Cruisers often joke that “cruising” is fixing the boat in exotic places. It is a funny catchphrase but it is also very, very true. Conversations with our fellow cruisers are often littered with comments about what is currently broken on their boat and how they plan to fix it. They will casually talk about what parts they need, how they are going to get those parts or that they are waiting for a part to arrive. We all nod in agreement. We offer help (if we can) or parts (if we have them). This is the stuff that builds the ties deep in this community. We are there for one another – always – because we know our turn to be the one in need is likely just around the corner.

Well, the turn for Wild Horses came up big recently. Our trusty outboard on our dinghy failed. Yes, that outboard. You know, the one that makes sure Ocean gets to shore several times a day. It is critical gear for Wild Horses. Yikes!

The problems started at Black Point Settlement, in the Exumas. Mike would start up the dinghy motor, let it idle and then it would stop. Huh? Why the problem idling? We suffered through this for a few days, all while checking on the usual suspects (gas level, fuel lines, fuel pump). We could get the outboard going again by quickly shifting it into gear, but the idling issue kept happening. And it kept getting worse.

After chatting about our issue with our boat buddies on Tekana (Dean and Jean), Dean suggested that the carburetor needed to be cleaned. Thankfully, he has done this kind of work before and dove in. He also adjusted the idle screw and the pilot screw (okay, what are these things?) to finely tune our idle. Thank you Dean!

But, oh, the issue reared its ugly head again the next day.

By the time we got to Georgetown, the outboard wouldn’t idle at all. We played around with the adjustments to the idle screw and the pilot screw again. No good. In fact, I think we made it worse 😊. Dean was hailed for help, along with another mechanic friend and cruiser, Joe (on Shamal). It was all hands-on deck. The result? No improvement. Argh!

Then we met Wayne, from the sailing catamaran Gwayne. Wayne is a trained mechanic, among many other things not limited to amazing cook, musician, paramedic and fireman. Needless to say, Wayne is a very handy guy to have around!
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Well, Wayne worked on our outboard for two days. The result? Some improvement. Our outboard would now idle like a kitten purring. Yay! But now it would shut down if we increased the throttle. Yes, that’s right. We now had the opposite problem. Argh 2.0!

Wayne really felt that the solution to our problem was a new carburetor. Did we happen to have a spare? Nope! We would have to order it in and, based on the experiences of other cruisers, we were looking at up to two weeks or more to get one delivered to Georgetown. Yikes! What about Ocean? How would we get her to shore?????

Enter the boat Happy Cat. This is a sailing catamaran that had joined our “trying to make it to Grenada” group at Georgetown. They are a family of six from Australia and truly the most lovely people of all time. They offered that they had a spare 6 HP outboard that we could borrow. The only difficulty with this plan was that they were starting their sail south to Grenada the next day. Their response? “No problem, mate!”. They would just pick up the outboard when we met again in Grenada. What???? This kind of kindness and generosity is off the charts! Although much slower than our 15HP outboard, that little 6HP got us to shore for Ocean, and to town for groceries, and maybe to the bar (once or twice) for a few beers 😉.

Then the best news. The carburetor I ordered on a Tuesday with one day shipping, arrived in time to make the weekly flight from Florida to Georgetown the next day. We had our new carburater in our hands on the Friday. And the wonderful Wayne installed it the following day.

The result? Our outboard is running perfectly! And it is only thanks to this community. We have so many people to thank – people who offered their advice and assistance, people that gave their time and skill, even people who gave us a spare outboard 😊. We are just so grateful. And we can’t wait to pay it back, pay it forward and pay it however so that we lighten the load for someone else.
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Love this cruising community!

​What’s next for us? Our outboard was fixed in time to make a possible window south to Luperon, Dominican Republic. We are hoping to be headed out of the Georgetown harbour, and further south, in just a few days 😊.

Wild Horses arrived in Georgetown, Bahamas on Tuesday March 24. Although we have been here twice before, the feeling upon arrival is still the same. We are washed over with a feeling of accomplishment and excitement.
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Georgetown is an iconic place where many cruisers gather. For some, it is the furthest south that they will travel. A turnaround point. For others, it is a jumping off point. Some cruisers will continue south to explore the outer Bahamian islands, like the Ragged Islands, Crooked Island, or Long Island. Or, like us, it is a place to pause and re-group before continuing the even longer journey to the Caribbean. Wherever your plans take you after Georgetown, being here is a relief and an inspiration.

