Wintering in New Mexico

If you are checking in to see if we are on the move again, the answer is yes we are. Just not in the fashion that we were last year.

We made a very difficult decision not to re-launch the boat and head south. We already had our house sitters lined up and our dining room was starting to look a lot like a warehouse. A lot of factors played a part in this decision. After we made the decision Jeff took the opportunity to go back to work (for what period of time we don’t know). He is working/living in Eunice, New Mexico in our RV. Talk about different from last year at this time – wow! He is in the middle of the desert out here. Cactus and red sand everywhere, along with rattlesnakes, although we haven’t seen any snakes up close and personal yet and I hope we don’t! It is so flat here we can see the edge of the earth. There are oil and gas wells everywhere. If we go outside and look off to the right we can see an oil well in someone’s back yard. Neither of us had been west of the Mississippi and look at this as another opportunity to see what this great country of ours has to offer. We plan to take advantage of the time out here to do some sightseeing.

The first weekend I was here we drove north to Albuquerque and Sante Fe. It was the 37th annual Balloon Fiesta with over 600 hot-air balloons participating. Spectacular doesn’t come close to describing seeing all those balloons inflate, lift off and drift away from you. There was every color, shape and size of balloon imaginable. As we got close to Albuquerque the landscape started to change appearance – there were mountains – the Sandia Mountains, although they sure look different than the ones we see on the eastern side of the country – they are barren dirt and rock, with some small scrubby bushes that we were told are mesquite and lots of cactus. We took in horse racing last Sunday. There is a horse track/racing/training facility here with the season ending sometime in December.

I have been out here for two weeks now and it isn’t such a shock when I go outside anymore. I must be getting used to it. But I will be glad to get home and see some trees and rolling hills. I will be leaving here in a couple of days to drive home and from then on I think I will fly when I come out. Three days on the road was a long time, although without pulling the RV it will only take two, but still!

Back in Tennessee

We made it to Fernandina Beach late last Saturday, May 18, hauled the boat on Tuesday, unloaded it and left on Friday. I don’t believe we could have found room for another toothbrush in the truck when we left. The only difference between us and the Clampett’s (Beverly Hillbillies) was that we were missing the rocking chair in the back. We took so much ‘stuff’ off the boat that will not go back on – things we didn’t use this trip and took up way too much space - space we can use for more important things, like cases of beer at US prices, and peanut butter. You can tell where our priorities are!

In any case we are back home in Tennessee for a few days. We will be leaving to go back down to Orlando for my Mother’s wedding – she is marrying her first love from high school and we don’t want to miss that!

When we left here last September we left our home in the hands of total strangers (Leo & Kathy) who house-sat for us. This was our first experience with house sitters and we were naturally nervous about it, but we were very impressed with the care they took of our home and property. They left us yesterday to head to Ohio to housesit for another couple who are going cruising.

We have a very long list of upgrades and additions we want to make to the boat before next cruising season. This being our first season to cruise proved to have a very steep learning curve. Things we thought would not be important turned out to be very important and vice versa. The Bahamas (the Abacos) exceeded our expectations and we are not sure yet where we will go next season, maybe back to the Abacos – who knows. Everyone we talked to late in the season coming north from the Exumas told us the water was prettier down there – how can that be?? Maybe we will just have to find out for ourselves!

This will be our last post for the season. Feel free to email us @ crjr180@yahoo.com. Now that we are home we have a reliable internet connection and are posting the following pictures summarizing the trip.

Back in the US of A

I know some of you were wondering ‘where are they – should we call the Coast Guard?’ We are fine, life is good again, and we are safe in the Harbourtown Marina, in Fort Pierce, Florida. We have not had internet service for, oh I don’t know how long. As a matter of fact, I just looked at the bottom of my computer to see what the day of the week is – Saturday, May 10. What a handy tool!

We crossed from the Bahamas and arrived here Thursday afternoon, about 4:00pm (by way of TowBoat U.S.) We did not have a good crossing! We were planning to cross from Great Sale Cay, but the wind came to a screeching halt and we were becalmed and the no see ums were very present, so decided to leave there, with another boat (‘Tarshish” – Bill & Ruth) and head to Mangrove Cay, about 20 miles closer to the Bahama Banks. We arrived there late afternoon (in time for a storm to skirt by us that had a waterspout in it), had dinner and grabbed a 2 hour rest before leaving at 10pm to cross over ‘to the other side’. We were expecting 10 – 15 knot winds, building to about 20 knots in the late afternoon after we would arrive in Ft Pierce, with 2 – 3 foot seas. What we had were very confused seas in the 3 – 5 + foot range with winds building well above 20 knots. We were motoring at this point, Jeff didn't want sails up before daylight, but we decided to put out the jib (or part of it) at about 3am to try to stabilize the boat and keep it from wallowing so bad – but it didn’t help much. It wasn’t so so bad during the night on the banks, but as we entered the ocean we were wallowing from side to side, and then it would be from back to front. I did manage to take a nap from 5 to 6 am. And then it got nasty. Obviously our fuel tank was getting shook up pretty good, because the engine decided at about 7am that it could not go any more. The seas had become too big by now for Jeff to work on the fuel filters, so we put out another sail and sailed the rest of the way to Ft. Pierce. We had Boat US tow us from outside the inlet into Harbourtown Marina. Wow, did our unlimited towing insurance pay off. The Ft. Pierce inlet was very ugly. If our boat had been smaller and lighter weight I think we would have broached coming through. The tide was running out at 3.5 knots against 30 knot winds. The result was 8 – 10 swells/waves from the port quarter. You can’t imagine what that does to the inside of the boat. As a friend of our says “Our boat threw up”. I had put away all the usual things before heading out and most things decided to relocate to a different place. I’m still looking for a couple of things – where did they go?

