Saturday, December 3, 2011
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Cruising the Florida Coast
Cruising Again
Now that our time as dirt dwellers was over it was time to get cruising again. On May 7th we had a good weather window and were ready to leave dock at Harbourside Marina in Fort Pierce Florida and commence our trip north to Canada. Our next port of entry was to be Fernandia Beach, Florida on the border of Georgia and Florida which was a 260 nautical mile run over 33 hours offshore. But it wasn’t meant to be. We were underway at 09:00 and at 13:00 we discovered an oil leak. Ted was able to isolate it to a gasket on one of the head covers. We monitored the situation and recalculated our cruise plan for the day. Our only option was to go into Port Canaveral and find a marina. While Ted was down checking the engine I observed a rocket launch that had been announced by NASA and the coast guard. It happened so fast that I didn’t even get a chance to grab my camera and take pictures. All I saw was a yellow object heading straight up with a long trail of smoke. At 15:45 the oil leak increased and the oil pressure dropped.
SEATOW to the rescue
Time to call in for assistance. We radioed SeaTow and explained the situation that we were concerned about doing damage to the engine if the oil got too low. They rendezvoused with us at the entrance of the Canaveral Barge Canal and took us under tow while we shut down our engine. I was a little busy at the bow getting the tow line in place and watching for traffic to take pictures. Rick the towboat driver brought us under tow into Sunrise Marina but not without a few more marks on our newly paint hull. Once at dock the staff wanted to move us off the gas docks and back us into a slip. We discussed our strategy and decided that SeaTow would pull the boat and Ted would start the engine to assist with the manoeuvre. I was at the stern when I heard a shout and then a crash. One of the staff on the stern with me rushed to the fuel pump which got knocked over by one of our ropes which had been left unattended. Luckily no gas leak, no explosion and no damage except for the glass in the front of the pump. As a precaution they took it out of service. We washed down the boat and waited for engine to cool down before starting the much needed clean-up of our oil spill in the bilge. Within a few hours the next morning we had the gasket replaced on the head cover, the bilge and engine cleaned and had time to enjoy a Mothers Day breakfast before getting back underway at 11:00. We timed our departure so that we would arrive in Fernandina Beach at daybreak the following day. Once again we called John and Nora aboard SaberTooth to check in with them as our shore contact during our offshore run. We shut down at 19:00 for 20 minutes to check the oil levels on the engine. Winds were light and waves were less than 2 feet so we just drifted in the Atlantic Ocean rather than dropping an anchor. At daybreak we were approaching the entrance of St. Marys River and Fernandina Beach. We dodged the many fishing trawler who were already out shrimping at the entrance of the River. By 07:45 we were at dock at Florida Petroleum, our cheapest fuel stop along the entire trip. We take on 630 gallons of fuel and a wash down to get rid of the salt spray before walking into town along the picturesque little town on Amelia Island. Back to the boat for dinner with Nora and John we get a chance to catch up with them on their winter experiences cruising in the Bahamas. We had not seen them since leaving Fernandina last November.
Pictures to follow once I have a chance to upload them.
Boat Yard Blues
The Haul-Out
On April 2nd we left Fort Pierce Municipal Marina with Branko and Maggie as crew to assist us with the narrow approached to the haul out basin at Riverside Marina. I explained to Jason who drove the 70 ton travel lift that I could not watch them lifting our boat. He responded with a laugh “I don’t like to watch either”! The glint in his eye reassured me he was joking. At this point I handed Ted the camera and went inside to wait while they lifted, moved and blocked our boat. We were officially “dirt dwellers” again and had to climbed a ladder to get on the boat, on “the hard”. We picked Fort Pierce because of the proximity of our Cummins engine mechanic who would arrived to rebuilt our engine with new liners and pistons.
By the end of the long month we had re-fibreglassed our top skylounge deck, rebuilt and repainted our engine, painted the topsides of the boat, lightly sanded and repainted the antifouling bottom coat, replaced our sea strainers and completed some maintenance repairs needed on the hull. We completed this with a record breaking heat wave for Florida in April. Temperatures reached 30 degrees Celsius (90+ F). The emails home fell on deaf ears as everyone continue to complain about the cold in Canada. After 34 brutally long days, to the amazement of our friends in the yard we were done our job list and ready to be splashed. It is said that a boat yard project never starts or finishes on time but long hours and perseverance we proved them wrong! We took 2 half days off to get supplies but otherwise we worked from dawn till 6:00pm and then trotted off the showers at the marina where we had a daily shower which disgustingly smelled like sulphur. We called it the spa treatment which made it a bit more bearable!
