SailMakai

We had a wonderful two day crossing from the Bahamas to Saint Augustine, Florida.  Most of the day was spent sailing west into the Gulf Stream with a stiff breeze moving Makai along at 7-8 kts.  As the sun went down we entered the Gulf Stream and headed north making 10 -11 kts with the help of the Gulf Stream’s swiftly moving river of warm water.  The next day the wind decreased and it was apparent that we wouldn’t make it into port by night fall, so for most of the night with the sails down, we along at 1 knot waiting for the sun to come up to safely enter the harbor.

Eric called U.S. Immigration to check in.  They took our passport numbers and directed us to the office where we could have our faces matched to the passports.  The rental car company couldn’t come pick us up until late afternoon, so we did a little sight seeing. I visited Saint Augustine when I was 11 years old on a family vacation and then again a few years ago when the kids and I visited my mother while she was escaping a Buffalo winter.  This is a beautiful place to visit.

Saint Augustine was claimed for Spain in 1513 by Ponce de Leon, the settlement was later established in 1565 and is the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in North America.  Entering the harbor you are greeted by Castillo de San Marcos, the oldest masonry fort in the continental U.S., built in 1672. This fort was later occupied by the British, Spain again, Confederates, Union, and finally became part of the United States when Florida became a state in 1845. Castillo de San Marcos is made of a stone called coquina, meaning little shells in Spanish.  Ancient shells fused together, similar to limestone, and was able to withstand the shock of cannon balls without cracking and crumbling like harder other stone might.

The view from the top of the fort looks over the mooring field where Makai is waiting for us, as well as the Bridge of Lions.

The Bridge of Lions was finished in 1927 connecting the mainland with Anastasia Island. A pair of Medici Lions guard the entrance.  This bascule bridge opens regularly to allow sailboats to pass into the south end of the river.

We showed great restraint walking along St. George Street.  This walking street is several blocks long, lined with shops full of brightly colored trinkets and restaurants with live music and delicious smells.  The kids spotted dream catchers and thought of our friends on the Leopard Catamaran DreamCatcher. Hi Jeanette, Ken, and Beth

Once we got the rental car all kinds of adventures were open to us.  Like lunch at Panda Express.

This light house on Anastasia Island in Saint Augustine was built in 1874 and is still used as an aid to navigation for mariners.  We watched its light during the night before our arrival.  There are many lighthouses along the eastern shore, each with unique tower and light patterns.  Saint Augustine’s sister light house is Cape Hatteras, check out our  Outter Banks post to see if you see the difference. It might be hard to see from this angle, but they both have black and white stripes, only Saint Augustine is red at the top and Cape Hatteras is black.

Mears must be a popular family name here on the east coast.  In Florida there is a Mears transportation company with buses and taxis, Mears Marina in the upper Chesapeake Bay, and Hank Mears was a Saint Augustine Lighthouse keeper.

The water outside of Saint Augustine is very shallow with breaking waves for at least one mile from land.  The channel markers aren’t even posted on the charts because the sand shifts so often that the markers are moved regularly.

We climbed the 219 steps for a spectacular view.  From the lighthouse we could easily see the Bridge of Lions, Castillo de San Marcos and Makai in the harbor waiting for us.

The Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park was an interesting mix of history, science and wild life.

While there are tales about searching for the Fountain of Youth for thousands of years across many cultures, I didn’t see any real evidence that this is what brought Ponce de Leon to Florida’s shores.

I’m sure the spring they found here was an asset for their new claim.  The Timucua people had already been living in the northern part of Florida for nearly 200 years before the Spanish claimed ‘all they can see’ and beyond.

Spanish Moss is plentiful in the south eastern states.  It grows in long drapes over live oak and cypress trees.  The kids like to wear it like an old man’s beard.

The park is also home to a muster of Indian Peafowl.  The white ones are simply the product of recessive genes. This guy spent quite a bit of time with his feathers fanned out and even vibrated them a bit to attract the attention of a peahen.

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All of these military exhibits like to demonstrate the use of gunpowder. We learned a bit about cannons and plugged our ears for the demonstration.

The kids put themselves back in time to do a little exploring in a dug out canoe.

My boy Roy turned 13 today, May 14th. We discussed what he might like to do.  Since we had our fill of beaches, snorkeling and fishing, Roy decided to do something a little crazy for his birthday.  He started with the new Captain America movie and then a little miniature golf.

The day finished up with Chinese food in the captain’s lounge watching River Monsters and finally lemon cupcakes on Makai.  We now have a teenager on board.

The original plan was to stay for two or three days and then continue north, but a weather system came through bringing wind out of the north and thunder storms so we decided to live the good life.  We had showers, laundry, tv, a rental car, access to stores and west marine, and a beautiful waterfront to walk along.  Now lets get a few projects out of the way.

Our VHF antenna was worthless. We could only hear people in the same bay as us if they were using their radio on high power.  In fact our hand held radio received transmissions better than Makai’s big radio.  Before leaving the Bahamas, Eric ordered a new antenna and cable to go with it.  After half a day at the top of the mast the little 18 inch antenna was replaced with an eight foot whip.

He finished the installation just in time to avoid the cold front.  This season we’ve been able to see the fronts pass by.  They look like a huge band of black clouds that passes over head.  On the other side of it the air is much colder and brings wind and rain.

Last year we noticed our propane tanks were getting old.  They’re in great shape but the inspection date expired and U.S. fill stations don’t want to fill them without a visual inspection.  Having the car is great because a 5 mile ride down the road is a breeze.

The rental car came in handy once again, Eric spent a day helping a neighbor find new batteries for their boat. After a few trips to West Marine and an excursion to Jacksonville, they were in business.  Meanwhile I lifted the Hobie, removed the trampolines, and restitched along every seam.  Over time the thread rots and the stitches disintegrate, one of the tramps was held together by little more than the grommets around the edge. Unfortunately, I was half way through the three seams on the second tramp when my needle hit a grommet, threw the arm off to the left and snapped a metal piece in the machine.  I can order a new piece, but it means I never finished the job.  Eric bought new line to tie them down with and it took the rest of the day to tighten them down.

This week is an art and music festival at the waterfront. These young guys did a great job with old time surf music, no vocals, just jam’n guitars.

The marina is also home to two Spanish Galleons, El Galeon & Nao Victoria. There are also a pirate cruise and a harbor sailing cruise that sail by a few times each day.

Within walking distance is the Lightner museum displaying exhibits from the Gilded age.  The museum started out as the Hotel Alcazar in 1887, built by railroad magnate Henry Flagler.

Walking through the rooms it was fun to imagine the beautiful clothes and parties this hotel hosted.

Back to 2014, how about a trip to Costco.  Oh yeah! we loaded up on grapes, cashews, and juice.  Somehow a few hundred dollars later we escaped with only one cart load.

Our week is almost over, better get that last minute haircut.  We got tips on how to apply the fancy colors into that pretty blonde sister hair and trimmed several inches of dry abused hair off the ends.

Now we’re making our way to Cape Hatteras.  Check out http://passageweather.com/ and the maps for the western north Atlantic, Florida to Cape Hatteras.  Over the next week we’ll try to stay in the Gulf Stream, keep the wind to our back, and keep warm.  The guys were complaining that it was getting cold so they had to put on a shirt.  Wait until they’re north of Cape Hatteras, then they’ll be wearing a jacket and hat too.

