The weekly mailboat arrived here at Rum Cay but the store still had pretty slim picking. Not to worry we just took the matter into our own hands and went foraging on our own. Laura, Jason and I snorkeled and collected plenty of lobster for our dinner. We saved them for tonight since last night, Saturday, was a planned potluck at the marina. All the cruisers showed up and shared yummy treats. Bobbie, who runs the Rum Cay marina did a fine job of contributing with a scrumptious grouper, coconut milk, soup. It was really good. The other boaters didn't do too shabby either, contributing artichoke dip, white bean salsa, fresh tuna sashimi, polenta, cobbler, etc. It was a fine meal with good company. Today David went with Laura and Jason to do some more hunting and gathering while I waited to see if Morgan and Caroline would arrive here at Rum Cay or would have to go to San Salvador and wait until tomorrow for us there. There was a slim chance their flight would arrive in time for them to make the only Rum Cay flight but alas it was not to be. They are flying into San Salvador later today and will be guests aboard "Joyous" since our friend Alan is already there. What a great guy to put up our kids sight unseen. The weather has calmed and by tomorrow the seas will have calmed as well. We will sail for San Salvador early in the morning and be united with Morgan and Caroline by late afternoon. They will just have to entertain themselves on a beautiful tropical paradise for one whole day. I can hardly wait. But for tonight we will have to be patient and make due with our lobster dinner to console us.

The Nassau Girl's Adventure began with our early morning private flight to Nassau. The plane was small, very small. Smaller even than the last small plane I hitchhiked a ride on. This plane is used to ferry small amounts of cargo to and from Rum Cay. Rum Cay has only 60 inhabitants; a small plane for a very small island. Since the plane is used for cargo, Laura and I sat on the floor in the back and Jeanette was the co-pilot. Yup, it was a four-seater plane with two seats. Beggers can't be choosers, and we were just glad to have found a friendly pilot with time to spare and a willingness to help out some needy boaters. The flight was short and smooth but definitely thrilling and heart pumping. We landed in short order on San Salvador and with a friendly hug and a wave said good-bye to our new friend. We had a couple hours to wait for our next flight so we wandered across the street to chat up the locals relaxing on the porch of a small food stand. Noticing the Dominos on the table we asked for a lesson in the game, surely a National Bahamian pass-time. Every corner, every store-front and most parks have crowds of men playing lively games of Dominos. Lots of slamming of tiles and strategic ploys are involved in these competitive games. Soon Laura and I were immersed in the challenge of mastering Dominos. Thankfully we had knowledgeable and patient teachers, Keith and Diamond. We even each won a game but I am sure they were going easy on us. Our flight to Nasssau was uneventful and we were soon in a taxi headed to the Fish Fry to try out the world famous daiquiris. I had a Miami Vice, a swirl of Pina Colada and Strawberry daiquiri in one glass. After our meal we headed to our hotel to drop off our stuff and then hurried to Atlantis to see the aquarium, casino and luxury marina. We spent hours roaming the grounds, meeting people, checking out the designer shops and even gambling at the casino. Laura was the big winner at the slots! Even though we had a great time and took millions of photos again of the fabulous, world-class aquarium we headed back to the hotel by 9:00pm (cruisers midnight). We arrived at the hotel and interestingly and unexpectedly that's when the real party started. As we emerged from our taxi we encountered a pack of young drunk men-children tumbling out the front doors of the hotel. They were headed to Senor Frogs they loudly told us and insisted that we come with them. Laura and I laughed and continued on but ...uh oh...Jeanette was waylaid. She engaged the pack of young rascals in drunken conversation and by the time we backtracked to retrieve her she had the entire Michigan State Rugby team stripping down to their skivvies and posing for photos in the parking lot! That woman works fast! The risque, hilarious photoshoot continued there until we were convinced to walk the mile downtown to Senor Frogs to check out the Spring Break Party. A raucous, stumbling parade ensued culminating in a take over of the dance floor by us three older woman and the slap-happy rugby players. We danced nonstop, our feet slipping on the drink soaked dance floor, surrounded by the thoroughly trashed