In Georgetown we can get a few groceries, fuel and marine supplies. We can hike, swim, snorkel and, most importantly, hang out with our fellow cruisers. If the weather was good for continuing our journey south, Georgetown would just be a pit stop for us. We would quickly grab the supplies we need and then take off to our next stop south in the Bahamas. As it turns out, we have another strong weather system passing through the Bahamas that will keep us here in Georgetown until the end of the first week of April. This is definitely not a quick pit stop!
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These strong weather systems have been a pain in our butts this whole season. They have slowed us down as we try to seek decent shelter from the strong winds, keeping us in anchorages far longer than we would normally have stayed. But, wait, is that really a bad thing?  Slowing down?  Having ample time to explore and learn about a new place? Truth be told, the weather hasn’t stopped us from enjoying our time here. Looking back over our time in the Exumas, I would say that lingering in paradise has been a joy😊.

​In fact, our favourite times were when we could put down the charts and schedules and really play tourist. Or, when a guest arrives, we get to play tourist guide. This was the case when our boat buddies on Tekana (Jean and Dean) had Jean’s sister Sherry visit for the first few weeks of March. It was an amazing time that passed by far too quickly!

​We said good bye to Jean’s sister Sherry on March 17, seeing her off at the Staniel Cay airport. The next day, both Tekana and Wild Horses moved south to Black Point Settlement. The winds were forecasted to be quite strong for several days (surprise!) and the Black Point anchorage has great protection. A bonus during our visit here? The village of Black Point was having its annual regatta. We got to see some great sloop races between the local Black Point teams and the visiting Georgetown teams. It was incredible, especially since the winds were really strong. The talented sailors thrilled us with their skills to manage the heavy winds in small skiffs that featured a huge mainsail that went the whole length of the skiff. Each boat also had an outrigger, which is a long beam on the leeward side of the boat. At least 3 of the 6 crew would sit on the end of the outrigger to try to balance the boat against the wind. Most of the time, this worked beautifully but not all the time. We watched four boats get overwhelmed by wind and pushed right over. And then they sunk! We were shocked at first but quickly learned that this is quite normal for these sailors and the boats handle it all well. Once sunk, the sailors remove the lead from the keel and take the mast off the boat. With the lead weight gone, the boat floats to the surface and is towed to shore. The only damage is to the crew’s pride!

Both the strong wind and the festival ended last Sunday so Tekana and Wild Horses made a plan to head down to Georgetown. This part of the trip is always interesting as it involves taking the boat through a “cut” to the Exuma Sound. For us, the nail-biting part is timing the Cut.  Depending on which Cut you choose, you may have a narrow or a wide passage, and/or a deep or shallow passage. Regardless, all of these cuts are notorious for having strong currents, even more so if you go when there is wind against the current.  This go around we took Dotham Cut, which is just north of Black Point Settlement. Our passage through was easy and before we knew it we were out in the Exuma Sound and enjoying a fabulous sea state and motor sail.

Oh my…our crew is certainly enjoying our time in the Bahamas. It has been everything the doctor ordered for our crew of three, who were a little lost from living on land for almost eighteen months, tending to Wild Horses as just one big on-going fix-it project.

When we left Green Cove Springs, Florida, last December, we were very tired and weary from too much boat maintenance.

Not now.

The last few weeks have been filled with so many things that brings us joy. Well, maybe not everything was joyful. I mean, it is a boat so something always needs fixing 😉 and this go-around it was our marine toilet. No, we were not “filled with joy” while giving it some tender loving care ☹. Even in paradise, it isn’t all cold mojitos in the cockpit!
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Travel-wise, we have gone 165 nautical miles since we left the Mackie Shoal (on the Bahama Bank) in the middle of February. While we have been to the Bahamas twice before, and on a similar route, this mileage took us to several new anchorages that really wowed us. The first was Morgan’s Bluff on Andros Island. Although the anchorage is small and the location is remote, it was a safe place to rest our heads on our way to the island of New Providence. Even more important to our caravan of boat buddies (Tekana, Ancora and ourselves) was a lovely seaside beach bar offering Bahamian beer, yummy eats and the chance to chat about our travels. 

