Green Turtle Cay to Treasure Cay to Marsh Harbor

We left Green Turtle Cay on Friday morning and attempted to fish our way to Treasure Cay.  We saw several birds, several weed lines, even jumping Tuna behind the boat.  Nothing, not one fish, not one hit.  What we did get was an awesome Dolphin show though, which made our fishing expedition worth it!

We made our way to Treasure Cay for 2 nights.  Treasure Cay is a resort town which is made up of condos, houses, including the resort/marina. There is no real settlement to see or walk around, so we attempted to get some exercise by renting a couple bikes to ride around the community.  About 20 minutes into our ride, the skies opened and didn’t stop pouring for 2 hours.  We hid under some palm trees in a random yard for 20 minutes before we decided to return back to the resort.

I wore a bathing suit on the bike ride just in case we wanted to take a swim in the ocean.  Apparently my afternoon of water came from above (the sky) not below (the ocean). 

After the rain stopped we took a walk around the docks and met “Tony the Tiger” who sold us Stone Crab claws, lobster tails, 5 lbs. of Grouper, and 5 lbs. of Hogfish.  Who needs to catch fish when “Tony the Tiger” sells Grrrreat fish right on the dock!!!  Yes, he did say that!  I’m glad we brought our vacuum sealer from home! 

The next morning I used some of that “Grrrreat” lobster and some left over filet to make Surf and Turf Benedict – one of Dan’s favorites.

We left for Marsh Harbor the following morning to provision, fix the toilet issues, and have someone look at the oil leaking dingy.  Once again, the sunrise didn’t disappoint.

We stayed at the Abacos Beach Resort, which is about a mile from town.  When we arrived, we called all of the vendors that we needed help from and begged/pleaded to get someone to work on our issues during our short stay.  We lucked out with the dingy repair company, as they had 2 cancellations while I was standing in front of them with a “please help me” face, when our phone call didn’t work. 

We rented some bikes (with baskets) and rode them to the market, hardware store, marine store, and the random Asian market we passed by on the way.  You know, when in the Bahamas, you have to stop by the token Asian market.  The market was no larger than a 10 x 10 room fully stocked with random Asian goodies (including souvenirs, DVDs, and paintings).  Their freezer was full of homemade Asian/Thai food that the owner's wife prepared.  Of course, we had to buy some pork spring rolls, homemade papaya hot sauce, and some other random items I can’t get in/around Marco.  We went back to the boat and cooked the spring rolls, which were delicious.  I was glad we bought 2 packs.

Dan and I “fixed” our toilet issue – we think (cross our fingers) – and canceled that repairman.  We blew and sucked air through the vent lines (with a vacuum) and emptied the carbon filter.  If there was a blockage, we must have dislodged it.  If not, the smell will rear its ugly head again in the near future.

We proceeded to spend the next couple of days cleaning the boat, doing other random projects that we had put off, and rest by the pool. We biked to the market 3 times, as we waited for the mail boat to bring provisions from the mainland.  It is surprising how even Marsh Harbor, which is considered a large city, depends on the mail boats and their supplies.  The market was sparse of stable foods such as bread, milk, eggs, fruit and veggies.  We didn’t have to go 3 times, but it was a good excuse to get out and stretch our legs. 

Wendy and Greg joined us Thursday morning and we headed to Elbow Cay (Seaspray Resort and Marina) for 3 days.  Dan has been wanting to go to the Cracker P’s Full Moon party since we started planning the trip.  The party didn’t disappoint.  This little bar on the hillside of Lubber Cay was packed full of fun people, good food, and great “Shotgun” rum drinks!  Fun was had by all.  We navigated back to the boat in the dingy, using that full moon we just got done celebrating!  Good times!!!

Powell Cay to Green Turtle

We arrived in our next anchorage, Powell Cay, around 12 PM.  We had a little less than 1/3 of a tank of water left, giving us just enough water for a 2 night stay.  It was an absolutely beautiful day to take the dingy around the island to look for the perfect spot to enjoy the afternoon.  The water in this cove was beautiful. 

In our prior trip to the Abacos, this is the location where, during a large storm, we drug our anchor when a squall came through.  This time, with the sun shining bright, we were able to pick our anchor dropping point more carefully.

