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THE ABACOS

What can I say. If there is a place that actualizes paradise on earth, it’s The Abacos. It is a 120 mile long island chain of separate jewels that sit on the calm Sea of Abaco in northern Bahamas . The sea of Abaco is like a lake, with shallow water that is clear as crystal and typically calm. As you sail over it and cross from island to island you can look down at 10 to 20 feet typically and see the sand and bottom as you pass over it. It is like sailing nowhere else.

The islands or Cays as they are called all have their different shapes and bays and provide shelter from different winds. This year was particularly challenging, (of course we pick this year to head there) as it was an El Nino year causing much stronger weather than normally experienced. We found that we spent a lot of time making decisions as to which Cay to head to to be most protected from the next front. What complicates things in The Abacos is that the winds change 360 degrees often in the same day and it is rare to find a place that can protect you from every direction. So far Treasure Cay and Green Turtle are 2 that offer that type of protection. Marsh Harbour is open from the East so doesn’t cover all sides although it has superb holding (the stickyness of the bottom in relation to anchoring) so even if the wind shifts to the East the boat will usually stay put.

It was so nice to be able to sit in the bow seat while Otto , our wonderful auto-pilot helmed for us. Otto is a game-changer and opens up off-shore sailing for us. We were hand tillering until we crossed to the Bahamas . I can’t believe how much easier it is not having to steer and focus on the course constantly.  We just have to stay alert for shallow spots and other boats. We arrived at Little Bahamas Banks (basically shallow water) and spent a night there resting after a rough crossing and the next morning we set sail to our first Cay – Great Sale. This is a super sailor’s saviour place, it offers almost all around protection with great holding. We met some friends that we later buddy boated with on other islands – High Hopes ( a beautiful Island Packet) with Joe and Meg and their dog Tug.

There are so many islands to discover  , I’ll continue with our favourite (Powell Cay that we were able to hike in on the way out of the Abacos) Marsh Harbour, the provision and big winds protection place and of course Man-O-War in the next chapter.

 

 

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That iconic moment when you see land after an offshore crossing. After anchoring off Little Bahamas bank to rest, we had a refreshing and uplifting sail the next day towards our first island, Great Sale Cay . At this point the crew was relieved that we would be anchoring in protected waters and not bounced around as much. This was at about 16:00hrs on 10March. We had left Lake Worth on 8March at 18:00hrs. We anchored in 24ft of water in Little Bahamas Banks on the 9thMarch at 12:55 , exhausted and a little demoralized that we had drifted so far North . We later learned this was expected and normal with those conditions in the Gulf Stream.

 

 

Leaving Lake Worth at sunset was a little disconcerting. The captain had decided we would sail all night and arrive at daylight around 6am at Memory Rock Bahamas which is basically just a marker to anchor and head to our first island which was going to Mangrove Cay. Lake Worth is a huge inlet with a lot of room for anchoring and waiting out a weather window to cross the gulf. There is tons of traffic on the water at high speed and lots of fetch as the inlet is close and large so it makes for a very bumpy anchorage. This, I think, played a part in our decision to rush the crossing a little. 

 

 

After leaving Vero Beach, we motored to Peck Lake to overnight. David and Ed went ashore to catch the sunset and for Ed to see Jupiter Beach. As the dinghy was strapped tight on deck, they went via kayak. I stayed onboard and enjoyed some quiet time and dinner prep. 

After anchoring off Great Sale Cay we decided to celebrate with a steak dinner and set up our fancy table. Rum was served. 

 

After spending about 2 weeks looking at the weather windows coming up, we saw a slight opportunity to cross on the 8th of March. David had finished sewing our new cover for the cockpit and the hatches. Ed was settled in and we had provisioned and loaded TC with tons of food – more than we’ve ever loaded into the bilges. We had canned over 48 cans of meat as we are pretty well -“meatarians” along with vegetables. These are the hardest foods to store and to purchase in the remote islands.  We should consider becoming vegetarians.  So much easier to eat rice and beans. You could carry a year’s worth on TC but we’ve learned that — our bodies don’t do well with that type of diet. 

We said goodbye to Vero and our good friends Bob and Carol  and headed down the inter-coastal. It would take 2 full days of motoring with a stop at one of our favourite hangouts, Jupiter Beach, at Peck Lake anchorage. It is just a wide body of water on the other side of the Atlantic. We have photos of the beautiful beach in last year’s posts. As Ed had not seen it, David and Ed, went on the kayak and crossed over while I stayed on the boat and worked on dinner. We were a little excited and a little anxious to cross over the Gulf. The weather would not be perfect but we were looking at crossing potentially the next day with 30km hr.3 winds from the SE and S. We figured this would propel us eastward. The problem with waiting was that the weather window would not be open for another week after the 8th. 

The next morning we left Peck Lake and arrived at Lake Worth (or West Palm Beach). Wider bodies of water seem to be referred to as lakes but it really is a wide inlet where many of the sailboats and boats waiting to cross into the Caribbean wait for weather windows. 

Our plans were to leave at 4am but our fearless captain decided to leave that evening at 6pm. Lake Worth is an awful anchorage. We had trouble anchoring due to the bounciness of the waves and the wind . Further there are tons of anchored boats everywhere and fast boats buzzing by you with no care about waking sailboats that are anchored. I wasn’t too happy about leaving at 6pm as this would mean a night crossing but the prospect of a long evening and night at Lake Worth was not appealing. 

We knew the winds were not ideal for crossing as South winds adding to the south current (S on S as I’ll call it) means we have to counter the gulf even harder.  David asked us, I was undecided and so we called our friends Libby and Grant, very experienced Bahamian crossers who gave us the same advice, the conditions were not great but not really bad. Chris Parker’s very expensive weather advice said not to cross,. AND in hindsight he was right. 

As we pulled anchor north of the bridge and entered the inlet at sunset, we should’ve taken it as a big clue that we were the only ones leaving! People on the docks at the inlet took videos of us, probably to give to the coastguard to help identify the crazy Cdn. boat that left when Chris Parker said not to. 

Leaving Lake Worth inlet, the massive yachts , the open water in front of us. We barely made it out of the inlet before darkness fell. It’s one thing to do our first crossing and have to confront the Gulf Stream and it’s another to do the whole thing at night. 

