Spanish Wells, Eleuthera

It's great to be back in the Bahamas. We found our own sandbar island to spend the day at.

Marathon to Spanish Wells, Bahamas

We had a great motor/sail just under 48 hours from Marathon, FL to Spanish Wells, Bahamas.
We lifted anchor at 10:00 AM on Monday February 23rd near the 7 mile bridge and started going almost due east.  The seas were confused and it was like sailing in a washing machine.  The wind was out of the south but getting lighter and lighter as the day progressed.  We made it to the Gulf Stream before dark and enjoyed the calmer seas and increase in speed because of the stream.  We aimed the boat east but Traveled northeast because of the stream pushing us along.  South riding rock, Bahamas was easy to transit in the dark but I wished I could see it in the light to enjoy the crystal blue water.  The sun rose and we crossed the banks making it near Morgan's Bluff, Bahamas by dark.  From there we took our time crossing the Northwest Providence Channel so we would arrive at Spanish Wells, Bahamas by daylight.  We arrived on February 25th by 6:30 AM and tried to anchor and check in by dinghy.  Customs required us to come into a marina to check in which allowed us to celebrate with conch fritters, (of course) ice cream, and get our wifi SIM cards from the local Batellco tower.
Overall it was an easy crossing and we are all so excited to be here!

Life Is Simple Again

We are now officially cruisers again.  This last week we sold our car to a nice couple and their cute little 7 month old girl.  They are new in the United States from Poland and trying to make a go of it in Key West.  I think our minivan will be great for them.

The dodger is turning out awesome.  It is amazing to be able to see out and still be protected from wind and waves.  Woo hoo!!  Paul also cleaned the bottom and paid special attention to the propeller because we plan on using it quite a bit in the next few days.  The growth on the bottom of our boat he claims is always changing.  This time is was more like a big beard growing with tubular worm like creatures.  Eeewww!

Today we motored though the mooring field of Boot Key Harbor waving good bye to all of our friends.  We feel so fortunate to have found such a wonderful place to make our home for the past 10 months.  There are plenty of kid boats to spend time with and everyone else is very cruiser friendly.

Now we are anchored out and testing the water maker.  Everything is a go for tomorrow.  We plan to cross over to the Bahamas.  We are stuffing everything into a lockers if at all possible or lashing them down.  I know that something will be moving around while we cross over but the more we get locked in place the better.  Problem being we have so so so so so much stuff!!!

Going to the Bahamas!

Almost Cruising Again!!

Time seems to be flying by here in Marathon, FL.  The kids are out of school and they can’t wait to start homeschooling again.  A lot has happened since the last blog post so here it is in a nutshell. 

We are getting closer to cruising again.  Yea!!!!

The month of January flew by, and we have a lot to show for it. 

The deck boxes are done and installed and they look like we bought them from the store.  Paul is an amazing builder.  He can dream up plans in his head, get out a tape measure and create the most wonderful and use full things.

Aren't they pretty!

The genoa (front sail) is repaired and back up with a new blue sacrificial cover.  I think it adds a nice accent to the boat (don’t ya think?)

We have more storage space with the cupboards in place.  We bought so much food this time that we have overflowed the capacity of all our lockers and new cupboards.  The minivan rode so low on the way back from Miami I was afraid we would have to call a tow truck.  Now our boat has all the provisions and is riding extremely low on the water line.  (especially the side with all the canned goods)

Meanwhile as with all boats there is daily maintenance and repairs.  Our refrigerator required new parts to keep running and we are so grateful to still be in a place where parts are easy to find and own a car to get us there and back. 

Our dinghy motor has been giving Paul a few problems with water in oil.  He has taken it apart and put it back together at least 5 times in the past month with new parts almost each time.  He ran it hard yesterday and today, the repair work is holding up.

Paul painted the inside of the dinghy so it looks almost new again and made a place for a bow light to attach, very handy.

Among all of his other chores Paul still found time to do the dishes on a daily basis while I was still a working girl. 

As of Friday the 13th I am no longer a working girl, I am now officially the homeschool Mama and will start school after I take a mini vacation myself.  Whew!

I’m keeping in shape with the neighbors at a 7 AM Insanity Workout session Monday through Friday.  It is just 30 minutes but I have to say, I feel the soreness all week long. 

The dodger is next on the list.  It was tough to see through our previous dodger.  The plastic glass was so fogged over we couldn’t see a thing.  This time we plan to clean it regularly to keep it looking as good as new. (maybe our two little swabbies can help)

Also next on the list is selling the minivan.  The weather doesn’t look good to cross for a few more days so we will keep it as long as we can to haul goods back and forth until we leave. 

We will be testing the water maker, testing the repaired sail, and getting back out into the open water very soon. 

We continue to enjoy time with friends we have met here in the harbor including MadSam, Orenda, Thin Line, Venus, Huntress, and Salsa. 

My plan is to post one more time before we cross over then it will be fun in the Bahamas after that.  Yippee!!!

Getting to work on the dodger.

Osprey near the dinghy dock

We got to close and scarred it away.  He was just trying to eat his fish in peace.