June 13, 2015
This morning we returned to Twin Dolphin Marina in Bradenton (our old slip again) after completing our 2014-15 Bahamas Cruise.
We spent almost 6 months in the Bahamas visiting the Abacos, Eleuthera, Cat Island, and the Exumas.
We had a great time, the highlight of the trip was spending time with our Bahamian friends and 'family'. We have several relationships in which both sides call each other family - what a special bond. We will miss them and God-willing will see them next year.
Our return trip was long (568 nautical miles) and the weather was not favorable. We left Black Point, Exuma on May 29th and arrived in Bradenton today. We had an unplanned 5-day layover in Bimini due to the potential of a Tropical Storm in South Florida, but were otherwise underway each day, typically facing some squally weather. On the final leg of our trip as we were crossing Tampa Bay, we had one of the worst squalls we have ever experienced with torrential rain and 40 knot winds. We ended up 'killing time' for 30-40 minutes while the squall passed before we entered the narrow Manatee River Channel. There is some truth in the old saying "It is not the ocean that kills you - it is the hard things around the edges!", but motoring slowly in a high traffic area with zero visibility (visual or radar) is nerve racking.
Until next year!
Tom
Docked Twin Dolphin Marina
Bradenton, FL
Saturday, June 13, 2015
Monday, June 1, 2015
Small Change in Plans - We are in Bimini
June 1, 2015
For two reasons we did not proceed all the way from the Exumas to Miami as outlined in the previous post, but rather terminated our planned final leg in Bimini. We are currently docked at Weech's Dock in North Bimini.
The reasons are inter-related. There is a significant chance of a early season tropical storm (it would be 'Bill') forming near South Florida or in the Bahamas later this week. Our weather router advised vessels to seek a secure anchorage by no later than Tuesday. While we easily could have reached Miami before then, we were unable to secure a mooring at our preferred Coconut Grove Sailing Club. This would have probably forced us to stay at the not-that-well-protected Dinner Key Moorings - something we were not excited about.
We will probably stay here until the weekend when the storm track will be clearer and hopefully past us.
On a positive note, our first three legs went well:
For two reasons we did not proceed all the way from the Exumas to Miami as outlined in the previous post, but rather terminated our planned final leg in Bimini. We are currently docked at Weech's Dock in North Bimini.
The reasons are inter-related. There is a significant chance of a early season tropical storm (it would be 'Bill') forming near South Florida or in the Bahamas later this week. Our weather router advised vessels to seek a secure anchorage by no later than Tuesday. While we easily could have reached Miami before then, we were unable to secure a mooring at our preferred Coconut Grove Sailing Club. This would have probably forced us to stay at the not-that-well-protected Dinner Key Moorings - something we were not excited about.
We will probably stay here until the weekend when the storm track will be clearer and hopefully past us.
On a positive note, our first three legs went well:
- Black Point to Highbourne was a great sail/motor-sail
- Highbourne to West Bay was a motor-sail with light following wind
- West Bay to the NW Channel was a great motor sail and we proceeded motoring through the night across the Bank and to a morning arrival here in Bimini.
We have not been to Bimini in a while and are looking forward to our short stay here, after we rest up a bit from covering over 200 miles in the last 3 1/2 days.
Tom
Docked Weech's Bimini Dock
Alice Town
North Bimini
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Headed Back to the States
May 27, 2015
We have spent a great two weeks with our 'family' here in Black Point Exuma.
After over 5 1/2 months in the Bahamas, it is with mixed emotions that we are beginning our trip back to the States.
We plan to leave here on Friday (5/29).
We have spent a great two weeks with our 'family' here in Black Point Exuma.
After over 5 1/2 months in the Bahamas, it is with mixed emotions that we are beginning our trip back to the States.
We plan to leave here on Friday (5/29).
- Day 1 will be up the Exuma Cays from Black Point to anchoring near Highbourne Cay.
- Day 2 will take us up over the 'White Bank' to anchor in West Bay on New Providence.
