The Pure Life

Junkanoo in Georgetown

Raken n Scrape in Georgetown

After departing ways with our friends on Livin’ Life we sailed over to Cat Island from Conception Island about 40 miles to the north. This Island is home of Father Jerome’s final resting place. He is a long story but he built all the beautiful churches on the “Far” islands in the Bahamas. We have tried to visit most of them during our travels. With the fresh south winds we made anchorage at Old Bight. It is very protected from the south winds but does have much of a settlement. The following day we made a crazy run (blowing 20 knots and choppy seas) to New Bight. Hoofing our way up to Comer Hill or the place they call Mount Alvernia where Father Jerome a.k.a. John Hawes built his hermitage. It was a very spiritual experience for us hiking up to the top going by each Station of the Cross carved out of stone and ending up at the highest point in the Bahamas where his chapel and his one room home is. We hope the pictures can do it justice or just go visit it someday. We were given a car ride to the bottom of the hill by a couple there on their honeymoon. We are always surprised how people just give each other a ride here and there with no problems. Real PUBLIC transportation.

Mount Alvernia

Hiking up Station of Cross to Mount Alvernia

Cat Island beach to ourselves

After a few days there we finally made our way in to Georgetown. We heard the Cruising Regatta was over and were hoping some of the 300 plus boats had left but because of the high winds they had delayed the race to Long Island so the armada of boats were still in the harbor. But we still found room to anchor and joined in the fun.

We played volleyball, drank lots of rum, played rummy cue, listen to rake and scrape and most of all went to the Bahamian music festival to experience the famous Bahamian Junkanoo. You can get almost anything in Georgetown by just getting on the cruisers net. We found a dingy ladder and a snubber hook. The cruisers just ask to buy or trade things they need with someone else and someone responds. We even met up with a couple that had a house on the Lake of Ozarks (small world).

Red Shanks in Georgetown

Volleyball Beach Georgetown

Boat repairs on the beach

Music outside Chat n Chill

Turtles in Red Shanks Georgetown

We also met up with our friends from last year Ron & Dee on Ursa Minor. We stayed around Georgetown for a while before we left with Ursa Minor to Lee’s Stocking Island. This place has some fabulous snorkeling and we found lots of conch to make conch salad. I have to say is a great a meal but we both have to work hard to get it on the table. Besides finding the conch then diving for it we have to crack it open to get the Conch. Michael is excellent at cracking open the shell and Cherie is great at cleaning the Conch plus preparing the salad with the secret recipe. Of coarse our friends all enjoyed eating it with us.

After snorkeling on the famous sunken piano with the mermaid resting on the bench we sailed back up to Little Farmers. The last time in Farmers we left with the ship wrecked on the rocks and now found it had been towed to Compass Island. There wasn’t another boat in sight when we arrived except our friends Ron & Dee’s. We had the entire island to our selves and it was some great weather to be there. We moved up to Oven Rock to enjoy hiking to the cave as well as more snorkeling but as always Mother Nature decided the winds must blow from the west again and we need a new anchorage for some protection.

We thought we’d make our way up to Black Point but that would be no relief from the wind so to Cambridge Cay then Warderick Wells we went. We stayed many days in the Exuma Land and Sea Park that we love so much and reunited with many old friends we have met during our travels. Lost Puppy showed up with Ian and Jennifer, Jim & Ellie on Last Tango showed up with their son, daughter-in-law and grandkids as well as Cornell and his daughter Sabrina on Sans Souci. We had happy hours on each other’s boats, a beach party and snorkeling of coarse before you always have to say goodbye to someone moving on.

This year we said we were going to sail to Norman’s Cay that we’ve passed several times and didn’t stop. Norman’s was once under the control of drug lord Carlos Lehder and you can still see the crashed airplane in the harbor. It would not disappoint on the snorkeling as well as the fishing. While sitting in Norman’s Cay we were hailed by Ian and Jennifer on Lost Puppy and they made their way there to play and have more stories over drinks on Pura Vida.

