George Town 2017
 |
| Elizabeth Harbor entrance (George Town) |
Sunday, February
12, 2017.
Beautiful morning, 70 degrees, wind East 5-10, puffy clouds. We took the dingy and went through the cut
between Stocking Island and Elizabeth Island with the dingy, following the
folks from Endeavor (who we met in
Bimini) and their son and his girlfriend.
On the sound side (east side) of the island it is very calm, but there
are still 4 foot rollers coming from 3000 miles away, so there is “surge” that
will toss you onto the shore (rocks) if you are not careful. We snorkeled about ¼ miles of the reef and
then came back through the cut to the beach.
We walked the length of the south beach of Stocking Island, but still no
sea beans. Because there are so many
people here, there are quite nice walking paths all over the island.
Yesterday,
we met a guy who had lost his dog. They
are staying in a house on Stocking Island and the dog (4 pound Maltese) named
Stella apparently wandered off. Today,
everyone is looking for the dog as they hike the island and beaches.
We
moved the boat across the harbor close to Kidd Cove (named for Captain Kidd) George
Town so it will be more convenient to re-supply tomorrow. The weather is supposed to be calm. Majestic
Phoenix and At Last came to play
Mexican Train this evening.
 |
| Dinghy dock at Lake Victoria (Exuma Market) |
2NM 23.30.40'N 075.45.76'W
Monday, February
13, 2017.
The mail (supply) boat came in and the shelves at Exuma Market are full, so
today we did our grocery shopping, dropped the propane bottle off to be
refilled, and went to the bank.
Late
in the day, we hear on the radio that Oriental Moon has spotted the missing
Stella. The owners hurried north to
Hamburger Beach and were able to find the missing dog. Everyone in the harbor is releaved! The dog had wandered more than 2 miles.
Tonight
we had dinner at Eddie’s Edgewater. We
sat with Lee and Sherry (Alesto 2). At
about 8:00pm, there was a “Rake and Scrape” band and dancing. Lots of people here for that. A very nice
evening!
 |
| Rake and Scrape Band at Eddie's Edgewater |
Tuesday,
February 14, 2017. Valentines Day. More chores today. Back to the grocery – fresh meat in today. Made
four trips to town and back with fresh water to fill the tanks from jerry
cans. The water is free on the dingy
dock, but you have to haul it out to the boat. We got frozen fresh fish and
lobster at Trainee’s Salon (she sells what her husband catches), pink Sands
(Sands Radler with grapefruit) at the liquor store and returned a case of
bottles. Bahamas beer producers are now
recycling their beer bottles. There are
almost none on the side of the road anymore.
We
had lunch at The Driftwood Café. Very
nice. Chicken pesto sandwich. Very good and not expensive, and then walked
the circle road around the harbor. We
picked u[p our laundry and I bought some fragrance and a fake rose at a stand
on the side of the road.
I
made steak for dinner (a rare treat) for us.
A beautiful sunset this evening. Majestic Phoenix and At Last came after
dinner. Joanne brought a card game
called Skip-bo. I think we all learned
to play it by the time the night was over.
Wednesday,
February 15, 2017. Clear,
wind South 5-10, 75 degrees. We made two trips to town for fuel (diesel and
gasoline), went to the grocery again, the bank, and picked up some soil from
Jillian (who has a place by the Shell Station).
With the soil, Lisa was able to plant a hamburger bean she found that
had been cracked open. She wrapped it in wet tissue and the thing is sprouting,
so maybe we will get to see what sort of plant makes hamburger beans!
Phil
(Majestic Phoenix) came over and we worked on his shells to turn them into
conch horns. Lisa made flowers (on barrettes)
to give out this evening. We had dinner
at Peace and Plenty (barbeque, peas and rice, cold slaw, mac and cheese). That was followed by a “Caribbean Band”. There were probably about 100 people
there. Nice evening!
Thursday,
February 16, 2017. Very windy this morning, wind South 15-20
going Southwest later today. Today we
changed the oil, oil filter, and fuel filter on both the main engine and the
generator. We also changed the main
Racor fuel filter that feeds both the engine and the generator. We checked the belts and all fluids as
well. Main engine hours – 2734,
generator hours – 1176.
