On 4/17, the windlass lifted a very heavy anchor and rode full of marle, chunky sand and grass—great holding ground and we slept very soundly. We have 35 miles to go to Great Sale Cay where we anchored previously on 3/12. We are following “Antares” and Sea Dog” and have had a lively discussion of all the weather parameters. We have Single Side Band and can listen to Chris Parker on the Caribbean Weather Net at 6 and 8 am and we share this with other boaters.
The highlight of the day was passing a pod of 6 dolphins at 1pm on the northwest corner of Great Sale Cay. They rode our bow wave for about 10 minutes and here are the best shots, however, the pictures do not capture the sense of play and acrobatics. There was a baby dolphin just learning how to do this and he/she did very well and was line leader at times. We took it as a good omen that they greeted us and ushered us on our way.
After 5pm Captains’ Meeting on “Sea Dog”, the winds started to increase to 20 knots with some rain. There were about 30 boats at the anchorage and with our anchor alarm set, we slept very soundly.
On 4/18, we raised the anchor again covered in marley sludge and we followed “Antares”, “Sea Dog”, and a Mainship trawler, “Lady J” the 35 miles to West End. We had 15+ knots of wind on the rear quarter with 2 feet seas, and at times, we were surfing from 6.5 to 8.5 knots. The sailboats were motor sailing as it is important to get to the Indian Rock shoal section just before high tide. Depths go from 14 feet down to 6.7 and with their drafts of 5 feet, every inch is important. Our Chartplotter had a hiccup but we had a backup with Explorer charts, a handheld GPS and way points so did fine.
We started this trek toward West End now as the winds were clocking to the north and there are good anchorages for these conditions. Another factor was that east, south or west winds were forecast for 4/19-4/21 so the jump to FL would be very doable. As any cruiser knows, planning is great but Mother Nature will dictate what you really get.
It was great to get to West End again on 4/18 to enjoy the lounge chairs, hammocks, pool, Bahamian band and beach glass hunting at Old Bahama Bay Resort and Marina. We have had to gulp hard at the high price of $106 per day.
The highlight of the day was passing a pod of 6 dolphins at 1pm on the northwest corner of Great Sale Cay. They rode our bow wave for about 10 minutes and here are the best shots, however, the pictures do not capture the sense of play and acrobatics. There was a baby dolphin just learning how to do this and he/she did very well and was line leader at times. We took it as a good omen that they greeted us and ushered us on our way.
After 5pm Captains’ Meeting on “Sea Dog”, the winds started to increase to 20 knots with some rain. There were about 30 boats at the anchorage and with our anchor alarm set, we slept very soundly.
On 4/18, we raised the anchor again covered in marley sludge and we followed “Antares”, “Sea Dog”, and a Mainship trawler, “Lady J” the 35 miles to West End. We had 15+ knots of wind on the rear quarter with 2 feet seas, and at times, we were surfing from 6.5 to 8.5 knots. The sailboats were motor sailing as it is important to get to the Indian Rock shoal section just before high tide. Depths go from 14 feet down to 6.7 and with their drafts of 5 feet, every inch is important. Our Chartplotter had a hiccup but we had a backup with Explorer charts, a handheld GPS and way points so did fine.
We started this trek toward West End now as the winds were clocking to the north and there are good anchorages for these conditions. Another factor was that east, south or west winds were forecast for 4/19-4/21 so the jump to FL would be very doable. As any cruiser knows, planning is great but Mother Nature will dictate what you really get.
It was great to get to West End again on 4/18 to enjoy the lounge chairs, hammocks, pool, Bahamian band and beach glass hunting at Old Bahama Bay Resort and Marina. We have had to gulp hard at the high price of $106 per day.
At 5pm Captains Meetings, we've had ongoing discussions about the optimum conditions: the sailboaters are fine with beam seas (waves on the side of the boat as they have weighted keels and the sails counteract the rolling seas); we trawler types are not. So on 4/20 and 4/21, a number of sailboaters, some with 1-2 dogs on board, left for FL with a forecast of 15-25 knots of wind, 4-6 foot seas + swell, and possibility of squalls.
We trawler types are waiting for W/SW seas (waves on our stern or aft quarter). At this moment, I am listening to distant thunder and hoping that the front comes through so we can leave tomorrow. Looper boats, “See Ya’” and “Tortuga”, came in today and we will be traveling with them and other trawlers. It will be a long night and a very early morning.
We trawler types are waiting for W/SW seas (waves on our stern or aft quarter). At this moment, I am listening to distant thunder and hoping that the front comes through so we can leave tomorrow. Looper boats, “See Ya’” and “Tortuga”, came in today and we will be traveling with them and other trawlers. It will be a long night and a very early morning.
4/21 Update: Remember that I was saying that Mother Nature is in charge--squalls and winds this morning so we will not be going until at least Thursday so back to the beach and lounge chairs after the squalls pass.
