Back in the U.S. of A.

Having left the Sea of Abaco three days ago, we have just anchored in Ft. Pierce, Florida.

Abaco

New Plymouth, Green Turtle

When we left Treasure Cay three days ago, we had a pleasant sail around the "Whale" and anchored in Manjack Harbour and spent a quiet night at anchor.

We woke up in the morning, got the weather forecast for the 55 mile run to Great Sale Cay, and were looking forward to a downwind sail with winds from the south.  Once underway with a great start, the winds veered to the north by the time we dropped anchor on the north side of Great Sale Cay. Foolish us, we believed the weather forecast which was still insisting on winds from the south overnight so we decided to stay put.  By sunset, we learned that the forecast was calling for winds to blow from the north and veer to the east.  Duh!  By now we were pitching in the chop along with two other boats at anchor, and it was too late to move.  We had confidence in our anchor, good holding and sea room abaft, so we decided to watch a movie and go to sleep.  I listened to the 30-plus-knot winds and the three-foot waves for awhile, and the next thing I know I awoke at 1:30 am to dead calm - I guess that was what woke me up after sleeping in a carnival ride.  Maggie managed to get some sleep as well.

Leaving Great Sale

Bahama Bank

We feel back to sleep as the winds filled in from the east.  The forecast was for them to continue to clock around to the south, so we had a hardy breakfast and set sail for Florida.  Unfortunately the winds were too light to sail, so we ended up motor sailing all 110 miles.

In the afternoon, before we entered the Gulf Stream, Maggie had made a delicious roast beef dinner and we enjoyed that before night fall.  It was an uneventful trip and we entered the inlet at sunrise with the tide.  Now here we are and here we will be until we are ready to move on to Bermuda.

Sailing to Florida

Branko

Leaving the Sea of Abaco

Brian and Theresa (Intermission)

Nancy  and Dean (Pegasus S.V.) 

It's hard to believe that we have been here in the Sea of Abaco for three months, but it is time to move on.  It has been a wonderful place to spend the winter with beautiful sights and fine weather.

John and Kathi (Makani)

 But what has made it really memorable has been meeting new people and hopefully making a few lasting friendships.  That made it possible to get over a few early setbacks and put them behind us, and thanks to Alan and Gerri on CIVIL TWILIGHT for their help and friendship during that period and all the fun after that.

Annie and Neville  (Peace 4)

Gerri and Alan(Civil Twilight S.V.)

The winter here also gave Maggie and I a good sense of what our new lifestyle - the cruising life - is all about, and we love it.  Exploring a new country, meeting new people,overcoming challenges and having new experiences IS what is all about.  There is also a bittersweet aspect to this lifestyle, too.  Eventually, if you want to keep having new experiences, you have to say "good bye" to all the things you liked or, at least say "until next time".

Joan (Java S.V.) and Ray (Mangoes)

Gerry (man), Leah and Victoria (Free Spirit S.V.)

The other thing that we really enjoyed was spending time with our old friends that came to visit.  Not only does it renew exiting friendships, but we can share the experience with them and refresh our appreciation of the experience through their eyes.  We will always encourage our friends to visit for those reasons - both old and new friends.

Jim(Java S.V.)

Over the next few days we will cross the Gulf Stream and go back to Ft. Pierce to do a little work and prepare for the first passage to Bermuda in May.  Stay tuned as we report on our progress.

Branko

See you soon......

The Kaufmann Family visit

The Kaufmann's with Jim and Michelle

Madeline, Adelaide, Willem, Amelia, Rainier, Jim and Michelle ( friends from Toronto who rented a cottage in Hopetown) came for a visit via their very fast 20ft skiff.  Ad, Will and Am are Rainier and Madeline's children,  Michelle is Madeline's sista and Jim is Michelle's husband - so these are the characters of our story.

Ad, Rain, Mad, Will and Am

The family switched things up  this winter and instead of going on their usual ski trip decided to spend a week in the Bahamas, the Abaco's to be exact.

So here we are,  Branko diving on Sandy Cay with John from Makani,  myself and Kathi are snorkeling above them, watching the fish,  spotted eagle rays, barracuda and coral, when a family comes by snorkeling the cay themselves.   We wave and say hello and that was that.   Later on we realized that this was 'the Family'  and hadn't recognized them.  But don't worry folks because they did come back, twice :-)

Our ride 

We arranged to lunch at Pete's Pub in Little Harbour the next day.   Amelia,  the younger daughter did most of the driving.  They picked us up and then quickly scooted over the swells to Little Harbour. What a  pleasure for Branko and I -  door to door service.