- Day 3 will be a midday departure from West Bay up the 'Tongue of the Ocean', on to the Bahama Bank via the Northwest Channel, and continuing across the Bank through the night.
- Day 4 will have us exiting the Bank at Gun Cay and then crossing the Gulf Stream to Miami.
We will probably not post another blog entry until we are in Miami, but we will be updating our 'Most Recent Position' on the blog at least daily.
Tom
Anchored Black Point, Exuma
Friday, May 1, 2015
Commissioning "HMBS Rolly Gray"
April 30, 2015
Today we were privileged to attend the commissioning service for a new Bahamas Royal Defence Force ship "HMBS (Her Majesty's Bahamian Ship) Rolly Gray" at Emerald Bay Marina.
The Defence Force is the Bahamas' sole armed service. It is primarily a navy, but each ship has a complement of marines.
Rolly Gray was a legendary Bahamian sloop sailor from nearby Staniel Cay. He was instrumental in starting the National Family Island Regatta and dominated the races for many years, primarily on 'Tida Wave', the boat that just won the "A" Class series.
Rolly was also a mail boat captain transporting mail and supplies to the out islands. For many years he was the Captain of "MV Grand Master", whose name is also a title bestowed on Rolly for his sloop sailing prowess.
"HMBS Rolly Gray" was built in Holland and is the fourth of her class. Two of her sister ships were present in the marina for the ceremony. In total the Bahamian government is presently adding 9 ships to their fleet - a serious commitment to security.
Although we have experienced it in the past, it is striking how spiritual a Bahamanian government ceremony can be - this was a full-blown worship service with scripture readings, hymns, and prayers. A part of the ceremony that jumped out was in the Captain's 'charge' to the ship's company:
Commanding Officer: I call upon you to pray for God's blessing on this ship. May God the Father bless her.
Ship's Company: Bless our ship.
Commanding Officer: May Jesus Christ bless her.
Ship's Company: Bless our ship.
Commanding Officer: May Jesus Christ bless her.
Ship's Company: Bless our ship.
Following are some pictures from the ceremony. Disclaimer - many of the photos were taken at a 'practice': we wanted to be respectful during the actual service. You can tell by the uniforms - dress whites for the actual event.
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| "HMBS Rolly Gray" |
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| "HMBS Rolly Gray"at flank/full speed |
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| Ship's Insignia |
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| Honor Guard |
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| Honor Guard 'Spacing' |
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| Presenting Honors |
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| Crewman preparing to raise National Ensign for the 'first time' during the playing of the National Anthem |
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| Bahamian Ensign Flying |
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| Sister Ship - "HMBS Durward Knowles" |
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| Sister Ship "HMBS Leon Livingstone Smith" Note crewman polishing name plate |
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| All three sister ships at dock Impressive Sight! |
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| Ship's Company receiving dignitaries |
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| Governor-General Dame Marguerite Pindling |
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| Prime Minister Perry Christie |
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Staniel Cay School Children |
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| Prime Minister Christie posing with school children |
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| Patriotic turtle doing some bottom cleaning on Durward Knowles |
We were glad that we were able to extend our stay here to witness the commissioning.
Hopefully on Saturday (5/2) we will leave Emerald Bay and head north to Black Point in the Exuma Cays.
Tom
Docked Emerald Bay Marina
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
Power Outages Will NOT Stop Us - Ebenezer Union Baptist Church
April 29, 2015
On this visit to Exuma, we have attended a great little church in nearby Rolleville, Ebenezer Union Baptist Church. They have so warmly welcomed us to their church that we have to blog about it.
We first learned about the church when we attended the Union Baptist 'Crusade' in nearby Farmer's Hill during our February visit to Exuma. Ebenezer provided the special music that night and we learned that several marina employees attend there. We had hoped to attend the final night of the Crusade, when Ebenezer's Pastor, Reverend Brown was scheduled to speak. We did not attend that night due to a lack of a ride and a planned early morning departure the next day, but we later regretted that we did not make more of an effort to attend.