Last week was a quick trip through the Abacos.  This island group is the northern most in the Bahamas and looks very different from the Exumas where we spent most of the winter.  The islands are more forested with tall pines as well as low brush and instead of a sandy bottom that gives the water a swimming pool appearance, the bottom is covered with grass which makes it look dark.  Luckily, the water is still clear and warm.

We buddy boated with Dream Catcher.  The girls had fun playing, we shared a few great dinners, sunsets, and beach time.  These islands are lined with beautiful houses, boat docks, and occasional towns.  We had a bit of fun on the Hobie sailing between anchorages with the three boat fleet of Hobie, Makai and Dream Catcher.

Hope Town has a protected harbor filled with moorings and lined with restaurants and docks. The red and white striped lighthouse was built in 1862 and was one of the last operational kerosene lighthouses in the world. We went into town and strolled along looking for lunch.  The crew had cheeseburgers and I had jerk chicken and conch fritters.

The beach houses and little hotels were beautiful but we’re still happy to be on Makai.

Eric quietly turned 50 with cupcakes and friends over for sundowners and a movie.  May 4th was Star Wars day, so we watched the original from our youth.  Ok, say it slowly: may the force be with you / May the 4th be with you.  Get it?

A little Northern wind was expected so we moved over by Marsh Harbor.  The first night we anchored on the south side of the island for protection and the no-see-ums got me.  Little did I know that their bites would produce 2am hives.  The next day we went around into the harbor on the other side of the island and got hives at 1am.  One of them nailed me on my upper lip and it swelled up like Daffy Duck, oh boy.  The upside to Marsh Harbor is a fantastic grocery store and other such provisions.

By now we were getting sick of towns and wanted to get a little snorkeling in.  Fowl Cay on the other side of the channel had some over the top great reefs.

We could see ‘forever’, the water was warm, the reefs were huge and full of fish.

Topaz always snorkels with us.  She could see the fish in the water and spent her time scrambling around after them.

One of the reefs was shaped like a mushroom surrounded by white sand.

The coral was all very healthy like this beautiful stag horn coral.

This area is also a preserve so the fish are gigantic.

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The reefs were only a 100 feet away from each other but their structures were very different.  One was a long bar, another a mushroom, others had tunnels.

Some had those big stag horn corals and others had schools of fish.

Next was Guana Cay. Disney’s cruise ship used to anchor here, they called it Treasure Cay, to treat their passengers to private beach parties. Instead Makai and Dream Catcher rafted up so the girls could visit each other at their leisure.

This is where we said goodbye to Dream Catcher.  They are on their way to Maryland to start their summer projects and adventures.  We’ll meet up with them in a few weeks. Makai continued on, two more stops before leaving the Bahamas.  While we’re underway I usually cook.  Today I made corn muffins, a loaf of bread and bagels.

Allans Cay was an interesting stop.  This must be a boater’s favorite stop with trees dangling all sorts of junk and strange collections of trash put together to look like a club house.

After a few attempts to find the path, Eric finally made his way through the jungle to the other side of the island.  He was in search of the ruins of a 1960′s missile tracking station.  We met a Bahamian boater who said he remembered coming here as a kid and it was a busy place.

Roy loved it because it was a fisherboy’s paradise.

One throw of the cast net filled his bait bucket with cigar minnows.  Apparently everything in the bay eats these poor little guys. He caught snapper, one after another.  A shark came and took his bait and about 50 feet of line before we cut it.

Marie came to try her luck.  She finally got brave enough to put the bait on the hook, but still needed help taking the fish off.

Besides snapper of all sizes, Roy also caught a Bonefish which is a sportsman’s dream.  Sorry, no picture, it got off the hook right at Roy’s feet.

Roy also caught a puffer fish that puffed itself up while he was getting the hook out, and a few houndfish.

We could have spent the day there seeing what Roy would catch next, but the biting flies were getting bold and we had a long sail ahead of us.  This evening we’re at Double Breasted Cay.  This is our last night in the Bahamas, tomorrow, Saturday, evening we’ll set out for St. Augustine, Fl. The conditions look to be comfortable and we should arrive on Monday morning to rent a car and check back into the U.S. with immigration. Follow us under the ‘Where’s Makai’ link.

Tuesday Saundy and Effie left for the airport bright and early in the morning.  I scrubbed Makai, inside and out, we all went to the grocery store in the car for last minute produce and dairy and then headed off to the north end of Eluthera.

This was a pretty good half way stop before heading up to the Abaco Islands. The wind was from the right direction and the right speed to make for a quick and pleasant trip.  We met Dream Catcher there with plans for and early morning departure to the east side of Abaco Island.

Bull Mahi Mahi (Carlos) – New Providence Channel 52 in., 23 lbs.

Roy was going to fish but complained that we were going to fast. His request to slow down was met with much resistance. Who ever heard of a sailboat trying to slow down?!  After a few strikes on his line and quickly losing the fish because the line snapped or the bait was stripped from the hooks because we were flying at 9+ knots, we agreed to slow down.  The main had to be reefed and the jib rolled in.  But we were still doing over 7 knots. Then came the reel, zzzzzzzzzing!  FISH ON! We rolled in the rest of the jib and eventually dropped the main sail. This fish kept taking line and Roy was afraid he would run out of line on the reel.  For about two hours we bobbed broadside to the wind and swells while the fish took line and while he rested Roy pulled it in.

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Over and over this went on.  Because of previous encounters with rambunctious Mahi Mahi, we practiced our patience. Carlos took the line, Roy brought it back in, Carlos took the line, Roy brought it back in.  Finally Carlos looked like he was just floating along beside Makai and we decided to make our move.  The problem was we couldn’t decide of we should gaff him and then sit on him with a blanket or maybe it was possible to drag him up on the step and sit on him.  After going back and forth on this decision I gaffed, Eric sat and Carlos was too pooped out to fight.  He welcomed the vodka in his gills and prepared himself for dinner. Roy was pleased to catch his first Bull Mahi Mahi, notice how square the top of his head is.

We watched all the boats that left after us and those behind us pass by, but Roy on Makai brought home the prize.  With all the fish in the freezer we happily shared most of this guy with our friends and enjoyed fresh mahi-kabobs for dinner.

Yahoo, visitors.   Eric started working with Greg and Saundy sometime around 1993.  When Eric directed me to the hidden ring as his proposal for marriage, Saundy shook her finger at him and made him get on his knee.  Saundy and Greg are Roy’s Godparents, Greg was Roy’s Scoutmaster, for several years in a row we joined the Hill family on Thanksgiving road trip adventures, and we were very happy that they could share our adventure with us.

They all arrived late on Easter Sunday, we wrapped things up at the marina and then spent most of the day on Monday traveling to Hawksbill Cay. We took them to our favorite places on this cay.

The windward side of the island has sparkling clear water, sand crabs, and room for Topaz to run.

We took them for a second opinion on the ‘Space Trash’ Eric found a few months ago.

Non-space quality screws were found but we quickly overlooked them so we could continue calling it space trash.

A quick trip to the Russell Ruins where British Loyalists settled after leaving the newly formed United States was also in order.

There isn’t much left of the place except for a few walls and paths.

The walls are very low, sandstone and conchs plastered together.

The jungle has taken over but we can’t help but wonder how these people survived.  We saw a few holes that could have been used as cisterns for water since springs and wells are unheard of in the islands.  Also, the coral sand doesn’t support crops.  I suppose if you can survive on coconuts, conchs, and curly tail lizards you could survive.

Saundy and I tried out the selfie pose my kids are so proficient at.

