Captain's Log

27 April, 2015
Posted by tuck on Wednesday, April 29, 2015 - 20:20

Sooooo…..  Donny didn’t have the mooring balls that we reserved.  Dude.  Didn’t you say that you were coming yesterday?  Would we mind just taking the end of his “T” dock for the price of a mooring ball?  As we sidle in, there’s a welcoming party in the form of the half dozen liveaboards that call Donny’s home, ready to catch our lines.  Nose to tail, “Erben Renewal” and Alizann take up the whole “T”, and then some.  1600, but it’s 5 O’clock somewhere.  Time for sips and meet the neighbors.  Donny tells us that John, our neighbor who singlehands his 48’ DeFever is a “scientist who can fix anything”.  Turns out he’s a physicist who comes here every winter, and has done some wiring on the dock and some repairs on Donny’s outboard-nice guy.  The next day, Suzanne and I decide to ride our bikes up to White Sound, where the Green Turtle Club and Brendal’s Dive Shop are located.  The GTC is a destination resort that features deep sea fishing charters and diving.  After the Green Turtle, we ride over to the Bluff House Marina, which was owned by the sister of the owner of the GTC and fierce competitors (Ahhh, family dynamics).  Their bar was on the Ocean side, so we stopped for a Coke and some Conch fritters before our ride back.  On the way back around Black Sound, we stopped at Abaco Yacht Center to check out the yard, as a few of the folks that we had met the previous month hauled their boats there for the summer while they went back to the States (just thinkin’).  Unfortunately, their lift was a smidge too small for The Girl.  Before we got home we stopped at Leeward Marina, where a couple of Krogens were tied up.  Unfortunately, no one was on board, but we did discover that “Tintean” was docked there also (see “self-appointed dock mistress” Dismal Swamp blog, November 2014).  Sarah filled us in on the local happenings, and let us know that the New Plymouth Liquor Store and Café was a good spot to hang out in the early evenings.  We rode right past Donny’s and into New Plymouth to check out the town.  Established in 1786 by Loyalists seeking shelter from the revolutionary winds sweeping America, it’s the largest town on Green Turtle Cay.  Like many towns that we’ve visited along the Sea of Abaco, the folks here eke out a living by fishing and the tourist trade.   After our tour of the hardware store and grocery markets (do we see a trend here?), we head to the Liquor Store AND Café for some conversation with the locals.  Sarah and her hubby, Ken, were also in attendance.  In the evening, we headed to the Sundowner Bar, as we heard that their pizzas were good (we were getting tired of fresh fish).  After a half dozen fruity rum drinks and 2 pizzas with the Erbens, the 4 of us walked home, only to find out that Steve’s credit card was missing.  He wasn’t sure where he had seen it last and spent the night racking his brain about it.  By morning, he had concluded that he’d left it at Sundowner’s, having dropped it at the bar to start a tab.  When Suz and I picked up the tab, he forgot all about the fact that his card was still with the bartender.  We planned to head out to the bay to anchor for another night, and since he remembered where the card was, he figured that he’d dinghy in at 1600 when they opened.  Meantime, Donny had called the owners at home (they weren’t there), and left them a message.  Sooooo……..while all this drama was going on, Suz is going to take a few pics before we leave.  “Do you know where the camera is?”  “Yeah, it’s in the backpack”.  “Where’s the backpack?”  You get the picture.  The camera, a couple hundred pesos, Suzanne’s I.D.,a credit card and very importantly, our Woody’s of St John, USVI long-neck, zip-up beer koozies are all in the pack which I conveniently stowed under the table at Sundowner’s.  Now things are serious.  Suz and I figure that our chances of recovery will be better if we remain Donny’s customers for another day or so.  Not sure if I mentioned that Donny is a third generation Green Turtle resident and either knows or is related to everyone. S & J head out on the tide, and we stay.  Long story short, the pack returned, all contents intact, around 1400.  S & J recovered their card as well, a testimony to the honesty of the folks around these parts.  That evening, Suz and I join Donny, Julie and some friends of theirs for desert at their house.  They had just finished a dinner of BigEye Snapper which they had caught that day while bottom fishing in 600’ (!!) of water.  Some specialized fishing rigs.  Electric reels, five pound sinkers, and little strobe lights to attract fish that attached to the 150# test braided line.  Even with the electric reels, it took 7 minutes to reel in from that depth.  Donny related that they fished as deep as 1000’ with these rigs.  While at Green Turtle Cay, we had a visit from Roberto & Maria, Krogen friends from Rhode Island, who were over at a marina in White Sound, enjoying a visit with their son.  Also, while on a dinghy ride over to White Sound, we discovered that “Salacious” was anchored there, and we were able to have a short visit with Jim, Louise being on shore doing laundry (see Cumberland Island blog).  While cruising, it’s all about the friends you make along the way. 