I had heard that we MUST take a T-shirt to the pub,  write our boat name on it and then hang it from the ceiling  -  seems that this is the 'thing' at Pete's. I took one of Branko's very large, very used, clean T-shirts and some markers with me.    Thought it would be a fun family thing to do.  Everyone participated.  It is always great when you have a family of artists - so of course the t-shirt was (still is) a thing of beauty.

Hanging the T-shirt

Willem and Branko

We had to hang the t-shirt,  on the ceiling - with no ladder - what to do? what to do? In Branko style,  he told Willem to get on his shoulders (with a loaded staple gun) and staple the T-shirt to the roof.   We were entertainment for the Pub - if they had not been looking they surely heard us.   Amelia was next to finish the job and hopped up on Branko's shoulders.

Ring toss - Jim and Willem

 We rounded out the Pub crawl with lunch, many drinks (thank you Jim and Michelle) and of course ring toss.   A small boy of about 4 was quite good and showed a few of us up - now don't ask me why a boy of 4 is hanging out in the pub playing ring toss with the patrons....it's just that kind of place.

Amelia and Rainier 

We left a number of hours later to do some swimming and conch shell finding.

Our anchorage has a nice white sand beach,  where we found shells and some relaxation.   Jim, pulled out more drinks from his cooler and a beach party ensued - all too soon they had to leave and we waved goodbye as they high tailed it out.

What fun,  we really enjoyed their visit.

Willem

Amelia

Adelaide

Elsie and Kathy's Bahamas Adventure

Arrival at Mangoe's

Gerry (Man) and Elsie

After much anticipation, my good friend Elsie and I arrived in Marsh Harbour, in the Abacos, on Wednesday, March 2nd, in the early evening.  Lots of smiles and hugs as we met up at Mangoes Marina.  Due to weather conditions, we wouldn't sail till Saturday, so we proceeded to make the most of our time in Marsh Harbour.  Our first night we were treated to four delicious pizzas, made from scratch by Branko, including home-made crust and Branko's first lobster catch (described in his hilarious blog "First Kill").  M and B's friend, Gerry (boy) joined us, and brought his signature rum cake (delicious chocolate cake with rum drizzled over it -- when in the Bahamas...)  The food kept coming and the rum flowed, until we all realized we were pooped and ready for bed....at 10:30pm.

Playing domino's -(must visit to understand)

Busting 'said' move

Snappa's

Thursday was pure fun and relaxation.  Sightseeing and groceries in the morning, lunch on the boat, and then the girls strolled down the road for a little beach time.  The beach was lovely, but Maggie said it would be the least attractive beach we'd see all week (understatement).  In the evening, we were introduced to a terrific game, Mexican Train Dominoes, which is a very fun, but complicated game, requiring utmost concentration, moderate amounts of rum, and much laughter.  It would take us three nights to finish the game, with everyone taking the lead and dragging in last place at one time or another.  It's not important who won, just that we had fun, right Maggie?  Afterward, we walked over to a local bar, Snappa's, and in no time we were busting out our moves.   It was practically empty, but the music was excellent, we were slightly lubricated, and we could not stop moving.  Branko sat out at the bar chatting with our new friend, Ron, and he got lots of embarrassing pics and videos (which will not be posted on youtube, like M and B dancing in Cape Breton).  I managed to get more people up on the dance floor with some friendly prodding and coaxing.  ("Come on, DANCE!"  "Let's DANCE!")  We encountered some very good sports who were happy to join in the fun.

Hopetown Harbour

Tahiti Beach

          
Friday morning we left Branko behind and 
caught the 9:00 a.m. ferry to Hopetown, a charming island with a variety of beautiful sights.  (When the ferry guy asked if we were with the missionary group, Elsie said "I guess you weren't at Snappas last night").  Our destination was Tahiti Beach, and we strolled around town until the bike rental place opened, then off we went on a fantastic, tortuous, twenty-five minute bike ride, up and down hills and along cliffs where the ocean was crazy with huge waves.  Tahiti Beach was a deserted paradise, and we spent the day searching for conch and starfish, and doing photo shoots pretending to be Sports Illustrated models.     

