Exactly two weeks after leaving Beaufort NC in 47˚F temperatures behind, we were transiting the Little Bahama bank. The shallow waters glimmered ahead as we sailed from over 1/2 mile water depths to less than 20 feet soundings. Polarized sunglasses made the delineation crystal clear.
This little overnight jaunt seemed so fast after our typical 4-5 day passages of late. The weather window we took called for E to SE winds 10 kts +/- 5 kts, making it a calm motorsail all the way. The Gulf Stream waters (& pink squid lure) delivered a dinner fish once again with a juvenile mahi-mahi fighting and flashing its amazing colors.
By noon the following day after leaving from the Ft Worth FL inlet, we were cleared into the Bahamas at Green Turtle Cay. This was a very easy and convenient crossing, the only downside being that there is no Immigration officer here and the Customs officer is only authorized to stamp us in for 90 days at a time. The cruising permit ($300) for the boat is good for one year and our visas are renewable for up to 8 months. It’s too bad that we’ll have to extend our passport stamps in 3 months time, but we’ve done that drill before where you actually have to leave the country for 48 hrs…
The next day we hailed friends Will & Rita (Magic) on Scotland Cay and it turned out to be good timing for a visit as they had just arrived two weeks ago at their home on this private island for the season. Déja vu all over again! It felt like just yesterday ~ instead of 6 yrs ~ that we’d been together enjoying each others’ company overlooking their fantastic view.
So… we went snorkeling and fishing, of course! There is nothing more beautiful than the infinite depths of the color blue that you can see here. All reasons for the Bahamas being one of the very few on our “happy place” short-list.
Mark quickly got the hang of to his new carbon fiber pole-spear with stinger tip, as he & Rita provided us a variety of seafood for our daily suppers together ~ grouper, snapper, hogfish, lobster & conch!!
It was sooo great to be back in the Bahamas and in the water again each day. My underwater camera still worked after one false start (note to self: make sure camera battery is recharged!).
