After leaving York the end of October and spending a little over 3 months in the Bahamas, it was time for us to begin heading home. We are looking forward to being back in York. Although, for those of you that know us well, know that even when we are at our home in York it’s rarely for more than a week or two at a stretch before we head out again to see family or friends!

We left Georgetown in the southern Exumas on Friday the 14th and headed 40-50 miles north to the settlement of Black Point. The daysail north was a uneventful smooth motorsail and we were safely anchored before sunset. We spent Saturday morning on a Zoom call, then went to shore and did 3 to 4 loads of laundry, and capped the day off with a nice dinner at Lorriane’s.

Sunday morning at 4am we raised the anchored and headed northwest. It was going to be a 15 hour, 70-80 mile sail and we wanted to be anchored before thunderstorms were predicted around sunset. Our destination was West Bay, a good sized anchorage located on the western end of New Providence Island (Nassau is the largest city on the island). From there we would either head north up to the Berry Islands and wait for a good weather window to cross back to the states, or we’d continue west to Morgan’s Bluff which is located on the northern tip of Andros Island (there are no large towns or cities on this island even though by size, it is the largest island in the Bahamas). Regardless which island we headed to, we wanted to make sure we stopped where we could get fuel and be able to top up our tank before our crossing. Diesel should be available at either of these two islands.

During our passage from Black Point to West Bay we dodged a few thunderstorms and even saw two water spouts. Fortunately, we were able to see them far enough off in the distance and adjust our course so that we didn’t cross paths. Winds in the spout itself can be over 60-80 mph, like a small tornado, so you definitely don’t want to have one come directly over your boat (or even near it).

Other than waterspouts and threatening thunderstorms on the horizon, which lasted all day long, it was an uneventful passage! On another note the weather provided us an opportunity to sharpen our skills using our radar to identify and track storms.

There were more storms forecasted for our area Monday the 17th, so we ended up staying put at anchor all day and took advantage of the time to continue to prepare Eos for our eventual Gulf Stream crossing later in the week. In the evening, several large thunderstorms did pass by our area. While they didn’t pass directly over us, we were treated to a few hours of a pretty impressive lightening show and were glad we weren’t out in the middle of them.

As so often is the case when sailing, the wind direction for the day on Tuesday ultimately ended up being the determining factor in whether we went to back to the Berrys or to Andros. Since we wanted to sail most of the day, heading to Andros was going to be the best point of sail. So off towards Andros we sailed.

We had a great sail to Andros and ended up anchoring just after 2 o’clock in the afternoon.

Once our anchor was set, I called the local fuel station to make sure they were open and did in fact have diesel fuel. I caught the attendant just in time, as he said they were heading out to lunch around 2:30, but would be back by 3 and he did confirm they in fact did have diesel fuel.

Since we were anchored out, before heading to shore to get fuel we needed to lower the dinghy and put motor on. This is a task we do all the time, but after over three months of lowering the dinghy to go ashore and then restoring it again before heading out, we were getting tired of this task. (I’m sure you all are really sympathetic to this hardship we have to endure!)

Anyway, we launched the dinghy, grabbed our two five gallon jerry jugs and headed to the dock so that we would be there shortly after 3. This being the Bahamas and everyone operating on ‘island time’ we knew that ‘we’ll be back by 3’ really didn’t mean 3. Probably closer to 3:15 /3:20. So being there just after 3 meant we would only be waiting a few minutes.

When 3:30 rolled around and the attendant hadn’t returned, I was getting a little nervous. By 3:40, I was getting annoyed and becoming anxious. I figured we needed just under 20 gallons to fill up our tank and with only 2 five gallons jugs, we’d need to make 2 trips. Knowing that closing time was 5pm and ‘island time’ for closing never means closing later unless it’s a bar, we were quickly running out of time.

Fortunately the attendant showed back to work a little before 4 and filled us up first ahead of the cars that had begun to line up. We carried 10 gallons back to the dinghy (about a 1/4 mile walk), motored back to the boat, and quickly poured them into our tank.

We then motored back to the dinghy dock, walked back to the gas station and arrived around 4:40-4:45ish. Much to our relief, the attendant was still there and the station was still open!

We filled the jugs back up with another 10 gallons and took them to the dinghy. Rather than head straight back to Eos, we decided to see if we could find somewhere to get some conch fritters and or cracked conch as this would likely be the last time we would be ashore in the Bahamas this season. Fortunately there was a small sports bar nearby that was open and did in fact serve both.

After enjoying our last meal of conch for the year, we took a short walk around the harbor to check out the facilities in case we decide to come back here in the future. During our walk we did meet some fellow cruisers who had tied up along the municipal pier in the harbor. While the harbor didn’t have anything to offer like laundry or restrooms, it did provide great all weather protection and only charged $7 a day (total!). Not a bad deal considering most marinas in the Bahamas typically charge somewhere between $2-4 s foot/per night. (For Eos that would be $75-150 a night- plus taxes and other fees)

We eventually made it back to Eos, topped off the fuel tank, and restowed the motor and dinghy for our upcoming passage. Then we turned in for the evening.

As we’ve written about in the past, while out here cruising the weather and upcoming forecast play a huge part in determining what we can do during the upcoming week. Ideally, we’ve been looking for a weather window that would allow us to leave the Bahamas and sail 2 1/2 to 3 days offshore and return to the US somewhere around Charleston, SC. Allowing us to avoid a week or so of mostly motoring north on the ICW.

Unfortunately the forecasts for the next week or so were not looking good. The only windows for favorable crossing of the Gulf Stream continued to be less than 24 hours in duration followed by a few days of winds out of the north (the direction we would be traveling) along with afternoon or evening thunderstorms with gusts of 40-50mph. While we don’t mind a little ‘salty sailing’ those conditions didn’t sound good at all.

So we changed plans.

Rather than waiting for a window to make landfall near Charleston, we decided to position ourselves to take advantage of a short window that was coming up on Friday to cross over to Florida. To make the most of the opportunity we wanted to be a little further north in the Bahamas so that we when we crossed over on Friday we’d be at least north of Fort Lauderdale or Stuart Fla.

So on Wednesday morning we got underway and decided to sail overnight up to West End, which as its name indicates is located on the western end of Grand Bahama Island (home of Freeport) in the northern most part of the Bahamas.

Although the conditions were relatively calm and the winds fairly light, we were able to sail well over half of the 130 mile, 28 hour, passage north without the engine on at all. So we only used about 5 gallons of fuel.

We anchored off West End shortly after lunch, took a short nap and then spent some time finalizing our passage plan for the next day.

Leaving from West End, we had several options for making landfall in Florida where there would be a good port of entry (deep and wide enough that you can safely enter in almost all conditions). We could go directly across from West End to Lake Worth, a little further north to Stuart, or up the coast more to Fort Pierce, Cape Canaveral, St. Augstine, or potentially as far north as Fernandina Beach at the Florida Georgia boarder.

We looked at each of these options, and considered the time it would take to get there, our anticipated arrival time, along with the timing of forecasted thunderstorms arriving late Friday or Saturday in Florida.

Ultimately we decided on crossing to Fort Pierce. Doing so would allow us to get some more rest, make an early morning (4am) departure and reach Fort Pierce in the late afternoon.

With our decision made, we checked to make sure everything was still secured for an offshore passage, completed a few administrative tasks for clearing back in with US Customs and Immigration, enjoyed a nice meal and turned in.

Three thirty came pretty early, but we were ready. We made our coffee and had an early breakfast and were underway just before 4am.

