Hola! We're in the Dominican Republic!!!

Rainbow over anchorage in Georgetown

We FINALLY got a good weather window to go from Georgetown to Puerto Rico with several stops in between.  The first stop was in Rum Cay where both Slow Dancing (Dan and Melissa) and Navigator were beset with rolling seas at the anchorage.  The chart did note possible swells but could not possibly describe the constant motion and rolling of the boats.  After putting up with this the entire night, we took off for Turks and Cacaos early the next morning in 5 foot seas which seemed almost comfortable after the Rum Cay.  

First sighting of Dominican Republic

Kathy would like to stop here for a moment and try to explain to all of my non sailing friends why taking a trip of this magnitude is so exciting and exhilarating. First, it is a long time to spend in a confined space where almost nothing is convenient as is our USA homes.  Dishes have to be hand washed in hot, hot water, laundry is piled up until we make it to a marina.  Showering needs to be fast, military style so as not to use too much water and fresh fruits and vegetables are subject to availability in the small towns we dingy to.  Sooooooo, why is it so neat to do this?  Because, when I for one steer the boat through a blinding rainstorm or rolling 5 foot seas in the middle of the night, or simply create images of teddy bears, toy poodles from puffing clouds as we sail along, I am awed by the fact that I have such fortune to be physically capable to do this.  For every inconvenience, there is an opportunity to see and experience people and places that are entirely new to me.  Especially, when you go anywhere by boat, you are exposed to sights that take your breath away.

Ocean World, Domincan Republic

So, back to the adventure.  After motor sailing through the night, both boats arrived in Cacaos Marina in the afternoon.  All crew were tired and Cliff pulled out his special spaghetti sauce and invited Marissa and Dan to a spaghetti dinner on Navigator.  We turned in early and started out the very next day for Ocean World in the Dominican Republic which took another overnight motor sail.  Note that each area we have gone to requires customs check-in and out and, so far has been rather convenient in that the officials have been coming to our boats.  

Ocean World is a kind of Florida Sea World where they have dolphin and seal shows complete with Spanish style music and language.  Hard to believe that seals and dolphins can respond to Spanish commands but they do!!!  

We decided to take a cab trip into town for lunch and anything else that might interest the four of us. We had our own personal cab driver who dropped us off at a great restaurant and then waited for us to take us anywhere else we wanted.  During the drive to the restaurant, our cabbie pointed out the cable car to the top of the highest mountain and said that although he had lived in the area all of his life, he had never taken the trip.

Melissa, Dan, Cliff and Kathy patiently waiting for Cable Car

Cliff suggested that we go.  When we arrived, we talked our cabbie into going with us and waiting patiently while listening to a merengue band (very loud) for our turn to ride the car.  The views were incredible but more surprising was that there was the most amazing rain forest type garden at the top of the mountain.  Our little group exited the car and proceeded to walk for an hour around this park. We were so glad that we got to see this and also the beauty of the Dominican Republic.

Gardens on top of the mountain

Talked Cabbie into going
 with us on Cable Car

View from Cable Car

  

Very top of Mountain and Melissa assumes the pose!!!!!

 
Today, we have arrived at a resort marina in Samana where we are currently resting from our overnight all sailing adventure from Ocean World.

More to follow!

Marsh Harbor to Georgetown!!!

Arrived in Marsh Harbor on Friday, December 12^th…Spent first night anchored out but had a couple of boat problems and decided to go to the marina for repairs. Marina and Jib Room owner, Tom, Steve, his son and Jason were charming and helpful. The next day, we ventured into Marsh Harbor to the Marine Store to get a part for the dinghy motor, found a place for a good lunch and then walked to Maxwells’s new grocery store.  Taken with the amazing amount of inventory, we sort of over bought with the ramification of carrying several heavy bags of groceries for what seemed an eternity back to the dinghy.  Another day, Cliff and I both got our hair cut at the local beauty parlor and then meandered through the assortment of island stores for the rest of the afternoon.

On December 17^th, we left and headed to Linyard Cay, anchored and left the next morning for Royal Island Harbor, anchored and on the next day, headed for Allan’s Cay to see the Iguana’s.  Alas, there was no room in the harbor but it was a shock to see numerous iguanas on the beach sunning themselves and maybe looking for food handouts from the tourist.  We decided to go south for 2 more hours to Shroud Cay where we picked up a mooring ball for the night. 

