The Bahamas!

I am typing this on foreign soil, Green Turtle Cay, Bahamas, to be exact. Yes, I finally made it! I left Lake Worth inlet about 6:00 AM Monday morning for the Gulf Stream crossing to the Bahamas bank. Winds were generally light, 5 knots most of the time, with 10 knots occasionally for period of 30 minutes to an hour. Seas were 2-3 feet nearly all the way, only near the bank did they increase to maybe 4 feet for a while. So it was a very pleasant crossing. I was able to accomplish it with Dennis and Georgia Ojard aboard Njord, a trawler, and another power boat Time Out. It give you a sense of security to be with other boats just in case anything goes wrong, which it didn’t for any of us. When we got to the edge of the bank, there was still a couple of hours of daylight left, so we continued to Mangrove Cay (pronounced key in the Bahamas) for the night. It was a very calm night and enjoyable. Stars everywhere when there were no clouds. Tuesday, continued across the banks to the eastern side of the Bahamas and anchored in a cover at Allens-Pensacola Cay. This was actually two cays at one time, but became connected during a hurricane. I served homemade spaghetti to the three boats. Everyone seemed to enjoy the dinner. And the company was great, especially after being alone on the waterway for so long.

Today, Wednesday, we arrived at Green Turtle Cay, which has a customs office, to check in, get a cruising permit, passports stamps, a fishing permit, and become legal visitors. Tonight I docked at the Green Turtle Club & Marina. They give you the price of your slip off and dinner and drinks you consume while staying there. So it was sort of a cheap way to go out to dinner, as I needed to dock to clear customs. The weather was a little more blustery today, winds from the SE at 10-15 knots seas 2-3 feet, with some spray coming onto the windshield (or dodger for you sailors!). The only problem that presents is the salt makes it hard to see out, so I had to run up with a bucket of water to rinse the salt off before entering the marina. Oh, such trials. It was cloudy today, but still in the 80s, so another great day in paradise. Tomorrow I will go out into the Atlantic Ocean to go around shallow water behind on Cay, Whale Cay, come back in on the other side of the cay, and head to Marsh Harbor, which will be my home base for the next month or two. I will sightsee and sail from there to investigate the rest of the Abacos.

Well, my new life as a traveler continues. It is not easy, but certainly exciting, and I am more and more looking forward to what each day brings. If anybody needs to decompress, this is the place to do it. Come on down!

Until my next update,

Cliff
S/V Navigator