Leaving Spanish Wells at dawn enabled us to reach the cut into the Sea of Abaco by 3:00 pm- on a rising tide - and could not have been better planned. We sailed the whole way at 6-7 kts and reinforced our love of sailing in this beautiful ocean, on these variations-of-blues, sparkling clear water.
Anchoring off Lanyard Cay provides some protection from wind and swell, but we were anxious to move to Treasure Cay the next morning.
As I write this, we have been at anchor or mooring at Treasure Cay for 10 days.
Sarah & Blair came to visit for 5 days, and locating at this sweet resort allowed us to go for day sails, snorkeling, beach, running ( Sarah & Blair) and restaurants.
It was so wonderful and fun to hang out with these two, and sad to see them go so soon. The weather gods smiles upon us as the beautiful weather during their stay was sandwiched between two cold fronts.
We’ve stayed here for an extra three days sitting out the predicted “ wind event” of squalls and “30-50” kt gusts. Staying on a mooring at a reputable marina usually brings with it confidence in your safety and the safety of the boat..... but not today!
We have been on the same mooring since Sarah & Blair left, and last night at 3 am, the mooring chain broke and we drifted into another (beautiful Island Packet 47) sailboat.
Being awakened by screaming people when you are sleeping on a sailboat is not only anxiety producing, but makes one just want to go home (ie...Ann)
All underwear-clad crew on deck to start the engine, and ANCHOR in the DARK with 15-20kt winds blowing in a crowded anchorage.
Here I sit 12 hours later, and my stomach is finally settling down. John was extremely competent, as usual, which another reason why I sail with him! So, we have no damage on our boat but bent a stanchion on theirs, and we made new friends. John is dealing with the insurance company now-
We’ll leave here in the morning, heading to Hopetown where we will be able to fill our tanks with water and do laundry. Our plan is to leave Hopetown after a day or two and cross Whale Cay cut to Green Turtle Cay- touted as having awesome snorkeling/dive sites. There has been no need to scuba dive here, however, Green Turtle Cay may require us to don our scuba gear and go for a swim. We’re hoping to get some good shark footage on the GoPro for Sarah & Blair- they may have seen a small shark, but bigger ones would be cool!
As our dear family & friends recover from the “first day of spring” snowfall, know we think of you often, miss you, and happy to have missed winter 2018!
We’ll end up at the West End of Abaco within a few weeks and wait for a good weather window to cross the Gulf Stream to West Palm Beach.
Why West Palm? We are meeting a broker to look at our boat and will then sail it to Annapolis and put Perspective on the market. No sailboat in front of our house this summer, but we are already looking for the next one.... with a few extras- we’ve got a list. ⛵️
Take care everyone!