 

We were expecting winds winds of about 30km from SE and S. For TC these are great winds and not so bad for heading east . We started sailing and all was going well, heading almost due east.  I went down below and then David called up and said he was having trouble keeping the course. This was strange so I came up and tried to set the course on Aqua Map and Navionics. We also had an independent compass plus paper charts. I tried to steer into our heading but no matter what I did, TC headed either north at 120 or got turned back towards the coast of Florida. It was so strange. We tried to correct. We took it off our Auto Pilot and manually steered but we could only point north of due east even if we tried to correct south. We’ve never experienced that and we originally thought something was wrong with our digital charts but both separate apps would have to fail and it made no sense.  If we tried to correct southward, we crawled at less than 2knots. I remember a motorboater at the laundrymat at Very telling me, just head as fast out of the Gulf as possible then worry about correcting. That’s what David did and we landed north of our aim (Memory Rock ) at Little Bahamas Banks. We realized that as soon as we were out of the Gulf we could then steer south but this is where the south wind hurt us. Waves were 5-10′ and hitting us on the port bow making for a very uncomfortable rocking motion. We motored for a few more hours and made it after 19 hrs to Little Bahamas Banks where the depth was 24′. We were exhausted after being up since the night of the 7th to the 8th . We anchored in the bumpy , deep banks and we all took some sleep aids and crashed. 

The next morning was a gorgeous morning with perfect winds from the north and we sailed to Great Sale Cay – an uninhabited island that offers some protection. We were looking for a quiet anchorage where we could stop moving and TC would be flat. The sail was amazing and we arrived and anchored near Pelican a 42’Leopard catamaran. We met their owners John and Louise and went ashore to walk on solid ground! What a feeling of having solid ground that doesn’t move under your feet. Great Sail is a small rocky island but the water was crystal clear. We celebrated with a rib-eye with red-wine and biscottis.  It was our celebratory meal to commemorate our first real ocean crossing to a different country. 

Later, as I read the charts and guides I learned that what we experienced was an exaggerated normal phenomenon especially when you cross with south winds. The experienced sailors either make corrections to head south of their destination or you accept that you will land north . But we could not head south as our angle would have been to tough with the combined south wind and we would hardly move. Next time we just cross as fast as possible and correct south after the Gulf is crossed. 

Well, The Bahamas are amazing. The water is a combination of indescribable colours and the Abaco Sea is shallow, with very  little “fetch” or wave movement from winds. It is surrounded by islands, some uninhabited. We made it in one piece and we learned that crossings can be tricky and challenging but that our digital charts are trustworthy and undercurrents are not to be ignored. Also, another lesson, is not to cross currents with same wind directions if you can help it. 

I must say our captain showed amazing leadership and stamina. He helmed all night and half the day until we were anchored safely in the banks. Ed was amazing. If he was nervous, he never showed it even when David and I were trying to understand the boat’s movement and the digital charts information that didn’t make sense with our compass settings. Sailing , especially open ocean reminds me that life is meant to be experienced. You can’t take your possessions with you but you can experience the beauty of God’s creation and challenge your self and break through your boxes of who and what you think you can achieve. David built TC from an empty vacant hull half buried in a mountain and after 20 years with the help of our good friends Tom Wroe , Andy Soper and many others , this empty hull is a striking vessel that draws admiration and curiosity from most of the sailing community as it is rare to find an aluminum cat ketch with carbon fibre masts that stand alone with wishbone booms.  One lockmaster called it “Badass” and it certainly lives up to that description.  David, well done captain!

Crossing the Gulf 

 

 

5A night crossing. Ethereal

Our celebratory dinner at Great Sale. Relief, rib-eyes, red wine and biscottis.

Vero Beach and City Marina anchorage:

Vero is always an experience!  Last year we anchored in the north end of the marina mooring field close to the mangroves. This year we splurged on a mooring ball for 400$US per month so that we could access the dinghy dock and laundry and showers.  It’s actually not a bad price compared to other marinas in Florida. The amenities are worth it. We can do laundry relatively pain-free at the marina, just have to get the loads into the dinghy and to the laundry room. There is about 12 or so machines and they are each $2 per cycle. Last year, we carted our loads to a laundro-mat using our good friend Bob’s Toyota.  The showers are spotless and wonderful as we don’t have pressured water or hot water on the boat so our “showers” are basically a dip in the ocean, soap up and rinse using a fertilizer spray gun hooked onto a pressurized canister. It works great but definitely not the hot salt bubble baths I’m used to.  Most “yachts” come with hot pressure water but we chose to build one that doesn’t require maintenance in isolated areas, meaning no pump outs and no plumbing break-downs which are common-place among sailboats , especially in isolated islands with no means by which to fix them. 

So, we do without, reminiscent of my interior Algonquin Park camping days of my youth but much more comfortable. I think it’s actually good for people to experience a little discomfort in their lives every once in a while ; either by not having hot water or not being able to just drop laundry into your own private machine or press a button and have dishes done for me.  It’s also a challenge to make do with the food that you provision with and not being able to “pop to the store” to grab last minute dinner” or a snack you are craving.  Craving is a common emotion on a boat that I’m getting used to dealing with I come up with creative alternatives such as keto chocolate chip cookies when I dream of Lindt dark chocolate with sea salt.  David and I are pretty strict about not having junk food on the boat so when you get a craving, there is no option but to get creative. We do make exceptions for chocolate and nacho chips with salsa and popcorn for our popcorn nights. I decided to add a little section on my creative concoctions. 

The mooring at Vero Beach was very secure and central however, the young couple who own the ” what we thought abandoned boat” that we had to share the mooring ball with showed up for a week to work on their boat.  Nice couple but they listen to some very interesting yoga / East Indian flute empowered music and they work at night and sleep in until 10 or 12 in the morning..David and I are usually in bed by 9pm and the first night they stayed up , we felt like we were in the middle of a Shrine in New Delhi.  Remember, we are tied up to their boat so the music was right beside us- LOUD and CLEAR.  Between the oppressive heat, no breeze as the mooring was so wind protected and the no see ums and the weird yoga music 10 feet away, I was going to lose my mind.  So,,, for the safety of all concerned, including myself, I asked David, who is our social butterfly to ask the couple nicely to turn the music off at night.  My alternative was to blast some gospel music at 6am but thankfully it didn’t come to that. They weren’t there long and actually were a super nice couple. The boat needed ALOT of work before their goal next year of the transatlantic.  I hope the boat is sturdier than it looks and they make it without issue.