Apparently, we weren’t the only ones with the same plan to take advantage of this short weather window. Over the course of next two or three hours, we saw at least a dozen or so other boats leaving West End and heading west to Florida, all going to Ft. Pierce.

Once again, we were blessed with great weather for crossing the Gulf Stream and even though we didn’t have a single bite on our fishing line, we had a great crossing.

The most ‘challenging’ part of the trip was our entry into the Fort Pierce channel. We ended up arriving to the channel just as the tide was at its maximum strength flowing out (max ebb current) and the wind was blowing directly into the out-flowing water. This condition (wind against current) is less than ideal for entering and one you typically try to avoid. Unfortunately, I had miscalculated the timing of max ebb flood and was already part way down the channel before I saw that it was going to be a ‘sporty’ 10 minute ride in.

Fortunately, Eos handled the rough surf well and we were able to make it through the channel without incident. Although, it did feel like it took forever to get in.

We were anchored in Fort Pierce and back in the US by 5:30 and ready to rest. We submitted our customs and immigration information online and immediately received notice our information was ‘being reviewed’.

Throughout the evening the status never changed so we went to bed without knowing if we were cleared or not to begin heading north.

When we awoke Saturday morning we finally received notification and that our information was approved. We received a nice message from US Boarder Patrol that our trip was approved and they told us to ‘enjoy your stay’. We were expecting a ‘welcome home’ but we’ll take an ‘enjoy your stay’. (Maybe they knew this crew never stays put very long)

So as of Saturday April 22nd we’re back in the US and cleared to continue our trip home.

Thanks again for your prayers and we look forward to updating you on our progress north before too long and hopefully seeing you in person.

We can’t believe it’s been over a month since we last posted in late March. We were having so much fun exploring the area and sharing Eos with some good friends and our family that came to visit this past month that we never stopped to update any posts!

Needless to say, we’ve been having a blast and hope that this post will bring you all up to speed on our adventures.

In late March we were joined onboard by our long time friends that used to live in our neighborhood in York. Although they moved away years ago, we’ve kept in touch and been able to get together almost yearly, they are indeed some of our closest friends. (You’d have to be close friends to agree to live together for almost a week in a 10’ by 40’ space!)

After greeting them at the airport, we all ferried out to Eos in our dinghy, loaded their stuff on board, and pulled up anchor.

Our first trip was only a couple of miles across the the harbor and probably took less than an hour.We moved to a spot that would provide good access for hiking, swimming, snorkeling, etc.

We moved Eos around the harbor several more times that week depending on the activities we had planned and also managed to get in several hours of sailing throughout the week as well.

The weather cooperated throughout the week and we were able to get in lots of hikes, paddle boarding, etc. In the evenings we attempted to play cards or dominoes but were typically pretty tired and calling it a night not too long after Boater’s midnight (8pm!).

During the week they also helped us with a few last boat tasks we needed to do before our 2 yr old grandson and his parents arrived for a weeks stay!

It was a wonderful week and we cherished our reconnecting time. We spent the next day or so after they left restocking the boat and resting.

The kids had an early flight from Ft. Lauderdale Fla to Georgetown, Bahamas and were on board Eos by 10:30 or so in the morning.

Our grandson quickly adapted to life afloat and wearing a life jacket when topside or on deck and loved to take ‘laps’ around the boat.

What do you do with a two year old on board you might ask. Well, you keep ‘em busy and try to make sure they’re tired by the end of the day would be our answer!

The days started early, around 5:30 or 6 when he’d wake up. After a breakfast and a few on board activities like reading, or repeatedly filling and dumping seawater from a bucket on a rope, we’d get in the dinghy, take a ride and hit the beach. After some time swimming or knocking down sand castles, we’d head back to the boat for lunch and a nap.

Later in the afternoon we’d hit the beach again, take a hike, and go look for hermit crabs.

Then it’d be time for dinner, a little quiet time, and if we’d done a good job keeping busy throughout the day, he’d crash by 7! (The adults weren’t too far behind).

One of the highlights of the trip for the kids was getting to see some sea turtles up close. The turtles in this one particular harbor would actually swim right up to the dinghy and eat lettuce leaves out of your hand. It figures that this was the one dinghy trip we all left our phones/cameras on the boat so we weren’t able to get any photos but did create a great memory.

Once again we were blessed with great weather throughout the week and had a fabulous week.

Being able to have friends and family onboard this season has been a great blessing as well and has really been a lot of fun. We can’t wait to have everyone on board again next trip.

In addition to enjoying time with our family and old friends this past month, we’ve also enjoyed making new connections and strengthening our bonds with previous acquaintances.

Earlier in the season we met a cruiser from England that was waiting for his wife to join him and eventually help him sail their boat back across the Atlantic. We ran into him and his wife in Georgetown and enjoyed getting to know them better.

I also ran into a classmate of mine from Annapolis who is single-handling her boat down to the Caribbean this season. We did spend some time talking about ‘the boat school’ but spent most of our time discussing cruising, boats, and life onboard a boat.

We also were able to meet up with one of my former bosses from Harley. He and his wife bought a catamaran just as he was retiring a few years ago and were making their first trip in their boat to the Bahamas. It was fun showing them around Georgetown and sharing with them some of our favorite spots to hike or snorkel in the area.

While the kids were onboard we met a cruising family with a 2 year old onboard. Our grandson and their son spent some time on the beach together knocking down sand castles and trying to size each other up more than actually playing together!

Before beginning to head north we also spent a few evenings with a new friend of ours in his early seventies that lives onboard his boat full time spending the summers in New England and winters is the Bahamas (moving between the two areas in the spring and fall). He has perfected a raisin bread and chocolate muffins that he willing shared with us. We didn’t do much baking this trip but it needs to be incorporated into our next trip. Very yummy!!

Getting to meet new people, hearing their stories, and building bonds with acquaintances is one of our favorite aspects of cruising. We’ve met so many people this trip.

We left Georgetown on Friday the 14th of April and have been moving north and west ever since. But more about that in the next post.

…. Warning … This post isn’t about meeting people, walking on white beaches, swimming in crystal clear water, or enjoying breathtaking sunsets with a refreshing beverage. Instead it is about some of the things we have to do along the way to enable us to partake in all those previously mentioned blessings….

One of our cruising friends is fond of saying ‘There are always at least three things on the boat that either have, or are about to, break. You just don’t know about them yet!”

Unfortunately, I tend to agree with them.

Although we put a lot of time and energy into maintaining Eos, she is a 28 year old boat, the marine environment can take its toll on equipment, and sometimes things just wear out. We’ve found that sometimes when an item stops working it may not actually be worn out or broken, rather it just is looking for some attention. Other times it’s not the harsh environment that causes an issue, but plain old operator error.

We’ll talk about a couple of ‘complicated’ issues we’ve had this season and how we ‘fixed’ them and let you be the judge of whether or not it was the harsh marine environment or operator error that caused the problem in the first place.

Problem no. 1: Depth sounder would periodically stop displaying the depth.

(The depth sounder is one of our instruments/gages onboard that measures and shows us how deep the water is. Think of it as our underwater eyes that help prevent us from sailing Eos into shallow water or hitting a submerged object like a coral head – When it’s not working we are sailing without one of our most important senses)

Prior to starting our journey this past fall, I noticed that periodically the display for the depth sounder would start blinking and stop displaying updated depth. It didn’t happen a lot, but often enough for me to try and look for the cause of the problem.

I tightened all the electrical connections associated with the system and still occasionally had the issue. Fortunately though, when it would malfunction it was only for a few seconds and then it would start working again. Not ideal, but I was ok with starting our journey.

