Important Projects

Sunday, March 17

One thing we missed while in the Bahamas was our cellphones, especially
the iPhone with the important weather and navigation apps. Carol's phone
had totally crashed when we got to the Abacos and several attempts to
resurrect it failed. We figured we would deal with it when we got back to
the States. Arriving in Vero Beach our major goal was to once again get
the phone working. After long frustrating conversations on the phone the
company agreed to send us a new phone so we waited in Vero Beach until
it arrived and we took it out to the AT&T store where Kyle was very helpful
and gracious, making us both happy as we once again have a working phone.
The other big project involved finding the proper hose and fittings to be
able to fix our refrigerator/freezer whick had given us fits for the last three
months. The owner of the company in California talked me through the
recommended fix, I was able to find the parts locally, and we once again
have a working system. I can once again buy ice cream to keep onboard
so I'm happy.
Vero Beach is a great place to stay, with free bus service, lots of sertvices
and shopping available and a wonderful farmers market on Saturdays we
were able to visit. Staying here for five days was enjoyable.

Working on the refrigeration unit.

 

Carol, with a phone once again, a happy girl.

 

Monday, March 18

Titusville and Heading North

Sunday we headed up to Merritt Island and had a chance to connect with
my cousin, Nancy Barnett and her husband Dan. They have a home nearby
and picked us up to go back to their new beautiful home for a lovely meal
and a great visit. It had been a few years since I had seen them.

Monday was spent motorsailing north to Titusville to spend the night and
pick up some packages I had ordered upon returning back to the U.S.
Coming in to the harbor we discovered friends we hadn't seen for a month,
a nice surprise. I think we will find that happening often as we head back
up, bumping into people we've met along the way.

Back in the Good Old U.S.

March 11,2013

Fort Pierce, FL

We worked our way from Marsh Harbour to Munjack Cay anchorage after
anchoring at Green Turtle Cay for three days, one of our favorite places. The
staff and facilities at the Bluff House are always great and we go there for happy
hour and to use their internet. The wind was pretty strong from the northwest
for a few days so we weren't able to anchor off of some of the islands we had
hoped to visit. "Kankita", friends from Annapolis we had met in Marsh Harbour,
was heading back to the States at the same time so we were traveling together.
There has been a lot of wind day after day so the seas have been running high.
We chose to aim for a weather window of Sunday -Monday and traveled to
Great Sale Cay and anchored to stage for our crossing.
Another boat joined us and we actually took off with five other boats, leaving
at 8:30PM shortly after dark. The night sail was beautiful, dark with lots of
stars out. We left the Bahama Bank at 7:00AM just at first light after 52 miles
continuing out into the ocean. The seas were as forcast, With 9-12' swells and
8-10' waves from a 90 degree angle to the swells. We had a rolly ride all the
way to Fort Pierce,FL handsteering the whole way, motorsailing. We didn't feel
in danger but it was a little intimidating being in the bigger seas. We couldn't
sleep at all on the crossing so by the time we got to Florida we were exhausted
from the 20 hour trip. We got into Fort Pierce right at maximum ebb tide which
is not recommended so we had an exciting entry. They have strong currents
at the inlet.
After tying up at the City Marina we walked downtown to a nice Italian place
for pizza. We hardly had the energy for the short walk back to the boat where
we crawled into bed and died, sleeping soundly for ten hours before waking.
We loved Fort Pierce, enjoying the bakery nearby, the marina area and the
downtown. We watched three manatees in the marina near our boat.
We loved the Bahamas but it's great to be back in the U.S.

Manatees at Fort Pierce Marina

 

 

 

 