On to Exuma Cay’s Land and Sea Park in the Northfield at Warerick Wells.  What a magnificent place.  Cliff and I hiked to Boo Boo Hill, the highest point on the island and a wonderful overlook. Alas, all of the wonderful pictures of this place were somehow lost when I tried to transfer my camera to the computer.  So, will have to take my word for it…Don’t ever miss going to Warerick Wells if you come to the Bahamas.  Some of the trails are actually made up of limestone rock which to me seemed downright prehistoric.

There was so much to do there and there were several families there for Christmas as well.  Cliff and I spent Christmas Eve there and then took off Christmas Day for Blockpoint to anchor and call my children on Christmas. The next day, we ventured to Lee Stocking Island , an abandoned Caribbean Marine Research Center which struck us as a huge waste of a beautiful island.

Sandals, Emerald Bay

Sandals

Next to Emerald Bay Marina which is now owned by Sandals (Emerald Bay). We arrived a day early to meet our friends Melissa and Dan on Blue Dancer who will accompany us on our adventure to Trinidad. Cliff and I had Bahama Pinacolada’s and a great lunch at the restaurant and also a delightful walk on the beach to Sandals to look around.

Monument on Stocking Island

Arrived in Stocking Island, Georgetown on December 29^th and anchored out along with several other boats waiting for a good weather window to take off South.  This area is surprising as it is kind of a boat community minus the marina where everyone either knows or tries to know each other.  They have beach volley ball, cocktail hours, morning radio broadcasts, etc. etc. etc.  The dinghies are constantly moving from boat to boat, to Georgetown, or to Stocking Island. 

Cliff and I celebrated New Year’s Eve on Dan and Melissa’s boat and all four of us went to shore to dance at a local club. 

EYC in Georgetown???????

At this writing, we are still in Georgetown and waiting for a weather window to take off.  More later.

 

Following Cliff up the path to monument

View from half way up the hill

View from monument on Stocking

Customs at Green Turtle Club

Arrived at Green Turtle Club on Monday morning, had great help getting into slip from the staff and Skipper Bobby who we met in Vero Beach.  We were surprised to find that the customs officer met our boat and came aboard to check us in. 

After checking in Cliff rented a golf cart to take us to New Plymouth to see the sights.  Interestingly, Cliff proved to be a much better sailboat skipper than a golf cart driver but after a bit finally remembered on his own to drive on the left side of the "rutted, muddy and bumpy road".  We took a sudden turn down a dirt road to see a most exquisite cove where the water rushed over some rocks to create a breathtaking site.  Then to lunch at a place called "Lizard" something or other with another panoramic view of the ocean.  Next stop, New Plymouth which was all dressed up for Christmas, Bahama style. 

Winds came up yesterday and we were told that the Atlantic had 9 foot waves, so we stayed put and are waiting it out to move on to Marsh Harbor with the hope of leaving on Thursday.

Cliff better as golf cart rider than driver!

Always wanted to drive one!

This really IS a stop sign

Posing by beautiful cove

New Plymouth all decked out for Christmas

 

Festival of Lights, Bahama Style

We made it to the Bahama's

      

    

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Left West Palm Beach to cross to the Bahama's at 5:00 am.  Swells to 4 feet, bumpy ride, hard to keep on coarse, but amazingly enough, a full moon glowed like a spot light behind us, lighting the way until dawn.  

4 foot waves continued until the afternoon and slowly receded to the calm blue waters of the Bahamas by nightfall.  Cliff served a candlelight dinner of Chicken a la king using the brand new slightly used (Goodwill find) of quality stick place mats on the deck table.  During dinner and Kathy's watch, the boat glided her way via autohelm.

At dusk, full moon reappeared on the bow and lit a path for Navigator to safely find her way to Great Sale Cay where we anchored at 9:00 pm.

Lovely day and night...Lovely moon

After a week long visit to Satellite Beach, Friends, Clayton, Rick and Cliff pose for a farewell picture.

Home Again

Cliff and Navigator arrived back in Maryland waters last week after their cruise south and back.

Official Cliff Posting from the U.S.

Hello everyone.  I  am well and safe.  I know it has been a long time since I sent an update so I will begin by saying I am back in the US.  I did the crossing from the Abacos to Fort Pierce, Florida on April 25th.  Although a relatively rough crossing, with seas range from 3 to 5 feet, with the occasional 6 foot wave, there were no mishaps and the captain and NAVIGATOR came through fine.

