Joe's pictures that I forgot to post

a walk on the beach

quite the collection

windswept palms

a tree full of coconuts .. I was sure one would fall as Joe was taking this picture

Merry Christmas everyone

December 21-22, 2015 dinghy issues and a walk to the ocean

the wind kept their strength all night and our wind generator was producing more power than we need

Janice and Cam, Te Amor (Nova Scotia) came by to tell us of the boaters breakfast on Xmas

Eve morning at Green Turtle Club and a pot luck at Sundowners in New Plymouth on Christmas Day. This all sounds good to us.

Janine, Joe and I went to shore to do laundry, a wash and dry is $10

we got to do wifi and Janine and I lucked out, the ladies room to the showers was open. (boaters are not allowed to use the showers, and we can't even pay to use them).

Our dinghy is falling us, we had everything fixed in the US, but from packing and folding it on the deck for the crossing it has opened more seams .. Joe and I worked all afternoon G-Flexing every seam

Snowbird borrowed our motor and went to New Plymouth to hopefully do banking.  The banks here are only open one day a week and Monday is not the day … but because of the holidays this week it was open.  They also reported that the grocery store shelves where quite bare, but a boat is arriving tomorrow, so we might get some fresh produce before Xmas  .. view of the mangroves at low tide

Tuesday morning Joe and I took Dave's dinghy and our motor and went to New Plymouth, for some supplies …  and yes the streets are this empty

on the way we stopped into Abaco Yacht Services, to get prices on hauling and storing the boat in their hurricane protected boat yard … there is a long waiting list, so we will check back in with them on April to see if it is even possible …

New Plymouth all decorated for Christmas, and the streets are empty … we found out that they

don't celebrate Boxing Day

the Olde Jail

lots of chickens running around

some fresh produce arriving

in the afternoon we walked another beach

Merry Christmas Owen Sound, Canada

a lot of the roads here are narrow and  full of potholes … lots of vehicles experience flat tires

Is What It Is Lane

Otto and Pauline Visar, we stapled the Canadian Dollar bill you gave us with Modaki and our friends

Dave and Janine's .. Snowbird name and year on it .. thanks again

making a Christmas garland with the found objects from our walk

one area we walked had about 30 sea ferns washed ashore, here are some, we also found my first of the year Sea Bean from Africa, and above that a green Xmas Ball, (no kidding), and brain coral

avocado for $3.25 and cucumber $2.75  .. I have everything now for the California Rolls 

that Joe and I will make for the Boaters Pot Luck on Christmas day, in New Plymouth

I made stove top scalloped potatoes with peas and canned pulled port, from The Boat Galley Cookbook

it was so good

December 20, 2015 ….. a walk on the beach

everyone so happy to get wifi

no Phil is not praying to Joe, he is collecting our mooring fees

we are heading to shore for a walk

I still don't know the reason for this colourful collection

I guess Santa will be arriving by this boat this year

our first of many walks on the beach

we collected some ripe bananas, they are so sweet

one of our many long and winding roads

the buds on a palm that look like

red bulbs

Modaki, with Bolo Taxi passing  us in a no wake zone

Joe and Dave surveying some property to buy

with water front view

one of the many cuts thru the rocks

supper  --- pineapple and canned chicken

on a bed of basmati rice

our collection for Xmas decorations

Santa Noah

some twigs that resemble cedar boughs  … we are still collecting

Sunday Dec. 20/15

The wind blew all night and day at 25 knots and shook the boat 

at 30 knots.  I'm up for a few hours, thinking too much, what if the mooring ball breaks free and what is it actually attached to ??

When Phil came to collect $100 from us, I forgot to ask that question.

Again there is no pleasure boats coming or going out of the harbour, we once again put on our mast light, as we are the first boat you encounter on a mooring ball or at anchor.

Joe was up at 6:30 and he put the first coat of varnish on.

We had Gluten Free pancakes and sausages for breakfast, lately my food intolerance is causing me too many issues.

We contacted Snowbird and picked them up and we all went to GTC, Green Turtle Club and spent a few hours doing our blogs, email and face book

In the early afternoon we all went to a beach behind the Bluff House on the lee shore and it was actually quite warm. We had a great time picking up Ocean treasures for our Christmas on the Boat displays.

It is going to be strange not being at home with family and friends this year.

