Lynyard Cay to Man-O-War

Monday, March 8th we had a fantastic sail from Lynyard Cay to Marsh Harbor.  We had 13-14 knots of wind all day which is the "Goldlilocks" amount for RONDO.  10 knots is too little, 16 is too much, 13 is just right.  We were sailing next to another red boat MERLIN at about the same speed so it was a lot of fun.  We anchored in Marsh Harbor next to BLUE RONDO then went grocery shopping. The grocery store, Maxwells, was a nice treat.  It is similar to a large supermarket in the states.  Shopping with a list and being able to find the things on the list is surprisingly enjoyable.

Tuesday we spent the morning doing laundry in an exotic place which is one of the definitions of cruising.  After lunch we decided it was too nice to sit on the boat in Marsh Harbor so we sailed over to Man-O-War.  The Abacos are a fun place to sail because the islands are close together.  We pulled into the harbor and picked up a mooring next to TAMURE.  The boat on the mooring on the other side of TAMURE was KATHLEEN ANN.  We had not seen Phil since Florida so it was nice to see him and hear about the great time he has been having.

Rainbow

Monday March 7th we were up before dawn to head for the Abacos.  The sunrise was dramatic and midmorning we saw a huge rainbow.  We had the wind pretty much on the nose the whole way so we had to motorsail the 56 miles to Lynyard Cay.  A nice surprise was having IOLAR come into the anchorage about an hour after we anchored.  They were headed south to the Exumas so we were very pleased to meet up with them as we have not seen Lynn and Walt since Vero Beach.

Dolphins

On Sunday, March 6th we left Hatchet Bay and headed for Royal Island.   The highlights of the trip were the 10.0 knots of speed as we went through Current Cut and having dolphins come for a visit.  One dolphin was swimming towards us and turned around to swim next to us and called for four friends to come for and play. 

Hatchet BayTrees

 I wish I had a book on the trees and shrubs in the Bahamas. Other than the bananas and the coconut palm I can't identify these trees.  The ones with the big limbs and the shoots to the ground are interesting.  They seem to send down little runners that combine into large root type structures to hold up the limbs.  The ones with the big dark seedpods are everywhere.  The ones with the lighter colored seedpods are very loud in the wind and make a clattering rattling kind of sound.

Hatchet Bay

We are still in Hatchet Bay and will probably be here until Sunday.  The wind has been in the 20 - 25 knot range since yesterday and is expected to continue until Saturday.  We walked to the oceanside beach today and after viewing the waves we were very glad to be here in a very protected harbor.

Rock Sound to Hatchet Bay

Monday afternoon we left Rock Sound and sailed to South Palmetto Plantation. The goal was to pick up one of the free government moorings for the night and get up in the morning and walk the mile or so to an organic farm and buy some fresh vegetables. The plan failed.  The government moorings were not in existence so we tried hiding out behind Sheep Cay, which was very small, to get out of the swells.  Because the island was so small the swells just wrapped around both sides of the island.  By this time it was 5:45 and the sun was going down.  We called the one marina in town but they did not answer so we headed over to see if there was room at the inn.  The marina looked pretty deserted, no one answered the radio, and we could not tell how much water they had in the extremely narrow entrance so we ended up anchoring very close to shore in some slight protection just as the sunset.  Surprisingly we had a relatively calm night with only a little bit of rolling.  We enjoyed the beautiful starry night until we had to close the hatches because of the no-see-ums.  In the morning we were going to anchor by the government dock but the seas were rough in what passes for a harbor so we decided to just head for Hatchet Bay.

We had a decent downwind sail to Hatchet Bay along the coast.  Eleuthera has a dramatic rocky coast with low rolling hills topped with palm trees.  As we were getting ready to take down the sails to go into the harbor we were greeted by two dolpins who swam back and forth under the keel for a few minutes.  The entrance to Hatchet Bay is impressive.  I am glad we have a narrow boat.

Wardwick Wells to Rock Sound

Thursday, Feb 24th we left Wardwick Wells and sailed to Staniel Cay. We anchored about 15 minutes before TAMURE pulled in which gave us just enough time to launch the dinghy.  I dropped off Bill on TAMURE as she was coming into the harbor then met them at the fuel dock. The crew from STRADIMARIUS did the same thing.  Altough Scott and Kitty are perfectly capable of going to the dock themselves it was easier for them to have help because of Scott's broken arm.
Friday Bill went fishing with Wilson.  In the evening Jay and Nichole from CHINA DOLL came over for sundowners.  Saturday we went fishing with Wilson and Gail.  Jay came with us. The guys spent quite a lot of time snorkeling.  No fish were hungry but Wilson managed to get a lobster.  Saturday night we went to Wilson and Gail's for dinner.  The dinner was delicious and they also let us bring laundry.  Thank you Wilson and Gail for your hospitality!

Sunday we were up at the crack of dawn and headed for Eleutheura.  The cut was rough as the tide and wind were opposing each other but after that we had an enjoyable fast sail for most of the way to Rock Sound.  We made the 55 mile run in 9 hours which is pretty speedy for a small sailboat.

Monday we went grocery shopping.  The store in Rock Sound is well provisioned and although expensive compared to the states it is relatively affordable for the Bahamas.  It was nice to have choices of what to eat.  After we went shopping we went for a walk to the ocean hole.  Ocean holes are very deep holes in the island that connect to the ocean through underground tunnels so they are tidal.  The local legend is that this hole is bottomless and that Jacques Costeau tried to find the tunnel to the ocean but could not find it.  I don't know if this is true but this is what the official looking sign says.  There are quite a few fish swimming around and apparently some sea turtles, but we did not see the turtles.

After visiting the ocean hole we went for a walk to the caves.  The trail in to the caves passes another smaller ocean hole that is very peaceful and reminded me of being at a quarry at home on a nice summer day.

The trail continued past the idyllic little ocean hole through the woods and to the entrance to the caves.  To get to the caves we had to climb down a homemade wooden ladder balanced somewhat precariously on a ledge and a loose piece of rock.  Walking into the caves little lizards were scurrying under our feet and there were cobwebs big enough for us to try to remember the name of the spider from the Lord of the Rings. As caves go the ones here are quite well lit because of the holes in the ceiling that the tree roots grow through.  I was having a fun time exploring the caves until we woke up the bats, then they were not quite as enjoyable.

The town of Rock Sound is very pretty although many of the buildings have been damaged by hurricanes.  One building will be missing a roof while the one right next to it will be immaculately cared for and surrounded by beautiful flowers.