Adventures of Navigator: My Adventure Update #10

Barefoot Man

The Crowd at Nippers for Barefoot Man

Bruce and Noelle

Debra on the Great Guana Cay Tractor

S/V NAVIGATOR continues to winter well in the Abacos. I have continued to visit the various cays of the Abacos, some several times. My friends on S/V RIVERDANCE returned to the States beginning March 13. I went with them to Treasure Cay to see them off. We anchored together overnight, and then they headed for the passage around Whale Cay and continued north. After they left, I went from Treasure Cay to Great Guana Cay to attend the Barefoot Man concert at Nipper’s Beach Bar and Grill. I spent 3 nights anchored at Fisher’s Bay, which allowed easy access to Great Guana Cay. I walked the beach and drank at the various bars after the first night. After the second night the Barefoot Man concert was held. He certainly wasn’t Jimmy Buffet, but he was bad either. It was a nice entertaining afternoon. The next day it was back to Marsh Harbor as I had to renew my Bahamas immigration paperwork the next day so I could stay another 60 days.

The middle of March was spent on boat maintenance and getting the boat ready for visitors. Friends Bruce and Noelle came to visit for a week beginning on the 24th. We went to Great Guana Cay for the bar hopping, and did some snorkeling on the reef off of Nipper’s. The next stop was Hopetown on Elbow Cay. We walked the town, took I the lighthouse (with its kerosene fired light), and had lunch on the ocean at the Hopetown Harbor Lodge. From Elbow Cay we proceeded to Linyard Cay for some quiet time. NAVIGATOR was the only boat in the anchorage. We swam, walked the beaches and part of the cay. The next day we had to return to Marsh Harbor as Bruce and Noelle had to leave the day after our return. It was a very nice visit and hopefully they will be able to do it again next year.

Took another week to clean up the boat and get it ready for my last guest. This included doing laundry and food shopping. On April 11 my friend Debra arrived for several days. The next day we went to Great Guana Cay after stopping at Mermaid Reef to do some snorkeling. She was impressed with all the tropical fish there. After the snorkeling at Mermaid Reef we continued on to Great Guana Cay and did the bar hopping thing with visits to Grabbers, Pirates Cover, and Nipper’s. While at Nipper’s we snorkeled on the ocean reef off Nipper’s. We then headed back to NAVIGATOR for dinner. The next day there was a light rain, but we went ashore anyway. Made the round of the bars, and Debra bought souvenirs at Nipper’s before returning to the boat for dinner. The next day we went to Elbow Cay to visit Hopetown. Toured the town and the lighthouse. Had ice cream on a very warm afternoon. That night we went to dinner at a new restaurant called Firefly’s. The food and service were very good. Before returning to Marsh Harbor we swam off the boat then sunbathed on deck for a couple of hours. The return to Marsh Harbor was uneventful. We had curried lobster for dinner that evening on the boat. She left the next day for the States.

Now I must think about the return to the States for myself. I filled up the boat with diesel and water, and began the to work my way north, first through the passage around Whale Cay, then a couple of days off Manjack Cay. The weather turned bad (windy), so I moved to Green Turtle Cay and holed up for 3 days waiting for better weather. On the 24th I departed Green Turtle Cay for Great Sale Cay and spent the night in the protected cover there. The next day, Wednesday, NAVIGATOR and I went to the western edge of Little Bahamas Bank to anchor for the night at the edge of the Gulf Stream. There was a little roll, but not too bad. At 3:00 AM on April 26, I left the Bahamas for Ft. Pierce, FL. I arrived at 2:00 PM and checked in with customs and immigration to make my return official. It was sad to leave the Bahamas, but I am already looking forward to going back next year, and I want to definitely move farther south in the Bahamas to Eleuthera and the Exumas.

I now I will make my way up the Intracoastal Water (ICW). After Ft. Pierce, my first stop was Vero Beach. I arrived early enough that I was able to go ashore and walk to the ocean beach and have dinner. From Vero Beach I went to Satellite Beach to visit with friends Rick and Clayton for a few days. If you recall from previous Adventure Updates they had visited me in the Bahamas in late February. Today we went into Melbourne to visit their sidewalk art festival. Tomorrow we are going to the beach.