Crew Log for March 2nd – 3rd, 2023
Trip Summary:
• Little Harbor to Tilloo Cay Cut
• Trip Distance of 12 NM, Total Distance To-Date of 3,170.6 NM
• Departed at 09h00, arrived at 11h30
Once again our day started with a search for shelter from strong southerly winds expect to pass through the Abacos over the next few days. We debated hiding out behind Pelican Point, a short distance from Little Harbor, but were concerned with the reports of uncomfortable swells, so opted instead to head to Tilloo Cay Cut South. The holding was reported to be good, with minimal swell and current.
Our route would take us by Sandy Cay, a nature preserve, that was one of the best snorkeling spots in the southern Abaco Cays. Unfortunately the winds had already picked up by the time we reached Sandy Cay and the swells didn’t make for ideal snorkeling conditions. In the words of Captain Alex, "...we're not Olympic swimmers...". We decided to continue on to our anchorage for the evening, disappointed for missing a long awaited opportunity for some good snorkeling.
On the way we received a radio call from sv Gypsea. We first met Gypsea in Lucaya when we were hunting for phone SIM cards and again when at happy hour on the super yacht at Cambridge Cay. They had arrived in Abaco the day after us and were planning to wait out the weather at Pelican Point. We love the fact that we have actually gotten to recognize boats that we cross paths with and the opportunity to reconnect, even if it’s just to say hello over the VHF.
Tilloo Cay is part of a string of cays just south of Tahiti Beach on Elbow Cay. This was the first time we really started to appreciate the extent of the damage caused by hurricane Dorian. There was debris everywhere, damaged homes and docks, and massive boats tossed a hundred feet or so up on shore. We found a sandy spot to drop the anchor that we hoped would provide protection from the south winds. There were a few boats here ahead of us, and several more arrived throughout the day.
After we checked the anchor, we headed out in the dinghy to explore and check out the snorkeling around the smaller cays. We found a massive starfish and lots of sea cucumbers, along with some interesting coral and other sea life. There were also large sections of rooves well out in the water, further evidence of Dorian’s impact.
Side Story. Years ago, I travelled to Beijing on a work related trip. We had travelled all night for more than 16 hours and walked directly into our first official function, a banquet for all the dignitaries. Not only was I not very skilled at using chop sticks, but I was unfamiliar with Chinese food delicacies. I was tired from the travel and jet lagged, given the 12 hour time difference. Not wanting to offend my Chinese hosts or embarrass my employer, I dove right into the unrecognizable offerings in front of me. Unfortunately, my first selection turned out to be, sea cucumber. Without going into the gory details, lets just say, a novice chop stick user, trying to pick up a slice of a black slimy slug-like thing, is not a graceful act.
Speaking of food.
It was homemade pizza night on Elizabeth M, so we invited the crew from Anodyne over for a quiet evening. They were planning to leave in the morning for Hope Town, while we waited out the weather here. We had a nice meal of appetizers, salad and pizza. Our boat isn't ideal for entertaining, but we had a nice evening with good friends and good food.
Mooring balls in Hope Town were in high demand and operated on a first come first serve basis. It’s also not uncommon for people to book a mooring ball for the entire month and so, while it may look like there is an available ball, many have small floats attached indicating they’re reserved. There is anchoring just outside of the entrance to Hope Town Harbor, but it would be less than ideal in a strong south wind. We decided the safest choice was to stay put.
We spent the next day on the boat, getting caught up on the blog and looking for anchorages for a northernly storm front expected later the following week. Winds reached 20-25 knots, and we were pleased that our anchor held firm. However, there were a couple of large trawlers from Texas in the anchorage and one of them started to drag. They had a difficult time trying to reset their anchor and at one point got uncomfortably close to us. They were eventually successful, after about an hour and multiple attempts.
The wind really piped up through the night and tracked around to the south west, which made for some bumpy conditions, but again we were happy that our anchor held firm. It had also gotten a little cooler, which was surprising given the southern winds.
Crew Log for March 4th, 2023
Trip Summary:
• Tilloo Cay Cut South – Hope Town, Elbow Cay
• Trip Distance of 6 NM, Total Distance To-Date of 3,176.6 NM
• Departed at 08h00, arrived at 09h20
I had been noticing water in our shower sump, which was odd given we mostly use the solar shower bag in the cockpit. As any boater will appreciate, water “in” the boat is a little disconcerting and not something that you want to ignore. I quickly detected the source of the problem to be a small pin hole in the seawater water intake line for our toilet. It was a relatively easy fix and we could relax knowing we weren’t going to sink anytime soon.
As I was working on that, Judy received a message from our buddies on Phase 2. The boat beside them had left and, they quickly went over to attach a life jacket to the mooring ball. The universal sign for “reserved”. We hastily hauled anchor and carefully made our way between Lubber’s Quarter and Elbow Cay and past Tahiti Beach. Now, I debated whether to include the next sequence events, given we are embarrassed by them. But nothing tragic or bad happened and it is slightly amusing so….
As we made our way towards Hope Town, a very large barge approached us from the north. He radioed us and asked if we planned to enter the harbor ahead of them, or would we prefer to allow him to go first. We told him to proceed, and we would follow him in. As we made our way into the narrow channel, we marveled at the new construction. I also wondered why I couldn’t see any sailboat masts. I was focused on following the barge's progress and the navigation marks. I wasn’t really paying attention to the charts. It wasn’t until we were well inside the harbor that we realized, we had actually come into White Sound Harbor, not Hope Town.
I did wonder why we couldn’t see the iconic Hope Town Light on they way in. We casually turned the boat around and made our way back out of the harbor, as if it was our plan all along. We checked the charts, and headed towards Hope Town, a mile and half further north. As we got closer, sure enough, there was the iconic Hope Town Lighthouse and there were indeed sailboat masts in the harbor.
We had notified Phase 2 earlier that we were on our way, so, not trusting that everyone would respect a lifejacket as a sign that the mooring is reserved, Mike camped out on the ball in his dinghy. He was likely wondering why it was taking us so long. We decided not to disclose the fact that we got lost along the way. We were humbled however, by the generosity of our buddy boat and the effort they went to, in order to ensure we had a mooring.
I perhaps should have indicated at the start why it was important for us to be in Hope Town. We actually were waiting for prescriptions, expected to arrive later in the month. In the meantime, Hope Town provided a nice safe place to wait out 10 days of unsettled weather. Besides, we had been on the move constantly since the middle of August and we were sort of looking forward to relaxing for a bit.
Hope Town looked like an interesting place and they even had a pickleball group that interested one of us. Through some strange, unexplained series of events, it also was the cheapest place in the Bahamas for us to take an extended break.
But more about that, next time.
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