February 27, 2014
We have now transited from the Abacos to Eleuthera.
On Monday (2/24) we left Marsh Harbour and moved down the Sea of Abaco and anchored near Lynyard Cay. This staged us for an early morning departure on Tuesday (2/25) out Little Harbour Cut and across the North East Providence Channel (Hole in the Wall) to Eleuthera. This is blue-water passage (maximum water depth around 15,000 feet) across a very busy shipping channel.
We saw a number of large freighters with which we had comfortable crossings. One freighter crossing, however, was WAY TOO CLOSE. From bearings and AIS information I figured that he would pass astern of us but very close. This put me in an 'awkward' position. To cut back and try to cross across his stern would require a very aggressive move and might conflict with his plan. Speeding up might have helped, but might also cause confusion. I was about to try to contact him by radio when he turned to the left, increasing the distance he would pass behind us to about 0.8 nautical miles. This may seem like a lot, but when the ship is about a 1/4 mile long, believe me it doesn't seem like too much.
The weather was very mild. There was little wind and a modest sea swell. No sailing, but our faithful Yanmar engine kept us moving along. About 10 hours after our 0630 departure from Little Harbour, we anchored at Royal Island.
We originally planned to keep moving and head down to Rock Sound, but an increase in wind and seas have delayed us; we may now spend a few days in Spanish Wells.
Tom
Anchored Royal Island
Near Eleuthera
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Marsh Harbour Friends
February 23, 2014
We have been docked at Harbour View Marina http://www.harbourviewmarina.com/ in Marsh Harbour, Abaco for the last three weeks. It has been a great time to catch up on boat maintenance, laundry, cleaning, and renew some friendships from our visit here almost two years ago.
Harbour View is a very nice marina in a great location, near some great stores, restaurants, and coffee shops. We especially enjoy the short walk to the very nice bathroom/showers and pool. We don't dock that much during the winter and at our home marina in Florida it is a long walk to these facilities, so HVM is a special treat. It is run by Troy Cornea and assisted by his father and mother Bob and Phyllis Cornea. They are great folks and it was nice to catch up with them. Unfortunately, Bob fell and broke his hip a while ago, but is starting to get around better.
The highlight of the visit was returning to Grace Baptist Church in Dundas Town. We have developed a special relationship with this small church and the people there. On our first visit this year, Jackie Robins, the pastor's wife introduced and welcomed us from the platform and said "You are not visitors, you are family". It was a special moment and a sentiment that we feel towards them as well!
The church was founded by Bishop Henfield, Jackie's father, who along with his wife are still very active as an Overseers. Shawn Robbins, Jackie's husband is the current pastor.
The services are lively, very moving, and a bit long by American standards, but you really don't notice until you look at your watch as you're leaving and are surprised that it is 2 1/2 hours after the start of the service.
At our last visit there two years ago, Bishop Henfield prayed for two things for us: a safe trip home and a quick sale of our house in Syracuse. I was able to share a testimony how God wonderfully answered those prayers!
We had the Robbins and Henfields over to the marina and boat for a dessert on Sunday - it was a great time!
The extended Henfield family also run a great local restaurant here called Ju' Novia's. It is a locals go-to and has great Bahamian food. If you are interested in exploring Bahamian breakfasts, they have the most expansive menu I have ever seen. I expanded my experiences this year with a Sheep's Tongue Souse - it was delicious - along with old favorites of Steam Cornbeef and Stew Fish. Yum!
One friend that was missing was Ashley from Java's Coffee house. She has moved to Seattle and her mother now runs the café by herself. Although we know that Ashley has better opportunities there, we were sorry that we didn't get to see her.
The lowlight of our time here was a week-long intestinal 'bug' that had me (Tom) quite sick. All better now and all in all, this was not a bad place to be sick.
On Monday we head down the Sea of Abaco to near Little Harbour to stage for a trip south to Eleuthera on Tuesday. This is 'blue-water' passage across a very busy shipping lane.
Tom
Docked at Harbour View Marina
Marsh Harbour, Abaco
We have been docked at Harbour View Marina http://www.harbourviewmarina.com/ in Marsh Harbour, Abaco for the last three weeks. It has been a great time to catch up on boat maintenance, laundry, cleaning, and renew some friendships from our visit here almost two years ago.