Since we’ve traveled south several times over the past few years, our navigation system tracks and can display all our previous ‘tracks’ (the route or path we followed). In the worst case, if the depth sounder stopped working completely, we could always just follow our previous track and know we should more or less have plenty of water under the boat.

During the trip south, the depth sounder stopped working more frequently. Upon further research and talking with marine electronics professionals, the general consensus was that the transducer (the part of the system that transmits a signal into the water from the boat, listens for the signal to return, and calculates the depth based on the time it takes for the signal to return) was going bad and should be replaced.

I tended to agree with this diagnosis, especially since it is the original 28 year old transducer. So we knew what needed to be fixed. Unfortunately, to replace the transducer meant the boat would need to hauled out of the water at a marina, the old transducer removed, and a new one installed. The transducer is mounted in a ‘thru hull’ and when you go to remove it you have about a 2” wide hole in the bottom of the boat through which water can come rushing into the boat. Changing out transducers takes time, thus the reason for needing a haul out. It’s not something you do when the boat is in the water.

Besides the expense of a haul out, trying to find a marina in early January in Florida that had an opening was not easy. So we pursued an alternative, more temporary, solution that didn’t involve a haul out.

They do make some transducers that you can epoxy or glue to the inside of the boat instead of requiring a hole, but they aren’t as accurate. Since we did have our old tracks to help guide us I was ok with using something a little less accurate- heck less accurate was more accurate than no reading at all!

We tried several sources and were unsuccessful in getting the parts needed to make such a system work so an ‘in hull’ system wasn’t going to be an option.

At least the depth sounder was now still occasionally giving us a reading. An occasional reading was better than no reading. At least we still had our old tracks and if worst came to worst we could do like sailors of old and use a ‘lead line’ to determine our depth in shallow water. (For those that are really curious you can look on Wikipedia to read about lead lines).

So we decided to head over to the Bahamas with our depth sounder only occasionally working knowing we had recent tracks and the water is crystal clear making it easier to ‘read the bottom’ and avoid taking Eos into shallow water.

Two days after clearing into the Bahamas in Great Harbor and leaving the marina, we anchored out and were finally able to go for a swim in that crystal clear water we’ve shown in other posts. I put on my snorkel gear to take a look at the bottom of the boat and just check things out.

When I dove on the boat I saw that the bottom of the boat was spotless with no barnacles or other marine growth anywhere. That was anywhere EXCEPT the depth transducer! Barnacles had taken up residence on the entire 2” surface of the transducer.

I had Diane hand me a scraper and I promptly evicted the hard creatures from the transducer.

Apparently they began growing over the summer in our marina in Maryland and survived or multiplied as we traveled south. Once removed and the transducer surface cleaned we haven’t had a problem since.

A new transducer is still on the list of items for upgrades prior to our next trip, but instead of a haul out, or glueing something to the inside of the boat, a few dives under the boat with a scraper solved that one for now. Simple.

Problem no. 2: We couldn’t hear anything on our SSB (single side band) radio.

We have several different radios and other means of communicating with the outside world on Eos. We have our VHF (very high frequency) radio that is capable of communicating short distances with other boats( up to about 10 miles or so). We also have our cell phones that work as long as we’re within a few miles of a cell tower. And finally we have our SSB (high frequency) radio that is capable of communicating 100’s and 1000’s of miles depending on atmospheric conditions. It is a marine amateur/HAM radio.

SSB radios used to be what most cruisers used for getting weather information and news. Today many cruisers have switched to satellite internet systems like Elon Musk’s Starlink service. Since we don’t cruise full time and aren’t big users of streaming services, we haven’t gone that route yet.

With our SSB radio working properly we can listen daily to our marine weather forecaster, check in with other cruisers, and have a means of long distance emergency communication if we ever need it.

When it’s not working, we are limited to VHF communications to other nearby boats, or relying on cell service for our weather information. Unfortunately not everywhere we travel here in the Bahamas has reliable cell service.

If we aren’t going to be traveling south for the winter and leaving the boat out of the water in Maryland for the winter, as part of our winterizing process, we often remove the radios and some other electronic devices and store them in our house. When spring rolls around, we reinstall everything and get ready for the sailing/cruising season.

That is what we did last winter and spring. Removed the radio in the fall and reinstalled it in the spring.

I noticed this past summer that I really wasn’t able to hear anything but static on the SSB radio, but attributed that to being in a marina with lots of electrical interference from other boats and rigging. I’d check it again as we started heading south.

In the fall as we were traveling south the situation really didn’t change much except that I did notice I could hear transmissions on the VHF frequencies very clearly and nothing but static on the HF frequencies. (Our SSB radio can hear both VHF and HF)

I’d have to work on this more before we got to the Bahamas as I wanted to make sure we had a reliable means of getting weather forecasts.

While we were in Florida, I cleaned the area where the antenna lead connects to one of our wire back stays (part of the rigging that keeps our mast upright and also serves as our SSB HF antenna). I also replaced and used a heavier /sturdier connector to ensure I had a good connection. That should have solved the problem.

Nope that didn’t do the trick. I still had great VHF reception and nothing but static on HF or SSB. What next?

Well, when all else fails read the manual. Right?

So I dug out the manual for the radio and before long I came across the likely issue and solution.

The diagram of the back of the radio where the antenna connection is shows that one connection is specifically dedicated for an HF antenna and the other for a VHF antenna.

When I re-installed the radio this past spring, I connected my antenna lead to the wrong terminal on the back of the radio! Once I removed it from the VHF terminal and connected it to the HF terminal no more static and we could both hear and transmit great on the HF frequencies.

Another easy fix to a frustrating problem. (In case you’re wondering we do have separate dedicated VHF radios with their own dedicated antennas so when we properly connected the SSB radio we weren’t negatively effecting our ability to use our VHF radios)

Now the crew could rest easy knowing we could get weather information anywhere we went this season, even without cell service, and that we had a means for long distance emergency communication if required.

Two down one more to go. (Hopefully no more)

Problem no. 3: Low voltage in our batteries overnight was causing the refrigerator/freezer to stop unless the engine was used to recharge the batteries.

As we’ve written about before, while living on the boat at anchor we don’t have any outside sources for electricity and rely on Eos’ batteries for all our electricity needs. (Lights, refrigeration, navigation electronics, charging cell phones, etc).

We do have 3 ways to generate electricity on board – the alternator on the engine (just like your car), 4 solar panels that can generate power as long as the sun is shining, and finally a small wind turbine that generates electricity when there is a breeze (even when it’s dark).

The electricity that we generate is stored in two places – a dedicated start battery so that we always have energy to start the engine and a separate house battery bank that consists of 4 batteries connected in parallel. The house bank is designed to store the energy generated by any of the three sources and then be available to be pulled out and used overtime.

There’s a ton of information on line and some really good books that cover how batteries work for those that are curious, so I’m not going to get into any technical detail. However, it is important for the story to give a little bit of a layman’s description of batteries.

Think of a battery like a container of water, say a gallon jug. That jug can hold one gallon of water. Four jugs can hold 4 gallons. When the jugs are connected in parallel you have equal access to all 4 gallons of water.

The chargers (alternator, solar panels, wind generators) are like faucets. They put water into the jugs and once the jug(s) are full unless you turn the faucet off, the water will just keep coming out of the faucet and start spilling out of the jugs. When connected in parallel, you are filing all 4 jugs equally at the same time, but they still will only hold a total of 4 gallons. Likewise, when taking water out, it is removed equally across all jugs.

