Turnaround

Thursday, March 2, 2023

Hi everyone, we are back on the air, and back at Spanish Wells.

We had a wonderful visit to Staniel Cay. There was a certain peacefulness to our stay in Staniel, because we knew it was the turnaround point in our trip. The harbor itself is gorgeous – large and picturesque, with small islets poking their heads up here and there. And it is completely open to the west, so the sunsets were spectacular. They had no room for us at the docks, so we picked up a mooring ball (and had a ball!). We used the dinghy to run back and forth to the beach.

Almost a “ green flash”!

Staniel Cay is a hoppin’ little place, in part because of its airport. It is a popular place for boaters to pick up and drop off visitors and crew, so there are always beautiful yachts coming and going. They have a colorful bar, and DELICIOUS food.

The most popular attractions in the area are the Thunderbolt Grotto and the Swimming Pigs, and we managed to enjoy both:

The Thunderbolt Grotto is the site where they filmed the eponymous James Bond movie. Essentially, it is a mound-shaped island that is completely hollow inside. The entrance is typically underwater, but it reveals itself at low tide. You swim in wearing your mask and fins, and the view above and below the water is dramatically lit by holes in the rock overhead.

In contrast, the swimming pigs are just a hoot! They swim out to meet your boat in the hopes you’ve brought carrots, and you can play with them on the beach.

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This guy came out to meet us only to be disappointed.

If you don’t bring food, you hold up your hands like a blackjack dealer and they turn around, We chose to stay on the boat but others dinghy ashore to go play with them.

On the “bad news” side, I had noticed a certain hesitancy in the engine as I throttled up, so I took a look at the Racor filter – the one that separates out any water in the fuel. It appeared to have captured quite a bit of water in it, so I emptied it and changed the filter element. Unfortunately, as it filled again from the fuel tank, the new fuel also looked pale and watery.

I called the marina and learned that diesel fuel in the Bahamas is not red (as it is in the States) but amber. It also has less aroma.

So I figured we were OK.

Yesterday – Wednesday – presented us with a perfect weather window, so we decided to make a long jump back to Eleuthera, retracing our path through the Exumas, all the way back to Spanish Wells. About a 7 hour trip – calm winds and flat seas. But the boat began acting up almost immediately: it would not let us go any faster than about 16mph, compared to our top speed of 20 mph. It felt like the engine wasn’t getting enough fuel.

Nevertheless, we decided to press on, knowing that – if we could reach Spanish Wells, we had a better chance of finding a skilled mechanic to assist. And we had to hold up in Spanish Wells for three days anyway, waiting for our next weather window.

Four hours later, our speed dropped to 14 mph. Two hours later, it dropped to 12 mph. But we made it!

We are now busy doing the wash, re-provisioning, and trying to line up a mechanic. We’ll keep you informed!