So…what have I been doing all this time.  Well, I liked the Exumas well enough that I stayed there for a couple of months, mostly in the Georgetown, Exuma area.  The weather over the winter was quite good.  For much of the time I was anchored in the lee of the easterly trade winds off the west side of Stocking Island, which is across Elizabeth Harbor from Georgetown, making the anchorage much quieter.  I did a lot of exploring of Stocking Island as it had numerous hiking trails that crisscrossed the island, plus miles of sandy beaches to walk and swim off, both on the ocean side and the harbor side.  I found a couple of great Tiki Bars on the island as well, Big D’s and Chat & Chill.  It was fun to dinghy ashore for a unique rum punch from each place.  Once a week Bid D’s had an evening bonfire on the beach, so groups would get together and drink and have dinner ashore by the fire.

Big D's Tiki Bar & Grill

Stocking Island

But, eventually it came time to leave the Georgetown area and begin to head north.  In early March I started the journey back to the Abacos.  I spent time at Stocking Cay (as opposed to Stocking Island), which was formerly a research center that had been closed for a couple of years.  Did lots of hiking and beach walking for nearly a week as the weather was not particularly suitable for transit in the ocean.  The water was still clean and clear, and all shades of blue.  Hopefully the center will find funding to continue its work before all the facilities become too run down to be usable.  From Stocking Cay, I went to Little Farmer’s Cay and spent a couple of days.  This was a small cay with a small settlement, and an airstrip.  The people were wonderful and  friendly, the drinks cheap, and the food good, with lots of fresh fish.  I then went to Black Point settlement for a few days on Guana Cay, Exuma.  Among other things, I did laundry there, one of those things that need doing even in paradise.  Then it was on to Staniel Cay, known for having a grotto on a small cay just off its shore where the James Bond movies were filmed, to pick up water and diesel fuel.   As I continued north, up the Exuma chain, I arrived at the Exuma Land and Sea Park, and spent time on several of the cays in the park,  including Cambridge, Warderwick Wells, and Hawksbill Cays.  Did swimming and snorkeling at Cambridge and Hawksbill cays, and spent 5 days at Warderwick Wells walking trails, sunbathing on deserted beaches, and snorkeling.  A period of good weather was imminent, so I continued north to Highbourne Cay and prepared for a crossing to Eleuthera (bought fuel and water).

Land & Sea Park

A little after the middle of March, I did the crossing from Highbourne Cay, Exuma across Exuma  Sound to Rock Sound, Eleuthera in a day.  A couple of days were spent walking the settlement of Rock Sound, meeting the people, searching out bars/restaurants, and seeing the sights.  Then I took NAVIGATOR to Hatchet Bay, which is surrounded by Alice Town, Eleuthera.  Spent another few days here learning about the people  and enjoying the bars and restaurants.  There are only a few hundred inhabitants in the settlement of Alice Town, but all seemed very friendly and helpful to cruisers, like most everywhere in Eleuthera and the Exumas.