Wheeeeeee

 On our ride back to the ferry, we stopped to watch the ocean and share a light lunch - conch fritters, crab cakes, and cold beer.  Friday evening found us relaxing on the boat with a leisurely dinner, a couple hours of Dominoes, and another half a movie.

Kathy

Saturday it was off to Man-0-War Cay, where the boys donned snorkeling gear to bravely explore the shallows for lobster, while the girls, including Gerry's newly-arrived girlfriend, Laurie, explored the island.  A word about Gerry and Laurie - awesome.  It felt like we had all been friends for ages, and I really hope I get to see them again  (Bill too).  Each island we visited was so different from the last, and each one was special.  One thing I loved was every island is very narrow, and on one side you'd get the ocean waves, and on the other side the breath-taking, calm waters of the sea.  In the interest of space, Elsie will take over ....but not before I say thank you, thank you, Maggie and Branko for your hospitality.  You are the best hosts, tour guides and friends anyone could ask for, and I'm sure glad Elsie won you in her divorce, haha.  Thank, love, and miss you, see you in Barcelona or Croatia....love Kathy xoxo  (meanwhile, rock the boat.....)

and here's Elsie.....

It's 5 o'clock somewhere, right?

Rinsing off - aka, swimming

Hark! The weather reports were correct and we were able to leave Mangoes Marina Saturday morning. Kathy and I, fancying ourselves to be swashbuckilng buccaneers, decided to sit up on deck against the pilothouse windows for the journey to Man-O-War Cay. There was a good swell and it was much wetter than we had anticipated but we were not to be deterred and squealed with glee each time another wave hit us. Within a half hour we were thoroughly drenched but, being serious lasses, we managed to keep our tin cups covered and our rum drinks "dry".

Once anchored at our destination I had a quick swim around the boat then rinsed off and changed.        We set off in the dinghy to pick up Laurie from Free Spirit anchored just yelling distance away and 'the girls' set off for Man-O-War leaving the boys to their manly pursuits. We ambled around the quiet streets admiring the views and the 

The picture says it all

beautiful flowers then popped into Lola's Bakery (aka her kitchen) to buy some fresh bread. Unfortunately we were too late. After a quick visit to her husband's conch museum/laboratory, where I purchased a really cool King Conch shell, we set off for Maggie's "Sunset Beach".    

Sunset Beach

Bill Albury and his cooler -  cool

 On the way we met eight-year-old Michaela, a budding entrepreneur, who sold Laurie a coconut with a painted-on smiley face.  Mr. Coconut Head turned out to be a fun companion 

Mr Coconut and Laurie

Mr CoCo after a few drinks

and willing participant in our many photo-ops.  Further along, we met local character 

Bill Albury, who, so charmed by us, immediately set for home to fetch refreshments and soon after met us at the beach. Woo hoo ... impromptu beach party!  Not bad, considering that Man-O-War is a dry island.

That evening we joined Gerry and Laurie on Free Spirit for a delicious dinner and to discuss the next day's plans.  All our brains seemed to be very hot (private joke - sorry) so we were back aboard H2OBO and sleeping in front of a movie before midnight. All that sea air really IS exhausting ...

Sunday morning dawned warmer and with less wind but, ahoy me mateys, said wind was coming from the right direction and we were able to leisurely sail to Guana Cay. As you have all read, it was on this voyage that Branko caught his first fish - very exciting (and very delicious!). We were soon in the anchorage a few hundred yards off Grabber's beach - wow, great spot. 

Playing in the waves

The 'group' relaxing on the beach

Stromboli, fish, charades and ab workout.....

Cheers!

Kathy and I had a quick swim while our provider filleted his catch, then we piled into the dinghy and headed ashore to meet G and  L at Nipper's. Here we met another Bill, a good friend of Gerry's. This was obviously THE place to be, the joint was jumping! Unable to resist the beach we headed down to jump in the ocean and cool off. You were right Maggie, the Caribbean did feel warmer than the Sea of Abaco. What fun we had splashing about in the waves, body-surfing and posing for another round of Sports Illustrated photography (Seniors' Edition, ha ha).