We motored most of the way to Hawksbill Cay before the wind picked up.  Then the rest of the day proved to be windy, choppy and uncomfortable.  But with so few days to explore the areas we spent weeks at, we all got in the dinghy and went exploring.  Next stop was the sand bar on the north end of the island.  The ride up there was really wet.  The waves poured into the dinghy like a waterfall.  For the first time ever we got to the point where everything was floating and something had to be ‘done’ about the situation.

The water was shallow so everyone got out and walked while Eric zipped along with the drain plug open.  After just a few minutes of planing, the dinghy was drained and we could continue on.

It was late in afternoon but the sandbar was spectacular as usual.

The day was ending and everyone was happy that our travels will be shorter for the next week.

It may be a little late, but I don’t think Jesus would mind of we hunted for Eggs a few days after Easter.

I (I mean the Easter Bunny) managed to hide over 50 filled eggs on the outside of Makai.  There were eggs hidden in the sails, anchor locker, under lines, and under Hobie paddles.

They found eggs in the dinghy, sunshades, and cushions.  Great fun was had by all and the Easter Bunny was very happy to be able to stump all those big kids.

Since they brought their snorkeling gear we better get to seeing the underwater sites.

I just can’t get enough of the corals and fish, colors and textures.

Schools of fish are especially interesting to watch.  They peck at the coral for snacks, scoot into caves and holes, and move this way and that in response to our disturbances.

Even though I know the lion fish has his face on a WANTED poster for devouring more than his share of the reef, he’s still beautiful to watch.  He just floats around with his poisonous spines displayed for everyone to see.

Coral heads are an oasis in the expanse of sand and grass.

Sometimes the smallest sea star can have the most brilliant colors.

These big days of activity always make us look forward to evening.  They’re sitting around snacking on ‘land’ meat while Roy dreams of leaving the Land and Sea park so he can troll for the prized Mahi Mahi just like the pillow Marie is holding.

I guess if they can’t go fishing they can at least blow their conchs for sunset.

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Our next adventure was up the river in Shroud Cay. Half of us sailed/paddled the Hobie up the river and the other half took the dinghy.

Marie and Effie started out on the Hobie but couldn’t keep up with paddling the surf boards and ended up being rescued by the dinghy which towed them the rest of the way. On the way back Greg and Spencer took the surfboards paddling and riding the current back.  They made it at least half way before the rest of us caught up.

Little girls on big surfboards can be towed standing up.

Isn’t this just the most beautiful river EVER!

At the other end is a shallow sand bar facing the Atlantic Ocean.  We spent hours soaking, playing and the kids tried to surf five inch waves in ten inches of water.

The next stop is Norman’s Cay.  At the beginning of the season this was the first place we spent a week of relaxing and capturing the mood of cruising.  From Shroud the trip is only about 3 miles, but to celebrate exiting the north end of the Land and Sea Park, we decided to take a tack out to sea. This is the exact location where Roy caught a Mahi Mahi last week. After about an hour of trolling everyone wanted to just get into the anchorage and go to the beach.  I told Eric to give me 5 minutes to wrap things up in the galley and then I could help turn the boat around and head in.  At that very moment, zzzzzzzzzing went the reel, FISH ON, yelled Roy and everyone assumed their battle stations.

The Mahi Mahi we brought aboard two weeks ago came aboard after only about 15 minutes.  He was fresh and strong, beat us up bad, and finally made his was to freedom.  Then there was last week’s Mahi that got dragged, towed, and tired out for nearly an hour.  Between his weakened state and the vodka, we managed to keep him for dinner.

Roy names the fish because a local fisherman here said that when he loses a fish it makes him cry like he just lost his girlfriend.  This is Carlotta and Roy didn’t have to cry over her.  She weighed in at 26 lbs and 53 in. from nose to tail and netted two huge baggies of meat.  Luckily we have 3 extra fish eaters aboard and Saundy has fabulous cooking ideas including sushimi.

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Notice how her face is slightly rounded, this is a female.  The male has a very square head and we learned that when they swim along the surface, the head shape makes water spout up which looks like a dolphin.  In Florida the Mahi Mahi is often called a dolphin fish and in Mexico it’s referred to as a dorado.

Whew, I’m always glad when the fight is over.  While I’m waiting with the gaff, my heart races and I can even see my pulse pumping in the crook of my arm. With all that behind us, we went snorkeling on the plane wreck in the middle of the bay.

I’ve found it rather difficult to find information with hard facts on the many treasures we find in the islands.  Google usually results in blog posts from other boaters.  Norman’s Cay has a great book called “Turning The Tide” about a guy who wanted to open a dive shop on Norman’s Cay but spent his time trying to survive Carlos Lehdr’s drug trafficking.

The nosy Sgt. Major fish came to greet us.

They photo bombed many of my pictures and bumped into our legs, maybe they’re used to being fed.

The plane was full of sea life and the water clear as usual.

We’ve seen more airplane parts under water than sunken ships.  Near Musha Cay we even saw a golf cart.  Note to self: don’t fly or drive a golf cart in the Bahamas.

Our last night in the Exumas was near Long Cay.  Makai nudged up close to a private beach but there was beautiful snorkeling behind us.

There was this amazing row of piled up, small, yearling conch running along the length of the anchorage. I’m not having much luck finding out what this behavior is called.  A few months ago someone mentioned that there was a Conch Walk going on in our anchorage, but we never made it over to see what that was all about.  That’s our best guess to what they might call this meeting of the sea snails.

Roy also found a large juicy conch that he planned to eat for dinner.  But after a few days and the overwhelming task of figuring out how to tenderize the meat so it tastes as good as the restaurants, we decided to let it go.

On the way back to Palm Cay Marina we stopped for a quick look at the Iguanas on Allen’s Cay.

With all the tourists that come to visit, these guys have become habituated and see people on the beach as the possibility of an easy salad.

Civilization. We pitched our trash, let Topaz potty on land and then made off to the pool. Look how civilized we are with hors d’oeurves, and sundowners at the pool among the vacant unfinished housing development that promises fulfilling many people’s dreams in the future.

The Hills brought us a trick kite. This is Roy’s favorite new toy, but everyone enjoys taking a turn controlling it.

We have this beautiful place to ourselves.

 The restaurant is closed the first part of the week so we were able to move in with our games and lunch box to enjoy the facilities on a budget. Scanning the menu proved this was the best plan.  The most inexpensive entree is a burger for $20 and a bottle of wine for $50.

This marina is off the beaten path, so taxi rides to the airport are pricey and walking to the grocery store is a bit far.  Luckily it’s easy to rent a car from the marina manager for a reasonable price to take care of business. In the Bahamas they drive on the left side of the road, half of the cars are right had drive, and the other half have the steering wheel on the left.  Good thing Eric did all the driving.

After 90 days in the Bahamas Makai is beginning to make the final run up the islands.  After a rainy, windy day the wind turned around and blew out of the south. Gary and Sandy flew in and joined us on our northward journey to say goodbye to our favorite spots.

Off of Musha Cay a ray and barracuda greeted us in the anchorage.

We took our usual snorkel over to David Copperfield’s Mermaid statue.

Roy found a hermit crab to pose on the piano.

The mirror finish of the stainless steel prompted us to break out scrubbers and scrapers.

To all sculptures out there, I would love to see more underwater art.

The view of Makai from inside the cave is like looking through a magic window.

