Well the week went fast with Lori and Jack and Mike and Heather. They didn't really have the best weather but I do think that everyone had a blast. I will download the photos today if I can get a good connection.
We spoke with our weather guru today and he said that we should go. We have our departure papers and we'll head out early tomorrow morning either for Conception Island or Rat Cay. You most likely won't hear from us until the Dominican Republic.
So, sadly we say goodbye to The Bahamas and all the friends we've made here.
The world is small though and I'm sure we shall meet again.
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Comments [1]
Hi Nan, The photos were blue in colour and you would have picked that out because you are the best photographer we have in the family. We downloaded the photos from Lori's camera and she was upset to hear that the photos were blue. It has happened before...ahh! I'm going to now add our photos from our camera.
We off to Georgetown to pick up a bolt and fill with water and provision for the trip south. . . leaving soon
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March/11/2010
It's great to have visitors! You do things and go places that you have thought about but never do. Since Lori and Jack arrived we have had beers lounging out front of the Chat and Chill on Volleyball beach; had lunch at St Francis on Stocking Island; dinghied across Elizabeth harbour in the dark to enjoy an evening at The Fish Fry and went to a "Rake and Scrape". Drinking beer and eating lunch are self explanatory. The Fish Fry is about 10 little shack-like restaurants and bars on a small beach off the Industrial dock about 1 ½ mile walk from George Town. Most of them are in the open air. This is where the locals go to eat, drink, play Dominos, checkers and partake in Karaoke. Unfortunately, it was a cool night and there were only a few people there but we did get an opportunity to talk to some people who braved the cold. Beer flowed and we ate grouper fingers and other deep fried foods. One Bahamian girl said that deep fry is why they are all fat. She was wearing a ski jacket with a fur collar. The next night after a day shopping and taking in the sights of George Town (actually that takes less than an hour) we were off to the "Rake and Scrape". It was at a local bar and featured a Bahamian band playing Bahamian music badly while fat cruiser women got picked up by drunken Bahamian men. We quickly found that we had soaked up enough culture and headed back to the boat.
The next morning we left Chicken Harbour for Emerald Bay Marina. It was a relaxed departure and as we pulled away we found ourselves in the middle of the 'George Town Cruiser Regatta around Stocking Island' race. After untangling our selves from the race, we had a nice sail out of conch cut and headed north to the marina. We trailed a hand line and our fishing line. Suddenly, the hand line was pulled out of the cockpit and hard against its tether and as I grabbed it, it went slack. We watched a 4ft Mahi Mahi jump straight out of the water three times with my lure in its mouth and it disappeared behind us. I reeled in the line and found that the Mahi Mahi had not broken my line.. it was my knot that had come untied. I was devastated to find that the knot that I had been told to use (tying one line to another) had unraveled. Here I sit empty handed because I can't tie a knot, needless to say when we got to the marina, I retied all my connections using a knot out of the fisherman's guide book and a few normal knots for good measure. I had used a twist knot showed to us at the fishing tackle store and either I didn't get it right or it sucks. Mahi Mahi is one of the best tasting fish you can get.... So we've been told!
photos: check the gallery
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Or perhaps you actually are in a land full of 1960's beatniks? Those being the standard Bohemians.
Love to all BB& J
Hi all family, I just thought I'd quickly let you know that Mike and Heather and Lori and Jack arrived safely and we are all enjoying the Bahamas together. .. I'll try and update further with photos and everything!
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Casey had her baby girl - Olivia Rachel Cook , 7 pnds 12 onces. Moms doing great.
Love you
Thera
It was inevitable; yesterday I participated in the Coconut Challenge held on Stocking Island right beside the Chat 'n Chill. Tom, Cathie and Chris from "Interlude" needed a forth member (sucker ... that would be me!) to complete their team and you know how competitive I am...
We were anchored over at Palm Bay Beach and did not really understand that they lied when they announced that the water was warm and it was a balmy day with only 5kt winds over in "hole one" where the coconuts were to be launched.
Steve and I headed over to the beach dressed in a bathing suit and our yellow wet skin slickers. We were smart to bring Steve's large flippers and my snorkeling gloves, but I was not thinking when I only wore my bathing suit. When we all gathered on the beach, we were greeted with 15kt cold winds (hey thought I'd mention that it was 61 deg here last night!) and almost all the other participants were clad in their full wetsuits.
This was a dinghy race, the dinghy being stripped clean with only a bucket required; four people in life jackets using one flipper each to paddle around the area collecting as many coconuts while dousing your competitors with enough water to make their collected coconuts float back out into the water. No boarding or grabbing coconuts allowed. . . fairly safe... right! . . we decide to get away from the crowds and painstakingly paddle like mad to collect coconuts strewn across the bay. Most of the coconuts had streamed into the back of the hole and that's where most of the other dinghies had assembled. They were smart! They stayed put and collected the coconuts as they floated by, whereas we got a real work out.