Harbour View is a very nice marina in a great location, near some great stores, restaurants, and coffee shops. We especially enjoy the short walk to the very nice bathroom/showers and pool. We don't dock that much during the winter and at our home marina in Florida it is a long walk to these facilities, so HVM is a special treat. It is run by Troy Cornea and assisted by his father and mother Bob and Phyllis Cornea. They are great folks and it was nice to catch up with them. Unfortunately, Bob fell and broke his hip a while ago, but is starting to get around better.
The highlight of the visit was returning to Grace Baptist Church in Dundas Town. We have developed a special relationship with this small church and the people there. On our first visit this year, Jackie Robins, the pastor's wife introduced and welcomed us from the platform and said "You are not visitors, you are family". It was a special moment and a sentiment that we feel towards them as well!
The church was founded by Bishop Henfield, Jackie's father, who along with his wife are still very active as an Overseers. Shawn Robbins, Jackie's husband is the current pastor.
The services are lively, very moving, and a bit long by American standards, but you really don't notice until you look at your watch as you're leaving and are surprised that it is 2 1/2 hours after the start of the service.
At our last visit there two years ago, Bishop Henfield prayed for two things for us: a safe trip home and a quick sale of our house in Syracuse. I was able to share a testimony how God wonderfully answered those prayers!
We had the Robbins and Henfields over to the marina and boat for a dessert on Sunday - it was a great time!
The extended Henfield family also run a great local restaurant here called Ju' Novia's. It is a locals go-to and has great Bahamian food. If you are interested in exploring Bahamian breakfasts, they have the most expansive menu I have ever seen. I expanded my experiences this year with a Sheep's Tongue Souse - it was delicious - along with old favorites of Steam Cornbeef and Stew Fish. Yum!
The lowlight of our time here was a week-long intestinal 'bug' that had me (Tom) quite sick. All better now and all in all, this was not a bad place to be sick.
On Monday we head down the Sea of Abaco to near Little Harbour to stage for a trip south to Eleuthera on Tuesday. This is 'blue-water' passage across a very busy shipping lane.
Tom
Docked at Harbour View Marina
Marsh Harbour, Abaco
Thursday, February 6, 2014
Abaco Yacht Services - New Outboard
February 6, 2013
I usually don't post just about new boat stuff, but we had such a great experience buying a new outboard at Abaco Yacht Services http://www.go-abacos.com/ays/ays_serv.html in Green Turtle that I just had to give them a shout-out.
We bought a 15HP Yamaha outboard for our recently purchased dinghy. The dinghy that we got with the boat 4 years ago did a yeoman's job, but it was not fast nor stable enough for a cruising dinghy that you use as your 'SUV'. This summer we bought a 10' AB dinghy from Suncoast Inflatables (who also were very knowledgeable and helpful).
Our 8HP Yamaha outboard ran fine, but was not powerful enough to plane (go fast) the new dinghy, so we knew that we needed to get another one.
Scott and Crystal at AYS were great! They had a 15HP in stock and offered a fair price. They did a great job of setting it up, helping us mount it, and gave use great break-in guidance.
We were not sure exactly what we were going to do with the old one. It ran great and we could have kept it as a spare, but really didn't want to give up the space or carry the extra weight. Scott offered to sell the old one for us. He asked what we wanted to get out of it; we never discussed terms, it was a handshake deal.
A few weeks later we got an email saying that they had sold it and wanted to know how they could get us the money. We had moved on from Green Turtle and were planning to be in Marsh Harbour soon. Crystal said that she goes to Marsh Harbour every Thursday and could stop by our boat. On Thursday she came to the marina and gave us the proceeds - $100 more than the price I asked! Needless to say we were very happy and pleased with their efforts on our behalf.
AYS is a Yamaha dealer, but also offers boat repairs, painting, and storage in a very well maintained yard in Black Sound. The tie-downs that they use for boat storage are the best I have ever seen - the tie-downs are anchored in concrete in the rocky/coral ground of the island - they are not going anywhere.
