Just landed today at 1pm.Got the main,jib on,sail covers on.repaired the jiffy reefing,dodger on,anchor on etc and went for dinner. I plan to use this thread not only as an port to port type, but to give observations on this winters cruise. After doing the above I dingied over and walked to my favorite lil bar. Guess the name...
Sundowners......the sun sets across the bay.On the way I noticed a Cape Dory 30 pilot house...
Here are some observations from the bar....I walked in and Caroline (owner) and her husband said 'Hi Frank...nice to see you'...the local old rastifarion (sp?) saw me,came over to explain how short life is and although Christmas was a month ago it seems only 2 weeks.That we should enjoy life as it is SO short. Brendal the 60yr old dive master came in and greeted me.Willis came in and did the fancy handshake I screw up.There was a relatively young retired dentist that I had met a few years back ,who sold out...home.practice ..everything and made a consious choice (sp?) (rum is working) to simplify his life and enjoy it. As I sat there watching football...a tremendous sence of community came over me.These people did not care about national debt,the banking system or stockmarket.The wealthy sat with the poor...no one cared in this environment.All simply wanted a bit of company on this football night. I loved it. It reminded me of other cruises and how the 'standards' society has taught us at home simply have no meaning out here.How 'all are the same' truly rules and everyone is much more in the moment.I'm off back to Jubilee...happy to be here and thankful for a great night with much more given to me than the people I talked to thought. More to come.
That bar sounds great. Just the though of walking anywhere without freezing off certain body parts sounds great. But I would like to request that you fill in the newbies. What is your plan? What kind of boat is Jubilee?
Frank, Can I tell. Been there ;D
Thanks for taking the time Frank.
60? No way. I would have thought he was ~45.
Look forward to more. ;D
Thanks for the photos and post Frank. :) Who were you rooting for???
Frank,
I had the same feeling in a bar called "The Dockside Lounge" in Marathon, Fl. 20 some years ago. There was a crazy cast of characters in that place I'm telling ya ::). I had one heck of a time in there and I don't even drink ;D.
Warm winds,
Pappy Jack
Its been WINDY ! I don't think its been below 20knts since monday.Cool too. Funny, while I was visiting a friend in Florida before coming over they blamed Canada for cold...here they say "we're getting Florida's cold air" ;D Called home...it was only -24 last night which was warmer than the last while. I'll take this wearing a windbreaker and shorts with NO complaints. Off to Manjack tomorrow.
How is Greet Turtle Black Water Sound?
I do miss the place?
Bluff House doing well?
Bluff house and green turtle club are quiet...economy I guess. Black sound was full with the big winds but clearing out today as it finally layed down.Great to be back.
Sailed up to Manjack Cay this afternoon.Nice to be anchored here again.Got in just before sunset and had a nice , simple dinner.Beauty CD 33 anchored beside me. Off hiking tomorrow.
Pablo....NO plan.When the wind blows right I'll sail to Hopetown and Little Harbour.Most likely stop at Man Of War (one of Lynx's hang outs last year)...May go to AllensPensacola too.Time and wind ? Only plan is to see what I can and have fun. The boat is a Compac 25. Good lil boat for Bahamas.Only draws 2 1/2 ft and has 8 opening ports plus the forehatch. With care...a montgomery 15 could do this trip.
