Home Sweet Home – A Final Note

Friday May 29th, 2009

It is with mixed emotions that I write this, our final blog entry for our Bahamian Adventure. Although we are incredibly happy to be home, this marks the end of one of the most memorable times of our lives. Two years of planning and 10 and half months of experiencing all coming to a close.

Friends of ours, Mike and Marry, helped us reflect on the trip when we arrived in Chesapeake Bay in April. They asked us “If there was a Rose that we could describe for them, what would it be?”. Well, there were many many roses but if there was one single thing, we both would say that the rose was our relationship. To live on a small boat, secluded for the most part, with all kinds of challenges and come back 10 months later with more confidence in your relationship than when you left, that is truly a “Rose”. We didn’t even attempt to throw each other overboard; not that it didn’t occur to us on occasion.

Mike and Mary also asked, “If there was a thorn, what would it be?”. There were definitely some thorns; most insignificant, but the single thorn would be our dependence on the weather. The constant review of the wind forecasts was draining. Both of us generally try to honour our mutual value of “Freedom”. Well, weather affected our freedom every day. We felt we were constrained on where we could go and when we could go constantly. The possibilities would be endless if only the weather wasn’t a consideration.

The last question was “What were the buds we found along the way?“ There are far too many to include in the blog but here are our top 10:

1. The wide array of wonderful people we met and friends we made.
2. Skipper’s meetings. Tell me again, “How big was that wave?” and “The shark was how long?”.
3. Long walks along the white soft sand beaches.
4. Hiking in the jungle. (OK this one is Al’s not mine) Yoga on the Beach (Monica’s)
5. The colours and clarity of the Bahamian water.
6. Lobster hunting (Al’s) Lobster Eating (Monica)
7. Constantly exploring new terrain.
8. Not knowing what the next day will bring.
9. Constant sunshine
10. Learning – about different cultures, new hobbies, geography, history, oceanography etc. etc.

The picture reminds us of a day that was filled with roses and buds and not too many thorns.

What we appreciate now that we are home.

1. Our friends, family and Fibber, our cat. At least I appreciate Fibber.
2. An abundance of fresh water which means long hot showers, as long as we want and as often as we want. It also means we no longer have to clean the salt off the boat and shine up the chrome everyday.
3. Reliable communications both by Internet and by Phone
4. Electricity – not being concerned that you are using too much just by opening the fridge door. Using the microwave, oven, toaster, hair dryer.
5. Fresh veggies and fruit whenever we want and without hiking or biking miles to find them.
6. Our Car -- Freedom
7. Work – believe it or not, we both missed our work. How crazy is that?
8. Our house, our garden and all our things. Man we have a lot of stuff. It is like Christmas here every time we open up a cupboard or closet finding all the stuff we had forgotten about. Our own laundry facilities.
9. A long run. (Monica’s)
10. Not worrying about how strong and what direction the wind will be later today and tomorrow and the next day and the next day.

OK, I’m done rambling. We look forward to re-connecting with everyone over the next few months.

Weather forecast for tonight, Dark.
No Worries Man.

Trenton, to Fenelon Falls, Ontario

Tuesday May 26th, 2009

Yes, so close and yet so very far. We were ready well in advance to travel up the Trent Severn Waterway on the planned opening day May 15th. However the weather gods were not with us. Since there had been so much rain this spring in Ontario, the opening was indeed delayed. We didn’t know how long it would be but the indications were that it would likely be a week. So we literally abandoned ship in Belleville for 8 days. We left Painkiller in the good hands of Jim and Wilma, while my niece, Lexi and her friend Tyler picked us up and drove us to Peterborough where we had arranged to pick up a vehicle. We drove ourselves home to Fenelon Falls. A bit anti-climatic given we had been away so long. We were surprisingly sad to leave Painkiller behind.

The house was in great shape thanks to the help of our friends and neighbours who watched over it.

A week later, our friends Richard and Marolyn drove us back to Trenton where we started our journey home again. The trip up the Trent Severn was a bit painful. It should have been a breeze but the conditions and volume of boats made for a slow journey. We only got as far as lock 2 when we had our first delay. There were 5 boats locking through ahead of us and one of them ran aground between Lock 2 and Lock 3. Then another boat called in low water warning just after Lock 3. The combination of these events caused the waterway to shut down for two hours while they investigated. Ironically we had waited 8 days because of high water and now we were stopped because of low water. We actually don’t believe it was low as the boat that ran aground was off the channel and we believe the boat that called in low water was simply reading weeds which tend to throw off depth sounders. It was slow running for the first 3 days as each lock was piled up with boats and several were very slow boats that were crippled by the current coming down the system. We generally travel at 7.5 to 8 knots but needed to wait on a houseboat for 6 locks. The houseboat could only travel at 3 knots with the current. We were finally in a spot where we thought we could leave the houseboat behind and make some time when the Lakefield lockmaster said he had noticed a couch floating up stream and he wanted to get it out of the way for us. Garbage is a rare sighting in these waters but I guess it was Prom Night and some overzealous teenagers decided the couch would make a good boat for a late evening cruise. We spent the next 20 minutes watching painfully as the lockmaster tried to throw a line and bring it in. Finally he came back to the lock for a longer rope and we said not to worry, one of us would push it over to him with the boat. So, Papillon who was also traveling with us that day pushed it aside. See pictures of lockmaster catching the couch. Were we ever getting home?

The highlight of this leg of the trip was arriving at Stony Lake. I likened it to arriving in the Exuma Islands Bahamas. It was magical. I can’t believe that we had forgotten how beautiful our waterway is. If you read my last blog entry, you will know that Al and I were considering taking our boat back to the Erie Canal some year in the fall. Well, that’s not happening. Why would we go any further than our backyard? There is no water that we experienced between Lake Ontario and the Bahamas that even comes close to what we have right here in Ontario. And I’m not biased. Anyways, we were fortunate to have our last night on the boat tied up at the Lovesick Lock all by ourselves. Anyone who has had the pleasure of hanging around there will know how special that is. And no bugs. What a treat!

