Exumas Cays Christmas 2013

We left Marsh Harbor for Lynyard cay with moderate easterly winds and had some nice jib sailing most of the day. It was a lovely peaceful anchorage when we arrived and we were the only boat there. The following morning we got up early for the long day passage to Royal Island in Eluthera. We had contrary winds and a good period with fighting the current too. So we arrived after dark in the protected anchorage with a very narrow entrance. Thankfully we had been here before and knew of the layout and lighted aids to navigation and were pleased they still were on. We anchored safely but alas with no fish for our long day sail in open ocean. The next day we again rose early to get onto the White Banks at good tide as they are very shallow about half way across. We had blissful sailing as the short video shows. Devin stood on the bow as the water shoaled as we needed to miss the coral heads. They were easily seen and thankfully missed. We anchored safely at Ship Channel Cay in the lee of the islands and slept very well. The next day we snorkeled the reefs and visited the private club, but sadly not allowed ashore. We enjoyed the very peaceful anchorage though.


The next stop was Allen's Cay to see the famous and rare iguanas. We entered the narrow channels by eye ball navigation and anchored as the only boat there in the prime spot. We walked all three cays and saw lots of iguanas and some picture postcard views of little bays. We didn't feel great about staying overnight as the swinging room was not a lot and at 45 feet Moosetracks likes a lot of room so we moved to Norma's Cay overnight.

Hello buddie!

Big Iguanas



Allens cay

Iguana facts

Norma's Cay is the last opportunity to catch anything before entering the no take zone of the Exumas Land and Sea Park. Just as we anchored we got a short visit from the Bahamas Defense force, they are really friendly and so nice it was a pleasure to know they are there for us!

So we planned on lots of snorkeling and exploring. We found a beautiful converted fishing boat in the anchorage and made instant friends with Stan and Laura of m/v Laura D. We shared a love of exploring, snorkeling and games so we had a fabulous time with them. We spent hours in the water and dinghies exploring and spear fishing. We snorkeled the plane wreck and little cays that abound around here. We even caught two lobsters! It was your true dream of the Exumas and a fantastic highlight to end our first year anniversary of cruising!

Anniversary catch!!!

The happiest man on earth

Stan avec lobster!

Dinner

Stan, Laura, Kiwi & Liz

Laura

As with all things it was sad to leave Laura D but we are all independent types and have our own agendas. So we bid farewell and sincerely hope to catch them down island as we say. Our next stop was Shroud Cay, we anchored further north than last year to dinghy the mangrove creek at the north of the island. The next morning we took the dinghy into the creek all the way to the Atlantic side beaches and explored Camp Driftwood which sadly was cleaned up by the park and lost some charm. Camp drift wood was built in 1960 by a sailor living in the creek, on the highest spot. You can still imagine the Federal Agents camped out here watching the drug smugglers on Normans Cay which is what they actually did! Hence the plane wreck at Normans from the activities of the smugglers.

The well

Shroud Cay

The beach on the Atlantic side

Mangrove dinghy ride

Shroud Cay

Camp Driftwood

The next stop was Hawksbill Cay in a lovely protected anchorage with lots of other cruisers as we are now more on the direct path from Nassau as opposed to the route we traveled. We hiked to the Loyalist plantation ruins of 1785 that are very tricky to find. We had a few false turns but did eventually find e trail at the far end of the Atlantic beach. The ruins were far more buildings then we thought with 10 in total, but we found only 7.

The ruins

The ruins trail

The beach to get there

The next stop was the Exumas Land and Sea Park HQ at Waderick Wells. We had been here before but felt again it needed a little more exploration. We anchored by Emerald Rock and took the dinghy in the next morning and called our friends s/v Stella who were anchored there to join us for a walk. We took the Causeway trial and then back via BooBoo hill and the blow holes. It was a lovely day but Brian & Susie needed to get back for Hanna their beautiful dog. So liz and I back tracked to see more and picnic on a hill to get Internet with our hotspot.

