surprisingly, our chart plotter was very accurate for this area but we still were grateful for the guide in.

We were directed to the fuel dock and then handed the paperwork for clearing into Customs and registering for our stay at the marina. Until we cleared, however, we were not allowed to refuel. About 2 hours later, the Customs/Immigration officials arrived and processed our paperwork. I’m not complaining, they came to us and in the meantime, it gave us time to fill out our paperwork, take showers, tidy up a bit and relax in the cockpit.

Once we were officially here, we brought down the “Q” flag, hoisted our TCI courtesy flag and refueled. We were directed to a slip which is way too big for us and hooked up to power and water. We grabbed a quick bite to eat and then gave the Palace a thorough wash down. We’re still tweaking the lines trying to center the Palace in the slip and yet allow us to reach the finger pier to get off. For some reason, this time its easier said than done with stationary docks, a 1.5’ tide and what appears to be a constant ebb and flow around the tiny peninsula that we’re on.
We climbed off the Palace about 5pm and walked along the boardwalk that wraps most of the way around the marina. We found ‘Sharkbites’, a restaurant that is supposed to have the best wings for miles around, so we stopped in a had a few. Although a bit salty for my taste, they were very, very good.

Nasty weather lies to the north of us; coming from around Jacksonville no less, so we’ll stay here until it passes.

Sapodilla Bay
Providenciales,
Turks & Caicos Islands

21.44.482N
72.17.342W

45.6 NM
7.21 Hrs
6.2 Avg.

Current Odometer: 7415.0

We hoisted anchor at 7 am and carefully weaved our way out of the anchorage and onto the path that would lead us across the TCI bank and eventually to Sapodilla Bay. The water was crystal clear and more blue green than the shallow waters in the Caribbean which were more green blue. It’s hard to explain but trust me, the Atlantic is a different color than the Caribbean.

The bank is about 10’ all the way across and in a couple of places, we needed to avoid the little patch reefs that lay in our way. We hit our waypoint on the western side and turned to the next one that lay outside of Sapodilla Bay on the eastern bank. It was about this time that Voyager hailed us. They were quickly catching up to us from behind. It seems Voyager had listened to Dale and the captain of “Maggie” yesterday and knew that we were heading back to Jacksonville by July. They too were heading to Jacksonville in about the same timeframe but wanted to reach Georgetown fairly quickly so that Mrs. “Voyager” could fly home for a few weeks. We promised to look them up when we got to Georgetown since we’re heading in the same direction.

We reached Sapodilla Bay about 2:30pm and anchored outside but in front of everyone else since they were all pointed west. Strange winds have been blowing, if any have been blowing at all. Voyager was right next to us but since we both intend on leaving again at first light, neither one of us moved to lower the dinks and introduce ourselves but waved from a distance instead.

We’ve decided that the marina that Gerry & Nicky told us about would be a good place to tuck into until the swell and waves die down from the unusual weather that is happening north of us. It’s protected by a surrounding reef and it’s tucked behind a peninsula inside of that. The only hitch is that its rather tricky to get into. It’s suggested that you radio ahead and have a skiff come out to guide you in on your first time there. We’ve e-mailed a request for reservations and will have to confirm before we get too far around the island to make sure that there’s “room in the inn.” Otherwise, there’s deep sand right where we’re at; although with the weather coming in from the north, it might get a little lumpy.

Big Ambergris Cay,
Turks & Caicos Islands
21.19.204N
71.39.049W

332.9 NM
55.49 Hrs.
6.0 Avg.
8.3 Max

Current Odometer: 7370.3



Happy Birthday James! We love you and look forward to seeing you soon.


As morning dawned, we could see the rocks we had been trying to avoid during the night and came up on the bank without mishap.

We could see a couple of boats anchored along Great Sand Cay, most likely pre-positioning for the trip south. We continued on and punched in the route that would take us around the Fish Cays to an anchorage behind Big Ambergris Cay.

We listened to Chris, our weather guru, and learned that there were gale force and possibly hurricane force winds along the east coast of the US developing this coming week. These conditions were expected to move south and east over the Abacos and Bahamas though they weren’t expected to reach as far south as the TCIs. However, the seas that were kicked up by these winds might. We were advised to tuck in somewhere until the seas moderated. Gerry & Nicky had told us of a marina they had stayed at on their way south on the north side of Provo; we’ll consult our charts and check it out.

Along our way to Ambergris, we met a convoy of 6 boats making their way south. The captain of “Maggie” hailed us on the radio and asked about sea conditions off the bank. We had heard him earlier on the SSB speaking with Chris and assured him that it was very calm and practically without wind. We also warned him that the evenings had been known to have thunder and lightening over the DR.

