Polite Compromise

When we arrived in the Bahamas in January we were given three month visas in our passports. Because we had let our visas expire by 8 days, the immigration officer in Marsh Harbour was not willing to renew them for another three months. She only gave us a two week extension to wrap up our trip and leave the Bahamas. And then she backdated the extension to date the visa had actually expired - which left us with only seven days to leave the country!! So we started making our exit plan. Note to anyone planning a trip like this - DON'T LET YOUR VISA EXPIRE. (It can be very unpleasant!!)

The weather had turned really calm with light winds so we decided to make a dash to get across the Florida Straights before that changed. We left Hope Town on May 5th and headed for Green Turtle Cay and spent one night there on a mooring ball in the harbour. We went ashore for our usual beer and a look around; mooched free wifi and tried to catch up with emails.

From Green Turtle, we moved to Big Sail Cay. Big Sail is uninhabited and has a small harbour that is protected from North and East winds. We arrived at around 1700hrs and by the time we anchored and settled in, I counted 10 other boats around us. The next day we moved on to West End settlement on Grand Bahama, near Freeport. We refueled there and anchored just outside of the harbour. It took me a few tries to get the anchor to set. There was a thin layer of sand over hard coral so the anchor just bounced around on my first few attempts. We finally got settled in and recognized a few of the boats anchored around us. After awhile you start to remember all the boat names. Ron found out that they all had similar plans to cross the stream and head back to the States. It was Mother's Day weekend and also Ron's birthday so we decided to treat ourselves to dinner ashore. Plus, we needed to use up our remaining Bahamian currency since this would be our last evening in the Bahamas. We enjoyed a great meal and headed back to the boat in time to see the green flash at sundown. I am taking this as a good omen for our crossing.

On Monday, we lifted anchor at 0330 hrs and headed out. We could see the lights of two other boats leaving with us. It was very easy crossing. Waves were only 1 to 2 feet, and the winds were very light. We kept the motor running - we were cutting across the Gulf Stream and the current averages about 4kts. During the night, we saw two cruise ships all lit up and a couple of cargo ships. The stars were fabulous! Our auto helm had a little trouble holding course against the current and shut off once or twice, but other than that we had no problems and arrived in Palm Beach at around 1400 hrs. In the morning, we cleared immigration and our passports are all stamped and legal.

We stayed in a slip at the Riviera Beach Municipal Marina - I felt spoiled by running the AC and actually having some TV stations to watch! Ron pulled the bikes out of the boat and we rode them around the marina and down to the supermarket. I was thrilled to see all the variety of food and cheaper prices for everything!!! We bought fresh produce to restock the galley. We even bought a few bottles of wine!! The cost for one bottle here is roughly equivalent to what they charge for a single glass in the Bahamas. And there is a laundry at this marina. Yay! Only $1.50 per load!

After checking the Waterway Guide, and asking folks in the marina, we learned that there would be a couple of bridges nearby that wouldn't be tall enough for us. So we left the marina and headed offshore for a while. At the Port Everglade Inlet we ducked back inside, motored up to City of Hollywood Marina, and anchored across from a row of restaurants. After we let the boat settle a bit and made sure everything was holding, we got all cleaned up. Ron took me out for my first dinner ashore in Florida. Yay! I picked out a place that looked nice from the water side (white tablecloths and busy crowd). So we motored the dingy over, tied off and walked to the front of the restaurant. The parking lot was full of expensive cars - we saw the valet parking a Bentley. Wow! This place would be waaay out of our budget. But hey - we had cleaned up and were looking good! Since it was happy hour, we decided to stay for a drink and then move on to a cheaper place further down the dock. It was a nice evening and a calm night at anchor. Since then, we have continued motor/sailing around southern Florida and are now back at Boot Key Harbour in Marathon. Sailing has been easy but the winds are so light that is has become seriously humid and warm. We continue to watch weather and make our plans to get back to Texas. I'll keep everyone posted.

BREAKING NEWS! THIS JUST IN!! Okay - so there's been a new development in our burglary. The iPad has been found! Seems that we had it all along and there was no break in. In the past, Compromise has been hit twice by lightening. Each time the damage was expensive, with immeasurable stress. So on the "dark and stormy night" we were experiencing a lot of thunder and lightening. Every time there was electrical activity - the stereo speakers crackled. Because of the navigation programs he has downloaded on the iPad, Ron was concerned that the lightening would damage it. So he put it in the MICROWAVE OVEN TO PROTECT IT!! AND THEN FORGOT HE PUT IT THERE!! The mystery wasn't solved until just a couple of days ago. I have only used the microwave a couple of times over the past six months - but I was hungry for baked potatoes so I hooked it up to the inverter and was getting ready to use it when I found the pad. That mystery was solved so I asked Ron about the "missing" cash and he thinks now that he miscounted what was in his wallet. What amazes me is that I believed it all so quickly! When he woke me up in a panic asking me to help look for the iPad, and then said he thought we had been robbed - I went with it and believed the whole thing! Oh, well! Thanks for all the support and well wishes on this - and our apologies for causing anyone unnecessary worry.

Keep your fingers crossed for good weather - and we'll be back in Texas soon!