West Palm Beach, FL to Eleuthera, Bahamas

1: WEST PALM BEACH TO NASSAU, NEW PROVIDENCE

Desperately wanting to get to the Bahamas, we made our first attempt on Sunday, March 19.  The anxiety kept Ria up all night long, which wasn't actually very long since we were up around 3:30am and leaving the dock at 4:00am.  After leaving Lake Worth Inlet, we encountered some northerly swells that took us by surprise.  The wind was still blowing from the North, although very lightly, but it was supposed to have clocked around to the East by then.  It wasn't very bad but we were unsure of how the Gulf Stream would be with a northerly wind, so we turned back and were asleep at the dock by 5:30am.  When we awoke a few hours later, the weather was so calm that we questioned our decision to turn back.  However, everything we had read or had been told by others is that you should never attempt to cross the Gulf Stream in any kind of northerly winds.  With the Gulf Stream flowing constantly to the North, an opposing wind can create some very turbulent seas quite quickly.  We decided that it was better to be safe than sorry, so we enjoyed the day, did some laundry, and decided to try again the next morning.  Upon leaving the dock the next morning again around 4:00am, the water was very choppy before we even got to the entrance at the inlet.  Once outside, we were greeted with about 3- to 4-foot seas.  We had been told that whatever you see outside of the Gulf Stream only magnifies once you hit the edges of it and even more as you get close to the center of it.  Having turned back before reaching the Gulf Stream the morning before, we decided to actually see what it was really like rather than assuming it would be worse.  It took us about an hour further before we knew we had reached the northerly current of the Stream.  The waves were at least 6-feet - so high that you could not see any sky at all on one side of the boat when the waves would hit, just a huge dark mound of water than would push us from one side to the other.  Nolan commented from his car seat, "Belisana's going crazy!"  He was right - we were getting tossed about pretty badly.  Again, we turned around and made it back to our slip at Riviera Beach Marina around daylight.  This depressed us somewhat, but keeping our family safe is our number one priority.  With strong northerly winds blowing for several days to come, we settled back into marina life.  After several days we had more laundry to do and had a surprise waiting for us in the laundry room:  a whole load of our clothes still in the dryer from nearly a week ago...!  So that's another good reason that we turned back again.  By then we had become quite familiar with the folks at the marina - the liveaboards and the staff.  Everyone was calling Nolan "Biscuit", which is Brian's nickname for him.  As nice as it was to get to know some folks by name, we were longing to get away and on to the Bahamas.  Plus, with Ria's brother Steve and his family arriving in Nassau on April 6, we were beginning to worry about getting there in time to pick them up.  

Our opportunity to depart finally came on Wednesday, March 29.  This time, because of the strong current we encountered from the Gulf Stream on our last attempt, we decided to leave about 1:00am and head directly south down the coast until 4:00am or so before trying to cross.  It worked great and we really gained some ground.  And, we were rewarded for our patience with very calm water.  Actually, we kept waiting for the flow of the Gulf Stream to push us North, but it never seemed to happen.  We debated about heading in a southerly direction and trying to reach Bimini instead of West End, but we would be cutting it too close to sunset and decided to stick with our original plan and continue on to West End.  We turned North and again waited on a boost from the Gulf Stream - we maybe picked up a 1/2 knot or so.  It was as if the Gulf Stream had taken a break for a day.  It was overcast a good part of the day and at times we thought it might rain but it never did - just clouds looming overhead that would come and go.  It was a trade we were glad to make - a cloudy day for a calm seas.  Brian and Nolan were great the whole time, but Ria got sick once or twice - not from the severity of the seas but from the length of time we were out there.  We had left the marina around 1:00 or 1:30am and first sighted land about 1:45pm.  We all got on deck and did our "Bahama Land Ho Dance", sans a few items of clothing - a dance we had dreamed of doing for months and months...    Then we hoisted our Q-flag and felt quite pleased with ourselves for finally getting here!  (note:  when entering a foreign country, you have to fly a yellow quarantine flag that signifies that you have not cleared customs yet.  After clearing customs, you're allowed to lower the Q-flag and raise the courtesy flag of that country.  The country flag of a vessel's home is usually flown from the port (left) side with the courtesy flag of the country being visited on the starboard (right) side).  Ria was especially proud of herself and happy to have this leg of our trip over with, as she had been terrified of crossing the Gulf Stream and had trouble sleeping just thinking about it.  But waiting for the right weather window really made all the difference in the world.