Dale spoke with the captain of Maggie at length and learned that they were in their mid-60’s and took up sailing 2.5 years ago. They had traveled through the Panama Canal from San Diego, along the east coast before hopping the ditch and working their way south through the Bahamas and Exumas to the TCIs. The captain, who spoke with an English accent, told of how they had been weather delayed for almost 6 weeks and were hurrying to get to Trinidad before hurricane season. They spoke of insurance “boxes” and places to stay before we finally wished them well and God’s speed to their destination of Crews Inn, the marina that was right across from us when we were in Trini. Once you get out here, it’s a small world.

We finally rounded around the Fish Cays and wiggled and dodged our way through the coral heads that lay between us and our anchorage behind Big Ambergris. There was a trawler named Voyager who was already anchored there, so we gave him plenty of space and anchored behind him in crystal clear water about 3:30pm. Dale dove in to check the anchor and came up with a conch shell for me to photograph before putting it back where he had found it.

We sat in the cockpit for awhile and noted the construction progress that’s been made since we were last here in late December 2005. Big Ambergris is an 1100 acre private island and home of the Turks & Caicos Sporting Club. So if you’re looking for a home in the $525,000 - $4.5 million range with a paved jet strip and deepwater marina accommodating 200+ foot yachts, with NO TAXES, this is the place for you!



Photo #1: What's left of wreck on Big Ambergris

Atlantic Ocean
20.18.76N
70.05.25W

We motored throughout the night and easily tracked 12 ships during our various watches. On one of my watches, I was tracking 4 at one time. Luckily, they passed well away from us so no evasive maneuvers were necessary.

Also during the night, the line of clouds that stream off Puerto Rico, across the Mona Passage and toward the Dominican Republic, held some lightening. All of it was well to the south of us and with stars directly over us, there nothing to worry about. As morning dawned, I watched a large black cloud shift from over the DR and out to sea toward us. However, the more it moved out to sea, the more the sun burned it away. Good deal! Our luck is holding.

We did have some light wind today that allowed us to sail with our spinnaker for about 5 hours making 5-6 kts. We hoisted it further up the mast this time in hopes that it would alleviate the chafing we’ve been discovering after each use. When we brought it back down, the line was once again worn but not to the extent that it had been previously. We decided that maybe some leather at the chafing point might be in order. Otherwise, we’re at a loss as to what to do next.

Our 6pm calculation reflected a possibility of another 24 hours before landfall by sail. Since weaving through reefs at sunset is not our idea of fun, we turned on the engine.

We also needed to adjust our course a bit. On our trip down, we had traveled directly south to Luperon but on our way back, we were making a direct course to the Turks & Caicos Islands from Puerto Rico which is north west. Unfortunately, this route took us over some rocky shoals and reefs; also not our idea of fun. So we angled around the shoals during the night to intersect our original route south. So far, so good.

Behind us, there is lightening in the sky over Hispaniola; above there are still stars.

Atlantic Ocean
19.05.800N
68.28.544W

Before heading out, Dale changed our running lights bulb again. It had burned out just as we were anchoring and with the marine police boat, we’d forgotten about it. With that completed, we hoisted our anchor and motored out of the northern entrance to Boqueron and headed out across the Mona Passage.

We had consulted our charts and discussed the possible routes last evening and debated whether to follow along the western coast of Puerto Rico or head directly across. With the lack of wind, we decided to just head straight out and motor until we could find some worthwhile wind. Further away from the island, the wind filled in from directly behind us, so we cut the engine and hoisted the main sail.

We were just approaching red marker #8 when a small boat with 2 men aboard waved us down. One of the men was clearly waving his jacket over his head in our direction and with the Coast Guard issuing an advisory for all boats to keep a lookout for a vessel in distress, we started our engine and made our way over to them. However, as we approached , we could see that they were anchored. We kept a fairly good distance from them, circled around and Dale went up front to see what they needed.

At first they asked if we spoke Espanola; Dale answered no and again asked if they needed assistance. The young man in the wrap around gold glasses spoke to his companion, said no, replied back to Dale that they were waiting for another boat, so we completed our circle around and continued on our way. Although the second young man in the front of the boat had a fish in his hands, we considered this to be a very unusual circumstance. We debated calling the Coast Guard but considering there was nothing to report, we decided to continue on our way.

We passed another small boat SCUBA diving on the western side of marker #8 and then finally a small sailboat approaching us from the direction of Mona Island. By this time, the Coast Guard had suspended their BOLO for the vessel in distress.

From that point on, we saw only 2 ships for the rest of the day. Both passed about 2 miles behind us. Hopefully, once we get to the other side of the Mona Passage, we won’t be dancing with the big boys anymore.