We carried fuel from shore in jerry cans and filled Rhiannon (18 gallons). Then filled with water from the shore in jerry cans also.
We carried fuel from shore in jerry cans and filled Rhiannon (18 gallons). Then filled with water from the shore in jerry cans also.
We
talked to BTC again, and finally are able to “top off” our phone on line, which
means we may be able to keep the same number when we come again.
We picked up our filled propane tank.
We picked up our filled propane tank.
Friday, February
17, 2017. Another
very nice morning. Wind less than 10 and
sunny with puffy clouds. We have been traveling (off and on) with Destiny IV US. We met them at Cambridge Cay. He is part of a contingent of boats from Montreal
and they speak primarily French. He has
been harassing us that we discriminate against him because he is French
Canadian. He complains that we never
call him on the radio. So, today we called him on the radio even tho’ he is
anchored right next to us!
This
afternoon at 3:00pm, there is a reception of the boaters at Peace and Plenty
sponsored by Exumas Tourism. Probably
about 150 people attended. There was a cash bar, free food, and free
non-alcoholic drinks. There was
entertainment by a dj, a local singer, and then a group of 12 year olds, who
put on a fashion show and then did a couple of Bahamian dances. Very talented. Afterward, the dance instructor got about 18
of the women from the audience up to learn some dance steps. Being a very good instructor, she made all
the women look like they were good at the dance. Quite a nice show!
 |
| Entertainment at The Cruisers Reception |
Afterwards,
we went to At Last and played some
Mexican Train. What a nice day!
Saturday,
February 18, 2017. Another
beautiful morning in paradise. This morning we are off to The Exuma Foundation
Garden Show. For those of you used to
the garden shows in the Boston Convention Center or Madison Square Garden, this
is not that! All the same, there were
plants for sale, home made food, vendors selling jewelry, bread and other baked
goods, and a rummage sale. There were
children guiding tours around the grounds pointing out plants and describing
their uses. Our guide Abby, also
introduced us to a 66 year old parrot named Loco and sang a duet with Loco of
Amazing Grace. Abby is 8.
We
hear a boat named “Our Love” on the radio.
It reminds us of our boys because that’s what we called them when they
were little.
Lisa
did some “palm weaving (making knots)” with Ilene (Aftagla) and started a basket from the fronds she and Ilene had
collected. She says it is much harder than she thought it would be.
We
are making sure we talk with Pierre on Destiny IV US so he does not feel neglected.
Sunday, February
19, 2017. Wind
Southeast at 15-20 this morning. Cloudy,
looks like rain. We decide to move back
across the harbor to Sand Dollar Beach for more protection. Before we leave, I made on last run to town
to the grocery, gasoline for the outboard and ice.
11:00am
We move over to Sand Dollar and anchor at Noon.
2
miles
It
is still bumpy over here, but the wind is supposed to go Northeast and it
should smooth out.
At
1:00pm, we went to a “talk” by Cordell Rolle about medicinal use of native
plants. The subject matter was all
intermingled with a history of the Bahamas, the people, and how they all got
here. Very interesting guy.
At
2:30pm Lisa met with Deb on Scheherazade to show her how to make pine needle
baskets. Lisa learned how to do this in
Marathon in 2012 and in Brunswick this past January. While all this was going on, there were lots
of people just hanging out on the beach and in the bar. Others were playing volleyball, Mexican Train, Checkers, etc. Lots of activity at Chat and Chill.
We
met Stephen on Magic Daulphine. He was
introduced to us by Jillian, who was trying to broker some of Stephen’s art
work. He had with him some paintings he
had done on the inside of coconut shells.
Beautiful stuff. He is teaching
the kids at the elementary school how to do this. Before the afternoon was
over, Lisa had talked him into teaching a class tomorrow.
Dinner
on board, Lisa made pasta. Still very
windy and bumpy in the anchorage.
2NM 23.30.69'N 075.44.59'W
Monday, February
20, 2017. Looks like rain. 75 degrees, wind Southeast at 20. Very bumpy here. Lisa had her coconut painting class this
morning and then we had lunch at Chat and Chill. Majestic
Phoenix and At Last went south on
At Last about 5 miles to snorkel. At Last’s son Joe came in yesterday for
a week’s stay with his girlfriend. All
said the spot they chose to snorkel was very rough.