West End to Lucaya

The next morning was quite nice and since we didn't have far to go to Lucaya - just a few hours - Brian and Ria borrowed bikes from the resort and joined Nolan on a bike ride around the island, even stopping to play in a mangrove tree.  We left the marina about 11:00am to head to Lucaya, on the other side of Freeport.  After clearing the marina jetties, we turned off the engines and for the first time on our trip enjoyed a true sail, following the coastline of Grand Bahama Island.  What a beautiful day!  Nolan occupied himself with a movie down below, while Brian and Ria sat on deck and read books.  If only everyone could experience being propelled through the ocean by nothing but the wind, and no sounds but the sailboat slicing through the blue water as the Bahamas pass by.  Pure bliss.  Worth every second of the effort it took to get here.  We finally felt "vacated"!  However, all good things must come to an end eventually...

As we made our turn along the coast, the wind was positioned on our nose so we took down the sails and cranked the engine.  Shortly afterwards, the engine began giving off a burning smell - burning rubber.  Brian ran down to find the alternator belt smoking quite a bit.  The alternator was getting so hot that the belt was glazed and melting.  Off went the engine while he worked for an hour so on it.  Ria stayed at the helm and with the sails back up turned Belisana into a long tack slightly off course and away from the island.  We needed the forward motion to keep us from rocking so, plus we began to worry about making Lucaya by nightfall.  Since it should have been a short sail, we made the mistake of leaving ourselves just enough time to get there by dark.  We won't do that again.  After Brian had worked on the engine some more, we tried running it again but still a lot of smoke.  So we had to turn it off and save it for the short time we would need it to get into the next port.  That left us with no choice but to make long tacks along the coast.  It was still a lovely day for sailing, if only we weren't under the gun to reach land by dark.  It was no fun crossing the shipping lanes of Freeport under sail alone.  Luckily there were only a couple of smaller cruise ships leaving and they didn't cross our path.  After passing Freeport, it became apparent that we were not going to make Lucaya by nightfall.  This posed a problem because of our deep draft - there just aren't many places for us to enter.  Absolutely nothing between West End and Freeport, and then nothing deep enough for us between Freeport and Lucaya.  That meant entering Freeport Harbour, something that all of our guidebooks advised against.  It's purely a commercial harbour catering to big ships and has no marinas.  A small boat would have to tie up at a commercial dock and dodge the big boats.  Ria pulled out our Explorer Chart to study the harbour more closely and try to find the best approach and noticed one tiny  marina between Freeport and Lucaya.  Just what we needed.  It was Xanadu Marina and we tried hailing them on the VHF but didn't have any luck, so we pulled out the satphone and used it.  They told us to call security on the VHF when we got closer, and they said they had enough water for our 6 1/2-foot draft.  With about 15 minutes of daylight left, we finally reached their jetties, dropping the sails and cranking the engine about 30 feet from the entrance.  We held our breath that the engine would stay cranked long enough to get us through the jetties because they were extremely narrow and the current and waves were very strong.  The width of the entrance was probably only 25 to 30 feet or so, which gave us no room for error.  We did make it in, called security on the VHF for docking instructions, and eventually were told to tie up at their fuel dock, with the promise that they had 8 feet of water there.  

As it turns out, Xanadu Marina is part of Xanadu Resort, which was not very busy.  Mostly empty.  Though "Xanadu" sounds exotic, the marina was in a state of disrepair to the point that it actually is not functioning anymore, something we learned after leaving.  There was no electricity at the dock, no dockmaster, etc.   The only issues this created for us was not recharging our batteries after also having the engine off all day.  Plus, the security guard was mistaken about the depth at the fuel dock:  at low tide we were sitting on the bottom by about 4 or 5 inches.  It looked like mostly sand in the little harbour, with the occasional sunken freezer or window A/C unit, so it was unlikely that we actually would have any damage to our freshly repaired keel.  Historical note - we learned that Xanadu beach was one of the hide-outs for famous recluse Howard Hughes.

The next day was Friday, March 31, and we had made plans to meet some of Ria's relatives for lunch in Lucaya.  Jackie is Sidney's (Ria's father) first cousin and she and her husband rent a house on Grand Bahama Island every year for a couple of weeks.  We had thought we would miss them because we had planned on crossing over much earlier, but it had worked out well that we would be here while they were here.  We contacted them early in the morning and they had no problem with coming to Xanadu instead.  Having gotten a taxi to take him to in search of the parts he needed, Brian opted to stay and work on the engine while Ria and Nolan went to eat with Jackie and Charles and their dog CJ in Lucaya.  It was really nice to see family, and Nolan was smitten with Jackie and her charm with children.  Upon returning to Xanadu, Jackie and Charles offered to take Brian to another store to get some other things he needed for the engine, and then they left.  We were very grateful not only for their help in getting Brian to the other parts store, but also for their company :)  

As it turns out our problem with the smoking belts in the engine room was that our brand new Balmar alternator was running extremely hot (>240 degrees) and melting the belt when fully loaded to it's capacity of 70 amps.  Brian corrected the problem by installing the new smart multistage regulator (that we had previously purchased but not yet installed) and telling the alternator to only run at half capacity.  Now it doesn't run hot but it's not putting out 70 amps either. 

