Well, here we are back for “Round 2” of our Bahamian travel adventures, and starting this blog is long overdue. I am writing this entry from Highborne Cay in the northern Exumas, but I’m getting ahead of myself…

John and I left Canada in early December for points south, our late start due to the sale of our house and purchase of a condo in Toronto. We then stayed in St. Pete for two months with family and holidays, and appointments back in Toronto filling our calendar.

We finally left St. Pete 17 days ago, but it feels like a long time and many miles ago. We did a number of 40-55 mile days plus an overnight passage from St. Pete to Marathon (in the Keys), about 250 miles, in four days. After a day at anchor in Marathon, we headed northeast to Rodriguez Key where we were to make our crossing from over to Bimini. We spent just a day in Bimini before heading across the Bank to Nassau. In between Bimini and Nassau, we overnighted at anchor in the middle of the Bank, water everywhere with no one in sight anywhere on the horizon. We also discovered a new anchorage in West Bay at the western end of New Providence (the island Nassau is on). This was our good fortune, as we couldn’t sail directly to Nassau the way the winds were blowing. We went to Nassau the next morning with a great sail, but now we also have a good new anchorage tucked in our memory for another time. That section, from Marathon to Nassau, was about another 200 miles in around 5 days.

We decided to stay in Nassau for two days to provision with fresh produce and also to play tourist, as we never really got the chance last year. Not much to say there, as the only area hopping was around the cruise ships; there were four in port. The streets were all filled with shoppers; the bars were all filled with drinkers playing drinking games I might have played 40 years ago. Did I mention that the people playing these games were around our age? Not a pretty sight. The good news is that the marina we stayed in fixed their pool and it was operational while we were there.

Now our journeys will be much shorter for a while, as the distances between the various cays we want to visit are quite small. After Nassau, we anchored at Robert’s Cay. It was peaceful, and so quiet; we were the only boat there. Next we spent a day just a few miles away at Allen’s Cay relaxing and exploring. This cay is known for its population of iguanas. Man, are they ever ugly critters! Apparently they have very bad eyesight, and will attempt to bite anything in their path, so we steered clear. In fact, our first time out, I didn’t get out of the dinghy! What a scaredy cat! Second time I did, but I kept my eyes roving, as there weren’t just one or two; they littered the beach!

Now we are here at Highborne Cay Marina, due to a strong front that was forecast to come through the area last night and today. There are few places in the northern Exumas with any protection from the west, so we made our booking, and then hoped the front would be as strong as forecast. It was! Someone in the harbor clocked 41 knots. In the harbor. Out of the harbor, but nearby, someone clocked 49 knots. We are happy to be here. Today the winds are a steady 20-25 knots out of the SW with gusts to 30, so we will wait for tomorrow’s “light and variable” to move out.

We met some nice cruisers on the dock yesterday, and gathered for sundowners, and will head out again this evening to meet up. Today John and I shared a lovely (albeit early) Valentine’s Day lunch since we were in a nice spot. Life is tough. Yeah right! We’re in Paradise!