We made it through the Fenelon Locks on Tuesday around 2:30 and Painkiller was safely tied up at Tim and Jan’s dock by 3:30. Our journey is complete.

One more blog entry to sum it all up coming very soon.

Troy, New York to Trenton, Ontario

Monday May 11th, 2009

Again we have new perspective. The Erie Canal westbound was great. In fact we have talked about coming this way some fall to see it when the leaves are turning as we believe it would be spectacular. We spent 4 nights in Waterford exploring the area and then 3 nights along the Canal. Spring is definitely in the air. The weather has become more seasonal; that is colder than when we were on the Hudson River however the toque has been put away for good.

We left Oswego, New York early Friday morning and although we picked great weather wind wise, as you would expect, that meant fog. Lake Ontario was like glass and about a half hour into our trip the fog patches started. In the middle of the lake, you can’t tell just how good your visibility is, as there is nothing to gauge it with so you are traveling blind. Luckily for us we didn’t see or hear (fog horns) any other vessels. We did have a little stowaway on board. See picture of Lucky Bird who joined us about half way across the lake. He came and explored the boat, sat on the steering wheel for a while, then on Al’s knee and then his shoulder. Lucky Bird was with us all the way to the mainland. As soon as we started discussing customs he flew off. I don’t blame him.

We arrived in Picton Ontario on Friday, cleared customs and are now waiting for the Trent Severn to open up. We had a nice dinner with my brother, Curt and his wife Cherlyn which makes it feel like home. The Trent Severn Canal is scheduled to open on Friday May 15th but because the water levels have been high in Ontario this spring, they may delay. We are so close and yet so far. In any case, my next update will be from home.

The Dismal Swamp, North Carolina to Troy, New York

Thursday April 30th, 2009

We left the Dismal Swamp and Robert, the lock master did not disappoint us. We had a private playing of our own conch shells. Al had fashioned two of them for blowing at sunset and Robert eyed them as we were going through the lock. He played both of them beautifully. While all Al and I can do is make a feeble honking sound he can play a wonderful tune. We’ll have to work on our conch playing skills.

We have put on many miles over the past 3 weeks since leaving the Dismal Swamp. From there we stopped in Norfolk and Portsmouth then straight to Solomon’s where we stayed for a week, plugged in as the nights were a little chilly. We had wonderful weather on all our crossings. That would be the advantage of not being in a hurry. We wait patiently for the right weather. And the right weather certainly hit us as we arrived in New York Harbour. The past 7 days have been sunny and for the most part HOT. We have experienced summer temperatures in the high 80’s and low 90’s. This has made the Hudson River a delightful experience. Although we cruised the river last summer, we had a different perspective this spring and were in awe of how beautiful the Hudson River is. We are ready to make our way across the Erie Canal which opens tomorrow.

Fernandina Beach, Florida to The Dismal Swamp, North Carolina

Monday April 6th, 2009

We are twenty eight miles away from the top of the Dismal Swamp, where we look forward to being greeted by lock master Robert, the expert on all things “Dismal” (see blog input Norfolk to Carolina Beach in October 11th, 2008 for more insight on Robert). We have traveled almost 1000 miles up the eastern seaboard in the past 3 weeks. It has been a great trip; much nicer than the trip south, down the same coast, last fall. I attribute that to expectations being set at the right level. That is we knew what to expect this time round and we know we can’t go swimming. The only thing missing is the friends we made along the way south. Of course there are new friends in most every port but some that we met going south will be forever part of our fond memories.

We have been following spring weather up the coast. It has been quite noticeable ever since we left Florida. Starting in Jekyll Island Georgia where the vegetation was quite full but you could feel it was early in the season. Jekyll Island was our first stop in Georgia. It is quite beautiful and we spent 3 days there cycling around the island and enjoying the scenery including the ship wreck in the picture. We wouldn’t want that happening to us but it makes a great picture. We skipped over Georgia on the way south and were glad to have seen it going north. The highest tide changes on our trip were there, up to 9 feet. The water rises and falls 8 to 9 feet about every 6 hours. It is quite a feeling to set your anchor in 12 feet of water and then find yourself in 4 feet of water not long afterwards. It’s no wonder so many boats go aground. Of course that is nothing compared to the Bay of Fundy where the tide rises and falls 40 feet in 6 hours. That is just crazy and we are not boating there ever.

The next area where we noticed spring conditions was Myrtle Beach. The blossoms were just coming out on many of the trees. It has been a constant theme up the coast. We’ve seen tulips starting to pop out and we have seen them done for the season. Along with the spring conditions has come the pollen. We are now dealing with pollen and salt. It coagulates on the boat in little clusters. Salt and pollen … Yuk!

We have had a few adventures on the way. Navy War Ship 51 was doing maneuvers as we traveled through Camp le Jeune which is a military training area. We were lucky to get through the ICW just before target practice started. Little boats were buzzing by securing the area and war planes up above checking on traffic and reporting our position to the war ship. Thankfully they are very thorough at making sure us pleasure boats are clear of their activities before they commence their practice.

Our other excitement was the Albemarle Sound. We had been told last year that it could be “treacherous” in a big wind. Given all the waters we have traveled since leaving last year, it really didn’t look too bad but we respected the warning and waited out gale force winds before crossing. Well the warnings were well grounded. We went out in about 20 knot winds and the waves were square, short and probably 5 to 6 feet high. On the positive side, it was clear and sunny so although it was uncomfortable and cool it was not as bad as it could have been. I have now bought flannel pjs and a warm toque given that we are traveling in the cooler weather. I’ve only worn the toque once and Al, who shaved his head, needed it one morning. Back to the Albemarle Sound, the other issue with that leg of the trip was the crab pots. At the mouth of the Pasquotank River, the traps are arranged in a checkerboard formation and are often dark colours; green and black being the worst. So, not only are you dealing with square waves, you need to go through an obstacle course of crab traps. When we finally arrived in Elizabeth City, Al helped another boat tie up at the dock. They had been towed in from the mouth of the river (about 12 miles). It was no surprise to hear that his prop had caught a crab trap and thus disabled his engine.