But this stay we had a car for over a week - primarily to attend regatta, but it also gave us more freedom in attending church.
When we first arrived at the church, we were greeted by a young woman that we later learned was Shazzar, wife of Wayne Adderly who works at the marina. It was about 10 minutes before the start of the service, and she invited us to the Pastor's office to meet him. We had a great conversation with Rev. Dr. Adam Joseph Brown. Pastor Brown exudes joy and friendliness and it is clear that his congregation follows his example.
When you ask Pastor Brown how he is doing - he smiles broadly and responds "Fantastically Well!"!
We so enjoyed the service that we returned the next Sunday, but unfortunately Wayne, who plays keyboard in the church had to work both Sundays so we did not get a chance to hear him play. But Pastor Brown announced that they would have an 'Evangelistic' service that evening and that Wayne would be playing, so we decided to return that night.
Shazzar led the worship and Wayne played keyboards and a young man, 'CC', that Wayne brings from 'The Forest' settlement played drums. It was a great time.
However, at one point the power went out, but the singing continued with only drums and no keyboard. We have previously had similar experiences and we know that power outages do NOT stop a Bahamian church service, but this was the first time we had experienced it at night. The church was VERY dark and quickly grew quite warm.
Pastor Brown proceeded to the pulpit and wonderfully worked the darkness into his sermon. The scripture that he had planned to preach on included Mathew 5:14-16
On this visit to Exuma, we have attended a great little church in nearby Rolleville, Ebenezer Union Baptist Church. They have so warmly welcomed us to their church that we have to blog about it.
We first learned about the church when we attended the Union Baptist 'Crusade' in nearby Farmer's Hill during our February visit to Exuma. Ebenezer provided the special music that night and we learned that several marina employees attend there. We had hoped to attend the final night of the Crusade, when Ebenezer's Pastor, Reverend Brown was scheduled to speak. We did not attend that night due to a lack of a ride and a planned early morning departure the next day, but we later regretted that we did not make more of an effort to attend.
But this stay we had a car for over a week - primarily to attend regatta, but it also gave us more freedom in attending church.
When we first arrived at the church, we were greeted by a young woman that we later learned was Shazzar, wife of Wayne Adderly who works at the marina. It was about 10 minutes before the start of the service, and she invited us to the Pastor's office to meet him. We had a great conversation with Rev. Dr. Adam Joseph Brown. Pastor Brown exudes joy and friendliness and it is clear that his congregation follows his example.
When you ask Pastor Brown how he is doing - he smiles broadly and responds "Fantastically Well!"!
We so enjoyed the service that we returned the next Sunday, but unfortunately Wayne, who plays keyboard in the church had to work both Sundays so we did not get a chance to hear him play. But Pastor Brown announced that they would have an 'Evangelistic' service that evening and that Wayne would be playing, so we decided to return that night.
Shazzar led the worship and Wayne played keyboards and a young man, 'CC', that Wayne brings from 'The Forest' settlement played drums. It was a great time.
However, at one point the power went out, but the singing continued with only drums and no keyboard. We have previously had similar experiences and we know that power outages do NOT stop a Bahamian church service, but this was the first time we had experienced it at night. The church was VERY dark and quickly grew quite warm.
Pastor Brown proceeded to the pulpit and wonderfully worked the darkness into his sermon. The scripture that he had planned to preach on included Mathew 5:14-16
14 You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill can not be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light shine so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven
The darkened church was a vivid illustration of the darkness in the world if we do not 'let our light shine'.
Thank you Pastor Brown and the Ebenezer church for so warmly welcoming us - you made us feel like family!
Tom
Docked Emerald Bay Marina
Exuma
Sunday, April 26, 2015
National Family Island Regatta - Georgetown
April 25, 2015
We finally attended the Family Island Regatta in Georgetown this year. It was a LOT of fun!