Jeff worked on the engine yesterday, changed both filters, got the engine running, and all is well. We will leave here this morning and head north. We will be hauling the boat out at Fernandina Beach, Florida.

We were sad about having to leave the Bahamas – we put it off as long as we could, but at the same time we are happy to be back ‘home’. We take so much for granted living in the US. We have used more fresh water in the last 24 hours (because it is available) than we would have used in a week in the Bahamas. I did laundry yesterday and only paid $2.50 a load, compared to $8 a load. The real eye opener will be when we go to the grocery store for the first time, although I’ve been told that groceries here have increased in price substantially since we left. One of the good things in the Bahamas is that they have no taxes, period. If the price is stated at $135, then it is $135, not $135 plus 9 1/4% tax.

Enough rambling – we are back, and heading towards the end of our journey for this year. We hope everyone that has been traveling with us, by way of the blog, has enjoyed the adventure as much as we have. It has been unbelievable. We have truly enjoyed ourselves and met so many great people and made many friends that we look forward to seeing again next time.

Gooooooooooood Mornin' Abaco

For the last four months we have been avid listeners and participants in the Abaco Cruisers Net on the VHF Radio Channel Six Eight (68) at 0815 every morning. On the eve of our departure from the Southern Abacos (south the Whale Cay Passage), we pay tribute to the Net. Here now is the language of the Net:

Gooooooooooood Mornin’ Abaco!!!!. This IS the Abaco Cruisers Net on the air every day at this time ….. This is Jeff on Eggers Wish, Dan on Danali Star, Mike on Last Call, Betty on Tar Heel, Ed on Windswept, Patty on Blue Dolphin….. Barometer Bob.com for weather…. Cold front with clocking winds; High Pressure with Easterly winds; enhanced winds in Squalls; Bahamas Met Office Advises Small Craft to Exercise Caution; Atlantic Seas 14 to 24’ in Northerly Swells; Beauuuuutiful weather for the next few days ordered up by the Chamber of Commerce…… Sea state of the Sea of Abaco …. In the lee of the Cays; Choppy bordering on sloppy; Albury Ferry Day. Community Announcements ….. Buck-a-book … Wild Horses of Abaco …. Headline News and Financials --- aren’t we glad we’re in the Abacos …. Invitations …. Nippers until we absolutely can’t do it any more; you take that left off the Gov’t dock and you ARE in Grabber Country; Dive Guana – let us show you Abaco from the bottom up; Jib Room, Jib Room, Jib Room – worth the ride to the other side; Pete's Pub - where the elite eat in their bare feet. Open Mike …. Come now with your calls signs twice, this is the Cruiser’s Net. Salty Dog, Salty Dog........ Salty Dog I have you. How can we help? New Arrivals ….. Welcome to the Top of the Bahamas. Departures ….. Sand in Your Shoes ---- you’ll be back. And if there is nothing further …. The Cruisers Net IS Clear.


Thank you Jeff, thank you Dan, thank you Mike, thank you Betty, thank you Ed, and most of all, THANK YOU Patty!

Deidra Grows Sea Legs

Deidra & Tom arrived on Sunday 3/6, in the rain, and spent a week with us. They are completely non- boaters, with no experience of boat movement, life on a boat, etc. We did try to prepare them for what it was going to be like, but I am certain it was far different than they expected. In any case they adjusted very well and it was definitely an adventure. We had several great sailing days while they were aboard and had very settled weather, for which we were thankful. We took them to several places that we enjoy. They even asked how they could charter a boat down here with a captain so that they could come back with their boys. Maybe they caught the sailing bug! I do think they definitely got sand in their shoes, as the saying goes. Deidra even found sea glass!

Mom comes to visit!

Well, our week with my Mom & Jack has come to a close. We had a wonderful time with them both. And I’m pretty sure they had a good time also. The winds kept us from being able to leave Treasure Cay (where they flew into) for a couple of days after they arrived. So we walked the gorgeous beach and enjoyed the resort area. What’s wrong with that?? They even found a purse bean on the beach! We were able to take them to Guana Cay, and a very rolly ride it was getting there. We participated in the pot luck dinner on Wednesday evening. I think they really enjoyed meeting some of the other cruisers and hearing their stories. They also got to see the famous Nipper’s and walk on another beautiful beach.

