The Bahamas, Part 1, November - December 2017, 23:31.65N 75:46.07W
The Bahamas – Abacos and Eleuthera Wednesday 15 November 2017: Norfolk Virginia to Marsh Harbour (Great Abaco, NW Bahamas) 767.9 nautical miles, 5 days 50 minutes, 6.36 knots average speed, 61% motoring. Total Miles since leaving Falmouth August 2016: 8797.9 Crossing to the Bahamas took us South around the notorious Hatteras Point and Cape Fear. We had to be very careful picking a good weather window ensuring we didn’t sail with strong Northerly winds that would clash with the current running up from the South causing large angry seas. Rounding the two headlands was fine, in fact we had to motor part way due to lack of wind. At least the sea was relatively flat! Due to increased Northerly winds that then came in we were advised to cross the Gulf Steam further South than originally planned. We sailed South West along the US East coast, past Beaufort and Charleston. During the night, off the US East Coast, we were circled by two US navy ships. AIS and radar indicated they were each 4 miles away, one on either side and one of which was an aircraft carrier. There were a couple of helicopters circling us too and landing on the ships – we believe they were on exercise. The aircraft carrier was lit up like a Christmas Tree with green lights all along its starboard side – very impressive at night! Once far enough South, we then turned South East to cross the Gulf Stream at right-angles. The wind was a good 15 to 20 knots, still from the North and we were flying, even though it was a bit ‘lumpy’. We didn’t actually notice any difference in conditions whilst entering, crossing or leaving the Gulf Stream. Crossing the other way from Bermuda to Newport we noticed it choppy on entry and exit and calm in the middle! Apparently the sea is warmer in the Stream too, but we had no means of testing it. We shall buy a new log (one that measures not only boat speed and distance, but sea temperature also!). Whilst in the Gulf Stream the wind dropped so we had to motor once more. I had to wake Ken up as, whilst I was furling away the genoa, the line got jammed in the pulley and I was unable to free it and put the sail away. He’d not long gone to bed after his 5 hour shift so I really did not want to wake him; sleep is precious. Some dolphins came to see us as this point; always a wonderful sight and it slightly made up for it! Luckily we were able to free the line with the use of a winch and leverage without breaking the pulley! By day 4 the air temperature was much warmer and I was able to ditch my thermals, one pair of socks and my waterproofs! Ken’s sunglasses made a reappearance. The sunrises and sunsets were amazing and only the occasional ship to be seen.
The wind picked up again from the North which meant we had to change direction and port of entry into the Bahamas. Strong North winds can cause big swells in between the islands (cays) making passage difficult and dangerous, especially as the water is relatively shallow – only a few meters deep and the channels between them very narrow! It is very unnerving to be able to see the bottom so clearly when not used to it and be so close to rocks on either side! We needed to pass between the islands from the Atlantic Ocean side to the Caribbean Sea side. We decided to enter further down the island chain at Man-O-War channel and made it just before the seas built up and that entry channel became untenable. We had a couple of breakages, luckily in daylight; one a shackle that holds the outer corner of the mainsail (the clue) to the boom. We were able to grab the sail and replace the shackle relatively easily. The second was not so easy, but no damage sustained – the line that holds the boom up when the mainsail is not in use (the topping lift) came detached. The boom dropped heavily, fortunately landing on the cockpit roof. We were not able to fix this whilst on the move, but were able to secure it temporarily. By 0900 hrs on 20 November we were safely anchored in Marsh Harbour, Great Abaco. Although it was very windy it was great to be back in warm temperatures and turquoise blue waters. Catamarans ‘Enjoy’ and ‘Mac ‘n Cheese’ who we’d met in Annapolis and the BVI’s were also anchored in Marsh Harbour. Always good to be welcomed by smiley faces and friendly waves. Customs and Immigration were not available so we would have to stay onboard, leaving our yellow flag flying and take Lady Rebel alongside the dock to check in the next day.