The islands are off limits, posted with private property signs.  Rudder Cay is also patrolled by a dog.  Some reports are that this dog is for security, other reports say it was abandoned.  Either way, this pup has been reported for over a year.  We’ve never seen any people on the island taking care of her and she was very friendly.  So for the two days we were in the area, she enjoyed buckets of water and piles of kibble.

As always, the sunsets are spectacular.

Musha Cay to Staniel Cay is a 20 mile opportunity to catch a Mahi Mahi along the drop off.  The anxiety of the possibility of having to land a Mahi Mahi makes my heart race and keeps me up all night rehearsing the steps.

When Roy yelled “FISH ON” we all assumed our positions and went into action.  The announcement that it was a sailfish and we would release it relaxed me enough to enjoy the fight.  Roy got it right up along the side of Makai and while we were discussing how we would release it, flip flop flap, off it went.

A few minutes later the alert rang out again as the reel went zzzing.  Unfortunately, the fish didn’t take a good enough bite of the balihoo.

Staniel Cay is a chance to pamper ourselves.  We met up with Dream Catcher and snorkeled in Thunderball Grotto.

Everyone had fun swimming in and out of the cave through tunnels.

The sea anemone is like a beautiful flower in a field of sand and sea grass.

Marie came by to pose for photos.

The water was so warm and clear we had fun with everything including the anchor.

Mamma got run over by the anchor.  It was great to have the freedive training so I could relax and stay down longer.

Genny and I cleaned the bottom last week, here’s a picture of Genny’s underwater art.  Oh Boy, the bottom paint doesn’t last long when we’re always on the move. One of this summer’s projects is to haul Makai out of the water and repaint the bottom.

For a treat we all spiffed up on our best clothes and went to the yacht club for dinner.

Local nurse sharks were there to greet us.

The last adventure here is to visit the pigs one last time.

Next stop is Pipe Creek.  The current was ripping by so strong everyone had to hold a line while swimming.  When Topaz got to the end of her line we would pull her in for a rest.

Roy and Ken went Pompano fishing in a beautiful snorkel spot.

With a belly full of fish, we moved into the Exuma Land and Sea Park where everything is protected.

Back to sand bars and snorkeling for the fun of it.

The protected fish grow big and are comfortable about swimming in front of snorkelers.

The strawberry grouper was beautiful and the sergeant majors swarm like butterflies.

Topaz loves to swim.

We haven’t seen many eels, this guy came out for a picture.

Across the way is a sunken airplane.

Genny swam through the fuselage.

When we get home I’ll have to find a painting of a reef.  This a common view while we snorkel.
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Conchs in the park roam freely.

We have a favorite little anchorage near the airplane, but there wasn’t enough room for two boats to anchor, so we rafted up.

Makai and Dream Catcher became a quadrahull side by side schooner.

It was lots of fun, we should have done this sooner.  Moving between the boats to visit and even eating separate yet together was fun.

The end of another great day is signaled by the blowing of the conchs.

Next stop is Wardrick Wells after a long down wind run.

Everyone got cozy with their kindle books and caught up on their reading.

Topaz has taken a liking to laying on Gary.  Either he sits in her spot and she cozies up to him or she finds a few inches of cushion to squish in next to him.

The spinnaker does a great job.  Thanks Rodney for equipping our Leopard 47 with the whomper.

Makai’s new outboard rides on the dinghy nicely while the old motor rests on the outboard mount.

Wardrick Wells was surprisingly busy.  The moorings were full so off to the anchorage  we went.

First a supply launch buzzed past us, then a sea plane took off.

Wardrick Wells is the Exuma Land and Sea Park headquarters and has the most beautiful reefs.

Huge schools of snappers lingered in the trenches.

LOBSTERS, lobsters were everywhere.  They were huge and walking around without fear of being caught and eaten.

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This ray was only about as big as my hand.

The angel fish hide behind sea fans and trigger fish glide by.

We had a glimpse of a sea turtle.

Roy’s favorite Nassau Grouper safely swam in the park protected from fishermen.

This is our last chance for a Mahi Mahi with Gary and Sandy.  We left Wardrick Wells, headed out to the edge of the park and trolled the 20 miles up to Norman’s Cay and Wax Cay cut.  Right there as we were about to turn in toward the anchorage I got internet reception and an email from Scott Aanonson.  He said after talking to fishing friends and hearing their stories, tiring the fish out seemed to be key.  Then all of a sudden  ”FISH ON!”  We all calmed down and took the advice in our email.  Makai was only running on the jib, so we pulled it in and continued along at 2 kts on bare poles for a half hour while Roy tired out Cynthia.  In Georgetown Roy met a fisherman who told him when he lost a fish it was like losing his girlfriend so Roy has started naming the fish.

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This is really a team effort.  There has to be someone to drive, manage the pole, do the gaffing, grab it with a blanket and sit on the fish while someone else fills the gills with vodka.

Cynthia, 48 inches and 17 lbs.

Roy does all the cleaning.

It’s just amazing how big the fillets are.

Now that Roy finally landed a Mahi Mahi, he can jump for joy and relax on the sand bars.

Everyone was equally as relieved after losing the previous fish.

Genny’s new selfie is pictures of her legs and feet.

Topaz is always fun to watch in the water but not much for posing for photos.

So off she swims into the sunset.

Yippeee the Aanonson family for a whole week.  For the last few years before we left California, these guys were our ‘everyday’ friends.  They’re homeschoolers that live a hop skip and a jump from our back door.  Some mornings we would bike to the donut shop before school work, meet up on dog potty walks in the morning, 20 minutes of play between school work and classes and then there is always the afternoons and evening of play, dog walks and kids running, playing and eating at each other’s houses.

Scott, Krista, Tyler and Cody Aanonson

Last year they visited Makai in the British Virgin Islands, we met up at Grandma and Grandpa Aanonson’s house in Florida this year for the New Year, and another memory for the kids to share will be the last minute vacation week in the Bahamas.

Four days earlier sad kids were passing emails back and forth because their parents couldn’t agree on a date to visit.  The weeks for Makai in the Bahamas were slipping away fast, so I send Krista an email that said, “Just come now!”  Within minutes Scott made the reservation and it was done.  After an entire day of travel their flight gave them a beautiful view of the islands.  When they arrived in the BVIs last year, it was dark but we were at the airport jumping up and down in the terminal windows.  Today all they had was the instructions to find a taxi and meet us at the Exuma Market.

The taxi driver called us on Eric’s Bahamian phone and we sent Roy to the dinghy dock to pick them up.  We’ve had quite a bit of wind lately making the dinghy ride a bit wet and splashy, but no one melted.

The excitement in the kids was hard to control.  They were all over the place, hopping around like jumping beans.

Or monkeys swinging in the trees.

First thing in the morning, as soon as the sun lit up the sky, they scurried about planning their trip to the beach. Four tired parents wandered around rubbing their eyes before casting them off.

Sand castles are fun again when you are with a buddy.

The gang went over the hill to the surf side of the beach.

The kids found an old cooler to cast Cody off in.  It didn’t get too far before tipping over. So, no need to worry about little boys lost at sea.

Then of course there’s the sand hill.  We discovered there is an updraft along the bluff.  When the kids tossed sand about, it would fall up and drift over the top of the hill.

See there are pictures of us when someone else is taking them.  The Aanonson’s photos from last year in BVI are what sold us on the Olympus T2 Tough camera.  This year I found that our friends on C-Spirit had the previous model of this camera and liked it as well.