college crowd. Eventually we danced our way right out the door and laughed all the way back to our hotel. Good times. We still woke early enough to wander the main shopping district before catching a taxi to the airport. There we said a tearful good-bye to Jeanette. Laura and I luckily had hit the right day for a flight straight back and we " don reached" (Bahamian for returned) Rum Cay before noon. It was lovely to be reunited with David and Ali. David had spent the two days blissfully bonefishing with Jason and Alan. He returned to the boat after I had arrived having left one of the dinghies on the beach for Laura and I to make our way out to the anchorage in. He came bringing spicy curry chicken as a treat from the local restaurant. He also brought stories of his buxomous new "sweetheart" Felicia, the visting chef at Ruby's restaurant! The next morning we, along with the one other boat in the anchorage "Vanilla", followed each other into the marina to hide out from an approaching high wind. The day was spent quietly, David cleaning the boat and me sleeping off my Nassau vacation. Yesterday arrangements were finalized for Morgan and Caroline to join us on the boat in San Salvador on Sunday! So exciting! Also last night, we all, "Vanilla's" crew included, trouped down to "Ruby's" restaurant to have a local meal. Lots of teasing and laughing. From the restaurant we could see the mailboat arriving. A weekly, big, local event. Most of the island was there to pick up things arriving from off island. This means there will be fresh groceries available so Laura and I will scurry down there today to get new provisions.

Jeanette arrived early in the evening on a perfectly lovely day. The wind was still a bit high so her first adventure was to ride in the dinghy through choppy water. Nothing like getting wet right away. Her expectations were nicely lowered immediately so that the rest of her trip could only get better. [...]

Short update. The last two days of Glenda and David's visit flew by. We stayed put here in Georgetown. The regatta kicked off on Monday with a Pet parade and No-Talent show. We didn't attend any of the festivities; way too much summer camp behavior for us. The radio buzzes every morning with social opportunities, organized activities, beach church, regatta updates, business advertising, information exchange and unsolicited advice. The radio is also closely watched continuously by self-appointed monitors. They hop all over people who forget to change channels and snap at them to "go to a working channel". Some people go so far as to remove themselves from the general public onto an isolated sailboat and yet still can't seem to mind their own business. Obviously those people have never accidentally chatted on the hailing channel, God forbid. I am sure those are the same people who call in to the morning radio "net" with unwanted advice and snotty reminders of their idea of appropriate community behavior. One woman, even suggested people tie their children into their dinghies like the pet owners do...seriously a dangerous idea. Crazy people. "Freedom" and "Blue Blaze" sailed in the second day from Long Island and we were excited to be reunited. They had stopped out on the reefs as they returned to Elizabeth Harbor area to hunt up some dinner. Jason and Laura were successful with a a nice size Mutton Snapper and a lobster. We all contributed side dishes and all the boats were fully fed once again by the fruits of the spearfisherperson's labors. Someday soon I am going to be that food provider, I have been practicing with my anniversary present, the gruesome golden spear. Yesterday G and D left by water taxi since the dinghy trip to the other side of the anchorage would have left their luggage soaked with saltwater due to the wind and chop on the water. The two weeks went quickly. Jeanette arrives this evening. Oh yeah. Today we will scurry to do laundry, catch up on internet (hopefully) and stock up on perishables before the arrival. Our friend Alan, on "Joyous", is currently single-handing since his significant other is off the boat for a time and he is possibly going to be sailing with us on our next adventure. The general plan (set-in Jello) for that next adventure is to leave tomorrow and in the next week go to Rum Cay, Conception Island and ultimately San Salvador where Jeanette can fly back for her appointed flight. The upcoming excitement is the possibility of Morgan and his girlfriend Caroline to meet us in San Salvador on the 14th for a few days of boat time! Hope that works out. As for tonight, we will welcome Jeanette in style with a typical gourmet potluck on one of the boats. Can't wait for her to meet our friends. The festivities should be fun-filled and wild. Woohoo!