Our start was comical. As soon as the horn went off, Chris (their son who's 22 years old) and I grabbed the dinghy and pulled it into the water. A great flinging start, until we heard the screams. Chris and I looked behind and there was Tom and Cathie (who was in water up to her neck) .. we had left them behind. . . LOL
Hanging over the front along with Chris, head down, paddling like crazy and throwing coconuts behind; while Cathie and Tom paddling like crazy, shouting instructions as to which direction to head, we collected 72 coconuts. We never got one that was camouflaged and worth 5 marks so each was worth 1 point. The winning boats score was 114... can you imagine.. you have to because we forgot our camera!
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Happy Birthday to everyone who has a birthday in March... but especially Fred (March 9th), Heather (March 13th) and Emma (March 29th)... and If I got it wrong, it's because my finger slipped as I'm going up and down with the waves as I steal internet from shore... gotta love being in the basement while underway..lol
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"And if not now, when?"
The water temperature today is 73.4 deg ... the sun is brilliant but the winds even though they are coming from the SE are 76 deg (that's inside the boat)... and I have free internet today...gotta love that!
We are excitedly awaiting the arrival of our friends, Lori and Jack and family, Mike and Heather. We ordered good weather and warmer waters and it has been promised to us! After this next front comes through on Wednesday, things should be a changing around here... so they say. Yippee!
Last Friday, we wore our fleece and jeans but that didn't stop us from celebrating a new arrival aboard "Interlude". That night, we had a fantastic, huge lobster burger and french fries for dinner and the usual bucket of Kalik's at the Palm Beach Resort. We sadly ended the night (a good time was had by all) and they pulled anchor and have gone to Emerald Bay for the next 2 fronts. We had all hoped to get to Conception Island, but until this coming Thursday, we will be stuck staying put. We have a lot to do to prepare for guests... I wish we had a U-hall trailing behind the boat to stick all the extra sails and stuff into... oh well. I've learned to swallow my housekeeping pride and talent for interior decorating that my "normal" friends have come to praise me for... it is what it is.
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Although the winds were still kicking up, Sunday we put our slicker's on and crossed Elizabeth Harbour to travel to Sand Dollar beach. "Fine Romance" a beautiful trawler had some charts and guide books to give away and after an exchange for a half a case of beer, they were ours (he only asked for a 6 pack). It is illegal to sell or purchase any goods in the Bahamas without paying tax or duties. What a score! This is one benefit of being here in George Town. Colin, hope you enjoyed your birthday. It was a lovely day here.
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I've got a new link on our blog staring "Cool Breeze" a couple of kids (who are around the age of mid twenty's) whom have taken off for a year to sail the Bahamas and some of the Caribbean. It is a much better read than our blog.... mostly because they are young and more adventurous and end up experiencing all kinds of good and bad things... where Steve and I are old and scared most of the time and try to stay safe.
Friday the wind stopped blowing and we had a calm day. Steve and I dinghy'd over to the Palm Beach Resort (along with friends from "Interlude" Kathy and Tom whom we first met in St. Mary's at Thanksgiving). We headed north of town and found a wonderful lumber store, grocery store and a Napa store. Oddly enough, these buildings were well labelled and easy to find. You see, here in George Town, you go to the Beauty Salon to buy fish and the Seaside Real Estate office to have your laundry done. And that to us is kind-of weird, but this is the Bahamas and things here are not as they are at home.
The lumber store was wonderful! Almost everything you might need to build a home and we lucked out... we needed another water pump and we found one! Yes, the salt water does play havoc on all your equipment (even your stainless steel cutlery gets corroded). After our trek to the lumber store and installing (Steve) the new pump, we had a quick lunch and headed for volleyball beach. We took the opportunity to meet Chris Parker and sign up for his routing services. Even though the Whitby 42 can handle almost anything the winds and waves can throw, the crew aboard Lion's Paw (that would be us) prefer to have the calm winds and fair seas and the safest route possible as we travel the Thorny Path. Ah yes, the best is yet to come...
Saturday was Chris Parker Day and literally the whole town stopped. Chris's seminar started at 10am and continued after a short break for lunch until 3pm and almost every cruiser was there. He's quite the celebrity around the yachting world.
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February/23/2010, Sitting in George Town
I know you're supposed to sugar coat everything on a blog.
After all, family and friends are sailing along with you and dreaming about the fair winds, calm seas, sparkling clean turquoise blue waters and soft warm breezes tickling by your body which is scarcely dressed as the sun christens you with its warming rays. They feel the tug of the fish you're reeling in and looking through your eyes, they are just as auh struck at that turtle that just swam by and the colour of the fish and coral reefs that you are snorkeling over.
Well, here's what Chris said today ...lol ... ready? This is the worse Bahamian weather he has seen with its more frequent and more violent cold fronts passing through bringing with it much colder weather and much colder water and not to mention the rain (rain in the Bahamas?). He is comparing it to the weather experienced in 1999-2000.
So, here is the reality check. I must share one more thing with all of you. This year in the Bahamas really sucks and I hope that we can come back here to experience all that I have mentioned above. We feel very sorry for our friends whom have worked so hard to get here to enjoy only this one year in the Bahamas and that sucks too!
Ps: I have been able to relate so well to my favourite cruising guide (just kidding) Embarrassment of Mangos. They did this same trip in 1997-1998. They thought that they had an El Niño year! Ha!
(Steve ... the few vegetables they grow here, well, they are having a bumper crop!)
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