We managed to take some time in the evenings to get to know others in the yard. One night we had a cocktail party on Boatel one night, forgetting for a few hours that we were all on land. Once repainted we celebrated with dinner on the top skylounge deck with Maggie and Branko. We biked to Norris Restaurant for .99 cent beers on those days that it was too hot or we were just too tired to cook. We stopped early (3:00pm) on our 8th wedding anniversary and bike to the restaurant to sit on the patio at Harbourside Marina for a delicious seafood dinner.
Now with confidence in Jason having watched him park boats in the yard like an expert valet driver, I was able to watch as they picked up Boatel I off her jack stands and launch her. All of our friends in the yard were at the dock and cheering as we backed away from the basin and headed out of the channel. We had already smudged the fresh paint job on the hull with the straps from the travel lift but we were again afloat which is all that mattered. We left with Dennis our mechanic to do a sea trial with our newly rebuilt engine and headed to the neighbouring marina to drop him off and fuel up. Once at the marina we quickly discovered how tired we both were and that we needed time to relax after a long brutal month in the yard. We went to the swimming pool to relax before dinner and early bedtime. The next two days preparing, cleaning and cooking. We secured our new BBQ, reinstalled the radar and prepare the boat for an outside run up the coast.
Discovering Fort Pierce, Florida
Fort Pierce, Florida
At 11:00 am on March 29th we decided to leave Lake Worth and head North to Fort Pierce to await our haul out day. We had planned to head outside and do a run up the coast but as luck would have it the winds from the previous day had left large swells. We got out on the ocean, sized thing up and decided to turn around and head back inside. Mr. Weatherman is now official off my Christmas card list. Just as we were headed towards the first opening bridge they announced that the bridge was closed until further notice. Determined to continue we dropped the radar antennae and slipped under the bridge while the other sailboats and sportsfish waited. By 18:30 we approached Fort Pierce municipal marina which looked nothing like the pictures in the cruising guide. We later found out that the docks had been destroyed by not one but two hurricanes (Jean & Fiona) within weeks of each other that were both a direct hit in the area. We picked this marina because we liked the long approaching dock wall which was no longer there, but now we were committed to entering inside the harbour hoping there would be enough turning room for us. As we approached dock and tied up our shore lines on March 29th we realized that this would be our time at dock since December 8th. We hooked up to shore power and turned on the air conditioning and had a LONG hot shower. We liked it so much we stayed for 4 nights enjoying the luxuries of shore power and television access. We enjoyed dinner ashore at the local waterside Tiki Hut, borrowed the car from the staff at the marina office to do groceries and discovered the art walk featuring local artist that had crafted benches and statues throughout the down town area. We met up with Maggie and Branko from H2Obo (water-hobo) formerly of Port Credit, ON that we met in the fall cruising south in Southport, NC. They had spent the winter in the Abacos in the Bahamas and had crossed back to Florida to be hauled out and provision before heading to Bermuda, the Azores to Croatia and points beyond. We took part in the First Friday Festival in Port Pierce (happens the first Friday of every month) with bands, food, drinks and craft displays. We discovered Cobb General Store with their selection of 500 beers. The person working in the store was working his way through the selection and had become quite knowledgeable on his stock. After a quick assessment he hand picked a six pack for Ted of stouts and porters. This is definitely a place to come back to.
We're back in Florida
You’re probably wondering if we are in a jail cell in Nassau because I haven’t written in the blog since we got evicted from Nassau. I have discovered that if you do not keep up with the daily ramblings then it’s more difficult with each passing day to catch up. I will recap the last two months.
We waited for a weather window to leave Nassau and travel across the Great Bahamas Bank where we anchored overnight waiting for the weather window to cross the Gulf Stream back to Florida. On March 25th at 2:30 (yes am) we pulled up anchor and got underway to cross to Hens & Chicken shoal at daybreak. As we approached the gulf stream I promised that I would send the weather man a new yard stick for Christmas because obviously he does not know the difference between 2 to 3 feet and 4 to 6 feet and he needs a new wind direction indicator too. Needless to say it was not what we expected but at that point we didn’t have a choice but to put up with it. Luckily we were going into the waves which is not as bad as taking them broad side, although we had to keep adjusting our heading to get the best angle for the walls all day. It was the left over ocean swells that had not yet settle down as expected. We kept telling ourselves it would get better as we got closer to the Florida coast and pick up some protection from the land. We did eventually but it was a long day. We considered ourselves fortunate after hearing from the coast guard about a boat taking on water and sinking at Great Sail Cay in the northern Bahamas. At 14:11 we reach the 9 mile line of the Gulf Stream that was surprisingly marked by a line of debris in the water. We learned that NOAA (The weather Gods) take aerial satellite photographs and use thermal sensors to determine the exact position of the wall of the Gulf Stream, which is updated weekly. We arrived back in Florida and dropped the anchor at our favourite anchorage in Lake Worth at the same location we departed from on December 8th. We relaxed with a martini on the back deck and reflected on our 3 ½ months in the Bahamas.
