Troubadour at anchor in Marsh Harbour, Abacos

It's hard to believe a week has gone by since our last blog posting. Here's what's been going on since our last update. The days are running together.

On Wednesday morning, June 30th, while in Manjack Cay we were listening to the Cruiser's Net and we heard Toki (our sister boat from Halifax Yacht Club in Daytona Beach) declare they arrived in the Abacos and were looking for us. We were not able to hail them even after trying all three of our radios. We called for a radio check to see if anyone could hear us, and were comforted that someone came back with "Loud and clear." Happy with that, we knew that Toki was just a bit out of reach and we would meet them when they arrived in Green Turtle Cay.

We left Manjack Cay after breakfast and anchored off of Joyless Point in Green Turtle Cay in time for lunch. Anxious to get the previous blog post out to all of you, we took the dinghy ashore to find Pineapple's where we heard we could get internet. As our luck would have it, the internet was out of service. So, we did the next best thing, ordered drinks and lunch! Pineapple's is an outdoor patio-type bar & grill with a swimming pool. We shared lunch - an $11 cheese burger and fries. And while Chris was enjoying a $5 Kalik beer, and I was toying with how to drink my mountainous $7 Pina Colada, we met a couple of guys (Nick and Chuck) from Eau Claire, Wis. (It's a small world!) Later that afternoon, we signed up for a week's worth of internet while in Abacos.

Thursday morning we took the dinghy over to say "Ahoy" to our friends on San-San. After a few hours of visiting, we went into New Plymouth on Green Turtle Cay to find some groceries. We went to all three grocery stores and looked around comparing prices. We bought English Muffins and Half & Half. These two items cost us $10. In the states, it would have cost about $4.00. We heard to expect sticker shock in the Abacos, so we stocked up on the essentials, but after two weeks we had gone through our fresh bread from Florida. And, after three weeks, we have eaten all of our fresh/frozen meets and fruit. Later, when Toki arrived in Green Turtle Cay, we went to meet them and joined them for sundowners.

Friday began at 11 am with the annual "Stranded Naked" beach party on Fiddler Cay to kick off the start of race week. Stranded Naked Party Link This party was a lot of fun, included free lunch and drinks, and games for the kids. Chris even took some time away to pat the "Stranded Naked" (temporary) tattoos on various body parts on all those who were game (it was a family event!) While at the party we visited with our new friends, John and Dottie from Noble Prize, San-San, Toki and our friends Bob and Vicki from Ponce Inlet.

Saturday, we joined Toki for the first race of Regatta Time in Abaco. Link to Regatta Time in Abaco It was great to be "racing" again, although the conditions were crummy. It was drizzly and the winds never really got above 5 knots. All was not lost; Toki took third place in the division. In the evening we joined the festivities on the island.

Sunday, July 4th, was a lay day for the racers and we stayed aboard, opting to join Toki at Grabbers Bar & Grill in Great Guana Cay after the second race on Monday. Again, they took a third place.

Today (Tuesday) we are in Marsh Harbour (the largest town in Abaco), as it is another lay day for the racers. Tomorrow we will crew on Toki for the third race. Bahamian Independence Day is Saturday and the celebrations begin in the evening. We plan to be here through the weekend. I guess we will need to sign up for another week of internet!