Joe called his mom and we ate supper by 5pm, Pineapple with Canned Chicken, peppers, onions etc.  really good.

By 5:30 it is dark and by 7pm it feels like 10pm …

our outside and inside Christmas lights are on …

December 18-19, 2015 Green Turtle Cay …. very windy

some residence are getting into the Christmas spirit

winds blowing 25 knots, gusting to 30 for the next two days

scraping the old varnish off the Port and Stern .. Joe will varnish on Sunday with the first coat

Joe blowing the conch … the only person in the anchorage to do so

we hung our outdoor Christmas lights … we have already got a good comment from a boating

neighbour

hanging our indoor lights …

December 18-19, 2015

I forgot to mention :

our Immigration Arrival Card is only for 90 days, so we will have to renew it in 3 months

our cruising and fishing permit is for one year

we paid $150 for our 29 ft boat .. Snowbird thought that they owed $300 , as they paid last year, but that legislation did not pass. So only boats over 35 ft pay $300…. Snowbird is 35 ft.  … Dave bought us all drinks

Saturday 

We had a very windy night, we knew a low was coming, that is why we took a mooring ball at $20/day, and Joe talked him into $100 for 7 days, but that only takes us up to the day before Xmas Eve.

The winds was now from the North - NE at 25 knots gusting to 30 knots.  There was no going to shore today, we did more boat chores. We moved the boarding ladder to STB side, I scrapped the old wood from Port side and stern.  Joe will do the first coat of varnish on Sunday.  Only the taxies Bolo II and Bolo III are going any where today.

This would of been a good day to be at the dock, but $$$

We got an email back from Keltic Kat, Pat and Tutti, (Nova Scotia), niece of Bill and Anne Taylor, GYC Members, they are in Man of War on a Mooring ball for a month.  We hope to meet up when ever we get around the "WHALE".

We have an overabundance of power today from the wind generator and now the sun is trying to come out.  We charged our

I-Pod, (listening to Bruce Cockburn singing xmas carols), cordless drill (from drilling new holes in the toe rail for the ladder move), blender (made hummus), Portable VHF (calling Snowbird).

Oh yeah Snowbirds outboard got picked up yesterday in the late PM, so they hope it won't take long to fix.  In the mean time we will give them a ride, and when the wind settles down they will row to shore.

Te Amor, Janise and Cam (Nova Scotia) is also in the same anchorage, we had a good chat yesterday.

the high winds are to continue for Sunday also,  so not too sure what that day will bring … we still need to repair our leaking forward hatch, but that means removing it completely first … maybe not in these winds

to be continued ….

Mangrove Cay

Mangrove Cay

After a 15 hour motoring and 81 km cross the Gulf Stream, we finally got to Mangrove Cay … most bigger sailboats still kept going to Great Sale Cay, another 4-5 hours.

We kept in contact with Snowbird, and they anchored about 1/2 hour before our arrival.

We had our radar at one mile and saw the boats at anchor, but it is still nerve racking to position your self with other boats at 8pm and in the dark.

Snowbird put on their cockpit light so we could see them, there was tons of space on either side of them, we chose the stb side.

As we slowly approached at 2 knots, we saw to our port side a boat coming in to anchor, we thought.  Their red,green and white lights where high off the water, and we thought a power boat.  But it was coming too fast to be anchoring.

In about 2 minutes, we realized it was not stopping and they did not see us.

Joe said turn now, now, now …  I throttled up and turned to the oncoming vessel, we did a 180.  The vessel then saw us and turned a 180 in the opposite direction, to avoid …., and it continued out into the banks.  We got to see it now and it was a barge that was about 80 - 100 ft long pulling something, they didn't have AIS .. 

With shaking legs, we watched it go off our radar screen.

This barge should of not been in an anchorage, and it was going at high speed

Snowbird saw us doing a 180 then a complete 360 and wondered why ?

We now think that the barge was on the other side of Snowbird when they turned the 180, Thank God

This was not the best ending, or was it, for a Gulf Stream crossing, and 15 hours on the water, hand steering.

We where too upset to sleep.

as I'm preparing this message a huge Cat came into White Sound,in the dark, Joe had to blow our horn,  to make him aware that we are here .. when a boat is on a mooring ball you don't need to have your anchor light on … we are so paranoid now we have turned our anchor light on 

good night