If you need an outboard or other boat services, we heartily recommend AYS. They don't come any better than Crystal & Scott at AYS.
As a note, Abaco Outboard Service in Marsh Harbour is not associated with AYS - previously they were related but no longer are. If you can, we recommend that you deal with AYS.
Tom
Docked in Marsh Harbour, Abaco
I usually don't post just about new boat stuff, but we had such a great experience buying a new outboard at Abaco Yacht Services http://www.go-abacos.com/ays/ays_serv.html in Green Turtle that I just had to give them a shout-out.
We bought a 15HP Yamaha outboard for our recently purchased dinghy. The dinghy that we got with the boat 4 years ago did a yeoman's job, but it was not fast nor stable enough for a cruising dinghy that you use as your 'SUV'. This summer we bought a 10' AB dinghy from Suncoast Inflatables (who also were very knowledgeable and helpful).
 |
| Our new AB dinghy and 15HP Yamaha OB |
Our 8HP Yamaha outboard ran fine, but was not powerful enough to plane (go fast) the new dinghy, so we knew that we needed to get another one.
Scott and Crystal at AYS were great! They had a 15HP in stock and offered a fair price. They did a great job of setting it up, helping us mount it, and gave use great break-in guidance.
We were not sure exactly what we were going to do with the old one. It ran great and we could have kept it as a spare, but really didn't want to give up the space or carry the extra weight. Scott offered to sell the old one for us. He asked what we wanted to get out of it; we never discussed terms, it was a handshake deal.
A few weeks later we got an email saying that they had sold it and wanted to know how they could get us the money. We had moved on from Green Turtle and were planning to be in Marsh Harbour soon. Crystal said that she goes to Marsh Harbour every Thursday and could stop by our boat. On Thursday she came to the marina and gave us the proceeds - $100 more than the price I asked! Needless to say we were very happy and pleased with their efforts on our behalf.
AYS is a Yamaha dealer, but also offers boat repairs, painting, and storage in a very well maintained yard in Black Sound. The tie-downs that they use for boat storage are the best I have ever seen - the tie-downs are anchored in concrete in the rocky/coral ground of the island - they are not going anywhere.
If you need an outboard or other boat services, we heartily recommend AYS. They don't come any better than Crystal & Scott at AYS.
As a note, Abaco Outboard Service in Marsh Harbour is not associated with AYS - previously they were related but no longer are. If you can, we recommend that you deal with AYS.
Tom
Docked in Marsh Harbour, Abaco
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Hopetown
February 3, 2014
We spent a week on a mooring in Hopetown Harbour on Elbow Cay. Hopetown is a pleasant place, but probably the most 'touristy' of any of our destinations in the Bahamas. There are a large number of winter residents and guest cottages for shorter term stays along with supporting restaurants and shops.
It is home, however, to the iconic Elbow Cay Lighthouse. This was one of several lighthouses built in the late 19th century by the Imperial Lighthouse Service to help reduce the number of ships coming to grieve on the reefs that fringe the Bahamas. As we discussed in our blog entry on crossing the Providence Channel, the Bahamas Bank forms a large roadblock to ships transiting to North America, with only a few deep-water passages across. Interestingly, the local residents at that time, who made a substantial part of their income as 'wreckers', were not in favor of building lighthouses and tried to impede their construction.
The lighthouse is lit every night, but looking at it any time after midnight will assure you that it is not a serious aid to navigation; it may or may not be burning brightly and is rarely turning so as to display the proper characteristic early in the morning.
It is, however, one of only a few functioning lighthouses using 19th century technology so it has great historical significance.
The light is fueled by pressurized kerosene (for campers, think of a large Coleman lantern). The light is rotated by a clock mechanism powered by a large weight that must be cranking to the top of the structure every few hours.
One of the other landmarks in town is the Cholera Cemetery. A devastating epidemic hit the Bahamas in 1850's. A very interesting book, that gives a great view of the Loyalist experience in the Bahamas, including the Cholera epidemic, is Wind From the Carolinas. We heartily recommend it to anyone wanting to better understand the history of the Bahamas.
