North to the Abacos

The morning we left for the northern Abaco islands, we decided at 7:00 am to follow Ole Pot (his name on his business card!) out through the passage past the Devil's Backbone. Three other boats were supposed to leave with us, but one developed transmission trouble, so he and his buddy boat stayed behind to fix it. That left Mary T who, like us, decided at the last minute to follow the guide. It was pretty funny since he was speeding along with his little outboard motor, and we had to ask him to stay closer for our slow sail boats. In addition, it was just about impossible to understand him given his strong accent and the fact that his hand held VHF radio was full of static. It turned out that the route he followed was identical to that on our GPS, but Mary T's chartplotter showed them on the land. Well, as Lou said, " It was cheap insurance for $35.00."

The destination to this northern Bahamian island chain would be 9 hours long - not very bad since we've traveled this long many times before. This trip, however, was different. Chaotic seas were predicted, and this was my first taste of a long sail in such seas. What are chaotic seas, you might ask? Well, the waves come from different directions and cause the boat to flop around unmercifully throwing you to and fro. After 7 hours, I had had enough, yet had to wait for a safe place to anchor. To make matters worse, the conditions caused too much turbulence in the first cut into a harbor, so we had to continue on for another hour to get to the next cut. Lou, of course, was having a ball with 20 kt winds, and I found that steering helped me and my internal system as well. I was also helped by Sturgeron, a medication for motion sickness sold here in the Bahamas which has no side effects! Two sights along the way made the trip worthwhile. First, I spotted a pod of dolphins through the clear water swimming alongside the boat. The second was something never seen before: beds of seaweed so thick that flotsam and birds were floating on top. Here you can see one of the beaches in the Abacos covered with the seaweed. Perhaps this is a seasonal or weather related occurance.

The Abacos are quite different from the central and southern Bahamas: more of a northern look, more development, more affluence, more Americans. Here are a few highlights from our few weeks there. Hope Town, Elbow Cay

Our adventure here was in a lighthouse. It's the last light kerosene hand operated lighthouses in the Bahamas. We learned that it took years to be built due to sabotage by the local 'wreckers' who made a living from the monthly wrecks that ran aground on the nearby reefs. We climbed to the top, and after taking lots of pictures, were allowed inside to watch Fred, one of two lighthouse keepers, light and crank the apparatus. Fred has worked as the keeper for 37 years, has lived on the grounds (here is his house), and has 5 more years to go before retiring.

Nippers on Guana Cay Nippers is a restaurant/bar/resort on a gorgeous beach overlooking the Atlantic. It is the site for thousands of people twice a year who gather for a concert. The place was hopping when we arrived, partly due to spring break back home. Note the interesting bathing suit on the right above.

Treasure Cay

The beach of this popular resort area, is one of the ten best beaches designated by National Geographic but today was covered in seaweed. Here are some contrasting views from our boat:

Dense palm trees on one side, and resort cottages and their boats on the other. The marina nearby was host to a fishing tournament and everyday the tall fishing boats would come back with their catch. These were pretty and small compared to what they were really after. (sorry, can't figure out how to rotate picture on this program)

Man O' War

This very religious white community founded by Loyalists is so neat and clean, you could just about eat off of the streets. You can see the pride they take in their houses and gardens; in fact, they've won national awards for it. We walked the residential and commercial streets and took a look at the beach. They were boat builders and you can still see them working in their yards.

Marsh Harbor, Great Abaco Island

The third largest city in the Bahamas, not very attractive, but full of the services we occasionally needed and yearned for. It is also the location of the airport from which I was deported for a day. (see my next post). After I returned, our friend Tony joined us for a third time to make the crossing over the Gulf Stream and help us get north faster by getting off the intracoastal into the ocean.

Next stop: The good ole U.S. of A!