Jazzy Lady's 2019/20 Cruising Adventure

After two weeks in Georgetown it was time to stretch our sea legs again. On January 1st we lifted anchor and set off for a quick 20 mile motor to Lee Stocking Island. We've come back north to the top of Great Exuma Island, where there is a lovely cluster of Cays that we are exploring at our leisure. The goal, in these few weeks, is to to see a lot under water, covering a little over ground.
We had a great time based in Georgetown for 15 days, regrouping after a pretty demanding 10 week treck getting ourselves to Bahamas. Because our travel itinerary has been complicated by Mark's work schedule we are calculating what we can fit in between his commutes. Don't get me wrong, this should hardly count as a complaint. It is allowing us to take a giant vacation with a salary coming in. But it has added a bit of stress for Mark. Once we established ourselves in Georgetown he had a few days to relax before flying back to the white (and sometimes not so white?) north on Dec 21st. The kids and I enjoyed our 3 musketeers dynamic until Mark's sister Tracy arrived on Dec 23rd. I did not have many tricks up my sleeve for Christmas so it was the perfect gift to have her stay with us for a week, throwing a bit of variety into our little 42 x 14 foot living space. Mark returned on the 28th which gave him and Tracy a good amount of time to overlap before she left on the 30th. He goes back to work on Jan 21st for 6 days so we have a 3 week window to putt around at a snail's pace. The wind has BARELY stopped blowing since we arrived in this fair country. So even though some readers may scoff at the idea of us stressing over a three week window, the weather can easily be such that you travel only 20 miles from point A to point B and you are stuck waiting out a low pressure weather system in order to get back to point A (where Mark catches a flight to work). As mentioned in a previous blog, the Banks side of the islands are often too shallow for us to go more than a few miles before having to switch to the Sound side. But the sound side is deep and wide open to the Atlantic, therefore high winds in the wrong direction can prohibit travel for weeks at a time. So you really do have to plan out your weather windows.
Georgetown, they say, is like day camp for seniors and "family camp" for young families. There are certainly far more baby boomers parked there for the season than anything else but we managed to eek in with a small collection of young families. In particular we became very fond of our pals from Ruby Vi, a catamaran living their dream of sailing around the world. We enjoyed each other's company off and on for two weeks but as we’ve turned back north to explore further, they are getting ready for their next big jump South and...most likely...west. Trips like this are all about saying hello and goodbye within a short period so you get used to consciously waving farewell with a light heart when you part from a great bunch of new friends.
We began every morning tuning in to the 'Cruisers' Net', which is equivalent to the daily briefing from your local newspaper. The same person hosts every day, starting off with the 24 hour weather forecast, then moves on to community announcements: Beach Yoga, beach volleyball, beach water aerobics, ukulele lessons and poker nights. All these services /events are provided by volunteers who have all the time in the world...since...we're in paradise. (Apologies if I'm making anyone gag). The next issue addressed on the morning net is items offered/requested for barter or giveaway, followed by local business announcements from the town. Lastly is 'Kids' Corner'...a chance for kids to hop on the radio and announce a plan they have for the day, for example a beach bbq, beach garbage pick up, volleyball....whatever they come up with. All quite blissful, really. The makings of a great commune.
The town itself has what I consider to be the locals side and the tourists side. On the one we find the laundromat, liquor store, a million local businesses and a park. On the other we find a million cafes, the straw market, hardware store, gas station and a million little gift shops. All of the Bahamians are super friendly and most seem to love having us tourists there (at least as far as I gathered from my chats with Georgetown residents). The best place in town, by far, is a tiny little shack out of which comes the most delectable jerk chicken you'll ever have. A man named Julien operates it. Outside is a big BBQ and inside is the one man show. No windows, no signs. You knock on the plywood door and out comes Julienwith a mask on, in order to not smoke himself out of this windowless shack. With your fingers crossed you ask if there's any jerk chicken available. $12 for a giant plate with rice and veg on the side. If he's nearing the end of his daily supply he'll give you a smaller serving for $10.
Today Annie went in the water for her first time since gouging out a chunk of her leg at the beach rocks on Boxing Day. We managed to avoid infection after she acquired a wound worthy of stitches (but only received steri-strips). The kids and Mark are currently having a play date on the beach with the two kids from the only other boat tucked into our anchorage here. While we enjoyed the social and amenities aspect of Georgetown, we are loving being out in these more remote islands where you can easily go a few days without seeing any other people. This morning we snorkelled over some beautiful coral at the mouth of a cut (entrance from the open ocean) and spotted a gathering of 8 MASSIVE sting rays ...maybe sleeping...mostly buried in the sand. They didn't move an inch as we drifted over them. We also caught sight of a barracuda which sent Alistair into a panic. They are known for being aggressive scavengers so they can appear as though they're stalking you but really they just see us as large predators who, if they're lucky, will catch something and leave behind some remnants for them to devour. They would only bite a person in self defence and these occurrences are extremely rare. Speaking of catching things to eat, we caught a huge Wahoo the other day and it got away before we were able to hook it😫 The kids won't let me forget it. Mark reeled it right up to the boat and I was supposed to stick it with the gaff hook. I was not successful and it jumped off the line. Maybe we'll reverse jobs next time. This deep ocean fishing is serious business.
Tomorrow we'll go to the abandoned Caribbean Marine Research Centre. With luck, we should be able to walk around and through it. I imagine it to be like the series Lost. Apparently the center was shut down so abruptly that there are still work schedules written on chalk boards, etc. This is the place that Mark's cousin Judy worked at as a Marine Biologist. Should be neat! Also, we'll be on the look out for one of Johnny Depp's MANY homes. Apparently it's somewhere around here. The kids got a reality check getting back into our school routine yesterday so it's not ALL fun and games here (though Alistair did just go speeding past me on a donut being towed by the neighbouring boat's dinghy)😉