We took off the next morning on the tide, and met up with “Erben Renewal” out in the bay for our cruise up to Manjack Cay, a private island where the sign on the beach said “Trespassers welcome”.  Over the next 3 days, Steve, Suz and I went over to the Atlantic side to snorkel and scuba.  We saw lots of critters, including lobsters (out of season), the biggest Hogfish Snapper any of us had ever seen (no spear with us), and several good sized Grouper, as well as the usual assortment of reef fish.  One day, while snorkeling, I spotted 2 juvenile Spotted Drum, which are truly beautiful fish (which we had never seen on over 300 dives).  The highlight, however, was 6 Eagle Rays flying in formation through a chasm in the reef over a sandy bottom.  Suzanne was the lucky observer.  She was in the water first, and saw all 6, while Steve, second one in caught a look at 3, while the slowpoke, Yours Truly only saw the 1 which was lagging behind.  The 4 of us hiked the island, which has several trails, forged and maintained by the folks in the 6 households on the isle.  I never get tired of walking deserted beaches, but all of the flotsam and jetsam littering the high water mark truly drives home a point.  We simply NEED to stop manufacturing non-biodegradable containers.  They never go away, and keep piling up and cluttering our environment.

Thursday, the 23rd.  Short travel day today up to Powell Cay where it’s said, is some good diving/snorkeling.  By 1115, we had the anchor down, and were headed over to the Atlantic side of the Cay.  We use our “look bucket” (a 5 gallon pail that I cut the bottom out of and replaced with clear plexiglass. When placed in the water, it’s like a glass bottom boat as you look down through it) to find promising spots without getting in the water.  The reef here was coral on top of limestone, with some really cool chasms cut throughout, dropping from 8’ to 35’ over sandy bottom.  The effect was pretty cool, with the bright sun filtering through the water, causing the multicolored coral and fish to shimmer.  I spotted a large Grouper, and yelled to Steve to come over with his Hawaiian Sling (spear).  The chase was on, and it turned out that there were 2 Groupers hanging out together.  Steve and I stalked them for about 15 minutes, as they swam from one hidey hole to another, then down to the bottom at 35’, changing color from green to brown to striped as they moved to different surroundings.  Steve dove for a couple shots, but couldn’t get one off as the fish darted into a hole or swam into deep water.  It seemed like the fish knew our limits and were just teasing us.  Finally, in frustration, Steve asked me if I wanted to try.  I’d never done it before, but jumped at the chance.  That Grouper was just sitting on the bottom with his stripes on, knowing that he was out of reach.  Hyperventilating to the point of dizziness, I dove down, and swam along the bottom with as much nonchalance as I could muster, as this was a “head game” now.  My lungs bursting , I turned and lined up a shot as the fish presented me with a good target.  Bam!  The spear hit him, but bounced off his spine, falling harmlessly to the sand.  