Today we sat out weather again but this time in the Dismal Swamp. It is a beautiful area in North Carolina. It reminds us of the river we live on at home. The water coming up from Elizabeth City yesterday was like a mirror (see picture of mile marker). This was a big contrast to the Albemarle Sound a few days ago. We are quite sure the Albemarle has picked up again though, as today there were 3 emergency broadcasts for weather warnings; possible tornados throughout the area from 10 am to 3 pm. We were happy to be at a dock close to a big secure public building, The North Carolina Visitor Centre. Al was confident we would not be hit and would calmly point out the bad weather cells from the boat. I, on the other hand, walked up to the visitor’s centre and watched from the entrance way, ready to duck in at a moment’s notice. All was blasé in the end as the weather right there was fine. A southbound boat came in late in the afternoon and told us that although it had been rough north of here there were no trees down so we need not worry tomorrow when we head northward.

Tomorrow we are off to Norfolk which is the southern most point of the Chesapeake Bay where another adventure awaits us.

Palm Beach, Florida to Fernandina Beach, Florida

Thursday March 19th, 2009

Florida has been very good to us this past week. We had some wonderful weather and really enjoyed being here. We cruised the ocean side from Palm Beach up to Fort Pierce. We then rented a car and traveled across Florida to St. Petersburg where we visited with my mom, Al’s mom, her friend Ronnie, my Uncle Ron and his friend Anne. We were of course very well–fed during our stay. It was short but good to see everyone.

We were fortunate to be in Florida during the launch of Space Shuttle Discovery this month. We ended up anchored about 30 miles south of the launch site but as you can see from the pictures, we had a spectacular show that evening.


From there we made out way to Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island. This is the northern tip of Florida. Although it is not the prettiest place from the water with its two huge paper mills, it is a fabulous little town with great shops cafes and pubs. This is our last stop before tackling Georgia which we missed on the way down.

Nassau to Palm Beach, Florida

Wednesday March 11th, 2009

The picture is Al trying to get into Senior Frogs Bar in Nassau. Our last stop in the Bahamas.

The weather gods were with us as we left the islands. Of course that depends on how you look at things. Last fall, crossing to the Exumas from Florida, with waiting for the right weather windows, it took us almost a month. So, for our return trip, we were ready a month early and decided we would take the weather windows as they came up. The first was from Highborne Cay to Nassau which was a bit choppy. Ok, a lot choppy but nothing extreme. Two days later, from Nassau we were in Florida within 44.5 hours. The good news is that we made the crossing quickly and with ideal conditions. The bad news is we have now said our final good byes to the Bahamas. Our crossing was ideal. As Al pointed out, and rightly so, you could have taken the dinghy across yesterday. Our welcome to Florida was a huge fin sticking out of the water just outside the Lake Worth Inlet. The water was smooth and you could clearly see this big fin sticking out of the water (see picture which doesn’t do it justice). We knew it wasn’t a dolphin as they usually are up and down where and this was steady in the water. As it moved along you could tell it was quite big as the water rippled when the tail moved from side to side. We thought maybe it was a whale, it was so big. We slowly approached it with the boat to have a good look and he just flopped around and then went under the bow of the boat. It was not a whale but a hammerhead shark which is very distinctive when you look at it from above. He was longer than our boat’s beam which is 13.5 feet. That makes for a shark at least 14 feet long. No swimming in this inlet.

George Town to Nassau

Sunday March 8th, 2009

It’s hard to believe we left George Town almost a month ago. We took our time running the Exuma Islands northbound. Our stops included Children’s Cay, Lee Stocking Island, Darby, Musha Cay, White Point, Black Point, Pipe Creek, Warderwick Wells (Emerald Rock), Norman’s Cay and Highborne Cay. All of which are uniquely beautiful.

We had perfect weather when we stayed at Children’s Cay and Lee Stocking Island (23.45.80’N 76.06.50’W). It felt like the real Bahamas (paradise) again as there were very few boats and the hustle and bustle of George Town was far behind us. It is an interesting area for marine life. We took advantage of the calm water and went exploring with the dinghy. There was a school of what we think were barracuda . There were tons of them everywhere. One, that was almost 3 feet long, jumped out of the water about 10 feet. Then we came upon an area of star fish. The ocean bottom was just littered with dozens of big star fish. No sooner had we left that area and there was a “flock” of sting rays flopping around the water. Yes we are back in the country and away from the city.

We then made our way to Darby Island and Musha Cay (23.54.50N 76.15.50W). Musha is rumoured to be owed by David Copperfield. You and 19 of your friends can stay there for a mere $325,000 a week. You must rent the island in its entirety with a minimum of 3 night say. It’s very pretty but $325,000 per week, give me a break. The picture is of Goat Cay a bit south of Musha. It may be hard to see but there is a little shark fin sticking out of the water. We didn’t notice the shark when we took the picture but when we were looking at them later we saw it. Al and Dave from Zing went diving not far from here. I doubt they would have done so knowing what was lurking in the water.

We had been cooking Bahamian style this particular week. Cracked Conch, Lobster Fritters and Bahamian Mac’n Cheese. Any of you who have experienced my baking should be sitting now as I actually seriously contemplated baking bread. Our friend Jan had given me a starter in George Town and the recipe. But, when Al read the instructions he just had to raise his eyebrows and I knew he thought it would be too much for me. I was reminded that I can’t even bake cookies from pre-made batter. However the Mac’n Cheese was good.


Our next leg was up to White Point (24.02.00N 76.22.30W) and then abruptly to Black Point (24.05.50N 76.24.70W) as we experienced our first really bad swells. We had a comfortable night’s sleep until about 3:00 am and then the wind must have changed and we had these big rolly swells come through. By 6:00 am we were pulling anchor. As Al says (coined from Chris Parker) “if you are going to be uncomfortable, you may as well be underway”. This was just the first of a few uncomfortable nights given the swells and the wind direction. Nothing dangerous mom, just big rolls through the night which made it uncomfortable. Just north of Black Point we stopped to see the Iguanas (endangered species) on Bitter Guana Cay (24.08.50N 76.25.00W). Only one came out, but he was a big guy.