Sunset off Eleuthera

Another weather window was opening for the crossing to the Abacos, so it was time to leave Hatchet Bay and head to Royal Island Sound, Royal Island being off the northwest shore of Eleuthera.  Only one night was spent at Royal Island Sound, which was not bad as there is really nothing to do on Royal Island since the resort closed, before heading for the Abacos.  The next morning fleet of 6 sailboats left Royal Island Sound at about 5:00 AM in route Little Harbour, Abacos, with NAVIGATOR in the lead.  We made good time so I bypassed Little Harbour inlet and took NAVIGATOR into the Sea of Abaco through North Bar Channel, which is a much better inlet than Little Harbour.  As I had made good time, I continued on to Marsh Harbour, Abaco for its protection as the wind was expected to become stronger the next day (which it did).  It is now the end of March, and I have nearly a month to spend in the Abacos before returning to the States.  I did some sailing to the outlying cays, including Great Guana, Elbow Cay, Talloo, and Linyard Cays.  Did a lot of healthy walking around Marsh Harbour and the beaches of the cays.  Went out to dinner several times to a couple of good restaurants, including Firefly’s on Elbow Cay and The Jib Room in Marsh Harbour.  Also did the pig roast at Nipper’s on Great Guana Cay as well.  But all good things must end, it seems, so I had to begin my plan to cross the Gulf Stream back to the US.  The problem was the weather did not want to cooperate.  The wind started to blow, and the seas built, some days to as much as 8-10 feet.  So the plan became to go out into the ocean for a short passage round Whale Cay on the first day the seas dropped to 3-4 feet, then spent time at Powell Cay waiting for the seas in the Gulf Stream to die down to 3-5 feet.  Powell Cay provided me access to the internet through my cell phone card so I could keep an eye on the weather.  I needed to plan three days in advance of a crossing as it takes two days to get to the Gulf Stream from Powell Cay.  When I saw a window approaching, I headed out to Great Sale Cay, and spent the first night there.  The next morning I made a short run to Mangrove Cay and spent the afternoon and evening there trying to get a little sleep, then took off for the edge of the Little Bahama Bank at 10:00 PM at night to begin the crossing.  I had estimated 6 hours to the edge of the Bank, but it only took 5, so I reached the edge of the Gulf Stream shortly after 3:00 AM on Thursday, April 25th and the crossing began, in the dark with 3-4 foot seas.  As the morning wore on, the seas built to 3-5 feet, before subsiding to 2-3 feet about 2 hours out from Fort Pierce inlet in Florida. 

Marsh Harbour

I made the inlet by noon, and Harbor Town Marina by 1:00 PM.  Spent the afternoon checking in with Customs and Immigration with the help of friends from Satellite Beach, Rick and Clayton, driving me to the airport to meet with Immigration.  We had dinner at the marina before Rick headed home to Satellite Beach.  Clayton stayed on board helping me bring NAVIGATOR up the Waterway to Satellite Beach, with a one night stop at Vero Beach. 

We got into the Banana River at Satellite Beach around 2:00 PM and anchored, then took the dinghy ashore to their house on a canal in Satellite Beach.  I have been enjoying their hospitality for nearly a week now, but I will head out tomorrow (Friday, May 3) on the journey north up the Intracoastal Waterway.

I hope everyone had as enjoyable a winter as I did.  I will let you know when I get into Chesapeake Bay.

Cliff Baker
S/V NAVIGATOR

Back in the U.S. of A.

Cliff arrived back in U.S. waters this week.  Clayton and I drove down to Ft Pierce, Florida when he arrived.  Then Clayton sailed up to our home in Satellite Beach, FL with Cliff.  Cliff has some great photos of his winter in the Bahamas, and will be posting them here soon (we hope).

Rick

Motoring up the Intracoastal Waterway in Florida

Cliff at the Helm

Back in Marsh Harbour

I am in Marsh Harbour, Abaco at the current time.  I plan to cross back from the Bahamas to Florida in about 10 to 14 days, then start heading up the Intracoastal Waterway.

Cliff

Eleuthera to the Abacos

I left the Exumas a couple of days ago for Eleuthera.  Spent a day in Rock Sound, Eleuthera.  Then went to Hatchet Bay Harbour at Alice Town for a couple of days.

I will head to Royal Island tomorrow, then on to the Abacos on Saturday, weather permitting.

January/ February 2013 Update

Hello everyone, I know it has been a long time since I sent any information on my whereabouts, but I have been having trouble getting decent internet access, and e-mail access in particular.  So, I will try and update you on what I  have been doing.  I will assume you got the e-mail on my arrival in the Abacos, but not the one about my arrival in the Exumas, so I will start with leaving the Abacos.

On December 17 I left Linyard Cay, Abaco for Eleuthera.  After the better part of the day sailing and motoring, I arrived at Royal Sound, Eleuthera, where I spent the night.  Then It was off to Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera for several days.  Governor’s Harbour is the government seat in Eleuthera.  The town is quite clean, and has all the necessities except a place to get fuel and water.  I spent several days there enjoying walking around the town, meeting the people, and enjoying the library.  Also went out to dinner one evening.  I then headed down to Rock Sound, at the southern end of Eleuthera, and spent several days in the protection of the harbor as a cold front went through.  Rock Sound was a smaller town than Governor’s Harbour, but still enjoyable.  I found an inexpensive Bahamian restaurant one evening, and the food was quite good in the home cooking style.  But one does have to the pace of Bahamian service!