By now, my head was swimming and finning to the surface took forever, seemingly in a tunnel as my peripheral vision was dimming from lack of oxygen.  The Old Machine ain’t what he used to be.  Could swim 50 yards under water and not break a sweat-not no mo’.  I tried to swim down and retrieve Steve’s spear, but just couldn’t do it.  He finally did, and we called it a day.  Game, set and match Grouper.  The Captain’s birthday celebration that evening consisted of frozen Painkillers and apps, followed by Greek salad and homemade spaghetti (my favorite) washed down with a couple bottles of Ecluse Cabernet.  I was about to burst when Julia whipped out her now-famous Tequila (Ta’ Kill Ya’) Lime pie for desert.  For the man who needs nothing, my birthday gift from S & J was a bag of Kettle chips and a Cuban.  Yeah, Baby.  It was breezy with some swells churning up the water the next day, so we’ll come back for those Grouper next year, when they’re bigger.  Instead of snorkin’, we all piled into the tenders, and rode over to Spanish Cay, a private island a couple of miles distant.  We poked around the marina and resort there, and had lunch at their bar.  The Grouper was excellent.  After lunch, we all headed back to the boats.  Suzanne and I hiked across Powell to the ocean side of this uninhabited island and a deserted, couple mile long sand beach.  After that, we hiked a trail up to a bluff overlooking the boats and snapped a few.  After our shore expedition, Suz and I just sat on The Girl and read until dusk, when S & J came over to talk about the weather.  No kidding.  As we head north, finishing up with The Sea of Abaco, there are   fewer options for anchoring in certain weather conditions, and it’s nice to have a “Plan B” if necessary.  Comparing notes, it was reassuring to see that we had come up with the same options and conclusions as S & J.  The weather conditions looked to be rather unsettled for the next week, with multiple Lows marching across the Southeastern United States and heading our way.  We agreed that unless things changed dramatically, we wouldn’t be crossing back to the States very soon, but when that window opens, we’ll be through it.  Saturday, the 25th, we’ll be off to Alans-Pensacola Cay (used to be 2, but is now 1 island after a hurricane).

-Later

16 April, 2015
Posted by tuck on Thursday, April 16, 2015 - 20:48

I’m Baaaaack!

Saturday, the 11th.  Dick & Jan left this morning at 1100.  We were sorry to see them go, ‘cause there are no friends like old friends.  We had a great week together, but the physical activities were somewhat limited as they’re still trying to recover from their horrendous automobile accident last Memorial Day (see May 2014 blog).  Boy, one minute you’re celebrating your anniversary, having dinner with your kids, the next minute, your life is changed forever.  Said it before, I’m sayin’ it again.  If you’ve got a Dream, do it now.  Get off the sidelines, and into the Game.  We did it, and haven’t looked back for ONE SECOND.  (End sermon).  We spent the rest of the day doing boatchores and produce shopping, feeling supergrateful for just Being.