We have been increasingly interested in Bahamian sloop racing since meeting Mark Knowles, a master boat builder and skipper. Mark hails from Long Island, but over the last few years has spent a lot of time on Cat Island where we met him.
While there are many regatta races in various islands, the National Family Island Regatta (NFIR) is the biggest. People come to attend from throughout the Bahamas. It is also arguably, one of the biggest 'parties' in the Bahamas.
The weather this year was less than ideal, with light winds and some heavy rain, but they completed the races in all the classes. The Bahamian sloops carry an enormous amount of sail, so they need surprisingly little wind to generate boat speed (unlike us). To give some perspective our boat is around 41' in overall length and has a 53' mast; the "A" Class boats are 28' long and feature a 60' mast!
Although there are still a significant number of cruisers in Georgetown, this is predominately a Bahamian event. Additionally, the cruisers typically watch the race from their dinghies at the various turning points. While this gives them a close view of the action, most Bahamians, however, watch the race from shore. We watched the races from shore which was a great experience. Bahamians love sloop racing! I brought a pair of binoculars and ended up being somewhat of a 'spotter' for a crowd at the regatta stand and our binoculars ended up being passed around quite a bit. We saw some friends from Black Point and Cat Island and made some new ones.
On Wednesday, there were several 'Cup' races in various classes. Our friend Mark Knowles, won the Class "B" Governor General's Cup. Following are some pictures of the victory celebration held on Cat Island with the Trophy 'Cup' being used to host Rum & Coke cocktails - good old Cat Island. Wish we could have been there for the celebration!
On Thursday morning we watched a "C" Class (17 feet length) race won by Long Islander Stephan Knowles (Mark's brother) aboard "Whitty K". Stephan went on to win the "C" Class series. The "B" Class (21 feet length) race that day was a yawner, with little wind and we did not stay until the end.
We had planned to return on Friday, but heavy rains made us change our minds.
Saturday was sunny and featured a light southeast wind that provided decent racing. We arrived in time to see the final "B" Class race in which Stephan Knowles won in "New Susan Chase", clinching the "B" class series. Stephan had quite a regatta winning both the "C" and "B' class series - well done!
After a junior race, it was time for the "A" Class (28 feet length) 'showdown'. "Tida Wave" from Staniel Cay led the series with a first and third in the first two races. Mark Knowles was a close second aboard "Running Tide" with a first and a fourth.
However, it turned out that the day belonged to "Red Stripe"of Black Point who led the race from the start and finished with about a 2+ minute (huge) lead at the finish. "Tida Wave" was fourth* and "Running Tide" was sixth*. We were disappointed for Mark, but "Red Stripe" is owned by a relative of the Rolle family, good friends in Black Point, so we were glad for them.
The "A" Class series was won, by the narrowest of margins, by "Tida Wave" of Staniel Cay!
* Unoffical results. Official results are hard to come by. As of today, if you Google NFIR results, you will find results from the regatta two years ago. Maybe they will be online in a year or so :-)
Tom
Docked Emerald Bay Marina
Great Exuma
We finally attended the Family Island Regatta in Georgetown this year. It was a LOT of fun!
We have been increasingly interested in Bahamian sloop racing since meeting Mark Knowles, a master boat builder and skipper. Mark hails from Long Island, but over the last few years has spent a lot of time on Cat Island where we met him.
While there are many regatta races in various islands, the National Family Island Regatta (NFIR) is the biggest. People come to attend from throughout the Bahamas. It is also arguably, one of the biggest 'parties' in the Bahamas.
The weather this year was less than ideal, with light winds and some heavy rain, but they completed the races in all the classes. The Bahamian sloops carry an enormous amount of sail, so they need surprisingly little wind to generate boat speed (unlike us). To give some perspective our boat is around 41' in overall length and has a 53' mast; the "A" Class boats are 28' long and feature a 60' mast!
