Back
on the Move South - Berrys to Eleuthera: February 11 2020
Back
to the water pump in lovely Great Harbour Cay (2/1). There appears to be one solitary drip so
segments were (again) unscrewed, unwrapped and re-wrapped with teflon
tape. So much teflon tape has been used in
this project that we ran out. Thank
goodness the hardware/snack/souvenir store had some in the tape bin; duct tape,
masking tape, blue tape…keep digging…scotch tape…and…teflon tape. Phew. While
parts were separated Chris also moved the check valve upstream of the water
pump. Ah, purring like a kitten without
drips. Back up from the engine room it
was overcast cloud conditions that made it tough to tell where the sun was in
the sky. Is it time for sundowners
yet…with our newly acquired Ricardo’s coconut rum?! It will be a raucous night of wind and rain storms
so we hauled the dinghy up, added fenders, reviewed ropes and chatted with
neighbors in case action needs to be taken in the night. Thankfully, no drama occurred but we slept
with one eye open as the storm howled through.
The
storm had passed so we made a morning walk to the beach to check out the sea
state. As forecast, the white caps and
strong winds made it clear that today was not the day to leave. That is good news because tonight is the
Super Bowl under the marina gazebo. A
projection TV will display onto a tightly stretched sheet with pot luck nibbles
and BYOB cocktails. Barefeet is
literally steps away so it is a great set-up for us. For the potluck we whipped up veggie noodle
casserole (recipe below). This recipe is
infinitely adaptable to whatever remains in the fridge. This time we used spaghetti noodles, onion,
green pepper, red pepper and tomato.
Delish!
Congrats
to the Kansas City Chiefs for the Super Bowl win. Right on schedule the sun came up and the
winds were mellow (2/3). Final two
engine checks - oil level was good, coolant level was good - so lines were
tossed for a 4.5-hour drive south in the Berrys to anchor at Little Gaulding
Cay (thanks for the tip m/v Valkyrie).
On the way we caught and released two large barracudas. We have happily eaten barracuda in the past;
however, when they get too big the ciguatera toxin from the small ocean reef
eating fish that they eat can be an issue and no one needs to deal with nausea,
pain, paralysis, etc. so back they went into the sea and swam away. Jeepers – those teeth are intimidating as the
needle nosed pliers reach in and unhook the hook.
A
smooth ride and a quick anchor meant we had time to leisurely dinghy south to
Little Harbour Cay. Stunning place! We were amazed by a group of eight dancing rays,
starfish scattered on the sandy floor and the overall tranquility of the
place. The underwater camera came out
again and it is hard to believe that these shots are from UNDER the water
because the water clarity is amazing.
Back to Barefeet and about a dozen boats have joined the anchorage
including s/v Seaforth. We shared anchor
rums on their boat and then on Barefeet.
It was a great time in a beautiful location.
Time
for another big jump. We were up anchor
at 7am for a 50-mile run from the Berry Islands to the northwestern end of
Eleuthera (2/4). We passed between Great
Abaco and Nassau through the thousand foot deep Fleming and Northeast
Providence Channels. Our next several
days will be in the Meeks Patch and Royal Harbour area. We will likely be shuffling around as winds
shift direction daily which will keep us shucking and jiving for better
protection. For tonight we are anchored
on the eastern side of Meeks Patch.
There are roosters ashore, steaks on the grill and potatoes baking.
Calm
morning conditions were just right to make the 1.5 mile dinghy to the
settlement of Spanish Wells (2/5).
Harbour Island is around the corner to the east of Spanish Wells which
has been enticing movie stars and the rich and famous to its glitzy, ritzy
beach and restaurant scene for decades.
In the meantime, Spanish Wells has quietly built a prosperous fishing
industry – currently supplying well over half of the Bahamas commercial haul of
lobster, conch and fish. This economic
activity was abundantly clear as soon as we entered the harbour’s channel with
mangroves on one side and an explosion of docks on the other side. The docks would have seemed more at home in
New Bedford or Cape Cod rather than a 1500 population outpost Cay just over
half a square mile in size.
That
said, Spanish Wells has thrived and prospered as a crossroads of the Bahamas since
early Spanish explorers found fresh water here and made it a last stop to
replenish supplies and refit boats before crossing the Atlantic back to
Europe. Later, the Eleuthera Adventurers
settled here after becoming ship wrecked on the Devil’s Backbone in the 1640s as
they escaped religious persecution. Next
to arrive were the British loyalists escaping their defeat in the US
Revolutionary War. For all of this
prosperity Spanish Wells homes and people are humble, neat & tidy and
neighborly.
We
easily strolled the few, narrow streets more heavily traffic-ed by golf carts
than by full-sized cars. In the
supermarket we found fresh veggies and homemade English muffins. Heck, there is an entire section of shelves
dedicated to homemade goods by local sellers.
Einey, meeney, miney, moe…Tony’s or Nene’s or Lizzy’s?! And many local shop keepers sport gold chains
with stunning pieces of eight. We could
have stayed longer – maybe even had a drink at Budda’s bar but the winds were
expected to pick up and we needed to shuffle the boat to a slightly different
anchorage.