After the front past, I did a day sail across Exuma Sound to the northern cays of the Exumas, spending the first night at a marina on Highbourne Cay where I was able to obtain diesel fuel and water.  The next day  left for The Exuma’s Land and Sea Park headquarters at Warderwick Wells.  I spent eight days in the north anchorage of Wardrick Wells and explored the cay, as it had lots of walking trails to follow, and did several days of snorkel when the wind was not blowing to hard.  It was a good place to sit out another cold front  passage.  The Park Administrator and his girlfriend opened their house to the cruisers that were at Warderwick Wells on Christmas Day for dinner.  They provided a turkey and ham, and the cruisers provided all the sides (NAVIGATOR providing stuffing and brownies).  We also had a beachside get together on New Years eve, though no one stayed up until midnight, at least not on the beach.

After leaving Warderwick Wells, I did a couple of days of snorkeling at Cambridge Cay, also in the park.  The water was so clear, and on the first day I found a place called the Sea Aquarium that had lots and lots of tropical fish to swim with.  It was actually nothing more than a small cay off Cambridge Cay that seemed to attract a t lot of fish.  The next day was not so successful, as I was going to snorkel an area known for its elkhorn coral, only a shark wanted to call the area home that day, so I let him have his way and tried elsewhere.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find anyplace as good as the place I had been the day before.  From Cambridge Cay I headed further south to the Staniel Cay area and anchored behind Big Majors Spot Cay to spend a couple of days.  The first days was pretty windy, so I stayed put on the boat.  The next day I met some other Island Packet owners who were going snorkeling at Thunderball Cave, the cave in which they filmed the underwater scenes for the James Bond movie Thunderball.  Unfortunately, I managed to scrape my leg getting into the dinghy to head out.  By the time I got to the cave, my scrape was bleading, so watched the dinghy while the other two snorkeled the cave.  I didn’t want to go into the water with blood, in case we ran across another shark.  I will snorkel there on my back north.  The next stop on the way south the George Town, Exuma was a settlement called Black Point on Guana Cay.  This settlement appeared to be poorer than the previous ones I had been to, but the people were still very friendly and helpful.  I walked the island, crossing to the ocean side for the view, and walked around town finding a Laundromat, which I used, and grocery store to get fresh vegetables, and three bar and grills, where, naturally, I had to try out the bar.  After 2 days in Black Point, I headed south once again, spending most of the day underway to Cave Cay for the night.  I did not go ashore here as it is a private cay, as are many of the cays in the Exumas.

The next day I headed out for George Town, Exuma.  The initial ride out the cut by Cave Cay was quite rough, with 4-5 foot seas that were very steep, as a result of and outgoing tide and incomeing wind blowing about 20 knots.  But once NAVIGATOR got about half mile off shore, things smoothed out and I had a nice passage to George Town.  The entry into the harbor was fairly straight forward, and I found an nice anchorage off Stocking Island off Monument Beach.  So, I have been in George Town since January 7, 2013, except for a couple of trips about 8 miles north to Emerald Bay Marina for fuel and water and a change of scenery.  George Town is the largest settlement in the Exumas, but no where near as large as Marsh Harbor in the Abacos.  It has been fun to meet new people, both cruisers and native Bahamas.  One of the Bahamians who is quite knowledgable bout computers, has helped me get decent internet access.  I have eaten out a fairly broad selection of restaurants, from beach bars to fine dining (which is very expensive here), though not that often due to the cost.  There are also a lot of activities going on in George Town.  The cruisers put on seminars on travel experience, technical problems, sprots, yoga, you name it, someone will discuss it.  The water is very clear here, both on the harbor and oceans sides.  Water colors are fabulous.  The weather is also better here, the temperature about 10 degrees warmer than Marsh Harbour, and the winds usually 5-10 MPH less when a cold front goes through.  The only real problem is there is not a lot of protection from wind blowing  from the SW to the W to the NW.  Fortunately the easterly trades  winds predominate.

Well, I guess this brings me up to date.  Sorry for not writing more often.  I will try to do better.

Cliff Baker
S/V NAVIGATOR

To the Exumas and Beyond

Made Eleuthera and went on the Exumas.  I have been through the Exumas Land and Sea Park, been to Staniel Cay where the movie Thunderball was filmed, and am now in Blackpoint Settlement on Great Guana Cay, Exumas.

 I may be heading to George Town, Exumas early next week.  Weather has been quite good, and it is warmer here by nearly 10 degrees than in the Abacos.