After a couple of months spent at anchor in Rock House Creek in beautiful New Smyrna Beach we were more than itching to get on with our Bahamas tour. Time in New Smyrna was well spent however, visiting friends and family, making new friends and taking care of some businesses items as well as some last minute chores still needing completion on Windarra. By the end of February, we finally left for Palm Beach.
Our days in the Palm Beaches were taken up enjoying the “South Florida” contingent of friends and family while sitting out a couple weeks of near gale force winds. The first week in March found us reaching against a gentle easterly breeze down the coast toward Ft Lauderdale. A stupendous sunset chided our departure from the United States, as if to say; “Are you sure you really want to leave all this?” The answer was clear as we cracked off and beat towards the Gulf Stream.
The next afternoon found us and approaching the Bimni’s and their flawless waters. Both Rebecca and I have spent a lot of time it the Caribbean but the crystal clear waters of the Bahamas are truly hard to counter. The spear fishing from the surrounding reefs soon produced a daily bounty of lobster, conch and snapper . We actually began to crave a good old fashioned burger after a while.
From the Bimni’s it was a night sail across the Great Bahamas Banks, tacking across shipping lanes and an uneventful landfall in the Berry Islands the next afternoon. After a long wait on weather we found our bow pointing toward New Providence (Nassau) pounding to windward in 25 knot winds and mountainous 15 to 20 foot seas. The kids watched videos below while we gritted out teeth on deck. The weather didn’t phase the boat, or the kids, but Rebecca and I were both in need of a “wee dram,” upon arrival in Nassau. While in Nassau we met family who were ported there for the day on a cruise.
After a few days of re-provisioning we took advantage of a nice weather window and began our cruise down the shallow waters of the Exumas chain beginning with Alan’s Cay. The local population of Iguana’s intrigued the kids and provided a constant source of amusement to them. The Bombay Saffire colored waters, dotted with stunning reefs and rocks intrigued me, and I was able to provide fresh seafood to our dinner table almost every night. From Alan’s Cays we were off to Highborne Cay and then to Normas Cay to ride out a frontal passage. Norman’s Cay was the site of Carols Ledher’s late 70’s to early 80’s era drug smuggling operation. Remember the movie Blow? His compound is still there, rife with bullet holes and the airport is still intact. The only cargo now being supplies for the islands sparse inhabitants and occasional tourist. Things are quite now but you can tell a lot of bad air flowed here at one time. In my minds eye I could see a Columbian with an AK-47 lounging under the Casuarinas by the landing strip. Perhaps waiting for a drug laden DC-8; similar to the one that now sits in 6 feet of water a few hundred feet from where Windarra was anchored. We dove the wreck and the only cargo left are schools of snapper, grunts and the errant grouper. The waters and the islands surrounding Normans Cay were breathtaking. Miles of pure white sand and ankle deep pools reminiscent of Thailand’s undercut coastal islands abound. Truly a magical place.
From Normans we entered the Exumas Land and Sea Park. No spear fishing aloud! No we had to eat meat, so of course we began craving seafood again. Our first stop was Shroud Cay, a beautiful island bisected with several mangrove lined creeks teeming with sea life and perfect for exploring with the dingy. A few miles farther down the chain brought us to Hawksbill Cay with a rich history, a natural fresh water well and ruins from an early settlement just waiting for us to explore.
With Easter a few days away we moved on to the Exumas Park Headquarters at Warderick Wells Cay to celebrate the Holiday with some of our sailing friends that we had met along the way. After so long in the park and no seafood on our plates we were ready to start diving again and decided to leave and head to a small secluded island called Foul Cay just outside the park and with just enough room for one boat in the tricky cove. Here we spent our time spear fishing and exploring the truly amazing underwater caverns of the nearby Rocky Dundas. These caverns are only accessible by swimming or diving through the entrance. Once inside you emerge from the water onto a rock beach, as the pounding surf echoes around you. High above a natural skylight illuminates the huge caverns surrounded by stalactites and stalagmites. Just outside are pristine coral reefs teeming with fish and sea life including large grouper, snapper, angel fish, rays, sharks and the largest stingray I have ever seen in my life; at least 6 feet from wing to wing.