We liked Great Guana Cay anchorage so much (the first and second time) that we decided to return for a few days and just chill before heading up to Green Turtle Cay.  It was a beautiful 10 mile ride, with the bonus being that “Erben Renewal” was anchored there also, having just arrived from Man O’ War Cay.  By the end of the afternoon, there were over 30 boats in the anchorage, presumably for the weekly Sunday barbeque at Nipper’s.  Suz and I opted to stay on ze boat, floating off the stern in the crystal clear aquamarine water, lifejackets between our legs, and a sip in our hands hands (a technique patented by our daughter, Alison, on a previous bareboat charter in the Virgin Islands).  After our dip, the Admiral and I were having sips when we heard a loud CRUUUUNCH,  Holy Crap, Batman,  that sailboat that was motoring through the anchorage is now sitting beam to the wind, hard aground on a charted rock.  As we watch the drama unfold, a couple of dinghies from other boats come alongside and try to pull her off.  Bad news, the tide is falling, it ain’t moving and starting to exhibit a rather precarious lean.  Enter “White Star”.  Still no joy, and things aren’t lookin’ so good.  Troy, from Dive Guana, whips out with his 250 horses, we throw him our 100’ line (the stricken boat has none), and he gives a tug.  The line is so taught, it’s audibly singing, and still nothing.  A perpendicular vector rotates the vessel, and before long, they’re making inches of headway.  As they toss off our lines, and the dinghies disperse, we ask them where they’re heading.  “Outta here” is the reply, and they literally sail into the sunset with a “God bless you all”.  The following day, Suz and I headed to shore for a last look at the beach by Nipper’s, and to get some milk for Julia.  After that, Steve’s boat repairs complete, we all headed up to Baker’s Bay in the dinghies.  Baker’s is a private enclave, with residences and a marina where 70’ yachts look like dinghies compared to the megayachts berthed there.  They don’t allow us boat trash come ashore, but can’t keep us from tooling around the marina and ogling.  I guess that if we really wanted to rub shoulders with the rich and famous, we could ante up the $6/ft. that they get to dock there.  The 147’ Feadship at the dock named “Winning Drive” had to be a football dudes ride, and sure enough, when Suz Googled it, it turned out to be the owner of the Baltimore Ravens.  After dinner, we all headed in to “Grabber’s”, a bar at the head of the bay for sips.  Steve got us all pretty wound up, and a good time was had by all. 

The Ides of April.  Got a dose of reality yesterday when the CPA sent us our return to okay an E File.  Bad medicine-I just want my bride and my boat.  The Girl got a nice freshwater bath yesterday, courtesy of the first rain we’ve seen in weeks, complete with lightning and thunder as we were waiting for Steve & Julia to come over for dinner.  No sips beforehand, though, as we were all naughty bears the night before, and our livers were in hyperdrive.  As I unfolded a chair on the back porch, I SPOTTED A F%$#@!G ROACH!  (no, not that kind, a creepycrawly one).  This is especially bad news, as the Admiral is fastidious about no cardboard food boxes and the like which contain roach eggs on the boat.  I’m hopin’ that this guy was a lone cowboy that just flew aboard, but we’ll keep our eyes peeled.  An old salt told me that the way to get rid of these guys is to put out saucers of antifreeze, which is sweet, and deadly.  I’ll put some out in the dark spots and see what develops.  Anyway, it’s1030, and we’re on our way back to Great Guana Cay, this time to the north end, where we’re hoping that the weather will be settled enough that we can anchor in this poorly sheltered bay.  We got some intel that says the diving is good there, and we’re ready to get wet.  Steve’s been sharpening up his spear in hopes of nailing some dinner for us.

Soooo, The North Anchorage at Great Guana was beautiful.  Crystal clear blue water, 20’ over sand.  Out at the reef, scuba was just okay, but there was a pretty good assortment of tropical fishes to check out.  Steve speared a Bermuda Chubb while he was snorkeling, as Suz and I hit some deeper water.  Julia had us over for some pork and chicken satay at dinnertime, and it was delicious.  We’ve had better nights at anchor, as there was just a slight easterly breeze, with swells coming in from the north.  Made for a rather rolly night, but hey, who was listening to Yours Truly when he suggested that we might want to move up to No Name Cay after our dive?  Next morning, we transited the Whale Cay Passage, which is notorious for crazy seas in certain conditions.  The Bahamians call it a “Rage” when the seas, tides, and wind combine to do their evil magic in this locale.  On this day, benign was the word, and not by accident.  We do everything we can to keep it pleasure boating.  No Name Cay’s anchorage was an absolute joy, and we spent the day at anchor, taking the tenders out to the reef for some snorkin’.  The island is inhabited by an extended family of feral pigs, several of which swam out to the tender to meet us as we approached the shore laden with garbage, er, I mean pig delicacies.  Too funny!  We headed over to Black Sound on Green Turtle Cay in the late afternoon on a rising tide, as we needed the depth to get in the channel.  Donny, from Donny’s Marina and Boat Rental came out of the harbor to guide us in, as the charts showed absolutely not enough water for us to get in.  Now safely in the harbor, the interweb is only moderately maddeningly slow, so here it comes.  Our plan is to stay here for the next few days.

