RUNNING ALONG SIDE THE DOLPHINS

1400 hours, May 26, 2015, Huckins Marine Jacksonville, Florida: Arrived at Huckins Marine.

The most exciting part of our trip from Palm Beach had been watching Jackie chase around the boat, at first searching for her dolphin friends, then watching them jump along side when they arrived, which they did several times. She would stick her head through the stainless steel line port cleats, and jump up and down along the solid railing so she could see the dolphins on the other side. She would lay on the pilot house floor waiting. As soon as she would hear a splash, or any noise like a splash resulting from the dolphins landing from a jump, she would race out the door and investigate on both sides of boat. She was as much fun watching as the dolphins jumping.

We stopped for the first time in Fort Pierce. We couldn't get our new alternators to charge the batteries. On the way to Fort Pierce we were on the line with both our engine mechanic and our electronic guy to try and figure what was going on. Our mechanic drove up to solve the problem. It turns out the alternators his assistant installed were wired differently than the previously alternators, and required some additional wiring on the boat to compensate. Once working the alternators handled the full load of the inverter so we do not have to run the generators underway except to cook or run the AC.

The Fort Pierce Marina is located next to the Town Center. There are two restaurants on site, and other conveniences adjacent to the marina in the renovated down town area.  We would stop again.

Our plan was to leave the boat in Jacksonville for two weeks while we caught up with things in California. We had left varnish work on the interior and exterior to be done along with warranty work on the electronics and a few other repairs to be preformed during this time. The varnish work was to be done by an in yard contractor who had worked with Huckins for over 20 years. The problem was, the in yard contractor had gone fishing and continued to extend his fishing trip day by day for the entire time we were gone. This left an assistant to do the exterior varnish work I had scheduled three months earlier, and no one to do the interior varnish. We also had our DC fresh water pump, which we had just found out was not working, replaced. They replaced the pump with all the controls facing outboard so we need a mirror to make the pump function. While in the Yard I also discovered they had installed the port engine through hull valve they had replaced on the previous trip to the yard, backwards and it could not be closed. And most infuriating, although they included deck protection on their estimate, they failed to install any. Most took their shoes off at the dock. But, as I saw the Yard Forman do, others looking for a part or tool,  walked a cross the filthy Yard in their bare feet and returned to deposit on our boat, the oil and grease they had collected on their feet.  They did not clean it all up with a rushed wash down preformed at the last minute.  After progressively using harsher and harsher products it finally took acetone, with a signifiant reduction in the life of my deck paint. I have still not been able to get the dripped varnish off the deck paint.

Fortunately the electronics warranty work was completed on schedule. 

            This is the same yard that built my flawless one off hard top a year in a half earlier.

 Unfortunately they lost the long time employee who was responsible for this flawless work. 

                                                  Busting through our Wake

                                                  Swimming Along Side

                                                  Twisting in the Air

                                                  Giving us the Eye

                                                  Looking for Dolphins

                                                  Watching the Show

                                                  Fort Pierce 6:00 am

                                                   In Huckins Varnish Shed

                                                   Dinner in a Street Cafe in Hip Avondale

                                                     

BACK TO FLORIDA

1500 hours, May 12, 2015, North Palm Beach Florida: We arrived in North Palm Beach, Florida. As we arrived two days earlier than we had planned Old Port Cove Did not have a slip for us and put us in their sister Marina, North Palm Beach Marina. 

We stayed in the marina until May 23rd. During this time we had the windless serviced which included replacing the hydraulic lines from under the forward cabin to the windless, repaired a leak in the hydraulic lines for the steering, replaced an electronic panel in the starboard generator, change to the oil in the mains and the generators, replaced the forward engine mounts on both generators, replaced both alternators on the main engines, replaced seals that were causing oil leaks on both generators, repaired two leaks in the freshwater plumbing, replaced two internal fans in the inverter/charger, replaced the starboard generator starting battery, detailed and waxed the exterior, repainted the swim platform and cleaned the stainless swim ladder, restrained the teak swim platform and side rub rail teak, replaced the two lines for our anchor snubber, spliced the 250 ft of 1" anchor line we had aboard into the anchor rode on the Bruce, second anchor (giving us 350 ft on both anchor rodes), and replaced our primary dock lines. 