We rented a car on Long Island and spent the day exploring. "Freedom" and "Blue Blaze" rented a car as well. I drove most of the day and thankfully never forgot to stay on the LEFT hand side of the road. Believe me, it took some hard remembering! Every person we encountered was friendly, helpful, cheerful...just absolutely splendid folks. The women who ran the liquor store adored Ali and treated us like family. Not bad a welcome for a liquor store! The highlight was by far Dean's Blue Hole. We had visited a blue hole before on Eleuthera but this was the king of all blue holes. It is the deepest blue hole yet discovered on the entire Earth! It is the sight of world championship free diving competitions. We actually met the free dive record holder...he was there practicing with his "team" just as we arrived. He dives with nothing but goggles, no fins or any other equipment. 325 ft. straight down. They left and we had the hole to ourselves. We spread out on the white, silky sand beach. We lolled around the shallow, green flats, walked the empty sun-filled beach, climbed the limestone, hilly paths and generally thoroughly enjoyed some lazy hours there. The ultimate by far though was the blue hole itself. Absolutely perfectly clear. Completely white clear on the edges over the white sand, fading into lime green graduating darker and darker in increasingly smaller circles until the deep, breath-taking navy blue of the water over the cavernous hole. Snorkeling over the waters the fish were interesting and plentiful but the rock formations were seriously otherworldly. You could paddle in lazy fat circles around the edges of the hole and just drink in the beauty. We all took our shot, diving down as deep as possible but we barely broke the topmost layers. A couple of the guys got as far as the first craggy ledge. We reluctantly moved on when our hunger won out and stopped by a restaurant named Rowdy's in Clarence Town for some of the best conch fritters and "fish bites". Yum. Glenda and David both had Fish Burgers made with huge, fresh Wahoo steaks. Incredible. We finished the drive by heading to the other end of the island and a look at the exclusive Stella Maris Resort. It looked lovely but our boat looks just as good to us. We made a short stop at the Stella Maris Marina but we rushed out of there as fast as possible pursued by noseeums -tiny biting bugs- thankful we were anchored out in the breezy, bug free Bay. We dinghied back to the boat in the fast approaching dark, tired and fulfilled from our day of adventure. The next morning we weighed anchor and sailed in near perfect conditions back towards Georgetown. We made excellent time and arrived in the early afternoon. We were greeted at our chosen anchorage by two playful dolphins. They surfed the bow of the boat as we sailed in while Glenda and David leaned far over the lifelines to chatter to them and admire there sleek beauty. I am so glad they had a chance to have a dolphin encounter while on the boat. It is a peak experience. As soon as we dropped the hook we encouraged them to jump in the water and see if the dolphin would swim with them. Unfortunately the dolphins had moved on but fortunately the snorkeling there off Issac Cay was spectacular. They saw turtle, lobsters and a hermit crab the size of an adult conch. David speared his first Lionfish! He got two in total and when he returned to the boat my David made his now famous Lionfish Ceviche. The wind picked up over the course of the evening and by morning we were ready to move to a calmer spot. We hurried up the channel a few miles and reanchored at Sand Dollar Beach just south of our last anchorage in Georgetown. By evening the wind had laid down and we were able to all dinghy in to The Chat and Chill where we were graciously treated to the famous Sunday pig roast by G and D. We started the feast with conch salad made right on the beach. David (Glenda's) even dared to try the Conch "Viagra". Some unmentionable part of the conch that looked wholly slimy and gelatinous to me. Ick. At dinner we sat with the owner of this lively, happening establishment and had a lively political discussion. What a intelligent and interesting man. Again we ended the night by dinghying back through the dark to the boat. The dozens and dozens of anchor lights from all the many boats gathered for this week's regatta looked like a second set of stars. Beautiful.