At
5:00pm, we all met at At Last for
drinks and appetizers.
We
heard from Down Time, Greenstone and
Saber Tooth. They are at Staniel
Cay. Hopefully, we will get to see them
all soon. Down Time is carrying stuff
for us from the states (repair parts and yarn for Lisa).
Tuesday,
February 21, 2017.
Wind Southeast at 20. It is supposed to
keep increasing. At Last and Majestic
Phoenix went north on Majestic Phoenix to White Bay to see swimming pigs and to
do some snorkeling.
The
wind is supposed to go South and then West as another cold front
approaches. There is no protection from
those wind directions where we are currently anchored. Some boats are moving to the other side of
the harbor, which would normally provide some protection, but they are
predicting 50 knot potential winds.
Lisa
made her way over to Copper Penny to buy a cover-up/dress. Very bumpy and wet on that dingy ride.
We
decide to get the anchor up and head north 10 miles to the Marina at Emerald
Bay. It is at the Sandals Resort, it
very protected and they have all the amenities.
We have not been plugged in for over a month, so it will be nice to top
off the batteries, water, etc as well.
The anchor is up at 2:00pm. Once
outside the harbor, it is very rough, glad it only 11 miles. We have just the fore sail out and are making
better than 7 knots. Once inside the
marina basin, it is flat, but the wind is still building. There are many people to help us onto the
dock. Nice! 5:00pm all secured.
Lisa
coined a new term today – “fallables” – anything not stowed away properly
becomes a “fallable” in rough seas, especially when the boat is pitching from
side to side. There are “fallables” all
over the inside of the boat as we did not anticipate such a rough passage!
11NM
today. 23.37.82'N 075.54.91'W
Wednesday,
February 22, 2017. Still very breezy, storm clouds on the horizon. Wind South 20-25. There are about 35 boats
that moved here from George Town. Many
of the boats with Kids aboard or guests moved.
While the facility is very protected – a basin carved out of rock – it
still experiences “surge”. The entrance
to the marina faces east and while small, is not protected by a sea wall. The waves hitting the shore here have come
3000 miles and can be quite large, even if the wind is calm. While the waves themselves cannot make it
through the small entrance into the marina, the energy from the waves does –
moving the water in the basin back and forth creating “surge”. The boats move around on the docks. Not dangerous, but suddenly the boat will be
pushed away from its dock and then slammed back against it. The docks are all very sturdy and float, so
that is a plus. The dockhands tell
customers to tie the boats tight to the docks to prevent this. The only other place I have experienced this
phenomena is in San Francisco. This also
makes entering and leaving the marina an interesting exercise.
Lisa
and I walked around the facility which includes The Marina at Emerald Bay,
Grand Isle Resort and Golf Club (where
you can buy a 3 bedroom, 3 bath condo for US$1.4 million) and Sandals Resort.
The
showers are great and the laundry has new machines and is free. After a hot shower, we played Rummy 500 – I
won for the first time in history – and at 5pm, we went to The Lighthouse
Restaurant for dinner with Gene and Cherie (The Riot). It was described to us as “Quaint, on the
beach, good food and not expensive”.
Very accurate description – and they have real ice cream! It is 3 miles north on Queen’s Highway. Gene and Cherie are sharing a rental car with
another boat.
Nice
evening.
Thursday, February
23, 2017. Cloudy,
rain this morning. Heavy wind and rain overnight. Good decision to be here tied to a dock.
10:00am
Clearing, wind Southwest @15+. Nice and
flat here in the marina. A southwest
wind is a bad direction for the Exumas as there are few places that offer any
protection.
We
borrowed the car the Gene and Cherie are sharing and went to Darville Lumber,
which is not only lumber, but hardware, bicycles, appliance and most other hard
goods. George Town version of Home
Depot. We were able to find attachments for the Dremel and some other items
which will help with our projects to convert conch shells to conch horns. We delivered 2 to Mariposa yesterday.
We
visited Prime Meats, which we have heard about but never visited. Great selection of meats, including beef and
sausages the make on site. Some other
groceries and dairy products and produce as well. Prices are very reasonable.
