A fast sail !

We left Lucaya on Thursday Nov. 20 and went to Great Harbor.  Wow, what a beautiful anchorage.  We stayed for one night and then off again the next morning for Rose Island.  Rose Island is just east of Nassau.   It is a neat place to anchor, not easy to get the anchor to hold.  There is a lot of coral and not too much sand.   We ended up catching the anchor on a rock and that held us just fine. 

We spent two nights at Rose Island with Richard, Jen and Catherine aboard Blue.  Steve did some snorkeling and earned the label “The Great White Hunter”.  He speared two nice lobsters and a huge Conch.   We had Conch Salad for lunch and Lobster Alfredo for dinner.  Yum!

Sunday Nov. 23 we pulled the anchor at Rose Island and headed for Norman’s Cay.  We had an awesome sail.  We sailed the entire day!  We naturally had to go to MacDuff’s for dinner.  MacDuff’s is famous for their hamburgers, and they have a great Conch Chowder.

Captain’s note:

The sail to Norman’s was awesome!  It is 37 KM and we averaged 7.91 Kts for the trip…pure sailing with 18 – 20 Kts on the beam.  Our max speed was 8.93 Kts.  It was one of those “special” days.

Monday we (Blue and Fine Lion) decided we would leave Norman Cay and go to Warderick Wells (Exuma Park).   All the weather we had listened to that morning said the wind would be 15-20 knots of wind out of the north.  No problem…  Well it was more like 25-35 knots and a very lumpy trip.  We were glad to turn that corner into Warderick Wells and see those mooring balls just waiting for us.  I was certain once we got a little protection from the land the wind would die down.  I was incorrect.  Not only did we have wind we also had a strong current.  Okay, now the pressure is on me as I must direct the captain to the mooring ball, catch the mooring ball and slide our line through the loop on the mooring ball.  During the operation I ended up dropping the boat hook, you know, never a dull moment.  So now I’m racing around the boat trying to put the other boat hook together (take the mop head off and put the hook on) while Steve is trying to keep the boat close to the mooring ball.  We managed to finally get the mooring ball and get the boat secure.  Did I tell you the boat hook I dropped floats?  Well now that we are all secure on the mooring ball I must go retrieve the boat hook.  Steve was able to attach a long line to the dingy, so I got in the dingy and he put me out just far enough so I can now walk in calf high water to go retrieve that boat hook.   Going to get the hook was fine, the wind and the current were just pushing me right along, oh and now I must turn around and come back to the boat.  I realized once again how out of shape I am.  Dredging through calf high water with the current and wind against me.  Ugh!

Captain’s note:

Kim did a great job of getting the mooring.  Other boats that came in had to make several attempts…not just two.  Check out the picture of Kim getting the “lost” boathook.  Also, the ride was very wet.  We had salt everywhere.  This is another advantage of a watermaker…we actually washed the boat off with fresh water while on the mooring ball.  Real cool…and a little decadent.

We stayed at Warderick Wells for two nights and then went to Pipe Creek.  Pipe Creek is a very neat area to explore in the dingy.   Wednesday evening we had Turkey, mashed potatoes and salad, it was great.

Thanksgiving Day we left Pipe Creek and went to Black Point.   We called Lorraine’s Café (on Black Point) on the radio to make Thanksgiving dinner reservations and Lorraine came back on the radio welcoming Fine Lion home.  I think she was as glad to hear Steve’s voice as we were to hear her voice.  Lorraine’s is where Steve tended bar last year for the Super Bowl.  We had a great dinner with Uriah (Lorraine’s husband).  It is great to be back.

Friday Nov. 28 we left Black Point and went to anchor at Big Majors, near Staniel Cay.  If you recall from last year Big Majors is where the swimming pigs reside.  We snorkeled yesterday at Thunderball.  It is a place you can only go to at low tide, because you have to go into this cave.  Steve got into the water before me and the number of fish around him was incredible.  These fish are used to being fed so they swarm anyone who comes into the water.  The James Bond movie Thunderball was filmed there.

So now I go back to Colorado for three weeks while Steve hangs around Staniel, Sampson, and Black Point.  I did leave him with a list of “boat projects” to keep him busy while I’m away.  But then…he might just play the entire time.

Captain’s note:

Too many projects to do…and it’s a paradise down here.  I just might play the entire time and save the projects for Kim when she returns.

That’s all for now…

Kim and Steve