Way back in November we had lots of boat jobs to do, most of which we did, a few of which we decided not to do, and a bunch more of which we did not know. One job that we did was new canvas all around with protection for our exterior wood too which we will use next summer while the boat bakes in the tropical sun. We splashed on December 15th, ten days later than expected.
Our first stop was Fernandina Beach where the canvas work finished. We did try to leave before Christmas but had two engine problems at the same time resulting in us being towed back to the dock. A engine drain plug sprang a leak and Ed did not tighten a sea-water cooling hose resulting in a worrisome mix of antifreeze and salt water. Fortunately, this was due to two simple problems not one expensive engine problem!
We had Christmas dinner early in Fernandina Beach before heading outside with the goal of sailing to Fort Pierce in 36 hours. The weather was strong with NE winds 15-20 knots and a more easterly swell with the end result of Ed going a little green. So, after 20+ hours with the prospect of winds shifting to on the nose we went into the Ponce Inlet south of Daytona Beach then had a lovely motor-sail over the next few days to Vero Beach. It was interesting that our friends from NeverBored, Chris and Sheila, called us to suggest going inside just after we made that decision.
Ed managed to knock over a day marker a few minutes from Vero as he was distracted thinking about docking. Fortunately, we hit the pole on our anchor such that the damage to our boat was minimal, only a few scratches below the waterline. He probably will not hear the end of that for a while. We called the Coast Guard and filled out an incident report, I think that will be the end of it.
Yawl will be glad to know that our Homeland Security is on the job. We were questioned by Customs and Integration in Fernandina Beach and boarded and inspected by the Coast Guard in New Smyrna Beach.
We were glad to meet with some former cruising friends in Cocoa where we enjoyed some shopping, beer and pizza with Wayne and Beth from Gypsy Moon.
We celebrated New Years in Vero by dancing until 2AM. No hangovers, we walked about four miles that night going to and from several clubs but it was fun.
After Vero we headed down the Intracoastal Waterway to Lake Worth motor sailing and just plain motoring. At Lake Worth the weather changed and we had a beautiful spinnaker run down to Fort Lauderdale where we anchored at Lake Sylvia and the last of the three little ships, Time Enough II with Bob and Carole on board, caught up to us. After 1/2 day spent refueling the boats, stocking the larder and enjoying the food and drink at the Raw Bar we headed for the Bahamas.
As usual, another motor trip across to the Bahamas from Florida. We went 24 hours to Frazer Hog Cay arriving at 4PM, then woke up the next morning and headed for Rose Island outside of Nassau. Finally, we were sailing. It was a close reach, with apparent wind 30-35 degrees but strong enough to prevent much lee way. The next morning, by now January 9th, we got up and did it again this time close reaching 70 miles to Big Major Spot outside Staniel Cay. We anchored at 8PM under a nearly full moon.
We enjoyed a rest day yesterday, perhaps we should have taken advantage of the wind to move further south but now are sitting waiting for wind which should clock to the NW soon and then NE. We plan to ride these winds to Mayaguana and the Turks and Caicos next. We do not plan to motor much anymore, that is the word from those of flag ranks. Sail or sit!
Approximate lats and longs of the Bahamas Leg so far.
Ft Lauderdale 2606 8001
Great Isaac 2600 7902
Frazer Hog 2529 7755
Rose Island 2504 7714
Big Majors 2411 7629
Happy New Years and we will post again soon.
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