We reward ourselves with Sunday brunch at our favourite Tiki Hut in Riveria Beach. As we arrived to clear custom we passed through security and they spotted something in my backpack of concern. It looked like a small gun on the scanner but it was the cigarette lighter plug for our GPS which we had brought along for the rental car. We got soaked going to customs so once we picked up the car we did a pit stop at Walmart to pick up rain jackets and flip flops. The rain and thunderstorm that threatened was now a reality for our day trip to visit the short list of boat yards in the area. We travel to Fort Pierce to visit the yards and decide on Riverside Marine after speaking to the owner and some cruisers we know in the yard. Local Knowledge from Nova Scotia and Flying Pig were both cruisers we had met in George. We would soon discover that this was a favourite yard for many cruisers leaving their boat in Florida for the summer season.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Evicted from Nassau
March 21, 2011
Cruise ship dockage in Nassau. We anchored to the right hand side of the picture.
The next morning I awake at seven just as Ted is coming in with my morning cup of coffee. As I am getting up to brush my teeth I exclaim “oh my God”. Out of our port hole window in our stateroom, I spot the largest cruise ship I have ever seen, in fact it IS the largest cruise ship in the world owned by Royal Caribbean AND it is docking right beside where we are anchored or about 200 yards away. The ship had 13 outdoor balcony guestroom levels. We go up to watch as the ship comes into tie up against the dock. They are too large to go into the usual docks so they are sitting on the outside dock.
For the next half hour they worked with their engines and their 3 bow thrusters to position the ship against the dock. Unfortunately the turbulence of their bow thrusters also affects us and swings us around. Our anchor was still holding but we are facing with our bow pointed directly towards the ship. We are on full alert to make sure our anchor is holding, we are nervous about the situation. A few minutes later a bright orange tender with blue flashing lights and “Port Authority Security” approaches us. As Ted is checking our GPS position and our anchor watch, I step outside to speak to the Port Authority. They ask, no correction, they order us to move. As we rush around to set up the navigation station and get the engine started, they circle around us. I didn’t stop to take pictures, so trust me on this one. When they discovered that we are not moving as fast as they would like they start shouting to us to “hurry up – leave now”. Our windless (used to lift the anchor) really has only one speed - slow. While all of this is going on, anyone who wasn’t awoken by the ship coming into dock is now up and watching us trying to lift anchor with our escort with the blue flashing lights. I rev the engine at a higher RPM to keep the boat in position against the current in order to lift the anchor. I prepared myself at the helm to be ready to spin the boat around away from the cruise ship as soon as our anchor brakes free from the sand. Timing was critical and by this time our escort was still beside us circling around but no long shouting at us. The moment comes when the anchor is free and I manage to steer the boat towards the east end of the harbour while Ted secures the anchor. Mission accomplished but now we have to figure out where we are going to go. The Port Authority had told us to move towards the bridge and away from the cruise ships.
We head east towards the bridge and check out the anchorage but decide against trying to anchor amongst the boats with the higher winds. Ted comes up to the helm to take over as I look over the charts. I find another anchorage that is on the other side of the cruise ship docks so we decide to try to go there because it will be more protected from the winds but it means go past where we just left. We turn around again in the channel and head over there. As we get alongside the mammoth cruise ship we spot another large cruiser ship coming in the harbour towards us. Once again we have to spin around but now we are dealing with more current along with the wash from the cruise ship beside us. The next thing the Port Authority start chasing us again and I just think “oh no here we go again”. I keep a close watch as Ted struggles to turn the boat around in the channel with the wind and current. Our buddies in the orange boat decide to leave us alone once they see that we are turning around. We finally get turned safely around and head back towards the east end of the harbour, wondering where we are going to anchor. Going into a marina with these winds is not an option. We cruise through the harbour and check out the anchorage on the other side of the bridge but boats are anchored everywhere there too. So we decide to head out of Nassau harbour and anchorage in an open area but decide it is too open and exposed to the winds and waves. Next we sound our way towards Athol (say that fast) Island but there is too much coral to be able to anchor. Having exhausted all other possibilities we head back to Rose Island. We know the waves will be choppy getting there but only for a short time. The concern is the visibility manoeuvring around the coral heads at the entrance but our saving grace is that we are doing this at high tide. We safely get in and anchor at our same spot. Ed & Marge dinghy over to find out why we are back. We tell them that we got kicked out of Nassau, except this time it is funny. We head to the beach in the afternoon and I have the biggest and loveliest conch shell we have ever found – our prize for a morning of anguish.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Lovin’ Rose Island
March 17th - We wanted to go to the Rainbow Inn for St. Patrick’s Day celebrations with the favourite leprechaun costume but that would set us back a few days. And plus I don’t really think there are a lot of true Irish Bahamians, but then on St. Patty’s Day everyone is Irish. We are anchored near the Glass Window and in the morning as we are leaving I regretted not taking the dinghy to get pictures from the west side of the island. The wind had settled and the seas were flat to our next destination, our very favourite anchorage near Nassau at Rose Island.