Sailboat racing is a very popular activity in the Bahamas and Hopetown is home to the 'Rage'. The Bahamian racing sloops are 'rocket ships' that carry an enormous amount of sail. They must be balanced by multiple crew members out on hiking boards; they also capsize regularly.
We attended the Methodist Church family service on Sunday. There we found a great Canadian couple on staff (Andrew and Nicole) working with youth and coordinating the family service. We were really impressed by their obvious love for the Lord and their enthusiasm in sharing.
Our favorite restaurant here is the Bahamian owned and run Harbour's Edge. We went there late in our visit here two years ago and were impressed with their food and friendly service. This time we visited earlier (and often :-)) and were not disappointed.
On Monday, we transited the Sea of Abaco to Harbour View Marina in Marsh Harbour. We plan to stay here for a couple of weeks as we reprovision and catch up on laundry, boat cleaning, and repairs; it has been over a month since we docked and the laundry situation was getting desperate. We also hope to visit our friends at Grace Baptist Church in Dundas Town.
Tom
Docked at Harbour View Marina
Marsh Harbour, Abaco
We spent a week on a mooring in Hopetown Harbour on Elbow Cay. Hopetown is a pleasant place, but probably the most 'touristy' of any of our destinations in the Bahamas. There are a large number of winter residents and guest cottages for shorter term stays along with supporting restaurants and shops.
It is home, however, to the iconic Elbow Cay Lighthouse. This was one of several lighthouses built in the late 19th century by the Imperial Lighthouse Service to help reduce the number of ships coming to grieve on the reefs that fringe the Bahamas. As we discussed in our blog entry on crossing the Providence Channel, the Bahamas Bank forms a large roadblock to ships transiting to North America, with only a few deep-water passages across. Interestingly, the local residents at that time, who made a substantial part of their income as 'wreckers', were not in favor of building lighthouses and tried to impede their construction.
The lighthouse is lit every night, but looking at it any time after midnight will assure you that it is not a serious aid to navigation; it may or may not be burning brightly and is rarely turning so as to display the proper characteristic early in the morning.
It is, however, one of only a few functioning lighthouses using 19th century technology so it has great historical significance.
The light is fueled by pressurized kerosene (for campers, think of a large Coleman lantern). The light is rotated by a clock mechanism powered by a large weight that must be cranking to the top of the structure every few hours.
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| Kerosene pressure vessels |
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| Clockworks that rotate the light |
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| View of the harbour from the top of the lighthouse |
One of the other landmarks in town is the Cholera Cemetery. A devastating epidemic hit the Bahamas in 1850's. A very interesting book, that gives a great view of the Loyalist experience in the Bahamas, including the Cholera epidemic, is Wind From the Carolinas. We heartily recommend it to anyone wanting to better understand the history of the Bahamas.
Sailboat racing is a very popular activity in the Bahamas and Hopetown is home to the 'Rage'. The Bahamian racing sloops are 'rocket ships' that carry an enormous amount of sail. They must be balanced by multiple crew members out on hiking boards; they also capsize regularly.
 |
| Note the length of the boom - HUGE! |
We attended the Methodist Church family service on Sunday. There we found a great Canadian couple on staff (Andrew and Nicole) working with youth and coordinating the family service. We were really impressed by their obvious love for the Lord and their enthusiasm in sharing.
Our favorite restaurant here is the Bahamian owned and run Harbour's Edge. We went there late in our visit here two years ago and were impressed with their food and friendly service. This time we visited earlier (and often :-)) and were not disappointed.
On Monday, we transited the Sea of Abaco to Harbour View Marina in Marsh Harbour. We plan to stay here for a couple of weeks as we reprovision and catch up on laundry, boat cleaning, and repairs; it has been over a month since we docked and the laundry situation was getting desperate. We also hope to visit our friends at Grace Baptist Church in Dundas Town.
Tom
Docked at Harbour View Marina
Marsh Harbour, Abaco
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Man-O-War
January 28, 2014
We spent 4 nights on a mooring at Man-O-War Cay, a very unique Bahamian island. First the people are almost exclusively European (White) Bahamians. Ferries come in every morning bringing boat-loads of black workers, but they leave at night.