A quick refueling at Samson Cay brought us to Staniel Cay and Big Majors Spot. Here the diving improved considerably and more cave diving (this time with Sofia on our back) proved flawless. More fish on the table, a visit to some caverns on shore as well as the infamous Pig Beach (yes there were actually pigs that live and go swimming at the beach) were all highlights of these two great cays.
We met up with some friends at Black Point Settlement on Great Guana, restocked our fresh veggies and took advantage of the settled weather to explore the rest of Great Guana Cay. Sofia and Blake climbed their first mountain there (100 feet) and we took in some great hiking and exploring on land and in the sea. More fish, more shark encounters and lots more seafood on the table nightly.
Becky has become quite the Caribbean Chef with all manner of island fare on the table daily, such as . . . cracked conch, Bahamian peas n’ rice, curried lamb, chicken roti, maduros/platanos, conch salad & conch fritters as well as the more traditional stuff like Sashimi (try 10 minutes from water to plate) lobster eggs benedict, Panko encrusted snapper & grouper with caper & white wine, lobster alfredo, blackened mahi-mahi, and of course a daily dose of rum and ginger on ice or a nice cold Bahamin Kalik or two or three or . . .
From Great Guana we headed south and settled into a beautiful cove off of Galliot Cay to ride out a frontal passage. It turned out to be on of the best places to be stuck since we’ve been in the Exumas. The diving was fantastic, the exploring and caving was also second to none. For 10 days we had a beautiful private beach all to ourselves, bonfires almost every night and not another person in sight; no boats, no people, no tan lines. From Little Galliot we moved to Cave Cay and positioned ourselves to take advantage of the slack current that normally makes these cuts treacherous. A day sail brought us to the infamous Conch Cut at Great Exuma Island. First comes the outer reef then a 90 degree turn to avoid the inner reef without getting swamped by the massive swells that break across the narrow channel. Of course there are no such things as markers and buoys in the Bahamas, anywhere, and if there is they are usually inaccurate or in the case of lighted aids, not working entirely. The guide book says that boats are lost on these reefs every year, as many as five or six. In the end Conch Cut didn’t prove to be a big deal for us at all. Good light and an accurate chart plotter take a lot of the guess work out of navigation.
Soon we were settling into the cushy Georgetown life. Beach bars , hammocks, free water, grocery stores . . . easy living. While there we thoroughly enjoyed a few weeks with the grandparents who flew in for a visit.
Interestingly enough Georgetown, specifically Elizabeth Harbor, are humorously dubbed “Chicken Harbor.” Thus named because this is the point where most folks “chicken out” and head home. We were headed to Trinidad for hurricane season, but as it turns out we ended up being no different than everyone else. Our excuses were; too late in the season, to much violence reported in Trinidad, we’d like to see more of the Bahams this season, and of-course the mother of all excuses, a rapidly evaporating hurricane window. Plus 1400 miles pounding to windward in less than 30 days with two to little kids was not my idea of fun. Chicken is spelled C-H-I-C-K-E-N, we were chided by our fellow sailors.
So back up-island is was to be. From Georgetown, Great Exuma our first stop was Conception Island, the Mecca for diving in the Bahamas. As it turns out it is also the Mecca for sharks. Lemon Sharks, Black Tip Sharks, Bull Sharks, Reef Sharks. You name it they are there diving right along with you, cheering you on, waiting so see if you can catch them a fish. We tried like hell to avoid them, but to little avail, they were everywhere. An 8 foot bull shark even chased Becky back into the boat during one dive. I think it was the memory of the guy that lost his hand to a bull shark at our last anchorage. That kind of did it for her. So in the end of our Conceptiopn Island Tour was tallied up as Karl: one grouper, one snapper and a few conch. Sharks, everything else.
From Conception we officially started North again towards our eventual destination, Beaufort, North Carolina at the tip of Cape Hatteras. To get there we would wind our way back up the Far Bahamas Island including Cat Island, Little San Salvador, Eleuthera and New Providence. From there a quick hop to the Berry Islands and a final no-stop jump to New Smyrna Beach, Fl. After some visits and some business at our “home port,” our first weather window will find us sailing non-stop to Beaufort, NC.
Our summer/fall plans include a land tour of new England and Nova Scotia. A late fall departure form Cape Hatteras will find us once again winding our way through the Bahams chain and onto the Dominican Republic, Caribbean Windwards/Leewards and finally the North Coast of South America through the Winter of 2009-2010. From there, as with all sailors, our plans are set in Jell-O.