We had read about “Current Cut” which can project you through an opening between the two island at warp speed and is not recommended for slow trawlers like us so we decide to take the safe big boat route and dodge coral heads instead. By two pm we are anchored at Rose. I dive to check the anchor and we decide to lift and reposition because we didn’t like the set and there was lots of fluffy white sand 25 feet away. Second time was a charm and we have a good set. We go out to the reef in the afternoon in search of lobster. This will likely be our last chance to spear before heading into Nassau. The lobsters remain elusive but the reef is healthy and gorgeous. Back at the boat we shower to get the salt off us and start making dinner. We look out and see that Marsha and Chris from Endorphins have just anchored behind us. We hail them and they invite us over for freshly caught Mahi-Mahi Tacos. A pleasant evening of story telling and we head back to the boat at midnight way past the usual cruiser’s midnight (nine pm).
Nassau and Paradise Island (Atlantis Resort) at sunset from Rose Island
March 18, 2011 We have many fond memories (and one nightmare but that’s another story) of Rose Island from our first year in the Bahamas. This is the first anchorage in the Bahamas where we started meeting other cruisers in 2004. Rose is about 7 miles Northeast of Nassau and is a protected anchorage from North and Northeast winds which are the prevailing winds during the winter. We are also able to spearfish here but Nassau is a no spear zone also it is away from the crowds and noise of Nassau. We would rather be here at anchor rather than Nassau except for the internet access which is non-existent. Also there is a large resident Spotted Eagle Ray that likes to jump out of the water and make himself known. It is said they do this to scare off fisherman.
We had planned to go spearing with Chris on Endorphins at “first light” but first light turned out to be around 09:00 am. Chris laughed when we stopped by his boat to discover that we were just going out. They headed to Nassau for a few nights at a marina. We found nothing in our morning outing and head out after lunch for round two. This time we caught a Nassau Grouper (our first this year since the season has been closed for Nassau Grouper until Feb 28th) and a lobster. On the way back to the boat we stop at our neighbouring trawler to say hello. Within seconds we are invited in for a drink with Rita Kay and Clay aboard their 34 foot American Tug named Carleigh from Houston Texas. Giddy-up – more Texan friends! Over a beer we get a tour and get to know each other. I purchase some earrings which Rita Kay designs. We watch the sunset and the moon rise and are blessed once again with another amazing full moon and star-filled night.
March 19, 2011 The plans were to spear in the morning and go to Nassau in the afternoon. We went out spearing and caught spiny lobsters and one slipper lobster. Slipper lobsters are not that common and kind of look like prehistoric creatures but taste good. This was our first one we caught. We had to work hard to get these lobsters. The first lobster we spotted Ted missed his shot and the lobster went deeper into his hole. Unwilling to give up we both keep diving and looking through the holes in the coral to find him. We can see the tip of his antennae but that’s it and we can’t get a good shot. Ted finally sticks his spear on the backside of the hole enough to tickle the lobster into moving so that we can spear him from the entrance. It worked but took us about 15 minutes. The next lobster I spotted from the top of the water (which is unusual) in fact there were two lobsters in one hole, we call this a “lobster hotel”. Big lobsters are called “lobzillas”. I signalled to Ted, he took and look and planned his strategy trying to get both lobsters. He went down and got one and while I went to the boat to drop off the lobster in our pail, he chased the other one. You have to be careful to carry the lobster up and out of the water or else a barracuda may come along from out of nowhere and grab it off your spear. Barracudas are obvious not stupid, they know a free lunch when they see one. Unfortunately the second lobster backed away deeper into the hole never to be seen again by us. I must have loosen the stainless steel tip off of the end of my spear when I was fighting to get the creature off because the next thing I noticed I was missing my spear tip. The final slipper lobster I need saw, the next thing I noticed is Ted fighting to get the lobster out of the hole. All in all it was a successful outing.
Spiny and slipper lobsters
Back at the boat we invite Clay and Rita Kay over for lunch. They arrive around 12:15 and the next thing we end up spending the afternoon talking. By then it’s cocktail time so they go home to change and pick up drinks and come back for some fresh lobster (caught this morning) dip. So much for our plan to go to Nassau, oh well as they say, plans set in Jello. Tomorrow is another day.