​The next morning, all three boats weighed anchor and headed off to a private dock on the south side of the island of New Providence. Stronger weather was coming in and this dock gave us a chance to be sheltered from the wind while also having access to amenities like fuel, groceries and hardware/marine stores. In addition to shopping, the pause from travelling meant we could get caught up on our chores. That laundry wasn’t magically doing itself like I had hoped! Oh, and our visit to New Providence coincided with Dean’s birthday (our boat buddy on Tekana) so we were thrilled to hop in a rental car and head to Nassau for some delicious sushi to celebrate the day. Sushi in paradise? Yes, please!

​Leaving New Providence, we were excited to finally arrive in the Exumas island chain. We landed at Highborne Cay, one of the northern islands in the Exumas. Although this is a great anchorage for eastern winds, another strong cold front was making its way to the Bahamas within a few days so we needed to get to a better anchorage for the weather. Highborne has beautiful beaches but it is just a slice of low land separating the Exuma Sound from the Atlantic Ocean. Beautiful, yes. A shelter in strong weather? Not so much. This is the challenge in the Exumas. Cold fronts swing through the area regularly and cause the wind to clock around from east to south, west and north. Protection from the strong winds associated with these fronts is important but, even more critical is getting protection from the sea fetch which can hobby horse a sailboat. Best case is that you are a little uncomfortable. Worst case is that your anchor gets dislodged. Yikes! Many of the other islands and cays in the Exumas offer great east protection but very few give you shelter for clocking winds. As a group of three boats, we decided to make our way to Warderick Wells, which is part of the Bahamas Land and Sea Park. This anchorage checked most of our “good shelter” requirements, missing only the western wind protection which was forecasted to last just a few hours.

​Oh my. Warderick Wells. Not only were we well protected through the cold front, we were also treated to the beauty and adventure of this island. It has several snorkeling sites, soft white sand beaches and many trails to hike. The most iconic trail is the one to Boo Boo Hill, at the very top of the island. For decades, cruisers have hiked to the top of Boo Boo Hill and left their boat name for all to see – be it on driftwood, a bottle or other paraphernalia. Even more incredible to see is the 360-degree view from the top of the island, spanning a vista that includes the Atlantic Ocean, the Exuma Sound and the beauty of the island itself.

​Later that week, once the cold front passed through, we decided to move further south to O’Brien’s Cay. This is a pretty little anchorage that also sits in the Land and Sea Park so sandy beaches and great hikes are prevalent. Our sights, however, were set on snorkeling in the Sea Aquarium. This is a coral-rich spot in the anchorage where the sea life is abundant. Thousands of types of fish swim around you, getting so close that it isn’t odd to feel a bump or push as they move about. We also spied sea turtles and Southern Rays during our two visits to the Sea Aquarium. We truly couldn’t get enough of it!

As enticing as it was to stay in the Land and Sea Park and discover more cays and islands, we needed to get south to the village of Staniel Cay. We arrived here on Friday and found a great anchorage spot in front of the famous Thunderball Grotto (from the James Bond movie “Thunderball”). Here we have easy access to town by dinghy so we can load up on fuel, some fresh vegetables from the local markets and also dump off some of our trash (which we are forbidden to do in the Land and Sea Park).

Finally. Joyously. Amazingly. We are here! In the Bahamas!

But let’s back up a step.

While still anchored at Coconut Grove last weekend, we started to see a weather window to cross the Gulf Stream opening up the following week. And it wasn’t just any weather window. It was the perfect weather we had been waiting for – a calm sea state with just enough south wind to allow us to sail. Yay! Finally!
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We finished off some last-minute provisioning in the Coconut Grove area on Saturday and then fit in a fun Superbowl party aboard Wild Horses on the Sunday. It was a great evening of snacks, football, chatter and laughter. It was fabulous to have our friends from Mokacat, Tekana and Ancora aboard to watch the big game with us!

The next morning was Monday and it was clear that our great weather window would be on Wednesday. Very exciting! We moved Wild Horses back to No Name Harbor to stage for our crossing. Our friends on Tekana also moved their boat back to No Name Harbor, but not before doing a little shakedown sail of their “new-to-them” roller furling jib. They had purchased it used for a song and completed the refit themselves, including resizing the rigging and sail. Their test sail on Monday went spectacularly well and they were pleased as punch. These two are incredible!