All the toys came out.  Everyone got Hobie sailing lessons.  The wind was a little brisk which always makes me nervous.  The last thing I want to learn how to do is right it if it flips over.  Oh, nooooo, we flipped.  Scott and Krista were on the leeward side, I told Scott to steer for Makai and then head up at the last minute so I could run over and grab the side.  At that very minute, with him turning and the three of us on the leeward side, over we went.   I guess I needed to get some experience with capsizing.  It was quite easy to right the boat.  The float on top of the mast prevents it from turning turtle, so just unclip the main sheet, grab a line off the hull that is towering above me, stand on the one still in the water, and pull back.  Easy Peasy.

Eric went off to run an errand so the rest of us overloaded the Hobie and sailed down to Chat n Chill and Volleyball beach.

Conch fritters in Staniel Cay and Conch salad here are the only local delicacies we’ve indulged in.

At the far end of the beach is a little shack next to the water.  The chef wades out and scoops up a conch (tied of course so it can’t get away).  His only tools are a special conch hammer and a knife for chopping.  I watched him squeeze lemon on the meat and slice it this way and that.  Then he diced up tomatoes, onions and green pepper.  More dicing, squeezing, chopping and scooping.  In the end we had bowls full of fresh conch salad one with a spoonful of spice and the other without.

Next to the stand is a bucket of conch bits that are trimmed off before making the salad.  The kids grabbed up a handful of slimy conch guts and fed it to the habituated sting rays.  These rays come out and greet any pair of feet that enters the water looking for a handout. This photo also shows the conch shells from previous salads.

Eric returned from his errand and spotted our brightly colored Hobie sail.  We’re pretty much the only ones in the Bahamas with this sail so we’re easy to spot.  Here it is, his new dinghy engine, delivered today on the mail boat from Nassau.  There are a few reasons for this new addition to Makai’s equipment.  First we can’t get the dinghy up onto a plane for speed and fuel efficiency when taking the family off on an adventure.  Also, when the water is choppy if you go slow the waves hit the front of the boat and splash inside the dinghy.  If we’re planing, then we’re skimming over the top of the water and the boat has moved past the splashes keeping us dry.  The final reason is that the United States no longer sells 2-stroke engines which are lighter weight than the 4-stroke engines and this is one we want for Makai’s future.

There are a few things to get used to on it.  We’ve all be driving from the port side of the dinghy but now there is a gear shift mounted on the opposite side.  So where do you sit to reach both?  We had to learn where the lever and pin are to raise the engine when beaching the dinghy, how about the strength needed to pull the starter cord (Marie can no longer do it), etc…..

Evening is a welcome time.  Everyone is tired and ready to blow the conch horns at sunset.

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Along the way we’ve found a few colorful shells without much growth to make horns.  Eric fills in the hole, where the meat was released from, with epoxy and then slices off the tip.  They’ve decided that the biggest shells are easier to blow and have the best sound.

Now that everything is in order, off we go to find some new adventure.  The wind was perfect 15-20 kts behind us.  Genny put on an audio book and the motion of the ocean kept everyone quiet and nappy.  We snacked on delicacies they brought from Costco like Kirkland Steak Bits beef jerky, mmmmm.

The 30 nm trip took most of the day, but everyone was refreshed and ready for the next day’s activities.  Musha Cay area is where the mermaid statue, low tide beach in the cave, spear fishing, and a little beach time.

Roy and Tyler have been planning their spear fishing expedition and now they’re ready to bring home dinner.

Scott grabbed the pole spear.  This used to be my favorite weapon until Roy convinced me the Hawaiian sling is much more effective.

Tyler swam off with the sling looking for prey.

At the end of the day They got a Nassau Grouper and a squirrel fish.

With the work finished it’s play time again.  The kids swung the boom over for swinging and jumping.

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There all kinds of sea creatures to explore.  The sea stars are pretty slow and easy for a bunch of kids to capture.

Tonight we’re having a little birthday celebration.  Roy and Eric have birthdays in May but we like to celebrate with friends.

Krista brought balloons and banners, gifts and treats.  At the end of an active day the kids play Minecraft. I don’t really understand the game, but everyone has their own device and can all access the same game.  So, if they’re playing together, what’s the difference if it’s on an electronic device or a piece of cardboard with plastic pawns.

Our special dinner is cheeseburgers on fresh baked buns with lobster and vegetables.

Our secret treat is See’s Candy.  Mmmmm, the kids got a back of Milky Way bites, but we got See’s Nuts and Chews.

The evening is wrapped up with brownies and a sparkler.

Last year Roy turned 12 in the Port Canaveral anchorage. He got to celebrate with his family, but he didn’t think it was so special.  This year we’re starting his 13th birthday celebrations early, I’m sure you’ll see a few more birthday pictures in future posts.

A week goes by fast, now we have to head back to Georgetown.  The blow hole on Boyse Cay was blowing so we stopped to check it out.

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Surf crashes against the rocks, under the ledge and shoots out a whole on top.

Ok, here’s the worst moment of our entire trip.  About 10 miles to our waypoint we decided to pull in the jib and motor on course so we wouldn’t spend the whole day tacking back.  I looked over at Roy’s pole and the line was out in front of Makai instead of dragging behind.  FISH ON! I figured it must be another barracuda, but that would be fun for Tyler to reel in. The gang started chasing the line around the boat as Roy reeled in.  A MAHI MAHI, yippee yiperoo, just what we’ve been waiting for.

 

Today our first guest arrives and our last guest departs on April 29, in that time we’ll only have 2 days to be lonely.  The Aanonsons were emailing with me trying to squeeze in a date sometime in May, but it just wasn’t working out.  So I said, “How about NOW?”  A few minutes later Scott said, “Done, we’ll be there on Tuesday.”  That’s what I like flexibility and a thirst for adventure.

After returning from the Jumentos we rested up, organized our thoughts and then got to work.  Eric ordered a new outboard engine for our dinghy.  Fifteen horsepower just isn’t enough for the dinghy to get up on a plane to conserve fuel and skim us along the water’s surface.  We often leave some people behind where there is someplace far for us to go or else we just putt along with a full boat.  The new 30 HP engine is due to arrive tomorrow and everyone is excited.

Next is the crappy corners that I’ve been overlooking for months now.  Marie sorted out the sticker books, magazines and puzzle books.  We put together a load of trash and a pile to donate.

The piano buried under Marie’s clothes was dug out.  For the first hour everyone fought over who was going to bang out some favorite old song, then it pushed aside and forgotten.  Every few days I open a song book and slowly attempt a new song.  Once it’s noticed they all take a crack at it.

Fishing is not allowed in Elizabeth Harbor where we are anchored.  This is stressful for Roy who is only comfortable with a pole or spear in his hand.  There are two scavenger remoras living under our boat who come out to suck up any scraps that are tossed off the back. Genny had fun with Cheesits tied to her line and a little Topaz teasing.

One day Roy pointed out the excessive mold growth over the book shelves.  Ick, it was pretty bad.  I took all the books off and scrubbed the area with softscrub and bleach.

We managed to thin the library out a bit and reorganize so most everything fit on the port side.

We anchored off of volleyball beach and the Chat n Chill restaurant for a few days. A bunch of kids came by for volleyball, swinging in the trees and petting the sting rays who come by the conch salad bar for handouts.