Greatly simplified but hopefully this will provide a basic picture of our system.

On Eos we have 4 105amp 12volt AGM batteries (very similar to car batteries) in our house bank. With those 4 connected in parallel we have 420 amps in our house bank (in keeping with my simplistic description and for this post just think of amps of electricity as gallons of water!)

420 amps isn’t a huge battery bank by today’s standards but it is more than sufficient considering we typically only use 50 to 60 amps a day while at anchor. The biggest load on the system comes from our refrigerator.

Our solar and wind generator can keep up with that demand and on a typical day our batteries are full or topped up by mid-day. Or so we thought.

Recently we noticed that around 2 or 3 in the morning the refrigerator would start flashing a low voltage alarm and stop running the compressor, which keeps things cold, because too many amps had been removed from the system.

One of us would notice the light flashing and awaken the other (especially if it was Diane that noticed the alarm. If it was me who noticed, I’d let her sleep). Once awake, I’d start the engine using the dedicated start battery and then let the engine run for an hour or so to recharge the batteries (put more water in those jugs) then turn the engine off and go back to sleep, knowing I’d put enough energy back into the system to run the rest of the evening.

In the morning, when the sun came out, the solar panels would recharge the batteries and all would be good until about 2 or 3 the next morning.

But this shouldn’t have been happening since we were only consuming 50 to 60 amps and had a house bank of 420 amps. It was time to do some more investigating and troubleshooting.

During the course of my troubleshooting, along with the help of one of my cruiser friends we began to go battery by battery (jug by jug) to see if we could isolate the problem.

It didn’t take us long to find the issue.

It seems that either when I was working on the boat and installing new solar panels this summer or when I had a technician install a new charger/inverter, one of us forgot to connect one of the battery leads from the first battery to the second one. Batteries 2,3&4 were all connected to each other but they weren’t connected to battery 1 which is where all the electricity for charging comes into the system.

So while I thought we were running on 4 batteries with 420 amp capacity, in reality we were only running one 1 battery with 105 amps. So everything was coming out of that one jug and the other three weren’t being used at all. No wonder we were running out of electricity during the night.

Once we properly connected battery 1 to the other 3 our electricity problems were solved! We were back to being able to use all 4 jugs instead of only one.

Another simple fix to a vexing problem.

We have some friends joining us next week and then our 2 year old grandson and his parents will be joining us the first week of April. So it is going to get busy again onboard Eos and it will be a few weeks before we post again.

But as always, we enjoy sharing and appreciate all your prayers.

(Technical p.s. We have a fourth charging source that we use when in a marina and connected to shore power, an AC battery charger. The shore power charger is connected in such a way that it basically charges each battery individually so batteries 2, 3, & 4 had been last charged back in January when we were connected to shore power and were reading 12.4v when we discovered the issue. Fortunately they were not discharged much and all appears well in the house bank.)

We can’t believe it’s almost been a month since we last posted anything. Rest assured, all has been going well on board Eos. Diane and I have definitely slipped into ‘Island Time’ or ‘Cruising Time’. We kept meaning to write and post something, but sailing, swimming, hiking, or visiting with friends just kept side tracking us. So now that we find ourselves with a quiet afternoon we figured now is as good a time as any to get a quick update out there.

Right after the kids left in late February, we ran into one of our cruising buddies from the 2021 season in Staniel Cay. After a quick reunion, we made plans to meet up again later over on Cat Island and then spend a week or so cruising the Out Islands together.

It’s over a 40 mile ocean sail from the Exumas over to Cat Island so we needed to make sure we had good weather for crossing prior to heading over.

After checking several sources, it didn’t look like there would be much wind for sailing across for several days, but if we were willing to do some motoring the seas would be flat and we could have an easy crossing leaving sooner. We elected to take advantage of the light winds and smooth seas and motor across, while our friends decided to wait a few days so that they could primarily sail across. Waiting would mean higher winds and seas than Diane liked.

We actually ended up with several hours of great sailing, then a few hours of nice motor sailing and finished it off with several hours of motoring only. While it would have been ideal to sail the entire way across, crossing 40 miles of open ocean in calm seas was very nice!

While waiting for the other boats in our flotilla to arrive in Cat Island, we met some new friends. We had actually first seen this boat and couple when we arrived in the Bahamas back in January but didn’t have an opportunity to spend much time with them.

They are from my home town and it turns out that even though we didn’t know each other before, we actually went to the same high school at the same time – just ran in different groups I guess. So anyway, it was fun spending time with them and getting to know them.

Our other friends arrived a few days later and we spent a few days on the beach and in town with them.

After a few days of just hanging out, we all started making plans to move a little further south and hopefully connect with two other boats we sailed with in 2021.

The weather and longer range plans weren’t aligning for reunion. Two of the boats were intending to move much further south than we were going this season and needed to sail on the east side of Long Island. Our plans had us sailing along the west coast of the island so that we could easily move west at the end of the month. What to do?

We had a big fair well dinner at a local restaurant, told a few sea stories, wished each other safe travels and agreed to keep in touch!

The following morning we set sail for Calabash Bay on the north end of Long Island and they headed east to Rum Cay and then on to Clarencetown on the east coast of Long Island for a few days.

We had a nice sail and the two other boats we were meeting arrived at about the same time. So we were able to have a mini-reunion.

When we were in Calabash Bay back in 2021, it was right in the middle of Covid and not many people were traveling. Consequently, most of the resorts and businesses were happy to see any tourist regardless of how they arrived. Back in 2021, the resort in Calabash welcomed all cruisers, hosted happy hours with free food every evening. Free conch fritters- what more could you want?

Fast forward two years with everyone traveling again, the resorts are full of guests and need to make sure they are taking care of them. So when we went ashore for happy hour and some free fritters we saw signs around informing us that while we were welcome On the beach and could walk around, happy hour and dinner service was for resort guests only. They weren’t rude about it, just upfront that they intended to take care of paying guests before cruisers.

We did enjoy a nice lunch there the following day before heading a little further south to Thompson Bay (about 20 miles south).

While in Thompson Bay we decided to rent a car for the day, do some sightseeing and drive down to Clarencetown for the afternoon so that we could have a full reunion with our friends, even if it was only for a few hours.

After several days in Long Island, we needed to make plans for positioning ourselves in a good spot to move back west to the Exumas in a week as we have guests joining us the end of the month.

We had hoped to be able to get to the Ragged Islands for a few days this season but the weather wasn’t cooperating. The fishing and snorkeling there is supposed to be really good as most of the islands are uninhabited.

The wind and sea state forecast was marginal for getting there and questionable for returning so rather than chance it, we elected to return north to Cat Island for one more visit this season and will move over to Georgetown later this week.

As we predicted, these last 2 1/2 weeks flew by. It was great to be able to have the kids and our 7 month old granddaughter on board and to share this part of God’s creation with them.

When we began planning for this season last fall we knew that we wanted to have each of the kids come over if possible and to spend a week or so with us. As we mentioned in the past, schedules and boats don’t go together very well so we decided early on that we would get to the Staniel Cay area early February and remain here for most of the month and have the first round of family fly in and out of here. The end of March and beginning of April we will have more family visit us in Georgetown giving us plenty of time to travel without having to move in any questionable weather.

Besides setting destinations and dates early in our planning process, we also wanted to ensure we had adequate provisions on board for our extra shipmates. It’s one thing to provision the boat for the the season for just the two of us, but planning for and finding room for food for an extra person or two for another 4 or 5 weeks presented us with other challenges.