The best thing about cruising is the people ya meet.Yesterday around 3, Bill and Leslie came by the boat to see if I wanted to go for a ride on their 'Schucker (sp) 40' motor sailor.They have the home here with wifi.Aboard were a retired Swedish couple I met here about 5 yrs ago and run into often.They sail south in winters and about anywhere during summer.Last year they only stayed in Bahamas a short time and continued on though to south america and looped up to San Blas before heading north again.Saddly, they reported that cruise ships are now stopping at San Blas but that it is still beautiful with the friendliest people on earth.Neet folks. The retired couple on the Warren (sp) cat are here as well again.They built it themselves....lashed together, it is a unique craft.Even the rudders are lashed on.Fun just to sit and listen.It is the spontanious 'lets do its' that are fun and bring people together. Thats Bill at the helm
Thanks Frank, I am finally getting over the jealousy thing again and being able to enjoy your posts ;)
I think what gets me is that I realize I could be there also, just got to get my priorities straight, maybe next year. :)
;D ;D
Frank - that's probably a Wharram cat. James has designed them for over 50 years now. Different boats for sure, but safe, seaworthy cruisers
http://www.wharram.com/
You got it CJ. Neat boat. Went for a dingy ride and saw 3 sharks,one ray and flying fish.Seems better from dingy level.Pics are 1 ray and 1 shark. Flying fish are too fast for me ;D
Good to see everything is doing well inthe Abacos.
Yesterday 'Gerry', who'd been staying on the hard and afraid to launch as his wife was ill recieved good news and put in.Mid afternoon a cruiser from White sound came by to tell us of a 'pot luck cruisers get together'.It was fun.The 'moorings' cruisers in their pressed cloths and matching scarfs....the rest in wrinkled Tshirts and dirty shorts.I fell into the 'dirty and wrinkeld' crowd ;D It was fun to meet people ...some for the first time, others for the first time in years. Evert (who I'd always assumed was 'Everitt') was there on his boat.Hadn't seen him in years and he looked great....still thin,full head of hair with minimal grey and jogging daily....at EIGHTY THREE .His daughter was along as crew this year.I first met him in Hopetown three years back.We both were singlehanding although his boat is a thirty two footer. He and his wife had been coming for over thirty years and were well recieved by the locals.She had died the year before and they were dedicating a display upstairs at the museum to her memory.So..there he was again last night,daughter along,singing and playing harmonica...very full of life.It felt great to see him again and even better to see how well he's been keeping. Hope he's still going at ninety nine.
I've been from Green Turtle to Manjack..back to Green Turtle and now Manjack again. Nothing to report other than the wind has finally laid down into the fifteen to twenty knot range. It's been cool too.No pics as a few days back all cruisers complained about a severely damp morning...the super dew type where everything is soaked and water runs off the bimini even thow it didn't rain., Since that morning...my camera hasn't worked right,my pocket calculator's numbers don't all work and only two of my ten numbers on the laptop come up when ya hit the key.Guess everything got too damp.I stow the laptop etc. in a huge zip-lock while in the dingy but I guess it will start living there at all times when not in use. Hope we get some warm sunshine soon. PS..Faith and Lynx..I'm having fresh raison bread from Sid's store tonight ;D
QuotePS..Faith and Lynx..I'm having fresh raison bread from Sid's store tonight Grin
Oh man, have an extra piece for me. ;)
Here is some grog to wash it down with. ;D
Back at work :-( Had an unusual winter with limited exploring in the Green Turtle and Manjack erea. As always..it is the people you meet that make it worthwhile.One young couple breaking free and full of adventure.They were so excited to be there you couldn't help but feel good around them.Another couple that 'live aboard' and their lagoon cat is home.They have been all through the islands and have done the pacific as well.Their son was born there and they told of worried times when he developed a condition near Tonga.They home school and are a joy to be around.There's the 'ole crew'...the people you see yearly and look forward to catching up with. Robert and Emily have been cruising the Abacos for many years.They now have an ole power boat with tanks and batteries where the inboard was and are totally selfsufficient with eves feeding the tanks during a rain.They power with twin 20HP hondas and love to tuck into the shallow bays.Originally they sailed the islands and Emilie really miss's the feel of a sail boat.Robert is a long time sailor and has crossed the atlantic 3 times.Once with a friend,once more solo to qualify for the OSTAR and then entering the OSTAR back in 1973. They are a joy to be with,a wealth of experience and knowledge and being from SC, I just love listening to him tell stories with that southern drawl. Then there'e LuLu and GiGi.They've been cruising for 28years. They are Swiss and have sailed around the world (they even enjoyed the red sea?) Last year they decided to head south from Bahamas and ended up in south america for visits before heading back up to the Chesapeake.The list of characters goes on and on. What strikes me about them is that although they have a wealth of knowledge and experience, all of them are extremely humble, understated and just love 'hanging out'.I look forward to returning as early as november 1st this year getting back into that 'island time' mode, reuniting with the Abaco gang again.