Whilst lifting the anchor the bow roller fell off and annoyingly disappeared into the sea. $80 in the drink. It clearly had had enough of the strain it had been put under by the anchor chain during the night in the heavy winds. We were using radio headsets to communicate with me on the bow and Ken at the helm, but Ken’s set was picking up Bahamian music. He wasn’t in a dancing mood due to the expense and now disfunction of the bow roller and the hassle to get a replacement from the manufacturers – getting anything delivered to the Bahamas is expensive in duty and fees and takes an age, if at all possible. Due to the delay in lifting the remainder of the chain we then lost our place at the dock and had to circle for ages. Not a good start! Once alongside, whilst waiting for Customs and Immigration, we were at least able to refuel and fix the topping lift. $300 lighter, the completion of several tedious, duplicate forms, we were eventually cleared in and issued a cruising permit to cover all of the Bahamas. We would be cruising four of the many sets of islands that make up the Bahamas – The Abacos, Eleuthera, Exumas and Far Our Islands. At least a walk to the hardware shop and yacht shop resulted in a temporary bow roller fix!
Before we left Marsh Harbour I dived in search of the bow roller, but to no avail. First swim in the Bahamas though! During the next week we explored various Abaco cays, with Ocean Blue. Aura and Tourterelle were still in the US awaiting a weather window to cross the Gulf Stream. The weather was unseasonably hot in the Bahamas at 24 degrees, much to the annoyance of the locals; it changed their feel of the build up to Christmas. Green Turtle Cay – New Plymouth:
New Plymouth from the anchorage Ocean Blue
LR and Ocean Blue, from the bar War Memorial No Name Cay:
Coco Bay:
Manjack (Nunjack) Cay:
We motored back to Green Turtle Cay to meet up with Aura. Friends Juffa and Ruby Tuesday were also in the bay – all the more for sundowners aboard Lady Rebel! (Tourterelle had been diverted due to bad weather on their arrival to the Bahamas). Prior to drinks we had a call from Juffa on our VHF radio, whilst sitting out 35 knots of wind and rain, notifying us that our anchor appeared to be slowly dragging. Sure enough it was. We were most disappointed as had 30 meters of chain out (more than the recommended scope required for depth and strength of wind, plus we had reversed back on the anchor at 1800 revs. to ‘dig it in’, when setting it). To be on the extra safe side we re-anchored in a different spot, putting 50 metres of chain out which seemed ridiculous in only 2.7 metres of water (just 1 metre under the keel). We got absolutely soaked in the process and didn’t sleep much that night! We would invest in a reliable phone app. to monitor our position by GPS and notify us by means of a very loud alarm, should we move beyond a certain area that allowed for swing due to wind and tide change. The weather wasn’t too good the following day so we had an afternoon aboard Aura discussing places to visit in Eleuthera and the Exumas – Islands further South down the Bahama chain. Friday 1 December 2017 Before leaving the Abacos for Eleuthera we visited a few more islands and cays, some with Aura, Tourterelle, Ocean Blue and Ruby Tuesday and some on our own. Great Guana Cay (Crossing Bay and Fishers Bay), Man-O-War Cay, Great Abaco (Marsh Harbour and Abaco Beach Resort)
We returned to Marsh Harbour to collect our new Log (to measure boat speed, distance and water temperature) that Ken had ordered to come in from the US by Fed-Ex. There was a big hoo-ha over tax (being a ‘yacht in transit’ we should be exempt from import tax). It took 3 days to sort, despite Ken having paid extra for speedy delivery, several trips to the Fed-Ex office (a 4 mile hike away) and a few heated discussions! It then took several hours to thread the cable for the new log through the boat, but the end result was success and completed just in time to join Lionel and Elsie aboard Ruby Tuesday for sundowners. We chose to move around to Abaco Beach Resort to shelter from the strong NW winds that were forecast. They blew in sooner than expected carrying torrential rain and 35 knots of wind which we got well and truly caught in. Visibility was nil but we managed to anchor successfully having got soaked and frozen! Not much sleep that night on anchor watch. Fortunately it fizzled out the next day. Sunday 10 December – Abaco Beach Resort (Abaco Islands) to Spanish Wells (Eleuthera Islands). 