Back in the USA

5-9-2014, Marsh Harbour Marina to Crab Cay anchorage in the Bahamas:

Friday: Basil could not finish yesterday so he was back before 08:00 this morning. He said he would do his best to get us going by noon.  He finished up our boat repairs  by 10:00.   After paying Basil and the marina we were on our way by 11:00.  We are so glad we are finally on our way back to the US.  We made it through the Whale without any problem with only 3 to 4 foot waves on our starboard side and the wind was on our stern.  We made real good time and got to Spanish Cay Customs by 15:20 to pick up our package and then went another 4 miles or so to our anchorage at Crab Cay by 16:15.  We anchored in about 4 feet of water with 70 feet of anchor rode out because the wind was really blowing hard..  There were 2 other boats in the anchorage with us.

05-09-2014: 60 Foot Trumpy in slip next to us at Marsh Harbour Marina, beautiful old, wood, boat.

05-09-2014: Whale very calm compared to our trip over here.

05-09-2014: Dolphins jumping in front of the boat

05-09-2014: Crab Cay anchorage.

05-09-2014: Sunset at Crab Cay, our last one in the Bahamas

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W77.58868



5-10-2014, Crab Cay anchorage to Great Sale Cay anchorage in the Bahamas:

Saturday;  We brought the anchor up by 09:05.  I had been driving and Keith has been taking the anchor up but it was very windy this morning and almost low tide with less than 3 feet of water under the keel so I brought the anchor up this morning and Keith drove.  It was full of sand and grass, huge clumps of grass.  When we started we had 2 foot waves on our Port beam at a 45 degree angle and by the time we got to Great Sale Cay anchorage we had 3 foot waves at the same angle.  It was a very windy day.  We went through Girl Jane Cut again but this time it was just after low tide.  It had started to rise but we hit some depths of 1' below our keel where last March we went through at high tide and had nothing less than 4' below our keel.  Note to self: Never go through Girl Jane Cut at low tide again.  There was about a 36 foot cabin cruiser in our anchorage when we got here and he had been here for a few days waiting for the winds to calm down.  I don’t think he understands that the winds never calm down in the Bahamas.  Keith advised him to get going in the morning and at least go as far as Spanish Cay as the weather is only going to get worse after Sunday.  Had a quiet night and an early to bed as we are planning on leaving here by very early tomorrow and make it all the way to Lake Worth, FL.

5-10-2014: Centre of the World Rock 

5-10-2014: Great Sale Cay anchorage

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5-11-2014, Great Sale Cay anchorage in the Bahamas to North Palm Beach-North Lake Worth anchorage:

Sunday: We are back in the States!  We had a big day ahead of us so we went to bed early last night.  I had a hard time sleeping knowing what was ahead and I was up by 03:00.  I got coffee made and got dressed and ready before waking Keith at 03:30.  We had our anchor up and were on our way by 04:30.  We broke another one of our rules; never travel at night.  We made good time and got to Memory Rock in 5 hours and from there we headed out into the Atlantic.  This was one of the roughest trips we have had so far.  We had 4 to 6 foot waves and following seas.  We got shook up pretty good but we made it in one piece.  We went 120 miles in just under 13 hours and our engines ran perfect.  We had a great time in the Bahamas but it was so good to finally get back to the US.

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W80.05562

5-11-2014: Crossing the Gulf Stream, all you see is a whole lot of sky and water and waves. 



5-12-2014; Lake Worth anchorage to Pendarvis Cove anchorage in Stuart, FL:

Monday; HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARA!

Slept in this morning and didn’t get going until 09:30.  Had trouble getting the anchor up again.  We think it is because of a few reasons; a little too heavy,especially when it is packed with mud,and not the correct rollers. We decided we will live with it.  Only had a short day of 36 miles and we anchored out in Pendarvis Cove in Stuart, FL.  Had a quiet night and got caught up on a few things.

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W80.26704



5-13-2014;  Pendarvis Cove anchorage in Stuart, FL to Town Dock in Moore Haven, FL:

Tuesday: Got an early start as we had a long day planned and wanted to get  to our destination and tied up before it started to rain.  Had trouble with the anchor again this morning.  It keeps slipping and Keith had to tighten it again.  It also came up full of black mud.  We went through 3 locks today;  St. Lucie Lock, Port Mayaca Lock, and Moore Haven Lock.  At both St. Lucie and Port Mayaca we saw alligators.  It took us 2 hours and 41 minutes to cross Okeechobee Lake which had a moderate chop and was a piece of cake after the Gulf Stream.  We stayed at the Town Dock in the City of Moore Haven.  This was the first time we were on ground since last Friday morning. It is very warm here and we were both exhausted after the long day.  Keith rinsed off the boat and I did paper work.

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W81.08947

CO’s comments:  I really like this anchor.  All I have to do is figure out how to adjust the anchor rollers so that I am not pulling at a 90 degree angle for the last 10 feet of rode.  We had a wonderful time in the Bahamas, met some great people, and found an excellent mechanic.