Bahamas 2006 (Part 2)

May 18

Bob and Mary on Jazmyn (a Defever 49 that we first met while they were getting damage from Hurricane Frances repaired at Cracker Boy Boat Yard in Ft Pierce) anchored nearby and gave us a tour of their boat that now looks brand new. Bob and Eddie and Wayne spent a couple of hours in the engine room talking about watermakers, batteries and other fun stuff. Bob also makes and sells pole spears. He is an avid hunter. We bought 2 spears.

The dinghy battery died! For the rest of the trip we have to hand crank, which means removing the cover and wrapping the rope around by hand.

May 19

We moved to near Mermaid Reef for a snorkel and lunch stop. It is an easy reef to access so many people go there and the fish are used to being fed. It is a no-take area and there are many fish. We did see some freshly discarded lobster heads (they are also out of season) which was sad. We then went over to anchor off White Sound on Elbow Cay. Changed oil in genset.

May 20

We went into Hope Town and enjoyed lunch at Harbour's Edge. We all had conch sandwiches. Very good!

As usual, we walked around town and climbed the lighthouse. It was a beautiful day. See more photos at flickr.com/photos/wb4us

May 22

Moved around to Snake Cay off of Great Abaco. Took several tries to find a place that was sandy enough for the anchor to grab. Finally further offshore SE of the "hook" on Snake was OK. This area was a big logging operation and then attempted sugar cane production 20-30 years ago. Now all the equipment is abandonded and rusting away.

May 23

We walked around the abandonded site and dinghed through the cut (lots of current) to look at the shallow back side of Deep Sea Cay. Carol and Eddie later took the kayaks around the loop.

May 24

Moved to anchorage at southern end of Lynyard Cay, going around Tiloo Bank. I let the Nobeltec software on the PC tell the autopilot where to steer (NAV mode) for the first time. This worked fine until the autopilot heading started to drift. Then we had to hand steer. This has been happening after a few hours run time ever since we left Lake Worth inlet.

May 25 - 28

Left the Abacos at first light and went out the cut at Little Harbor. We had to tow the dinghy because when we tried to lift it last night the boom winch "let go" and dropped the dinghy. Fortunately, it was only a few feet up and no one got hurt (it weighs obout 700 lbs), but the boom smashed the railing. Now we will be forced to tow the dinghy all the way home, which we don't like. I set up Nobeltec to give an audio position report every 10 minutes. We use this as a reminder to check that the dinghy is OK and still following us. There is a lot of pressure on the lines.

We travelled about 70 nm in 10 hrs to the Market Fish Cays in the Berry Islands (also part of the Bahamas) where we had stopped for a day on our trip to the Exumas in 2000. This area is uninhabited and there are a few other boats around. We met "No Call", a Krogen 42. Bruce is a retired physican. He and Janet live aboard and are avid divers and spear fishers.

We did quite a bit of hiking on Hoffman's Cay (Holmes on some charts). We would dinghy along the beaches until we spotted a trail head, then hike off through the bushes/low trees with plenty of mosquitos. We were looking for a trail to a "blue hole" but found one to an oceanside beach with high bluffs, one of which had a structure on it. We eventually found the right trail to the blue hole and it was very interesting. You are walking through the jungle and all of a sudden there is a big hole in front of you. We brought food for the resident grouper and he was waiting for us. See pics. Later, Janet told us how they had hiked to the top of the cliff and found the US Navy triangulation marker. We found that trail the next day and hiked in and up. The day was clear and the views from the top were spectacular. (see more pics on flickr)

Carol also caught a 4-5' reef shark while fishing from the boat one night. We cut it loose.

May 29

In preparation for the crossing to Grand Bahama we moved up to Goat Cay in Great Harbor. This is adjacent to Great Stirrup and Little Stirrup where the cruise ships have their "private out-islands". We could see what looked like a couple of thousand people on the beach through the binoculars and the ship towered over the island. There were also a few dozen jet skis (we call them fleas, like land pests!), but they were controlled by ship personell and were well behaved.

Later in the day, after the ship left, we walked up to the lighthouse and also to the ruins of an old tracking station. That night we noticed the lighthouse was not operational, like a lot of nav aides in the Bahamas.

May 30

We left before first light for West End, Grand Bahama. At first, it was very calm, but as we neared Freeport the winds kicked up and we dodged thunderstorms. By the time we got to West End the winds were still blowing out of the North/Northwest which seriously reduced the possibilities for anchorages. We called and got at slip at Old Bahama Bay, which has continued to build and upgrade since we were here in 2000. Cost for one night $122, including water and electric. That is why we don't spend much time in marinas. The dockmaster on the radio gave us our slip assignment and told us it would be a tight fit. With the wind and other boats to avoid I was concerned, but made it in without a problem.