The Pipe Creek/Staniel Cay (24.13.75N 76.29.84W) area was our next stop. We stayed for about 5 days. It is really pretty there with lots of sand bars to explore at low tide. We found some huge and amazing shells however there were creatures living inside so back to the ocean they went. We met some wonderful people, Tom and Nancy on Putterby who welcomed us to the area. They have a friend that owns and island and Nancy gardens there so she gave us fresh Basil which we savoured for a few days and some tiny Bahamian green peppers that Al loved but made my eyes water just getting within 5 feet of them.

Our last stop before leaving the Exuma Islands was Highborne Cay (24.42.00N 76.49.50W). Here we were welcomed by flying rays in the harbour. Actually just one ray but he jumped out of the water twice as we were looking for a spot to anchor. No exaggeration he was probably close to 5 feet wide and jumped 4 feet out the water with a huge splash when he landed. Al went “bug” hunting with Bob on Flextime and brought home two more lobster. We are up to about 30 lobsters since arriving. Al has paid for his fishing gear many times over.

We left Highborne for Nassau and arrived back in a city. It was sad to leave the Exuma Islands but we have met up with some friends Ellen and Randy on Kwanesam which have made Nassau lots of fun. We are now waiting for the right weather to get to the Barry Islands and slowly make our way to the US again.

Good Bye George Town

Wednesday February 11th, 2009

We have now been back in the George Town area for almost a month and it is time for us to start saying our good byes and slowly make our way north. We have been very happy to be here playing volleyball and bocci ball, participating in beach yoga, enjoying the sun and eating fresh lobster, all while we hear about the record snow and cold temperatures back home. We certainly picked the right winter to be in the south.

Long Island

Monday January 12th, 2008

Just before New Year’s we took advantage of a calm weather window and made our way southeast to Long Island a 5 hour cruise for us. We are now south of the Tropic of Cancer which is the tropics as opposed to the subtropics.. Long Island is 80 nautical miles long and 4 nautical miles wide at its widest point, thus the name, Long Island.

We woke up New Year’s Eve morning to a spooky ocean view (bank side). It was dead calm. See the picture of the only other boat in the harbour we were in. It was spooky and beautiful at the same time.

Later that afternoon around 4:00, Al and I were debating as to whether we could stay awake long enough to go to a local resort’s dance and fireworks. The band didn’t start until 9:00 and we are usually going to bed by then. We kept saying that we needed to make an effort to go. Anyhow, as we sat on the back deck of the boat contemplating our evening, we could faintly here someone calling from the beach. “PainKiller, is that you?”. There were two people on the beach waving at us. We had no idea what was going on and jumped in the dinghy to see what they wanted. It was Betsy and Donald from the sailing vessel, Mollyhawk. We had met them briefly in Black Point a few weeks ago. They were on their way to a beach party and had room in their jeep for us to join them. The beach party was hosted by some of the locals and there was a huge spread of food and beverages. Fireworks were set around 9:00 as everyone agreed staying up until midnight was a pipe dream. We left the beach party and ended up having a quick drink at a small bar, Midway Inn, and we were still wide awake so made it to the resort party by 11:15 to dance and bring in the New Year to another set of fireworks. It was well after 1:00 by the time we were on our way back to the dinghy. We had to go through the jungle, about a 5 minute walk from the road to the beach to get to our dinghy. We were very happy to have a flashlight to do so. With all the things Al gets me to do, it’s a miracle we are still together. Hiking through a jungle with who knows what lurking in the bushes and trees is bad enough but at night it’s the worst. While there are no venomous snakes here, there are Bahamian Boas so you can understand my reluctance to go in the jungle day or night.


Boas aside, we really enjoyed our stay in Long Island. The people are incredibly generous and welcoming and the beaches are endless. Given how much there is to see on the island, we have made good use of our bicycles here. We did get a little lost the day the picture was taken. Notice the map in my hand. Good thing we brought water with us that day.

We took a road trip one day last week with Betsy and Donald (Mollyhawk) and explored the south side of the island by jeep. It was a whirl wind tour with many many stops, we stopped at a house and ordered bread, picked up beers at Cocos, explored the blue hole at Turtle Cove (see picture), stopped in Clarence Town, had beers with Susanna, the coldest beers on the island (see picture), walked along a beautiful secluded beach, saw about 30 pink flamingos off shore, saw Haitian wrecks in the bay, had beer with Susanna again, had a late lunch at Cocos, picked up our freshly made bread, stopped at Gary’s farm and played with his goats, got back to the dinghy before dark and slept.


We also did some hitch hiking while we were on the island. I’ve only done that once in my life and Al hasn’t done it since he was 18. It was great. We no sooner had our thumbs in the air and we had a ride every time. We met some wonderful local people who were quite happy to tell us about their island. We made it up to the north end of the island to Cape Santa Maria which boasts the most beautiful beach in the Bahamas. I can’t say for sure as I have not seen all the beaches in the Bahamas but Santa Maria certainly is a beautiful beach.

After our viewing of the island by land we decided to take PainKiller up the coast to the North End to see it from the water. We anchored in Calabash Bay just off the Cape Santa Maria Resort and enjoyed the beach and the snorkeling in the area.

After two weeks of thoroughly enjoying Long Island we moved back to George Town. We will spend a few more weeks here and then slowly make our way north.

Christmas in George Town

Monday December 30th, 2008

The holiday season was great here in the Bahamas. In George Town, we joined the adult camp in full force, played volleyball and learned to polish sea beans. We stopped short at the basket weaving. I may take that up when we get back to George Town later in January. The cruisers organized a lovely Christmas Eve party. Lots of nautical Christmas caroling (“Dashing through the water, in a 10-horse open dingy, over the harbour we go, laughing all the way, ha ha ha”). You may need to be a boater to appreciate the carols down here. It was certainly a different Christmas for us with lots of sunshine and palm trees.