One thing we decided on after our month in Vero was that if we stayed there again, we would anchor out away from the marina where there is a breeze even if we had to put up with a little wave from boat traffic and wind action. The heat and humidity and no-see-ums were very uncomfortable and I counted the days that David would finish his sewing projects at Bob and Carols ( our wonderful friends who lent us their tools and sewing machine and who live in Vero Beach). They had sailed on a Tanton 37 for about 6 years and circumnavigated the globe so they were a great source of inspiration and information. Bob used to be a sail-maker so his sewing advice and help was so appreciated. David replaced our haphazard cloth covers with some custom-measured cockpit covers and hatch covers so that we would be protected from sun and soft rain. 

David and I also re-constituted the Mac Pac supports as we didn’t really know how to originally set them up on wishbone booms and they were quite sloppy. We added some carabiners that could be clipped to open up the cover so that the sails would easily slide into the cover making the dropping of the sails so much easier. This is crucial in high winds as it is usually me pointing into the wind and David out on deck guiding the sails into the cover. Sometimes the waves and movement of the boat make this a little dangerous for David and me being the risk-assessor while David is the risk ignorer,  really valued the difference taking off time in this maneuver meant. 

Our Good Friend Ed (retired dairy and crop farmer and master carpenter) arrived on the 2 Feb. as he had been down visiting family in Florida. He had joined us last year and had been a valuable asset, learning many of the ins and outs of sailing. A non-swimmer, he was fearless when he donned his matching red life-jacket. He became adept at following compass course offshore and following a Navionics course track. His berth is a large double-sized bed in the starboard aft (near the stern ). We put up the “walls” curtains and he effectively had his own “cabin”. TC is an open concept vessel with no cabins. The “head” or bathroom has a curtain for privacy and compost toilet for ease of maintenance. Not everyone is suited to this type of living condition. Ex-campers, like myself though, find it quite comfortable if not private.  A trick we have learned is to blast music when we have to use the toilet. Ed is amazing in how he just rolls with the intricacies of life on a 37 foot space and fits right in. 

Finally on the 7 of March, a month after arriving at Vero Beach City Marina, we finished provisioning , filling the bilges with cans and dry goods, canned our meat, installed our auto-pilot we call Otto , finishing the sewing on our new cockpit and hatch covers for shade protection and made our first attempt at fixing our starboard water-tank! The tank has a leak at about 2/3 of the way up. So we could only fill up 2/3 of the starboard watertank.  David figures it was a small crack in the tank seam possibly due to the humidity and heat of the Georgia summer where TC sat on the hard for 11 months . We hold 150 gallons so we can manage with a slightly reduced capacity. As we left, we filled up the diesel tank and jugs ad the marina dock and said goodbye on the cruisers net radio. It’s funny but we saw many of the people we met last year and met some new friends this year. it reminds me of those RV camps where everyone returns year after year. 

This is the bilge, (aka our pantry). We jammed it to capacity , hoping we wouldn’t have to buy too much in the Bahamas as we heard it was very expensive. During the crossing of the gulf, the high waves caused the water in our leaking tank to spill through the small crack which leads to the bilge (as bilges are meant to do) So,,, after we landed and anchored in The Bahamas, I had to empty it all and David mopped up the 2 inches of water and then I re-packed it. We have more storage in the galley above the sinks and stove but this is our main food storage area. As you can see we eat a lot of eggs and love our coffee. 

Our beautiful new auto-pilot that is a game-changer! It is a heavy-duty Pelagic tiller Auto Pilot that we lovingly call “Otto”. David installed it in Vero. It was expensive and one of the few things David bought brand new. Now we can be like all the other YouTube sailors who lounge around and read books while the boat sails or motors. Other than at the crossing, it performed amazingly. I’ll share later what happened at the crossing that over-powered Otto. 

This is our V-berth where David and I sleep. Each berth is almost a double-sized bed and unlike most vessels we don’t have to climb ove – r each other to get into bed. Under each berth is a huge storage area where I keep my clothes and medical bags, extra blankets and other items. Above we have some deep shelves for daily items. There are 2 hatches above the berths, a smaller front hatch and the high glass pyramid hatch David designed to be able to quickly check position from the berth . David also made a screen for it so we can keep it open and allow the breeze in. I sewed a curtain so I can close it off or use the bigger curtain and close off the section encompassing part of the settees. Although the curtains are mere material, the psychological effect on a small living space is huge. I can feel like I’m in my own little room and often retire there for a nap or a good book or movie “in my room”. The foot step between the berths comes out and can be slid into the higher slots and pulled out to become a coffee table between the 2 settees – another David design concept. 

 

The three amigos back for another adventure. Our smiles didn’t last long as we were about to cross the gulf in the photo. 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

We are back at Vero Beach City Marina. This year, we splurged and took a mooring ball for the month. It means we have access to the laundry and shower facililties as well as the dinghy dock that is protected by the Marina.  The cost is about $400/month US which is costly however, if you think of it in terms of staying for a month in Vero Beach it’s quite inexpensive. Hotels are quite pricey in this area. This year there are even more boats moored in the marina. We have seen up to 3 boats on one mooring. Most moorings have 2 boats tied up to the ball.  There is a little room to anchor on the north end but the no-see-ums are brutal there as there is less breeze and you are closer to the mangroves. This year , we’ve experienced less no-see-um bites.  It’s possible that this is due to being moored away from the mangroves as well as in a more open area and that it’s been cool in Florida so far with many Floridians complaining of very cold weather.  For us Canadians, the weather is perfect at 25 to 28 Celsius and lowering to around 10 to 18 at night.

The first photo is of David waving at two young boys on the sailboat who are playing on the sails some fighting game. More and more families are pulling kids out of school and homeschooling them while travelling with them on sailboats. This used to be quite rare many years ago but you see more and more children cruisers. Many homeschooled children do exceptionally well when they return to public institutions , some even have to skip grades! I imagine it does take a lot of work and discipline for a parent to follow the curriculum when faced with the choice of beautiful places to explore or hot boats to sit and study in.