After lower the dingy and getting ourselves ready for a wonderful afternoon, I noticed a rather strong holding tank (sewage) smell coming from our hallway, when our front head (toilet) was flushed.   When we opened the access hatch in the wall where the vent is located, the unmuted smell was pungent.  We proceeded to spend the next 2 hours, of this very beautiful day, trying to troubleshoot and fix the smell in the boat – to no avail.  When we finally decided to stop and schedule ourselves an appointment in March Harbor for someone to fix it, I took a quick glance at the water gauge and saw we were almost empty.  Did we leave a water tap on?  Did we accidentally use fresh water when trying to flush the sewage system? Do we have a water leak somewhere in the boat?  All I know is that we are now almost out of water and cannot stay in this anchorage.   We decided to go to the nearest inhabited island and fill up with water.  We put the dingy back up on the boat (which is about a 20 minute process), picked up anchor, traveled 45 minutes to Spanish Cay, added 149 gallons of water to the boat, traveled 45 minutes back to our anchorage, dropped/set the anchor again, and dropped the dingy back in the water (well over 3 hours).  

Needless to say, between the sewage issue and water issue, our beautiful afternoon was wasted (literally....with waste and wasted water).   Please note, we only added 149 gallons of water to the boat.  We have a 200 gallon tank.  We found the water issue...a faulty gauge.  We didn’t really have to go and add more water, it was in the tanks the whole time.  There was no leak, no faucet left on, no accidental misuse of fresh vs. salt water.

We took a quick dingy ride, let Sydney run on the beach, then enjoyed the sunset, some appetizers and a much needed cocktail (after the generator issue the night before).  Sydney wasn't very happy how we spent the day either.

The next morning, we headed out to enjoy the beautiful day that we hoped for the day before.  We were not disappointed.  We found a beautiful small island right behind Powell Cay that had crystal clear water, a nice sandy beach, and some stunning rock formations.  We spent the afternoon on this secluded little island enjoying what makes the Abacos so wonderful.

We reluctantly left our private paradise, stopped by a wreck where Dan speared a couple more snappers for ceviche (we had run out), and went back to the boat.  Sydney was absolutely exhausted from all of the fun of the day.

The next morning, we proceeded to Turtle Cay, our first marina in 6 days.  I was finally able to do some washing, give the boat a good cleaning and enjoy a relaxing shower.  We enjoyed some happy hour rum cocktails at the marina bar, then headed over to the settlement for dinner via the dingy.  The last time we were here, we found this, for the lack of a better word, dive bar/shack on the water’s edge that served cold beer and was a great place to view good sunsets.  Both held true again.

We finished the night by going to Harvey’s for their Thursday special, Lobster night.  We had over 20 different preparations to choose from.  It was delicious.  More importantly, I didn’t have to cook/serve/cleanup after dinner for the first time since we left Florida. We headed back to the boat in the dark, navigating by moonlight and channel markers. 

The next day, Dan and I walked to the beach on the east side of the island and stopped by the farmer’s market next to the marina.  The owner cut a fresh head of lettuce right from the pot for me to take.  I’ve never had such fresh lettuce in my life.

Angel Fish Point/Crab Cay

We headed approximately 50 miles south to our next destination, Angel Fish Point/Crab Cay.  Instead of traveling on the inside of the scatter islands, we hopped over to the ocean side to do some trolling on the way down.   We put all 3 rods in the water with a mixed allotment of lures and bait (cedar plug, ballyhoo with color skirts, and just a straight Mahi Mahi jig).  We trolled for 4 hours with no hits or catches.  We brought all of the lines back in, as one of the two opportunities to cut back over to the island side (because of the reef) was upon us.  Dan then decided to enter the southern cut instead of the northern cut because trying to navigate through the spotted coral heads would have been challenging.  This added another hour to our trip so he put the rods back in the water. 

Because I am always attentive, I sat back with rods while he drove (inside with A/C, sitting/laying on the couch with the door cracked so I could hear the reel spooling).  Just as my eyes closed for a quick nap, one of the lines hit.  I jumped up, yelled “fish on”, Dan slowed the boat to idle, put it in auto pilot and came back to reel in the other line.  I reeled up a small Wahoo (4 decent size filet).  I was so happy to catch it, I forgot to take a picture. 