To ensure we weren’t spending all our time with meal planning and prep while folks visit Diane came up with a basic menu for the week that we would follow. So while provisioning before leaving the States we made sure we bought enough ingredients to prep each meal 4 or 5 different times. Then we separated all the ingredients into a separate bin for each week of guests. That way we knew we’d have all the basic ingredients we needed for each group and might only have to purchase the fresh produce or dairy ingredients along the way.

Since we’d be hosting the grandkids during this season Grandma wanted to make sure we not only had sufficient boat and beach toys onboard, but that we also packed a weeks worth of diapers for each kid. Before we packed it all in I was sure I was going to need to get a bigger boat!

We eventually were able to find room to store everything without buying a bigger boat and were almost ready for our guests.

The next thing we needed to tackle was sleeping arrangements. Eos has two main sleeping areas – the forward cabin which Diane and I use and an aft cabin. The bed in the aft cabin is a queen size mattress at the head, but tapers down to a full or twin at the foot area. Room for two.

In the main living area, the seats on either side can be converted into beds/bunks at night time with one being s little narrower than a twin bed and the other side converts into a double bed. Plenty of room in this area, but no privacy.

So where would the grandkids sleep without a crib on board?

We took care of that one too! Diane made what’s known as a Lee-cloth that would create a safe barrier and keep the child safely in the bunk at night.

The first round of kids arrived on Friday the 10th. We spent the week visiting many of the same areas here in the Staniel Cay area that we did with our niece a few weeks ago.

For most of the week we had great weather and were able to swim, hike, paddle board, and explore. We did have two very rolly nights and fortunately the baby slept through both, unlike the adults.

The week flew by and before we knew it we were dropping them off at the airport for their flight home and had just a few hours to get the boat ready for our next guest.

We did laundry, a quick provisioning run to the local markets and topped off our water tank. Time to take the dinghy ashore and walk to airport to greet our daughter as she got off the plane.

Apparently we took longer than we thought at a quick stop for vegetables and her flight was slightly early because shortly after arriving at the airport we got a text from our daughter saying she was already at the marina. Not sure how we missed her but I guess the golf cart shuttle she was on took a different road back to the marina than the one we walked on! (10 minute walk, or a 4 minute golf cart ride)

We were able to snag a ride back to the marina on another golf cart, apologized profusely for not being there to greet her in person and then officially welcomed her to the Bahamas with a nice tropical drink at the marina.

We had a great week with her on board. We had several beautiful sailing days, explored the area and hit some great snorkeling spots.

Along the way we met up with one of our buddy boats from our last trip. It was a nice but short reunion as they too had guests on board and would be heading north to drop them off while we were heading south. Still it was nice for them to meet our daughter and put faces with names and vice a versa.

We ended our week with a nice dinner ashore and had our first lobster of the season. Hopefully the next one we get will catch ourselves!

We dropped our daughter off at the airport on Sunday morning after another great week of visiting and exploring.

We hated to see her go as we had throughly enjoyed having our kids on board these last two weeks. We won’t see them again until late May.

Our next round of visitors arrive in late March. They will be visiting Georgetown, Exuma, 50 miles south of Staniel Cay, so in the mean time we’re going to spend a few weeks exploring some of the more remote islands in between. We should be well rested by the time our almost two year old grandson and his chaperones arrive in April.

As always we appreciate your prayers and look forward to sharing our travels with you.

I believe we mentioned in earlier posts, but in case we didn’t, this season we were going to be having all of our kids, grandkids, and several friends stay with us at various times. All told, we’ll have family and friends traveling with us for almost 6 weeks. We’re definitely excited about sharing this beautiful part of God’s creation with them.

We’re also excited to be able to spend sometime both revisiting places we went to last trip as well as seeing new areas. This week we would have the opportunity to do both, and possibly time for a few boat chores as well.

Our first stop this week was Black Point, home of Lorraine’s Restaurant and one of the best laundry mats in the Bahamas. We had a great sail down from Staniel Cay to Black Point and arrived early in the afternoon.

Once we were confident the anchor was set and the boat was secured, we loaded the dinghy up with our laundry and headed to shore. While some boats slightly larger than Eos might have the capability to have a small washer/dryer on board, we don’t have that luxury. Consequently, we occasionally have to build in a laundry day into our schedule as not all the islands have them. Or if they do, the price per load can vary considerably. The most we’ve had to pay along the way is $8 a load to wash and the same to dry- $16 total to do a load of laundry!(Now you know why in our pictures you may notice I’m often wearing the same outfit-I’m saving money 😂)

Fortunately the price at BlackPoint was only $4 each, so we packed up and went to shore to do laundry.

We also stopped by Lorriane’s and put in our order for a loaf of her mom’s Coconut bread. It would be baked fresh and ready for us the next day. While placing our order we learned that the next evening Lorraine and her husband Uriah would be having the grand opening of their new waterside cafe and bar. There would be a band, and free food and drinks, and I’m sure a big crowd.

We returned to the boat later that evening with several loads of clean clothes and excited to be in town for the big party the following day.

The next morning we spent time defrosting our freezer. We have a combination freezer/refrigerator on board that works really well, but isn’t “frost-free”. Every several weeks we need to turn it off, remove all the food from the freezer unit, and then melt or defrost the ice that builds up on the freezer plate. It’s not a difficult task, but something that needs to be done.

With the days chores done we headed ashore for a hike and some exploring. We hiked over to the ocean/sound side of the island and found a blow hole. It’s a feature along the shore where there is a hole/tunnel in the rocks several yards inland that is connected to the ocean. When waves come ashore the water travels through the tunnel and then bellows skyward when it reaches the opening in the rock (kind of looks like a geyser).

Not too far from the blow hole some lucky folks are building a home with a fantastic view of the ocean.

We made our way back to Lorriane’s in time to pitch in with other cruisers blowing up balloons, setting tables, and anything else Lorriane needed. It was the least we could do for free food and drinks!

It was a great evening. The music was great, the food was delicious, and the drinks were refreshing.

The following day we were headed from Black Point down to Little Farmers Cay, a place we did not visit last time around. We were excited to be able to be there during the annual 5F’s festival (Farmer’s Cay First Friday of February Festival). The local community hosts sail boat races, a small craft fair, and several food vendors are there all to help raise funds for the island. Many cruisers we met over the past several weeks raved that this was something we didn’t want to miss.

We had a great sail down. As soon as the anchor was up, we turned off the engine and didn’t turn it on again until just a few minutes before dropping the hook (anchor) again off Little Farmers.

There were over 100 boats anchored in the various anchorages around the island so we knew we wouldn’t be alone in enjoying the events.

For the next several days we enjoyed exploring the area, meeting up with friends as well as making new ones, and did our part to support the local community.

One of the highlights of our weekend there was seeing the sail boat races. Crews from the surrounding islands come to compete on these small single sail sailboats. The boats themselves are rather unique in that they have only one really large sail and the crew (or rail meat) sit out on these long boards to provide a counterbalance to the sail and keep the boats upright. The race course actually had the boats sailing right through the anchorage so we were able to be really close to some of the action. Over 20 boats participated.

We had a great time in Farmers and definitely look forward to coming back later in the season.

After enjoying the festivities all weekend it was time to return to the Staniel Cay area and get ready for our next guests.

We spent the week mainly just hanging out, cleaning, doing some meal prep and boat chores.

Our next guests, our 7 month old granddaughter and her chaperones (parents) arrive this Friday (the 10th) and then the following week out oldest daughter will join us for a week. We are looking forward to having everyone on board and will be quite busy so I’m not sure when we’ll get around to posting again.