I started joining a bunch of regulars for afternoon Mexican Train Dominos.  Everyone has an interesting story behind how they happened to get here.  We’ve met people with seasonal jobs like commercial fishing in Alaska, editors, people on sabbatical,  and of course retired folks.  One guy told me he thought the retired folks who live and sail on their boats are healthier than their friends back home.  Sounds like we have to keep doing this. It’s also impressive to hear about previous careers, like the dominos guys: a phd level marine biology professor, biochemistry professor, and fireman, to mention only a few.  Most people don’t really talk about work, conversations more commonly revolve around fishing, making water, getting supplies, and future travels.

Roy and Eric have been bugging me for a little sewing work.  Roy even went and set up the machine just to get me to make his spear fishing poles a bag.

Roy designed this protective pouch for the pole spear and two Hawaiian slings.

The whole week has been excessively windy. There are only two things to do on a windy day, fly a kite or go sailing.  One day I took about 10 kids from the anchorage out sailing.  We had a rotation where one would steer, one would ride and two would be towed on surf boards.  That’s always a miserable mess.  Anytime a kid falls off, you have to go back and get them.  It is often hard to turn around and get the rope back to them and kids dragging slows the Hobie down to a crawl.

After everyone got a turn, they decided to try riding by themselves. I suppose they thought I must be doing something wrong.  So all 10 of them went out and tried to tow two kids on each board.  Hmm, I think that didn’t work either.  Finally, no one rode on the surf board and fewer kids rode on the Hobie and everyone had a great sail.

Don’t forget Topaz. She likes to swim around off the back of Makai.  Her retriever instinct drives her to grab her harness and carry it back to the ladder.

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Roy made her a toy by tying interesting knots on the ends of floating line.  Eric was posted on the back step for the afternoon tossing the toy.

I decided to rub out some of the scuff marks we’ve collected this season and continued on to waxing the hulls as far down as I can reach from the deck.  Eric polished the stainless steel and now we shine on top.

For a final night with all the kids they all came over after dinner for popcorn and a movie.  I’m sorry we didn’t spend more time with this crew, but everyone was going here and there.  Maybe we’ll see them up the road.

Back to company cleaning.  Marie has been elected to move out for guests.  I’m not sure why her room is always turned into a guest room, but it’s a good idea.  Marie’s room is always the biggest mess of the entire boat.  Last year I just stacked up boxes on her floor and said to scrape all her belongings into the boxes so we can find her bed.  This year we’ve managed to cut back on her possessions but it still looks like a tornado at a rummage sale.  Guests on a regular basis forces us to clean up the mess.  Wow, look!

Genny also straightens up because from the guest room the view is a straight shot into Genny’s room.  Genny probably uses her room more than anyone else.  At first she called it her hidey hole, now we call it her lair.

For years Roy has seen the stress of the sister mess.  Mom pulls her hair out and the sisters fall to pieces in tears because their so overwhelmed by stuff. I’ve told him over and over that ‘stuff’ is an anchor. When you move you have to transport your stuff and find a suitable location to store it. Stuff piles up and you can’t find useful stuff at the bottom of the pile.  Stuff crowds your space and requires care.  So Roy got rid of the stuff.  All he has in his room is a few pillows and blankets, Diary of a Whimpy Kid books (the first series he read), and his fishing gear neatly organized and displayed.

As for the rest of the house, we did our best.  Homework is also at the top of our list this week.  Roy just signed up for a writing class with WriteGuide.com.  Maybe I can get him to take over posting on his fishing trips.

Yesterday was business in town.  Our 90 visa in the Bahamas expires next week, but the good news is that it only takes a little paperwork to get another 90 days.  We all marched over to Immigration to take care of this important detail.

Then the truck that takes us to Prime Island Meats and Deli comes by at 10:30.  This is a photo Eric found on www.galleywenchtales.com, one of the 90 or so blogs he follows. If you are bored reading about Makai’s adventures, just email us and Eric will pass a few blog links on to you.  A few weeks ago I piled into an over stuffed pick-up truck.  Since then many of the cruisers have left and Roy and I managed to get in with four other people.  Next week when we come back to Georgetown I’ll pack the freezer with hamburger, chicken and pork chops to get us through the rest of the season.

The cruising season is coming to a close.  Most people’s boat insurance require them to be at some point north by June 1st and many people have plans to be in the USA by May 1st.  Every day a dozen or so boats head out on the East and South winds we’ve been experiencing.  This morning the group of kid boats we’ve been hanging around with left.  Boat cards were exchanged with promises to keep in touch and find each other in the Chesapeake Bay.

Adios friends see you all in the Abacos, the Gulf Stream or the Chesapeake Bay.

Back to waiting for guests.  The cleaning is almost finished, with nothing to do but wait, Marie decides cartwheels will take her mind off of things.

Weeee.

We’re off again, this time to the Jumentos Cays, with Dream Catcher, the Leopard 40 we met in Connecticut.  The chain starts about 30 miles from Great Exuma and George Town, and extends to Ragged Island about 60 miles from Cuba.  These islands are very remote with very few residents.  Duncan Town on Ragged Island is the only settlement in the chain with 72 residents reported in the 2000 census.

Our day’s travel was about 55 miles from George Town to Flamingo Cay.  We had to time the tide going through Hog Cay Cut, 15 miles from George Town, because the deepest the water gets there on a high tide is 6 feet and our boat is 4.5.  So about an hour before high tide we made a mad dash across the sand bar.  There wasn’t any wind but that gave us a great view of the bottom.

We spotted coral heads and sea stars.  Roy fished and caught barracuda one after the other.  One time the “fish on” call went out but by the time Roy got to the pole all the line went off his reel and we could only wonder what took it.  Roy felt bad for the fish that was now swimming around with 200 feet of line hanging out of it’s mouth so we turned around to look for the line.  I’m sure you can guess how that went, it’s not easy to find fishing line trailing along the bottom.

From the spreaders Roy spotted a shark and barracuda, sure enough we all saw them a few minutes later.

It’s been awhile since we’ve been on a passage this long.  Everyone started getting board so there was much running around the boat, swinging and rolling.

Just before sunset we arrived at spear fishing paradise.  But what did we see?  Two big fishing vessels and a couple dozen skiffs scattered about.  My heart sank, I was sure they were vacuuming up the bottom and we would snorkel on a barren waste land.

Roy and I swam over to Lady Marie and chatted with George the owner/captain.  He invited all of us to come back the next day for a tour.

We arrived with a plate of cookies for a tour.  He told us about Spanish Wells, on the north end of Eluthera, where he’s from, how his father was a fisherman, and now his son is aboard.  We learned that they hand spear their catch of crawfish (lobster), conch, and grouper.  According to Ronald’s Seafood in Spanish Wells, their company exports over one million pounds of lobster tails to Red Lobster and Olive Garden restaurants.

George showed us pictures of his family and told stories about his sons and his passion for baseball.  His advise to Roy, our fishing guru, is to stay in school!  The life of a fisherman, while it seems fun at first, consists of spending weeks at a time away from home and watching weather and storms.

Lady Marie is named after George’s wife and he fishes with just one skiff.  He said the other two dozen skiffs belong to the Dominican Republic fishing boat, which the Bahamian fishermen do not welcome in their waters.  We found that George had plenty of cruiser friends and even used the same weather report from Chris Parker that the rest of us do.

All this talk of fishing got Roy twitchy.  We donned our gear, Hawaiian Slings in hand and off we went around the corner.  Roy has a grouper in his right hand and a Hog Fish in the left.

A huge school of jacks came by and distracted us.  We had fun diving into them and cutting the school in half.  After that great freediving class I found it easy to sink 25 feet down in this clear warm water for great photo opportunities.

