And the Winner is......

On Thursday (6/26) Dan and I left Cambridge (and Aquaholic) to return back to Nassau to pick up Wendy and Greg.  We stayed in a marina that was directly across the street from an extremely well stocked market.  On Friday, Dan changed the generator oil and fuel filters (the generator had logged more than 250 hours in the 3 weeks we had been gone), while I cleaned to boat for our arriving guests.  We then spent the afternoon provisioning our boat (and Aquaholic’s) with fresh fruit, veggies, dairy, etc.  Essentially, all of the items that were fresh, that had run out, were replaced.

When Wendy and Greg arrived, we took them to a shack under the Paradise Island bridge to have super fresh conch salad and fried mutton snapper.

We headed back to Cambridge Cay the next morning.  Both Greg and Wendy were blown away by the colors of the waters.  I was glad to know it just wasn’t me.  We were greeted by the waving Aquaholic crew (on the red raft) as we entered the mooring field.  We spent the afternoon on the red raft enjoying the 1^st day of their vacation.

The next day, we went fishing and Russell caught a Mahi Mahi.  We had several hits, but nothing wanted to join us on the boat.  For the 2^nd fishing trip in a row, we seemed to be catching/getting bites in the early evening.

Yesterday (Monday), we jammed our day with vacation excitement.  We (all 8 adults and ¼ of a kid) did yoga on the beach in the morning, went and snorkeled at 4 different sites, then headed out at 5PM to go fishing.  Yes, 5PM - for 3 hours of fishing fun. We convinced Wendy to go with us, as we knew she would be our best chance at turning our fishing luck (or at least Greg’s).

Within 30 minutes of us dropping the lines, we had 3 hits on 4 lines at 1 time.  Greg set the hook on one rod and gave it to Kim, he then went to another rod and they both pulled in our 1^st tunas of the trip.  Revil pulled in yet another Barracuda (lol).  Wendy was in hysterics because she couldn’t believe the chaos on the boat when we had 3 “fish on” at once.  My prior description of what happens when we have a fish on the line, didn’t do it justice. Everyone runs to help, everyone screams, everyone chants, and encourages (borderline harassing) the person with the fish on the hook.  She stood there with the GoPro recording the chaos, laughing.

Russell then brought in a nice size Mahi Mahi.  But the “REEL” WINNER of the day was Wendy, she brought in a very large, very nice Mahi Mahi.  

Of course she was graceful in her victory and shouted something like “HA….my fish is bigger than Greg’s” once it was landed.  Finally Revil broke his Barracuda curse and brought in the last Tuna of the day and we headed in around 8PM, right at sunset.

WOW – what a day.  We completely changed our dinner plans and had blackened Mahi Mahi and tuna sushi for dinner, after I spent well over an hour cleaning the fish and feeding the carcasses of our dinner to the feeding sharks below (they weren’t reef or nurse sharks).  Wendy and Russell’s Mahi’s were so big, I had to clean them on the back of Russell’s boat (LOL).  We ate after 11PM, as we HAD to have our catch of the day.  It was a big deal.

What a great day!!!!

Warderick Wells Cay

We moved onto Warderick Wells on Saturday afternoon for 3 nights.  Warderick Wells is the Exumas Land and Sea Park headquarters.  Once again, we were in another beautiful location with an array of water colors like you couldn't imagine.  

There was no internet or cell phone access.  We had to rely on folklore and “fact” when posed with a question, not google.  We felt like we solved most of the world problems without google.  Then we realized, we needed an official reference upon our next stop for most matters discussed.

The kids celebrated father’s day with all 3 dads individually (Russell - father of Drew/Alex, Revil - father of Nathan, Dan – father of Sydney).  They made them all breakfast and served it in bed – one at a time – and gave them cards that were made by hand.  They helped cook breakfast and sat and watched each one of them eat the entire breakfast in bed, then moved on to the next.  Since we were on a  different boat, the food was wrapped up and delivered – as we were told they were coming and to get back in bed.  Vicky, Kim, and I enjoyed a latte, while Dan, Drew, Alex, and Sydney enjoyed breakfast in bed.