It is a very industrious and prosperous island. It has a very small harbor and is not an extremely popular cruising destination, but it hosts a large number of winter residents, many of which are rather well-to-do. All of them were surprised that we were staying only a few days, since many boaters stay for the 'season'.
Man-O-War is home to Edwin's, a premier Abaco boatyard with a great reputation http://edwinsboatyard.com/Welcome.html. Interestingly, they do not have (nor do they have room for, a travel-lift (a big machine that is used in most yards to haul vessels out of the water). Rather they have a marine railway - a technology that preceded the world of modern hydraulics. In a railway, the boat is blocked at high tide, and then with a combination of the tide and a large motor driven winch, the boat is dragged up a set of tracks and out of the water. The process is reversed to launch the boat.
Man-O-War also is the hone of Albury Brothers, builders of high quality small boats http://www.alburybrothers.com/. Following are some pictures of a boat in process and some components parts. Joyce has somewhat fallen in love with Albury skiffs and talks about getting one as our boat when we stop cruising, but they may be out of our price range.
We went to church at New Life Bible Church and enjoyed the service and the people. One thing that surprised us was that they did not have an offering in the service. As we were leaving, we asked and were pointed to a small box in the vestibule. We returned that evening for a communion service which we also enjoyed. It was almost entirely led by the elders and deacons which was nice to see. Interestingly, they did have an offering at the evening service.
On Sunday, the Cay virtually shuts down, Edwin's and Albury are closed of course, but the restaurants and stores are also closed. When we were going to and from the evening service at New Life, the ONLY activity anywhere was a church service in each church. We are not strict Sabbath observers, but it is quite refreshing to see a community committed to a community time of rest and reflection. It is a given that places are closed on Sunday: in fact, the sign on the ice cream shop said that it was closed on Monday and Tuesday, open Wednesday through Saturday - no mention that it was closed on Sunday.
Following are a few pictures from our walk along the northern part of the island where a lot of larger winter homes are located - the word here is very PRIVATE. Fences or hedges almost completely block any view of the actual homes.
A few beach water pictures -pretty:
Flag football near the ocean - Marsh Harbour and Man-O-War boys split wins between varsity and junior varsity.
On Monday we made the loooong 6-mile trip from Man-O-War to Hopetown :-). A nice thing about the Abacos is that once you are south of the Whale, everything is just a short sheltered trip apart. We plan to stay in Hopetown for about a week. While it is a bit touristy, it has nice amenities. I write this seated in a comfortable chair, sipping a cup of coffee at Hopetown Coffee with FAST internet!
Tom
Moored at Hopetown
Elbow Cay, Abaco
We spent 4 nights on a mooring at Man-O-War Cay, a very unique Bahamian island. First the people are almost exclusively European (White) Bahamians. Ferries come in every morning bringing boat-loads of black workers, but they leave at night.
It is a very industrious and prosperous island. It has a very small harbor and is not an extremely popular cruising destination, but it hosts a large number of winter residents, many of which are rather well-to-do. All of them were surprised that we were staying only a few days, since many boaters stay for the 'season'.
Man-O-War is home to Edwin's, a premier Abaco boatyard with a great reputation http://edwinsboatyard.com/Welcome.html. Interestingly, they do not have (nor do they have room for, a travel-lift (a big machine that is used in most yards to haul vessels out of the water). Rather they have a marine railway - a technology that preceded the world of modern hydraulics. In a railway, the boat is blocked at high tide, and then with a combination of the tide and a large motor driven winch, the boat is dragged up a set of tracks and out of the water. The process is reversed to launch the boat.
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| Marine railway |
Man-O-War also is the hone of Albury Brothers, builders of high quality small boats http://www.alburybrothers.com/. Following are some pictures of a boat in process and some components parts. Joyce has somewhat fallen in love with Albury skiffs and talks about getting one as our boat when we stop cruising, but they may be out of our price range.
