at home in the Abacos

[Hilde’s log]

Raven is back at anchor in Marsh Harbour. We came back to pick up a wi-fi bridge (a kind of antennae) so we can hook back up to the net. Our old antennae croaked abruptly about 10 days ago. Another cold front is due Monday, so we’ll be here until probably Thursday, when we will head on to Man O’War Cay and maybe Little Harbour, the southern end of the Abacos.

While we were waiting for the antennae to come in, we sailed back to Great Guana and picked up a mooring in Settlement Harbour for a few days, then sailed across the Sea of Abaco to Treasure Cay (about 7-8 miles across) to wait out a weak cold front. To our chagrin, we sailed right into the squall line as we made our way across, and got properly drenched for our bad timing. It was an interesting experience, though, as we watched a very well defined line of dark clouds lumber toward us over the water. Several boats were making the trip and we kept an eye on the one about half a mile in front of us. When it suddenly began to heel, we took in the sails. About two minutes later, we were smacked with 30 mile an hour winds (I swear I saw 35 on the wind meter for one gust) and slopping waves. The wind lasted only about five minutes and then everything settled down to a drenching rain as we struggled forward under power. David was at the helm all suited up in his yellow slicker, dripping like a melting icicle, while I sat in front of the companionway, helpfully offering him dry cloths to wipe his streaming face. And yes, the bimini was up. Big help it was! We hadn’t pulled it tight enough, so water pooled in the saggy places and dripped on us, while the rain blew in under it, and the seas sloshed up from the gunwhales. I worried about going into the dock, but by the time we reached Treasure Cay (about 3 miles from the place we met the squall line), it was sunny and calm. Inside the marina, it was flat as a pancake and the wind was about 7 knots.

Once we were tied up at the dock, we took a look around at a genuine resort. The docks there are fixed, so I had to time getting on and off the boat, as the dock rose and fell about three feet over the course of six hours. Our biggest priority was a hot shower, so that came first. Then we stretched out on beach chairs by the pool, watched the palm trees sway, and did absolutely nothing for about thirty minutes. A quick exploration revealed a poolside bar and restaurant, a line of shops (hardware, laundry, grocery, etc.), and a beachside bar and restaurant overlooking a crescent shaped bay. I slept like a dead thing that night, for ten hours. I think as long as we are on the hook, or even on a mooring ball, part of me keeps “one eye open”. At the dock, all systems relax and that is the end of me for hours and hours. Needless to say, the next morning I was so relaxed I could hardly dress.

Our next priority was laundry ($8 to wash and dry one load, again), after which we came back to Raven and lay around in the cockpit reading until about three. We finally forced ourselves out of the cockpit and over to the beach; after all, we were paying through the nose for this experience, so we had to do resort-y things. The water at the beach was cloudy with sand and you couldn’t see like you could at Great Guana. It was also still a bit chilly from the front and the wind was whipping along so wind chill was a factor. After about 20 minutes we decided it was too cold, so we went and lay around on our plastic beach chairs drying off. The walk from the beach had coated us in a thin layer of white sand. Sugar dusted and sticky, we peeled ourselves off the plastic chairs after about half an hour, dried off, and then packed our bags and headed to the pool to wash off the sea water. The pool water was even colder!! I swam about 3 lengths, stayed cold, and got out. David wisely opted for a hot shower. More reading in the cockpit. We wandered back to the beach that night for the advertised beach bonfire (there wasn’t one) and congratulated ourselves on having eaten well on the boat, since the beach fare was $14 barbequed hot dogs (that’s $14 each).

Bottom line: we failed miserably to become resort patrons. The hot showers and laundry were huge draws, but the rest of it couldn’t live up to being on the boat. People there were like people at any hotel, friendly but distant. We couldn’t afford the food and didn’t find any place that was as nice as our own cockpit to enjoy a beer. We cast off the next day (after a farewell shower), and headed back to Settlement Harbour. It was a beautiful, if lumpy sail. In the marina, we couldn’t tell if the wind was strong or not, we were so protected. But once out on the Sea of Abaco, the seas were still churning, so it must have been a pretty good blow. We sailed for about two hours, and then motored up to our old mooring spot at Settlement Harbour, coming in about three. The next morning we dinghied in and went walkabout over much of the island, looking at neighborhoods with pretty pastel houses, peeking in at Grabber’s, the other watering hole on Great Guana, and finally returning to Nipper’s for a quick lunch of boiled shrimp and fried onions rings, and, luxury of luxury, two Cokes. I bought a conch necklace for a souvenir, and then we cast off for another lovely sail to Marsh Harbour. The sailing here is just fantastic. I cannot imagine anything more wonderful than gliding over the clear pastel water with the sun on my shoulders and the soft wind in my face.

Now we’re at anchor for a few days. This part of boat life is boat and personal chores – grocery, cutting hair (I cut mine yesterday and it’s about 2” long), baking bread, cleaning up below, and putting on a new coat of teak oil. We have one more day of leisure, though. Later today David and I are taking the ferry out, headed back again to Great Guana to attend a birthday party. It’s a 20 minute ride for $20. The ferries zip past, up and down the Sea of Abaco, like rectangular white water bugs. It will be fun to go so fast.