Since we were well within the Land and Sea park where fishing is not allowed, we filled our days with snorkeling and diving.  Of course,  we saw the largest lobsters I have ever seen.  These things were monsters – as they should be – in a protected area.  Russell spotted a lion fish (which are destroying the reefs in the Bahamas and US) and speared it – as that is the only thing allowed to be taken from the park.  Much care was taken when cleaning the fish, as the spine is extremely poisonous.  With scissors, I cut all of the spines and fins off, and then cleaned it - for a sauteed snack later.

The next day was designated a diving day.  The 1^st dive of the day which included some folks from another boat (friends from Marco) that had joined us (Algorithms), was at an official dive site that had 6-8 sharks (we believe reef sharks) circling the boat when it stopped.  Only 3 of 6 divers went in – surprise, surprise.  On our last dive of the day, we came across an unmarked ship wreck.  It was a wooden boat with large (old) looking nails.  We were surprised by the discovery, especially that this was just a random place we thought would be nice to snorkel.   Below our mooring, there was another wreck of a sail boat that caught fire from electrical issues several years ago.  Of course, there was another HUGE lobster was sitting safely right below us (and within view of the Land and Sea Park office).

On the morning of our departure, we took a hike up Boo Boo Hill on the island, the marked trails lead us to a couple blow holes and a pile of drift wood that the park encourages boats to leave (for good luck and safe travels) that has the name of your vessel.

We didn’t leave our mark on the hill, but will definitely do so in the future.  We found another Aquaholic that was left early this year.

The blowhole is known to knock your hat off -

Vicky and the kids decided it was a good place to display a couple of Yoga poses -

We are headed to Cambridge for several nights (in search for an internet fix).  This new location is good because we are at the edge of the Land and Sea park – which will give us access to good snorkeling, diving, and fishing – while being moored safely on a mooring ball.

What a plane can provide

Friday morning was spent as vacation should be, relaxing and lounging around the boat with nothing to do.  It was the 1^st morning we all took a minute and relaxed.  Drew decided the night before that he wanted to make us “brunch”.  With skill, he whipped up a quick round of hot dogs, while Alex made sure that all the condiments were prepared and ready for us, as she served us up this great meal.

In the early afternoon, we decided to take the boat a couple of islands down to look at a plane wreck in the water and to possibly try some bottom fishing.  The seas on the bank side are still in no condition for bottom fishing, so we needed to find a protected place that fish would be congregating.  Essentially, we were looking for rocks or a string of coral heads.  We looked for dark spots or changing sea floor.  If we found a place, we would stop and have Russell jump in with his snorkel gear.  We surveyed a couple places, but really didn’t find anything, so we moved on to snorkel the plane wreck.

The plane wreck was amazing.  Probably the best wreck I have snorkeled or dove.  The structure above water was less than impressive, but the plane underwater was something to see.  The plane had gone down in the early 80’s after some kind of drug trafficking event.  The wings, engines, fuselage, and cockpit were deteriorated but still present. 

Best of all, under one of the wings was large schools of snapper.  When both Dan and I surfaced, we both looked at each other and said – “did you see the amount of fish down there?”  We laughed and moved away from the wreck to look for our “real” fishing location.  Well, none was found, so we returned back to the wreck, waited for another boat to leave too see if we could lure a couple of those snappers out and have them join us for dinner.

Dan jumped in the water and told us where to drop the bait.  He was chased out of the water by a 5-6 foot nurse shark that kept swimming towards him.  He had to hit the shark on the head with his fist and quickly jumped out of the water (lightening speed).  We realized later that the nurse shark was going to the drain of the boat that had “fish death” excreting out – and didn’t necessarily want Dan.