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| Albury 20 Under Construction |
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| Non-skid Deck just painted - bilge-boards sticking up |
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| Consoles in foreground; deck behind |
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| Mold - probably for a model bigger than 20' |
We went to church at New Life Bible Church and enjoyed the service and the people. One thing that surprised us was that they did not have an offering in the service. As we were leaving, we asked and were pointed to a small box in the vestibule. We returned that evening for a communion service which we also enjoyed. It was almost entirely led by the elders and deacons which was nice to see. Interestingly, they did have an offering at the evening service.
On Sunday, the Cay virtually shuts down, Edwin's and Albury are closed of course, but the restaurants and stores are also closed. When we were going to and from the evening service at New Life, the ONLY activity anywhere was a church service in each church. We are not strict Sabbath observers, but it is quite refreshing to see a community committed to a community time of rest and reflection. It is a given that places are closed on Sunday: in fact, the sign on the ice cream shop said that it was closed on Monday and Tuesday, open Wednesday through Saturday - no mention that it was closed on Sunday.
Following are a few pictures from our walk along the northern part of the island where a lot of larger winter homes are located - the word here is very PRIVATE. Fences or hedges almost completely block any view of the actual homes.
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| Thatch fence - very natural looking |
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| Interesting driveway ornaments |
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| Where is Guildhall? |
A few beach water pictures -pretty:
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| Our new AB Dinghy and Yamaha 15HP OB in the foreground |
Flag football near the ocean - Marsh Harbour and Man-O-War boys split wins between varsity and junior varsity.
On Monday we made the loooong 6-mile trip from Man-O-War to Hopetown :-). A nice thing about the Abacos is that once you are south of the Whale, everything is just a short sheltered trip apart. We plan to stay in Hopetown for about a week. While it is a bit touristy, it has nice amenities. I write this seated in a comfortable chair, sipping a cup of coffee at Hopetown Coffee with FAST internet!
Tom
Moored at Hopetown
Elbow Cay, Abaco
Friday, January 24, 2014
Green Turtle to Man-O-War Cay
January 23, 2014
After 2 1/2 weeks we finally left Black Sound on Green Turtle Cay this morning. We really like Green Turtle/New Plymouth and thoroughly enjoyed our stay, but it was time to move on.
A moderate cold front passed through Tuesday/Wednesday and the wind lay down nicely today. We left about 2 hours before high tide and had no depth problems leaving Black Sound.
This trip features exiting the Abaco Sea and entering the Atlantic via the Whale Cay Cut. This is necessary due to an extensive shoal that blocks travel inside to all but shoal draft vessels. Although there was little wind or seas inside, the Atlantic had a 5+' NE swell that made the cut 'lively'. Periodically there would be breaking seas on either side of the best water when the wave set was unusually large, but we went through with the basic 5' swell. You then come back in to the Abaco Sea near Baker's Bay. As with all cuts in the Bahamas, this can be a very nasty transit and we were thankful for a relatively smooth passage.
We are current moored in the Northern Harbor at Man-O-War Cay. This is an interesting cay, with a shipyard (Edwin's) and a boat builder (Albury's). Our stay here will likely be much shorter than Green Turtle and we will likely move down to Hopetown on Monday or Tuesday.
Tom
Moored Man-O-War Cay, Abaco
Friday, January 17, 2014
Breakfast at the Liquor Store
January 17, 2014
Green Turtle Cay in the Abacos has been our home for almost 2 weeks. We were first on a mooring in White Sound for a couple of nights and then moved down to a mooring in Black Sound for the remainder of our stay.
Donny Sawyer of Donny's Boat Rentals hosts our moorings. Donny is one of four brothers from a family with deep roots here. We have finally mastered the brothers names (we think!): Reggie (home builder); Ronny (fishing guide); Donny (boat rental and marina); Roddy (marine construction).
White Sound has several nice marinas/restaurants and is the base for most cruisers; Black Sound is quieter and closer to the settlement of New Plymouth and is our preferred location. We have observed that many cruisers make a 2-3 day stop at Green Turtle on their way to the 'Mecca' of Marsh Harbour; we find that places like this are a nice destination in themselves. You really can't begin to know a place like this until you have invested some time in exploring and meeting people.