Shuffle,
shuffle, shuck and jive with the wind. Watching
the weather today and into the next few days shows that no one place is perfect
to anchor. However, winds are not bad
enough to force us into the docks at Spanish Wells either. Since we were rolling like crazy at Meeks
Patch (yes, things rolling in the fridge and in the cupboards individually
tracked down and stopped – wine, biscuits, glass cleaner, pasta sauce). We think the spot with the most protection to
the variety of wind shifts is Royal Harbour.
We were there last year and it is well protected…except…from the
south. Of course, south is the dominant
wind direction for now but only through the small entrance to the harbor. Let’s check it out. Off we go and in we went with a bit of (gulp)
skittering through the entrance due to strong winds funneling water through the
entrance (2/6). Yep, this is the place. We set the hook and turned on the anchor
alarm app. Time for breakfast with some
of Tony’s English muffins. After our
move of Barefeet these steak, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiches hit the spot in
a calm anchorage after our rolling night.
Time to relax as we stay in this spot for a few days…no landing ashore
but the sun is bright and the sea remains a beguiling blue.
The
anchor alarm app tracked our swings as the wind shifted and never sounded an
alarm. A dozen boats were nicely spaced out with good anchor sets. By the end of our time in Royal Harbour we
had made a nice circle of marks on the anchor alarm app…much like a complete donut
drawn around our anchor spot in the center.
Time flew by as we were boat bound thanks to my current book – A Land
Remembered by Patrick D. Smith (thanks Eleanor). It is historical fiction based on the
multi-generational MacIvey family as they scratch out a living in pioneer
Florida from 1858 – 1968. The characters
are likeable and had me cheering them on through struggles and celebrations. Tons of grit and determination at every turn.
A
short break in the wind meant it was time for us to move (2/8). As we target the Exumas we decided to skirt
along the west coast of Eleuthera for some protection from the wind rather than
along the more exposed Nassau route. But
first we must pass through Current Cut – a narrow 100-yard wide break in the
land where water ebbs and tides at up to 9 knots. We did this last year so we feel slightly
more knowledgeable; however, we still need to time the current to avoid rampaging
waters. We pulled up the anchor from Roral Harbour at
6.30am and slid through Current Cut at 8am (one hour after high tide in
Nassau)…not seeing anything more than a 3 knot push and a smooth water’s
surface. Phew! Rain showers and downpours, grey skies and 18
knots of wind meant that there was no need to stop and explore ashore like last year. We passed Hatchet Bay at 10am, Governor’s
Harbour at 12.30pm and anchored in Rock Sound at 4.30pm. Our long 10-hour day ended perfectly with
club sandwiches at Frigates Bar and a nice reunion with bartender Nathan. The sandwiches were as amazing as we
remembered. We’ll wait here for strong
winds to pass before jumping to the Exumas.
The first photo above is the island of Eleuthera with Rock Sound in the
upper right hook of the “Y” at the bottom of the island.
Tucked
into Rock Sound gives us a good spot to wait out the next several days of
wind and rain. Thankfully, the rain
should move on after about a day or so.
Our anchor is well buried with 75 feet of chain out. The 20 boats in the anchorage are also tucked
in snug for the upcoming winds. Dinghies did
not buzz as folks stayed mostly boat bound (2/9). We watched the Irishman, recorded Duke
basketball games from the previous night and read between exchanging ideas for what would be for
dinner. As conditions improved boaters
emerged for exploration. We wandered the
town, checked out the Ocean Hole (600 feet deep blue hole packed with fish) and
perused the offerings at the supermarket (2/10). This is a friendly, quiet town where cars
give a hello toot of the horn or a wave of the fingers as they pass…even
offering a ride. Our next moving day
looks to be on Friday (2/14). In the
meantime, we will explore the southern tip of Eleuthera and relax in this
sheltered place where life is mellow.
Vegetarian
Noodle Casserole
(serves 6…or a potluck crowd)
6oz
egg noodles
3
Tablespoons butter
1
medium onion, chopped
1
celery rib, chopped
1
red pepper, chopped
½
cup broccoli, chopped
½
cup yellow squash, chopped
¾
cup milk
1
cup sharp cheddar, grated
Salt
& pepper
¼
cup bread crumbs
2
Tablespoons butter
1)
Butter
casserole (2qt) and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2)
In
a large pot of boiling, salted water cook noodles. Drain and transfer to a big bowl. Add ¼ cup milk and mix. Set aside.
3)
Chop
veggies. Melt butter over medium heat,
add veggies, stir until softened (approx. 8 minutes). Reduce heat and add ½ cup milk and
cheese. Season with salt and
pepper. Stir until cheese melts. Pour over noodles. Toss until well blended.
4)
Scrape
into casserole and bake 15 minutes.
5)
Combine
bread crumbs and melted butter. Spoon
evenly over top of casserole. Bake 15 –
20 minutes.