Roy is always hunting.  At the end of they day, he’s the only one with a full bucket of seafood.

Most of the time I don’t even try, because Roy brings in more than a meal and he does this every time he gets wet.

To keep the sharks away from the anchorage, Roy did his cleaning on the island and tossed the carcass in the bushes for the lizards and ants.

Late in the afternoon funnel clouds formed out over the bank.  Eric noticed that funnel clouds had been reported here in other blogs he reads.  The conditions must be just right for them in this area.

The next day we sailed south to Buenavista Cay about 25 miles further south.  Roy deployed a message in a bottle and caught a few more barracuda.  Since we were sailing with the spinnaker, its difficult to stop the boat to pull in a fish and since we don’t keep barracuda, the lines had to come in so we could enjoy the sail.

Ahh another great sunset in paradise.

First we anchored along the west side of the island. Topaz had a bit of shore leave as we sailed the hobie along with one foot on the sand.  She ran along and stretched her poor cramped up little legs:)  This dog never has any fun.  The water was full of little green specs, they looked like tiny leaves or seeds floating by.  Upon closer inspection we saw that they are clouds of jelly fish.  Yikes, I’m super sensitive to jelly stings.  I can go into the water with 10 people and be the only one to come out with welts.  Even though I dive with a full wetsuit and now a hood that covers everything except my mask and mouth, I still managed to get several stings that itched and a few blistered.  See it’s not all fun and games down here

We had a wonderful evening with two young couples from Nila Girl and Rode Trip, Ashley, Ren and their little baby Ani and Brian and Stephanie. Ashley prepared the most tender and delicious conch I’ve had so far. I really need to figure out how to tenderize that snail.  Roy brought a lobster and grouper to the table.  We found out that grouper eat squid because the one he caught today coughed it up in the bucket.  I offered to fry the squid up for Roy, but he waved off the idea.

After looking at all our photos, I’m thinking the adventure to the Jumentos is really a fishing vacation for Roy.

Around the corner from the anchorage we found some nice reefs.  As usual Roy’s bucket filled up.  Ken and I spotted a few crawfish, I missed one and then stuck a second but it got off my pole spear.  I’ve been stubbornly rejecting the Hawaiian sling Roy selected for my birthday present, but I guess, he’s right and I’m going to have to switch.  The difference between the two is that the pole spear can be used with one hand while I hold a rock with the other.  The problems are that it’s more difficult to get your catch off the end of the spear and into the bucket and it doesn’t have as much penetration power.  The Hawaiian Sling is a bit more like a bow and arrow.  The pole penetrates better and has a better one-way barb, and your catch can slide off the other end of the spear easily into a bucket.

We also used a tip Ken got from a local and started fishing at day break.

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Yahoo, we had a lobsterfest that will go down in the record books along with our spearing trip in the Sea of Cortez with our pal Brian 15 years ago.  Between the three of us we collected enough shell fish for a huge dinner and full freezer for our upcoming guests.  In one lobster nest, Ken went down for the first bug, then I went down and shot another.  While I was pulling it out of the hole another crawled into my hand and I came up with two on one breath.  Then Roy was right there to finish it off with one more.  Whew, Ken and I redeemed our selves and don’t feel like Roy showed us up on this dive.

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Roy has his Evolve Freediving hat on to advertise Ashley and Ren’s instruction for increased bottom time.

After cleaning up from spear fishing, we took everyone out to reef in the middle of the bay.

The colors were beautiful.  I put away my wet suit, weights and sling to show this wasn’t a fishing trip.  Of course I should have worn the wet suit because I got a few jelly stings, and Roy came out in full gear to take home a lobster.

Marie practiced her freediving skills, with ventilation breathing, a peak inhalation breath, then hooks and cleanses on the surface to recover. See she even spit her snorkel out to properly close her mouth for safety. Thanks Ashley and Ren!

Yes slinging lobster is fun, but I also love to sink to the bottom for a better photo.

As always, when you enter the water, you are a guest.  The Barracuda are always lurking on the sidelines. We’re getting used to them and have been told not to worry to much, Eric and Roy like to chase them away.

The rest of the afternoon was hot and windless.  The water was crystal clear and the sky blue, a perfect day for swimming and splashing around.  But, Noooooo, a bull shark decided to spend the day doing figure 8′s around Dream Catcher and Makai.  In the evening we had a dinner party with Dream Catcher and Fooling Around, a seasoned Bahamas cruising couple on a trawler, Fred and Elaine.  Its great to visit with people who have been here for several seasons. Tomorrow is Elaine’s birthday, we better get her a present.

So at daybreak Eric drove us over to the reef.

Aww, aren’t I cute?

So Roy and I swam off into the sunrise to see if the lobsters, sleepy from their nocturnal adventures, are still playing around at their hole’s front door.

Phew, ting, ting, ting. Roy shot a quick three for a birthday present.

Happy Birthday Elaine have a nice lobster omelet.

We put our slings away, as crawfish season will be over March 31, packed up the boats and sailed back up to Flamingo Cay.

Genny did a bit of water art on the cushions.

Eric made a few conch horns. When cleaning a conch and extracting the meat you have to punch a hole in the back of it to get the meat out.   To make the horn, he had to epoxy the hole up and then using a saw cut off the tip.  Blowing into this hole makes conch music.  We’ve found that the bigger the conch the deeper the tone and we’re testing to see if the ease of making a noise has to do with the cut hole size or the conch size.

The trip to Flamingo Cay left just enough time for a SCUBA dive.  Marie joins us on the bottom with the hookah hose and strict instructions not to hold her breath and never surface faster than her smallest bubbles.  Next year when we come to Georgetown she’ll be 10 years old and can get certified in the Bahamas.

It’s a much different feeling looking at the fish and coral when I have air in the tank on my back compared to the feeling of needing to breath while freediving.

Genny likes to play in her weightless environment and look for shells.

Roy is always looking for seafood.  Its against the fishing laws to have a sling and SCUBA gear with you at the same time. Roy spotted two nice big lobsters whose legs and horns would have made an impressive meal on their own.  This is the very same coral head he pulled a lobster out of a few days ago.

The grouper weren’t even afraid of him.  The Nassau grouper has a season which opened at the beginning of March.

Without his sling Roy is a very bored SCUBA diver.

The week ended with a long sail, but great wind back to George Town.

Chat n Chill occupies the beach on Stocking Island directly across from George Town.  The restaurant/bar is on the northern end with picnic tables and benches under the trees off to the side, three or four regulation volley ball courts, a conch salad stand and plenty of room to park your dinghy.

Throughout the week many events are held here.  Things like church, yoga, volleyball, dominoes and card games,  and seminars on all kinds of topics.  We put it on our busy calendar to attend the Freediving seminar given by Ashley and Ren Chapman from Evolve Freediving. The kids sat in the trees while we listened.  Ashley has broken several world records in the extreme sport in competitive freediving/apnea.  Apnea is the suspension of external breathing. This ancient sport was originally used by sponge divers, pearl divers and salvage divers. There are several apnea disciplines from static breath holding in a pool to riding sleds down to extreme depths.  Ashley said she started by joining her husband for a class to help them  with spear fishing and found out she had potential. We are also just interested in how we can spend more time at 15 – 20 feet looking in lobster holes, but who knows, maybe one of us could be a super star. So we decided to sign up to take a class.