Our home away from home in New Plymouth has been Plymouth Rock Liquors and Café, or 'Daves' as it is know to the locals. We have found many 'odd' business combinations in the Bahamas and Daves is one of them. The café was started by Dave's mother, but when he took it over he decided that he didn't like to cook as much as his mother and wanted to broaden the business, so he added the liquor business. In spite of Dave's 'aversion' to cooking he still does a brisk café business and is the locals 'go-to' for breakfast and lunch.
On Tuesday and Saturday mornings, Dave offers Chicken Souse, a Bahamian breakfast specialty. Souse is a spicy soup-like dish with chicken and potatoes and is delicious. In spite of experiencing many traditional Bahamian dishes in our travels, this was our first Souse - it was delicious!
The Abacos were our first destination 2 seasons ago. We had hoped to return last year but ran out of time after traveling through the Exumas and the out-islands in southern Bahamas. The Abacos are much different than the southern Bahamas. First the majority of people here are of European (Loyalist) heritage, while the majority in the southern regions are of African (slave) heritage. We find the African-Bahamians very warm and friendly; the European Bahamians are often initially rather cool, until you invest some time in building a relationship. The Abacos are also much more developed, with stores, restaurants, and vacation accommodations.
Two very friendly Bahamians are Scott and Martha who run Sid's Grocery. Their father Sidney Lowe started the store many years ago. Martha stayed in New Plymouth to help her father run the business, but as his health started to fail, it became too much for her to handle alone. Her brother Scott, who had moved to Nassau and had a 25+ year career working for a large wholesale grocer there, decided to return to New Plymouth to help her run the store.
In the small world category, while talking to Scott and Martha, we learned that Scott's son, Stu, had helped us mount the new dinghy outboard we bought at Abaco Yacht Services here in Black Sound. I later had a nice talk with Stu when he was picking up lunch at Dave's. For anyone in the market for a Yamaha outboard, AYS treated us very well - it was a great experience.
I (Tom) had a very cool encounter at Dave's the other day. Dave often plays the 60-70's pop music channel in the café, but one morning he had on a 'classic country' channel - I love classic country and was enjoying the music along with a cup of coffee. The first song I heard was "Make the World Go Away" followed by "A-11", both songs written or co-written by a famous song-writer named Hank Cochran. I remarked to an African-Bahamian gentleman at the counter named 'Winky', how I loved classic country and noted that the last two songs had been written by a favorite writer.
Winky said that Hank Cochran used to come to Green Turtle all the time. You need to have a certain skepticism about stories you hear (especially at a liquor store/bar) and initially I was not sure it wasn't just a tall tale. But as I continued to talk to Winky, he obviously knew a lot about Hank Cochran. Apparently Hank had a 50' Grand Banks trawler named "The Legend" that he brought to Green Turtle regularly. A long list of artists had visited Hank here including Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Mel Tillis, and others. To further validate the stories, Dave told me some additional stories about Hank's visits. Apparently they featured some pretty hard partying and as Dave said, "It was in the old decadent days".
If you are interested in sampling Hank's music, You might want to check our "Living for a Song - A Tribute to Hank Cochran", a collection of his music put together by Jamie Johnson after Hank's recent death. It features new recordings of many of his hits, featuring a who's-who of current country music artists.
http://www.jameyjohnson.com/
In closing, the following shrub caught our eye - it is a Poinsettia. We only know these as potted plants you see at Christmas - who knew you could grow them as a shrub in your yard in the sub-tropics. Corey (Ronny Sawyer's daughter who works at Daves) told us that it actually was much bigger before the last hurricane - wow!
Tom
Moored Black Sound, New Plymouth
Green Turtle Cay, Abacos
Green Turtle Cay in the Abacos has been our home for almost 2 weeks. We were first on a mooring in White Sound for a couple of nights and then moved down to a mooring in Black Sound for the remainder of our stay.
Donny Sawyer of Donny's Boat Rentals hosts our moorings. Donny is one of four brothers from a family with deep roots here. We have finally mastered the brothers names (we think!): Reggie (home builder); Ronny (fishing guide); Donny (boat rental and marina); Roddy (marine construction).
