Going North thru the Southern Bahamas

We left Mayaguana Sunday with an overnight trip planned to get us to Rum Cay.  The overnight was marked with rain, lots of lightening, more lightening, etc.  We arrived Rum Cay the following morning and tried to hail the marina (Sumner Point) but were only able to raise a sport fisher.   The cruising guide shows lots of red and a few green channel markers thru the reef and into the marina.  In speaking with the fisherman he indicated that all of the marks were gone (hurricane last year) and in their place we could use two white PVC stakes - not.  We adjusted course and continued to Cat Island.

More lightening and thunder as we continue North and then we arrived at Hawks Nest Pointe.  We took a slip for the evening and then went in for dinner.  Cracked Conch, cole slaw, baked potatoe, green beand and a few Kaliks.  Heaven.  While the cracked conch was not the best we've had it was definitely good.  This morning we will move over to the fuel dock and top off the diesel tank and then be off overnight for West Eleuthera, then Chub Cay, SOuth Riding Rock and Miami.  Plan and weather seems good for a Saturday arrival in Miami.

On the mend

We headed for the Docs office this morning and were surprised at the facility and the staff.  A very big surprise.  I was the first one in to see the Doc (she) and she gave me a good going over and then explained the various things that could cause my gastrointestinal disorder and then told me she was going to treat a majority of possibilities with a combination of drugs - one mega dose of something that would kill any small amoebas or any other sort of small wiggly things (and a drug to counteract the side effects) and another drug to treat the other causes and make me better.

So far so good -  chicken noodle soup for lunch, Gatorade, then a nap.  Got up later this afternoon and service the engine so guess I'm somewhat better.  Just finished dinner - a bowl of buttered noodles.

Lesley had a sinus infection and her drugs seem to be kicking in as well.

I'm hoping I can start having more normal meals tomorrow.  In the meantime we are going ashore to a little coffee place we saw then back to the boat to fuel up and transfer fuel into the saddle bladder for our upcoming trip up through the Bahamas.

Now in Provo

More tomorrow - but had a really rough ride from Ocean World to South Caicos arriving about 9:30 in the morning yesterday at Cockburn Harbor, South, Caicos.  Left this morning at 2:30 so that we could get in through the narrow cut into Turtle Cove Marina.  When we arrived we contacted the marina and they sent our a guide boat.  Nice to have the boat to follow as we were both pretty tired for the past two moves and some complicating health issues.

First thing tomorrow we are both off to the clinic to see if they can fix what ails us - haven't been sick on the boat since 2005 so guess I was overdue.  Makes moving and everything aboard much more difficult.

Hanging out at Ocean World

Ocean World is a Marina, a Casino, Restaurants, Liquor Store, Animal Park, Seaquarium, etc.

The Marina is unusual as it is built inside a huge seawall made of giant boulders and concrete.  We are up behind the seawall pointing east and as waves break on the outside of the wall we get a fine salt spray on the boat.  After one night here we had more salt spray on the boat than we got on our 42 hour crossing from Puerto Rico!

 
We are going to wait one more day for the weather to settle more before leaving for the Turks and Caicos about 110 miles away.  Plan now is to leave here on Wednesday afternoon for a Thursday morning arrival at Cockburn Harbor.  Will hang out till about 2:30 the next morning then set out for Provo where we will stay for a few days waiting on weather in the Southern Bahamas to settle before moving on.

Today will be spent listing to the radio, relaxing, a few boat chores,  etc.  We just started watching season one of the Game of Thrones so we have pleanty of TV for the evenings.

Steering

We worked on the steering issue today and think it's been resolved.  The AP Ram appears to be OK and we lubed all the bearings and joints.  Will see how things work as we move to the T & C on Tuesday afternoon.  We are looking at weather - if you ever hear anyone tell you that the fronts that come off the Eastern US in the winter don't penetrate down as far as the Exumas.... Pure BS....  So our plan for the next hop is to get to the Turks and Caicos and hang out in Provo and wait for the weather in the Bahamas to settle (North Winds and Swell) then we will start moving North to Rum Cay then skip the Exumas (issues with inlets, depth, coral heads, etc) and hope to scoot beside and around Eleuthera before moving to Chub Cay in the Berry Islands where we will stage for our trip to Miami across the gulf stream.

This part of the trip is dicier for us as there are few good places to hide from the weather as we move up through the lower Bahamas.  Some of the marinas are closed or under transition and hidey holes are marginal, fuel stops iffy, hopefully you get the idea.

Looking forward to cracked conch in the Bahamas in a few days!

On to Provo.

Land Tour Today - Awesome

We signed up for a local tour ashore today and had a wonderful time.  The tour was for local culture, waterfall, cigar factory, etc.

The truck picked us up at the marina at 9:15 this morning and we started out then took a short detour through a construction zone where a new Carnival Cruise Line Terminal is being built.