At No Name Harbor, we prepped the boats for our crossing and did even more last-minute provisioning (and a last beer at the Winn Dixie produce bar 😉). On Tuesday evening our friends on Ancora moved their boat to No Name Harbor and all the crew from the three boats gathered on Ancora to discuss our upcoming journey. The plan was for Wild Horses and Ancora to leave at first light (0630 hrs) on Wednesday morning and head to Bimini to clear into the Bahamas. The following morning, on Thursday, we would head to the Mackie Shoal to spend a night on the Bahama Bank. Tekana, a slower boat, would leave No Name Harbor on Wednesday afternoon and sail overnight directly to the Mackie Shoal, arriving on Thursday at noon. We had our plan! Now, let’s go!
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Our departure on Wednesday was easy…and crowded! No less than ten boats headed off to Bimini from No Name Harbor that morning. It was fun to be part of a huge pod!

​Our crossing was smooth with just a touch of wind and we were able to motor-sail the whole way. We were docked at Bimini Bluewater Marina and cleared into the Bahamas by 3pm. Easy! We even had time to replace our ratty old Gorilla-taped bow roller with a very sturdy one made of Delrin, purchased while we were still in Miami. It works amazingly well and looks far prettier than Gorilla tape!

The next morning, Wild Horses and Ancora left the docks at Bimini and headed for the Mackie Shoal, a shallow area in the middle of the Bahama Bank, about halfway between Bimini and Nassau. But the cool part is that it is just that – a shallow area. There is no land. There are no markers. There is no cell service. You are in the middle of nowhere. On the ocean. Perfect.
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Although our target was the Mackie Shoal, we actually decided to overshoot it by about 20 nautical miles in order to make our next day’s travel to Andros a little easier. How did we communicate the change to our buddy boats when there is no cell service? With Ancora, it was just like any other day. They were in VHF range plus they have Starlink so we could communicate via text too. Communication with Tekana was also easy, even though they do not have Starlink. Once we were out of cell phone and VHF range, we just seamlessly switched to our Garmin InReach which allows for satellite texting.  This device has been the go-to for our boat tracking too. I highly recommend it for boating or hiking!

​This morning, we woke to flat calm seas and no wind. A blissful morning on the ocean! We have a 30 nautical mile trip to Morgans Bluff, at the top of Andros Island. I think the whole crew of Wild Horses will be happy to be back on land again, especially the four-legged one 😉!

For the last few weeks, we have been carefully eyeing the weather for a possible window to make our run to the tiny island of Bimini on the outer edge of the western Bahamas and then across the Gulf Stream to Florida. Bimini is the first Bahamian island that we visited on our trip south and it holds a special place in our hearts. This time around it would be our last Bahamian island, at least for the next six months.

After waiting out some strong winds over the weekend, we could finally see the weather window we were hoping for. Starting Tuesday April 30th, we had a forecast that called for good wind for a sail to Chub Cay in the Berry Islands, then calm seas for an overnight stop on the Mackie Shoal and, finally, by Thursday we would be in Bimini. Even better, Friday May 3rd was looking ideal for a fast sail from Bimini to West Palm Beach, Florida. Our cruising permit for the Bahamas was set to expire on May 14 so the timing was perfect.
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Our departure from New Providence was wonderful. The wind was in our favour and several of our dock mates came out to say goodbye and to wish us safe travels. This is one of the things we love most about this sailing gig. Everyone we meet becomes new friends. It is a strangely small community, geographically spread across the world but, as soon as you meet someone, the sharing begins. Cruisers just love to help each other out and to pass along whatever tip or tricks they have learned along the way. We all seem to know that cruising guides, navigation apps and Facebook only tell part of the story and each one of us has to piece together our own understanding of a passage or anchorage or gear or whatever. First hand knowledge from another cruiser is gold.

In fact, the most recent example of this sharing happened in New Providence. We were rafted up with “Cookie Monster” a beautiful monohull owned by a guy from New Jersey. For fifteen years, he has been storing his boat at Green Cove Springs (where we will be storing our boat for the first time this year) and he gladly shared great tips for summarizing the boat. We are used to winterizing a boat but this “summerizing” thing is its own beast! Interestingly enough, we had first heard of “Cookie Monster” through a cruiser named Rooster that we had met in the Raggeds. Yup, “Cookie Monster” and Rooster. These are our peeps 😊.

​The trip to Chub Cay in the Berry Islands was a fun motor sail made even more fun when we caught our first ever Mahi Mahi. Barry from Caretta had given us some great info about fishing gear over the past week and it really paid off. Even more fun was that we caught the Mahi using an old lure of my dad’s. Sometimes it really does take a village 😉.