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| Awaiting the start At the start, boats are anchored and have sails down. At the gun, they must raise the anchor, hoist the sails and get underway Photo credit Doc Fig |
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| Approaching the windward-mark Not from this year - note some white-caps and reefed sails Photo credit Family Island Regatta Association |
Although there are still a significant number of cruisers in Georgetown, this is predominately a Bahamian event. Additionally, the cruisers typically watch the race from their dinghies at the various turning points. While this gives them a close view of the action, most Bahamians, however, watch the race from shore. We watched the races from shore which was a great experience. Bahamians love sloop racing! I brought a pair of binoculars and ended up being somewhat of a 'spotter' for a crowd at the regatta stand and our binoculars ended up being passed around quite a bit. We saw some friends from Black Point and Cat Island and made some new ones.
On Wednesday, there were several 'Cup' races in various classes. Our friend Mark Knowles, won the Class "B" Governor General's Cup. Following are some pictures of the victory celebration held on Cat Island with the Trophy 'Cup' being used to host Rum & Coke cocktails - good old Cat Island. Wish we could have been there for the celebration!
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| Our friend Crystal mixing rum & cokes in the trophy! |
On Thursday morning we watched a "C" Class (17 feet length) race won by Long Islander Stephan Knowles (Mark's brother) aboard "Whitty K". Stephan went on to win the "C" Class series. The "B" Class (21 feet length) race that day was a yawner, with little wind and we did not stay until the end.
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| "B" Class "Lady Sonia" of Exuma Photo Credit Family Island Regatta Association |
We had planned to return on Friday, but heavy rains made us change our minds.
Saturday was sunny and featured a light southeast wind that provided decent racing. We arrived in time to see the final "B" Class race in which Stephan Knowles won in "New Susan Chase", clinching the "B" class series. Stephan had quite a regatta winning both the "C" and "B' class series - well done!
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| "New Susan Chase" "B" Class winner Photo credit Family Island Regatta Association |
After a junior race, it was time for the "A" Class (28 feet length) 'showdown'. "Tida Wave" from Staniel Cay led the series with a first and third in the first two races. Mark Knowles was a close second aboard "Running Tide" with a first and a fourth.
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| "A" Class boats From right "Running Tide"(5), Unknown, "New Courageous (02), "Southern Cross' (I think) Photo Credit Doc Fig |
However, it turned out that the day belonged to "Red Stripe"of Black Point who led the race from the start and finished with about a 2+ minute (huge) lead at the finish. "Tida Wave" was fourth* and "Running Tide" was sixth*. We were disappointed for Mark, but "Red Stripe" is owned by a relative of the Rolle family, good friends in Black Point, so we were glad for them.
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| Class "A" "Red Stripe Note hiking boards Photo credit Family Island Regatta Association |
The "A" Class series was won, by the narrowest of margins, by "Tida Wave" of Staniel Cay!
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| "C" Class "Lady Eunice" and "Legal Weapon" both from Black Point Loaded on the mail-boat ("Lady Francis") and headed home |
* Unoffical results. Official results are hard to come by. As of today, if you Google NFIR results, you will find results from the regatta two years ago. Maybe they will be online in a year or so :-)
Tom
Docked Emerald Bay Marina
Great Exuma
Monday, April 20, 2015
"Cristal, Maybach, Diamonds on your Timepiece; Jet Planes, Islands, Tigers on a Gold Leash"
April 19, 2015
We are currently docked at Emerald Bay Marina on Great Exuma. The highlight of the last week has been super yachts owned by the rich and famous. It is not unusual to see large motor yachts at Emerald Bay and we have been docked near several over the years; we prefer "H" dock at the marina, because it is more private, but the face docks here are some of the prime docking spots for the very large ships . But this year has been memorable for the size and ownership of the boats.
When we arrived, M/V "Meduse" was docked on the face dock behind us. At around 200', she is the smallest of three super yachts owned by Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft.