Once we arrived to Angel Fish Point/Crab Cay, we anchored, Dan dove the anchor to make sure it was secure, I watched a uTube video of how to clean a Wahoo, and proceeded to clean the fish while he rinsed down the boat. We enjoyed the Wahoo for dinner that night.  The next day, I made the rest into a fish dip/spread.  Both were delicious. (Dan diving the anchor)

We spent two nights in Angel Fish Cay, a small, well protected cove in central Abacos.  The first night we were alone, the second night three other boats joined us.  

We spent Monday fishing a wreck in the back waters, where Dan speared two fish and I caught one.  Sydney, of course, “has to” go fishing with us.  She goes crazy and tries to bite each fish that comes on-board, then stares and barks into the bucket until I yell at her to stop. (Sydney waiting patiently to go fishing)

We spent part of the afternoon sitting in the crystal clear water off of a rocky beach and enjoying the last sunset in this location.

After dinner, Dan noticed the generator running hot.  He turned it off, checked and emptied the strainer that was filled with sea grass, and started it back up again.  It continued to get even hotter.  So we again, turned it off and he started down a “troubleshooting path”.  If you know Dan, he spent his career around computers and IT.  His mindset when dealing with almost any issue/task is to troubleshoot/think step by step, from easiest to hardest, what could be causing the issue at hand.  Boating is no different.  After checking the “easy” stuff, he moved on to check/replace the impeller, which was fine.  Again, turned the generator back on and the temp went up another 20 degrees (over 200).  Dan believed that the sea-cock (mechanism that allows water to come into the boat to cool the generator) malfunctioned, as he was able to move a normally stiff valve almost freely and when the sea strainer cap was opened, no water came in.  It was either a massive blockage and/or the sea-cock broke in the closed position.  The only thing left for Dan to do was to dive the boat, check for a blockage and see if he could manually open the seacock from underneath.  If that didn’t work, we would have to take the boat 50 miles to the nearest hauling yard to get the issue addressed, as we aren’t able to run the generator without this cooling water flow.  After a couple of hours of trying to fix it, we decided turn in for the evening with no generator (meaning - no AC and limited power for the freezers/frigs, etc).  Those brand new/heavy batteries I helped Dan install before we left, saved our food.  The inverter batteries gave us, collectively, over 8 hours of power to keep our refrigerator and freezers going until 4:40 AM when I heard the boat go completely silent.

 

I slept on the couch next to the door and Dan slept outside of the front bench, as it was too warm to sleep downstairs. Thank goodness for a decent breeze and bug repellent wipes.

We both got up around 5:30 AM, talked about our options and waited for the sun to rise enough for Dan to dive the boat. By 6:15 AM (pre-dawn) there was enough light to go in.  He went down with a screw driver, flashlight (in a water sealed bag), a wire hanger, and a canister of spare air (super mini scuba tank that gives him about 30-40 breathes). He discovered that the through hole was in fact jammed with sea grass and the sea-cock was stuck open, not closed.  Being stuck open is good to run the generator, but not so good if something fails inside of the engine room and we are not able to close it (we could sink if we can’t close this hole in case of an emergency).  The likelihood of that happening is very low, but still possible.    After about an hour, he was able to dislodge the blockage from both underneath and inside of the boat and the generator was again running at a normal temperature.   Dan’s patience, troubleshooting skills, and step by step logical solution seeking skills, fixed our issue.  Once again, I am truly impressed.

While he was fixing our vacation altering problems, I was handing him tools and taking sunrise pictures.  Our next stop will be Powell Cay, which is about 9 miles away.

From West End to Carter’s Cay

Our full day in West End was spent, for the most part, relaxing after 3 solid days of traveling.  Sydney was happy as she got off the boat, went on multiple walks, went for a swim in the ocean, and lounged by the pool.

 

We spent our afternoon poolside relaxing in some lounge chairs, enjoying a couple beers, and eating the famous cracked conch sandwich and fresh conch fritters this area is known for.

We woke up early the next morning still deciding where we wanted to go next (first world problems).  Sydney and I walked back to the beach to see the sunrise, packed up, filled the boat with as much water as we could (as we intend to be on anchor for the next several days) and decided to head to Carter’s Cay.

