What is: And I’m doing this … why?
There are days…
- When you want to take a bath and there’s no bath…and you have to save water so you can barely rinse off.
- When you’ve worn the same clothes so many times you have to ‘hose’ off with Febreeze!
- When you haul your laundry to the little shack (when you can find one), there are 2 washers and only one dryer works…and it costs you $30.
- When you’re trying to sleep and the boat is rocking and rolling so badly that you move into the aft berth where it doesn’t rock quite so much and you can’t hear the anchor shifting around.
- When you want TV…or something on the radio besides Cuban music, which really isn’t too bad, but doesn’t come in very well.
- When you want a piece of toast so you do it in the oven and hope you’re not using too much propane.
- When you want a tortilla and there are none to be found. =)
- When you just want to be on the internet…for awhile…and you don’t want to use the inverter and use power…and you can’t find a good signal anyway.
- When you’re sure you won a million dollars and you can’t get your voice messages. OK…maybe not this one.
- When you want to phone home…and there’s no coverage and the internet is too low for Skype.
Trade offs… for a pretty darned fun, adventurous, interesting, back-to-basics, great-people-meeting life. It’s a hoot! Living la vida loca, baybee!
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So on we go…South. 
We left Nassau…finally! After saying farewells to all that helped us there…Peter, Dudley…all the guys at the dock that were so kind…we pulled out of the marina and made a right turn. Excellent. Now we’ll work our way down the Exuma islands heading toward the Dominican Republic. We had a great weather window. It feels so good to be moving again!
To Highborne Cay: We motor-sailed on. A 7 hour tour. It was beautiful…a beautiful day. I love it! The seas are gorgeous, the day is bright and sunny …the wind is in my hair…I’m on the bowsprit singing with my arms spread wide…..NOooo! Bad analogy! But you get the picture. The direction we’re going is the wrong way. That’s what Randy says. “Ellen, we’re going the wrong way.” We’re always heading into the wind. And it’s usually directly on our nose! Hence the reason we leave the engine on > > to make progress. We put up the sails, as it does speed us up and help balance the boat. But if we turned off the engine we’d have to tack off course to pick up enough wind to make speed and then it would be a longer distance. We toodle along as is. So… we’re actually going the right way… but the wrong direction in this wind. 
We reach Highborne Cay. Let’s anchor. I am the one that takes us in to the anchorage, finding the best place to ‘park.’ OK…I’ve spotted where we’re headed. I slow the boat down and make my way there. We’re about to have a Safeway-Parking-Lot experience. I’ve almost got us to my scoped-out spot when I hear on the radio, “Love Affair, can you slow it down a bit in the anchorage.” I look around and to my right a large power yacht is making its way too quickly through the anchorage and, yep, headed right to the spot I had picked out. Hmmmm….not sure if he’s going on through, or going to anchor there. I continue on course and Randy says, “El…you might want to stop. It doesn’t look like he’s going to!” I put the boat in reverse and wait for him to pass. But sure enough…he speeds in, slams on his breaks, (that’s putting it in reverse in boat talk) and starts lowering his anchor. “Ummm Love Affair, Love Affair, this is the sailing yacht Kwanesum just to your port. Just letting you know we had been heading this direction for quite some time and I find it rather discourteous that you speeded in the anchor with no awareness of other boats approaching this spot.” No response. Another boater gets on, “I guess there’s no love for Love Affair!” “Roger that, roger that,” I say. Then, “This is Love Affair, was someone trying to hail us?” “Roger, Love Affair, let’s go to 18.” We dial up on the VHF from the main channel 16 which you constantly monitor. Now Randy’s on the horn… "Uh, Love Affair, this is the sailing vessel Kwanesum just to your port. Not sure how long you’ve been sailing but you usually don’t speed through an anchorage and stop right in front of someone making way to an anchor. Over.” “Uh, this is Love Affair. I’ve been boating since 1940! I’m 83 years old and have been doin’ this for years!” Silence. Whoa...83…OK. He probably didn’t even see us! I think we’ll turn around and anchor a little farther away. Bless his heart…83 and still handling a big boat, but goodness! 
We found another great spot in the anchorage. Back …and away from Love Affair. It was just plain weird having a Safeway-Parking-Lot encounter on the water. Not to deter us, by golly! Randy put on his swim trunks and snorkel gear and dove on the anchor to be sure it was set. I jumped in and just swam…around the boat. Felt so good! Lots of big boats here. Highborne is a stopping point for cruisers going north or going south. Just to the north of our anchorage was Allans Cay. Allans is famous for the iguanas. This area is the primary home of the remaining iguanas that live only here and on some of the remote Out Islands. 