White Sound has several nice marinas/restaurants and is the base for most cruisers; Black Sound is quieter and closer to the settlement of New Plymouth and is our preferred location. We have observed that many cruisers make a 2-3 day stop at Green Turtle on their way to the 'Mecca' of Marsh Harbour; we find that places like this are a nice destination in themselves. You really can't begin to know a place like this until you have invested some time in exploring and meeting people.
Our home away from home in New Plymouth has been Plymouth Rock Liquors and Café, or 'Daves' as it is know to the locals. We have found many 'odd' business combinations in the Bahamas and Daves is one of them. The café was started by Dave's mother, but when he took it over he decided that he didn't like to cook as much as his mother and wanted to broaden the business, so he added the liquor business. In spite of Dave's 'aversion' to cooking he still does a brisk café business and is the locals 'go-to' for breakfast and lunch.
On Tuesday and Saturday mornings, Dave offers Chicken Souse, a Bahamian breakfast specialty. Souse is a spicy soup-like dish with chicken and potatoes and is delicious. In spite of experiencing many traditional Bahamian dishes in our travels, this was our first Souse - it was delicious!
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| Photo credit to Ken Aiken |
The Abacos were our first destination 2 seasons ago. We had hoped to return last year but ran out of time after traveling through the Exumas and the out-islands in southern Bahamas. The Abacos are much different than the southern Bahamas. First the majority of people here are of European (Loyalist) heritage, while the majority in the southern regions are of African (slave) heritage. We find the African-Bahamians very warm and friendly; the European Bahamians are often initially rather cool, until you invest some time in building a relationship. The Abacos are also much more developed, with stores, restaurants, and vacation accommodations.
Two very friendly Bahamians are Scott and Martha who run Sid's Grocery. Their father Sidney Lowe started the store many years ago. Martha stayed in New Plymouth to help her father run the business, but as his health started to fail, it became too much for her to handle alone. Her brother Scott, who had moved to Nassau and had a 25+ year career working for a large wholesale grocer there, decided to return to New Plymouth to help her run the store.
In the small world category, while talking to Scott and Martha, we learned that Scott's son, Stu, had helped us mount the new dinghy outboard we bought at Abaco Yacht Services here in Black Sound. I later had a nice talk with Stu when he was picking up lunch at Dave's. For anyone in the market for a Yamaha outboard, AYS treated us very well - it was a great experience.
I (Tom) had a very cool encounter at Dave's the other day. Dave often plays the 60-70's pop music channel in the café, but one morning he had on a 'classic country' channel - I love classic country and was enjoying the music along with a cup of coffee. The first song I heard was "Make the World Go Away" followed by "A-11", both songs written or co-written by a famous song-writer named Hank Cochran. I remarked to an African-Bahamian gentleman at the counter named 'Winky', how I loved classic country and noted that the last two songs had been written by a favorite writer.
Winky said that Hank Cochran used to come to Green Turtle all the time. You need to have a certain skepticism about stories you hear (especially at a liquor store/bar) and initially I was not sure it wasn't just a tall tale. But as I continued to talk to Winky, he obviously knew a lot about Hank Cochran. Apparently Hank had a 50' Grand Banks trawler named "The Legend" that he brought to Green Turtle regularly. A long list of artists had visited Hank here including Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Mel Tillis, and others. To further validate the stories, Dave told me some additional stories about Hank's visits. Apparently they featured some pretty hard partying and as Dave said, "It was in the old decadent days".
If you are interested in sampling Hank's music, You might want to check our "Living for a Song - A Tribute to Hank Cochran", a collection of his music put together by Jamie Johnson after Hank's recent death. It features new recordings of many of his hits, featuring a who's-who of current country music artists.
http://www.jameyjohnson.com/
In closing, the following shrub caught our eye - it is a Poinsettia. We only know these as potted plants you see at Christmas - who knew you could grow them as a shrub in your yard in the sub-tropics. Corey (Ronny Sawyer's daughter who works at Daves) told us that it actually was much bigger before the last hurricane - wow!
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| Poinsettia Shrub in Ronny Sawyer's Yard |
Tom
Moored Black Sound, New Plymouth
Green Turtle Cay, Abacos
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