We are currently docked at Emerald Bay Marina on Great Exuma. The highlight of the last week has been super yachts owned by the rich and famous. It is not unusual to see large motor yachts at Emerald Bay and we have been docked near several over the years; we prefer "H" dock at the marina, because it is more private, but the face docks here are some of the prime docking spots for the very large ships . But this year has been memorable for the size and ownership of the boats.
When we arrived, M/V "Meduse" was docked on the face dock behind us. At around 200', she is the smallest of three super yachts owned by Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft.
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| "Meduse" entering the Emerald Bay Basin Photo Credit Emerald Bay Marina |
Fully engaged in the 'race' to own the largest private yacht, Paul now owns the 414' yacht "Octopus". Reportedly, because it is difficult to find dockage for a boat that large, he recently built the 303' yacht "Tatoosh" to complement his fleet.
"Meduse" created quite a stir in the marina when they left their slip and took up a position head-to-wind to land a helicopter on their aft-deck. There was a lot of speculation about Paul Allen arriving on the aircraft, but we later learned that it was a 'practice' exercise.
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| Sequence of Helicopter Landing on "Meduse" |
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| "Meduse" docked behind us Helicopter on her aftdeck |
However, being Meduse's neighbor was not that great . Generally we have found the big yacht crews (particularly the officers) to be quite friendly and personable. They are often 'small' boat owners like us themselves and we often have quite a bit in common. But "Meduse" was an exception to that experience. After they discharged their guests the day after we arrived, they were hardly seen and when they were, they had a 'superior air'. Additionally, since the marina could not provide electrical power to their 'standards', they ran their generator the whole time they were here.
Keeping up the software theme, 150' M/V "Wabi-Sabi" was docked on the other face-dock near us. It is a little unclear if he still owns her, but she was built for and owned by Larry Ellison, former CEO of Oracle. Larry also has larger yachts these days - 150' is so small.
One of the distinctives of this yacht was the total absence of any markings (ie name, hailing port). I struck up a conversation with one of the crew who was very nice, but when I asked what was the name of the ship, he responded "Sorry, I am not allowed to tell you". Not to be denied, when they were departing, between radio traffic and our AIS system, I was able to identify them.
Finally to the title of this post. It is a line from the song "Royals" by 'Lorde', a 17-year-old New Zealand pop/rock singer . The song is a critical view of the lifestyles of the 'rich and famous'. If you saw the Hunger Games movie 'Mocking Jay - Part I' and stuck around through the credits, you heard her sing "Yellow Flicker Beat", a haunting song that caught my ear. I have grown to like her music a lot, although I have to 'travel through time' to get in touch with some of her more 'teenage' themes. If you understand all the references in the line without Googling them - you get 'extra credit' towards being rich and famous (I didn't ).
We plan to stay here at least another week and finally get to experience the "Family Island Regatta" inGeorgetown.
Tom
Docked Emerald Bay Marina
Great Exuma
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| M/V "Wabi-Sabi" Not at Emerald Bay |
One of the distinctives of this yacht was the total absence of any markings (ie name, hailing port). I struck up a conversation with one of the crew who was very nice, but when I asked what was the name of the ship, he responded "Sorry, I am not allowed to tell you". Not to be denied, when they were departing, between radio traffic and our AIS system, I was able to identify them.
Finally to the title of this post. It is a line from the song "Royals" by 'Lorde', a 17-year-old New Zealand pop/rock singer . The song is a critical view of the lifestyles of the 'rich and famous'. If you saw the Hunger Games movie 'Mocking Jay - Part I' and stuck around through the credits, you heard her sing "Yellow Flicker Beat", a haunting song that caught my ear. I have grown to like her music a lot, although I have to 'travel through time' to get in touch with some of her more 'teenage' themes. If you understand all the references in the line without Googling them - you get 'extra credit' towards being rich and famous (I didn't ).
We plan to stay here at least another week and finally get to experience the "Family Island Regatta" inGeorgetown.
Tom
Docked Emerald Bay Marina
Great Exuma
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