We spent the first couple of hours traveling with 3 feet of water underneath our keel, then the next several hours with 8-11 feet under our keel which made us a bit more comfortable.  The water was crystal clear and like glass for the entire trip to Carter’s Cay.  

Entry into Carter’s Cay was a bit sketchy.  Dan carefully navigated a narrow path that gave us less than 1.5 feet of clearance under our keel.  Once we got into this protected inlet, we set anchor in about 12 feet of water in between 4 non-occupied Bahamian boats.  Carter’s Cay is an uninhabited island that used to have a US missile tracking station on it.  Now it is used by local fisherman during lobster season as a place to sleep and rest during season.  No one was on the island, that we could tell.

There was a wreck about 100 yards east of us that was full of snappers and lobster.  This boat must have broken anchor at some point and drifted into this very shallow area.  Dan went for a quick snorkel while Sydney and I waited on the dingy.  A large sting ray decided to join him (large dark object in the 3rd picture).

We took a tour around the island on the dingy then returned back for an unbelievably peaceful evening, as we were the only ones in the inlet.  Summer Chaser was situated perfectly in the counter current, meaning the boat wasn’t affected by the rapid current that was about 20 yards west of us.  Being in the counter currently significantly reduces the stress on the anchor when the tidal flow changes.

The next morning, after addressing an A/C pump issue, we took some fishing rods out in the dingy to see if we could catch some fish for an appetizer or dinner.  We caught several snappers and 1 small grouper which served it’s purpose and provided us enough ceviche for 2 days.  We enjoyed the ceviche with a  blueberry/jalapeño margarita as our late afternoon snack.

As usual, I woke up around 3 AM to take Sydney for a quick pee on her patch of grass in the back of the boat. The sky was so clear and the water so calm, we could see the stars reflecting like lights in the water.  I wish my camera could have caught this never before seen (by me) view of the stars.

I woke the next morning, enjoyed the sunrise (because that’s what I do) and prepared the boat to head to Angel Fish Cay (pictures are of sunrise and in the opposite direction - both beautiful).

West End – here we come (again)!

We woke at 5 AM to check the engines and empty the sea strainers (wire baskets that catch debris before the water gets pushed into the engines to cool them).  By “we” I mean Dan.  I took Sydney for a potty walk, secured the lose items in the boat, and prepared the interior/exterior for the crossing – you know, 1^st Mate problems….LOL. 

We left the dock at 6 AM thinking that the weather was going to progressively get worse.  The trip started with thunderheads in our path, as the sun tried to peak up through some clouds a bit north of us (wasn’t a successful sunrise).   

The 1^st hour of our trip was rough (stabilizers were working extra hard) and we questioned if we wanted to endure the pounding for 7 hours.  We entered the gulf stream about 8 miles off the coast (30-50 mile wide section of the Atlantic that runs south to north with the current flowing 3-4 knots) which is known to be treacherous at times depending on swell height, wind speed, and wind direction (i.e. the reason for the stabilizers back in 2013). The gulf stream and remainder of the trip was surprisingly calm, which is the opposite of what we have experienced in the past, likely because the wind and swells were going in the same direction.  We decided to cross to Bahamas at our slow speed (9-10 knots) which gave us an opportunity to put out a couple trolling lines to see if we could catch some Tuna or Mahi Mahi.  Summer Chaser is not a fishing boat, but, with some Dan ingenuity, we pretended.

A Mahi Mahi did hit a line within about 30 minutes, but I lost it when it was about 10 feet from the boat.  Something else hit as we were bringing the lines in for the day.  The disappointment of having chicken for dinner set in!!  We arrived to the marina in West End (Old Bahamas Bay) about 2 PM, settled into our slip, Dan passed us through immigration/customs and I started washing the boat after 3 days of salty travel (First Mate duties, again).  It was nice to finally sit down and relax after a long 3 full days of travel knowing that we were staying for a couple nights. 

The highlight of the day was getting scorched conch (conch salad with habaneros) from a vendor next to immigration (appetizer) and some cinnamon raisin bread (dessert) from a local woman.  Both delicious!

…and away we go! Goodbye Marco!

