Our decision when to cross from Florida to the Bahamas was determined by the sea and the forecast.  The Gulf Stream – that powerful, surge of water fuelled with its heat in the Gulf of Mexico, relentlessly sweeps north and eastwards, thankfully eventually benefitting our British shores.  Between the United States and the Abacos islands of the Bahamas the 45-mile wide current is probably at its strongest.  It’s wonderful to take advantage of it, but woe betides you if you do so when a strong northerly wind is blowing up against it.  One person described the large, square waves like a herd of elephants holding each other’s tails. 

Taking advantage of a weather window we set out from Florida after midnight, but had such a speedy crossing in the near gale force winds that we were ahead of our planned dawn arrival.  As we crossed onto the Bahamas shelf, the depth gauge plummeted from 500m to 5m within a couple of minutes - which was quite dramatic as we zoomed along in complete darkness, but at least we could be sure that we were out of the Gulf Stream and starting our adventures in the Bahamas.

Clearing customs at Walkers Cay, we realized the extent of damage that hurricanes can cause.  The 2004 hurricane ravaged the area, destroying the docks, marina and hotel and putting an end to it being a great base for sports fishing.  The only inhabitants today are a policeman and the Customs and Immigration officer.  We were only the sixth boat to have checked in during the whole of the month.

Our passage to our first landfall was a tough initiation to the shallows of the Bahamas.  Reefs, coral heads, strong currents and ocean swells are all things to consider, but it threw us when navigating a passage supposedly clearly marked by twelve buoys, to find just three remaining.  When the depth sounder shows there is no water under the keel, which way do you turn?  Eventually we found a safe anchorage with just 4” under the keel.

When it comes to painting their houses the Bahamians get inspiration from nature:  the white-gold sand, brilliant turquoise sea, deep blue ocean, mauves and red of tropical flowers, the pink of the conch shell and yellows and oranges of the sinking sun.  They are not at all concerned about subtlety and enjoy the gaiety of putting colours together that your primary school teacher would discourage you from mixing.  Combine this with white picket fences, large covered sitting out areas, comfy chairs and palm trees and the net result is wonderfully cheery and uplifting.

As well as its colours New Plymouth, on Green Turtle Cay, has a lot of civic pride. During the American War of Independence the Bahamas became a haven to persecuted refugees loyal to Britain.  The town still shows evidence of that heritage and honours the island’s forefathers with a charming Garden of Statues.

Bahamians seem to have a strong faith.  On Green Turtle Cay there are five places of worship, yet the bank opens for just four hours a week.  Whilst perhaps I should not have been surprised to walk in on a prayer meeting in a church on a Thursday morning, it took me aback seeing the shop assistant in the bakery reading Jeremiah and even the grocery shop is called a Faith Store.  Still, it’s not all virtue here.  Before the light house was built in Hope Town (Elbow Cay) the locals benefitted from salvage of passing ships.  A popular tale recounts the time that a minister was preaching to his congregation when he spied a ship on the reef.  His flock had their back to the sea and could not see this windfall.  The minister asked everybody to bow their heads in prayer, but after a few minutes of this silence some of the members spotted the preacher in his boat heading to the wreckage.  The next day the congregation turned the altar around so that they, not the preacher, could see potential fortune.  John and I went to a service in that church and enjoyed the stunning view of palm trees, sand and sea.

It never ceases to amaze me just who is going cruising and the length of time that they go for.  People set out with a plan of cruising for a couple of seasons, but are still going ten years later.  Some have money, others are cruising on a shoestring; some have been sailing all their lives, whilst others have only just fallen in love with it. A couple we met when carol singing on another catamaran had ‘retired’ when he was just 31 and are still enjoying cruising eight years later.  Of the thirty or so people who came on board for Christmas drinks (yes you can easily do that on a cat) some were in the Bahamas for the first time, whilst others had sailed to many parts of the world and been in this region for the last eight American winters.

At 8.30 this morning the temperature is unseasonably cool at 20 degrees C. (normally 24 C) The radio net announcements talk of hot toddies available and keeping warm.  A local hotel is lighting a fire and putting on a movie this afternoon for anyone who wants to show up. I haven’t told you about the beaches we’ve discovered so far, but John and I have been swimming every day…. I’ll leave you with some pictures to encourage you to come cruising.