Knowing we would be in class at the beach all day, we had to prepare.  A little bread is in order for easy lunches and dinners. With the 150 lbs of flour we brought on board and the price/availability issues for provisions, baking is a good choice.   We also packed Topaz up with extra water and an anchor to keep her at the beach.  We wouldn’t want her swimming away or going to the restaurant and begging for lunch.

While taking a break from class, the kids went to pet the sting rays that hang around for conch scraps near the conch salad shack.

Ashley taught us about the effects of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and pressure on a body while breath holding.  We practiced techniques to slow the heart rate, maintain blood pressure, and relax for maximum breath holding time. Safety procedures are also stressed.

After the morning under the tree, we all went to shallow water to hold our breaths.  First there is a time of relaxation breathing.

Then a totally relaxed float to see how long we can hold our breaths.  Most of the kids made it to a minute and a half, Eric and I made two minutes, and Wendy and Nat were up to 3 and 4 minutes.  Amazing!

Next we went to the Angelfish Blue Hole.  Blue Holes are underwater vertical caves. Stocking Island hosts a blue hole inside an enclosed bay which will make it easy to find protected deep water.  While the hole goes down to 92 feet in an area where it’s hard to find water deeper than 20 feet, we won’t actually be going into the hole, just down to the rim at which is 30 feet below the surface.

The dive rigs were set up and we broke into two groups to practice diving form, ear clearing, breath holding and of course safety.

Ren and Ashley are great coaches helping us one at a time to hold our breath longer and dive down deeper.

Upon returning to the surface there is a brief recovery time to prevent dizziness and clear out the CO2.  We also learned about the gear they use.  Roy already has a pair of these extra long fins on order for his 13th birthday gift.

By the end of the day everyone made it down to retrieve a blade of grass as proof of their achievement.

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Watch out lobsters, Roy is armed with new information on how to get down and stay down, so scoot back in your hole.

The day was great fun and the one thing I came away with is: try everything, you can never tell what will be your specialty.  Roy declared this yet another ‘best day ever’. Thanks Ashley and Ren.

After all that time on the beach, Topaz was exhausted.   It can be hard to get her up in the morning.  You can tell if someone has gone out to visit her because of the tail thumping sounds.  Her tail is the only indication she’s conscious, because the rest of her fuzzy, bony body doesn’t move.

The week wasn’t all work, we still had time to fly kites.

We joined our friends on Whistling Cay in taking a bunch of kids to the windward side of the island.

It is amazing how many beaches are deserted even though George Town’s resorts and the hundreds of boaters living in the bay are only a short distance away.

The kids found a fun sand hill to climb.

and

run down.

Another cold front is forecasted so we went in search of an anchorage with west wind protection.  It’s not easy when most of the anchorages are on the west side of the islands.  We found a spot near Musha Cay, David Copperfield’s Island.  So, let it blow, let it blow, let it blow.  What should we do on a windy day?  How about flying a kite.

Nancy and Jamey are kite surfers and brought along a training kite.  Eric got a few lessons on how to turn it this way and that, then he proceeded to teach us all about the dynamics of air foil tweak and twist, wing shape, push and pull.  Ok, so it was above my head.

The girls knew their time together was drawing to a close quickly.  C Spirit would leave as soon as the front passes and this north wind turns back out of the east or south. So, it’s girl fest 2014.  Sage had fun in Marie’s mermaid costume while the rest of them dug around in the craft box making bracelets.

Eric and Jamey pulled apart one of our winches for cleaning and lubrication

The girls had sleep overs and Roy made breakfast.  His new specialty is Mini Mouse pancakes.  He makes a Mickey and adds a bow.

The anchorage is wide open, just the two of us, plenty of warm, shallow, clear water and swimmers.

In true Roy style, he found a critter.

After saying goodbye, two boats of sad cruisers parted.  The C Spirits tried to get away but Marie paddled after them.

Then when they sailed by for one last wave, Marie tried to bounce off the dinghy and jump aboard.

The girls stayed home and moped while we took Roy spear fishing.  He dug this Nassau Grouper off the reef and dedicated his catch to Jamey.  His first fish without his best spear fishing buddy.

We made grouper egg rolls and sauteed the fillets in soy and ginger.  Dinner is yummy, but Roy and I had only each other to enjoy it with.  We sure miss our other fish eating buddies.

Today is a new day, the wind has slowed down, time to get some bottom time.  The current was starting to pick up so we dropped down on the mermaid and piano sculpture.

It’s been almost a year since we did our last dive on the Rhone in the British Virgin Islands.  That wreck starts around 25 feet deep and goes down to 70 feet or more.  All the places we snorkel and dive around here are 25 feet or less.

Shallow dives are nice because the sun shines into the water, the water is warmer, we don’t use too much air and don’t have to worry about exceeding the dive tables.

After visiting the mermaid, we drifted along to the west of the anchorage and found large coral garden.

Genny had fun with the camera.  Oh that’s the other great thing about shallow dives, our new camera can dive with us.  It is not supposed to dive deeper than 50 feet.

After this season’s spear fishing, Roy has gotten really comfortable underwater.

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Eric hovered over us in the dinghy and Marie came down to visit with the hookah hose.  This is an extra long hose attached to a SCUBA tank in the dinghy and a regulator on the other end.  Marie has strict instructions to never hold her breath and without weights doesn’t get much deeper than 10 feet.

But it’s just deep enough for a photo op.  Next season she’ll be turning 10 and will get her SCUBA certification.

The reefs were loaded with fish and coral heads.

Its always fun to see big rays and turtles, but not so much fun to see sharks.  A glimpse of a shark is enough to send spear fishermen to the dingy and home to eat macaroni and cheese instead of fish.

When we were finished Eric towed us back to Makai.

Poor Topaz doesn’t understand why she’s not invited to SCUBA dive, so she and her yellow dolly just laid around waiting for us to return.

We spend another night in Williams Bay and then over to the channel between Leaf Cay and Normans Pond Cay for more protection from the west winds.  The last time we were here, we found a few nice lobsters so Roy was ready to hunt again.  But this time, no fish, only lobster.

Roy de Lobstah Boy strikes again.  ”Here you go Mom, can I have lobster for lunch?”

The wind has turned around and promises a nice sail to George Town.  A perfect 5 kt. trolling speed for Roy, and FISH ON!  Roy chased this fish all the way around the boat.  Eric usually turns Makai up into the wind and heave-to to stop the boat.  The fish headed for the bow, down the other side and back to the starboard sugar scoop where we started.

It was a fun fight but Crevalle Jack is not good eating so Roy sent him back on his way.  This Jack isn’t an uncommon fish, we often see them 12 inches or less, but this is definitely the biggest Jack Roy has ever caught.

A few hours later, the reel started screaming again.  FISH ON!  or maybe not.

All this fishing has slowed our progress and messed with the schedule to arrive before dark.  Not to worry, here comes squalls.  Whew, like a fire drill, we threw everyone and everything inside and closed the doors.  The air temperature dropped, wind picked up and down came the rain and off we flew.

Now we’re back in George Town and hiding out on another windy day.

Eric and Roy hiked to the top of the hill and then what should we do on a windy day?  How about fly a kite.  Roy ran down the beach and got it WAY up in the air.  The kite then pulled us in the dinghy back to  Makai.

Eric had an idea to make a parachute and attach it with a paperclip to the kite string.  It was really cool until the parachute reached the kite which knocked the kite off balance and it threatened to nose dive into the water.  At the last minute the parachute came off and the kite recovered.

When the wind slows down a bit we have some chores to do and then plan another adventure.