One of our objectives was to make it to Junkanoo which is a local celebration that starts at around 3:00 am on Boxing Day. This meant Al and I going to bed around 8 pm Christmas night and then setting the alarm for 1:00 am to catch a 2:00 am water taxi to town so that we could be part of the festivities. It was really worth losing sleep over. Junkanoo is actually a competition and in George Town, there were 4 bands that took part. Each band had elaborate floats, dancers, costumes and a marching band. Actually, the bands were more like a dancing, drumming, acrobatic band then a marching band. It was like 4 mini parades in a row. The energy level was very very high. We caught the water taxi back to our boat and were asleep again by 8:30 am. For those enquiring minds, the tradition is to celebrate in the middle of the night because this was the time that the slaves were allowed to celebrate Christmas. Originally they were only allowed to celebrate once the plantation owners said that they were done their work for Christmas and the slaves had to be back at their duties the next morning. So it was an over night celebration.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Al and I just wanted to wish everyone all the best for the holidays. We hope that 2009 keeps you and your families healthy and happy.

Warderick Wells to Georgetown, Great Exuma Island

Thursday December 17th, 2008

The last few weeks, we have simply been hopping from island to island enjoying the Bahamas. The pictures can speak for themselves. Overall the last few weeks can be summed up simply as a collection of unique paradises.

Our route has been from Warderick Wells (24 24.10N 76 38.30 W) to Cambridge Cay ( 24 28.00 N 76 32.50 W) to Staniel Cay (24 10.20 N 727.20 W) to Black Point (24 05.40 N 76 24.70 W), then the Darby’s (23 51.40 N 76 13 .50 W) and now George Town (23 30.41N 75 44.70W).

We have been seeing all kinds of marine life some with some unexpected creatures and some more expected. There have been lots of sharks on this leg of our trip. Thankfully they are nurse sharks which really don’t bother with people. People actually pay money to swim with these sharks. I will save my money and watch them from the safety of our boat.



The George Town area is between Great Exuma Island and Stocking Island. It is a relatively sheltered harbour about 9 miles long and 1 mile across. There is civilization here for a change. This is the first time we have been able to buy fresh produce since leaving Nassau. What a treat. We plan to be in this area until the end of January with periodic short trips to some more remote islands south of here. There are about 50 boats here and things are very organized. They expect more boats in January. Usually there are 300 to 500 at the peak season however given the economy it will probably be much quieter this year.

So far it has been very windy most days so we don’t venture very far in the dinghy. We have found some beautiful beaches and, even though there are lots of boats here, we are still able to find secluded spots and can walk for hours without seeing anyone else.

We now feel like we are at Camp for adults. The new routine, at least when the winds are high, which seems like forever, is to make our way to Volleyball Beach and you guessed it, there is organized volleyball every afternoon. The players range from their early-20’s to late-70’s. There are some serious players and serious games however Al and I stick to the not so serious fun games. Twice a week there is organized poker. There has been a ladies lunch and Christmas gift exchange. The campers are also selling t-shirts in town to raise money for the spring island regatta. The list goes on and on.

Life is Good.

Nassau to Normans Cay to Warderick Wells

Wednesday December 3rd, 2008

Well, we played tourists in Nassau for a day. We explored Paradise Island which is like Disney World with all kinds of beautiful hotels, beaches and pools. We walked through Atlantis and watched the divers feeding sharks and rays in the aquarium pool. Then we walked underground and there is a glass tunnel underneath the shark pool and the aqua life swam all around us. A huge shark swam right over my head. He had a chainsaw shaped nose and other than that he looked pretty friendly. Needless to say, I was very happy to have glass between him and me. Later in the day we went to downtown Nassau which has much more of a local flare to it. It was fun to see the shenanigans in the streets there.

On Thursday morning we made our way to the Exuma Islands. It was another beautiful day traveling across the Bahamas Bank. The bank is shallow and you can see bottom for most of the trip (35 nautical miles). The picture is taken from the bow of our boat about 10 feet from the surface of the water, looking down about 27 feet. It is unbelievably clear. Periodically, we could see starfish on the bottom of the ocean.



Well, we finally found paradise. Not the fake Paradise Island but truly paradise. It was breath taking coming into Norman’s Cay (24.34.75N 76.49.30W). An array of tiny islands mixed in with larger islands welcomed us to the Exumas. Some of the islands are inhabited and many are not. At low tide there are miles of sand banks to play around on. Norman’s is simply stunning. There are only a few homes on the island and a small restaurant with 4 cabins and an airstrip. Everyone here is self sufficient using solar power or generators. There are no phones here. It is truly remote. Al caught his first lobsters on a reef off Norman’s Cay. We had a scrumptious fresh lobster dinner. Hopefully the first of many.

We left Normans yesterday and are now in Warderick Wells (24.24.10N 76.38.30W)which houses the Exumas Cays Land and Sea Park Headquarters. Another beautiful area. Lots of beaches and good snorkeling. We walked on the island and found “blow holes” on what they call Boo Boo Hill. Boo Boo for the sounds that the blow holes make. When the seas are high the water will come out of these holes which are quite a bit higher than the sea below. Al was looking in one and exclaimed how cool it was when all of sudden the wind blew through it and blew his hat up about 10 feet. Luckily the hat was rescued before going over the cliff.

There is lots of exploring of beautiful scenery here. The weather is a bit unsettled so we didn’t go snorkeling but apparently it is also great for snorkeling. Hopefully we will do that tomorrow. If all goes well we will be in Georgetown for Christmas celebrating Jankanoo. Hopefully we have internet again by then and will send our holiday wishes at that time. In case we don’t get wifi there, have a great Christmas everyone!

Bimini to Chub Cay, Berry Islands to Nassau, New Providence

Wednesday November 26th, 2008

We still haven’t made it to the Exuma Islands but are not complaining at all as we have started to experience what we came for; amazing secluded beaches, spectacular sunsets, snorkeling in crystal clear waters and eating fresh fish. Really fresh fish as we catch it, clean it and cook it right away.

