After a fun filled couple of days at Farmers Cay it was time move a little north and prepare Dagny for the upcoming week. The anchorage was rapidly emptying out but fortunately the bulk of the boats were headed south to Georgetown while we were headed north. Lesley was flying into Staniel Cay on Tuesday afternoon and we need to get ready for her 8 day visit. First off was the obligatory stop at Black Point to do laundry and get a couple of Jerry cans of water, as expected the laundry was closed on Sunday but we made good use of our time cleaning out the aft cabin. We bumped into "Stick" the fellow who works at the laundry and he informed us it would be open at 6:30 on Monday morning. So, with coffee in hand, we headed off at 6:50 to be first in line, and true to his word the laundry was open. The problem was the machines take tokens only and there wasn't anyone there to sell tokens until 8:00, oh well at least we were first and the wifi was working.

The new machines at the Rockside laundry are much faster than the old ones so Bev managed to get everything done in 2 hours while I was off getting more water. Once all the chores we completed we were off the hook by 12:30 and enjoyed the nice short sail to Staniel Cay in a 15 knot easterly breeze. The rest of Monday as well as Tuesday morning were spent finishing up our preparations and of course getting more water. The mailboat was only arriving Wednesday afternoon so grocery shopping was put on hold until then. It never ceases to amaze me how small a world it is. There was a boat anchored behind us in Staniel Cay named Adanaco, I may not be the quickest with word puzzles but as soon as I looked at it I realized it was Ocanada spelled backwards. Of course I had to dinghy over and compliment the guy on the name, once we got talking it turns out he went to high school with Barry Gleason, a friend of ours.

Lesley arrived right on schedule at 4:30 and we headed off to the Staniel Cay Yacht Club for an early dinner before the dinghy ride back to Dagny. Chances were it was going to be a wet ride so we figured a little wine to soften the trip was a good idea. We have had such a great run of weather this winter and of course it had to come to an end when Lesley arrived. The forecast for the week is moderate to breezy winds, mainly from the east; however, there will be a cold front going through over the weekend bringing a day of west winds. It's still nice and warm but the winds will limit our options on what we can accomplish.

Once we had loaded up with fresh food on Thursday and had done to obligatory trip to Pig Beach we set sail for Wardwick Wells which is the headquarters for Exumas Park. Bev and I have never been here and we're looking forward to seeing it for the first time. We weren't disappointed, the main island is crisscrossed with numerous well marked hiking trails and serval little beaches dot the shore. Unfortunately the strong winds and currents weren't conducive for snorkeling but we had a great time exploring the island and relaxing over happy hour. But as always the weather dictates our movements so after 2 days it was time to find a hiding spot from the approaching front. We were off the mooring ball as soon as the first coffee was brewed on Saturday morning and headed to Bell Island for 2 days. We're anchored in the same place we rode out the last front, it's a little lumpy now but once the wind shifts as predicted we'll be fine. In the meantime there's lots to do here over the next couple of days.

Today's picture is another shot form The Farmers Cay Regatta showing how the boats sail right through the fleet. I took this shot from our bow as these 2 battled for the lead, and yes the port tacker had to tack!