Our days in the Palm Beaches were taken up enjoying the “South Florida” contingent of friends and family while sitting out a couple weeks of near gale force winds. The first week in March found us reaching against a gentle easterly breeze down the coast toward Ft Lauderdale. A stupendous sunset chided our departure from the United States, as if to say; “Are you sure you really want to leave all this?” The answer was clear as we cracked off and beat towards the Gulf Stream.
The next afternoon found us and approaching the Bimni’s and their flawless waters. Both Rebecca and I have spent a lot of time it the Caribbean but the crystal clear waters of the Bahamas are truly hard to counter. The spear fishing from the surrounding reefs soon produced a daily bounty of lobster, conch and snapper . We actually began to crave a good old fashioned burger after a while.
From the Bimni’s it was a night sail across the Great Bahamas Banks, tacking across shipping lanes and an uneventful landfall in the Berry Islands the next afternoon. After a long wait on weather we found our bow pointing toward New Providence (Nassau) pounding to windward in 25 knot winds and mountainous 15 to 20 foot seas. The kids watched videos below while we gritted out teeth on deck. The weather didn’t phase the boat, or the kids, but Rebecca and I were both in need of a “wee dram,” upon arrival in Nassau. While in Nassau we met family who were ported there for the day on a cruise.
After a few days of re-provisioning we took advantage of a nice weather window and began our cruise down the shallow waters of the Exumas chain beginning with Alan’s Cay. The local population of Iguana’s intrigued the kids and provided a constant source of amusement to them. The Bombay Saffire colored waters, dotted with stunning reefs and rocks intrigued me, and I was able to provide fresh seafood to our dinner table almost every night. From Alan’s Cays we were off to Highborne Cay and then to Normas Cay to ride out a frontal passage. Norman’s Cay was the site of Carols Ledher’s late 70’s to early 80’s era drug smuggling operation. Remember the movie Blow? His compound is still there, rife with bullet holes and the airport is still intact. The only cargo now being supplies for the islands sparse inhabitants and occasional tourist. Things are quite now but you can tell a lot of bad air flowed here at one time. In my minds eye I could see a Columbian with an AK-47 lounging under the Casuarinas by the landing strip. Perhaps waiting for a drug laden DC-8; similar to the one that now sits in 6 feet of water a few hundred feet from where Windarra was anchored. We dove the wreck and the only cargo left are schools of snapper, grunts and the errant grouper. The waters and the islands surrounding Normans Cay were breathtaking. Miles of pure white sand and ankle deep pools reminiscent of Thailand’s undercut coastal islands abound. Truly a magical place.
From Normans we entered the Exumas Land and Sea Park. No spear fishing aloud! No we had to eat meat, so of course we began craving seafood again. Our first stop was Shroud Cay, a beautiful island bisected with several mangrove lined creeks teeming with sea life and perfect for exploring with the dingy. A few miles farther down the chain brought us to Hawksbill Cay with a rich history, a natural fresh water well and ruins from an early settlement just waiting for us to explore.
With Easter a few days away we moved on to the Exumas Park Headquarters at Warderick Wells Cay to celebrate the Holiday with some of our sailing friends that we had met along the way. After so long in the park and no seafood on our plates we were ready to start diving again and decided to leave and head to a small secluded island called Foul Cay just outside the park and with just enough room for one boat in the tricky cove. Here we spent our time spear fishing and exploring the truly amazing underwater caverns of the nearby Rocky Dundas. These caverns are only accessible by swimming or diving through the entrance. Once inside you emerge from the water onto a rock beach, as the pounding surf echoes around you. High above a natural skylight illuminates the huge caverns surrounded by stalactites and stalagmites. Just outside are pristine coral reefs teeming with fish and sea life including large grouper, snapper, angel fish, rays, sharks and the largest stingray I have ever seen in my life; at least 6 feet from wing to wing.
A quick refueling at Samson Cay brought us to Staniel Cay and Big Majors Spot. Here the diving improved considerably and more cave diving (this time with Sofia on our back) proved flawless. More fish on the table, a visit to some caverns on shore as well as the infamous Pig Beach (yes there were actually pigs that live and go swimming at the beach) were all highlights of these two great cays.