Brian & Susie

Brian, Susie & Devin

Pirates lair

A pirate in their lair

Yes it real!

Things we do to get internet!

After Waderick Wells we were going to visit Cambridge Cay or Pipe Cay but as happens winds were not playing nicely. We did have wind and decided to use it to tack out on the banks and had 6 hours of nice sailing to Big Majors Spot. We knew the protection would be good here for the clocking wind and so anchored in this beautiful spot. This was Dec 23rd so we also wanted a good place for Christmas and we felt this would be ideal. We made Christmas Eve very special by getting up and going to Thunderball Grotto, a lovely snorkel spot with very tame fish. We hope the video does it some justice.

So that brings us to Christmas Day at Big Majors and Staniel Cay. We were woken by cockerels crowing and the moose calling for their Christmas stockings! The calls to Family were unfortunately short due to poor Internet but we did so appreciate hearing them all at least to say "Happy Christmas". We had a traditional English feast with Christmas pudding to finish, thanks Mum (Maggie).

We hope you all have a wonder holiday season whatever that means for you.

Back in The Bahamas

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with Linda and Lawrence at their home in Vero Beach with their friends Tom & Carol and neighbors Pete & Nancy. They all had great stories to share of their adventures this summer and enjoyed hearing about our travels too. Also thanks to Linda and Lawrence we have fully provisioned Moosetracks, in fact we need to leave before we buy anything else that might weigh down the boat!

Moosetracks at Lawrence & Linda's dock

So we left Vero Beach the day after Thanksgiving and headed to Fort Pierce to re-fuel ready for the Bahamas, more to do with price than necessity as diesel is much cheaper in Florida. We found a nice anchorage at Jensen Beach and as we dropped the hook we were hailed by s/v Blue Dog who we had last met in Fort Jefferson on Long Island.

We left the following morning for Lake Worth north anchorage and settled in for the night. Since we wanted some new furling line we took a trip to West marine for some last minutes items and on the way back made our last Ice Cream stop in the US. So finally we have the weather window and are ready to leave the USA!

We left via Lake Worth inlet at sunset and at Memory Rock we crossed onto the Bahamas bank in darkness then continued on to Great Sale by lunch time the next day, a bit rough and more on the nose than forecast but nothing terrible.

Sunset at Great Sale Cay

the Q-Flag goes up!

We then had a light wind day sail to Crab Cay where we had a wonderful sight of a satellite launch before we retired for the night (sorry we forgot to photograph it!). The Next day we motored over to Green Turtle to check in the following day. Check in at Customs and Immigration there went really well and they gave us 180 days on our visa! So we celebrated with Ice Cream at McIntosh's :-)

Checking in at Green Turtle

Dressed for Check-in

When we returned to Moosetracks we had lunch and decided since the notorious Whale Cut looked so calm we would go now. The surf in the cut did pick up over the next hour or two but it was a piece of cake and we were easily through both cuts. So we anchored by our friends Tom & Sandy s/v Ananya at Bakers Bay on Great Guana for the night. The following morning we moved a few miles to visit Nippers Bar for lunch. After lunch we walked off the food with a long walk on the beach and really appreciate how fantastic the beaches are here with the spectacular turquoise water. A group of nice folks we had talked with at lunch invited us over to their charter catamaran and we had a great afternoon chatting with them. They dream of doing what we are doing so they had a lot of questions!

Great Guana Administration ready for Xmas

Atlantic Beach at Nippers

.. and looking south - WOW!

Great to be back in the Bahamas

Nippers of course!

We spent the night at Great Guana and sailed across the bay of Abaco to Marsh Harbor on Friday. It was a few tacks to start then an easy 6nm reach in 12 knots, oh what bliss! Well the first day in Marsh harbor was a work day as we still had anchor light issues since Vero Beach so the diagnosis now was a failed wire inside the mast. So again it was time to climb the mast and replace the wire this time. Thankfully that found the issue, as one conductor of the wire pair was totally parted, at least this was conclusive evidence and the new wire did finally solve it!

