Abaco Bahamas January 25

Total Miles Traveled 6009 since departing Green Turtle Bay, KY

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 Happy Birthday Moni!

After a great New Years Eve celebration at the Abaco Beach Resort (ABR), we departed our marina on January 1^st and traveled 25 miles to an anchorage at Treasure Cay.  We stayed at the marina in 2017, but it was destroyed by Hurricane Dorian in 2019 and has yet to be rebuilt.  Hurricane Dorian was the strongest hurricane on record to strike the Bahamas, with winds peaking at 185 mph, it destroyed most of the Abaco’s with at least 70,000 people left homeless and 84 known fatalities.

 Only the pool survived the hurricane

We dropped the dinghy and explored area mangroves and saw several turtles and stingrays.  As with other cays we have visited, the rebuilding is still ongoing with several businesses and homes restored.  The white sand beach at Treasure Cay is what we remember the most from our last visit here.  The sand reminded us of powdered sugar.

On January 3^rd we traveled 25 miles, anchoring at Water Cay for a few hours, before returning to the Abaco Beach Resort Marina.

While at the marina, we were able to see a Starlink Rocket pass by the Bahamas one night.

We departed ABR marina on January 12^th and traveled 16 miles to Lynyard Cay for another yacht club cookout.  Finding enough firewood to last several hours was a challenge so a couple of us took our dinghies to a neighboring beach to get a few loads of firewood. 

On January 13^th, we weighed anchor and traveled 3 miles to Little Harbor, the location of Pete’s Pub and tied to a mooring ball.  We departed early to catch a high tide as the entrance channel does not have enough water depth for our boat. 

 Full moon as we weighed anchor

The late Randolph Johnston settled in Little Harbor, Abaco in 1952 with his wife and three sons.  An artist and professor, he created the first and only Art Foundry in the Bahamas producing bronze sculptures using the ancient technique of the Lost Wax Process.  When Randolph passed away in 1992, his son Peter, also a talented artist, took over the foundry to continue the legacy of his father in addition to his famous Pete’s Pub.  www.petespub.com/

Best Mate in Little Harbor

Atlantic Ocean side of Little Harbor

After a few days exploring the island, on the 17^th we traveled 18 miles back to our slip at Abaco Beach Resort Marina.  We were just in time to attend the First Annual Royal Marsh Harbor Yacht Club Annual Bucket Golf “Royal Abaco Open” practice event.  Bucket Golf is a yard game for all ages whether you’re a seasoned golfer or a beginner.  Every hole is a par 3, hitting any part of the bucket completes the hole, chipping the ball inside the bucket deducts one stroke from your score on that hole.  https://www.bucketgolfgame.com/

After returning to the marina from several days on the water, I gave our boat a good washdown.  The dinghy was also a mess from salt spray and from hauling firewood for our weenie roast.  We keep our water shoes in the dinghy to protect our feet from sand burs or coral when exploring the beaches and wading.  While cleaning out the dinghy, I squirted the hose inside my shoes to clean out the salt and sand, I didn’t expect what came of my shoe fighting mad!

I had no idea there were scorpions in the Bahamas.  It must have fell out of the firewood I hauled and hid somewhere in the dinghy.  After removing my shoes, it found a good home.

The club also had the 3rd Annual Cook-Off.  Soup was the theme this year so everyone brought their favorite soup to be judged by all attendees.

We departed ABR Marina January 26^th and traveled 14 miles to an anchorage at Fishers Bay located on Great Guana Cay.  There are two very popular bar and grills located on the cay, Grabbers and Nippers.  Although both were heavily damaged by hurricane Dorian, they have been newly renovated and refurbished making this a great stop for entertainment and sunsets.

We weighed anchor on January 27^th and traveled 14 miles to Hope Town located on Elbow Cay, and tied to a mooring ball in the harbor.  One of the main attractions of Hope Town is the candy-striped lighthouse, built in 1863, and still uses a wind-up brass mechanism to send a beam of light which can be seen for up to 20 miles.  The Elbow Reef Lighthouse is one of only three manual lighthouses left in the world.  Yes, one of us climbed the 101 steps to the top.

Walking through the streets of Hope Town

After leaving the lighthouse, and before boarding our dinghy, we saw this huge shark swimming past our dock.

On January 29^th we departed Hope Town and traveled 4 miles to an anchorage at Tahiti Beach, located at the southern tip of Elbow Cay.  This is an awesome anchorage near a secluded beach only accessible by foot, bike or boat. 

 Anchored in 10 feet of water and no problem seeing our anchor chain laying on the seabed.

Traditional blowing the conch at sunset, click link Conch

We weighed anchor on January 30^th and traveled 6 miles back to our slip at ABR, just in time for docktails at the tent, and final instructions about the Royal Abaco Open held the next day on the 31^st.

Game Day!

Notice the blue tarps---water hazzard.

And the final instructions 

A fun day, and of the 6 holes the best score was 14, not bad playing with a wiffle ball in 15 mph winds.

Melbourne, Fl to Marsh Harbor, Bahamas

Total Miles Traveled 5886 since departing Green Turtle Bay, KY

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Happy New Year from Abaco Bahamas!

We had been watching the extended weather forecasts and it appeared that a crossing to the Bahamas was a possibility in the next few days, so we stocked up on provisions while at Melbourne, just in case we had an opportunity to cross. We departed Melbourne, Florida December 4^th and traveled 66 miles to an anchorage at Jensen Beach, Fl.

The next day on the 5^th, we traveled 38 miles, stopping to top off our fuel tanks, and continuing to an anchorage at Lake Worth, near West Palm Beach, Fl.  Lake Worth provides a huge anchorage area next to an inlet to the Atlantic Ocean.  The water this close to the inlet is clear, it was cool to watch our anchor travel to the bottom in 12 feet of water and watch it rest on the sea floor with our chain laying across the sand as be backed up to set the hook.  Way different from the brackish, coffee-colored waters we have been traveling through.

