WOW!!!! What a crazy week we have had. Sunday we wanted to go around to the Cape Santa Marie point and do the cut that almost cost us our lives last week on a calm day so that we could appreciate it and not come home with excrimate in our wetsuits.  The cut looked pretty flat (only 2-4’ swells vs. 6-8’ swells last week), but the current was going the wrong direction for me to swim through it.  It was sucking me in through the cut and I was afraid I would not be able to swim back through it to get back to the dinghy and I didn’t want John to have to take the dinghy through the cut with 2-4’ swells.  This is something we will have to put on the list to do on a much calmer day.  We snorkeled the area off of Cape Reef and John got a fish for dinner.

Monday: We rocked and rolled all night last night (Sunday, January 18) and not in a good way. The surge in Calabash bay was horrific and we didn’t sleep a wink, so as soon as there was sunlight, we anchored up in search for a calmer anchorage. We headed south to duck behind Hog Cay, but the surge was just as bad.  We also tried the anchorage to the west of Hog Cay, but we were just getting beat up.  We tried to put sails up and see if we could get on a heel and stabilize and sail to George Town, but no matter what we did, the boat felt like she was ripping apart at the seams.  We had to pass the entrance to Joe’s Sound on the way to Hog Cay and when looking at the entrance, it looked way too dicey so we ruled that out initially. Now after bobbing for over an

perfect ending to a rough day

hour, every which way, like a toy boat in a hot tub with all the jets on, we reconsidered. The entrance is dangerous enough on a calm day much less with 2-4 foot swells pushing you around, but we had to get somewhere protected.  Since we had been in Joe’s Sound before, we had a track on the GPS to follow so we felt like we could get in safely.  The problem was the seas had more control over the boat than I did at the helm.  I had to punch the RPMs up a bit to overcome the swells pushing me about.  Not something you really want to do in 5.5’ of water with jagged rock within 3 feet of the boat on either side. Just as I punched the engine up a bit a big swell pushed us half way through the entrance and the engine died. I yelled at John to throw the anchor down as we drifted through the cut and just past the jagged rock ledge.  We anchored in the channel while John assessed the engine problem.  He diagnosed that the fuel filter was clogged so he switched to the forward tank and we were able to pull up anchor and re-anchor in a comfortable spot. It is a world of difference inside a protected anchorage.  We finally get to relax and have our first cup of Joe. Matt and Lyndsey had not left Joe’s Sound since we left them.  They came over and introduced us to Dave and Leslie on Texas Two Step. Later they brought surf boards over and we went “durfing” (dinghy surfing).  We used the surf boards just like wake boards and had a blast.  In the evening we had dinner on Makani with Matt and Lyndsey bringing fried grouper, Dave and Leslie brought fish soup and fresh homemade bread and we made a beet salad. We visited well into the night as we lost track of time in this calm, quiet, peaceful anchorage.

Our "new" fishing pole

Tuesday, January 20. Matt and Lyndsey and Dave and Leslie headed out early with plans to go to George Town.  We looked at weather and are set on going to Rum Cay and Conception, so we stayed in Joe’s Sound.  We went out snorkeling about a 1/2 mile off of Calabash Bay.  I spotted a lobster almost immediately after getting in the water, but it was too deep for my capabilities.  John came over and nailed it.  We swam around some more when I noticed a fishing rod and reel on the sand.  I dove down to get it, but the line was tangled in the coral and it was deeper than I had anticipated and I had to drop my spear and scurry to the top before my lungs burst.  Again John was my hero as he came over and cut the line and retrieved the fishing pole and my pole spear.  The fishing pole could not have been in the water for long as it functioned perfectly.  After cleaning it up, it looked brand new.  We estimate it was about a $300.00 find. In the evening, we made preparations for an off shore as we have decided to go to Conception Island tomorrow.