-Later

5 April, 2015
Posted by tuck on Monday, April 6, 2015 - 06:41

Good Saturday morning from sunny Guana Cay.  Our trip to Hopetown was not a direct one, as the Sea of Abaco is very shallow (from 1’-20’ at low tide), and we had to travel on a course where there was enough water to cover The Girls’ knees.  Even though we called about a mooring ball and were told that none were available, we thought we’d head in to see what the scoop was.  As we glided into the harbor at low tide, we brushed the bottom in the MIDDLE of the channel.  Well, the field was tight, boats bow to stern in a really tight space, with definitely no room to anchor.  Thought we’d call on the VHF one more time for a ball, even though we saw no empty ones.  As it happened, the Hopetown Marina (pontoon) had pulled next to us on our quarter, and guided us to the only empty ball in the harbor-Yea!  When we called Julia & Steve, whom we had left in the anchorage that morning, they told us that they had run up here in their dinghy earlier, and had snagged an empty ball and were on their way with the big boat.  We spent the next couple days exploring Hopetown.  First on the agenda was a trip to the BaTelCo office on Tuesday morning (the only day of the week that they were open) to get our IPad and and S&J’s telephone SIM card issues ironed out.  The lady couldn’t have been nicer-at the end of the day we found that even though the folks at North Bimini had sold us the cards, they neglected to tell us that they had to be activated on an already functioning phone to be operational (short version).  S&J’s phone was too old, and locked, and couldn’t be used.  Enter Suzanne (the one who gives me static about my collection of spare parts).  She had 2 phones that we weren’t using, so activated their card and gave them a phone-simple, huh?  A sojourn to the 2 markets revealed that the trend of very little produce available would continue here at Hopetown.  The 4 of us biked all over the island which had some beautiful homes and many gorgeous views of the Atlantic.  The obligatory stop at Papa Nasty’s for barbeque was well worth the ride.  Papa’s fare, cooked on a small outdoor smoker and served out of the side of a broken-down travel trailer (ala local carnivals) included pulled pork, smoked brisket, ribs, duck legs,burgers, fries, baked beans, and etc.  I had a brisket “sundae”, consisting of alternating layers of slaw, baked beans, and beef, all served in a 16oz. Styrofoam cup, Suzanne did the same with her pulled pork-Yum.  Evening sips and apps were provided by J&S aboard “Erben Renewal”, and consisted of killer “Painkillers”, venison sausage, fancy cheese, wasabi almonds, and…….Well, you get the picture.

After 3 nights on the ball, Suz and I took our leave while S & J had decided to stay for the week.  Our next stop was Man O’ War Cay, but first we would head out into the Atlantic past the reef, and wet a line or two.  Our first hookup, on a skirted Ballyhoo, was a billfish which promptly bent my heavy rod nearly double before snapping my 60 pound test line and running off with my rig.  Didn’t even have time to pull the rod outta the holder.  We never saw the second fish, but it was Something Really Big that bent over Jeff and Susies loaner rod, taking my favorite cedar plug and 50 yds. of line with it.  All the while, baitfish (we think they were Jacks) about 8-12” long were jumping out of the water for a half mile around us.  The third time was the charm, yielding a 23” Blackfin Tuna.  The filets gave us a good meal on the grill, and the little bits (due to my inept butchering skills) were chopped up to make some awesome tuna burgers.  After an hour and a half of fishing, we were out of frozen Ballyhoo, so we headed in to anchor off M.O.W. Cay.  Our dinghy ride in confirmed our suspicions that “town” would be like many others in the Abacos-a main drag wide enough for 2 golf carts (the main mode of transportation here) to pass, encircling the harbor, with very little else in the way of amenities.  M.O.W. Cay is the home of the Albury family, boatbuilders here for over a century.  They now build center console fiberglass craft, ranging from 20-27’ or so-we’ve seen them all over The Sea of Abaco.  Their sail shop also makes purses, bags, and duffels, which are sold widely in the islands.  The cart/kayak rental joint also had frozen Ballyhoo, so we replenished our bait supply before heading back to the Girl.

