cruising – Sailing Ritual

The end of February found us in George Town for Cruiser’s Race Week, where we joined 400+ fellow boaters in Elizabeth Harbour! It was a special week with lots of fun activities. Family race day featured paddleboard, kayak and dinghy (no engine) racing. The funniest race was the Coconut Challenge. Part 1 – Each dinghy gets a crew of four and each person gets one swim fin to paddle with. The goal is to collect the most coconuts floating in the harbor. Anything goes, as crew are drenched with buckets of water or pulled into the water by competitors. The “booty” is counted, and then it’s on to Part 2 – the coconut toss. The crew stands on one side of the volleyball court and throws their coconuts into a graduated ring on the other side to get points. This is a change from years past when 2 people would hold a garbage bag in the air to catch the coconuts thrown from their team mates. Apparently there were a few bruises from that version! There were also big boat races in the harbour and around the island, baseball games in town, and bocce, volleyball and dominoes tournaments. We attended a workshop on how to make a conch horn, and enjoyed a gathering with Nica and fellow Boat Galley followers. It was fun to meet up with Nica and Jeremy on Mischief again, and impressive to see them sailing through the harbor with all flags aflyin’!

Lisa had no idea how hard a conch shell was. It took her 45 minutes with a hack saw to cut the tip off the shell, only to find the hole too small. (Yes, Fred offered to help, but she is stubborn that way). She got it right on the second slice, and with some practice is getting pretty good at sounding the horn at sunset. Although at times it can still sound a bit like a sick moose…

From here we had planned to head further south into the Bahamas and Caribbean, but Lauren was able to make arrangements to fly into Staniel Cay for a visit, so we headed back north. We call this island the “Hollywood” of the Exumas. Though it is small, there are many attractions that draw not just cruisers but also huge private yachts and tour boats from Nassau and George Town. The area has gotten insanely busy. After Lauren left, a woman was killed when a fast moving tourist boat plowed into their dinghy. Her husband was airlifted to Nassau in critical condition and is now back in the States healing.

It was a whirlwind week with Lauren! We anchored at the Pig Beach and got to hold a few piglets; we fed the iguanas and explored at Bitter Guana Cay, where we had only one other boat; and we enjoyed the SSCA cruiser’s gathering and sloop races at Black Point. Then it was back to Staniel Cay for snorkeling at the Thunderball Grotto (where the Bond movie was filmed). We dinghied Lauren to the airport for her flight out, and were hit by a rainstorm which caused a delay, but she made it back to Seattle by that evening. You will have to ask her about the leg from Nassau to Staniel Cay on Flamingo Air – an older 12 seat, twin engine prop plane. We suspect that was an adventure all its own!

The other happy coincidence of going back north was reconnecting with Jeanne and Sheldon on Shank’s Mare! We had parted at Key Biscayne in Florida when we crossed to the Islands, so it was great to catch up. We spent a long weekend together in the anchorage “Between the Majors”, riding out a nasty storm (where their dinghy, and several others, were flipped over by the wind). After the storm we moved back near the Pig Beach and had a beautiful evening with dinner aboard Shank’s Mare, then bid goodbye the next morning. Fred’s sisters had managed to get away for a week and were flying into George Town!

Shank’s Mare contending with coming storm and trawler too close!

Back south we headed, with an overnight stop at the south end of Great Guana Cay. We found the trail leading to a cave and a beach on the other side. The cave was cool and dark, with stalactites and a pond. Supposedly one could dive in here and emerge on the outside, and we watched a family snorkel around, but they did not go through.

We thought we had timed our exit through Little Farmer’s Cay Cut with slack tide, but still encountered a bit of current and short waves as we passed out between the islands. We had already found that transiting a cut with tide against wind could be unpleasant – this was not so bad. Fred got out the fishing line, and as we got closer to Great Exuma Island he got a strike and landed a nice-sized mackerel. They are supposed to make good sushi, and he had it cleaned and stored (this time with no bloody mess in the cockpit) before we entered the cut into Elizabeth Harbour and George Town.