Next blog ...."evicted from Nassau"
Leaving Rose Island - Nassau here we come
March 20, 2011
We had plan to go to Nassau today but our good friends on the Margaret Lee pulled into the anchorage last night and invited us to go spearing in this morning. This is our last chance to go spearing with them. Ted is off at 08:00 with Ed and their guest. I beg off because my body is tired and sore from the last few days spearing. Ed got one lobster but Ted passed up spearing a lobster that was too small. Sadly he returned with an empty pail, no catch today but he does find my missing spear tip. There are hundreds, even thousands of coral heads around this anchorage and the chances of Ted going back to exact the same one and finding my tip is amazing. Marge and Ed drop over afterwards with their guests and with a tray of Marge’s heavenly cinnamon sticky buns. We visit for awhile and when they leave we pull up anchor and cruise to Nassau.
We cruise into the eastern entrance of Nassau and through the harbour looking at the lovely homes along the waterway and the mega-yachts parked in-front of them. The traffic is always busy in Nassau but particularly busy on a weekend with local traffic and lots of cruise ship in port for March Break. We cruise past the western anchorage and take a look at how the cruising boats are sitting with the wind and the current. We turn and come into the anchorage but run into some shallow water and circle around again. On our third past we decide to forgo the usual anchorage and anchor across from the big ship terminal. We drop the hook and are happy that we have a good hold especially since the current changes every six hours. For six hours you are pointed one way and then at slack tide you are half way in between and then pointed the other way for another six hours. Having the anchor properly set is very important here. We don’t leave the boat in the afternoon but rather monitor to make sure we are holding with the current change. The winds are not strong enough to oppose the current so wind matter less than current. We watch as the boat moves and we are pleased with our positioning and the fact that our stern is positioned toward shore and we are well out of the way of main channel, for now! The afternoon local boat traffic with the booze cruises is non-stop but we know it will settle down after dark. Ted gets up a few times during the night to check the anchor watch on our navigation computer but everything is good , until.....
Next blog ...."evicted from Nassau"
It’s not easy to leave Governor’s Harbour
Wednesday March 16th
If you can recall when we arrived at Governor’s Harbour we had fouled up our anchor with a cable from the Batelco Tower. Well the time had come when we were ready to leave and we had to deal with this. We put a plan together that I would swim to where the anchor was and Ted would follow me in the dinghy. With fins and snorkel and some weights to get me down to the bottom (in 17 feet) I would take a rope from Ted and put it around the crown on the anchor. Then Ted would tie off the rope to the dinghy and motor around to drag the anchor free of the cable while I watched to make sure we didn’t damage the cable. The last thing we wanted was to disrupt all the telephone service on the inland. We had a plan! Just before I get in the water at 07:30 I see a rainbow (must be a good sign).
Rainbow part one
By the time I get to the anchor the rainbow is running from one side of the harbour to the other in a full spectrum of colour. I didn’t get the full rainbow picture because I was already in the water but trust me that this was the most beautiful rainbow I have ever seen. The rainbow must have been lucky because after a couple of attempts the anchor was free. I just had to go back down to undo the rope which wasn’t easy but all in a days work.
Back to the boat and pull up anchor and cruise further north to our final stop on Eleuthera at Mutton Fish Point. The wind had picked up from southeast and caused some chop and waves to build. Luckily we were able to tuck right up around Mutton Fish Point and the waves flatten out and it was calm. We had a good spot for the night with the winds coming off the island even though the anchor was not set as firmly as we liked, but we weren’t really worried about drag in these winds. The bottom looked hard and very little sand so settling the anchor was difficult. This is not a place we would want to be if the wind clocked around to the west.
We decided to go exploring to the ocean side on another “elusive beach”. The only beaches around to take the dinghy to were private so we went to a rocky shore and anchored the dinghy far away from the sharp coral rocks and waded into shore. We walked up through a rocky road that looked like it had been sandblasted and recently been graded with course aggregate and may someday be an actual road. After a 1/4 we found the Queens Highway and walked a bit longer till we found the road between the two salt ponds. From there we hiked for about a mile and a half to the cliffs and found our elusive beach which was called Lovers Beach probably because it is so secluded. We found a few seabeans , some sea glass and a few shells and then headed back on our long trek back to the boat. On the way we spotted the Pineapple Fields for which this area is known for. How do pineapples grow, you ask?
Pineapple Fields
Pineapple growing
Often on side roads we find old cars and buses that have been long ago abandoned.
Abandoned Car
Now take all look at this one. Look closer and you see what else is growing near the car and the pineapple fields. Yes cabbage! Who would think that the cabbage would grow here. And why would anyone plant cabbage here? Another mystery like why do roosters crow all day.