We only spent one quick night at Chub Cay and were very happy to move on the next morning. Chub Cay offers a wide-open anchorage with good holding but it was very rolly the night we stayed there. We had a strong southeastern wind forcing the sea around the island’s southwestern tip and it caused the ocean swell to slam at us broadside. Thankfully a fellow cruiser stopped by (more of that cruiser sharing that we love) and suggested we set up a swell bridle to reduce the roll. It worked perfectly and gave us a chance to sleep well. 

We were up fairly early on Wednesday morning for a long trip to the middle of nowhere. Well, not exactly. We were headed for the Mackie Shoal. This is a known sandbar along the Bahama Bank where, in settled conditions, cruisers can drop anchor for the night to break up the 82 nautical mile trip from Chub Cay to Bimini.  It is a wonderous treat. There is no visible land as far as you can see. Just stars, our boat buddy Caretta and that beautiful blue Bahamian water. 

Thursday morning, we weighed anchor just before dawn and were underway to Bimini. Last time we were in Bimini we stayed at the Bimini Blue Marina (highly recommended!). This time, we opted to anchor off the western shore. The next day was to be our Gulf Stream crossing day so we wanted to easily weigh anchor at first light rather than try to read the shallow water at Bimini’s narrow inlet.
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We were excited to be headed to Florida but sad that this would be our farewell to our fabulous friends on Caretta. We will be pointing our bow north to make our way to Green Cove Springs, Florida while Caretta is going south to the Florida Keys and then on to their home port in Chattanooga, Tennessee. We have sailed together for about 15 months now so the whole crew of Wild Horses (Ocean included) is feeling a bit melancholy about moving along alone. All is not lost though! We have plans to meet up again in the Fall and to spend next winter in the Bahamas together. Yay!

​On Friday morning (May 3rd), we waited for the sun to make its appearance and then quickly took Ocean into shore for her morning business trip. Next was to weigh anchor and get the sails out. The seas were calm and the wind light, making for a very comfortable journey. And we were fast! The Gulf Stream gave us an extra 3 to 4 knots most of the day, allowing us to arrive at the Lake Worth Inlet a few hours earlier than planned. We were finally back in North American waters after leaving Grenada on October 28th.  We are now looking forward to an easy and slow trip up the ICW to Green Cove Springs for our planned haul out of Wild Horses. We are targeting our arrival there for the 3rd week of May.

We have a Garmin InReach that keeps our tracks up to the minute (Recreation Plan). Check out where we are right now by clicking on the button below.

After spending the last few months kicking around the Exumas, we have finally moved along to the island of New Providence. Our Bahamas 3-month cruising permit expires on May 14 and our move to New Providence marks the beginning of our staged departure from the Bahamas. We are currently attached to a private dock on the south of the island (Nassau is at the top of the island) waiting out some strong winds. Once the weather is favourable, we will head towards the Mackie Shoal and then onto Bimini, before we make the leap across the Gulf Stream to Florida.
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When we left O’Brien’s Cay and the wonderful “Aquarium”, we sailed to Shroud Cay, just 28 nautical miles to the north. We were here just one year ago and had loved its quiet remoteness. This time around the anchorage is jam-packed full. Yikes! There are at least five superyachts, several dozen charter boats and a bunch of us cruisers mixed in between. Plus, new mooring balls that take up some of the prime anchoring spots. No need to worry though, there is lots of room for everyone. And we are still able to anchor close enough to “The Dinghy Route”. This is the real reason we wanted to come back to Shroud Cay. We had enjoyed it last year and were excited to get to show Caretta this little bit of entertainment that they had missed on their way south. The dinghy route is a narrow, twisty and turtle-filled natural waterway that takes you from the calm “Sound” side of the island, to the sporty Atlantic side. Using the flooding tide, you dinghy through mangroves and along sandstone banks, with turtles, stingrays and an occasional shark swimming alongside. Finally you arrive at the fast current-driven spin cycle called “the washing machine” on the Atlantic side. Our little 15 and 20 horsepower dinghy motors can do little to fight against the current, making our landing on the shoreline more like bumper cars making their final turn. 