We’re up early the next morning and jump in our dinghy to go see the iguanas. It’s a beautiful area…Allans Cay. Very peaceful. There are a few boats anchored there but it’s not a large anchorage area. At first we’re not sure where to find them. As we look around the beaches I spot Indigo, a Hinckley 49, at anchor. We had met Gary and Mike off Indigo, 2 nights before, at the Poop Deck bar in Nassau. They were headed the same way and by golly there they were! We pulled up to their boat and knocked. They welcomed us aboard and showed us around their boat. We told them we were looking for the iguanas and they pointed to the beach where we’d find them. We head out for the beach with an invitation to come back for bloody marys when we’re done! All righty! We shall do that.
Off we go and the iguanas are fascinating. I, however, do NOT get out of the dinghy. Those puppies scurry pretty quickly and they head right for you... expecting food I suppose. They are NOT attractive. 
They have very long claws. Randy being the macho, hero type immediately got out and started taking pictures with his new little camera. Thank you…I’ll stay right where I am. I can get my own pictures from the safety of the dinghy. There are a bunch of them. We finish our pictures and off we go back to Indigo for one of the best bloody marys I’ve ever had. Always interesting conversations with other cruisers. As we’re sipping on our drinks we see a big commercial cigarette-type speed boat piled with people headed for the iguanas. I’m so glad we got to see them in the peaceful quiet morning. 
Back to the boat, another swim around…some gin and tonics…life is good. The sun sets and we hear a sound. Someone is blowing through a conch shell. Then another boat responds. Then another. How cool! Apparently in these Out Islands that is a tradition. A perfect ending to the day. Now off the next morning to Normans Cay.
To Normans Cay: Hang on to your hats folks, we are sailing! The winds are at the right angle. We’re doing 5.5 knots, which is not bad. This is great! A beautiful day and just the peaceful quiet of the sails. By the way, I must tell you that my proactive puking management (hereafter known as PPM) has been working well. Either that or I’m getting used to the motion. I have NOT been sick since our trip across to Lucaya. :::knock on wood::: Loving that sports fans! This is the kind of travel we have dreamed of. Sailing…sails without the engine…with bright sunshine and crystal blue seas and doing a respectable speed to our destination. We pull in; I find a spot; no speeding power boats coming out of nowhere…nice. It was a sweet 3 hour tour, or so. It’s only 10:00am and here we are!
You will remember in my earlier posts I mentioned a captain on a sport fishing boat, Rob, who was next to us in Harbor Club Marina in Nassau for a brief time. 
He works his boss’s boat, American Beauty, out of Wax Cay. Wax Cay is a small private island next to Normans. Rob told us to give him a holler when we got to Normans and he’d give us a tour. So that’s what we did. We hailed Rob on 16 and we arranged to meet him over there via dinghy about noon. We were expecting some good ole boys’ area and maybe a couple of buildings for the fishing fanatics. Not so! It was quite a place.
Wax Cay is owned by 2 guys that I think live in Nassau. Rob’s American Beauty, is owned by a gentleman from New York. Rob’s boss somehow negotiated with the 2 owners to use Wax Cay during the season for fishing. Nice move on his part. 
As we turned the corner to Wax Cay I thought we had the wrong spot…there were so many buildings! We saw Rob waiting for us and he guided us into the little harbor that had been made. What a magnificent place! We went up to the main building that had a restaurant style bar and kitchen and a lovely eating area. Opened Kaliks right away and toasted. What a view! Rob explained that all the main buildings on the island were purchased in Vietnam, parts numbered, disassembled, shipped to Wax Cay, reassembled and finished off. Very chic…shabby/beach chic. Done very tastefully. We toured the game room and one of the cottages and then jumped in a golf cart and toured the whole island.
The spa…they have a building they call the spa. Apparently the wife of one of the owners wanted to have an open building where she could get massages. Of course it has a magnificent view…all open sides. 
There are maybe 6 or 8 cottages on the island, some little, some bigger, and are all fitted out for visitors. Most have their own beach. There may be a time, Rob said, when the owners will lease out this side of the island and they will put their own private buildings on the other side. How fun to be able to see this!
After our tour, Rob poured me some wine and got more Kaliks for Randy and him and made us an early dinner of mahi mahi. How can you beat that? I felt like I was on The Rich and Famous program. It included a perfect weather day. Rob found a conch shell on the property and gave it to us for our sunset calling. We’re going to try it! 
