Month: February 2018

We just left Allan’s Pensacola Cay where we’ve been for the last three nights. It was a beautiful anchorage, well protected from the east winds.

Since we were going to be there for a few days we dropped the dinghy in the water and took a ride over to shore to check out the “signing trees”.

Apparently people make signs with their names, boat name and date and hang them on the trees. Kind of an “I was here” memento. Some are elaborate and obviously made long before landing and some are last minute using whatever materials are at hand. It was a trek across the cay through the trees but worth it to see. An added benefit was the oceanside beach.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also near shore we saw quite a few turtles of varying sizes, the smallest being about 18 inches across. While snorkeling to check out the anchor set I saw lots of conch shells and sand dollars. I was going to grab one to decorate the boat but after reading that the shell needs to be boiled to clean it, decided the smell wouldn’t be too nice in my galley. Maybe I’ll just buy one at the next stop.

Well we made it across from Ft Lauderdale and landed in West End Thursday afternoon. The first few hours of the crossing were a little bouncy with 5-6 ft swells but it smoothed out to almost a dead calm for the last few hours. It was amazing to watch the depth go from 2589 feet in the Atlantic to 30 feet where we could see the bottom and then 9 in the harbor. The water color went from dark blue to lighter blue to a shade of turquoise that I will forever call Bahama turquoise.

We docked at Old Bahama Bay Marina, cleared customs & immigration and settled in for the evening. Drinks and a cigar were definitely in order and we celebrated finally getting here. The next day saw us in a taxi trying to find a BTC store to get a sim card for our boat wifi. Not all BTC stores have them it seems and it took a couple tries to find one that did. That accomplished we scampered back to the boat to give it a good wash down on the outside and plan the next few days. West End is a popular place to pull in and clear customs so we saw a lot of boats in two days. Big boats, small boats, fishing boats, sail boats and even a few other trawlers. West End is a fishing settlement so lots of conch and fresh fish.

When entering the Bahamas from another country on a boat you must fly a yellow “quarantine” flag on the boat. No one is allowed to leave or board the boat other than the captain and only then to clear customs/immigration. Once that is complete the quarantine flag comes down and it’s nice to fly a small Bahamaian courtesy flag. We always have the big USA flag flying off the stern in the daylight. This allows easy identification of where all the different boats are from.

Yesterday morning we headed for Mangrove Cay (pronounced “key”) and anchored out for the night. When the water gets shallower it turns from turquoise to a pretty shade of green. If it gets to brownish green look out cause it’s really shallow and you’re in danger of running aground or hitting a coral head.

After dinner last night we went onto the bow to look at the stars. Mangrove Cay is not populated and with only a few other boats near us there was very little light pollution so the stars were amazing. The Milky Way is crystal clear and goes on forever. I also watched a moonset as the crescent moon slipped into the water and the night became darker and the stars brighter if that was possible.

Today finds us at Great Sale Cay, another uninhabited cay, anchored out. It’s an idyllic day, 80 degrees, blue sky and a slight breeze. We’re anchored offshore far enough that we don’t have any bugs so the windows and doors are wide open and we’re all feeling a little lazy. Maybe a nap and a swim before dinner is in order. Well except for Isabella. She just naps.

Departing for Bahamas as I type this. If anyone is interested in tracking our progress over the next few months go to https://share.garmin.com/laadeedah

Phone and email will be limited in the Bahamas but we can get text messages at 703-819-9924.

It was a nice three weeks in Ft Pierce. We stayed at the city marina which is within walking distance to most everything you need including a wonderful farmer’s market every Saturday morning. We met some fun, interesting people that we hope to meet up with again along the way, found some outstanding restaurants and even managed to play a couple rounds of golf.

The manatees and dolphins spend quite a bit of time inside the marina and we were treated to shows of dolphins and pelicans arguing over feeding territory. Manatees don’t argue, they just hang around looking like floating rocks. Seriously. Floating rocks. Really big floating rocks

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The first morning in Ft Pierce we looked out the window and thought we saw Isabella sitting on the dock surveying her territory. Since she never leaves the boat we were a little concerned until we realized she was sitting in the salon. Her doppelgänger was checking out the dock around his boat.

 

We left Sunday and arrived in Ft Lauderdale yesterday. Final repairs are almost completed and we hope to leave here Thursday morning for the Bahamas at long last. A month later than anticipated but that’s boating. On the bright side we’ve used the time to do a lot of cosmetic repairs to the boat. It’s looking really good and hopefully we can keep it that way.