S/V Barefoot: Rock Sound, Eleuthera

March 20, 2014

We have spent almost 3 weeks anchored in Rock Sound, a bit longer than planned. Rock Sound is a pleasant place with reasonably good protection from weather, decent facilities, and friendly people.

Queen's Highway - Downtown Rock Sound

One of the reasons for staying longer was a problem with our autopilot –the device that steers the boat on a steady course so you don’t have to hand-steer all the time. One morning after we arrived in Eleuthera, our 1 1/2 year old autopilot decided to spontaneously and ‘permanently’ go into a ‘Demo Slide Show’ mode; this is a mode that a dealer or boat show might use to ‘demonstrate’ the unit. A call to the manufacturer was less than helpful. Their only solution was to send the unit back for bench-testing where they would repair or replace the unit, a process that would be extremely difficult from the Bahamas.

We were then faced with either hand-steering for the remainder of the trip(ugh!), or ordering a new unit (not an inexpensive nor easy solution). We had the parts shipped DHL overnight, which is fairly reliable into Rock Sound. The shipment, however, got held up in Customs in Nassau. We had hired a Customs Broker and it turned out to be a good move, because he was finally able to convince them to forward the parts to Rock Sound for clearance. Also, we ended up paying only a 1% stamp tax (instead of the stated 30% duty) due to our ‘Cruising Permit’ and the work of the broker.

Replacing the control unit in the cockpit was easy, but replacing the processor and the cable connecting the two was a multiple day job involving many hours in the cramped lazerette (locker) where the processor is mounted. But in the end the project was a success and our autopilot is working again!

We renewed some friendships from our visit here last year, especially the Culmer family that run Sammy’s Place restaurant, the locals go-to for food. We had got to know the family last year, particularly Jan, the eldest daughter, who last year was here from Nassau recuperating from surgery and waiting for completion of the renovation of the hotel where she worked. We had expected that Jan would be back in Nassau by now, so it was a very pleasant surprise when she was behind the counter when we first entered.

Sammy's Place

There are two sections in the restaurant: a section with some booths and tables (where most visitors or locals desiring a quiet meal sit) and a section with a counter and some tables where most of the ‘action’ occurs (which of course is where we usually sit). We had some some great time with Jan, her sisters (Margie and Lisa) and her mother, Kathleen. Kathleen, at 70 years young, is at the kitchen at the restaurant each day at 4 AM, and then many afternoons goes to tend her 'farm' where she grows a variety of vegetables. She is amazing!

We also had some good conversations with several locals. One in particular was notable. It started when a gentleman (Chris) commented on the t-shirt I was wearing from Barraterre, a small settlement on the northern end of Exuma; he said” I didn’t know cruisers went there”. In fact we had not taken our boat there due to the shallow water, but we did stop there on a car trip around the island. It turned out that his wife (Monique) was from Cat Island (our next destination) and they were accompanied by a gentleman named Eris Moncur. They said he was ‘Mr. Cat Island’. Our discussion and later research revealed that he was an educator and Cat Island historian. They were delightful to talk to.

Another Sammy’s incident was very fun. There was an international track & field event on the television and Chris Brown, an Eleuthera native, was running in the 400 meter race. The kitchen emptied out and the entire staff and we watched the race. Everyone was cheering loudly for Chris (our apologies to the two US runners) and it was pandemonium when he took 2^nd place and won a silver medal.

We attended the Methodist Church here twice in our visit. It was a nice little church. There full-time pastor was off-island, but two lay ministers that preached the Sundays we were there. The second Sunday service was led by the youth, and it was good to see the number of students involved.

Rock Sound Methodist Church

A few assorted pictures from Rock Sound:

Government Building

'Mission'
Community Center endowed by the Johnson family, winter Eleuthera residents. Their company, S.C Johnson, makes household products like Pledge and many others.