After the climbing the mast we needed some R&R so we decided to attend the Christmas festival this afternoon in Marsh Harbor with Frank & Patti s/v Dream Weaver and Floyd & Fran s/v Prior Ties. It was a nice event primarily for the kids with music, dancing, fashion shows and a Junkanoo rush out.

Patti & Frank, Liz, Fran (+Bailey) & Floyd

School kids singing

Just gorgeous!

Well we soon start heading out of Abaco's as winter fronts often reach here so it’s better to be further south. We are going on to Royal Island before jumping to the Exumas Island chain for Christmas and New Year if the weather holds to forecast.

We hope you are having a wonderful holiday season.

Visiting with lots of Friends

Well November is when our insurance says hurricane season is over and we can go back to the tropics, for us these means we can get back into Florida. We raised anchor on Nov 1st after a little lazy start as we were only moving a few miles to Fernandina Beach. The first hurdle was to wait for a departing US nuclear submarine which was being escorted out St Mary’s inlet, but other than a 20 minute hold up it was a great opportunity to get a few photo’s of these rare things. We took a mooring ball in Fernandina to allow us to relax in their wonderful showers and use the laundry after so long on the hook. It was also so we could do a run to Wal-Mart and the Post Office for our mail and use the dinghy dock for getting our bikes ashore. We had a very productive couple of days which included a lovely meal out with Sue and David from Sans Cles.

Last walk at Cumberland Island

Submarine traffic

 

We looked hard at the weather forecast but could not see the opportunity to get out and venture down the coast so we decided to brave the shoals of the Inter Coastal Waterway (ICW). We left bright and early and caught the tide rising and adding to our feeling of safety as well as giving us a nice push of speed. Sans Cles had decided to go as well since they had a mooring booked in St Augustine, so Moosetracks being a slightly lower draft went first and played depth sounder. Well no issues on many of the trouble spots were found as we had played the tide correctly and watched the active captain maps as we moved along. It was a very pleasant day on the water and we had a great ICW passage. Just before lunch we saw another IP at anchor and upon approaching it saw it was Grand Cru who we had met in the Bahamas. They hailed us and we had a little catch up on their summer and ours, we might even catch them in the Bahamas after the holidays! 

Ponce de Leon Light

Mission of Nombre de Dios - St Augustine

St Augustine Light

 

We pulled off the ICW a few miles north of St Augustine to anchor up for the night and have a early arrival the next day so we could enjoy a full day in St Augustine and explore the historic city. It worked well for us and we got a mooring ball early the next morning and immediately dinghied over to walk around town. The Town is full of history and to us it was the magnificent fort that beckoned so we bought entry and had a wonderful few hours exploring. Then after a lovely lunch, we walked around town and looked at the historic buildings and  a Greek museum commemorating the founding people of New Smyrna.

Castillo de San Marcos - St Augustine

Bridge of Lions

Boys toys

Play time

Back to School - oldest wooden School

Flagler College

Back to College ?

What a magnificent building - Flagler College

Even Municipal building are spectacular

Typical St Augustine street - reminded us of English towns

 

