We anchored adjacent to the Lake Worth Inlet in anticipation of leaving on February 2.  Many other boats were anchored who also planned to cross.  We arose at 5 am and planned to up anchor at 5:30 am.   Well we were all set:  engine running, anchor light off; turn running lights on; deck light on (to see the anchor) but wait!  There was no light coming from the forward running lights.  Upon investigation not only was there no light but there was no fixture, there were not even any dangling wires.  So shut everything down and wait until the marina opened so we could back and fix our forward running light.  All the other boats departed – however the weather window turned bad and of the seven boats that we know left six turned around and came back.

Back at the marina we ordered a new light fixture from Defender who overnighted it to us.  John spent the weekend installing the new light.  The trickiest part was installing new wire from inside the boat up thru the bow pulpit (several bends and a 90 degree turn) and out the little hole where the light is mounted.  We used dental floss as a chase string.  I fed it into the little hole and John used a vacuum to suck it through nary a wrong turn with the floss. (I am sure my dentist had envisioned another use for our floss.) Then we used the floss to pull a sting and then the wire (greased with Vaseline).  Slick!

We got to visit with Steve and Joanne, who brought us some Spanish mackerel fillets that Steve and son Jason caught (boy was that delicious), one more time and then on Monday, February 6 we went back to the anchorage in preparation to leave on Tuesday.  All the boats that tried to cross last Thursday were there also.  Of course this time we overslept and did not pull anchor until 5:45 am – but the running lights all worked!  By the time we cleared the inlet the sun was starting to rise.  The wind was behind us at 10-20 knots so we motored sailed with the jib.  The seas were a 3-5 feet in the “the Stream” initially and diminished to 2-3 feet.  The water temperature increased about 5 degrees once we entered the Gulf Stream.

We arrived at West End, Grand Bahama Island about 3 pm where we raised our yellow quarantine flag.   At the Old Bahama Bay Marina we checked into the country.  After filling out many forms and paying our $300 we received our cruising permit and replaced the yellow flag with the Bahama courtesy flag.  The first time we sailed our boat into another country.

Xanadu

We met many other cruisers at the marina half were going north over the banks to the Abacos and the other half was going south along Grand Bahama Island.  We had originally planned to go north through the Abacos and then down to the Exumas to Georgetown.  But waiting for weather windows put a little behind schedule. (I know we are retired and cruising  - so no schedules should rule.)  So we decided to go south.  We buddied up with two cats; Lioness III an Australian boat and Pirates Hideout with a home port in New Mexico.  We planned to go to Lucaya but on the way down Mesmariah was in Xanadu and suggested that we anchor in there. 

Xanadu, a hotel and marina, is an older facility built by Howard Hughes and on grounds of the hotel there are three “bungalows” where members of the rat pack stayed.  The hotel and marina had extensive hurricane damage.  The anchorage included two canals for private homes a la Florida.  There was not enough space for all four boats to anchor so we tied up to the marina (basically four poles to tie onto).   We stayed five nights in Xanadu waiting for a cold front to pass.  The front had NW winds up to 25 knots.  When we looked out across the ocean it looked like marching elephants the sea was so high.  
 
We left Xanadu at 11:00 pm Tuesday night (Feb 14) to cross the Northwest Passage heading for Great Stirrup Cay in the Berries a 60 mile trip.  The crossing was a little more rough than planned the wind was gusting to over 20 and almost on our nose and the seas were confused – no swells from any direction just large waves.  We managed to motorsail most of the way and the wind changed more easterly at the end so we actually sailed the last 10 miles with reefed main and working jib.  We finally reached the anchorage at 10 am – very nice.  Finally the aqua water we been looking for.

Great Stirrup Cay:

We are in a secluded anchorage no houses, sandy beach, aqua water and only five boats (our four boats plus a boat from Switzerland).  Did I say secluded well need to clarify that – cruise boats moor on the other side of the island and a gaggle of jetskis came by but eventually they get back on the cruise ship and leave.

Can you find Waldo?  Actually can you find Island Time?  We send e-mails through our SSB radio with a Winlink program. To send e-mails we need to enter our lat and lon.  So if anyone wants to track us you can log onto www.winlink.org and locate us with our ham names.  John’s is KB1KYU and Genie’s is KB1KYV.