​Although the dinghy landing is fast and rough (due to the strong current), the view is not. We have a beautifully long, sandy, white beach laid out in front of us, and edged with that stunning blue Bahamian water. Not only that, we have beer, beach chairs and a sandbar. Time for some relaxing in paradise!

Don't worry, Ocean got in on the fun! Click the buttons below to see her doing her best to "try" to swim at the sandbar and also how she relaxes after a big day at the beach.

After a few days at Shroud Cay, we decided to weigh anchor last Sunday morning and do a quick little motor-sail jump to Highbourne Cay. A strong east wind was forecasted for the upcoming days and although Highbourne Cay is not ideal for big weather, it thankfully provides enough protection from moderate wind and swell. We might be bumped around a bit but it wouldn’t be entirely uncomfortable.
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While the winds were still light, we opted to dinghy over to Allen’s Cay and check out the iguanas that freely roam about the tiny island. Just as they had last year when we were there, a few iguanas immediately came out to see what we were doing. This time, we came prepared with some lettuce and celery to entice them closer. As soon as the food came out, we had about a dozen iguanas coming towards us. They were definitely not shy once they knew they would be fed!

The first bit of strong winds arrived on Tuesday and although it was comfortable enough on the boat, taking Ocean ashore in the big waves was definitely not so comfy. With even stronger winds arriving on the weekend, we decided to email our friends Carolyn and Nick to see if they had any space available on their private dock on the southern coast of New Providence Island. They quickly confirmed that they had space for both Caretta and Wild Horses. Yay!
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On Wednesday morning, we weighed anchor and made the 40 nautical mile trip west to New Providence. On the way, we tried out a few new lures and actually got some bites. One got away but a Blue Runner was pulled aboard and will be used for bait the next time we fish (they are apparently edible but not very tasty). 

We arrived at the private dock by late afternoon, just in time for the daily happy hour with our hosts and a few other sailors staying on the dock. The camaraderie here is why we loved being here last year and why we were excited to return. Everyone attends the happy hour and brings a little appetizer and their favourite beverage. And then we chat! At the dock this time around were four sailors from Spain, a couple from Florida, a solo sailor from Texas plus Wild Horses and Caretta. We had great conversations with our dock mates, discussing travel plans, favourite cruising grounds, fishing (we need to step up our game!) and just about everything else under the sun. Andy (the solo sailor) even brought out his guitar and sang a few tunes for us. And Ocean? Well, she got to hang around the two other dogs belonging to other sailors plus Yaegar, our host's dog. Every evening was great fun!

Click on the link below to check out where we have sailed so far!

Heading south in 2022 and early 2023, we missed a lot. Yes, we stopped here and there to smell the roses but the journey to Grenada was long and it was just impossible to see everything we wanted to see. Plus, we had distractions. Not only were we new to being liveaboards, to managing new countries and to sailing in big oceans, well, stuff on the boat kept on breaking. ☹

But we learned from all of that. Besides getting our liveaboard sea legs, we learned that we prefer to linger. Hanging out in a great location for weeks at a time, absorbing all the little nuances offered to us from nature, the culture and, of course, the people is our happy place. Oh, and our boat has behaved of late and not given us any extra worry or jobs. Knock on wood that this blissful streak continues until we haul her out in Green Cove Springs, Florida.
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With our pace wonderfully slowed down, we are getting to just a few cays in the Exumas but we are enjoying them at depth. We are breathing in our freedom to go snorkeling one day, hiking the next and maybe just chilling on the boat after that. And when the weather looks good for moving on, well, we do just that.

At Black Point Settlement, we strolled around the town every day and checked out the nearby blowhole. That is a definite “must do” if you happen to be there during high tide and the wind is raging from the east!

​On one of our town walkabouts, we stopped and chatted with the gentleman looking after the Reverse Osmosis (R.O.) system for the island. Just like anywhere else, access to clean water is critical. Here they desalinate the ocean water using a reverse osmosis system just like we do on the boat (ours is a Rainman), only their version is huge!

Click the button to check out Ocean enjoying some free R.O. water from the town tap.

​Most of our past week has been at Staniel Cay. This has been a great snorkeling stop for us. First, we went to Thunderball Grotto which was the location of the James Bond movie “Thunderball”. We enjoyed this last year and to do it again this year was just as fun. Still wanting more snorkeling, we decided to do something a little different and checked out a few dive spots south of Staniel. The current was strong and the waves sporty but the snorkeling was great. 