I can only dream tobe there
Left to right ... GiGi, Robert having a drink, beside him and behind that thingy on a stick is Emilie, the funny looking greyhaired guy next is me and the last fellow is LuLu. Note whats missing?.........................hair colour ;D
You see rays often
Sharks too
nice sun rises
nice sunsets
neet cats
Why you take a mooring ball in Black sound when a front blows thru ;)
The beautiful wooden 'Abaco dingy'
lots of star fish
Pretty lil Alberg design ...cape dory Typhoon at black sound
A grog and a thank you Frank. We didn't get down there this year so happy for at least some pics.
More grog! The pics are wonderful. The Typhoon made me wonder if someone's cruising on it, but I see the hailing port is Green Turtle Cay. (Wonderful little Cape Dory boat though.)
This is an Eagle ray. They are spotted and have a somewhat dolphin shaped head
Thanks for the pics, Frank
Met this Schooner.It is beautifully, 'cold molded' and very striking to look at.It was built in Canada
Here's a 1964 28 fter designed by Bill Tripp to compete with the Triton.The yard stored them side by side on the hard which gave an interesting comparison. The main cabin ports are not original so the 'look' is off a bit.It is a European built boat.
Here's the reason we didn't get too far this year.....BUSY. Just getting materials to port in the USA,then to GreenTurtle...then to ManJack was an experience. Once there it was fun.Going back in november to put doors and windows in, water tanks and paint etc.Its just some primer now.Ran out of paint and time. It is on the NW end of Manjack. Very pretty spot....good destination for passing sailfar guys/gals in a year.
Well, after much searching (good Bahama's maps online are had to come by!), I finally found Franks island. I tried to embed an image of it into this, but that didn't work, so - here's a link: :)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=&ie=UTF8&ll=26.829892,-77.369843&spn=0.038525,0.081367&t=h&z=14 (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=&ie=UTF8&ll=26.829892,-77.369843&spn=0.038525,0.081367&t=h&z=14)
Unfortunately, Frank's end of the island is in a very poor resolution. ::)
But - the cabin looks great, Frank! That is gonna be awesome when you get it done. Buh-bye Canada, then! ;)
BTW - The hair color comment was hilarious. ;D
wait...so You bought an island??!! and your building a sailfar party shack?!!!!
SWEEEET!!!!
can't wait!... I'll bring ALL my friends!! :D
Thanks for teh map!
Nope...didn't buy an island ;D...but we do have 100 ft of beach on one.Once its finished we're hoping that fellow 'lil boat people' do stop when passing through. If ya stop before its done...bring a paint brush ;)
Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Woke up to 4 inches of wet heavy snow.
Has not stopped snowing yet (noon) and its pushing 8 inches.
Plows havent been out yet.
I'm still pumping water out of the basement from Saturdays deluge of rain.
So.........Frank, although we havent met, I can be on the first plane out with plenty more than a paintbrush !!
Awesome pics
Just took this 2 minutes ago in Petawawa....I feel your pain ;D
I was working on the boat this morning in Deep Cove. It was getting up toward 18 and I was sweating, wishing at least a slight breeze would blow up so I could excuse myself to go try out the new sails. (Three days on the boat, and not a breath of wind in the Indian Arm. The weather gods hate me.)
Of course, its the first time in a couple months we saw the sun, but still...
Frank -- Fantastic pictures and it looks like one heck of a nice trip. You have no idea how jealous I am sitting my gray, abysmal cubicle here at work :)