The next morning, after listening to the Cruisers Net, we headed over to Guana Cay, about 8 miles distant.  Cruisers Net.  There lots of them in different cruising destinations.  What is it?  A loosely organized, cooperative effort by cruising boaters to promote information sharing for the common good.  Held at a predetermined time each day, over the VHF radio, you might have the weather and sea conditions, safety information, spots by local businesses, public information, open mic for requests for expertise, or maybe spare parts, items for sale, i.e. creating a sense of community among cruisers.  Guana Cay was one of our favorite stops so far.  The anchorage was pretty, with crystal clear 12’ deep water.  The “town” wasn’t much to cheer about, but the infamous Nipper’s Bar was.  Not so much the bar, but the location, location, location.  Perched high upon the dunes on the Atlantic side, the view was beyond description, and the beach was walkable for a couple of miles.  All al fresco, the place was multi levels with a couple of small swimming pools incorporated into the fun.  First day we were there, the music was all Motown-sweet for this Detroit-born boy.  I have to say we spent more time than we should have over the three days that we were at G.C.  This morning, we finished up our current visit with beer and rum drinks while we watched the annual Easter egg hunt, wherein around 900 plastic eggs stuffed with coupons for everything from T shirts and baseball caps to gift certificates and cash money were hunted by children aged from 3 to 73.  The little kids hunted in the sand, while the big kids had to swim out to the reef, where the eggs had been sunk earlier in the morning.  What a hoot, and such a great vibe from sooooo many happy people.  It was hard to tear ourselves away, but by 1300 it was time to head back to The Girl, as we had to up anchor and roll over to Marsh Harbor, clean the boat, and await the arrival of our buddies, Dick and Jan, who will be flying in tomorrow (Monday) to spend some time with us.

Guessin’ I won’t be writin’ for a week or so, ‘cause we’ll have comp’ny, so see you in a bit.

Adios, and vaya con dios.

31 March, 2015
Posted by tuck on Thursday, April 2, 2015 - 08:07

Buenos Dias,

 

Saturday, the 28.  The wind was calm last evening, but it’s coming up now, and the waves are starting to build as they roll into Buckaroon Bay.  Suz and I make the call to move back over to the anchorage on the west side of Tiloo Cay, “Erben Renewal” will stay here until we report in.  Sunny, cool, and the wind is howling as we make our way across the Sea.  Waves are breaking on the bow, sending walls of spray across the pilothouse.  We thought we’d tuck under the point where Tiloo juts out to Tavern Cay, but the waves are crashing on shore here, so we move to the north side, where, paradoxically, the seas are calmer.  The seas are on the bow, so the Girl is resting well at anchor.  After reporting in to S & J, they decide to stay put in Buckaroon.  A good day to do some office work and boat chores.  Suz still can’t get the SIM card that we bought in North Bimini to work, so we bite the bullet and sign up for Bahamas WiMax.  Their ad says that they cover the whole of the Bahamas, and have unlimited data for $105/mo.  The speed turns out to be FAST, and the signal is strong here (note to self for next year).  We have a quiet evening, watching 2 of the “Elite Eight’s” games from the NCAA basketball tournament.  After a calm night, we drop the tender and head over to some coral islets just south of us for some snorkeling.  Although the visibility is not great, the swim is pretty good.  Some small coral heads scattered along the sandy, grassy bottom provided shelter for a variety of fishes and invertebrates including: French and Queen Angelfish, Yellow Snapper, Blue striped Grunts, small Grouper, Parrotfish, Squirrelfish, Blue Wrasses, Sargeant Majors, a Moray Eel and etc.  Suz spotted a Lionfish (unfortunately, because this South Seas native is invasive here, has no predators, and is a voracious decimator of local species’ juveniles.  They’re now found from the Caribbean to the Carolinas, probably introduced, hopefully inadvertently, by humans.)  Invertebrates included: Anemones, Sea Cucumbers, Cassiopia Jellies, Starfish, Sponges, but sadly, no lobsters.  After warming up with hot showers, we headed over to “Cracker P’s”, a beach bar a few miles away in the hopes that cable TV was in residence.  The games were on CBS, which we don’t get on satellite (long story-see “The FCC are idiots”).  Good news, we parked for a few hours as we watched 2 pretty exciting games.  When we returned to the Girl, we found “Erben Renewal” had arrived after getting “waved” at Buckaroon.  While watching the games, the wind had come back up as the cold front rolled in.  By Monday morning it had clocked to northwest, and a cool 66 degrees.