                                          North Palm Beach Marina

                                                  Reflections of the Fishing Fleet

CELEBRATING A WIN

1000 hours May 6, 2015, Big Majors Spot, Exumas, Bahamas: We headed north to Highborne Cay to spend the night in route to Atlantis. We expected a decision from the Arbitrator on a very significant arbitration on the night of May 8th. This arbitration had consumed most of my time through the end of November last year including nearly 100 days in front of the arbitrator during a period lasting over a year, as well as 9 months before that in preparation. Being a glass half full guy and being on the side of right, as well as having a great legal team who did an outstanding job, I was hopeful we would win and wanted to be where we could celebrate it. That meant Atlantis in the part of the world we were in at the time. 

At Highborne Cay we saw some of the same large dark brown mother sharks we had seen at Staniel Cay.  Although they are reported to be friendly, we decided not to go swimming even though it was very hot. 

We arrived at the super yacht basin in the center of the Atlantis complex just after noon the next day. The yacht basin is surrounded by the elaborate architecture of the casino on one side, a downtown Disney like pedestrian street of shops and restaurants open on one side to the yacht basin, and Atlantis timeshare residential units in four story buildings painted Caribbean pastels colors on the other side. To connect the complex a driving tunnel runs under the the entrance channel to the basin, allowing the basin to be located in the geographical center of the Resort. 

Dockage for the large super yachts is arranged mostly med moored against quay walls backed up to casino and the shops and restaurants. Boats our size are berthed in finger piers in front of the time share buildings. 

Jackie and I were on our evening walk along side the timeshare pool and the channel to the yacht basin, when I received a call from our lead lawyer who told me we had won. We had not only won we had won 93% of what we had asked for and had been designated the prevailing party, which met we should get reimbursed for our significant attorney fees. 

We celebrated the next day in The Cove  section of Atlantis with its adults only pool surrounded on most of three sides by cabanas which open to the pool on one side and the beach on the other. We had a great dinner at the Mesa, one of the three restaurants in The Cove.

                                          Atlantis

                                          Toys in the Atlantis Basin

                                          One of many Pools at Atlantis

                                          The Cove at Atlantis

                                          Adult Pool at the Cove

                                          Cabana at the Cove

                                          Dinner at the Cove Mesa Restaurant

                                          Casino at Atlantis

                                          Atlantis Dock

                                          Retail at edge of Docks

                                          Atlantis from Yacht Basin

                                                   Jackie at Atlantis Docks

SWIMMING PIGS

0600 hours, May 1, 2015, Elizabeth Harbour, Great Exuma Island, Bahamas: we made our way through the north entrance to Elizabeth Harbour and headed north for fuel at Emerald Bay Resort. The Marina at Emerald Bay is nice, and expensive. Further, the main attraction is the Resort, and as it's all exclusive it's $125 per day per person. This is daytime only. Another fee for the evening. However those who I have talked with who have been there, love it. 

After fueling we headed further north to see the Pigs at Big Major's Spot. As we entered Dothan Cut from Exuma Sound to the Bank, we were hit with a down pour with near zero visibility. Fortunately we were through the narrow cut when the worst hit. We found a spot to anchor toward the north end of the anchorage near Fowl Cay, where we stayed for six days. 

This is one of our favorite places in the Exumas. Besides the swimming pigs, which Jackie gets really excited about ( we keep a short leash on her so she doesn't become their lunch), their are many islands and beaches to explore by dingy, and reefs to snorkel, a great restaurant at the boutique Fowl Cay a Resort, a restaurant and bar at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club, and a grocery store not far from the Yacht Club. 

Big Majors has good protection from everything but the west. Chris Parker had warned us that a storm was forming off Cuba and would hit us from the west two days into our intended stay. Their are very few places in the Exumas with 360 protection from a passing storm. As the storm was predicted to pass quickly we decided to ride it out with 70 plus boats also in the cove. The Storm, was later designed Tropical Storm Ana. The storm passed mid morning with gusts of 45 mph. We helplessly watched a couple in a 40 ft plus sloop who's anchor was dragging have to raise the anchor and reset it in the middle of the storm with driving rain. If they had not reacted they would have been washed ashore on the rocks only a couple hundred feet behind them. 

Two weeks later we were docked behind a 55 ft Nordhavn in Palm Beach that had rode Ana out next to us. Aboard for the storm was the captain and his first mate wife. The owners had flown from Staniel Cay to Nassau the day before to ride the storm out the storm at the Atlantis. 