Our "new" mixing bowls

What a difference the seas look on our way out of Joe’s Sound from when we came in.  Within a half hour of starting out to go to Conception Island, the engine died again.  We had to bail into Calabash Bay and take the fuel lines and blow them out. The whole process took about an hour and we were on our way again. Things are calm, too calm.  We had to motorsail all the way to Conception Island as there was little to no wind. Conception Island is an uninhabited island with no facilities and a preserved land and water park. Obviously a no take zone so we will just enjoy its loveliness with our eyes only, and LOVELY it is.  We dropped anchor and immediately went for a snorkel off the north end of the island.  We saw all sorts of fish and we were in about 6 feet of water when a bull shark decided to check us out.  The coral heads were abundant and many broke the surface so swimming through them left few options and the bull shark was just taking the same route we were. After the incident with our friends daughter getting bit by a shark last month, we are much more weary around sharks than we used to be.  I swam the 1/2 mile back to the boat while John rowed the dinghy just to get exercise.  I noticed there was no trash in the sand and we noted there was very little trash on the beaches which makes this spot all the more beautiful.  The one exception to this is I saw something shiny near our boat and I dove down and it was two bowls stacked on top of each other.  The one thing that we lacked on the boat this trip was mixing bowls.  We only have one, which I thought would be sufficient, but many times we have wished we had another or even two more and whala. I had found mixing bowls at some of the stores we had been in, but did not want to pay upwards of $30 for one. Later in the day, I wanted to do another snorkel, but could not find my hood.  We looked everywhere, but it was gone.  The sea givith and the sea taketh away.

Thursday, January 22.  We got up early to hit high tide to explore the mangroves.  Basically, Conception island is a ring of land with the entire center being mangrove marsh.  We saw lots of turtles. We were able to take Kiwi with us as this was a relaxing dinghy ride.  After we left the mangroves, we went in search for the dive buoys located off the southern shore.  We found the buoys and went back to the boat to drop Kiwi off and then suited up for a dive.  We dove the Conception Island Wall, described to be the most beatiful reef in the Bahamas and it did not disappoint. It is a very deep dive with the reef beginning at 60’ and a vertical wall dropping to infinate depths.  The coral is fantastic and there was a lot of fish and a bull shark followed us around. When John and I came up from the dive, we both immediately said this could very well have been the best dive we have ever done. Really, dives like this, there are simply no words that can describe it.  One thing that is notably absent on Conception is lobster.  Of all the snorkels and dives we have done here, we have not seen a single one.  This is quite curious to us since we thought we would see many big ones with it being a protected area.

to think we have been throwing these away

Huge lobster

On Friday morning, we pulled anchor to move about 2 miles south, just off of the dive buoys.  As we were leaving the anchorage, we saw the mega-yacht Rosa unloading all their toys, one of which was and amphibien car - pretty cool. We dove just south of the site we did yesterday and were equally impressed with the beauty of the coral and the wall.  It is amazing to go over the wall. The colors are quite impressive and the varieties of corals, sponges and fish are incredible. It is also awesome to anchor 50 feet off the dive site and be able to dive directly off the boat.  We can get ready in all the comforts of home and have snacks between dives and warm up and read and relax in our surface interval. After our second dive, we anchored up and planned to go to Rum Cay although we could stay here and dive this area for weeks.  Because Conception is uninhabited, it also means there are no services and no internet so we were unable to get weather reports while here.  After pulling around Wedge Point at the southern tip of Conception, the seas were confused and the swells were 4-6’.  It is only 14 miles to Rum Cay, so by the time we did everything in our game book to try and get into a comfortable sail, we were pretty much committed to go to Rum.  We were able to sail for about 7 miles of the trip, but we were only going about 4 knots with the swells and wind right on our nose and a northern antilles current running between the two islands. It wasn’t a totally uncomfortable ride, but it wasn’t pleasant. It wasn’t until we were about 1 mile from the anchorage that things settled down. We had to get into the anchorage in daylight hours so we motored the last 7 miles. Getting into this anchorage was like walking through a mine field.  John was on the bow watching for coral heads and we zig zagged our way into Flamingo Bay.  Many of the coral heads are only 1-2 feet beneath the surface so avoiding them is critical.  We finally found a sandy area to anchor.  We put the dinghy down to sound the surrounding area and felt that we were a bit too close to a few shallow coral heads so we re-anchored about 150 feet further into shore and felt good about our position.  We could swing 360 degrees and have adequate distance from the shallow corals.  John said he would take care of the snubber and I could go for a snorkel since we didn’t have much daylight left.  Before John had even secured the snubber, I yelled at him to bring the dinghy and collect the bounty.  We got 2 HUGE lobsters both with tails over 10”.  Dave and Leslie told us the best part of the lobster was the legs.  We had never tried them before and had been throwing them out.  Tonight we made a meal (and a half) with just the legs off of these two lobsters and one knuckle fed Kiwi. Dave and Leslie were right, the legs ARE delicious.