Transitions

Tuesday, March 5

It is amazing how time flies. Apparently we have lapsed into the Bahamian
lifestyle. Recent visitors asked us about our typical routine. The best answer
we had was, "you'll see, the days slip by, there are few plans. We plan the next
few hours, not the next few days". Much time is spent getting to know new
friends, we are less project oriented, a big change for both of us "productive
people".
We spent ten days up around the northern end of the Abacos, visiting Green
Turtle Cay which we had enjoyed when arriving in December. We had an
enjoyable time, even though we got weathered in for a week. We had intended
to anchor at some of the small deserted islands up here but the weather didn't
cooperate. Instead we took a dock for five days and got acquainted with some
great people staying here at The Bluff House Marina. This is one of our favorite
marinas, with a great, friendly staff and good prices right now.
From Green Turtle we headed up to Manjack Cay to anchor in a protected bay
and were joined by four other boats we had befriended in Green Turtle. We
invited the other four couples to our boat for Happy Hour and a potluck dinner.
"Last Waltz" provided fish that had been caught by Jason, the dockmaster at
Bluff House and I grilled the mutton snapper which was fabulous and enjoyed
by all. The evening was one of the highlights of the trip for us. Of the five couples
present we had two Canadian couples, an Australian couple, a Texan couple and
us. What a great group.
Carol and I were discussing what makes the cruisers we've met so enjoyable
and we figured it is the fact they are doers not just talkers, they are positive in
their outlook, don't gossip and realize how special it is to be doing this. Nearly
all have them have had to deal with maintenance issues with things on their boat
but take it all in stride.
Our friends, Doug and Pat Reichenbach spent a week with us and it was fun
visiting some of our favorite spots with them. The weather dictates the itinerary
but we had fun. Pat got to experience snorkeling for the first time as we snorkeled
off of Nippers on Guana Cay. We saw a few fish and a lot of beautiful fan and
brain coral.
We recently become aware of a serious broken weld on the arch of our boat,
which carries the heavy loads of the sail and needed to address its repair so we
decided to stay at Mangoes Marina in Marsh Harbour to find a welder to repair
it. We nwere fortunate and blessed to be able to take care of it qickly with help
from some of the staff, one of which had a truck to carry the 12 foot, 150 pound
arch in the bed with four of us sitting on it to hold it down. CJ's Welding
graciously welded it the day we called them, fitting us in, and we had it remounted
by dark.  The disassembly and remounting required me to crawl into a very
small compartment to access the backing plates and nuts. Glad to have that
done!
While at Mangoes we enjoyed the daily fresh donuts made by the new chef. I
got spoiled quickly and have been suffering withdrawal since leaving.
Presently we have traveled around the Whale Passage and will enjoya few days
of anchoring at small islands waiting for a weather window to cross back over
to Florida. We plan on crossing with Kankita from Great Sale Cay maybe Monday
night and Tuesday. It will be a 20 hour crossing. When we get back to Florida
communication should be easier.

Crawling in to attach the arch

 

Broken weld at base of arch.

 

Desmond going under a lit limbo bar. How's

that for low, he's in his 40's.

 

 

 

 

New Places, New Friends

Sunday, Feb. 10

Wow, the Super Bowl was only a week ago. We've been several places before
and after the big game, nut actually made a point of being at a marina to watch
the game. It  always makes me feel American and I enjoy the commercials. The
game actually ended up being exciting too.

On our way down to Little Harbor we anchored at Tahita Beach for a couple of
days but couldn't go to Cracker P's because they aren't open the first half of the
week. Cracker P's has a reputation as laid-back island pub on the "must visit"
list so we'll try to catch it later. We also had hoped to snorkel at Sandy Cay,
part of Pelican Cays National Park but the weather didn't cooperate. It was
windy and rough both days we passed through that area and although it looked
beautiful we had to pass by. Lynyard Cay had a beautiful area to anchor in the
lee of the island just off a sandy beach and we spent a pleasant afternoon and
night, enjoying the star-filled sky.

Little Harbor is a small protected harbor at the southernmost part of the Abaco
Sea and is the jumping off point for cruisers heading south to Eleuthra and the
Exumas. It has room for 15-20 boats on mooring balls and anchors and has a
very unpretentious and "feet in the sand" atmosphere. Here there are more full time/
cruisers passing through and swapping stories, hanging out at the only
establishment, Pete's Pub which has a "temporary appearing" permanent structure
which lends to the ambiance. There is a heavy use of scavanged materials and
tarps, giving it a rustic appearance. It is a fun place and full of characters as you
might guess. We spent four days there due to the high wind enjoying ourselves,
and wanting to stay for Pete's Annual Birthday Bash.
Pete is the son of parents who came to Little Harbor in the 1950's and established
an artists colony. Randolph Johnston became a world renowned bronze sculptor
working with the "lost wax" process of casting and has created commisioned
 pieces  on display all over the world. Pete, his son, carries on the foundry and
there is a nice galleryhere. They do pours every couple of weeks and we enjoyed
getting a private tour from Richard, his French foundry manager/artist.
Here we met a young couple who spend a short summer season working in
Prince William Sound, Alaska on a 50 foot salmon fishing boat earning enough
to spend the rest of the year cruising on a sailboat. They are about 30 years old
and very personable. She has spent her whole life on a sailboat and is the cutest
Alaskan salmon fisherman I've ever seen.
Another couple we met here is Max and Tracy from Australia. We spent the next
week or so in the same anchorages with them and enjoyed finding out about the
Australian culture and getting to know them. As a whole we have found cruisers
to be people who enjoy life and new adventures and interesting people to talk with.