 I have nothing nice to say about Cruise ships and their local impact (minimal).  We stopped at a small roadside store so that our guide "Elvis" could pick up some ice and drinks.

We continued along and started up a dirt road heading to the stone carving COOP.  As we hit a steeper section of the road two boys and a small pony rode by.  Watch out for the machette!

Before we entered the carving area Elvis gave us a demonstration on one of the top local sports.

We had a nice presentation by the craftsmen showing the various stages of creation on the various stone products.  Some carvings are done with petrified wood, others with a type of sandstone.

Needless to say we've done scores of waterfall in eight seasons in the Caribbean but none quite like the stop today.

Rio Damajagua 


You start off by changing to swim suit and sneakers, Teva's or rental wet water shoes.  Next you pick up a life jacket and a helmet and report to your two guides and start off up the trail.  Our hike took us up the river past seven waterfalls.  We hiked by these falls and bypassed some on wooden ladders and others we were boosted up the rock/water areas by our guides.  Once we were at the top we turned around and at each falls we laid down on our butts, folded our arms in front of us and down through the chutes we went!  Near the bottom we got to do "Happy Hour Falls"  two for one.........  meaning you slide down first then come back up and jump the 20 or so feet into the water - man........... One fall two different descents.

We then headed off to a local ranch for lunch, merengue dancing, some rum and relaxation.  Lunch was great and the 5 young (and I do mean young) Columbia University students were from a dance club and proceeded to give us a great dance exhibition which included our wonderful guide Elvis.

After lunch I was ready for a nap but it was then off to sample some local coffee and visit the cigar factory.
We watched two men make cigars and then I had a wonderful treat - I got to sample one and they gave me one for the road.

Lesley purchased a very nice pendant made of a stone only found here Larimar.  Very pretty....

Now in the Dominican Republic

With friend Rick aboard we left Puerto Rico on Tuesday afternoon headed for the Dominican Republic.  Sure glad we were headed West as we went thru Mona Passage...  Won't do that again - either direction. 

Really glad we had Rick with us and he was able to help as we made our 41 hour trip.  Late yesterday afternoon we started having trouble with the Autopilot so looks like we will be spending more time in exotic places - working on the boat!

We arrived Ocean World Marina, near Puerto Plata, at about 0930 this morning.  Customs, Drug Enforcement, Navy and Marina Concierge all came aboard shortly afterwards and we started the inbound processing.  Went fairly quickly then went up to Immigration to pay my "DUES"  no shakedown, everything pleasant and aboveboard and the Immigration Official actually smiled!

We then moved to our slip up against a huge seawall - will take a photo and post tomorrow.  The place is really nice and all of the staff are super.

Picked up a bottle on Extra Viejo DR Rum - very good and Rick gave me a nice Single Malt Scotch!  Won't be a sober sailor on this boat tonight except for the BOSS!

We're clean, tired and hungry.  I think I am going to sleep for 2 days!  But first Rick is taking us out to the Casino for dinner, yum.............

Once we sort out the Autopilot will restructure our return trip to Florida -  but for now - it 5 O'clock!

Turning the corner

We left the anchorage this morning after I did weather and we had our coffee and headed out on our last leg to get us west in Puerto Rico.  We turned the corner at Cabo Rojo and headed north to Puerto Real.

Just as we approached Cabo Rojo we had two dolphins greet us and welcome us to our first view of the Mona Passage.

Stopped for the night

We left Bahia de Jobos early this morning and encountered large seas and 35kt winds so we stopped short of our intended destination.  We are now anchored off Cayos de Canya Gorda, just East of Gua'nica.  Plan to have lamb kabobs, rice, Greek salad, stuffed grape leaves and pita's for dinner.

Will leave here early tomorrow morning and move around to the West Coast where will will stage for our departure to the Dominican Republic.  We plan to spend the night in Marina Pescaderia, at Puerto Real.

Shower time and then dinner prep.....

Moving On

We left Fajardo at 0850 this morning and are now anchored inside the reef just East of Salinas on the South Coast of Puerto Rico.  Grilled strip steaks, fettuccine noodles ala Lesley, steamed broccoli and spiced tomatoes for dinner.

Our friend Rick is with us now and got used to the autopilot and napping today.  We traveled 50 miles today and had fairly large swells from astern, gusts to near 30 kts, and a few rain showers but nothing to bad.  The anchorage is nice, inside the reef in 13 feet of water with a nice breeze blowing in from the East.

We will head off early in the morning and stop along the South coast again for one more night before moving around to the West coast and staging for the DR.  We are starting to watch weather now for the trip to the DR and so far it is looking good.

Iguanas (Giguanas as in giant!)

We've been driving all over Puerto Rico and see these big Iguanas in trees, on the ground, and on the roads.  This is the same lizard that we've seen in the Florida Keys and elsewhere in the Caribbean but these are the biggest we've seen.