-Later

28 March, 2015
Posted by tuck on Saturday, March 28, 2015 - 19:02

Ahoy Mates!

There wasn’t really any place to anchor at Great Harbour Cay, so we went in to the dock at Great Harbour Cay Marina.  Across the narrow harbor from the marina was a row of 2 story apartment/ condo units, circa. 1960.  All had small docks and boats in front, and screened porches overlooking the harbor.  The marina had free well water for washdowns, so we took the opportunity to give the Girl a rinse before sips and dinner.  Suzanne whipped up some Asian slaw, and Steve grilled the Mahi for some fish tacos.  The following morning, we hauled the bikes down for a trip into “town”.  We stopped for a look at the grocery store, which had been stocked 2 days before by the weekly boat.  Packed into the 20’x20’ area was boxes and crates of whatever came in-pretty slim pickin’s.  Not much in the way of fresh produce, lots of pre-prepared canned stuff-Island life.  We rode every street in town, taking in the flavor of life on a remote island.  The map showed a road heading up to the northernmost point on the island, looked to be around 5 miles, so we decided to cruise out, as it looked like there might be a good view from there.  It was hot, hot, hot, and as the power line ended, we knew that we must be getting close.  The road just ended in a dense forest of scrub and impassable undergrowth-no view here-#@$%!!.  On the way back, we took a side trip out to the ocean, where we had the pleasure of taking a little dip in a crescent-shaped cove with aquamarine water.  Don’t know why, but the return trip always seems to be shorter than the one out-maybe it’s because of the “unknown factor” heading into new territory.  There, that’s my semi-deep thought for the day.  Our next trip was to Great Abaco Island, about 70 miles away, but we figured that we could cut 20 miles off by heading ‘round the north end of Great Harbour, and anchor on the east side before heading to Abaco.  Strangely enough, there was a beach bar at a cove that looked promising for said anchoring, so we rode out to take a peek.  A few beers, snorkeling, and conch fritters later, we all pronounced the bay suitable for a jumping-off point.  That evening, we dug into the King Mackerel, grilled exquisitely by Steve, and served over a salad, with butternut squash by Julia.

Sunday morning we were off by 0900.  Passing around the north end, we encountered 2 giant cruise ships, anchored off their private islands.  A good time was being had by all, with some passengers onshore for beach activities, while others parasailed and took glass-bottom boat tours.  I had wondered where on earth the parasailing boats and glass-bottoms at the harbor were finding any business out here, and now it made abundant sense.  We got the hooks down in 8’ of water just off the beach, and ran out to the reef to do some snorkeling.  While out there, we passed a Bahamian fisherman who held up the biggest lobster that I’ve ever seen-it must have been 10-12#.  Dude!  The previous day while at the bar, we noticed that they had WiFi, so Suz and I toodled in to use the facilities, and get caught up on some housekeeping bidness.  Rumor had it that their burgers were THE BEST, so we had the ulterior motive of busting out of the fish diet.  Internet was as advertised, and after a beer we were just about ready for that “American Creation on Which I Feed”, when our waitress came around with our bill, as they closed at 1600 on Sunday.  Dang!  We ordered a couple more beers, which she brought us in an ice bucket, told us that she would leave the router on for us, and asked us to turn off the fans when we left.  Well, we had the place to ourselves, and hung out for another hour or so, before heading back to the Girl and defrosting some burgs that we had vacuum-sealed and frozen a few months previously.