Although the sea conditions were borderline for our comfort level, we decided to give it a try, and if it was too rough, we would return to Lake Worth and continue south toward the Key’s.   We weighed anchor at 5 a.m. on December 6^th in a crowded anchorage.  It was not fun meandering around anchored boats and shallow sections of the bay, to reach the channel in the dark, and then to the Lake Worth Inlet.    As it turned out, we had a good crossing with rolling seas hitting us favorably on our boat.  We traveled 67 miles to West End, on Grand Bahama Island.  It was quite a contrast from cruising the shallow waters of South Carolina and Georgia to depths of over 2000 feet deep crossing the Atlantic Ocean.

Our route and depth in feet

Sunrise toward West End

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AekyX8QaW9GWCQFGIZfk5n_YadjAftI1/view?usp=sharing

Old Bahama Bay

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12CA5s5nyFwABcbJJZFbWezZL1LrN9t5c/view?usp=sharing

It is international law that you fly a yellow “Q” (Quarantine) flag upon entering the territorial waters of another country.  This also applies to the U.S., regardless of your nationality and registration.  You remove the “Q” flag and fly the Bahamian courtesy flag after checking into customs and immigration. The visiting boats national flag is flown from the stern of the vessel and the courtesy flag is flown high on the starboard side of the vessel.

Q Flag

Courtesy Flag

After checking into customs and immigration at the Old Bahama Bay Resort and Marina, we met several other boaters that took advantage of the sea conditions to cross.  We joined the Royal Marsh Harbor Yacht Club when we visited here in 2017 and have continued to be members since then.  There were 7 member boats at the marina by days end, so it was fun meeting a few of them for the first time.  We remained at the marina on the 7^th, as the wind picked up overnight and into following day and explored the island walking the beach, and the surrounding area.

On December 8^th, we traveled 55 miles to an anchorage at Great Sale Cay (Cay is pronounced Key in the Bahamas).  There were 8 of us that departed the marina after waiting for a rising tide, due to the shallow water when entering an area known as Church Bank.  We were the last boat to leave the marina as the other boats traveled faster than we cruise.  Two of us anchored at Great Sale Cay, while the others continued to another anchorage about 10 miles farther.

No luck fishing to Great Sale Cay

We departed our anchorage at daybreak on December 9th and traveled 66 miles, entering the Sea of Abaco to Green Turtle Cay, and secured a slip at the Bluff House Marina.  The winds had picked up during the day and we wanted to see what the conditions would be the following day before crossing the “Whale”.  To continue south to the lower part of the Sea of Abaco deep draft boats must leave the Sea of Abaco via one pass to the Atlantic Ocean and returning on the other side of Whale Cay via another pass.  The passage can be hazardous during northerly swells, creating breaking waves.  Over the years, several shipwrecks have occurred there. 

On December 10^th the wind had laid down overnight with a more southerly wind direction making conditions favorable for our passage.  We experienced 3–4-foot waves, but on our port bow, making the crossing uneventful.  We continued 31 miles to the Abaco Beach Resort and Marina to secure a slip on a dock with other members of the yacht club.

The resort is the current home of the Royal Marsh Harbor Yacht Club.  The club was formed about 30 years ago by a former Canadian Resident who opened the Conch Crawl Bar.  The Crawl became the favorite watering hole for cruisers escaping from the wintery weather back home, so it was decided to formally band together as a club.  By the mid 90’s, Abaco had become the number two tourist destination in the Bahamas and the membership had outgrown its original location, so the club began holding its monthly events under a tent at the Abaco Beach Resort.  Today the club boasts of having over 800 boat owner members hailing from the U.S., Canada, and some from as far away as the U.K. and Switzerland.  Although we have been members since 2017, this is the first time we have stayed at this marina, as we spent our time in the Abaco’s then, exploring the chain of islands throughout the Sea of Abaco.

On our first full day at the marina, we participated in erecting the yacht club tent, located in front of pier 5.  The tent is where the club members have docktails every day at 5, Monday night is movie night, and for potluck or special events.  Yacht club members also have access to the Abaco Beach Resort pool, beach, and two restaurants.

Movie night

Christmas Eve dinner

Christmas dinner on the boat

This is a very active yacht club, with pickle ball two days a week, bocce ball two days a week, daily pool aerobics, and when the weather is settled, cruises to great anchorages and points of interest throughout the Sea of Abaco.

 Bocce Ball on the beach....quite different than the hard surface we played on at Marathon last winter.

Moni and I rode the dinghy out to Mermaid Reef for a little snorkeling.

https://gopro.com/v/3adVpO5gdrmZL

We also rode the scooters in town and had Fat Daddy’s conch salad, fresh from the shell.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e0SANbJyGsFLdz9pNC0ojIuAejQYq5qT/view?usp=sharing

Really???????  The temperatures since our arrival to the Bahamas has been mid to upper 70's during the day, and upper 60's at night.....perfect boating weather.

Cruise to Bucaroon Bay overnight anchorage, weenie roast on the beach, and a dingy ride exploring the chain of islands around the bay.

We saw several turtles and a huge stingray during our ride.

On New Years Eve we had dinner at the restaurant, watched a great fireworks display, and experienced our first Junkanoo rush out.  Junkanoo festivals originated in British American colonies and is practiced in the Bahamas, Jamaica, and Belize.  The locals dress up in bizarre costumes with traditional music and dance. 

Junkanoo rush out

We don’t have a definite plan on our length of stay at this marina.  We would like to go farther south to the Exuma’s if weather and time permits.