We again had a short weather window and left Bimini on Thursday last week. The window was not long enough to make it all the way to the Exumas but did make it as far as Chub Cay (25 23.9 N 77 55.05 W) in the Berry Islands. We arrived around 7:30 pm in the dark which was a bit disorienting. We were told it was doable and safe and Angie and Harold were ahead of us and they had done it before. It was still an odd experience to anchor in the dark (pitch black except for a few small lights) and then wake up to take in the pretty island around you in the morning.

Al is in love with the Bahamas; snorkeling, conch hunting, lobster spearing. He has been unsuccessful as yet spearing, but I’m confident I’ll have fresh lobster soon. I’m getting used to snorkeling. I need to self-coach to get over my fears as it is a beautiful world down there and I want to experience it. We saw some huge rays come out of the sand where they were either hiding or sleeping (who knows). They came out of the sand and gracefully just flew through the water with us following. It was quite something to see although I had a death grip on Al’s arm the whole time.

Al has been doing his best to keep us supplied with fresh fish. And he’s been doing well. I too, have been successful fishing, however my methods are quite different. I simply approached the captain of one of the big sport fishing boats at the docks and innocently asked how they did and what they caught. The next thing I knew I had a large bag of freshly cleaned Wahoo (a type of mackerel). It was enough fish for 4 meals for two. Now that is fishing.

We left Chub Cay for Nassau yesterday. This was the last true ocean crossing we make on our way to the Exumas. We crossed what they call the Tongue of the Ocean. It only took about 5 hours. The swells were quite big but long and spread out. It was a beautiful day for crossing. We had hoped to stay only one night in Nassau picking up provisions as this is the last place to get good produce before heading to the Northern Exuma Islands. Unfortunately another front is coming and the winds are not favourable for us to cross the banks today so we will be here one more night. Again, not such a bad thing as we plan to walk across to Paradise Island and be tourists for the day.

Biscayne Bay, Florida to The Bimini Islands, Bahamas (25.42N 79.19W)

Wednesday November 19th, 2008

We made it to the Bahamas. Yeh Hah! We only had a short window to make our way across the Gulf Stream and we took it, leaving at 6:30 am last Saturday together with Angie and Harold on Halagain. The seas were choppy and very rolly for the first hour and a half but then we settled in quite nicely. It wasn’t exactly smooth but it was fine. Around 1:30 we could see land on the horizon. As we approached the Bimini Islands, the colours of the water were spectacular. From the deep indigo blue of the ocean to a rich turquoise blue towards the islands and a brilliant turquoise green very close to shore. Amazing.

We took a slip at the Bimini Blue Water Resort as the winds were forecasted to build again during the night and anchoring was not a good option. Ideally we would have passed by Bimini and over-nighted right to Nassau but because of the strong winds we are here. Customs and Immigration went smoothly and we met Jason while in the immigration office. Jason heard us say our boat name and said Joan and Larry told him and his wife Laura to watch for us. They are friends of Joan and Larry who we met in the Solomons. It is such a small world. More fun people to have skipper’s meetings with.





We are in the Bahamas and now experiencing all things Bahamian. We took our dinghy out and with Harold and Angie’s guidance and started searching for Conch which is an island favourite. We found a King Helmet (see picture) which we promptly returned to the ocean after pictures. Al and I also found two big conchs which we were very proud of until we showed them to Laura and she let out a slight shriek and almost threw them back at us. “Hermit Crabs”. Who knew? Apparently these crabs take over shells when the conch dies. Oops. Jason and Laura were successful in bringing in three live mature conchs. Last week we learned about husking coconuts, this week we are harvesting conch (see picture) and now Al has bought a spear with which Angie has promised to teach him how to catch lobster. Living off the land is not so bad here.

Bimini is interesting. The people are wonderful. No one passes you without saying hello. They are all very laid back and happy. The streets are very narrow and most of the vehicles are golf carts. We were here 4 days before Angie reminded me that they drive on the other side of the road here. I hadn’t noticed since there usually is only one car/golf cart passing by at a time.

Well we’ve been here 5 days now and it looks like it may be another 5 days as these winds just don’t want to let up. We are enjoying ourselves but are still anxious to get to the Exuma Islands which is our final destination. We are again waiting for the winds to change direction and die down as it is still an overnight trip from here to anywhere and we want it to be a comfortable one.

Hopefully the next update will be from the Exuma Islands.

Lake Worth, Florida to Biscayne Bay, Florida (25 35.50 N 80 02.50 W)

Thursday November 13th, 2008

Well, here we are still in Florida. We were all set to leave for the islands last week and had a great weather window however a little hurricane called Paloma started brewing south of Cuba and was headed towards the Bahamas. We decided that it would be better to be here on the mainland if the weather turned nasty then in the Bahamas so we gave up our crossing to wait again.

There are worse places to be to wait to cross over. We stayed a few days in Lake Worth / Palm Beach and were able to go swimming and walk on the beautiful beach (see picture of Al). Given the long wait for a weather window to the Abacos, which are the northern Bahamian Islands we decided to move south ourselves and go directly to the Exuma Islands which are central and generally have warmer weather this time of year. So we have moved from Lake Worth to Biscayne Key south of Miami.

On the way we stopped in Fort Lauderdale. From the ICW, we were humbled by all the magnificent mansions that line the coast on both sides. Surprising for a town I thought was just for students partying during spring break. While in Fort Lauderdale, we conquered our first coconut. They are abundant there, floating in the water past the boat all the time. It was quite a feat to open one up extract the juices and then carve out the fruit. It took several cuts through it with a hacksaw and then another carving saw and a sharp knife to complete the job. The prize was worth the effort. We are acclimatizing ourselves to living off the land.

We met another Canadian couple, Angie and Harold (Halagain) when we were in Lake Worth and ran into them again in Fort Lauderdale and now here in Biscayne Bay. They have been cruising the Bahamas for 25 years, and have been incredibly generous in sharing their knowledge and experiences with us. Someone new to have “skipper’s” meetings in the evening.