We enjoyed a few days anchored near Chat ‘N Chill and Sand Dollar Beaches. The cruisers potluck on Easter seemed like a nice idea, and Fred wore his Blind River ball cap. A guy walked over chuckling and said “For real? I’m from Massey!” – a town right down the road. We love these connections! There is also a boat here from South Haven, MI with crew from Kalamazoo, and another boat from the Detroit area. It does seem like a small world sometimes.

In order to spare the sisters a choppy, wet dinghy ride across the harbor, we moved Ritual close to town. Bonnie and Debbie had joined us in Key West last year, so they knew what to expect as far as tight quarters and little privacy. Their goal was to chill out on a beach, drink some Coronas and catch up with family. We also hiked them around Stocking Island a bit! We hit the town for groceries, beer and a couple lunches, with a visit to the straw market for tee-shirts and souvenirs. We enjoyed the beaches at Da Sand Bar, Jolly Hall, Chat ‘N Chill and Sand Dollar, interspersed with short hikes to the Monument, ocean side, Art Trail and Elizabeth Cut. The weather was perfect and the week flew by.

Now we find ourselves at a crossroad. Continue on south as originally planned, or follow the wake of several of our friends who are trekking back north to the States? We would really like to return to Portugal this fall for a few months, and feel we should get Ritual out of the “hurricane box”. Being away during a hurricane season (and this one has the makings for many storms) has us waiting for a weather window and pointing the bow back north. We will be slowly making our way through the Bahamas until the end of April, then up the East Coast – location to be determined. We will keep you posted, and for now, fair winds!

Fred and Lisa

Hello from sunny George Town, Exuma Island, in the Bahamas. We had every good intention of being here for Christmas but the weather gods thought otherwise, so we spent the holidays amongst friends in good ol’ Vero Beach. The new year continued to bring northeast storms, and we finally headed south in the ICW to get positioned for any good chance to cross the Gulf Stream.

Traveling with Shank’s Mare, we made a 2-day run down the ICW from Peck Lake to West Palm Beach to Ft. Lauderdale. We had skipped the section from WPB in the past because it entails the opening of 21 bridges (!) but the ocean was not cooperating for an outside run. We gave Mar a Lago our one finger salute and headed south. This section of the waterway is walled in many places, and boat wakes reverberate between them, making for a rolly ride. We were fortunate that it was mid-week and boat traffic was minimal. We pushed the engine to make the 30-minute timings between bridges. While it was interesting to see the beautiful homes and other sights, we think that this was a “one and done” thing. We were very happy to exit the channel at Ft. Lauderdale and make an outside run to Key Biscayne and No Name Harbor!

It was fun to have our friend Barb join us in Key Biscayne for the Bahamas crossing. Long days are always better with crew – especially sailors! Since Barb had a car we got to explore a bit more of the area and run down a few small parts and other items. We especially enjoyed Coconut Grove where we celebrated Lisa’s birthday and Barb played a polka on a street busker’s accordion!

Finally a weather window opened, and we hauled anchor at 5 am, Jan 28^th, following several other boats out into the dark channel to cross to Bimini. A south wind enabled us to sail most of the way on a rollicking reach. Winds were building into the afternoon, and we welcomed the calm at Brown’s Marina. By mid-afternoon we were cleared into the Bahamas, and celebrated with a Kalik!

We decided to make an overnight passage to Chub Cay resort to continue south. Leaving Bimini at 5 pm in very light winds, we motored over the calm Great Bahama Bank, and watched a giant full moon rise to keep us company all night. Winds built into the morning, and we arrived at Chub Cay at 8 am, looking forward to tying into a slip. Alas, the harbormaster controls all entry and ordered us to wait until 11 am – their “check-in” time! We dropped the hook and sat for almost 3 hours in a 2 foot chop before getting a slip assignment.

Chub Cay is a self-contained resort and marina, owned by a Texas oilman. The clubhouse and pool area sit on a pretty beach, and villas and private homes encircle one side of the well protected and fairly new marina. They obviously cater to large cruisers and fishing boats, but many smaller sailboats stop in here on their way to other destinations. There is a nice housing area for the workers, a solar array, and a garden which supplies the restaurant. We enjoyed the pool and hot tub, and made use of the laundry and showers. Lunch at the big restaurant was lovely and not as expensive as we had feared, and we really liked the food and drink at the bar in the workers village – the Nauti Rooster.

