Cheryl's Notes:

This is something that most of you thought that you would never hear from me. I don't think that I can shop any more. It seems like that is all I have done in the past two weeks. We have managed to replace the three hundred pounds of junk that we took off the boat with an equal amount of canned goods and other provisions. Food is exorbitantly expensive in the Bahamas, so we are trying to bring all of our favorite foods with us. While we are not fans of canned vegetables, fresh will not be a great option. This week we are sampling some canned meats that we ordered online. Chicken and pork are available in the islands, but not at the quality that we are used to. We have also stocked up on paper products, shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant (very necessary for living in tight quarters), laundry supplies and tote bins to store it all. Let's just say that the aft cabin will not be available for guests this trip. They would have to sleep on deck. We have even put down the table in the salon to store pop and beer underneath in bins.

The provisioning was complicated by the fact that we have been told not to have any cardboard on board. Evidently, cockroaches like to lay their eggs in the glued flaps. Everything that comes in cardboard packaging has to be stored in airtight containers or sealed in plastic with our food sealer. We spent three days breaking down containers and repackaging supplies. We were so proud of our efforts. That is until we came back to the boat Friday night after a little Oktoberfest party in our lounge. We came aboard the boat and turned on some lights. Something big ran across the floor and I did an almost vertical leap up on the to the counter in the galley. Yes, you guessed it, a big cockroach on the boat. John did a little two step and stomped on the sucker. We have since found one more very small one. Our next purchase was roach motels to place around the boat. We haven't seen one since.

I have continued my sewing projects. I designed a hanging bag for an extra LP tank, tank covers for the jerry cans that we will stow on deck, and an additional bag to store the small propane tanks for the gas grill. I have also had to replace all of the Velcro strips in our existing fender bags and life sling bag. The sun is very destructive to canvas, Velcro and zippers. A canvas dodger or bimini lasts only about five to seven years down here. Big change from back home. I had to take our dodger off last week and clean it with Sunbrella cleaner and then treat it with new waterproofing. As soon as it quits raining here, I will have to do the same with the bimini.

Now that I am over 50, I have also had to attend to a few personal things. I had a complete physical this past week, and now I am scheduled for a mammogram and colonoscopy. (The prep for that test will be a joyous experience on a boat.) All must be completed before we can leave the area. The saving grace is that I will know that I am healthy when we leave. Now, if I am clumsy and get hurt along the way, that is another story.

A note to everyone back home. We will not have cell phone service in the Bahamas. Once we leave Florida, our phones won't work. We will not even be able to get to our voicemail. We will be able to get calling cards for the Bahamian Telephone Company and call from pay phones. We will have limited access to wifi. Send emails if you need to get messages to us. We should be able to check our yahoo accounts at least weekly, depending on where we are in the islands.

John's notes:

As you can see, we have been very busy. We only have a few more purchases to make. Good thing. If we don't leave soon, the boat will be so far below her designed waterline that we won't be able to leave the dock. We have spent a TON of money. The good news is we won't be spending much on essentials in the next six months. Lots of the new items we have acquired are things that will not have to be purchased for future trips. More good news. We are now waiting for the last of the spare parts to arrive via UPS. Having spent a few hundred dollars on them, they will probably be the last things to fail, if at all.

One of our purchases have been two new propane tanks. Instead of aluminum, they are made out of fiberglass. These are supposed to be the newest and greatest. I know for sure that they are much lighter. Thus, when you have to carry them to a fill station they will be easier to handle. I was skeptical at first but our marina manager is also on the volunteer fire department and he tells me that all of their oxygen tanks are now fiberglass. Since you can't store LP below deck, and our vented locker only holds one tank, Cheryl had to sew a special bag for the extra tank which now resides on the stern rail.

With so many new things added to the boat, we have decided to add some pictures that will help explain to our non sailing friends just what we are talking about. To us, it is just second nature but we know some of you must be wondering what the hell we are talking about.

Are we tentative about this trip? Sure. Navigation is very intense on the ICW. Due to the lack of dredging in the last few years, it never gets better. Our government is spending all of our tax money on a non-winnable war so there is no money for dredging so we have to be extra careful. Going offshore is an option but not until we get out on North Carolina. They don't call our coastline the graveyard of the Atlantic for nothing. We have sailed almost 5000 miles in the last fifteen months without serious incident. That, however, does not make us over confident. There are boats leaving here for the Bahamas that have never been further than Cape Lookout. As a point of reference, that is about as far as Port Superior to Black River. Our neighbors, Paul and Denise, say that our boat is starting to look like a cruiser. Maybe it is. I can remember when everything on the boat had to have symmetry. Everything had to line up, be the same color, balanced. Now I have fenders that are white, almost white, blue, orange, you name it. We have extra fuel cans stored in any place they fit. A generator in the cockpit in front of the cockpit table. Since there is no more room to attach anything to our stern rail, we have started in on the lifelines. I used to look at Ron and Bonnie Dahl's boat and just shake my head. Now I understand. I'm guessing that after another couple of long trips we will make a few revisions and remove some of the clutter. If not, I know a couple of people who will be in the market for a bigger boat (and not because we are going after sharks).