We met up with some friends at Black Point Settlement on Great Guana, restocked our fresh veggies and took advantage of the settled weather to explore the rest of Great Guana Cay. Sofia and Blake climbed their first mountain there (100 feet) and we took in some great hiking and exploring on land and in the sea. More fish, more shark encounters and lots more seafood on the table nightly.
Becky has become quite the Caribbean Chef with all manner of island fare on the table daily, such as . . . cracked conch, Bahamian peas n’ rice, curried lamb, chicken roti, maduros/platanos, conch salad & conch fritters as well as the more traditional stuff like Sashimi (try 10 minutes from water to plate) lobster eggs benedict, Panko encrusted snapper & grouper with caper & white wine, lobster alfredo, blackened mahi-mahi, and of course a daily dose of rum and ginger on ice or a nice cold Bahamin Kalik or two or three or . . .
From Great Guana we headed south and settled into a beautiful cove off of Galliot Cay to ride out a frontal passage. It turned out to be on of the best places to be stuck since we’ve been in the Exumas. The diving was fantastic, the exploring and caving was also second to none. For 10 days we had a beautiful private beach all to ourselves, bonfires almost every night and not another person in sight; no boats, no people, no tan lines. From Little Galliot we moved to Cave Cay and positioned ourselves to take advantage of the slack current that normally makes these cuts treacherous. A day sail brought us to the infamous Conch Cut at Great Exuma Island. First comes the outer reef then a 90 degree turn to avoid the inner reef without getting swamped by the massive swells that break across the narrow channel. Of course there are no such things as markers and buoys in the Bahamas, anywhere, and if there is they are usually inaccurate or in the case of lighted aids, not working entirely. The guide book says that boats are lost on these reefs every year, as many as five or six. In the end Conch Cut didn’t prove to be a big deal for us at all. Good light and an accurate chart plotter take a lot of the guess work out of navigation.
Soon we were settling into the cushy Georgetown life. Beach bars , hammocks, free water, grocery stores . . . easy living. While there we thoroughly enjoyed a few weeks with the grandparents who flew in for a visit.
Interestingly enough Georgetown, specifically Elizabeth Harbor, are humorously dubbed “Chicken Harbor.” Thus named because this is the point where most folks “chicken out” and head home. We were headed to Trinidad for hurricane season, but as it turns out we ended up being no different than everyone else. Our excuses were; too late in the season, to much violence reported in Trinidad, we’d like to see more of the Bahams this season, and of-course the mother of all excuses, a rapidly evaporating hurricane window. Plus 1400 miles pounding to windward in less than 30 days with two to little kids was not my idea of fun. Chicken is spelled C-H-I-C-K-E-N, we were chided by our fellow sailors.
So back up-island is was to be. From Georgetown, Great Exuma our first stop was Conception Island, the Mecca for diving in the Bahamas. As it turns out it is also the Mecca for sharks. Lemon Sharks, Black Tip Sharks, Bull Sharks, Reef Sharks. You name it they are there diving right along with you, cheering you on, waiting so see if you can catch them a fish. We tried like hell to avoid them, but to little avail, they were everywhere. An 8 foot bull shark even chased Becky back into the boat during one dive. I think it was the memory of the guy that lost his hand to a bull shark at our last anchorage. That kind of did it for her. So in the end of our Conceptiopn Island Tour was tallied up as Karl: one grouper, one snapper and a few conch. Sharks, everything else.
From Conception we officially started North again towards our eventual destination, Beaufort, North Carolina at the tip of Cape Hatteras. To get there we would wind our way back up the Far Bahamas Island including Cat Island, Little San Salvador, Eleuthera and New Providence. From there a quick hop to the Berry Islands and a final no-stop jump to New Smyrna Beach, Fl. After some visits and some business at our “home port,” our first weather window will find us sailing non-stop to Beaufort, NC.
Our summer/fall plans include a land tour of new England and Nova Scotia. A late fall departure form Cape Hatteras will find us once again winding our way through the Bahams chain and onto the Dominican Republic, Caribbean Windwards/Leewards and finally the North Coast of South America through the Winter of 2009-2010. From there, as with all sailors, our plans are set in Jell-O.