                                          Sea Plane Landing in Big Major's Cove

                                          8ft Mother Shark off Staniel Cay

                                          Bat Ray at Staniel Cay

                                          Swimming Pigs

                                          Looking for Lunch

                                          Swimming Babies    

                                          Hitch Hiker

                                          Tropical Storm Ana on Radar

                                          45mph Winds Tropical Storm Ana

                                                  Sunset After Tropical Storm Ana

GEORGE TOWN SECOND VISIT

1100 hours, April 26, 2015, Elizabeth Harbour, Great Exuma Island, Bahamas: We entered the north entrance to the harbor and made our way down toward George Town. The day before we arrived was the last day of a local sailing regatta and the Harbor was packed. We found a spot just south of the Holes at Stocking Island, where we stayed for 5 days.

The hub of cruising activity in George Town is Stocking Island and Chat &Chill Beach at the south entrance to the three holes. At the entrance between holes #1 & #2 is St. Francis Marina (one dock, two side ties) and restaurant. Stocking Island has several great beaches on both the Harbor and Atlantic sides. George Town is not much of a town but does have a large grocery store and beverage store.  The Harbor offers 360 degree protection and can accommodate a huge number of vessels. And, there is a commercial airport with frequent flights. On the down side the town lacks the charm of Hope Town, or the resources of Marsh Harbour in the Abacos which also has a commercial airfield with frequent flights. For those of us who watch some TV, it's just out of range of the US satellites which we can get further north in the Exumas, and not in range of the South American satellite. As such we would not want to stay all season as many do.

                                          Chat and Chill Grill

                                          Chat and Chill Beach

                                          Bridge to Lake Victoria

                                          Beach and Reef on East Side of Stocking Island

                                          Beach on West Side of Stocking Island

                                          Restaurant at St. Francis Marina

                                          Church in George Town

REFLECTIONS AT SUNRISE

1130 April 24, 2015, Provinciales, Turks and Cacios: We cast off the dock at Blue Haven and steered through the inlet in the reef identified by channel markers on steel posts. Almost immediately on the Atlantic side of the reef the bottom dropped 3,000 feet. We set a course for Abraham's Bay on Mayaguana, 40 nm to our west. The sun was bright and seas were 2 to 3 feet from the east. 

As we approached Abraham's Bay we could see both visually, and and on our chart plotter a boat with AIS, entering through the unmarked reef and maneuvering around coral heads. Although visibility was acceptable to work our way through obstacles we wanted to get underway at 0400 the next morning and did not want to be faced with this obstacle trap in the dark. We headed further west to Davies, a lee anchorage we had used on our trip south.  As we had experienced in December this anchorage was rolly so we deployed our rocker stoppers which brought the boat back to an acceptable roll. 

The sun rose the next morning about an hour north of Mayaguana.  The sky was brilliant red reflecting off the mirror like windless ocean. The mirror like condition stayed with us for about three hours. The wind did not raise above 5 nmph, nor the seas above 6 inches all day. 

Our 120 nm passage ended in the Bay at Port Nelson, Rum Cay. The next morning we headed for George Town. 

                                          Reflections Before Sunrise

                                          Close Up Of Reflections Before Sunrise

                                          Close Up Of Reflections At Sunrise

                                          Reflections At Sunrise

                                          Velvet Wake

                                                  First Sign Of Wind On Our Velvet Wake  

INSIDE THE REEF AND ON THE BANK

1030 hours, April 21st, 2015, Blue Haven Resort, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos: Jackie and I headed off to explore by dinghy. 

Inside the reef on the ocean side we first went south west and saw from the water many of the resorts we had seen earlier from the land.  Going north east from the inlet we saw beautiful beach after beach with no one on them. Jackie and I stopped to go ashore on one gorgeous beach not far from where the A was anchored just outside the reef. The power white sand which turned pink at the water line like the sand on Barbuda, the turquoise water and the weathered rock behind the beach, were all magnificent. Jackie, as she always does when she has her own beach, ran in circles in and out of the water. 

We next went to the Bank and followed another dinghy to a grounded shipwreck a little over a mile offshore. Others had climbed aboard and were exploring. We decided to leave this adventure to our next trip to the Turks and Caicos. 

                                           Our Beach

                                           Jackie's Beach

                                           Weathered Rock

                                           View Of The A

                                           Pink Sand

                                          A Grounded Wreck

                                                  A Grounded Wreck