Photo op at Guana

Tired from laughing so much, and with our suits full of sand, we sat on the beach awhile enjoying the view, cold beverages, and each other's company. On our way back we stopped at Grabber's to try their punch, take advantage of their fresh water pool and to formulate our dinner plans. Our gang would head back to Free Spirit with the snapper and some zucchini, Gerry would make dessert (did someone say rum cake?) and a side dish, and Bill would wow us with his Stromboli (yes, many a joke was made ...).

Yet another great dinner was followed by a game of charades and much side-splitting laughter. You do know how to get a party going MaFee! I'll never forget Bill trying to imitate a butterfly nor Gerry madly cleaning and buffing. Too soon it was time to head "home" and I experienced a rather unfortunate instance of being in the wrong place at the wrong time: as I sat down on the side of the dinghy the bilge water emptied - all over my leg! Everyone was killing themselves laughing - strangely I did not find it quite as funny. Even Gerry was busting a gut once he'd ascertained that the screaming wasn't due to anything serious. Thanks Captain G! Were I not going commando I'd have whipped off those nasty, smelly bilge-water soaked pants in a heartbeat.

Sleep'n like a babe

Through the window next to my bunkie I watched a lightning show playing off to the west (I think) in the wee hours of Monday morning. No storm came our way and I woke a couple of hours later to a hot, humid, sunny day. Yeah, that's what I'm talking 'bout! We had enjoyed yesterday's time at the beach so much that we shelved our snorkelling plans and headed back there for a couple of hours. That also gave Kathy and me the opportunity to pop into Nipper's gift shop for one more souvenir. Branko also came back with a souvenir - scrapes on his forehead - our first body-surfing injury.

We left Guana in the early afternoon and enjoyed a leisurely cruise at 5 knots over gorgeous, shallow and very calm seas. God it was hot that day - loved it. Back in Marsh Harbour we set about relishing our last afternoon and evening together. We lounged in the cockpit chilling with beverages, music and the awesomeness of being in the Bahamas with friends. 

Sailing back to MH

Branko and the girls - Guana

No fish was caught that day so it was civapechichi (spelling?) for dinner, then down below to finish our dominoes game and view Kathy's pictures on the tv. (I know it doesn't matter, but in case anyone in the reading public is dying to know - it was me who won  :)  )

Sadly, that was it for Kathy and me for the next day we left our friends and the Bahamas to return to cold, dreary Toronto. Thank you Maggie and Branko, we knew we'd have a great time with you guys but, wow, it was just incredible. Everyday was filled with good times, gorgeous sights, lots of laughs and special moments. Happy sailing, see you in Europe ...

Awesome Day!

A week ago, we moved down to the bottom half of the Sea of Abaco to spend a little more time down here before we head back to Florida.  On our first night we bumped into John and Kathi on MAKANI, a Gozzard 44.

John and Kathi - Makani

They are avid spear hunters and scuba divers, and their boat is fully equipped for these pursuits with a dive compressor on board.  They have spent the bulk of the winter down here and have several favorite spots to fish and hunt.

On Awesome Day, we dinghied over to Sandy Cay first thing in the morning.  This is a national park with a large and beautiful reef at the end of the cut that comes in from the ocean.  I had bought some scuba equipment in Florida and this was the first time I was going to use it.  In fact, this was to be my first dive in over 20 years.

Kathi with our 'cars'

John and I suited up for the dive, while the ladies donned their snorkel gear.  Maggie does not have a scuba ticket, so Kathi was going to accompany her on top.  Once in the water, I vividly remembered what I loved about scuba diving all those years ago.  It is the closest I will ever get to being an astronaut visiting another planet.  The only way to describe it is to say that all of one's senses are drastically altered, all in a weightless environment.  A little fine tuning of the buoyancy compensator (BC) and you are hovering above the sea floor watching schools of fish arc over the reefs.  Behind us, a large school of Spotted Eagle Rays flying in formation, disregarding our presence , passed behind us.  Absolutely beautiful!

Stingray

On the way home, we stopped at one of John and Kathi's lobster spots and caught some supper.  The sun set on us while we were having a lobster supper on the beach in our anchorage.  After cleaning the lobster and splitting the tails, I drizzled some garlic sauteed in butter with salt, pepper and fresh basil on them and grilled them on an open fire.

Chef Branko - Lobster on the fire

We then spent the evening on Makani playing dominoes.  A perfect day that we will long remember.

Branko