One of the marina staff, gave me some bananas from his home garden, after I gave him a small tip for helping us when we docked to get some water. I have to say people here are very kind and the service providers are over-the-top professional. I can’t believe, he just picks bananas from his backyard. 

Many sailors have dogs in their boats. Some are even quite large. I love seeing the dogs on the dinghies going to shore for walks or bathroom breaks. They are just so happy to be on the water. Maybe one day, I will convince David to adopt a nice bulldog – will take a miracle I think.

Vero Beach is a quiet , retirement area with a lot of stock traders and otherwise very well-off people. Some of the homes are stunning and on the water. The  beach is clean with soft sand.  Buses are free and easy to navigate. The water is warmer but not balmy and the wave action can be intense. I didn’t swim here as I can’t see the bottom due to the sand being disturbed by the waves. The City Marina is a friendly place and the bathrooms and facilitlies are spotless. Beside it is the Yacht Club who do not like the Marina folk using their empty parking lots to play pickle ball eventhough none of them play.  One of those silly selfish human qualities that rich people seem to suffer from. Alas, there are many places to play pickleball in Vero both inside and outdoor courts that are open almost every day  for minimal fees. 

David did lots of boat jobs while we stayed in the mooring. He installed our auto-pilot to add to our new wind vane and he hooked up the auto pilot so he can control it remotely.  This is high-tech stuff that I have absolutely no clue about.  I’ve always sailed with a tiller or wheel and no auto-pilot so this will be a treat if it works properly in open sea. There is something comforting about controlling the tiller or the wheel yourself at all times but this can be very tiresome in cold weather or long crossings. It would be amazing to be able to do other things like cook or read and keep an eye out every few minutes rather than be tied to the tiller 24/7. 

The last 2 days we worked onthe sail covers. David, Mr. accomplished at everything, sewed some patches on the bottom where the Mac Packs had been worn due to rubbin the dodger or the “luggage rack” as we call the welded guardrails under the main sail.  We then put them back on and I hoisted David up the masts on his bosun chair while he adjusted the lines. The covers look much better. We really had little help figuring out how they go with wishbone booms like we have. They are not common. In fact, we’ve only seen one boat with one wishbone boom since we left Georgia. 

 

Hoisting David is a bit scary for me but really scary for him as he has to trust my abilities to keep him safe.  He didn’t like that I grabbed the camera a few times and took some photos, once, I forgot to lock the halyard, (the rope that pulls him up). There is a safe way to do this and I don’t do it very often so it’s always something I have to really focus on. If the line slips, he will drop to the deck a little too quickly! I would trust him to hoist me but once up there, you have to be able to cut through lines and re do some knots that David is much more capable with. Hence, he is the one that goes up the mast and I’m kind of ok with that. 

We provisioned this last week. That involves making lists of our ingredients for our favourite meals. David and I have a much harder time of it as we eat a paleo diet which is basically unprocessed meat, vegies and fruit. We avoid all sugar and grains and legumes. This means we have a super hard time with our meal plans as meat, fish and dairy usually require refrigeration. We run a freezer and fridge on solar and we can manage it as long as we don’t get many cloudy days in a row at mooring or anchor. If we motor, the batteries get charged automatically so that’s not a problem but when we are moored as we have been for a month at the marina, we rely only on solar. I have created excel sheets to track our provisions so we know how much food we have and when we need to stock up on what. 

We store most of our food in the shelves in the “galley” or the kitchen and in our bilge. This is a huge space under the floor. David has welded compartments so that if there is a leak it takes a while to flood the entire bilge area. We have upgraded by buying some bins and placing the cans and jars and packages in the bins then in the bilge. We found that you can’t store cans or jars or cardboard packed food in the boat during hot souther summers. They seem to explode. Further if there is a leak in the engine or any leak that bilges are meant to catch, the salt water rusts the cans. We live and learn…

Provisioning is a personal art form. Often I wish we ate beans and rice and pasta and bread, things would be so much easier but we have both found that we are healthier, bloodwork wise and just feeling healthier when we stick to a paleo based diet. So,,, David decided we would can some meat with our 2 manual pressure canners. I had canned some jams in the past through water canning but meat is a different “animal”. You could get botulism if you don’t heat it to 250 degrees F , for 75 minutes for a pint jar and 90 minutes for a quart jar. I find it a little nerve racking as we are using top of the line manual pressure cookers but they are not the extra bolted pressure canners. They do have many safety features to release pressure if needed but I still would love to get a real pressure canner with the bolts .  I think this may be a birthday present to myself for summer months.  

It’s a great option to buy meat or even fish, when they go on sale and buy a whole bunch of it and jar it (preserve )  it for shelf-stable use that can be safe for 2 to 5 years! One pint jar will feed 3 or 4 adults for a good meat-based dinner. So far we will have 36 jars of chicken, beef and pork and we hope to leave for the Bahamas with 48 jars. The only concerning issue is all that glass. we have to make sure it is stored where they remain upright and don’t get “jarred” around in big waves. 

The process is quite simple. I am canning some today as I write.  

1. Disinfect pint jars (make sure they are not jars with lips on it (indentation at the top end)  either through boiling the jars for 5 min or using bleach and air dry as I did.
2. cut up your meat into big chunks, Today I did chicken breast and a chuck of pork shoulder.  Press them into the jars and leave an inch of head space. 
3. add salt and pepper (I added 1/2 tsp salt mixed with pepper and bay leaves on top
4. place the lids on and finger tighten them
5. place them into your 1/3 water filled pressure cooker with a trivet on the bottom to keep them from hitting the bottom of the pot . I can fit 4 in each of my pots. 
6. Bring them pressure. For our pots once they expose the 2nd red line on the pot, it has reached it’s maximum pressure of 250F and we start the 75 min timer. Monitor that the pressure stays there by either lowering the gas or raising it. Don’t let the pressure drop below the 250F (for us the 2nd red line must be exposed). We can’t can Quarts as they are too tall for our pots. Quarts need to stay at pressure for 90 min. This is crucial to kill botulism spores. 
7. Turn off the pressure once 75 min at 250F has been done and let cool. You may hear popping as the lids curve inward and seal. Make sure all the lids are sealed by pressing down (once cooled) and not being able to move the lid down. If the lid is soft and can be moved, use the meat and don’t shelve it as it has not sealed properly. 
8. In ocean environments rub the lids with olive oil to prevent rusting due to salt air.  They should be stable for 2 to 5 years. Always make sure when you use them that you look, feel and smell. Make sure the meat looks good with no mold on it , make sure the lid has the clicking sound when it opens to confirm it was sealed and smell it for any bad odours.  Many cultures have been doing this for centuries with very few incidents. Some cultures even can meat in water baths with no incidents however, it is not recommended.