Next we took them to Tahiti Beach where we scoured for shells and a few pieces of sea glass, then on to Hopetown. We walked the town, visited the Wyannie Malone Museum, which gives you insight into Hopetown history. We lunched at a place where we could look out on the Atlantic Ocean and all it’s splendor. And then of course, we walked on the beach. By the way, Nannie (my Mother) learned to love Rum while she was here! After that we visited the Elbow Reef Lighthouse and climbed to the top to look out. Supposedly you can see for 17 miles from the top of the lighthouse. In any case it was quite a sight. The picture to the right is of Salty Dog anchored just off the lighthouse. This lighthouse is still hand cranked every 1 1/2 hours and runs on kerosene. That means the lighthouse keeper has to climb the stairs every 1 1/2 hours all night long and the kerosene is also carried up in five gallons jerry jugs. I had enough trouble just getting myself up the ladder once!

And then it was time to start heading back towards Treasure Cay.

There was a lot of oohing and ahhing all week long. They agreed with us that you just can’t describe how beautiful it is here and how clear the water is, along with the gorgeous turquoise color. I think they will come back for another visit another year. They told us while they were here that they are getting married May 31. We couldn’t be happier for them.

What's A Rage??!!

What’s a Rage? We have heard this term since being in the Bahamas, but didn’t fully understand it till yesterday. We haven’t had rage conditions since we’ve been here, at least that is till yesterday! A Rage is when wind strength and direction make inlets to the ocean impassible and very dangerous primarily, in addition to making the Sea of Abaco pretty nasty. You really don't want to be out in these conditions.

We left Lynyard Cay to head back towards Treasure Cay and the wind was really blowing, about 25 knots and out of the NE with the forecast of it getting worse, which it did. (The wind piped up to 30 knots with gusts exceeding 40knots) This had been going on for two days. Where we were anchored at Lynyard Cay was between two inlets from the ocean. We could see the inlet on the south end at Little Harbour and WOW was it nasty – waves breaking all the way across. But we were looking through the binoculars and couldn’t get the full effect of it, although it was impressive. We had to pass by North Bar Inlet on our way north, and we got up close and personal with the turmoil that the winds were causing! I couldn’t get below to get the camera till after we were past the worst of it, but I’m hoping you can click on the pictures and blow them up to see what I’m talking about. We were awestruck.

Little Harbour

We are currently in Little Harbour – a small harbor with most boats on a mooring ball. The only thing here is Pete’s Pub and Gallery. The gallery makes bronze sculptures that are beautiful but not affordable for us. I would love to have a small memento from this place, but it is going to have to be in the form of a picture. Today a large group of boats (all charter) from the American Yacht Club out of NY invaded the harbor. There are boats on top of boats. It is always a lot of entertainment to watch the charter boats try to anchor or pick up a mooring. One boat was particularly entertaining as they decided they did not need to come into the harbor via the clearly marked channel. It was only a matter of time before they ran hard aground. Luckily the tide came in and they floated off.

Yesterday we went out to Bookies Beach with Mike & Harriet (Dual Dreams) and waded in the surf picking up sea glass. We had a blast and got lots of glass! Harriet and I ended up with bathing suits full of sand after getting rolled in the water by the undertow a couple of times. This was one of the better sea glass days we’ve had. We will be back out there again today at low tide to have another go at it.

Before we came to Little Harbour we were anchored in Buckaroon Bay for several days. We were the only boat there. The water was crystal clear and there were lots of sea stars around our boat. We spent many hours walking the beaches and scavenging through the ‘stuff’ that had washed up from past storms, as well as snorkeling on the reef. Jeff found a message in a bottle (on the beach). It was dated 12/17/05 in the mid-Atlantic, aboard the QE2.

We are starting to see alot of boats that are heading back up from the Exumas (the southern Bahamas). It is sad to think that this is coming to an end, but it certainly will be before we are ready for it to. We know of many boats that have already had to head back to the states in the last couple of weeks. Many people have been able to take short leaves from work to take a 4 - 6 month trip. What's wrong with that?? Then back to work til next years trip. We have hated to see some of our new friends leave, but we look forward to meeting up with them next year.

Barefoot Man Concert

Last Saturday was the Barefoot Man concert on Guana Cay. Barefoot Man is a Jimmy Buffet type, with similar music. This is a much looked forward to event for the island of Guana. They were expecting 2500 people. I have no idea how many were there, but it was a lot!!! There were over 60 boats in the main anchorage off of Fishers Bay with us, and the harbour was full, as well as the marina. We had a great time! There were beads to be had by the women (just like at Mardi Gras) and you get them the same way - you guess how. I have three sets of beads!