Sunday, May 29, 2016

The TURKS and CAICOS

        The Turks and Caicos lie east of the southeastern-most Bahamas and serve as a good staging area for cruisers to head elsewhere.  On our way to the Bahamas, we rested in the Turks and Caicos for one night at Big Sand Cay, then passed through the Caicos Bank to continue on to Mayaguana of the Bahamas.

        This island group is British, like the Bahamas, but not an independent nation.  Their make up is quite similar, though, as they also are pretty much flat as pancakes, made up of coral and limestone, have scant vegetation, and are surrounded by shallow depths. 

Sapodilla Bay Beach, Providenciales (Google Image)

        Sapodilla Bay was our first anchorage at the island of Providenciales.  As your vessel crosses the boundary waters of this port, you are hailed by PROVO RADIO not by boat name, but by your lat-long position.  Then, via VHF radio communication, an officer takes all the information on the vessel and crew.  Upon anchoring, we proceeded to the offices of Customs and Immigration to complete the process.  However, only the Customs agent was available.  We returned early the next morning to see the Immigration officer who still hadn't arrived so we were told to return in the afternoon. However, he wasn't there either later in the day.  Therefore, we dutifully returned early the next morning and finally got the paperwork done.

Lunched at Las Brisas on Mother's Day 

        All of the Turks and Caicos are a marine reserve with many buoyed dive sites.  Providenciales is geared toward posh resort goers and our time there made us well aware of this fact. There were no dingy docks here, nor were there any grocers, or fuel docks in the vicinity. Considering this information,  most cruisers would deem Providenciales as being "not cruiser friendly".  This island did, however, have the most beautiful, wide paved roads we'd seen since leaving the DR two and a half months ago.

        Eventually, we crossed the shallow Caicos Bank and stopped at South Caicos to clear out.  That island, though much smaller, had far more of what the typical cruiser requires to be content.  We secured the dinghy at the fishermen's dock where we found a convenient fuel dock and a well-stocked grocer.  We had a leisurely lunch across the street at the SUNSET & CAFE BAR & GRILL.  It had to be leisurely because it appeared they had only one cook and didn't expect all their tables to be filled.  I even left to check out the grocer while we waited for our lunch.  The food didn't disappoint us, as it was spiced just right and plenty! 

        After the lunch crowd dispersed, the restaurant owner insisted on driving us to the Customs office to complete our paperwork.  We had been in the Turks and Caicos for less than a week, but the weather window was upon us to move on.  I regret not being able to spend more time in South Caicos.
Just LOVED this BLUE!

        The next day we sailed down to Big Sand Cay and rested for the night. The water there was the most magnificent shade of blue I've ever seen! We swam ashore and had the expansive beach to ourselves.  

        The next morning brought brisk winds and we left the Turks and Caicos to head southward toward the DR and the Mona Passage.
Big Sand Cay

Monday, May 23, 2016

OUR ANSWER to the QUESTION




Google image
       In our opinion, it is NOT better in the Bahamas.  YES, as everyone says- the water is clear and pretty, just as it is in many places down island (to name a few) such as: Frederiksted, St. Croix, St. John and Water Island, USVI; Mustique in the Grenadines, Pigeon Island off Guadeloupe; Pan de Sucre of Isle de Saintes; and Barbados.
     
      The Bahamian Islands DO have some pluses, but I calculate way more minuses.   Bear with me as I try to explain this point of view-

+ + +ENGLISH IS SPOKEN by most people.  Oh, you run into folks from the DR or Haiti every so often, but they make a great effort to communicate in ENGLISH to meet your needs.
Lighthouse at Bird Rock just off  NW point of Crooked Island

+ + +THERE WERE NO BOAT BOYS...
- - - which means there is NO CHANCE OF WARM BAGUETTE DELIVERIES BOATSIDE AT 7AM.

+ + + FISHING LICENSE IS INCLUDED WITH CRUISING PERMIT FEE ($300 USD for 12 months).
- - - But INSURED VESSELS, such as Exit Strategy can only be there for a maximum of 6 months outside of hurricane season.

- - - - BAHAMIAN WATERS WERE COLD during our visit (late February- early May). Even the snowbirds that spend two to three months in Georgetown annually weren't getting in the water.  Perhaps if we ventured there during July-September when the water temps warm up (as my dear bro and his wife have done for years) it may have been more comfortable.

- - - DINGHY DOCKS WERE SCARCE, as are places or trees/shrubs along shores to secure dinghies.  Hence, we did lots of dragging and its bottom has multiple scars to prove it.
+ + + The BAHAMAS ARE REPORTEDLY SAFE and most other cruisers did NOT lock their dinghy.



- - - TIDES AND CURRENTS WERE CHALLENGING, so jumping off the boat at anchor had to be done with care to avoid drifting away uncontrollably fast.

- - - HIKING TRAILS WERE HOT and LARGELY UNSHADED and with rough footing.
+ + + Walking on low grades was easier.

- - - There were NOT MANY CATHOLIC CHURCHES where we could attend Sunday Mass.
+ + + The few churches found were not perched high up on a mountainside as they often are down island.
On altar in Fr. Jerome's Hermitage, Cat Island

- - - TERRAIN WAS BLEAK WITH POOR VEGETATION; finding local produce was a rarity and only Georgetown had dependable, scheduled mail boat deliveries of goods from Florida and Nassau.