All 8 of us were on this adventure, all 8 of us were fishing, all 8 of us were catching.  The chaos in the boat for the next 1.5 hours was hilarious.  Lines in the water, lines needing rigging, fish being brought into the boat needing to be removed, kids with fishing poles, a dog barking and trying to bite all the fish that landed on the boat floor, and bait being flung all over Dan’s (Revil's) clean boat.  At the end, we came away with 36 nice size snapper which provided us fish tacos for dinner, Ceviche for appetizer, fish and potatoes (Cuban style) for the next night, and another fish dinner in the future. 

Russell, Vicky and I then spent last hours in daylight cleaning the fish.  Revil and Dan waited patiently to clean the boat (after sunset) and Kim made us a fantastic Ceviche.

All in all, it was a GREAT day in paradise.

Shroud Cay

We headed off to Shroud Cay after spending 2 nights in the Highbourne Marina to go on mooring for the next 3-4 nights.  Shroud Cay is another beautiful place if you can believe it. 

Being on a mooring ball is like being on anchor except for the sense of security the mooring ball provides.  Because the mooring ball is fixed to the ocean floor, we are able to have confidence that our anchor would not slip or fail.  Getting the mooring ball was challenging, but with the help of Revil in the Boston Whaler, we were able to attach to the mooring line properly and see what we needed to do in the future.

Later, we tied up 4 boats of the 5 boats and inflated our red lounge raft to enjoy a late afternoon in the warm, clear waters.

On the 2^nd day, we went to explore the island.  The island has paths of mangrove lined canals running through it.  Unlike Marco Island, the water is crystal clear and in some cases bright blue within these canals – nothing I have ever seen before. 

We found a fresh water well after a small hike up a rocky/lava hill (no shoes). 

Later in the afternoon, we made our way by dingy through one of these canals to the other side of the Island where we had access to the Exumas Sound.  The view from the top of the hill was breathtaking (I wore shoes this time).

The next day, Kim/Revil/Dan and I decided to try fishing again.  The seas were again very rough, but this time we left Sydney at home so we could concern ourselves with our own stability.  We spent 7 hours listening to music and trying to catch the elusive Tuna/Mahi Mahi/Wahoo.  We concluded (I concluded) that we wanted Tuna/Mahi Mahi too much and we needed to change our perspectives.  Once we did, things changed.  After catching 6 Barracuda (some pretty big), we finally caught our 1^st half Mahi Mahi.  Apparently, a shark and I had different intentions for dinner.  At this point, a ½ of a Mahi Mahi is better than none.  I called it appetizer.  About 20 minutes later, Dan caught a bird and was reeling it in (it looked like he was flying a kite) to the boat to unhook it, while another Mahi Mahi jumped on the line.  The humanitarians, Dan and Kim, saved the bird, while the hunters, Revil and I, were focused on dinner.  The bird was saved, the fish was netted, and the appetizer turned into dinner.

We have decided to stay another night to go to a plane wreck and to try our hand at some bottom fishing.

Finishing up at Highbourne

Highbourne has provided us the purpose of our trips to the Exumas, relaxing, fishing and diving.  We have gone on 2 diving trips and 1 fishing trip so far.

On our 1st diving trip, Dan/Vicky/Kids stayed on the boat, while Russell/Kim/Revil and I went on a drift dive.  The current was fairly strong so we glided across the sea floor viewing beautiful coral, sea fans, and fish for probably a 1/2 of  mile.  Vicky and the kids snorkeled on the surface, while holding onto a line that Dan had placed in the water.

Vicky/Alex/Drew snorkeling behind the boat -

On the 2nd day, Dan was able to dive with Russell and I.  I was in charge of the GoPro.  I took my job seriously with only a couple selfies to claim.  Once I figure out how to edit and post, I will.

As with most evenings, we were blessed with a beautiful sunset.

We enjoyed our last morning in the cove by taking Sydney for a walk on the beach and stopping by the local restaurant (Aquaholic) for breakfast.