We enjoyed Biscayne Bay waiting for another weather window which will hopefully be Friday to cross to the Central Bahamas. While we were waiting here, we had great news that Al’s daughter, Corrie, delivered her second child, Chase James Prouse on Remembrance Day. Mom and son are both doing well.

We are both looking forward to seeing all the little munchkins when we get back in the spring.

Jacksonville, Florida to Lake Worth, Florida

Wednesday November 5th, 2008

We left Jacksonville around 9:00 am on Saturday October 25th and arrived in St Augustine late afternoon. St. Augustine is one of the oldest settlements in America. It has a Spanish ambience and apparently it is really nice but we didn’t even go ashore as we were on a mission to get to Vero Beach where we would start our provisioning. So a long day to St. Augustine, another to New Smyrna Beach and then our last evening before Vero was north of Cocoa Beach.

On the way, we saw our first Manatees, about a dozen in one day. These are huge sea creatures that resemble walruses. They are often referred to as sea cows but are up to 13 feet long and weigh as much as 3,000 pounds. They breathe air so come up every few minutes to the surface. Anyways, they can be a bit of a hazard as they move very slowly and are often struck by boats, a hazard to them and to us. We had to move relatively slowly and keep a good watch out for them. We also saw our first Alligator on this leg of the trip. He looked like a big thick stick in the middle of the channel and then when we approached, the “big stick” submerged to resurface a few meters away. He wasn’t very big but we wouldn’t recommend swimming there.

We cruised near Port Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Centre and could clearly see the shuttle launch from the water. What a fantastic place to witness a launch from. We hope to see one in the spring when we return.

We stayed about 5 days in Vero Beach where we started our provisioning. We are now at an anchorage in Lake Worth / Palm Beach waiting for the right weather window for us to cross to the Bahamas. In the meantime, we are continuing to provision. Food is very expensive, sometimes hard to find and often not very good in the Bahamas so we are stocking up on cases of everything.

As we slowly (very slowly) traveled well over 2000 statute miles from Lake Ontario to here, it has struck us how diverse the US coastal towns are. From the small fishing villages like Crisfield, the historic centres like Annapolis, the southern plantation communities like Charleston, the Spanish influence of St. Augustine to the large metropolitan cities like New York, they all have their own flavour and interesting features. But, we are now done with America and on to the Bahamas. Yeh Ha! White sandy beaches, palm trees, and clear turquoise waters, here we come.

Charleston, South Carolina to Jacksonville, Florida

Saturday October 25th, 2008

Here are a few more shots from Charleston. They don’t capture the true essence of it all but it should give a prospective. The house is a typical home in the Charleston area and the other night shot is the “mega dock” . This is where the people with mega boats spend their mega dollars. These people seem unaffected by the recession. It is officially a recession now isn’t it? These boats typically have a crew of 4 people, several dinghies (about the size of our boat) and pay thousands and thousands to fill up on fuel. We have seen ships like this all the way down the coast but have yet to be invited onboard for cocktails.

Al and I did our first overnight ocean crossing. We were awakened by one of the mega boats leaving around 4:45 am on Tuesday so we got up ourselves and by 6:15 we had our anchors up and were ready to go. This was also our first cruising in the dark. It was quite odd going out of the harbour, as the lights of the city conflict with the markers on the water. You think you are looking at a red marker but it is a red light on shore. Thank god for technology that helps point you in the right direction. We could have figure it out on the paper charts, with a compass etc. but that would be lots of work and lots of stress. We were out of the channel in the ocean by 7:15 and on our way to Jacksonville. Our estimated time at the St. John’s inlet 7:00 am Wednesday. During the day we had two sea turtle sightings; huge things just bobbing away in the ocean. There were lots of dolphins throughout the day. They played in our wake and by our bow a few times. The difference out in the ocean, is that the water is clear so you can actually see them under the water coming up to the boat.

Al took the first shift while I slept from 7:30 – 9:00 pm. I took over, and at 9:38 I had to wake up Al as this white light kept getting closer. By the time he was on the bridge, there was also a green and a red light. Al thinks I was coming up on a boat that then turned. Anyways, all was good and Al went back to sleep until about 10:30. I then slept from about 11 pm until 1 am. I had to sing to stay awake. “Sing like no one is listening” … that must have been very scary for all the dolphins in the area. Al took over from 4 am onward and I got up around 6 am.

Overall the overnight voyage was great except for a big concern about our transmission. We knew there was a problem with the cooler for the transmission but thought it was a slow leak when we left Charleston. Al checked it late Tuesday afternoon and it was full of sea water. Then, while underway, he did a blood transfusion (changed transmission fluid) and by pass surgery (took the cooler out of the system). It worked great however we were very worried about it overheating the whole trip. If it would have overheated we would have had to run on one engine and would have had to do a full knee replacement (transmission rebuild) which would not have been good and couldn’t have been performed while at sea.

We arrived at the St. John’s inlet right on schedule at 7:00 am. The sun was just rising as we pulled into the channel. There were several boats anchored outside as we started in. We were just at the break-wall when Al decided he needed to use the facilities. The timing was not good for me as there was a very big (ok monstrous) ship coming in behind us and gaining on us. Anyhow I did fine but this thing that passed us was like an apartment building. The great thing was that the dolphins obvious like big ships better than little ones like Painkiller. The dolphins were actually diving in the air in front of the bow of this ship. (See picture) The trip up to Jacksonville was painful given we had not slept much in 24 hours and the current was against us. At the throttle (rpms) we were running we should have been traveling close to 8 knots but instead we were at 4.3 knots. It took 4 hours from the inlet to get docked at Jacksonville. All told we had a very successful 180 mile 30 hour ocean crossing.


We were greeted by a nice gentleman who helped us tie up and then proceeded to tell us his life-long woes. Well he was the first of many homeless people we encountered on the waterfront in Jacksonville. It is very sad. These people are definitely feeling the effects of the recession. On a brighter note, we were here about 4 hours or so when Marion, Theo and Skye on Double Dutch showed up. It was nice to see familiar faces.