We initially wanted to head through Lake Okeechobee to get to the other side of Florida, but one of the locks is closed for repair, which won’t allow us to pass through.  Our only choice was to go south to Key Largo and come back north up the coast to make the crossing to West End (Bahamas).  On Day 1 – we left at 6:30 AM (planned departure was 4:30 AM but a thunderstorm altered those plans). 

We enjoyed a beautiful sunrise over Marco (if any one follows @lorigonzalez11 on Instagram you will see my new sunrise obsession), dodged a couple thunderstorms through the Florida Bay, traveled 112 miles and arrived in Key Largo by 4:30 PM.  

We intended to travel +/- 9 knots the entire trip (good fuel consumption speed – 9-11 gallons an hour), but our late departure required us to make up the time by going faster (15-16 knots) for 4 hours (burning +/- 46 gallon an hour).

Of course, the well-organized, never-ever a half ass, “shopper” (me) forgot a couple of items.  We found ourselves needing to go to 3 different stores when we arrived in Key Largo.  You know you are in Key Largo when the Uber driver is wearing a bathing suit and tank top.

We made it back in time to enjoy our 1^st vacation cocktail and a beautiful Key Largo sunset. 

Day 2 – started early again with a 6:00 AM departure, another nice sunrise, and relatively calm seas for the morning hours.

The seas picked up in the afternoon, but the ride was OK thanks to our stabilizers.  Anyone who has followed this blog before understands my love for the stabilizers (large fins underneath the boat that significantly reduce the side to side rocking).  Our first trip to the Bahamas back in 2013 resulted in the installation of the stabilizers (either we get stabilizers or get rid of the boat).  They were put to good use today.  The US Navy was doing exercises outside of Ft. Lauderdale. We were “kindly” requested by the Navy to alter our planned path which has us arrive  to the marina by 2 PM after traveling 68 miles.

Of course, no Bahamas vacation should be without a stop in Ft. Lauderdale to enjoy a great Indian Restaurant before leaving the US (food you can’t get in Marco Island).  

We are planning to leave for West End Wednesday morning.

Bahamas (Abacos) Bound - Part Duex

Up until mid-May Dan and I had no definite plans to take Summer Chaser on an extended adventure.  All changed one afternoon when we decided that the “waterbago” sitting in our backyard needed to be used or sold (drastic I know), as we hadn’t taken a real trip in almost 2 years.  Now mind you, the boat was in full use while our friends stayed on it after Hurricane Irma, but that’s not the use we intended when we bought it.  Just like its namesake, it was intended to chase summers.

So we decided to go! Of course, making a decision to go isn’t as easy as it sounds.  One engine was overheating, our fire extinguishing system needed to be updated/replaced, the life raft needed to be serviced and re-certified, we needed to replace 4 major batteries (over 160 pounds each), address an electrical issue with our inverter, change/update/install new engine monitoring electronics, provision (food, supplies, libations) needed to be planned for, routes needed to be calculated and mapped out and too MANY more little projects to mention.  The list gets long when the boat hasn’t been truly used in 2 years.  Several common boating phrases come to mind - …”it’s better to have friends with boats rather to own your own boat”... and…BOAT stands for “bring out another thousand”…  both hold true.

It took 3 weeks and 2 different mechanics for someone to come out, diagnose and fix the overheat engine issue, which gave us enough time to get the other issues and projects fixed/addressed.  Dan did the vast majority of the work himself, even trying to help diagnose the overheat issue before the 2^nd mechanic arrived (which helped prepare him for what he needed to do) – I helped by handing Dan tools.  Thanks to a friend (Trevor) of friends (Steve/Dylan), we were able to have someone come out a bit sooner and provide us the quick fix we needed.  

In the meantime, Dan replaced all the batteries and connections – I helped lower them into the engine room, he did some electrical work on the inverter - I watched over his shoulder and asked “Lori” type questions, he changed and mounted all the new electronics - while I held the vacuum (thanks to Tiger for helping us with the cut outs), and he did most everything else to prepare the boat for the trip.  I went shopping…LOL (I organized, setup and prepared the boat to be lived on for 5-6 weeks).  On Sunday night at 10 PM we were ready for a Monday, June 11 departure!