 In the afternoon, we headed to the Highbourne Marina for a couple of days.  The marina is very nice, with some very large yachts surrounding us.

We headed out on Monday to try our 1st hand at fishing.  Dan/Russell/Revil/Kim and I went out early in the morning to see if we could catch some dinner. The conditions were less than ideal.  On the other side (east of the island) of this very tranquil island, the seas were grumpy with 5-6 foot waves.  The Boston Whaler handled them well, but it didn't make for a pleasant trip.

Dan had put in a huge amount of effort to get us prepared for fishing in the Exumas.  He spent hours setting up and organizing all different kinds of fishing in different tackle boxes and strategically placing them on the boat.  He was running around like an experienced deckhand (possible new profession) rigging the lines, using the outriggers, and making sure everyone had a chance to catch a fish.

Our trip produced 3 Barracuda, 2 caught by Revil and 1 by Kim.

We (I) cleaned the fish, threw the scraps to the sharks swimming below (Dan held Sydney while she was feverishly barking), and barbecued (with charcoal on the dock) ourselves the 1st fish dinner of
the trip.  The meat was white and mild, but we seasoned it with an Achiote rub, which is a vibrant red (kinda looks like Salmon when cooked).

We are off to Shroud Cay today.  We are not sure of the internet connection there, but I will try to post again soon.

1st Exumas stop - Highbourne

After the kids went to play in the Atlantis water park and  Dan, Sydney and I went into town to get a couple of supplies, we left for our next stop.  The ride to Highbourne was a bit rougher than we expected.  We, on our very tall boat, was getting spray on the upper deck, while the Boston Whaler was giving Kim and Revil a week’s worth of exercise because of the excess bouncing around they endured in the decent size seas.  We arrived in a larger cove around 5PM and set our anchors.  Both Dan and Russell dove the anchors to make sure we were set properly.  Dan couldn’t resist taking a “selfie” with his new beloved stabilizers.  He has been waiting to see the “best boat investment” of all times in the clear waters of the Exumas.

Dan taking a selfie -

We all jumped into the water and hung out for the next couple of hours while a pair of strings rays circled below us on the ocean floor.

We finally got our rest day and enjoyed the beautiful white sandy beaches of the cove, after visiting Allen's Island with the Iguanas and looking for coral heads to dive and fish the next day.

Kim and Revil enjoying themselves at the beach -

The winds have been pretty strong and our anchorage has held well, but is producing quite a bit of movement within the boat.  

Sydney trying to control her hair in the wind - 

You kind of learn to do things on the swell. Last night, I was frying tortillas and I was watching the oil slosh back and forth.  It made for quite the interesting cooking experience.  While eating - we played, catch the glass and plates when they slid on the table.  All in all - this is a great location - especially the beautiful waters we have called home for the last couple of nights.

To Nassau

We headed out at sunrise the next morning for our 2^nd to longest trek to Nassau.  Once again, the weather and seas were great.  We start the trip and left Aquaholic and the Boston Whaler behind fueling.  They caught up to us about 3 hours later, as both of those boats travel much better at higher speeds.  We finished the trip together and arrived at the Atlantis resort around 3PM.  

We headed off to the water park at the resort to walk around and find a couple of water slides to go on.  Alex wanted to go on the lazy "rapid" river, while Drew insisted we all go down a pretty steep slide – to his humor, we all made a big splash at the end.

Once again, the weather window looked much better to travel to the Exumas on Thursday, so we planned to leave around 1PM.  At this point, we are all ready for a day or so of rest. We have been on the run since Sunday.  We are planning to stay “on the hook” for 3 days outside of Highbourne and go to the Marina for a couple after that.