By 0630, we were anchor up out of Petit Cay anchorage, bound for Schooner Bay on the East (Atlantic) side of Great Abaco.  Winds on this mostly cloudy day were from 10-14 knots out of the southwest, which put the 1-3’ seas on our beam.  The occasional 5 footers precluded fishing, as we didn’t want to stop if we hooked one up (what a couple of weenies).  When we turned the corner and headed North up the coast of Abaco, it was a welcome relief to have the seas on our stern.  There was rain all around us, evident on radar, but we never saw any.  Steve and Julia of Erben Renewal, 2 miles behind us, got a nice fresh water wash from a passing squall.  Schooner Bay is the only harbor on the Atlantic side of Abaco from the south end to the Sea of Abaco.  It is a man-made harbor that is part of a rather ambitious development.  In 2005, the Schooner Bay project was begun with an initial outlay of $90M, all by a single investor.  The harbor was completed, and all utilities were in place for the proposed 400 unit community by 2007.  Apparently, the business plan was sound, as the economic downturn of 2008 was survived while the developer built a geothermal plant to provide heat/AC for the community, as well as a hydroponic farm, and a reverse osmosis system to provide fresh water.  Currently, 43 single family owned units are built, and another dozen lots have been sold.  The vision is for this to become a self-sustaining, walkable, green town, complete with its’ own public works, and retail center.  I’d love to come back in 10 years to see how it all pans out.  From Schooner Bay, we headed up to Little Harbor, on the south end of the Sea of Abaco.  The day was sunny, and we wet a couple of lines.  All we caught was a 4’ Barracuda for our troubles.  They’re a real pain in the butt, as they’re not edible, they eat your bait, and they’re all teeth and muscle while you’re trying to get them off your hook to throw back.  We hit the harbor entrance at high tide, which is the only time that the Fat Girl can squeeze over the bar, and were able to snag a mooring ball outside Pete’s Pub, an Abaco landmark.  Pete’s dad, Randolph Johnston, was an art professor at Smith College in Massachusetts, as well as an accomplished sculptor.  In the 1950’s, he decided that he had had enough, and moved his family of 4 to this remote location, with the intention of building an artists’ community here.  While building a home, the family lived in a natural cave on the bay.  For the first few years, he made a living selling affordable (cheap) art which he boated over to tourists on Nassau.  He eventually put together a studio, and built a foundry, where he produced his cast bronze sculptures.  Today, some of his works reside in the Vatican, as well as other prestigious museums around the world.  Deceased in 1992, his son, Pete, carries on the family tradition of casting in bronze, his focus being on marine wildlife rather than the human form, in which Randolph had excelled.

Over the next few days, we bounced from anchorage to anchorage, doing our best to avoid the 14 to 30 knot winds, which changed direction daily.  We overnighted in Lynyard Cay, Tilloo Key, and Buckaroon Bay.  We snorkeled, swam, and soaked up some rays, while waiting for the winds to abate.  We celebrated Suzanne’s 60th with Steve and Julia on board “Alizann” in Buckaroon Bay.  S & J brought over a bottle of Veuve and Julia’s specialty Tequila Key Lime Pie (a.k.a. TaKillYa’ Lime Pie), and we feasted on filets which we had brought from Michigan, washed down with a 2009 Ecluse Cabernet Sauvignon.  I’m not sure if it was a step up or a step down from her 50th in Paris, but it sure was different.  Looks like more wind tomorrow (Sunday), but then it’s supposed to calm down and get warm again.

-Later 

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