 

Soon, Ed, our good friend will be joining us for a couple of weeks and maybe more. He hopes to help us with the crossing into Bahamas. We will leave Vero Beach, also known as Velcro Beach as it’s so comfy here for sailors, and head to Lake Worth where the angle to head to Bahamas is better as we have to cross the Northbound Gulf Stream and you don’t want to have to sail southbound on the gulf stream unless you want a bumpy ride. We will wait for the perfect weather window , so a few days of sunny, mild winds , preferably from SW (prevailing) or even West. We’re not too fond of easterly or northerly winds from experience last year. 

Our friends Jack and Cindy have been in the Bahamas in the Abacos group of island for over a month and have been experiencing colder than normal temperatures as well  as frequent storms. We hope that by the time we get there, the weather changes and things warm up. Family in Ottawa are experiencing unusually warm weather for January and February.  I guess it’s their turn to enjoy good weather in the winter months for a change. 

Hopefully by the time I update this blog again, we will be in the Bahamas and I will be able to upload some amazing photos of the water colour and beautiful remote beaches of the Abacos. We typically avoid the cities due to crime and crowds, preferring the “boring” views of islands without bars and stores and crowds- to each his own I say.

 

 

Well, I’m sitting in Fort Matanzas anchorage trying to figure out how to make this blog a little better organized. Who knew how complicated websites can be? Maybe in my later years I’ll take  a course and make it pretty.  For now, I’ll just continue with the “scroll” system.

 

David and I got “splashed on 30Jan from St. Mary’s Boatyard by Rocky and his amazingly military-style efficient team.  I had arrived on the 28th late in Orlando and David picked me up for a late drive to the boatyard. The next day I spent purging and re-organizing the boat . David had done his own re-organizing and it was spotless but my v-berth storage was a mess and we had some provisioning that was missing. So after the big purge, we visited the local Walmart and Dollar-tree and picked up a few items. David checked in with Rocky (the owner of this amazing boatyard) and he confirmed we were on the list for launching on Tuesday the next day. 

 

I admit I had some mixed feelings as  we had some rough times after launching in Sept. 2022 and spending almost 9 months on the boat. As we had not tested the boat before launching, due to late in the season and canals closing for the winter, we had to do the trials enroute. This meant difficult repairs underway with no cars in the middle of no-where. I learned one thing, David is a genius mcgyver and has the ability to create solutions under extreme pressure without the proper equipment. 

This year, I climb aboard knowing TC is an amazing vessel. It is stable in strong winds and high seas. It handles quickly which is great at times but not so great in locks where you want a slow boat. TC is snakey as the our brilliant sailmaker Andy Roper mentioned.  Not to mention one of the lockmasters remarked that TC was “badass” and they see tons of boats.  David wanted to change the name right then and there to “Badass” to my amusement.

The launch went without a hitch.  The berth we are dropped into was surrounded by boats and very very shallow water. David had to steer out to starboard and then Rocky had to pull the bow with the springline to turn us quickly about 90degrees and then I had to recover the rope before it fouled the propeller.  The motor started at first turn and we were off into deep water heading to our anchorage just inside the inlet-Little Tiger island anchorage.  We made it and anchored ready to head out early morning offshore to get to St. Augustine , a 47nm sail.  The sail was amazing. We broke our record and hit 9.8 knots , our hull speed max is supposed to be in the 7 to 8 knot range! Plus we only had our main sail up, and we still don’t have any reefs as we hope to get them put in when we arrive in Vero. TC was stable and super fast, it almost kept up to a beautiful 50someft Benetto that eventually caught up to us. 

 

Dolphins in the canal on the way to our first anchorage Fort Matanzas. They are hunting as they come up frequently and dive. 

 

The entrance to St. Augustine in 30km/h winds from NW was harrowing. The Benetto had trouble taking it’s foresail down and as I steered into the wind, David worked fast to bring the sail down.  The waves were about 10ft on each side as the clashed with the wind and shallow sandreefs on either side of the inlet.  We slowly inched in and anchored safely at the south side of Verano Bridge anchorage at around 4.25pm. David was in his happy place after an amazing fast and powerful sail. St. Augustine is a place to come and visit if you want to feel like you are in Spain. It’s the oldest settled city in the United states – early 1500s. The architecture is amazing. 

 

The next day, we decided to take the inter-coastal waterway as this part of the coast is long and has no inlets to come inside should we need to . Also the wind was going to be week and I didn’t feel like a 14 hr motorsail to New Smyrna. The waterway is comfortable and in low winds is actually as fast if not faster than motoring offshore. The fact that we stopped at Fort Matanzas anchorage for a few days of historical excursions and long walks on powdery white sandy beach marked the start of our relaxation and adventure season.  Up until this stop , we had been working and prepping, I,  at home and David a month in the boatyard. 

 

 

  Look Ma, no hands!!!

 

THE BEACH IN FORT MATANZAS IS LIKE WHITE FLOUR.  I LEARNED TO SAIL WITHOUT HANDS, USING MY KNEES TO STEER, WE JUST PULLED UP THE COCKPIT TABLE AND STAND ON IT.  PEOPLE ON THE FERRY TO THE FORT ADMIRED TC WHO WAS IN DANGEROUS PROXIMITY TO THE CANONS. MATANZAS MEANS KILLINGS AND THERE WERE MANY FRENCH SLAUGHTERED HERE WHEN THEY TRIED TO ATTACK ST. AUGUSTINE FROM THE BACK DOOR FORT MATANZAS INLET THAT THE SPANISH HAD FORTIFIED. 