Our plans to leave Calabash bay and head for Conception Island changed as dawn broke on Tuesday. It was hard to tell the morning had even arrived the visibility was so bad. There was a lashing rain and a furious wind. The sky was purple and angry. The direction of the wind had swung to the West and we found our anchorage now on the "lee shore" (to non-sailors, read that as a bad thing) and the winds were steadily increasing. The weather had not checked in with the forecasters. It had a mind of its own and was going to let us know. All three boats quickly decided that to head out as planned would be more prudent than staying anchored with the beach directly behind us in heavy winds. Donning foul weather gear, we pulled anchor and proceeded to offer up some wild conditions to our guests. The boat raged over swells with a maniacal rocking horse motion. The water was frothy with whitecaps. What the day before was a beautiful, calm, inlet with white sand beaches and colorful coral reefs had turned into a soaking, grey, blur of chaotic water. We definitely did well at showing our guests the diversity of the cruising experience. After a few hours of doggedly motoring into the forceful winds our armada of boats came to a consensus, via the radio, to turn back and head away from the ever darkening sky and run back to Long Island but farther south. Other boats already in Thompson Bay related by radio the conditions as being settled there and it was only a few hours away. We all executed a "Perfect Storm" turn (designated as such by "Blue Blaze") and headed downwind to our new destination. Immediately the ride was noticeably better although still knuckle-whiteningly rough. At least now we were surfing down the waves rather than catapulting over them. Thank goodness, once again, for "Cloud Messenger" being such a sturdy, sea-going boat. Other boats would have had an even rougher, more bone-jarring ride. The closer we got to our new destination the calmer the seas became and the the clearer the skies. Soon we were chugging along through neon green water with the sun warmly overhead. They say you can't taste the sweet without the sour. The ride actually became so mellow that Glenda and I were able to go below deck and mix up some blonde brownies. We sailed into Thompson Bay greeted by a flotilla of beautiful sailboats quietly anchored in a bay of crystalline water. Friends we had last seen at Little Farmer's were there, who immediately invited all three boats to dinner on board their boat "Scaramouch". We quickly offered up dessert so our portion of the potluck was already done! David and David hauled jugs of fuel and water while Glenda and I checked out the local restaurant/bar/laundry scene. Back on the boat we all jumped off the boat into the stunningly aquamarine waters for saltwater showers. A quick freshwater rinse and we were all set to socialize and relive our adventure with the other boats at dinner. That night everyone slept deeply, exhausted from our adventures. The next day we set off in the morning, with Jason and Laura off "Blue Blaze" to explore the local waters. We snorkeled on three different wrecks. The first two were a Haitian boat and a mailboat, both wrecked in shallow, silty water. Not much to see underwater but interesting. The best part was actually the giant Osprey nest on top of the rusting, listing mailboat. Mama Osprey was not to please with our company so we soon moved on to try and find the deeper shipwreck further out in the ocean. I stood in the dinghy scouting the waters as we motored to an approximation of the location for the long ago, sunken ship. We eventually stumbled upon it and what a great find it was! The water visibility was good, the fish plentiful and the eeriness of the once viable ship exciting. Jason speared lion fish and snapper. We arrived back on the boat satisfied that we had had a fulfilling adventure. After a replay of the sea water bathes we headed into town for a late lunch, some internet time and to do laundry. The internet was wildly intermittent so that didn't work well but two outta three was good. We returned as the weather was once again turning windy, this time as correctly forecasted by the weather gurus. We spent a pleasant evening on our own little boat. Glenda and David made a delightful, light dinner for us all and we turned in not long after. Only a few hours of sleep were in the cards though as the wind steadily increased. By midnight the wind blew a steady 20-30 knots straight through until even now 12 hours later. The boat has swayed and shuddered all day against the persistent winds but we all agree it is an improvement over the early morning hours when the direction of the wind had us back to leaping over choppy swells. The wind should relax by tonight but we have decided to just stay around here for awhile and enjoy the area rather than racing off to distance places only to have to race back for Glenda and David to fly out next week. Hopefully we will rent a car tomorrow and experience the island by land like we did in Eleuthera. The island is 80 miles long and has many little settlements to explore