May 31

We left at sun-up. There was not a lot of room to back out of the slip, but the wind was calm so it went well. We got a call on the VHF radio from Tar Heel, another boat that spent the night there and they wanted to confirm that we were heading for Ft Pierce as they had a broken shaft and were travelling on one engine and wanted company. On this trip we ended up making both Gulf Stream crossings in the company of other boats. We hadn't done this in the past. (Courage, a Krogen 42, had followed us across from Lake Worth).

The weather wasn't great with thunderstorms and at least 3 waterspouts close by. The winds were supposed to be East but seemed a little North of that which made for a long day. Coming into Ft Pierce Inlet was against the tide which makes it rough and slow going. We finally got into our slip in Vero Beach about dark, but not before stopping to tow a guy in a disabled fishing boat. While getting him hooked up the wind blew us out of the channel and we were aground. I was able to use the bow thruster to get the bow headed back to the channel and powered off.

Called customs and went to Ft Pierce airport for immigration the next day.

Postscript

We went 543 nm, put 88 hrs on the engine, used 328 gal fuel, and put 140 hours on the generator (if I did the math right). Here is a chart that I added our route to.

When I called SIMRAD about the autopilot they knew immediately what the problem was and I ordered a replacement board for the heading sensor ($300 with return of the old one). It was easy to install and seems to work (at least for 24 hrs).

We have also bought and installed two new Superwinch S4000 winches for the dinghy. Since it spent so much time in the water and doesn't have bottom paint, it is a mess. Eddie has made it his mission to get it cleaned up!

I have a quote from Ward's Marine Electric to upgrade our inverter/charging system so we can increase our battery capacity. We want to get this done before heading north in the next couple of weeks.

Abaco Bahamas May 2006

May 03

We finally left Vero Beach after many hectic days. The weather is looking better for crossing. Went to Port Petroleum in Ft Pierce and took on 717 gal fuel. This filled all three tanks. Since it was late by the time we finished they let us stay at their dock for the night. (14 nm) (nm is a nautical mile, approx 1.15 miles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nautical_mile)

May 04

Since the seas were marginal we decided to wait another day before crossing so we headed south on the ICW for Lake Worth (Port of Palm Beach). Things were fine until as we passed under the Jupiter Federal Highway bridge the tender informed us that the bridge at PGA Blvd was closed for the next 24 hrs. We turned around and waited for her to close and then re-open the bridge and after calling Tow-Boat US for local knowledge proceeded out of Jupiter Inlet (which is not recommended for cruising boats). This was a first for us but conditions were mild and we proceded to Lake Worth inlet and anchored south of Peanut Island. (52 nm)

May 05

Left Lake Worth inlet around 4:00 am at 1625 rpm on the Cat. The seas were mild with light westerly winds. We travelled all the way to the eastern side of Great Sale Cay (Tom Johnson Harbor on the chart) to get protection from the westerly winds. (104 nm, approx 42 gal fuel burned).

I have started using Nobeltec VNS software which lets me show the chart and a satellite photo side by side on the 20'' widescreen Dell LCD monitor with the boat position in real time from the GPS. I usually have the photo zoomed out to give an overview and the chart more zoomed in to see detail. Very happy with this.

May 06

Moved to anchorage off Green Turtle Cay. Tried to clear customs but the customs lady was tending bar at the "Roots Festival". Island time! (50.4 nm)

May 07

Cleared customs ($300) early and went snorkelling off No Name Cay where there are moorings along the reef. When we were lifting the dinghy for the night the 80A fuse blew. We managed to get the dinghy back in the water. Proabably need to replace winches when we get back to USA.
In the meantime we are towing the dinghy which is not as good and leaving it in the water at night which makes it possible for someone to steal it. They usally take the whole thing and the remove the engine and discard the dinghy.

May 08

Eddie bought new snorkel and mask from Brendal's ($104) and we snorkelled mooring #13 off the same reef off No Name where we saw two large sleeping nurse sharks. Carol tried to call her Mom from a pay phone and as it was getting dark and the light in the booth was out, Eddie had to stand under a light by a store and yell out the credit card numbers. She couldn't get through anyway!

May 09

As Carol and I left the boat to try to call her Mom we let go of the boat before we noticed the key was not in the dinghy (duh!). It was too windy to paddle back to the boat so we tossed out the anhor. Eddie came to the rescue in his underwear and flippers. He dove in and delivered the key.

