On Sunday November 4th, we motored out the Lake Worth Inlet in near perfect conditions. The tide was turning as we left our anchorage so the exit out was smooth. Air temperature was a dry 61 degrees so we were comfortable. Wind was light and variable at 5knots with no “waves” to speak of--just gentle 2’-3’ swells at 12 second intervals so there were no “scary” water conditions. The moon was up and the lights of Palm Beach bright so it was all good.
We had been unable to find a “buddy boat” for this crossing. It was too early in the season for the majority of cruisers and most Americans like to be home for elections and to celebrate their Thanksgiving. But once out into the Atlantic we discovered 2 other sailboats--”Party of Two” (fellow Canadians who we knew from the Exumas) and “Kyanna” (from England). After hailing them over the VHF we found that they too were on their way to the Bahamas via Memory Rock and they invited us to accompany them.
This crossing was one of the best we have ever experienced. It took us 9 hours of uneventful motoring to reach the Bahama Banks and another 8 hours over completely smooth water with no wind whatsoever before we were eventually able to drop our anchor for the night just off the northern arm of Great Sale Cay. On Monday morning, after listening to Chris Parker’s weather forecast on the ham radio and enjoying a leisurely breakfast, we headed off to Green Turtle Cay. However, after only 10 minutes of motoring our speed dropped drastically with something suspected of fouling Fortnight’s prop. After dropping an anchor Vince got naked, donned mask and flippers, strapped a knife to his ankle and went over the side to inspect the boat. (thank goodness that this is one of those “guy” jobs--definitely not MY thing!) Sure enough, the prop WAS clogged with masses of seagrasses and roots that had been torn up by the hurricane. We hadn’t seen these when travelling in darkness the night before but had wondered why our speed had also dropped then. Now we know why. Both Kyanna and Party of Two had also experienced the same problem but had put it down to changes in “current”. Now they too were cleaning props.
We passed many clumps of this stuff during the 8 hours it took to reach our overnight anchorage at Manjack Cay--just north of Green Turtle where we had hoped to find ourselves safely tied into a slip there at Bluff House that evening. But we arrived on a falling tide not knowing if the channel in to White Sound had silted up after the hurricane or if even the channel markers themselves would still be in place so we opted to anchor out at Manjack to be on the safe side. “Party of Two” had fallen several hours behind us by this time but Sandy and Richard on “Kyanna” followed us into the anchorage and invited us over to spend the evening with them after we both settled in and had dinner. It was the first time we had met “face to face.” This couple are “Brits” who sold up everything in England and came to America earlier this year to buy a boat. They are now adventurous “live-aboards” eager to explore the Bahamas and ports beyond before sailing back to Britain and cruising through Europe. We look forward to spending more time with them in the days ahead..
Middle of the gulf stream
On the Bahama banks and still 5 hr to go before dropping the anchor.
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