We
stopped on the way back to the marina for a walk on the beach. Beautiful beaches here.
Lisa
did some laundry and I cleaned our fenders (which really need it because of the
way the surge pushes the boat against the dock).
Showers
and wind in the late afternoon. Dinner
on board. Rotisserie chicken (from Prime Meats), sweet potatoes and fresh green
beans).
Friday, February
24, 2017. It is clear and very windy – West @ 20+. We decide to wait another day to head back to
George Town. The George Town Cruising
Regatta begins today and there are lots of games and activities including,
volleyball, a Gilligan’s Island Costume Contest, several types of small boat
races, 2 big boat races, a talent show and on and on. We will wait until we return to get involved.
We
spent most of the day bathing Rhiannon.
It has been quite a while since she has had a bath (when we left New Providence).
We
had dinner at the Emerald Bay Bar and Grill, which is just off the resort
property. We had pizza, which is the
best we have had in the Bahamas. Showers
and bed.
Saturday,
February 25, 2017. We cast off from the dock at 10:00am,
determined to make it back to George Town in time for the Talent Show, which
begins at Noon. However, this is the
Bahamas, and sometimes, start times are not strictly adhered to. One of the best signs about this was seen at
Ocean Cabin at Little Farmer’s Cay:
Our Hours
Most days we open at 9 or 10
Occasionally as early as 7
But some days as late as 12 or 1.
We close about 5 or 6
Or maybe 4 or 5.
Some days or afternoons
We aren’t here at all.
And lately we seem to be here
About all the time,
except when we are not.
Then we may be someplace else….
But we might be here then too.
The skies are
clearing. Wind Southwest @ 10-15 puffy
clouds, 75 degrees. Abby Singer is headed north today, back home to
“liquidate”. They have been on the boat
a year to see if that’s what they really wanted to do. After a year, a family meeting and everyone
agreed that they should “sell it all” and move aboard the boat.
12:10pm Anchor
down in Kidd Cove, George Town. Anchored
next to At Last. Majestic Phoenix
nearby.
We did not miss
any of the Talent Show. It did take an
hour to get a hamburger and a beer.
Lisa wound up on
the Ladies Tug-of-War Team (South) – and they won. There was then a challenge, so they had to do
it all over again – and they won again!
About 4:00pm, we
were overheating and headed back to the boat.
Sunday, February 26, 2017. During the day today, the wind began it
shift to the east and we decided to move back over to Sand Dollar Beach. We are anchored very close to where we were
last week. Slow Dance, Destiny IV US,
Majestic Phoenix and At Last are here.
Spirit is over here somewhere, but we have not seen them yet.
2NM 23.30.70'N 075.44.56'W
Lisa found
several conch shells which should make decent horns. I began cutting and trimming the shells. Lisa used epoxy to fill the holes made by the
conch fisherman when they get the animal out.
Sometimes, they destroy the shell.
We heard from
Down Time and they plan to be here on Friday.
I have managed
to catch a cold (or something) and I am being miserable. Stuffy head, chest congestion, cough, sore
throat. Sounds like a NyQuil commercial.
Monday, February 27, 2017. The weather is
still questionable and the wind out of the Southeast at 15+. However, most of
the events today are held in one of the protected “holes” (coves) on the
island. Today are the small boat races, which includes sailing and rowing
inflatable dinghies (which resist such attempts), paddle board races and the
famous “Coconut Challenge”, which involves 4 people in a dingy using flippers
for propulsion and trying to gather as many coconuts as possible. Fun to watch.
Lisa obtained
some ancient Chinese medication for my cold from one of the Canadian boats. It
is herbal and actually seems to be helping.
Tuesday, February 28, 2017. It is windy and
rain this morning, but by 9:00am it is clearing. By 11:00am, the wind has dropped to Southeast
@ 15 and it has turned into an almost perfect day for the first of the Big Boat
Races. Some of the entrants are die hard
racers, others not so much. Other Goose
went into irons (stopped dead, no wind in her sails) at each of the three marks
(turns) on the course. They even went
backwards around one mark!
The after race
party and awards was at Two Turtles in George Town. I am still feeling poorly and it is along
trek in a dinghy from where we are anchored to town, especially in this wind.