We spent 3 days in Jacksonville waiting out the winds (gale force) again. Our timing was excellent being here as Mom, Uncle Basil and Aunt Mary were driving to St. Petersburg this week and passed by. They joined us for dinner which was a real treat. They came baring gifts, GuyLian chocolates, roses and a bottle of whisky. Great goodies for us to enjoy over the next few weeks.

The winds have dissipated and Al has fixed the transmission and we are ready to continue down the Florida coast. Next port St. Augustine.

Carolina Beach, North Carolina to Charleston, South Carolina

Sunday October 20th, 2008

I have realized that I have been remiss about mentioning our dolphin sightings. This is quite odd since I get soooo excited about them. We have seen dolphins every time we have been in ocean waters and many times in the inlets and canals along the ICW. The sightings are actually getting more exciting and more frequent as we move south. When we were in Beaufort, North Carolina a few weeks ago the dolphins actually led our boat into the harbour. They literally swam with us, right under the bow of the boat for about 5 minutes. The picture is taken from the bow pulpit (the very front of the boat) looking straight down. There was one dolphin on each side of us and several swimming just shy of the boat.

On this leg of the trip, the dolphins have actually been jumping right out of the water and circling us while we are at anchorage. In fact, 3 nights ago we were in a little river (actually a marsh but that is another story) and Al heard them splash and when we went outside to see, you could just hear the sound of them blowing air out as they came to the surface. It was very rhythmic and soothing. Since it was dark, and we were in the middle of nowhere, you couldn’t see them except when they surfaced quite close to the boat. On this leg, we also saw our first sea turtle which was huge but he was gone before I could get a picture. We have also seen many white herons since upstate New York and I finally was able to take a picture of one.

Back to the details of the trip. We left Carolina Beach and staged ourselves in Southport for an ocean crossing. For Al and I, it was just a short trip to Myrtle Beach and for our sailing friends it was for an overnight voyage to Charleston. Al and I were actually tempted to do the over-night crossing with them, but we had to get fuel and we knew we could get it cheap in Myrtle Beach. It was a wise decision as the fuel was a dollar cheaper there than in Charleston or anywhere else we have seen. Given how much fuel Painkiller takes, saving a dollar a gallon is huge. Anyways, we found two great anchorages along the way. We were all by ourselves in the middle of no where. We didn’t expect to find wilderness this far down but the area was pretty swampy near the ICW here so it is not the best for development and is now designated as a wildlife preserve.

We made it to Charleston and to our great surprise our friends on Smoooth Move and Double Dutch were in the harbor and Kwanesum was at the marina. It was Al’s birthday the day we arrived and Ellen and Randy from Kwanesum made us Painkillers in honour of Al’s birthday. For those who don’t know the story behind the name of our boat, it came from a drink we enjoyed in the Virgin Islands (Two, three or four ounces of Pusser’s Rum, 4 ozs pineapple juice, 1 oz cream of coconut, 1 oz orange juice, served on the rocks, with grated fresh nutmeg on top). As with our boat, it can either take the pain away or occasionally it can cause some pain. In any respect Randy and Ellen hosted a great pain free birthday celebration for Al.

We have come to appreciate the beauty of Charleston over the past few days. Our first real tour was a 3.5 hours of walk through the streets and along the waterfront. The city is graced with big southern/plantation type mansions, lovely gardens and markets. We will be here for a few more days as we once again wait out the winds. This is a great place to be stuck for a few days.

Norfolk, Virginia to Carolina Beach, North Carolina

Saturday October 11th, 2008

Well the Dismal Swamp is beautiful. It was one of our favourite areas since we left Canada. They just need some marketing people to come up with a new name as it is not dismal at all. It is a narrow channel that is lined with thick brush and tall trees covered with vines. The vines hanging from the trees are reminisent of those seen in old Tarzan movies where he swung from tree to tree. Robert, the lockmaster at the lock leading into the channel was great. He invited us in for a coffee and on the way to his lock house he stopped and picked up a conch and played it. He didn’t just blow it and make noise he actually played a tune. He also had banana trees growing outside which I’m sure take a lot of care this far north. When we went in for coffee, he had fresh donuts for all of us. He was a wealth of knowledge re: the swamp. What a great “welcome to the swamp” greeting. We stayed one night in the swamp at the North Carolina Visitors Centre. The women running the visitors centre were also full of southern hospitality. From the centre, we were able to take a long hike/walk into the swamp up a well marked trail. We saw 5 deer as we ventured into the bush. Then we borrowed bicycles from the visitors centre and rode on a beautiful trail beside the canal. North Carolina certainly knows how to make tourists feel welcome. Our next stop was Elizabeth City, where the town hosts a wine and cheese for visiting boaters. The pictures are both sun rises. One is of our sailing friends leaving Elizabeth city and another the following morning. Sunsets have been equally beautiful. From there we traveled to Beaufort and now we are anchored in Carolina Beach. We arrived here on Thursday afternoon and will probably stay until Monday or Tuesday as another North Easterly wind has started and is forecast to blow until at least Sunday night. We have met some wonderful sailors (the picture) on this leg of the trip. The gang consists of Theo and Marion from Double Dutch, Ellen and Randy on Kwanesum and Lonnie single-handling Smoooth Move. We are an eclectic group with diverse backgrounds but a common goal “GET SOUTH”. Actually Ellen and Randy as well as Theo and Marion hope to eventually go through the Panama Canal and back up the western seaboard. Lonnie has already traveled to the far reaches including sailing in the Indian Ocean and near Africa. We really have been enjoying our evening Skipper’s meetings with the gang. Lots of commiserating on the day’s run and tales of past voyages. Unfortunately we will need to say goodbye soon as they all plan to go on the outside (Ocean water) from here to Charleston and Al and don’t have the inclination to do a 30-hour overnight run so we will stick to the ICW. We really hope to meet up with them again somewhere along the way. We will have to get used to meeting great people with diverse and interesting backgrounds and then saying good bye