Since I had met limited success in my initial forays into the role as helmsman, I decided that today I would focus my attention on navigation. The weather was still not cooperating for an easy ride to Lighthouse Reef, so in true cruiser fashion, we changed our plans. Bruno identified Bluefield Range as a nice anchorage and our next destination. As I checked the charts, I noticed that we would be going back the way we came to get back inside the reef. We would be going right by Goffs Cay. I begged that we get underway so that we could plan a stopover for a few hours at this "deserted island."

Sheryl took the helm, and I charted our position each hour. Sheryl is great at the helm, and I could generally place us near the official position indicated by GPS, at least the best I could do with the chart from our guidebook, which was "not to be used for navigation." When we arrived at Goffs Cay, dropped anchor about a quarter of a mile offshore and swam into the beach, we were just in time to meet several other boats filled with tourists, presumably from cruise ships docked in Belize City. It was a wonderful deserted island, worthy of Gilligan himself, which we shared with a few dozen other people.

Regardless of the intrusion of so many other tourists, we set about on a bit of snorkeling exploration. I am happy to report that Caye Caulker did not entirely spoil us for snorkeling experiences in Belize. The snorkeling around Goffs Cay was just as wonderful, and we did not have to pay for the privilege. The one advantage to having the other tourists on the island was the booth set up to sell food and beverages. Sheryl had a few dollars, and we enjoyed Belikens on the beach. I pronounced that I was in my happy place.

Back under sail, and against my better judgment, I took the helm. I did a little better this time behind the big wheel. We were somewhere between a beam and a close reach (wind blowing into the side of the boat), but the sails seemed a little overpowered and the boat had a lot of weather helm (a tendency for the bow of the boat to round up into the wind). After wrestling this weather helm for a while, I handed Artemesia back to Bruno. We were soon dropping anchor on the leeward side of the Bluefield Range, and we were the only boat around. This was what being a cruiser was all about, finding a spot where no one was around for miles. I took the opportunity of privacy to enjoy a quick freshwater shower on the deck in the appropriate shower attire, sans bathing suit.