No, I am not trying to consolidate days; it’s just that this day started at 6:30 am and ended at 9:30 am the next day. The goal today was to get out on the banks and according to the weather; the winds were to subside near evening. We motored out of West Bay, and even before we hit the outside, there was a swell running into the bay. Even the reef near the entrance of the bay had waves breaking on it. Once outside we found that there was indeed a swell, but it was not until we were 3 to 5 miles from the bay did we get the true effect. The waves were about 3 to 5 feet, but I set a course so that they were again on our stern, and we consistently hit 7.5 knots (max of 9 knots) surfing down the waves. After about 5 hours of surfing, we were out of the main fetch of the swell.
Initially, we were going to stop at Chub Cay, but we hit that point around 1:30, way too early to throw out the anchor, so onward to the Northwestern Channel light. At that point we turned west and headed out over the banks. We were now waiting for the winds to subside so that we could anchor for the night. Well the winds finally let up around 8 pm. We showered and had a light dinner and I went to sleep around 8:30, only to be awakened at 11:30 with the sound of wave slap and the anchor alarm going off. After resetting the alarm and trying to get back to sleep in the salon, I realized that the freshening wind was not going to allow me to return to dreamland. So, at 12 am, we upped anchor and were off for Cat Cay.
I motor sailed by the moonlight, while Beth went back to sleep in the salon. Around 2 am I passed a couple of sailboats heading east about 1 mile off. Sailing at night is a different experience. In the moonlight, I could see the coral heads and rocks but since the depth sounder noted that we were in 12 feet of water, I felt very comfortable. I had also added several layers of clothing to my t shirt and board shorts. Even though it was in the high 60’s, I had gotten a chill after being at the helm for 5 hours.
At 5 am, I was a bit punchy and woke Beth to take over at the helm. I napped by her on deck until she came upon two more sailboats heading west. At that point I took the jib down which gave her a better view of the traffic coming at us. Around 6 am I felt better and we made the turn for Bimini. We entered Bimini around 9 am and were docked in Sea Crest marina around 9:30.
We checked in with customs as we were overdue, but they noted that there was nothing they could do to extend our stay. We noted that we were probably leaving by Sunday, which was ok. We found out that we could have gone to immigration and extended our stay when we first checked in. Lesson learned number 386!!!
After we returned to the boat, I went to sleep for about 2 hours and woke fairly refreshed. We decided to venture off to the beach for a brief walk. As we walked south to the entrance to Bimini, we noted a monohull stuck on the reef and already starting to lean with the outgoing tide. Lesson number 1 in the Bahamas, no cutting corners.
Back at the marina, showers in a bathroom were a welcomed treat, and back to the boat for grilled soy burgers. After our shower, our neighbors came back and parked their flybridge fishing boat. Then then lowered their dingy off their deck, which has an engine twice as large as ours.
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