May 10

We left Green Turtle and moved to Baker's Bay on Guana Cay. This place was developed by a cruise ship company as a "private island" but was abandoned several years ago. Now someone is planning a big golf course and residential development. People are fighting it, but in the Bahamas, like in the US, money usually wins. (13 nm)

May 11

Took long dinghy ride to settlement and got drenched when the wind picked up and made the Sea of Abaco pretty rough.

May 12

A squall line brought winds of 40 mph and hail! (another first for us). Our anchor held fine and it passed quickly.

May 13

Moved to anchor off north end of Man-O-War Cay. (9 nm)

Carol and Eddie snorkelled around the shore and I blew up one of the inflatable kayaks and took Ursa ashore. I met a couple from Ohio that own a house that overlooks both the ocean and Sea of Abaco at the narrow point of the Cay. See pictures. They were originally from Ohio and had the house built by local contractors (whose background is as ship builders) in the '70s and have now retired here. The house has gone through some serious storms with minimal damage. In hurricane Floyd their neighbor's anemometers recorded gusts over 180 mhp. We see very few structures on land with signs of hurricane damage. Damage to docks, etc. is more obvious as many have not been repaired.

May 14

Took dinghy tour of harbors on Man-O-War and snorkelled at Fowl Cay Preserve. Highlight was two large rays, but most of the reef is not in good shape. Also saw the biggest royal blue parrot fish ever! We moved to Marsh Harbor late in the day as another front is forecast and that is more protected. (5.7 nm)

May 15

Went to shore and Carol called her Mom from Batelco. Checked out WiFi internet access from oii.net (Out Island Internet). Tried to sign up on the boat but got timed out.

Stopped by JAZMYN and talked with Bob and Mary. We met them in Cracker Boy Boat Yard after Hurricane Frances damaged their Defever 49. They lived on her in the yard for 180 days while she was being repaired because rental properties were not available after the storms. That is not fun, but she looks like new now. Later they joined us on FLUKE and shared stories of their 30 years of cruising. We try to learn all we can from people like that.

May 16 (Carol says worst day of boating yet)

As the local cruiser's net on VHF radio was starting at 8:15 am a big squall hit and our anchor started to drag immediately. This is hard to describe because stuff happens so fast. I got the engine going right away but control is difficult in the high winds with the anchor dragging. We were on top of the boats behind us quickly (it is a very crowded harbor) and people were yelling on the radio. When this happens you are are quickly pushed broadside to the wind which complicates things. In addition to trying not to hit boats one has to worry about getting things in the prop which would disable the boat immediately. Our own anchor chain and other boats are prime candidates. Carol ran to the cockpit with a big fender (the dinghy was also tied tight sideways off the swim platform) and Eddie managed to get the anchor up. By some miracle we didn't seem to hit anything but we got a lot of people exited. (this is not a good way to make friends) Carol said one sailboat bow was practically in our cockpit and she could see his anchor chain going under our dinghy, but somehow we got away. Once the anchor was up I had more control and was able to get away to an open area in the channel and wait until the wind (and our nerves) settled down to re-anchor.

I went ashore and got signed up for WiFi access ($40 for a week) so I could see that my ACVT stock options are about worthless.

Later in the day another squall line was forecast so we moved to the outside of the harbor and anchored along the shore where we would have less protection, but a lot more space. (1 nm)

May 17

It was a relatively quiet night as the sqaull line dissipated. It is raining now but winds have been mostly light with a few gusts. Hopefully, this front will move out of here so we can have some good weather again. Eddie was pumping out the dinghy, but got interrupted by the latest shower.

Other:

We have not been happy with our power situation. The main engine alternator output while running at 1600 rpm is basically enough to power the load so there is none extra to recharge the batteries. It takes about 3 hrs of generator time twice a day to keep the batteries charge. The fridge and freezer are the biggest loads.

Here is a picture. Clicking on it will take you to flickr.com where you can see other pics we have posted. I am having a hard time getting them to upload so be patient if I haven't got them yet.

Rendezvous and more

A lot has happened since the last update. Eddie has retired, Wayne got fired (they let the whole group go) and Carol is only working two mornings a week. We are working hard at getting ready to head to the Bahamas around the first of May.

Last weekend we took a break and took FLUKE down to the Krogen Owners Rendezvous in Stuart, FL. It was a great event. About 40 boats were there and people from another 20 or so came by other means. Great food and drink, seminars and many new friends.
Click for story.

Today we took FLUKE to Cracker Boy Boat Works, a do-it-yourself boat yard in Ft Pierce where we got hauled out and are getting the bottom ready to paint and other routine maintenance we want to do before taking off.