Barb was beginning to think about a return flight, and instead of Nassau, we decided to head for Spanish Wells at the north end of Eleuthera. It is a lovely village with easy access to the airport, and we could get a mooring ball in the harbor to ride out the next forecasted storm. We rented a golfcart for the ride to Russell Island and lunch at the Sand Bar and Grill, walked the beach, and poked in the little shops. Barb got a flight out on Monday, before the projected Tuesday storm. At sunrise she boarded the little ferry which connects right to the airport shuttle. We were glad she would not have weather complications, and missed her company once she was gone.

The storm moved in Tuesday afternoon. We were glad to have one of the five moorings and were sitting pretty as the winds clocked from southeast to northeast overnight at 30 mph. The front moved through with heavy rain, and by Thursday we were out and about on the island again. We rented another cart for grocery shopping, propane refill, and parts procurement for our head (toilet) holding tank pump. Boat parts, especially replacements for old parts, are almost impossible to find in the Bahamas. Even calls to Nassau resulted in orders from the States that would take at least two weeks. We were able to get the island sewage truck to meet us at the dock and pump out our tank, and we bought a new pump from the local boatyard at 3 times the US price. And so it goes…

Clearing weather got us headed south again. We had hoped for an anchorage near the Glass Window, where the ocean meets the Sound under a rock bridge, but there was too much surge for our comfort, so we went on to Hatchet Bay. Here, a hole was blasted in the rock to open a small lake into the Sound. Once inside there is 360 degree protection. We had a burger on the patio at the Boaters Bar and Grill, where the proprietor, Emmette, sings his Eleuthera song, among others. “No other island, will keep you smilin’, like Elootra”!

Since we had explored Eleuthera in detail last winter, we continued south for a night at Rock Sound, and then crossed west to the Exumas, entering Wax Cay Cut and anchoring at Shroud Cay, the northernmost island in the Exuma Land and Sea park. This island of mangroves has several creeks which can be explored by dinghy to see rays, birds and sea turtles. The water is “gin clear” and we saw three sea turtles. The creek ends in a pool behind a short dune, and a pristine ocean beach greets you on the other side. Pristine, except for all the plastic flotsam and jetsam, which we have mentioned before.

With yet another winter blow forecast with strong west winds, we headed for the protection of Pipe Creek, just south of the park. Inside Compass Cay the water runs in deeper channels, surrounded by sand bars which go dry or almost dry at low tide. It was here we met up with Nica and Jeremy on Mischief! We had been in the boatyard together the summer of 2022 while they completed work on their Bristol Channel Cutter Calypso, and now they were sailing her sistership Mischief, which they have also been restoring. Some of you may know Nica from her podcasts on The Boat Galley, and her Fit2Sail blog. We have followed her for several years and it is so fun to share a little time with her and Jeremy.

Once the west winds abated, we headed just a couple hours south to Black Point, a favored cruisers anchorage. There is a small store, a couple restaurants, and the best laundromat in the Bahamas! In true Bahamian fashion, the laundromat office/store was closed and the sign said to get tokens at the grocery store down the street. The store was out of tokens and directed us across the street to Stick’s house. As we called for him, a passerby hollered that he was at the Yacht Club. We walked to the Yacht Club, but he had just left there. We ordered Kaliks while someone volunteered to find him. Beers in hand, we returned to the laundromat and finally encountered Stick, with tokens. It took 45 minutes to get tokens, but we did have a cold beer and a pretty view from the deck!

With clean undies and full stomachs, and after a very calm nights’ sleep, we passed out the Dotham Cut into the ocean and the long days’ run to George Town and Elizabeth Harbor. We arrived during Cruisers Race Week, and 410 other cruising boats here attest to its popularity! We have met up with Mischief once more, and will recap the week in our next issue, which (hopefully) will not take 3 months to publish!

Fair winds – Fred and Lisa

Tag: cruising

Greetings from George Town and Stocking Island!

Back in the Bahamas!