We’ll try to send a short update or at least a few photos, but as always we appreciate your prayers. Take care and stay warm.

Following a tough overnight passage to West Bay, New Providence Island we spent the morning resting. Then we took advantage of a strong cell/internet connection and were able to book a return flight for our niece.

When we first started scheduling our niece’s trip we decided not to lock ourselves into specific dates and locations for departure & arrival. This time of year the weather is too unpredictable and as we’ve mentioned before, one of the worst things you can bring on a boat is a schedule. Trying to be in a specific location on a specific date can lead to making poor decision regarding travel if you force yourself to move in less than ideal conditions.

Consequently, we had her purchase a one way ticket to Florida which gave us flexibility to wait for a good weather window to cross to the Bahamas. If the weather didn’t cooperate she could at least spend a week or two with us in sunny Florida. But the weather did cooperate and she was able to make the crossing with us. Now we needed to book her a return flight. Hence the stop in West Bay to spend an afternoon planning her departure for later in the week.

We spent the afternoon looking at weather forecasts and developing several possible travel itineraries for the rest of the week. We wanted to give ourselves plenty of time to reach a destination that she good catch an inter-island flight back to Nassau and then catch an international flight back to the states.

We ultimately booked her a flight out of Staniel Cay on Sunday morning to catch an afternoon flight from Nassau to Dulles airport near Washington, DC.

With travel arrangements all set we called it a day and prepared to move further south in the morning and spend several days exploring the northern Exumas.

We had a very calm and uneventful passage the next day and anchored in Norman’s Cay just before sunset. Our passage from West Bay to Norman’s took us across area that is known as the Bahamas Banks. Unlike the ocean crossings, the water in the Banks is relatively shallow, consistently measuring only 10 to 18 feet deep, and is crystal clear. Combined with only a light breeze, the conditions were very calm. I’m sure even those of you who might be sea-sick prone would have enjoyed that passage!

The next day we spent exploring Norman’s Cay. We took a short dinghy ride to a cool dive site and snorkeled around the wreckage of an old airplane. Our niece took some underwater photos of wreck which we’ve included below.

We took a nice hike on the island and made dinner reservations at MacDuff’s. During our previous trip here the restaurant had been closed due to Covid on our way down, and then was booked for a private event when we stopped on our way north. So we were pleased when we found out it would be open for dinner this time!

After a great dinner we turned in for the evening and so we could get an early start in the morning to our next stop – Staniel Cay.

Again we were blessed with a pleasant passage and arrived in Staniel early in the afternoon on Friday.

Staniel Cay is located in the central part of the Exumas and has a good marina, a decent number of vacation cottages, several small grocery stores and a good air strip. It also is close to several popular tourist attractions, the swimming pigs and the James Bond Thunderbolt grotto. Consequently it is a very popular destination.

We didn’t waste anytime getting into tourist/explorer mode after we were anchored. We headed straight to the grotto and jumped in. It was almost high tide so the swim into the interior of grotto was a bit tricky. At low tide there is plenty of overhead clearance and you can swim right in without having to dive or swim underwater. At high tide we did have to swim underwater a few yards in several places before we reached the large opening in the middle.

Once inside the grotto you’re swimming in what is essentially a large cave. There is an opening in the top of the cave that lets light in and the water is home to quite a few different species of marine life. It’s easy to see why it’s popular with tourist.

The next day we took the dinghy to shore and explored the island by foot. We walked over to air strip to make sure we knew where we’d be going the following morning and to determine while or not we thought we needed to arrange for a taxi/golf cart or if we good safely land the dinghy somewhere nearby. There were several small boat docks and a beach close to the air strip so we’d skip the taxi in the morning.

We did a little shopping for some fresh fruits and veggies and then walked back to marina/yacht club for lunch.

One of the things I kept mentioning to our niece throughout her stay with us was how dry the climate is here in the Bahamas and how they typically don’t get much rain. Silly me.

On our way back to the marina the skies opened up and it poured for about 15-20 minutes! Fortunately we found a small park with a pavilion and were able to escape most of the rain. Once the rain stopped we walked back to the marina and enjoyed a nice lunch.

After lunch we returned to the boat so that we could enjoy a lazy afternoon while our niece finished packing for her trip home.

By late afternoon the breeze had picked up and the water was starting to get choppy. Fortunately we were done with most of our running around. The one thing we hadn’t done yet was take a trip over to Pig Beach and show our niece the swimming pigs.

Looking at the wind and choppy water I explained that if she wanted to go see the pigs the ride there wouldn’t be bad, but the ride back to the boat would be rough. We’d be motoring directly into a stiff breeze and choppy waves and we would definitely get wet/soaked/drenched on our way back.

Being her last day here, she said she definitely would like to go as long as I felt it would be safe. I felt comfortable that while we were going to get wet, we would be safe.

The ride to the beach was in fact not bad, and our niece spent about 15-20 minutes on the beach with the pigs. After taking a ton of pictures it was time for the ride back to the boat.

I hadn’t been wrong. We got drenched on the way back to the boat but made it back safely.

The next morning everyone was up early. After a quick breakfast we loaded up the dingy and made our way over to the air strip for check-in.

All went smoothly with the ride over and the check-in process was quick. The Flamingo Air plane arrived on time and probably wasn’t on the ground for more than 10 minutes before everyone boarded and it took off again.

We spent the day just hanging out and doing a few boat chores between check-ins with our niece during her trip home. She had an uneventful trip home and made it safely to Dulles without any delays or issues.

It had been a great two and half weeks having her on board and we were already missing her smile.

If you recall from our last post we needed to make a decision whether or not to remain over night in our current anchor and possibly spend several hours bumping on the bottom or get underway at high tide (10pm) and sail overnight to our next destination.

Whenever we plan to move Eos we spend time studying weather forecast to assist in our passage planning. We subscribe to a marine weather service that provides detailed marine forecasts, sends us emails twice a day, and has a daily webcast that reviews the local weather in detail and allows cruisers to ask questions in real time about the weather & passage planning. We’ve been very pleased with the accuracy of their forecasts and feel confident in the guidance they provide.

The forecast for the next couple of days was for the sustained wind speed to be in the mid to high teens with occasional gusts in the low to mid 20’s. While that’s a little higher than some of us on board are comfortable sailing in, it’s definitely well within Eos’s comfort range.

The wind direction was forecasted to be coming on our port stern quarter (think of 7 to 8 o’clock on a clock dial). This can be a pleasant point of sail if the seas are flat, but can be a bit rolley if there are any sizable waves.

So it sounded like we would have brisk wind and a good, but possibly rolley, point of sail heading down to New Providence regardless of when we left. So sailing overnight was a possibility.

If we were going to sail overnight we would leave around 10pm which was high tide and we would follow the reciprocal of course into the anchorage. Since it would be dark and our visibility would be limited this would ensure we were following a safe course back out to sea.

We discussed our options and decided that rather than sail overnight we would take our chances with the tide and hope that it wasn’t too bumpy of a night.

So we turned in just after boater’s midnight (8pm) and started to go to sleep.

After a few restless minutes, a few swells rolled through the anchorage and Eos was pitching up and down. If these swells kept up when the tide went out, it would indeed be a very bumpy night for us. It wouldn’t be great for the boat either. These bumps wouldn’t be the soft bumps we had at the earlier low tide.

So, we decided to change plans and go ahead and travel overnight.

