Just realized that my post about staying on in George Town till after the current front -- the most significant weather event of the season -- passes did not actually post. We remain in George Town till who knows how long...
Woke up this morning at 1:00 am to gusty winds and some rocking.
It was about 20 knots then though thankfully
not too rolly as we are protected from ocean swell here in
Elizabeth Harbour.
We are located on the outer edge of the
anchorage off of Chat and Chill Beach so no boats behind us.
Checked on things around the deck and anchor
to find all was well.
Looked up and noticed
a boat cruising in and, lo and behold, it was our friend Tam on
Ask For who ended up anchoring just down
a ways from us.
He’d left
George Town for a few
days and I’m sure was glad to be back in the harbour.
Went below to work on a crossword puzzle when
I heard more voices.
Another boat
cruised in and anchored between us and
Ask
For.
I noticed in the morning that
this boat has a yellow quarantine flag which means that they’ve just entered
the
Bahamas
after a long sail.
Bet they’re glad to
be here, too.
Dave also got up for
awhile and adjusted a water jug on deck, then went back to sleep.
I tried to go back to sleep but just
dozed.
 |
| Early gray Monday morning, 25 knots |
After preparing coffee and oatmeal, I went on deck and listened to
the weather.
Sounds as though we’re in
for a sustained blow as the front lingers over the south central
Bahamas.
During his forecast, when Chris Parker got to
our neck of the woods, he said, “Oh,
George
Town is really getting it!”
Today we’ll have 25 knots which is not bad,
but the kicker is that tomorrow and Wednesday will be worse and the wind will
not go below 20 knots till Friday.
Tomorrow we’ll have sustained 30 knot winds with gusts to 35 and squalls
(short windy bursts of rain) to 42.
Fortunately we are protected by Stocking
Island so no ocean swell and the current is minimal.
We
hope that the next front that is developing on the US East Coast will not
develop into another nasty front.
Every morning the George Town Cruisers Net comes on the VHF radio to tell us
of the events of the community, lost and found items, and where to take our
garbage.
Since the George Town Regatta
is occurring this week, we’re getting the news of the scavenger hunt, fun and
regulation volleyball, softball, sand sculpture contest, arts and crafts show,
model small boat, dinghy, and big boat races and more, but with this wind, a
few of the events have been cancelled.
Of note, Terry (a Jersey gal, I am sure) announced that she regretted to
say that the poker run in George Town had to be cancelled as it would not be
safe for players to cross the harbour in their dinghies.
She requested that we ask God for good weather
for the poker run.
We spent an afternoon and a morning figuring out how to get our jib box
here.
The internet “store” is a bright
green cement building with a moldy wooden roof and, I think, a dirt floor.
It is run by a sweet, young Bahamian couple.
We needed to have our cruising permit scanned
so we could send it to the folks who are shipping the package.
The internet their was verrrry slow.
Found an agent who will take care of customs.
All told it will cost about $100 to
ship.
That’s the way it is.
The store also has a
US phone line,
so you can call the States for only 15 cents a minute.
Beats the $2 a minute on my cell phone.
Gave TJ and Mom a call.
So great to hear their voices.
 |
| Winch Wench |
The day before yesterday, I took apart our winch to lubricate it.
It took a long time, but I cleaned then
greased and oiled all the parts and put it back together again. I was pleased
that there were no left over parts and that it seems to work.
Now I can do the other winch.
Some boats have as many as eight
winches.
Thank goodness we only have
two.
As I worked, the 18-mile sailboat
race around
Stocking
Island took place.
As we're on the edge of the anchorage, we had
front row seats at the finish line.
It
was nice to listen to the commentary and watch the boats come in as I was doing
the winch job.
A cat called,
Glory Days, and a mono-hull were neck
and neck on the last leg.
The cat
pulled ahead for first place.
It really
was beautiful to watch the boats in full sail.
The hero of the race, though, is an assuming 26-foot sloop called
Magic Frog.
Everyone loves and roots for
Magic Frog.
One thing I love about this community is that
it doesn’t matter if you have a million dollar cat or a forty-year old
fixer-upper salvaged from a field.
People, for the most part, are accepting and will jump in to help when
needed.
 |
| Big boats racing in Elizabeth Harbour |
 |
| Hooray for the mighty Magic Frog |
We’ve met another nice couple with whom we plan to travel, along with
Plane to Sea, south.
They are Rod and Eveline on
Manatee, a classically beautiful, both
inside and out, Gozzard 36.
Yesterday we
had the calm before the storm, so Rod, a retired air force pilot, and Eveline,
a pharmacist, decided to go snorkeling.
It wasn’t that spectacular but the highlight was seeing a lion fish, a
fish that looks as though it sports turkey feathers that stand straight out and
happens to be highly poisonous.
We kept
a respectable distance.
Lion fish,
however, are considered to be a delicacy.
The poison is in the “feathers” so one must be meticulous in cleaning
and preparing this fish dish.
The night before last, we had dinner aboard
Wayward Wind with Rod, Eveline, Janis and Don.
Janis prepared spaghetti and I, a large salad
with locally grown tomatoes and peppers.
Eveline brought delicious herbed cheese and crustini along with a nice
bottle of wine and a dessert cake.
I
look forward to these evenings in the cockpit as we watch the sun set and enjoy each others’
company.
Aside from the occasional
mechanical issues, storms, and hassles with getting parts, it’s a nice
life.