We want to be in Florida by May so that Ted Largo and his wife Deb can come down and visit us on Pura Vida so we are heading back up the Exuma chain and then on to the Berry Islands before we finally sail back to Florida. When we were making our way to Rose Island near Nassau we thought we heard a familiar hail of September Song (Stephanie and Bob). We hailed them with no response but when we texted them on the Bahamas phone we found that they would be in the Nassau when we arrived. What a great surprise since they are one of our favorite Exuma cruising couples. We had a wonderful dinner with them at the Atlantis resort.

We made it to Easter mass at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Nassau. It was a beautiful Bahamian Easter mass celebration and they pass out Easter candy after mass to all the children. It was a special treat but the Easter dinner feast aboard September Song was the best. Very traditional with a glazed ham, scalloped potatoes, and a mix of dessert cakes with lots of wine and rum of course. The next day we sailed off to the Berry Islands where we will swim, snorkel, dive for Conch, hike the islands and enjoy some of the most beautiful beaches in the Bahamas for a few weeks. We hope you all had a fabulous Easter. We’ll keep you in our thoughts until our next blog.

End of Lobster season

Cave in at Oven Rock

Swimming in Oven Rock Cave

King keeps catching the fish even in Norman's

Cherie repairing wind instrument in Nassau

Easter dinner with Stephanie & Bob

While anchored at Farmer’s Cay Michael, Dave and Ian decided to go lobstering with a couple of locals to get the best tips and spots for lobstering. It was a wild and crazy time with locals Martin and Barry with lots of beer and rum consumed and a little fishing too. A total of 7 lobsters were caught and a very good size grouper so we had a seafood party on Livin’ Life.

Cleaning Fish at Little Farmer Cay

King didn't really catch that Bug!

But he sure did eat it:)

Lobster Feast in Little Farmers

Sailing south from Little Farmer’s Cay we stopped off at Emerald Bay Marina. It is such a great place we stayed awhile for a little marina papering. We spoiled ourselves with a rental car and explored the whole island of Exuma.

Dave decided to break out his new hookah system that lets you dive without tanks down about 60 feet. It is pretty cool. Dave and his toys! Now that it is out of the box and tested we are ready for some serious reef dives. (next blog)

We met four guys on Escape while in Emerald Bay and they introduced us to Kraken (strong rum). They were really fun and we also met some Canadians returning their rental boat in Emerald Bay. They were a hoot too. When I said we needed to get a few things from the store they said to come over to their boat. They were returning it tomorrow so they offered us their leftover provisions. To a cruiser free provisions is always a good thing. Michael and I sat around drinking red wine and eating Greek Salad with them until very late. Upon leaving their boat we had a whole dock cart filled with provisions. Michael went over the charts with them to help them have a better trip for their next charter.

King's real catch off Little Farmers/Emerald Bay

We are finding that coming to the south Exumas in winter is very popular with the cruising community. The VHF radio is a blaze with chatter non-stop. The reported boat count in Georgetown was just under 300 boats. So we decided to sail right on by Georgetown to Long Island where we dropped anchor in Thomas Bay. Now we are in the out-islands. We rented another car with Janice and Dave and explored Long Island tip to tip. We were still buddy boating with Livin Life and Janis and Dave were the perfect buddies to share all this fun with. After a few days we all sailed on to Conception Island. On the way we picked up another buddy boat “Why Knot II “. The water at Conception Island is as clear as we have ever seen in the Bahamas. We did some spectacular reef dives with Dave’s hookha there. As long as Dave remembers to fill the gas tank they should have many great dives ahead. Unfortunately this is where will say goodbye to Livin’ Life who are off to the Caribbean and beyond. That is the thing about cruising. You have many hello’s and also as many goodbyes. We will miss them a lot. We seem to have connected very well and had a lot of fun together. We will meet up with them again someday.