Cabbage growing
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Governors Harbour awaits
March 13th
After 5 days in Rock Sound we are ready to continue our cruise north to other destinations on Eleuthera. We had a lovely cruise north to the Pineapple Cays near the towns of South Palmetto and North Palmetto with the namesake trees near the beach. We liked this little town as we drove through by car, so we decided to spend more time here however it was not to be. The only three sailboats there were leaving as we arrived and maybe we should have taken that as an omen. We spent the next hour trying to set the anchor but with no luck. There was not much sand under the grass and hard bottom. We decided to push on to our next destination a few miles north which also had the reputation for bad holding. We arrive in Governor’s Harbour and drop the hook. Ted spotted a cable or rope in the water but thought we were okay. I dive in and swim to check the anchor and sure enough the only thing that is holding our anchor is a cable about an inch in diameter that looks to be in line with the Batelco Tower. I hadn’t mentioned this before but all of the islands are connected with cables that lie on top of the sand as opposed to buried cables so sure enough we found one. We decided that since the winds were light in the lee protection of the island we were better off to leave the anchor as is since it was actually holding and deal with untangling it when we are ready to leave.
It’s Sunday so everything was closed but we do a walk about town anyways. This is a very prosperous town in comparison to the ones we have visited earlier. The influence of money is felt here. There are lots of old stately homes with beautiful gardens. Even the town is cleaned with less garbage on the streets and many more colourful bushes.
Colourful trees
We walk the mile to the Atlantic side and find the former Club Med Beach far easier than we did by car. What could be salvaged from the resort after Hurricane Floyd is now called French Leave which is now a gated resort. The beach is often used so there is not much in the way of shells and sea beans. We meet some people on the beach from Alliston, Ontario who have a winter home nearby. Back at the boat there are only three other boats in the anchorage with us, a far cry from the hundreds in George Town.
Monday March 14th
We tour the shops in town, purchase fuel, beer and more rum. Our kids are probably reading this and smiling. We find the post office (in the pink building) and also the internet access to update the blog.
Diane updating the blog in from of (you guessed it) the government office.
On the outer edge of Governor’s Harbour is a plot of land known as Cupid’s Cay. The first inhabitants could only walk across the cay at lower water carrying whatever supplies they could handle. Over time a wooden bridge was build that was later destroyed in the hurricane of 1929. When the current causeway was built people moved to Cupid’s Cay now home for 100 people. Most of the pastel coloured homes are old and close together and the road is very narrow.
Cupid Cay homes are yellow and pink
We were told by Neilson, a local resident that homes are cheap in Cupid’s Cay compared to the prices of Governor’s Harbour where the colourful homes are spread out on the hillside overlooking the harbour.
Governor’s Harbour is also home to the Globe Princess Theatre, the only theatre outside Nassau which was playing Narnia.
Relaxing view of the harbour
We walked around the old graveyards in town and read the headstones dating back to the 1800’s. We went to the Buccaneer Club, a rather civilized and touristy restaurant for Klick’s and conch fritters. I was disappointed (and annoyed) that they include 15% gratuity with the bill since our waitress could not crack a smile. We would have been much better off to go to the hole in the wall bar called Ronnie’s Hi-D-Way on Cupid’s Cay. The good conch fritters and the murals on the wall (almost) made up for the bad service.
I could write a whole page on this. When do they roosters crow in the Bahamas? The answer: they crow morning, noon and night. Ask any cruiser why the rooster’s crow all day long and they just laugh. And it’s not just here in Governor’s Harbour it is everywhere we go. At New Bight on Cat Island they crowed all night long. And there everywhere, they wander around the streets like stray dogs. We finally asked Nelson who lives on Cupid’s why they crow loudly all day long, and he just gave me an odd look. I explained that it was only in the Bahamas that they do this, that in Canada and the US roosters crow at daybreak. He said “yes they crow at 4:00 am” but I asked why they don’t EVER stop crowing and he just laughed. We’ll never know the answer and you never get use to hearing them crow mid day or a midnight.
Rooster wondering around
Tuesday March 15th I have already posted the pictures from our diving north and south of Governor Harbour a few days ago.
Eleuthera – it’s not for everyone
We drove through some small towns such as Cupid’s Cay, Alice Town and Hatchet Bay on our day tour of the island. We stopped at Gregory Town, home of the Pineapple capital of Eleuthera in search of fresh pineapple. At it turns out pineapple season is in June but we managed to find a “bakery” with some pineapple tarts and a couple of “Inland native craft shops”, one which we spent a fair amount of time and money. Back in the car we go off-road and follow an ocean side trail (which is single lane, packed sand road) in search of the former Club Med restaurant and what is dubbed as the most beautiful pink sand beach in Eleuthera. Believe it or not we followed the directions of a tourist. Talk about the blind leading the blind. We figured that he was probably laughing his head off knowing we were going on a wild goose chase. We finally abandon the sand and rocky road at a T-intersection and head for a civilized road to try and preserve George’s car. On second though we should have rented an SUV. It was now 16:00 and we had not had lunch yet so we take another road and find the former Club Med (destroyed by Hurricane Floyd) now called French Leave. We follow the road further south and come upon The Beach House Restaurant and Tapas Bar simply known as The Beach House. The setting is amazing and the sand truly is pink and like powder. If you come to the Boatel this summer, just ask me to see this special pink sand, I have a sample to prove it. We enjoyed dinner at this very relaxed and superb restaurant. This was our first real non-Bahamian restaurant that we experienced during the winter, meaning no peas and rice, no Bahamian mac and cheese, no coleslaw.