Saturday, January 24.  The plan for the day is to snorkel the wreck of an old Haitian freighter about a mile and a half from our anchorage.  We will maneuver the dinghy through the coral heads until we come to  a mile and a half long shallow reef with the wreck on the northern tip of the shallow reef.  We are able to stick to the plan as the weather, waves, and wind are cooperating.  We found the wreck and were impressed by the size of the ship and the preservation of things such as clothing and metal staircases.  John always wonders about the cause of the accident, loss of lives, circumstances, etc. and wants to come back to the boat and read everything he can on

Haitian freighter wreck

the wreck.  We explored the area for a little over two hours and then headed back for some lunch and relaxation.  At 3pm we went out for another snorkel to get some fresh lobster to go with the steak we are grilling tonight.  We were amazed that despite snorkeling 10-15 coral heads in the same general area as finding 3 HUGE lobster last night, we found nothing but conch, lots of fish, a few turtles, a shark, and lots of fun.  On rare occasion I am able to talk John into a night snorkel and tonight was one of those nights.  He had just enough to drink to relax and explore a few coral heads with me. We played with a few trunk fish and saw lots of silversides and some shrimp. We have had Flamingo bay to ourselves and this gorgeous, calm private anchorage makes one uninhibited. The water temperature is 81 degrees. The water is crystal clear. The beach is pristine and I think there are more stars visible here than anywhere I’ve ever been.  This is paradise.

On Sunday, we sat through several squalls and thought it was going to rain all day.  We cleaned the salt water off the deck and decided to collect water when the rain suddenly stopped and the sun came out.  We took advantage of the break in weather to up anchor and go to the Southeast part of the island where the only settlement that still exists on Rum Cay is located.  We have been out of touch with no internet and no update on weather so we thought we would get wired in and then decide what was in store for us next.  The first thing we found out was that the weather was going to be turning bad and we were going to be in a bad spot for the wind and waves that were predicted.  The second thing we found out is that the marina that we thought we could duck into if the weather predictions were bad, was closed.  We went into the settlement and found that just about everything is closed.  Not because it is Sunday, but because this settlement is dying due to economy, closing of marina, etc. Everything the books and charts and explorer snips said about the settlement are history. We went out for a snorkel and lost one of our oars.  John noticed it when he took me to explore a reef 2 miles away from the boat.  We abandoned the snorkel and went searching for our missing dinghy oar.  We found it floating near our original destination quite thankfully.  

Last night was a bit of a rolling night, but this morning it is outright vomittsville.  We went into the settlement to shop the two grocery stores to see what fesh fruits and vegetables we could get.  Both stores had very limited selection and all of their “fresh” stuff was molded, soft, or sprouting.  We decided we didn’t need anything and went out for a snorkel.  We had to battle 4-5’ swells to get to any coral heads and when we arrived, the water was so stirred up that you couldn’t see and we didn’t see anything that we could get for dinner.  Frustrated, we returned to the boat and sat rocking and rolling while trying to play poker and distract ourselves from this very uncomfortable situation.  The weather predictions call for this to continue until Wednesday, so we will see if we can improve the situation when there is daylight.

Tuesday, January 27. Neither of us got a wink of sleep with the boat rolling to and fro and bucking like a mad bull.  John found a “flopper stopper” on the internet so we set a goal to build one and see if we could get some relief from this surge.  We went into the settlement and pilfered all of the materials we needed out of trash bins.  We cut a triangular piece of plywood, attached some weights and tied it to the spinnaker pole and launched our new flopper stopper.  I snorkeled the surrounding area and made some adjustments until we got the flopper stopper working.  Of course after spending about 4 hours gathering materials, constructing the flopper stopper, and making adjustments, the winds had decreased somewhat and we weren’t rolling as bad.  We can still tell it makes quite a bit of difference. I cleaned the hull of the boat and swam for about an hour because when it is this rolley, you want to be anywhere but on the boat.  By evening, things had calmed down to where we knew we could get some much needed sleep. It is times like this that are very demotivating for boat life.  The seas are too strong to enjoy getting out on the dinghy. Things are too stirred up to have enough visibility to hunt. We are at a location where there is nothing to do on land. It is unsafe to take the dinghy out in the ocean to dive. You can’t read without getting seasick. I’m glad we have very few days like this.