We slept like the dead we were soooo tired. Still I was up at 6:30 to listen to Chris Parker's forecast our only available weather until I can get our Bahamas phone activated. We had planned to be here only one day leaving Tuesday for West Bay on New Providence Island. It sounds like it will work but there is a front coming thorough on Thursday night that could make where we intend to go problematic. It is supposed to carry some pretty strong winds clocking from S/SE to S/SW and then through to the NW. There are not a lot of places to hide from West winds over here. And you don't want to be in Morgan's Bluff in a Northerly blow....
After breakfast we headed out in the dingy to explore the shore side amenities or lack thereof. There is nothing here quite literally. We ran into Sue and Roger coming out of the channel into the now defunct marina. Apparently one of the other boat had called the fuel man and he was coming out to fill their jugs and could do ours at the same time. About face we hurried back to the boat to get our jugs. Scott gave two of our fuel jugs to Roger and he headed to shore while Scott put fuel in our main tank. He wanted to make sure it was full and then would take those cans in to be filled. I told him there really wasn't a rush we were in the Bahamas. LOL
Once a shore it appeared that with so many of us looking for fuel it would take hours for the fuel guy to fill all those jugs. There were two other guys needing fuel and a total of 12 jerry cans to fill. A friendly local offered to take everyone in his pick up to the fuel station. 4 guys in the back with 12 cans and me in the cab with the driver and it became an expedition! I asked if there was a Batelco office in the area and he said yes he would be happy to take me. A very nice fellow we chatted about the mess Hurricane Matthew made of Andros. 150 mph sustained wind and a storm surge of 20 ft or more had wiped the area out. They are struggling to recover. He dropped me at the Batelco office and then headed out with the guys to get fuel promising to pick me up on the way back. Who could ask for more? Armed with my Bahamas iphone we had bought last year I walked into the air conditioned comfort of the spotless office. The customer service lady asked me to take a seat she would be right with me. In no time at all I had a working cell phone and some minutes on my plan. The people in the office could not have been more helpful and friendly. We chatted away and before I knew Scott was there to fetch me back to the truck. There was another guy and a girl they had picked up at hte gas station Bonita and Jim from Absinthe. We made aquaintences on the way back to the harbor.
Later in the day Connie and Walter from Spirit of Adventure stopped by to say there was going to be a gathering on the beach for cocktails at 5:00. We all beached our dingys brought a snack and beverage and shared stories with the other cruisers in the harbor. Some have just gotten here, some are heading back to the states. Two families with kids are here and they were having a blast. Everyone was friendly. It was a great way to start our stay in the Bahamas.
We have decided to stay until Wednesday, just not sure where we are going yet. No rush we have no deadlines and no schedule. We do need to figure out where we are going to sit out this next blow.
The picture is of the anchorage, there is quite a nice long beach and the water is so clear.