Mike and Chris Link on "Missing Link" pulled into Marsh Harbour Friday and it
was nice to reconnect with them. They were a huge help to us as we planned our
trip down here and have lent us charts, guides, and the benefit of their experience.
Some of you know them from Geneva Marina and the fact they grew up in Madison.

I'll send some pictures soon but I'm about to lose my internet connection so I better
sign off for now.

Meeting Neighbors

Meeting Neighbors Finally!

This is the first time I ever traveled 2600 miles to meet neighbors for the first time.
Mike and Gloria Gaffney are from Madison, Ohio and own a home four doors down
from ours but we've never been able to connect with them in person. I've spoken to
Mike several times and exchanged many emails with him but we finally connected
with them down here in the Bahamas. They have kept a boat down here for many
years, visiting it from their home in Maine and we met them last Sunday at their
boat in the Abacos. We had a delightful visit, as I had expected from what I already
knew of them. Hopefully we'll get to see them again while down here.
We are presently moving about the islands, walking some beaches, hopefully
snorkeling some new spots, and anchoring out and enjoying the beautiful islands
and sunsets. We've been having quite a bit of wind with even more forcast so we
try to find protected spots, moving around to find shelter from the wind and waves
while anchored. We both are enjoying being on the move again and experiencing
new places.

Mike and Goria Gaffney on their catamaran "Starship"

 

Race Day

Cruisers Become Racers

Many cruising sailors race during the season back at their home ports and when they
go cruising they sometime welcome a chance to do some racing in beautiful surroundings.
Sailboat races are held every two weeks down here outside of Hopetown and two boats
from our marina decided to join ten other boats for the race so other people from the
marina volunteered as crew on the two boats. We had a great time getting ready for
the race and competing on a very windy day. The competitive side of the racers showed
as equipment needed for cruising was stripped from the boats to lighten them to
"racing" form. The important thing of course was the fact that our boat (Jim and Ann's)
won bragging rights in a close well-fought battle. The local sailing club hosted
everyone afterwards for a nice post-race get-together, serving some wonderful fish
and chips.

Cleaning the bottom of our boat with a brush

even though our boat wasn't in the race. Both

boats in the race cleaned their boat bottoms

to make them faster for the race. The water

is so clear it is easy to see the bottoms.

 

Jim at the wheel, with Ann during the race.

Notice we were heeled pretty good due to the wind.

 

The racing crew on "Ubiquitous", all smiles.

 

 

Marsh Harbour Marina

Ping Pong Tables and Conch Horns

Our home base for 41 days was Marsh Harbour Marina, a place where we made good
friends and enjoyed the comeraderie of like-minded people. We made several trips of
1-4 days at a time while here visiting the area islands and towns and it was a good base
for receiving guests. The owners, staff and fellow boaters make it a great place, but also
make it difficult to leave. But we did leave on  the 27th heading for points south and
then back around to islands to the north that we bypassed on our way in to the Abacos.
We will revisit the marina in a few weeks before heading back to the US.
The marina now has a ping pong table which Pete and I helped build and it has been
a welcome addition to the facilities. It turns out there are quite a few players there
and the table has been getting a lot of use.
The other thing I got involved in was making horns out of conch shells, which we play
at sunset each evening. It has become quite a tradition for all to meet out at the end of
the dock each evening and we had about ten horns playing on many evenings. I have
been trying to perfect the art, choosing different size shells and making different size
mouthpieces. The horns have all different tones, some discordant, making a cacophany
of sound when played together. We selected three horns with good harmony and play
them like a bell choir, adding a new twist to the concerts. I finally was able to make a
horn that has two different tones, approximately an octave apart. When OSU fanatics
visited us to play euchre we had the conch choir play the intro to the OSU alma mater.
They recorded it to maybe share on facebook or youtube.

Trying out the new ping pong table with Jim.

 

Directing the conch choir of three harmonious horns.

 

Some of the assorted conch horns showing huge variation.

 

The Jib Room Conch Orchestra

 

Ben and Katie from "Buckeye" join us for OHIO.