 

 

The anchorage in Fort Matanzas was tricky. We implemented our new anchoring procedure. I was on the helm and David was at the bow controlling the anchor. He finally realized the value of my little radios and we could communicate much more effectively to set the anchor. Sometimes it gets tricky. This anchorage is tricky, much like Bras D’Or lakes this is an inlet pocket so the tide and current clash and its hard to predict where TC will move once it is in neutral. But we anchored close to the north and deeper side and then went onshore to catch the 2:30pm tour of the Fort Matanzas, the only fortified watchtower in the US.  This fort basically protected Florida (and that encompassed almost the entire easter shore of US in those days as the inlet was St. Augustine’s weak point and back door for invading English and or French soldiers.  The State Park interpreter was like a Shakespearan actor with yelling and hand movements , I felt like I was in the battles myself!

People in the ferry heading to the Fort admired TC as they passed by.

 

  The flag on Fort Matanzas is of the spanish military flag who settled Florida in the early 1500s.  They were tough!

Today, 4Feb, David fixed a tiny leak in a little valve and I started working on my Medicinal Herbalist course online. We prepped for a storm that never came. Tomorrow we hope to get through the exit (very very shallow ) and get to Daytona or New Smyrna. 

 

We were boarded by the Coastguard US and our documents checked. They are super polite and professional. They warned us of a storm system but we saw it pass north of us hitting Jacksonville.  The next day we headed to Daytona Beach as it has some viable anchorages.  We ended up arriving on Monday the 5th and anchored just in time at the Bethune Park anchorage, to meet a big wind storm.  There is a hurricane Lee forming and we are getting the wind . The night was tense as we hoped our anchor wouldn’t fail. We have a 60lb spade anchor.  Well, it held all through the night with gusts of up to 80km/h. The boat was pitching a bit but our anchor alarm showed, we didn’t move backwards. The next day winds were still in the 30s and 40s with gusts up to 60km/h. One sailboat near us dragged and crashed into another sailboat before the older man could free his boat and his anchor was able to grab the mud again. We were helpless to assist as the dinghy was too weak to battle the winds and waves. I can’t imagine what it would have been like offshore if it was so rough inside the canal!

We chose to stay put another day as the winds are still gusting, even if not as strong. We are in no rush and the inlet coming up, Ponce de Leon inlet at New Smyrna is pretty shallow. If the gust hits at the wrong time, it could push the boat into a sandbar. We decided to play it safe and do chores and set up computer systems. 

 

We bought our US decal (34 $) to sail in the US (Coastguard never asked about it ) and I downloaded some new weather apps on my phone. I’m using my old phone exclusively for AquaMap. We have it downloaded as well on my tablet and David’s phone.  We also have Navionics and Garmin downloaded. Today David connected the Garmin to his phone so he can manipulate the navigation from his phone rather than the screen connected to the companionway opening. 

 

We are running out of provisions and I’ve resorted to eating some barley and lentil salad, which is far from my meat and vegie and fruit diet. I can’t wait to have a hot shower and get some vegies and fruit!! I think we will have to wait until Vero Beach as New Smyrna anchorages are not really easy to access stores when you don’t have a car. I have come up with a great spelt/almond flour pancake recipe  as well and if you add some honey and cinnamon, its like having a donut with coffee! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Tomorrow, I leave the safety and comfort of our home in Ottawa to fly down to join David who has been at the boatyard for almost a month prepping and waiting for me. (bye bye lavender , eucalyptus , epsom salt brined bathtime,,sniff)

 

David and I left TomCat last year at St. Mary’s Boatyard in the care of Rocky and his amazingly talented staff. We then returned first to Ottawa to check in with family and then to our cottage in Cape Breton. We had an amazing summer fishing, foraging for Chanterelle mushrooms, blackberries, lambsquarters and many other native delicacies. We joined an amazingly vibrant, Jesus-centered church, Journey Church in North Sydney, who is active in their community not just in ways to meet physical needs of members in the community but also to show them the real way to attaining peace , that is learning what Jesus means and who He was. In fact, many in the congregation sail!  We knew we had ended up in the right church when we discovered this. 

 

David and I also volunteered at the Foodhub in North Sydney, a farm co-operative that produces food products and agricultural products and sells them directly to citizens without going through a middleman (grocery store). We loved working with them and sampling some of the goods, like Cape Breton ginger, beautiful sweet cherry tomatoes, micro-greens and many more items. We likely will volunteer again if given the opportunity when we return. 

 

I had some family business to tend to with my mother just placed in longterm care and helping her husband who had a serious head trauma adjust to living alone.  Also, both my babies (19 and 24 yrs.) needed their mom to help figure out some career and life planning.  For me being able to take care of family and making sure they are solid before leaving for months out in the ocean is paramount to my ability to enjoy and focus on the task of sailing TomCat. 

 

I’ve just checked in with Porter Airlines and actually have a window seat. I was able to purchase a direct flight out of Ottawa to Orlando and avoid the nightmare that is Toronto.  David and I travel light and we aim never to check luggage. This makes it a little more tedious carting around the cabin luggage but we have had lost luggage before in direct flights and it makes for a much quicker exit or managing delays or re-routing. 

 

I am excited and yet after last year’s 9 month stay on the boat, I know I face the hardship of living off-grid with no hot water and limited fridge ability.  It takes me a little while to adjust as everything just takes a little more effort , from making a cup of coffee to taking a shower to laundry. However, the feeling of being alive, challenging yourself with unforgiving and often totally unpredictable elements takes me out of the normal life of mother and retired government worker and transports me to a place where I am challenged every day, whether with comfort issues or navigating the unknown and learning new skills to facing deep fears.  The ocean is alive and can be merciless yet I never can get tired of her beauty and when you take the time to settle in and partner with her, you find a peace and confidence I can’t obtain in normal everyday life.

 

Tomorrow, David will pick me up at Orlando and we will embark on year two of our adventures on TomCat!  This year our goal is to do our first ocean crossing on TomCat. I’ve done some short crossings when we island-hopped in St. Vincent and the Grenadines but this time its on our baby and we do it alone.  We hope to cross over to the Bahamas this year and sail The Abacos, a cluster of islands that belong to The Bahamas and are rather remote . This means we need to provision well before crossing. 

 

Well, TomCat, here I come. 

Vero Beach  

We stayed in Vero Beach from the 13Jan until we had to head back north to St. Mary’s to lift off and meet Ed who would wanted to experience some sailing (and get away from Ottawa winter)

Vero (aka Velcro beach) is amazing for sailors. The City Marina has a large anchorage with access to dinghy docks, free buses that take you anywhere in the city for shopping or touring around. We borrowed Bob and Carol’s bikes and biked around the city. Remind me not to take David’s word that it’s only a 20 minute bike ride to Home Depot.  (3 hours later, I was exhausted, hot and dehydrated as we had bike in mid-day heat). 