St Augustine was truly lovely but the weather was again threating rain so we pulled away from our ball and headed south. The next stretch was a long day to Daytona Beach on the ICW. The winds were not playing nice as again it was rough outside and wind too strong and on our nose so we chickened out. The timing though worked well for us and we made good progress with mostly following current again there was lovely scenery as we motored south. As we approached our chosen spot a Catamaran Salty Paws with Jim & Bentley who we had met at Oriental was anchored near and beckoned us over. Well the Admiral said we should follow the active captain instructions to get in but the Captain followed Jim’s and oops we got caught in some real shallow water, but thankfully we didn’t get stuck as it was soft mud and made it to the deeper water. Ok the Captain can be wrong but not the Admiral. Our next leg was a bit of a stretch to Melbourne and due to a pending eye exam for the Captain we needed to get there either Wednesday or early Thursday as the only available appointment was Thursday. So we had another long motoring day but stopped at dusk about 6 miles north of Melbourne in a quiet anchorage by Georgiana. The next morning we got up early and moved 6 miles to re-anchored by the Civic Center at Eau Gallie near Melbourne, FL in time to get our bikes ashore and cycle to Wal-Mart and Aldi for the eye appointment and order new glasses and a bit of shopping including Moosetracks Ice Cream!

Some splicing of new snubber lines

Well we were going to be here for several days because the new glasses have to be made and we deliberately arrived early to do that and to give us time to meet up with friends as well. The first visitors were Tug, Monique and their 4 lovely children. We spent Saturday at the park and then at Squid Lips restaurant just hanging out on the beach there and catching up. Then on Sunday we all went to the park and then the beach to see and test the Atlantic surf. Well at least the kids did, some of us are too scared of the cold water!

Tug & Monique

A great beach day in the Atlantic surf

Lunch with ice cream to finish!

Our next friends to visit were Chris and Martin with Lucy, Paul and Amelia their very new baby! We had lunch at Squid Lips then a long chat again on the beach and a short walk around the park before they had to make their way back to St Petersburg. We were so glad they took a day out of their vacation to come over and see us and let us meet Amelia for the first time.

Martin, Amelia, Lucy, Paul and Chris
 

Amelia happily playing on the beach

The wind was now forecast to get pretty rough and the anchorage was a little exposed so we took the chance to anchor in a more sheltered spot across the river at Dragon Point. No the dragon is not there anymore!

 

We also have some local friends here in Melbourne who we like to see when we are over for the Gam. We have known Joe and Carol for many years as they attended the party’s at our dear friends Hendy & Ingrid. We arranged to have coffee with them and went to a nearby restaurant and wiled away the afternoon catching up. In fact it was past dark as we got back to Moosetracks. The following day Harry & Melinda arrived for the Gam and had offered to take us shopping in their rental car to re-provision for the next 6 months. It was a fantastic offer and we gratefully accepted, so off we all went to Aldi and Wal-Mart. Now boy can Liz shop!! This was huge and 3 fully loaded shopping carts were filled by lunch time. We took at breather at Chili’s restaurant and had a well earned happy hour too! We got the groceries back in several trip to Moosetracks and then started the putting away. Now remember we have to practice stock rotation so it was empty lockers first, stow the new stuff, then pack the older stuff on top. Yes it takes a while to get it all put away! Oh and hold on we’re only 80% done as fresh produce and some items we couldn’t get enough of are still left to do.

 

The next 3 days were the SSCA Gam and for us a fantastic opportunity to catch up with so many friends. Now we are not going to mention everyone we caught up with but suffice to say it was well over 30 people! It was a great Gam as usual and we had a blast with dinner out three nights including the Saturday night at the Gam as well. We finished the Gam with a night of Mexican train with Sans Cles and Unicorn. It was a fabulous time and we are so glad to have met so many people in Melbourne.

 

Our next stop is seeing Linda and Lawrence of m/v Far Reaches who we met last year in Clarence town and had a blast with for several days. They live in Vero Beach and offered us their dock for a few days and since we had been looking forward to catching up for so long we accepted their offer to stay for Thanksgiving. It was still 9 days away but since we needed the last of our groceries and some last minute jobs done on Moosetracks we were very grateful of the offer of staying at their dock.

A great view of the dock

So we are now almost ready to head to he Bahamas, the weather looks bad for the remainder of November with strong cold fronts every couple of days, so we’ll most likely leave early December.

 

We wish everyone a  very happy Holiday Season where ever you are!