Xanadu to Lucaya

The engine was repaired by 2:00pm or so, but we couldn't leave the dock because it was low tide and we were sitting on the bottom.  So we had to wait until we had enough water not only to leave the dock but also to clear a sandbar at the harbor entrance.  It's a good thing it was high tide when we entered the day before.  We really didn't want to spend another night at Xanadu and wanted to get on to Lucaya, which at this point was less than an hour away if we motored there.  We were cutting it close when we left after 5:00pm but had no trouble and arrived at Port Lucaya Marina with plenty of light to spare.  We had originally planned on leaving Saturday for the Berry Islands but decided to stay in Lucaya on Saturday to rest and play tourists. 

We had a great time, especially the first night.  After supper, we walked around the market and noticed a show starting on the plaza entitled "Music of the Caribbean".  Folks were gathering all around the edges of the plaza, so we sat down on the steps (with several other folks with smaller children) to enjoy the show.  As it got underway, showgirls came out in full regalia that was suitable for Vegas.  Nolan asked why they were in their underwear.  They sang and danced the night away and put on a great show!  It was borderline family entertainment but they were quite talented.  At one point, the dancers came out to dance with members of the audience, and one came over to our area and danced with Nolan and a little girl - both kids really hammed it up and we regretted not having our camera with us.   We spent the next day lounging around the pool and prepping the boat for crossing the Northwest Providence Channel to Nassau the following morning.  We returned to the plaza again that night - there was a band playing and folks dancing - and Nolan asked where the "fancy ladies" were.  There was a live band and the three of us enjoyed the evening, with Nolan participating in his first conga line.  Lucaya was an interesting place but very touristy - it's where the cruise ships dump all their passengers to shop - so we tired very quickly of the whole scene. 

Lucaya to the Berry Islands

Sunday morning we rose about 3:00am and pulled out of Port Lucaya shortly afterwards.  It was very calm and we had a quiet trip across the channel and over to the Berry Islands.  The Berrys are not very inhabited, especially on the northern end, except for a small cay (pronounced "key") leased by one of the cruise lines.  They stop there and let there passengers enjoy a day of 'island fun'.  We arrived at Great Stirrup Cay in the early afternoon and continued to our planned anchorage in Great Harbour.  Our chart showed a deep channel in the sand close to the rocks, so we slowly and carefully made our way through it to get to a deep spot to anchor our boat.  Well, we didn't stay close enough to the rocks and ran around, something we're getting quite familiar with.  We were just on the edge of a sandy shoal but with the ebbing tide we could not get off.  A couple of folks came over with jet skis from the rental place near the cruise ship stop, and tried to pull us off.  Another boat with a large outboard came as well.  We didn't budge.  After they all left, a man from one of two small sailboats that arrived in the midst of all the hubbub came over in his dinghy and said that we needed to use our anchor to tilt us over and pull ourselves off by tilting sideways.  This is what Brian was about to do before the other folks showed up with their jet skis.  The man, whose name escapes us now as we write this weeks later, stayed and helped Brian for over an hour but it still didn't help.  With nothing left to do but wait until high tide at 11:00pm to move to a deeper spot, we set about grilling ribs on deck and having ribs and fresh pineapple for supper.  The man's friend, Bob, came over and said if we needed help in the night while moving the boat, to call him on the VHF.  Bob and his friend are retired and cruise every year for 4 or 5 months with their wives in twin sailboats:  small, shoal-draft boats that scoot with ease around the Bahamas.  They were all extremely nice people.

Having heeled from one side to the other while on the sandy shoal, we were happy when the tide finally rose and we could move to a deeper spot.  While Brian hauled in the anchor, Ria was at the helm.  After the anchor was up and Brian gave the go ahead to motor away, the steering suddenly locked up and the engine died.  What now?  We quickly figured out what was wrong.  While grilling, we had spilled BBQ sauce on a dockline and Ria hung it overboard to rinse it clean.  Oops.  Forgot to bring it in and now it had fouled the prop.  And revving the engine with the fouled prop caused the low-pressure fuel line to spring a leak in the engine room.  So now we had two new problems:  the fouled prop and diesel fuel squirting all over the engine room.  Brian went below with electrical tape and duct tape to temporarily stop the leaks, then spent almost an hour under the boat trying to get the line off the propeller, in the dark.  The water was quite chilly and he was really glad that he had purchased a wetsuit in Florida so he got to test it out for the first time.  Even so, he was shivering uncontrollably when he finally came on deck about an hour later.  Bob from the small sailboat did see we were having trouble and came over to see if he could help.  While Brian was under the boat, Bob spent about an hour helping Ria assemble our new Fortress anchor in case the engine wouldn't start again and we needed to 'walk' the boat to deeper water with the anchors.  Fortunately, about 12:30am, we were able to start the engine and motor to a deeper spot to anchor the boat.  Bob followed in his dinghy, an old wooden rowing dinghy, to make sure we made it safely to slightly deeper water.  We tried to repay him with a bottle of wine, but he refused it and rowed away into the dark, saying it was all part of being a 'cruiser' and that one day we be able to return the favor to someone else...  Really nice folks.  Early the next morning, we watched the two little sailboats leave just before sunrise - they were on their way home a little early because one of their wives had hurt her back a few weeks ago and needed to get back home.  We were even more grateful as we watched them leave, knowing that Bob had only returned to his own boat just a few hours earlier from helping us...