Off to Bimini

Our 71 mile Bimini trek was smooth and uneventful.  We left about 10AM when the tide was high enough to leave the very shallow Key Largo marina channel.  Revil and Kim lead us out looking for boulders or anything else that might be in our way.  The draft of Summer Chaser is 4.5 feet and every inch counted as we departed about an hour after low tide. We had less than a foot of water below the boat on that departure - which was a bit nerve wrecking.  The Gulf Stream was great and glassy in many spots.  We arrived to the beautiful waters of  Bimini.

Entering Bimini harbor -

After a quick wash down and clearing immigration and customs, we headed to a local shack (it really was a shack) to eat some fresh conch salad and enjoy a couple cold beers. 

All of us enjoying a cold Kalik beer -

Drew and Alex (Russell and Vicky’s kids) stayed on the dock almost the entire time, with the guy who cleaned the conch.  They begged him to eat the pistol from the still alive conch.  The pistol is a clear noodle thing that get extracted from the body. I didn't want to ask what it was after eating it, but it wasn't that bad - just a bit fishy.

Drew and Alex with the conch guy -

We are off to Nassau on Wednesday because the weather/sea look good.

Exumas 2015 vacation begins!!

Our trip began with a sunrise departure from Marco Island to Key Largo.  The trip down and around (130 miles) was long, but beautiful.  The weather and water conditions were virtually perfect for the longest trek of our trip.  Our “flotilla” consisted of our boat leading, Aquaholic (Russell and Vicky’s boat), then the Boston Whaler (aka Bliksem) driven by Revil and Kim (good friends from South Africa).  

We arrived at the Ocean Reef marina about 4PM and enjoyed a fun filled evening of  “fireball”, chatting and dancing.

On Monday, we headed towards Bimini, our 1^st Bahamas stop, and had to turn back about 5 miles into the trip because of an issue with our stabilizer (new fins we had installed under the boat to limit the rocking/rolling of the boat while underway).  One of the fins ceased in a fully extended position which made our boat list hard to the port.  We limped back to another marina and Dan spent several hours on the phone with the technical support folks and fixed the issue.   Our ceased stabilizers was joined by the master bedroom A/C breaking, and the boat taking on water....good times!!

We will try again on Tuesday morning, as the weather looks good and calm.  We need to be a bit more mindful of the weather because of the Boston Whaler, as she is much more prone to the effects of the weather conditions.  But don’t worry, we have provided Revil and Kim rain coats for their Whaler responsibilities…lol.  As Russell/Vicky/Kids enjoy air conditioned driving conditions and Dan and I enjoy lounging about during our travels, Revil and Kim are braving the elements of the open ocean in the 27’ boat.

Preparing for our Exumas 2015 Vacation

Preparation for our Exumas trip has been underway for a good part of a month.  With a bit more time on our hands, we have been working almost daily to prepare the boat and the provisions (food/drink) for our roughly 7 week vacation.  Dan has been working diligently on getting both boats (Summer Chaser and the Boston Whaler) ready with lists and lists of things to do and fix, while I was preparing the storage and provisioning for our multi-week adventure.

Dan has been diligently preparing Summer Chaser and the many item, never ending, pocket draining, “fix it” list.  It seems that having a boat sit idle for 6 months adds to the list.  This year, we decided to bring our 27’ Boston Whaler to take advantage of the deep sea fishing the Bahamas has to offer, along with expanding our ability to dive in better locations.

I have been working hard, with Vicky, our South African friends from the “far canal” who will be joining us on this adventure, to plan meals and drinks for our 56-ish days at sea.  Meal planning was a bit difficult because we had to plan for fluctuating guest quantities, kids, and most important, making sure we are eating good food along the way.  Beverage consumption was prepared and managed by spreadsheet with over 47 cases (24 cans in a case) of beer being brought aboard along with 21 1.75 bottles (aka Chunky China’s - our SA friends call them) of liquor for our variety of tropical evening cocktails.  With 4 trips to Costco, 3 to Walmart, and a couple to the store, we have logged many hours of shopping displeasure.

We are ready to head out on Sunday, June 7^th in the morning.  Wish us luck.