Earlier in the evening we had made sure everything was secured and put away safely so that we were ready to get underway in the morning. We removed the motor from the dinghy and secured it on its mount and then lifted the dinghy out of the water and secured it to the davits (the stainless steel structure with pulleys that allows the dinghy to be suspended about 6’ out of the water while we sail or motor).

If we’re making a long offshore passage we will not only tie the dinghy securely in the davits but will also use heavy duty web straps to further secure the dinghy to the boat just in case the line or clamps fail on one of the davit lines.

While securing the dinghy that evening I recall Diane asking me if I had strapped the dinghy in or not. I also recall telling her that I didn’t think it was necessary since once we got out of the inlet and headed south to New Providence we’d be on a broad reach with the wind and waves slightly behind us and it would be a pleasant point of sail.

We pulled up our anchor and got underway shortly before 10 pm and motored slowly back out towards the inlet. There was a breeze but it wasn’t too strong and the waves were what we’d described as a slight chop … choppy but not very big.

We needed to backtrack north about an hour (3 to 4 miles at slow speed) before turning east for another 3 miles to get safely offshore. Once offshore, we’d turn southeast and have just under 40 miles (8 to 10 hours) to sail to New Providence.

All was going according to plan and I was looking forward to a nice overnight sail to New Providence.

As we got closer to point where we were to turn east, the breeze was starting to pick up and the water was getting a little choppier. But we were underway and I really didn’t want to turn around and try to anchor in the dark, so we made the turn east and headed out to sea.

As we continued on our course out to sea, the wind was getting a little stronger, but now the slight chop had turned into 2-3 foot waves and we had to head directly into them for a few miles. It was going to be an unpleasant hour before we’d turn southeast.

It was dark, the wind started picking up, and the boat was bouncing into waves and we had limited visibility. Thankfully all our electronic navigation systems worked and we were able to follow our previous course back out. But it was starting to get very bumpy.

While we didn’t have great visibility ahead of us, our stern light which is attached to the back of the boat was doing its job of shining bright. Consequently we had a great view of how the dinghy was handling all of this bouncing up and down.

Unfortunately what we saw was not reassuring. The dinghy was swinging violently back a forth on the davits (if it’s strapped in it can’t do that). I asked Diane to take the wheel and drive while I was going to see if I could do something to keep the dinghy from swinging so much.

Just about then one of the fasteners that keeps the dinghy connected to the line came unhooked and that end of the dinghy dropped into the water. Great. It’s dark, the wind is picking up, and the dinghy is dangling from the davits getting smashed into the water with each wave. If we didn’t correct this, before long the other fastener would fail and we’d lose the dinghy or the dinghy tubes would spring a leak from constantly being smashed up and down.

Fortunately our niece was still on board and we had a third hand on board to help us.

We ended up finally being able to fully lower the dinghy into the water and use several lines that were already attached to the dinghy to tow it behind us rather than try and lift it back up into the davits. It’s not the preferred way to travel with a dinghy in the open sea but it would have to do.

It was now close to midnight and with the dinghy finally secured, we turned southeast and headed to New Providence. Everyone was looking forward to a pleasant sail after all that excitement.

The forecast was 100% accurate… the wind speed was in the high teens, the waves were in our port quarter and we were rolling like crazy! What had been a long night already was going to be even longer if this kept up.

Unfortunately the wind and waves didn’t change throughout the evening and even though it was a safe passage, it was uncomfortable and no o e got much sleep. Fortunately we did make fairly good time and were able to pull into the anchorage just after 8 am.

Once we were sure the anchor was set we all turned in to catch a few hours of sleep before moving on to the big task of the day … booking our niece’s return flights home, now that we had good cell and internet coverage in the anchorage.

The passage didn’t go the way we had planned but we arrived safely, and that’s what matters most.

(This passage wasn’t conducive to picture taking … we’ll be sure to include some sunny skies and white beaches in our next post)

After successfully clearing into the Bahamas and tidying up the boat from our passage we were ready to stretch our legs on dry land for a bit.

We grabbed our beach towels and walked about a mile across the island to the beach. It’s hard to accurately describe how clear the water is here or how it feels to have an entire pristine beach to yourself so I won’t try. It never gets old though.

After a nice walk on the beach we made our way to a beach restaurant and bar and enjoyed conch & fish bites along with a refreshing Pain Killer.

We spent the afternoon enjoying the sunshine and then made our way back to Eos for an early dinner and a solid nights sleep.

Thursday morning was spent washing all the salt of the boat and refueling the boat 10 gallons at a time. The fuel dock in Great Harbor is about 1/2 mile away from the marina so rather than move the boat and redock again it was easier for my niece and me to make a few trips in the dinghy and use our two 5 gallon Jerry jugs for refueling. This also gave us an opportunity for a dinghy driving lesson and making sure she was comfortable starting the motor and operating the dinghy by herself.

She was a quick learner and took over dinghy duty for our next two fuel trips.

With our tanks topped off and Eos’s decks sparkling again it was time for an afternoon hike.

You may recall from our previous trip here that Great Harbor Cay was once the home to an exclusive resort and golf course. Apparently though they were not able to attract enough investors to keep the facilities operational and have been abandoned for at least 2 decades now. The buildings are better described as ruins now and the golf course is over grown.

Walking through the ruins it’s not hard to imagine how beautiful the place had once been. And although the trees and vegetation mostly block the views to the sound and ocean, it is possible to get a glimpse of them if you really look hard.

We got back to the marina in time for a quick shower and to call in our dinner order before grabbing a ride from the marina manager to Cooley Mae’s for dinner. We enjoyed cracked conch and shrimp for dinner. In addition to a great meal, we were treated to a spectacular sunset.

Once the colors on the horizon had faded we took a cab back to the marina and called it a night.

The island of Great Harbor Cay is several miles long and just over a mile wide. Our plan on Friday was to leave the marina and anchor Eos on the other side of the island just off the beach restaurant and bar. Just about a one mile walk away. But we can’t take Eos across the island, we have to go AROUND the island. That’s about a 15- 20 mile trip (4 miles back out the same way we came in, 5 or 6 miles around the top, then another 5 to 7 miles back down to the beach).’

Once we got underway and cleared the cut, or entrance to the harbor, we through out our fishing line to see if we could catch something along our way. After all, we did throw that tuna back during our crossing so maybe the word was out among the fish that we were a ‘fish friendly’ boat!

Shortly after rounding the top of the island the fishing pole bent down and we heard the ‘whirl’ of line going out. We definitely had something on the line. I hooked in on the safety line, grabbed the pole and started reeling the line in. Again, Diane drove while our niece got the net ready.

After a few minutes we had a nice 16-18” Red Snapper on board! With the required trophy photos snapped we threw the fish in the cooler while we continued to sail south.

I ended up cleaning the fish and discarding the head and other scraps while we were still underway and not at anchor. Figured it was better to discard all that in the open water rather than toss it overboard in the anchorage as a possible invitation for sharks or barracudas looking for food!

Once anchored, we dropped the dinghy and headed over to the mangroves to see if we could spot any sea turtles or nurse sharks. Unfortunately it was late in the afternoon and although the tide was favorable to drift through the mangroves, the sun was shining directly in our eyes and we didn’t have good visibility to see anything.

Saturday morning we motored to the mangroves again and our niece paddled the kayak over, and this time we had great visibility. We saw several dozen sea turtles drifting along the current and even one nurse shark.

In the afternoon we returned to beach with the intent to take a nice long stroll on the beach. But first we stopped by the beach bar for a cool drink. Apparently we weren’t the only ones with that plan.