We said our goodbyes to Rob and scooted back to the boat in the dinghy. The tide was in …good… we can cut a corner to get back to the boat. Woops! A little too close there! Poor Bob! Ran into a little reef! Boom! We climb out and push Bob off the reef hoping we didn’t put a hole in him. One of the dumb decisions we made when fitting out our boat was to get an inflatable bottom dinghy. These are good dinghys, and they fold up for stowing on long passages, but not very practical for where we are. Going over coral reefs? Not so good. And the hard bottom dinghys ride better, too, it seems. And I think our outboard engine doesn’t like Bob. It’s always cavitating when we want to go fast. And most of the time you want to go fast. We tried to remedy the problem but so far it really hasn’t worked well. Yahama 9.9 + Avon inflatable bottom = not a good combo. But our Bob did handle the little reef like a perfect dinghy. No holes. A few dents in the propeller but that ads character. Off we go back to the boat. Our next dinghy will be a hard bottom. And in my opinion…the sooner the better. No offense, Bob. Anyone want to buy a 10ft inflatable bottom dinghy? Meet us in the DR.
Back on the boat…put on some Gordon Lightfoot…again, a couple of gin and tonics… nice. Again, a conch shell announces sunset as we watch from our waterfront property….life is good. Randy gets our conch shell out. Blows…sounds like one of the cows from the dairy. Don’t think that’s the one Ran! We’ll keep looking.
To Staniel Cay: Up and off to Staniel Cay the next morning. Still cruising the Exumas…headin’ south. A 6 hour trip. Another beautiful island with water different shades of blue and so crystal clear! It is one of earth’s great splendors. Two days at Staniel. We swam around the boat…Randy checked on the anchor and a barracuda was following him. Hmmm…. I swam a little and was going to go in later in the afternoon when I thought I saw a ray! And another fish. 
The ray turned out to be a nurse shark. I think not…..on the swimming. Nurse sharks, they say, don’t harm you. But don’t think I’ll test that one. And I think the other fish was a barracuda, too. He was shading himself under our boat.
We need to go check out the Staniel Cay Yacht Club we’ve heard about. Plus...we’re hungry. It’s another great funky place. Good conch burger, good cheeseburger, got online briefly, and toasted to Cinco de Mayo! Happy Birthday, Nancy and Deb! Happy Hour munchies and specials on Coronas. Can’t beat that. They were having a big to-do, but we passed on that. It was starting later and it would have been dark when over. I didn’t want to dinghy in this new area after dark. But, too, sometimes we can just be wimps. So back to the boat. 
The next day we dinghy’d to Thunderball Cave. Thunderball Cave was made famous by the James Bond movie. You can dive there but there are strong currents so you need to be there at slack tide. Supposed to be wonderful diving, which would have been great. Our timing wasn’t at slack tide and we still haven’t made a good method to help get back in the dinghy from the water. Not an easy task…unless you’re buffed or under 40. Although if you get a good kick with your fins...you should be able to get in. Should is the key word. And one of us would have needed to stay with the dinghy. I want Randy with me when I snorkel something like that. Sounds like a bunch of excuses to me! =) So we just dinghy’d out to look and then back to SCYC for a beer. Nothing wrong with that! They were cleaning fish in front of the SCYC and the wild animals appeared! Cool. 
Ahhh…and the pigs. We were actually anchored off the island of Big Majors which is next to Staniel Cay. And Big Majors has pigs. Not sure why, but there are pigs on that island. So I needed to find the pigs. We dinghy’d over to the beach and walked around and did see little pig footprints. But no pigs. I called them…but no pigs. So we went back to the boat. Sitting outside I noticed a boat from one of the big yachts going over to the beach. “Randy…they found the pigs! We must go see the pigs!” So back we went. I guess we’re too cheap to feed these wild critters so they didn’t put on a show for us. This boat brought food. Shoulda known. They didn’t impress me anyway. No food for you! =) 
To George Town: Up early and off at 0600. George Town is on the Great Exuma Island, a destination we’d been trying to get to for quite some time! I was originally going to have my cousin Deb meet us there. But one thing I’ve learned about what we’re doing is to have patience. And be ready to wait. And sometimes that’s not easy. But I think we’re getting closer to accepting it. We arrive in George Town at 1630. Not a bad trip. We anchor off of Monument Beach on Stocking Island, which is just across Elizabeth Harbour. Plenty of room.