An hour or so after watching them leave, we got underway.  At some point during the day, Ria reeled in a barracuda that we threw back.  Not very tasty.  Our destination this time was further south along the Berry Islands, and we ended up at Bird Cay, anchoring in crystal clear water.  We had the entire anchorage to ourselves when we stopped but by nightfall there were several other boats anchored nearby.  Brian's patch job on the fuel line was thankfully holding up, and we had used our satphone to call in an order for new fuel lines to be shipped to Nassau.

Bird Cay to Nassau, New Providence

The next morning we left shortly after sunrise to head to Nassau, crossing the intersection of the Northwest Providence Channel and the Tongue of the Ocean.  The seas on this passage can get quite nasty, but we were blessed with SSW winds which evidently was the magic recipe for calm seas.  Shortly after leaving our anchorage, Ria smelled fuel.  Brian ran below to find that the patched fuel line had completely severed and diesel fuel was again shooting around the engine room.  Off with the engines.  This time a major repair was needed and with fuel leaking, Brian could not leave the engine room.  Left alone at the helm, Ria managed - for the first time - to raise/unfurl the jib alone to keep us moving along.  With the wind in our favor, we were cruising along under sail alone at about 5 knots.  This lasted a couple of hours while Brian lay across the hot engine and installed a more substantial patch - hose scavanged from the fuel pump and hose clamps from the SSB antenna.  Just as the wind died and we lost speed, he came up and said we could start the engine again.  Everything worked fine, and we picked up speed as we continued on to Nassau.  Nassau Harbour was quite busy and we had to call Nassau Harbour Control on the VHF to get permission to enter.  We had reservations at Hurricane Hole Marina and pulled in around 3:00pm.  It was now Tuesday and with Steve, Robin, Andrew, and Abigail arriving on Thursday, we had a lot of cleaning to do.  We spent the rest of the day resting and eating, and set about cleaning early Wednesday morning.  It's amazing how messy a boat can get when you're underway and dealing with mishaps.  We still had a long way to go when we finally went to sleep around 1:00am.  We worked a little Thursday morning but then got the boat ready and moved to the marina at Atlantis, where we had reservations for two nights.  Steve, Robin, and their kids were going to meet us there.  With a slip at the marina, you get full privileges at the resort for a fraction of the price of a room.  Our slip was expensive as far as marina rates go, but for seven people to enjoy Atlantis - it was quite cheap.  The marina had golf carts to ferry us around since we were a long walk from the resort and the marina village with its restaurants and shops.  All we had to do was call on the VHF and they would come get us.  Nice!

We were still cleaning when we heard "Hello!" being shouted from a golf cart - what a welcome site it was to see Ria's brother and his family!  There were excited hugs as the kids rushed below deck on Belisana to check it all out again.  We had a quick late lunch and then changed into swimsuits and went on our way.  Atlantis has wonderful waterslides, most of them centered around and even coming out of a replica of a Mayan temple.  Nolan did not meet the 48" height requirement for most of the waterslides so he enjoyed a few small waterslides at the kiddie pool and swimming around the big pools with his floaties (or swimmies) on.  So for two days we enjoyed the waterslides, swam in many different pools, floated down the Lazy River, and spent too much money eating out.  The Cox family also went snorkeling in the lagoon, which gave Andrew and Abigail the opportunity to get used to their snorkeling gear in a more controlled environment before trying it on a reef off of an island later on.  They were naturals and had no problem whatsoever.  During the midst of all of this, Brian found time to replace the fuel line with one of the new ones that we had shipped to Atlantis.

The first night of our stay at Atlantis, we ate at Bimini Cafe in the marina village.  It was a little late and all the kids fell asleep before the food arrived.  As the adults were finishing up, the staff at the restaurant started playing steel drums and singing.  It was incredibly loud, especially considering that they decided that next to our table was the best vantage point for everyone else in the restaurant to see them.  Our bodies were vibrating with every bong!  bong!  bang! of the steel drums within a few feet of us, yet all three children slept through the whole performance - they were really tuckered out.  We actually ended up carrying them back to the spot where our golf cart shuttle was waiting to take us back to Belisana.  Brian and Robin traded children so that Brian was carrying Abigail and Robin had Nolan.