- - - NO LOCAL BUSES.

- - - HIGHEST TRASH FEES experienced at Staniel Cay ($6.45 US/bag).  Every now and then we've read about cruisers disposing of trash off shore in the deep, but that practice is totally unacceptable to us.

+ + + The CRACKED CONCH WAS GREAT!

  
Google image, and mine looked just as luscious!
PS:  I expect some of you will totally disagree with our take on the Bahamas and that is your prerogative.  As for the crew of Exit Strategy, if we ever return to the Bahamas, it'll be by air.

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

MAYAGUANA

      DSCN4679          Rising up ever so slightly out of the Atlantic in the southeastern most part of the Bahamas is the island of Mayaguana.  The highest point reaches to 21 meters, putting Mayaguana among the lowest Bahamian shores we have cruised.  Its relatively flat terrain makes for easy wandering for a couple of sixty-somethings,  while its reef lined coast limits the number of safe anchorages.  Abraham’s Bay- the main anchorage- is fantastically H U G E  and  S H A L L O W !!  We made our way in as far as possible, reducing our commute by dinghy to the settlement to a mere 3 miles.  In flat calm conditions, it was a pleasant ride…unfortunately, it was pretty windy and then somewhat stormy the week we visited, so we got soaked more than once, even though the Captain tried to avoid the bigger whitecaps.

DSCN4666          DSCN4668

       According to Reggie-  owner, chief cook, waiter, and bottle washer of the only restaurant in the settlement- there are only about 400 residents on Mayaguana.  It is a quiet place where few boats stay for long and its people feel especially blessed that they were bypassed by Hurricane Joachim. We stopped to speak with a few others while walking and they extended the usual Bahamian welcome.  One man introduced himself as he sat on the wall at the dock with his toddler grandson.  The boy had a bad cold and was going to get dunked in the sea water to help clear his head.  Another resident, a strong looking young woman, was out preparing a garden spot so that cruisers could get fresh vegetables when they came ashore.

DSCN4675

       When we entered Reggie’s place to have our preordered lunch, a man jumped up from his table and insisted we sit there under the only fan.  We arranged for two lunches to eat-in and two chicken dinners to take-away.  The amount of food we got was more than enough for five meals and our bill was only $49.  (1 USD = 1 Bahamian)  Before we left, Reggie was kind enough to trade some USD for some of our excess Bahamian dollars.  I inquired about a stand of papayas that I were behind his place and he told me to take as many leaves as I needed to use for making a tonic for chikungunya.

DSCN4670    DSCN4674

        One day near the dock at the settlement, we encountered a family of three in their stallled dinghy.  The tide was very low and their engine cut out when it hit the bottom.  We towed them in and chatted  on the short walk into town.  They were a Polish family of four from Krakow sailing with one crewman and a nanny who helped with the two boys aged one and two and a half. ( I couldn’t imagine cruising full time with two little ones!)  Later, we towed them out to their vessel since they couldn’t find anyone who had the required wrench to fix the outboard.

DSCN4678

       Finally, when the weather was in our favor to move on, we said “Good bye” to Mayaguana, the very last island of the Bahamas that we had time to see.

Friday, May 6, 2016

Love Lyla!

     

        Keeping the lines of communication open with our dear family and friends while cruising the Caribbean has been a challenge for us since day one. About a year ago, we began using T-Mobile SIM cards and that has made life so much simpler communication wise.  These days, it is rare that we don't get a signal even when no cell tower is apparent.
        Thankfully, no one in our family or circle of close friends feels the need to touch base daily with us and we're quite comfortable with that.  However,  recently one of our three adorable grand daughters  seems to have turned the tides on that matter. 
       
       Eight year old Lyla has taken to "chatting" with her Babçia (me) via FB Messenger.  It all began rather innocently when I sent Lyla and Aslan notes via their Momma's (Joy's) FB account.  Lyla was in the middle of her Homeschooling Written Language Lesson for the day, so Joy let her respond to me via FB instead of doing a creative piece on paper.  And VOILÀ!  Practice with purpose turned Lyla into an avid writer!

     
Spider Lyla spotted on a recent hike. 

     This exchange with Lyla has been going on for just over a week now and her Grandpa ( Dan) and I have really been tickled by her enthusiasm.  Every time we hear the "ping" of Messenger,  one or both of us sigh and say, "Love, Lyla" because she sweetly signs off on most messages in that way no mater how long or short they are.  Via Messeger, Lyla and I have discussed mundane things, such as: finger polish, pizzas, Mothers' Day surprises,  my fear of spiders, Math skills, snorkeling and so much more.
 
     Then on the other hand we've delved into some pretty important stuff, like: 



Did  daddy   used to   have   long   hair   in  a   ponytail? Love   Lyla!

I  really  want  to  right  a story  about  you  and  me!  Love  Lyla!

I    miss   you   so   much! xoxo Xoxooxo   Love  Lyla!

Grandpa and I sure MISS and LOVE you, too.