The Beach House
Dinner with Marsha & Chris
The end of a perfect day. Notice the birds flying on the left above the dock.
We headed back on the road to the boat and so ends our special day on the road in Eleuthera.
I bought a t-shirt in Gregory Town that stated “Eleuthera – it’s not for everyone”. I thought to myself what an odd marketing message. You would expect to hear “Eleuthera – something for everyone”. We discussed it with our waitress at the restaurant. It is said that Eleuthera is for those that do not need to be entertained but rather for people who find pleasure in the simpler things. It’s for people who do not need the casinos, fast food outlets or the malls, but rather those that see the joy in the beautiful of natural things such as pink sand beaches and perfect sunsets. Eleuthera is for people who walk to the beat of a different drum. I would say that Eleuthera is for us.
The Glass Window and other majestic rock formations
The Glass Window deserves a section of the blog all on its own. I will attempt to describe the “The Glass Window” although words and even pictures can not quite describe the power and grandeur of this unique location. It is now a majestic rock formation where the calm Bight of Eleuthera with its shades of emerald and turquoise water almost meets the roaring cobalt blue of Atlantic Ocean. You can look through from the safety of your dinghy from the Bight side into the Glass Window to the powerful and dangerous waters on the other side. The site was originally called the Narrow Passage and in 1872 an enormous wave rose without warning and washed over the arch and island. In 1926 it was a natural rock bridge 85 feet above sea level but it was washed away by a hurricane and replaced by a bridge in 1960. The Queens Highway today crosses the span with a concrete and steel bridge however a rage on Halloween Day in 1991 spawned a rogue wave that picked up the bridge and moved the northern end of it seven feet westward. Looking down at it your mind reels with the force of the Atlantic Ocean to move such a structure.
We regret not going by dinghy a few days later to get pictures from the dinghy on the Bight side. Our pictures here are from the cliffs and from the bridge. Chris being the “no-fear explorer” is out on the edge of the cliffs to get pictures.
Chris on the edge of the cliff taking pictures
Water moving under the bridge from the Atlantic to the Bight
Waters on the Atlantic Side and the calm on the other side.
When we finally were able to pull ourselves away from The Glass Window we headed south looking for the next stop in our guide book “The elusive beaches of Eleuthera”. We were looking for a place called the Queen’s Bath but passed a blow-hole on the side of the road. We stopped to take pictures and Ted dubbed it “the Queen’s Bidet”
Not only are the beaches (as well as other points of interest) elusive, the directions to find the places are elusive too. We pull off the road in search of the Queen’s Bath and miraculous find them. We found another amazing water/rock formation which the average tourist would doubtfully ever see.
The arrow in the rock formation
Water sweeping over the rocks
This is “like” the waves that sprayed Ted as he stood at the edge of the cliff to take a picture. I got the after picture of his drenched by the waves.
The bath with Marsha and I standing on the cliff above. Look at how small we look.
Best of all no fences, no admission fee and no crowds.
Best of all no fences, no admission fee and no crowds.
Road Trip of Eleuthera Island
It is said that cruisers live day-by-day and that plans are firmly set in jello. Since stepping off the corporate treadmill 6 ½ years ago we live our lives based on this mantra and change our minds with the weather. We were ready to lift anchor and leave the harbour when we saw “Endorphins” coming back in the harbour. We hailed Marsha and Chris on the VHF to make sure everything was okay. They mentioned that they were just repositioning closer to the dock and had rented a car to tour the island and invited us to join them. Thirty seconds later our plans had changed and off we go on a road trip. We meet Chris and Marsha at the dock at nine to pick up our car from George. We are assuming that this was George’s car but he didn’t know how to open the trunk, no key and no pull handle. Guess he never used the trunk but since it was a hatch back we just stuck our belongings in through the back seat. We dropped George off at the airport and off we went in search of adventure. George did not request a driver’s license, insurance or even a deposit. We didn’t even fill out any forms but rather he got out and said see you tomorrow at 09:00.