90 miles, 19 hours, 2.8 engine hours, 4.74 knots average speed. Total Miles: 8975.2 After two hours into our overnight sail our autopilot started ‘crunching’ and stopped working. Wear and tear over time had caused one of the gear cogs to fail. So why it decided to wait a) until we were at the start of an overnight passage and b) no longer in America where new parts were easy to come by, is just typical! We had a good sail despite having to hand steer with the wind coming from directly behind us requiring extra concentration. At least our hourly shifts went very quickly. At one time there were 7 ships around us, all looking like we were going to converge. It was difficult to monitor the instruments as two hands were required on the wheel to at least try to keep sailing in a straight line; not easy with the big (ish) waves knocking us constantly off course! One very large tanker that kindly altered course for us still came within half a mile, the outline of which during the very dark night looked a lot closer! On arrival at Spanish Wells, Eleuthera, we put the boat and ourselves to bed for a well earned rest! First job on the list was to remove and disassemble the autopilot to locate the dodgy gear cog. Having identified the part number with the assistance of the manufacturers, Raymarine, we were able to order a replacement, to be delivered to Governors Harbour – the next main town further South on Eleuthera. It wasn’t a simple process as the part would come from the US, via Nassau and have to be matched against invoices, our cruising permit, cleared payment etc etc. Even trying to give Customs money proved to be a nightmare. Eventually the order was successfully placed and we had six days to kill whilst waiting for the essential part to arrive at the courier office. Not necessarily a bad thing, after all, we were in the Bahamas!
After visiting Spanish Wells we motor sailed 20 miles South to Glass Window, Golding Cay, passing through the very narrow Current Cut between the islands. I almost felt we should breath in to get through. Once through the change in sea colour was immense, from dark blue to pale turquoise. A definite WOW factor!
The narrow Current Cut, with fast tide sweeping through 4m deep turquoise water The mass expanse of water was just 4m deep; we could clearly see the sea bed with its sand, coral heads, plant life, animal life and the odd rock! The anchorage at Golding Cay was stunning and all to ourselves. We could clearly see the anchor dug into the sandy bottom. The beach was one of pink sand. A short walk took us to Glass Window road bridge which has to be rebuilt frequently due to destruction by the steep Atlantic waves in a storm as the sea tries to push through the narrow cut under the bridge. We visited the ‘Queen’s Baths’ (a series of rock pools caused by Atlantic erosion where people bathe) and we snorkelled a small island in the anchorage with lots of colourful fish and beautiful coral.
Pink Sand We departed the next day for Governors Harbour (Laughing Bird Cay), 26 miles of motoring in a mill pond! It was hard to differentiate the sky from the sea!
Three beautiful dolphins came and played gracefully in our bow wave. We could see them so clearly it was magical. During our four days at Governors Harbour we spent time doing necessary boat chores, attended the infamous fish fry evening, had a demonstration of how to remove conch from their shells and prepare delicious conch salad and of course collected our parcel!
Autopilot fixed, our next stop was Rock Sound, further South along the Eleuthera chain of cays. Perfect sailing conditions with all three sails up and freshly caught Spanish Mackerel for dinner! We utilised the large supermarket here to provision and had an amazing meal at Sammy’s; ribs had been recommended and lived up to expectation. Local fisherman sold us two Lobsters and four Conch, which we froze ready for Christmas. We did more boat chores – re fixed the solar panels to the roof of the cockpit, serviced the Hydrovane, fitted another bow roller (the previous cheap replacement one fell apart as to be expected), duck-taped the dinghy seats and hatch covers that have suffered UV damage, checked engine and gear box oil and coolant and so it goes on. Rewarding to tick lots of items off the ever lengthening to-do list.
Rock Sound Anchorage
Next stop: The Exumas |
Armed with our Christmas lobsters 