We have missed the party. During the cruising season, which is November through June (Hurricane Season is June through November) there can be up to 300 – 400 boats anchored around George Town. It’s a favorite destination of cruisers going south, like we are, and for those who just want to get there and stay for the season. Tons of things going on. Like Spring Break for the cruising crowd. Boats start leaving in May and now there may be 50 anchored there. Part of me is glad we missed the crowd…and part of me is sad. But there’s still fun stuff to do. There’s a fish fry Friday night on Stocking Island right where we’re anchored. We dinghy in and have conch and ribs. No fresh fish I guess. And Bahamian music. Very nice…but only about 20 people. We have good visits with all and enjoy the music.
The next day we dinghy into town to get an internet card. That way we can pick it up from the boat. The damn dinghy is giving us trouble. Come onnnn, Bob!! Knock it off. The motor starts fine, but then it will just quit! Well THAT’S not good! We had this problem before but not so frequently. The float sticks in the carburetor. That’s as much as I know. Randy takes off the cowling (can you believe I even know these words?) and bleeds it a little and taps on it and all is well. But it’s a pain in the neck. So the day didn’t start the best. We find our way in to George Town proper and start the hike to the Car Wash/Pet Store where we will buy our internet card. Quite the place. And it was a bit of a hike to get there. We get there and realize we only have $100 bill with us. Duhhh…they’re not going to have change for that! (Brains aren't working.) So back we trek to the bank we spotted near the dinghy dock. Or back RANDY treks. I wait for him in the shade. Not enough pets to keep me interested in the Car Wash/Pet Store. And not any car wash customers. Kind of a useless endeavor with all the dusty, sandy roads…but whatever works! Back Randy comes and we pay our $15. Now we’re hot and thirsty and I’ll be damned if we can’t find a bar with a beer! Hold on…I thought this was the happening town! Just because we missed the party, they must have beer some place! We settle on water from the store and dinghy back. 
We find the place. The Chat 'N Chill on Stocking Island. I KNEW there had to be some rockin’ joint on this island. Loved it. Again…a funky bar.
Volleyball courts off to the side. Quite a few people anchored in here. And dinghys pulled up on the beach. A great bartender…Kendell. I feel better. It’s the simple things that please me…like finding the nearest funky beach bar.
Next day…it’s Mothers Day and my birthday! We head to the Chat 'N Chill where they’re having a pig BBQ and my favorite…Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese. And I always love the coleslaw in the Bahamas…and their peas and rice. Great food. My birthday, so I’m going to have fun drinks. Started with a blue something…it was ok…went to a pina colada…it was great…then a goombay smash. Excellent. Again, good conversations with people. We wrote our boat name on the bar. Good day…this birthday. Now back to the boat to call our favorite kids and our favorite mom up in Oregon. Yayy! Miss them so much! 
In the meantime, during the day while we’re there…Randy goes back and forth in the dinghy, into town, to get fuel and water. Two or three times. To make sure we’re topped off. Again and again going through the steps to unstick the float in the carburetor. Come onnnn, Bob!! Knock it off. Anyone want an outboard engine to go with that dinghy that’s for sale??!!! What a pain in the inflatable. 
To Rum Cay…make that …Conception Island: Gotta keep going so we’re up and at ‘em and on the way to our next stop. The weather is starting to turn. The seas are bigger…a lot bigger. And the winds, of course, are on our nose. The day is beautiful, but the ride is not. But …the PPM is keeping me puke-less. To make me happy, because the seas are trying, Randy stops at Conception. A beautiful anchorage. Nice to have these little islands where you can stop. This tiny island is known for wonderful coral reefs to snorkel. Unfortunately we had the dinghy put away and we were worn out from the ride over. And we wanted to get on to Rum Cay before the weather turned worse. I hate missing stuff but it just wasn’t practical. Always gorgeous sunsets to enjoy. “Randy! We need to find our own conch shell and make it into a horn.” 
Now…to Rum Cay: Not far. About a 5 hour trip. The weather is starting to become a factor. The skies are still beautiful, but the waves are big and the winds are strong…from the wrong direction. We have a bouncing trip into Rum Cay. PPM still on full attack mode. =) Found the anchorage…one boat there. Hmmm…not sure that’s a good sign. We anchor and set a bridle on our anchor. The purpose of the bridle is to keep you into the swell so you’re rocking like a rocking horse instead of rolling side to side. A much better motion. Otherwise your boat is just at the whim of the wind.
I’m going to leave this post here…with us just anchored in Rum Cay. We have been here more than a week. And adventures we’ve had.
Stay tuned! 