Lisa made
chicken soup for dinner. Really hit the
spot!
Wednesday, March 1, 2017. Lisa went to Chat and Chill this morning for
another coconut painting session. Afterwards, there was the Boccie Ball
Tournament, followed by volleyball, the Outcasts (ala Gilligan’s Island) Party,
where best costume wins. Free rum punch
for all entrants. She may be there
awhile. Our son Jeff calls this “Adult
Day Camp”.
 |
| Paradise in a coconut |
I am feeling
better, but still not up to par, but the Chinese meds seem to be working. Maybe they just boost your own immune system,
but I am feeling much better. I spent
most of today working on this blog, talking to our insurance agent about our
boat insurance and trying to set up a spot for Rhiannon to spend the
summer. I believe that insurance
companies have gotten to the point where they would be just as happy if they
did not have to insure anything.
Thursday, March 2, 2017. Today was the “Around the Island” race for
“Big Boats”. This is the second “Big
Boat” race and there are about 35 boats signed up. It has turned into a beautiful day, bit like
any sailboat race, it has staggered starts and the slowest boats go out last
(so as not to clog up the race course), so it takes all day. Today was also beach golf, where they set up
an 18 hole golf course on the beach so the whole thing is one big sand trap. Why would that be fun?
Friday, March 3, 2017. The wind has picked up significantly and
there are showers in the forecast. Heavy
clouds around, but no rain yet. We
should be OK where we are anchored as most of the predicted wind is supposed to
come from the east.
Lisa heard today
that her cousin, Fred, died suddenly. He
was also a good friend, and helped us recently with some of the renovations to
the house.
Because of the
impending bad weather, they are trying to finish up all the events of the
Cruising Regatta today. There is fun
volleyball, beach golf payoffs and the closing ceremony (where they pick the
raffle winners) all today. We attended
the closing ceremonies and were surprised how many people were not there. Apparently, it conflicted with Trivia Night
at the St. Francis Yacht Club. Got to
make sure you get your priorities straight.
The weather is
closing in, but the wind has not yet arrived.
We debated heading back to The Marina at Emerald Bay, but decide to
wait.
Saturday, March 4, 2017. We called our son James to wish him a Happy
Birthday. The weather is cloudy, but the
wind is still relatively calm (calm before the storm). Lisa talked to her family and the services
for Fred will be on Wednesday, so we get online to make travel plans. It’s not that easy to get last minute
seats. Many of the flights require an
overnight stay somewhere. We finally get
her a flight out tomorrow. We also
arrange a water taxi to take her across the harbor (the weather is supposed to
be really bad tomorrow), and a taxi to get her from the harbor to the
airport. Whew! Once that is done, the weather starts to get
worse. By evening, it is blowing East 25-30 and rain. We actually picked the dingy up on the davits
(where we carry it when traveling) so that we would not loose in in this wind.
Sunday, March 5, 2015. As the sailors say “it is blowing stink”. It is raining. The wind is steady at 25-30. We had a gust at 42 overnight. The anchor is holding and nothing has been
damaged. Very rough even though we are
in the lee of the island. At 11:00am,
Elvis’ Water Taxi shows up and we get Lisa safely aboard for the trip 2 miles
across the harbor. She took an extra set
of dry clothes with her. Good idea! Her
flight gets delayed 4 hours! She still
managed to make it to Atlanta, get through US Customs and US Immigration, and
then get to her connecting flight before they shut the door. James picked her up at Manchester Airport and
she was home in bed by 1:00am.
I stayed aboard
– no where to go. There is really no
where to hide from a storm. We are in
the lee of Stocking Island, but the wind is consistently over 30 knots, hitting
40 occasionally. The boat seems to be
taking it in stride, but no place for the faint of heart. I had to adjust the dingy a couple of times
as waves would hit it and knock it out of position. Several boats have dragged their
anchors. A couple of them had no one on
board and intrepid sailors went out in their dinghy’s and managed to get an
anchor to hold. Luckily, none of these
hit another boat, although there were near misses. Not sure what a person would
do if they went ashore in a storm and came back and the boat was no longer
there. The word irresponsible comes to mind.
Not much sleep.