There were several other cruisers there and we all began to share our stories of where we came from, what our plans for the season were etc. Many of the other boaters we meet along the way are retired like us, but not all.

One of the couples we met on Saturday were still working but living on their boat full time. With a highspeed satellite internet connection using Elon Musk’s Starlink system they were able to effectively run their marketing company from anywhere they had connection. After spending awhile talking they gave my niece a business card and told her they’d be happy to help her get her foot in the door with their company. Unfortunately, they are the only ones in the company working remotely and everyone else works at least part time in the office. Not sure if she’s interested in moving to Arkansas but who knows!

We did eventually end up getting our walk in and then head back to the boat for a delicious dinner of Red Snapper picante!

We left the anchorage the next morning and headed to Hoffman’s Cay for some hiking and to see if those two lobsters I left here last trip with only one antenna each were still hanging around. (I was ineffective at spearing them so I tried to pull them out of their hole by the antenna which didn’t work out well for either of us last trip).

Unfortunately the wind was mostly on our nose and the seas were very rolly so we ended up calling an audible and used an alternative inlet at the north end of the island, several miles north of the cut we used last trip. Lucky break for the one antennae lobsters!!

We found a nice spot to anchor in pretty shallow water (5 1/2 to 6’) but since it was close to low tide we thought we should be good. The tide continued to drop to just under 5’ and then started to increase again. Once it was back over 5 1/2’ we went to shore and did some snorkeling just off the beach.

The swimming was refreshing but we really didn’t see much marine life. So we eventually returned to the boat, enjoyed dinner and called it a night.

Monday morning we gathered out the hiking and snorkeling gear, loaded up the dinghy and took a 2 mile ride south so we could hike to the blue hole.

We beached dinghy, hiked up the short path and had the blue hole all to ourselves for almost an hour. Just as we were getting ready to leave we were joined by a group of 5 other cruisers looking to take a dip. Good timing on our part.

We motored the 2 miles back to our anchorage and then spent the rest of the morning snorkeling on the ocean side of the island. This time we were treated to lots of marine life but no lobsters.

Once back aboard the boat we rested for the afternoon and were making passage plans for the next day. As the tide went out, we must have shifted slightly or the tides were slightly lower because we touched bottom a couple of times and saw only 4 1/2’ on the depth sounder. Fortunately the bottom was very sandy and it was as more annoying than anything that we were hitting the sand.

Eventually the tide came back in and we stopped ‘bumping’ the bottom. Unfortunately though we would have another low tide early Tuesday morning (3am) before we’d leave so we needed to figure out whether or not we’d spend the night at this same anchorage or get underway at high tide (10 pm) and sail overnight to our next destination, West Bay New Providence (Nassau).

Decisions, decisions. Always something to figure out while cruising around. We’ll fill you in later on what we decided to do, in the meantime we appreciate your prayers as always.

We spent the remainder of the weekend finishing up a few last minute boat tasks, buying fresh veggies and fruit, and topping off our water tank. We also made sure that we didn’t have any loose items laying around on the shelves and that everything was properly put away so that nothing would be rolling around the cabin when we went offshore.

With all the boat tasks complete, we took one last dinghy ride ashore to get showers and say goodbye for now to our friends at the marina. Some of them will be coming over to the Bahamas later in the season so hopefully we will see them before too long. Others are staying in Florida so it’s likely our paths won’t cross again this season. After that, we rode back to the boat, secured the dinghy and motor for the passage, and went to bed.

Tuesday morning revelry was a little before 6 am. We made coffee, double checked the weather forecast, and began to get ready to get underway.

We untied Eos from the mooring ball at 6:45, and motored out into the channel to wait for the 7am bridge opening. It was a beautiful morning with just a light breeze and very flat water. Not great sailing weather, but it did make for a very calm departure.

We motored down the St. Lucie river and were at the inlet a little before 8:30. This was the first time we’ve gone in or out this specific inlet so one of our tasks over the weekend had been to speak with others at the marina who had used this inlet in the past to see if there were any specific hazards or things we needed to be aware of prior to departing. Everyone we spoke with assured us it was a safe inlet to use, and since calm conditions were in the forecast we shouldn’t have any issues.

It’s always a little intimidating to navigate through an ocean inlet as there are swells coming in against you as you are heading out to sea. Fortunately the conditions were relatively calm and there was a boat ahead of us that was also going out to sea so we could observe their course and what effect if any the waves had on them.

The passage through the inlet was in fact uneventful, and we were in the Atlantic and finally headed to the Bahamas!

Actually we weren’t headed to the Bahamas quiet yet. Since we have to cross the Gulf Stream before reaching the Bahamas, and the Gulf Stream current runs 3-5 mph south to north, we actually we’re headed down the Florida coast for several miles before we would turn east and head to the Bahamas.

We motored down the coast for about an hour and then turned east. Once we were heading towards the Gulf Stream we decided to throw out the fishing line and see if we could catch anything. The line hadn’t been in the water for more than a few minutes when we got a strike. Fish on!

Diane drove the boat and slowed it down while I began to reel in the line to see what size monster we had hooked. Our niece was charged with grabbing the net and helping me hopefully bring the fish on deck.

After a few minutes of reeling in the line and with the help of my niece we got the fish on board. Now all we had to do was figure out what kind of fish it was and whether or not it was good to eat. Since we still had a cell phone signal I sent a picture and text to my friend who’s an avid fisherman to see if he could identify the fish for us.

While we waited to see if he’d respond, we unhooked the fish and took a few trophy pictures. Fortunately for the fish, the hook was only in its lip and we were able to remove it without really harming it at all. Another fortunate turn for the fish was that my friend was out in a walk and didn’t pick up his phone. So since we didn’t know what kind of fish it was, and the fish really wasn’t harmed at all, we released it back into the water figuring the fishing was good and once my buddy called back, we’d certainly hook some more!

My friend returned my call and text just a few minutes later and informed me we had caught a skipjack tuna, also known as a striped tuna. They are supposedly similar in taste to a yellow fin tuna, are very abundant, and are excellent eating! Figures.

Unfortunately for us, we didn’t have another strike the rest of the trip across the Gulf Stream.

The seas were flat and the breeze was light so crossing the Stream was uneventful. We made the 50 miles across in a little over 9 hours just after 5 pm.

Just like our previous crossing in 2021, our plan was to motorsail overnight and clear customs and immigration in Great Harbor Cay in the Berrys (between Freeport and Nassau). Diane and I again took 3 hour shifts throughout the evening so that someone was always on watch while we were traveling overnight.

Fortunately there weren’t too many other boats moving around so we both had relatively quiet watches for the most part. We occasionally did have to alter our course slightly to ensure we stayed safely away from any large ships. For us at night, we define safely away as at least a mile, preferably 2 to 3 miles. That allows plenty of distance & time to react just in case they don’t see us. We continue to really like our AIS system that broadcasts our position, course and speed to other ships and allows us to see theirs as well. Our navigation system then takes that information and calculates a “CPA” (closest point of approach) so we know how close we’ll come to another vessel. Super helpful at night when all you can see are a few dim lights on the horizon.

So as we said, the overnight passage was uneventful and by 9 am we were only a few miles from Great Harbor. Once we were within radio range, we called the marina to confirm our reservation and arrival and were tied to our slip by 10:30.

Prior to departing the US we filed our customs and immigration papers for the Bahamas with their online system. At the same time we paid all the required fees online. Consequently, when we arrived at the marina the Customs and Immigration officials had all our paperwork printed and simply just needed to stamp our passports. So by 11 am we were officially checked into the Bahamas and ready for another season.