The beach in Vero is amazing – clean, not busy , has areas that are lifeguard monitored and easy to access. There are a few restaurants overlooking the beach and some very posh shopping (I basically looked at the store windows as I could not afford a t shirt in one of those lol)

 

David and I learned to love PICKLEBALL and we played both on the street before the yacht club closed it down as residents don’t like to hear the constant wack of the paddles . So we moved to Very Beach Fitness Centre and for 6bucks you could play from 9 to 11:30 Mon Wed and Fri. We played several times there and it was amazing. Gary, would put you with people at your level. It’s a great workout and not too hard on joints. David and I will love to find a place to play in Canada. 

Our anchorage had tons of dolphins and manatees although the water was dark with tannins and the manatees were hard to see. We met many great people , Ron and Jethro (father and son),  our friends from NS  Gilles and Annik , Sienna and her parents from NS , Jack and Cindy from US and many many more that we visited on their boats and shared dinners with. 

 

I was also part of the Vero Beach Marina Cruiser’s Net. This is a short radio broadcast about 15 min long that started at 8:15 and would take place on channel 68 on VHF radio. I did the community announcements and others would do weather, happy hour advertisements from different restaurants and other information. I also would pick a trivia question for the day . They didn’t have a lot of people willing to do it so it was a way to help the sailing community of Vero beach. 

 

 

 

It’s been a while since I wrote what we’ve been up to. Mostly because we are finally resting and still in Vero beach after 2 months of BUSY. I left David in Georgia on the 5Dec so I could visit family , kids and see my sister just outside of Truro NS during the Christmas season. David joined me on the 22nd Dec. and we flew back to Orlando on the 2Jan.  It was a smooth flight with no issues or delays!!! I love West Jet and  Porter and the american airlines. I will not fly Air Canada or Flair anymore if I can avoid it. They seem to cancel flights that are not filled up and leave you without any viable options to get home. to get back to Ottawa, I had to cancel my flair ticket , which was a deal, and say no to their 2 day delay. I flew Allegiant, (awesome american airline) and rented a car in Rochester and drove to Ogdensburg where Corn (my good friend) picked me up. We are not allowed to drop off american cars in Hertz venues in Canada. 

I had an amazing Christmas with the kids and family, and just loved , loved my week with my sister in her new amazing home overlooking the Bay of Fundy. I was able to spend lots of time with my mom and stepdad and had many meals together. 

David had been a busy camper while I was away and the boat was pretty well ready for splashing on the 4th except a small air leak in the gas line. It avoided detection for a while and gave us a few issues. David , did his mcgyver trick.  We used a bulb to figure out where the tiny hole was in the fuel line. It worked well!! Thank you Boat US for the tip!

 

The LAUNCH BACK INTO THE WATER 5JAN2023

Bye bye St. Mary’s boatyard in St. Mary’s Georgia! We left at 7:15 , a quick launch by the superb marina owner who oversees and does all of the launching , Rocky and his sidekick Jay. Amazing team who know how to treat boats and never take shortcuts. We love this marina. It’s a working marina, not posh but just our style. Plus everyone is helpful and you can work on your boat. The rates are amazing as well. 

We were both anxious to be back in the water as we had arrived in such awful circumstaces in late November after  being adrift for several hours in rough seas.  But the saying it you have to get back on the horse asap!  In no time, we both felt our comfort return and started to enjoy the challenge of navigating the rivers, canals and inlets that make up the ICW. 

 

 

7 to 9 Jan 2023 – St. Augustine

I can’t say enough about St. Augustine! It is the oldest small city in the US! It has the oldest church in North America (1565). The history here is amazing and the architecture is jaw-dropping. It is also knows as the Christmas town as the city core competes with who can decorate the best. The atmosphere is like that of my dad’s village in Spain, Rota, during tourist season.  It was so happy, lively , vibrant and gorgeous.  It kind of transitioned us from our 5 months of working hard (since July, pre-launching) to finally feeling like we were exploring new places. David and I had not taken the time to enjoy the sights much as our goal was to head to Florida and then further south.  I felt finally we were just relaxing and not fixing something or planning navigating to our next spot. 

We anchored just outside of the historical core of the city and admired the lights and the music party boats that would entwine through the moorings with groups of people drinking , dancing and blasting music as they passed. I was so happy to see people enjoying themselves, mixing, no masking, no fear and letting loose. 

 

David and I splurged and had an amazing mexican meal in the best seat of the house overlooking the moorings and we could see our TC. We walked all over for a couple of days, the nights were packed with people and lights and music and food smells. The days were much quieter but we could see the amazing architecture and read the history.  Love St. Augustine!

 

 

The architecture was reminiscent of my beloved Spain!

 

 

9 to 12 Jan2023 –  From St. Augustine to Vero Beach (aka Velcro Beach)

On the 9Jan we left St. Augustine heading towards Daytona. We motored a long 9 hrs having to constanly squeeze the bulb as we could still not find the leak in the fuel line. We later saw that David had fixed the fuel line but there was another tiny leak where he had inserted the bulb! That was easily tightened and the motor ran superbly after that. We anchored in Daytona, just off the ICW . We passed our friends from NS on Calista and found that Annik (Gilles wife) had fallen down the companionway stairs and broken 7 ribs and punctured her lung. She had returned to Canada to recouperate and Gilles stayed with the boat. She would join him later in Vero beach. 

10Jan2023 – Another lesson

We left Daytona and had the bright idea of going offshore to Canaveral inlet. The winds were going to be mild 5 to 15km from NW so we knew we would have to motor somewhat to get there before dusk. We erroneously thought it was faster than the ICW as it was straighter with no shoaling to navigate through, less stress and focus and more relaxing.  WRONG.  We forgot to take into account  the time it takes to exit a VERY tricky inlet just south of Daytona and then the more than 1n hr to get far enough offshore that you can put your sails up. After about 3 hrs , and sailing very slow, I found that we still had to navigate a lock at point Canaveral after getting inside the inlet at night .  Smart people correct their errors and we turned around and navigated a very shallow and dangerous inlet a 2ND TIME. David was so nervous that he called Boat US and had them stand by.  We ended up having no issues and lots of water never under 13 ft this time as we could go directly to the ICW . When we came from Daytona to exit offshore, we had hit about 6ft of water in some spots, and our TC takes 5.3.. We were sweating bullets as we have to contend with currents and tides that make it difficult to just back off the sand if you ground.  Coming back in though was a breeze. I took over for the captain in these tight spaces as you need to see the digital charts while you steer and then look out at the navigation aids at the same time. David needs his glasses to see in close and then has to take them off which gets to bee too hard to do all at the same time as steering in these close conditions. 