Let me explain that Chris is best described as a master adventurer and so along with Ted as the co-pilot they couldn’t resist to follow a side road to see what was there. Chris stopped at a gas station to asked for a map of the island but they laughed and said they were fresh out and told us to “just follow the Queen’s Highway”. With cruising guides and a precious book called “elusive beaches of Eleuthera” we head north. We stop at the airport and pick up a map that is just a layout of the island with the names of the towns.
We pull off the road at some impressive gates and follow the road around to a new sub development which looks more like it belongs in Florida than on Eleuthera. We parked and walked to the restaurant at the Sky Beach Club to admire the property.
Sky Beach Club
We waked along the strip of beach and found a few shells and Chris announces his quest for fresh coconut. Finding a coconut tree was easy but getting the coconut down was the hard part. Ted & Chris try to climb the tree by having Ted stand on Chris’s back but quickly give up on that idea. They did manage to knock the coconut down with a piece of wood found nearby but not without alot of effort banging against the coconut. With 3 fresh coconuts in hand we head back to the car.
First attempt climbing the coconut tree. Notice Ted's foot is on Chris's back and they are both hold dead palm leaves. They quickly decided against the approach when the leaves came off too easily.
Second attempt using a piece of driftwood to knock the coconut down
Success a fresh coconut
Back on the road going north we enjoy the sites along the way. At this point pictures are worth a thousand words.
Pink and green house in Governors Harbour. Why not!
Building a magic carpet. The small print actually says Magic Carpet. He is just putting the roof on.
We found the Fashion District
One Stop Shopping - what more do you need? As you can tell by now I love signs.
To the Bat Cave Robin
March 11, 2011
We had rain in the morning for about an hour and a half which did a good job rinsing the salt off the boat. After the rain we headed to town to pick up some fuel and straw baskets as gifts. I go back to the post office to mail another post card. As I mentioned before the post office is always in the government office which is always pink so it is easy to find the post office.
Pink government office and post office
After lunch we walked south of town to the second church and find the entrance to another pond and the path leading to the cave. Someone had installed a new ladder to get down into the entrance of the caves. I also have to explain that these caves are actually very impressive underground rooms. We wonder in amazement from one room to another.
Ladder down to the cave
Look at how small I am in relation to the ceiling height
We were told by the other cruisers at Rose’s that the trip to the cave is worthwhile and that there are no bats but I still keep a watchful eye and I am pleased to report no bats!
Inside the cave. I am in the middle of the picture. Those are Banyan vines growing (up or down) from the huge Banyan tree over head.
On the way back to the boat we notice a few new homes with waterfront view that are rental cottages. They look out of place beside the older stone houses with missing roofs. It seems odd to us that there are so many stone building that are abandoned that seem to have solid foundation walls and yet people build new homes from the ground up. Maybe it is unlucky to restore a house that has been damaged by a hurricane?
We didn't see a lot of new building expect for a very few new rental proporties such as the one below. There were pineapples on the gates and on the fence across the street too. The house next door however was a an abandoned hurricane house with the windows gone and the roof in sad repair but at least it had a roof.
New rental property with shutters closed
The house next door
Lots of abandoned stone buildings
We passed Grandma’s Goodies a few times but it was never open
A map of the Island on the wall at the plaza. We are the very south part on the Island above what looks like the whale's tail on the left hand side.
The view from the beach at Rock Sound with the Boatel at anchor. Notice no other boats around us!
Swimming with the fishes at Rock Sound!
March 10, 2011
We decided to head out early to spear outside in “the Bight” and wait till later to run the generator. We spent the morning moving from one small patch of reef to the next. We had a successful outing with 3 small lobster, 13 Lionfish and 3 large conchs in our buckets before returning to the boat at 11:30. The Lionfish are plentiful and we do our best to help irradiate this invasive fish. We also get some good underwater pictures on the shallow reef.
Yellow Stingray
Scrawled Cowfish - look closely and you can see his horns
Queen Angelfishes
By the look on the captains face you can tell that cleaning the conch is the least favourite part. The conch (animal) is in his right hand and turned out to be great conch fritters.
After lunch we head back to the school to drop off the rest of the school supplies and pick up our cart. Natasha arranges for her husband to drop us off at the Shopping Plaza just north of town on his way home to drop off the children. He is a real estate developer and built the plaza. He tells us to let the cashier know when we are done and she will arrange to have someone drive us back to the dock. This is the most impressive grocery store we have seen since leaving Florida. We stopped at the liquor store to pick up a case of rum which was $60 for a case of 12 one litre bottles! We got 10% off for a case but he only had eight bottles in stock so we filled the case with another brand. He said he would get more next week. There was no stock in the back, what they had on the shelf was what was available. Sure enough we got a drive back to the dock with someone who was headed to the airport, even though I did point out that the airport was in the opposite directions to which she responded “no problem, my pleasure”.
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