The return to Green Turtle Cay

The last few days have been busy. The conference call went well although there was some question as to whether Alan had pushed me overboard because it lasted 11 hrs. A friend put a sign outside the boat Do Not Disturb - Woman at Work. Alan arranged to have our two loads of laundry washed dried and folded for the same price as using the machines (or so he says) I really like the folded part. He saw a manatee for the first time.

The wind increased throughout the weekend making our dock very bouncy. We both slept intermittently on Saturday night. Sunday morning was spent trying to dodge the torrential rain as we bought a few groceries. During a lull in the storms we moved out to a mooring where we were much more comfortable. Towards evening we took the dinghy back to shore and the three crews headed for the beach bar/ restaurant

We had a great meal. I had a dozen conch fritters and a frozen pina colada. Below is a view from the restaurant. As this was a farewell dinner of sorts we were not allowed to pick up our check which was very nice. We would be heading north while the other two boat enjoyed the Abacos for another month or two.



I thought the sunset was kind of cool that night.

Alan and Linda (from Sunset) spent some time getting the DSC on our VHF working. Essentially it allows you to use the VHF radio like a private phone to other boats within range complete with ringing noise.

Early Monday morning

we headed out to Don't Rock passage in light winds. This is an inside passage for shallow draft boats. It cuts about 6miles off the trip to Green Turtle Cay. We were nervous after hearing lots of horror stories but never saw less than 6'9" on the depth sounder.


Upon arrival in Green Turtle Cay we finally met up with Hans and Kristen, the crew of Whisper, another Vega headed out on an open ended cruise of the Caribbean and destinations unknown. We have been internet friends for over a year so getting to know them in person was a real treat. We began by checking out each others boats. It is fun to see how people tackle the same problem, on the same boat, differently. Alan was particularly interested in the wind generator installation. Yesterday the two crews headed for the beach to go snorkeling and spear fishing.

Seems like the fish were smart enough to stay away from these two novices - Alan and Hans.
Dinner was on Voila! and everyone enjoyed the chili, cornbread and cheesecake.
This morning we had Kristen up the mast of Voila! We have been experiencing a problem receiving on our VHF radio. After tackling all of the corrosion at deck level and seeking expert advice the only thing left was the connection on top of the mast. She took it apart and cleaned it the best that she could but unfortunately that did not help either. The side benefit was that she also reinstalled a wind vane. Alan has been griping about this since the beginning of the trip last year when we broke the first one stepping the mast.
We are now carefully watching the weather to plan a safe trip home. alan has gone to town to check out motor boat VHF antennas. This is so that we can receive weather information and in case of emergency.
We have been catching up with old friends here and still making new ones. We are constantly amazed by the percentage of Canadians in each harbour.
Until our next connection.....