We anchored shortly after entering back on the ICW , at Smyrna beach a beautiful place to visit, quiet and with a gorgeous beach. (tons of dolphins)

Our lesson we will remember:  Only exit offshore if it is good SAILING conditions for TC and incorporate the time it takes to enter, exit inlets and how far you have to go off shore before you can put your sails up as some inlets are very shallow.  When all is counted, the ICW is sometimes the faster and easier way south. 

11Jan to 12 Jan  Smyrna to Point Canaveral to VERO BEACH (aka Velcro Beach) 

We left Ponce de Leon anchorage on the ICW and arrived in Titusville (at Point Canaveral) at 14:30. We could see the NASA space launch sites from our spot north of Addison Bridge. It was a wide open anchorage but if the conditions are calm, it’s wide open with amazing sunsets. 

We arrived in Vero Beach on the 13th of January.  We decided to anchor on the north end of the moorings at the City Marina. there is still room to anchor but its a little tricky as it gets shallow fast, especially around the small mangrove islands. It had been an easy motor today and we arrived just before dusk from Titusville. The ICW was wide open here with absolutely gorgeous islands with small beaches that we saw many motorboaters just anchor close to. A sailboat would have to stay a little further away but you could dingy to the beaches and have your own little island for the day. 

I know why Vero beach is nicknamed Velcro Beach.  The temperature is amazing for Canadians right now, in the 20s and then drops at night. Buses are fast, on time and FREE.. There is a most amazing beach here without tall buildings. We use the bus system to get round for grocery shopping. Bob and Carol, our friends who have been waiting for us since Nov., lent us their bikes and we have been biking around. The other day, I trusted David who said Home Depot was 34 min bike ride.  After 1hr and 30 min in the mid -day sun, we arrived at Home Depot .  The worst part was knowing I had to cycle back. The reward was KFC for lunch.  No one makes chicken like KFC. David turned his nose until he saw the chicken and then ate half of my lunch. 

 

Our good friend Rob arrived last monday and has been with us for just a little over a week. It’s wonderful to have a 3rd person to chat with and share.  We decided that its a bit late to go to Bahamas as we have to be back in March and there is a fee to stay in the Bahamas. We we hope to do that next year when we don’t have to bring the boat south as it will just stay here for the summer. 

 

We are just enjoying Vero Beach, singing in a church (Christ by the Sea) choir with an amazing orchestra and pianist puts a latin spin on all the hymns!!! We also have discovered PICKLEBALL. and LOVE it. It’s an older person’s tennis. It is competitive or fun depending on who you play with. We are playing 2 times a week and meeting amazing people. I am one of the few who really go for the ball and yesterday almost took one of the nets down and then later did a graceful fall, tuck and roll.. embarrassing and a little sore today but looking forward to next Pickleball day. 

 

Below are some extra photos I took including some  of the Brevard Zoo (40 min from Vero).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s been sometimes long waiting for our new shaft and coupler to arrive. St. Mary’s Boatyard is a place where many people work on their boats at their own time. It is also a favourite place for Canadians  who  keep their boats here during the summer months and pick them up in the winter and head south. The people are friendly and Rocky , the owner is the no-nonsense, kind who runs a tight ship. He and his son Clayton drove us to St. Mary’s to do our laundry and then picked us up. Such kind hearts. 

While we waited for our new shaft, we did some boat jobs that we had been meaning to do:  installed the wind vane ( auto pilot) , moved the dinghy motor to a more secure position, installed the  BBQ (which we used to make tandori chicken ( hosted Ian and Deborah who are on a cherubini – like a porsche for sailboats- named Patience) , painted the mast and stairs , I added some fish to the mast and currently David is raising our waterline as it is too low and we want to protect the hull from sitting in salt water. As he didn’t have a laser to draw a straight line through the chines, he used water and a hose and used the water level and gravity to mark the straight line on the hull..mm he scares me sometimes. 

 

 

 

By injecting water into a tube and holding the ends up the water is level so you can make a straight level line across the hull. David didn’t have a laser as he had to draw the original line for the anti-foul paint. (He is scary at times)

 

The fish motive on the mast was inspired by the movie THE CHOSEN, a crowd funded movie, currently 3rd in the US box office. They have a theme image  where a school of plain fish are swimming clockwise and then 13 other brighter fish are swimming counterclockwise. This represents the 12 who followed Jesus in counter culture.  There is a necessity today to live counter-culture, even for those who are not Jesus led.  We have met so many people, single, couples who have decided to leave the rat race, sell their big homes, and live on less. We have met young couples with babies on board who have chosen this life as well as older retired people or those who have seasonal jobs and can make it happen even part of the year.  BE DIFFERENT  as Ghandi would say. 

 

 

I also resumed my walk/jog routine with handweights in the morning and even talked David into coming with me. He walks fast, I job slow. It works. 

Two sailors, Steve and Sandra, who have been sailing south for many year if not decades, lent us their truck to travel back and forth from town. It’s just unbelievable how people just share what they have and take care of each other here. They didn’t need it for a few days. So, with a truck at our disposal, we took a Sunday, to visit Agape Church with pastor John Rogers and were wowed by his sermon about hope in dark times (these times especially) and the  humility of his congregation (good music too) . Then we drove to Fort Clinch State Park and brought some yummy steaks and coal as they had some BBQs and picnic areas. We hiked some jungle trails and David harassed the wildlife.  We walked the beautiful Fernandina beach and looked for shark teeth. I found a tiny tooth David didn’t find any… Then I found some welks (those big conch type shells. What a beautiful Sunday. Our first outing besides doing laundry and provisioning since arriving at St. Mary’s Georgia. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love the different vegetation, stuff we can barely grow at home grows into big trees over here. 

 

Parting thoughts:::