Thankfully no sharks were spotted during our snorkeling adventures but we did see plenty at the dock!

​One of the best things about the Bahamas is its diversity of experiences. At Black Point, there is a town with groceries and restaurants. Same thing at Staniel Cay but here it is also littered with super yachts and resort dwelling tourists. Today we moved just three hours north in the Exumas to O’Brien’s Cay and we are back in total remoteness. There are no stores or locals, just clear blue water, pure white sand, snorkeling and, oh yes, more superyachts. It is an odd feeling to be sharing space with these big boats! An 80 foot yacht decked out with every toy known to man sitting adjacent to little old Wild Horses. My, my, my.

​A ”must do” at O’Brien’s Cay is snorkeling the “Aquarium”. This is an incredible dive spot that gives you the sensation as though you are inside a tropical fish tank. Fish are everywhere, especially if you bring along some bread or oatmeal to entice them a bit closer. Even a turtle got in on the action. The whole scene was mesmerizing!

​How do you top that? Well, you add a beautiful sunset enjoyed from the cockpit of your boat as you quietly say goodbye to another incredible day. We are grateful for every minute of it.

Enjoying the blog and want to see exactly where we are right now? Click the button below!

​Although Ocean is always suited up for a swim, some of her activities require some extra gear to get the most fun out of everything she does.

Here is her Top Five list of “Must Have” Activity Gear for the Cruising Dog

#1 Sunglasses
These great sunglasses protect Ocean’s eyes from the saltwater spray when we take her around in the dinghy. Oh, and they look pretty cool too!

#2 Dog Ramps
Ocean has two! She has a sturdy one that she uses for swimming off the stern of Wild Horses. That plank won’t work for snorkeling off the dinghy so for that we purchased a Solstice PupPlank. Hot Tip – It also helps us get back in the dinghy too 😉.  ​

#3 Hiking Boots
Trails are not always sandy and smooth! Our hike to the Pool Cave at Farmer’s Cay was full of sharp coral rocks. We needed our running shoes and Ocean needed her hiking boots. Problem solved!

#4 Fitted Lifejacket
Ocean wears her lifejacket whenever she swims off the boat or off the dinghy. Styling as always!

#5 Paddleboard
This is one piece of gear that we haven’t yet purchased. Thankfully our buddy boat Caretta let Ocean borrow one of theirs. Ocean isn’t quite in love with this piece of gear yet but give her time!​

What else?

Our time in the Exumas hasn’t just been about Ocean. Her staff (aka Me, Mike and our sailing buddies on Caretta) have also enjoyed lots of activities in the Exumas.
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At Rudder Cay, we got in some great snorkeling.  One of the highlights there is “The Musician”, a full-scale sculpture of a mermaid and a baby grand piano. This was an incredible gift to snorkelers by the illusionist David Copperfield, who owns the nearby island Musha Cay. In 2011, he commissioned the sculpture and then had it sunk in 15 feet of water as a surprise for anyone who happened upon it. These days, its location is well-known and snorkelers, like us, make sure to dive down and get a good look.

​We also took our dinghies over to the nearby Guana Cay to search for conch and see some of the underwater beauty of the area. It was a gorgeous place to snorkel and we were rewarded with several conchs for a feed later that night with our boat buddy Caretta. 

​At Farmer’s Cay, we got a chance to hike to “Pool Cave”. This is a well-formed cave with dripping stalactites and mounds of stalagmites (both are formed calcium salt deposits) as well as a natural swimming pool.

We have done a bit more hiking at Black Point Settlement, getting to see the Atlantic side of the island.

And, yes, a few cool aquatic and land animals have crossed our path.

​Oh and we may have enjoyed a few good meals and a couple of drinks in between it all!

Check out where we are today and where we are headed next!

We had a doozy of a storm this past weekend in Georgetown. It was big. It was scary. But it was also a great reminder of the fortitude and generosity of our sailing community.
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All forecasters were calling for a bad storm hitting the Bahamas from Friday through to Sunday. We personally use Windy and Chris Parker for our weather checks but we also pay close attention to any other info we may receive from friends and other cruisers. PredictWind, Mr. Weatherman, The Weather Network, Windfinder. You name it, our eyes and ears are open. And all of them were in agreement that we would get slammed with strong winds, which would be even stronger in squalls. But Georgetown is a great protected anchorage for most weather conditions so we weren’t overly worried. We were ready for 40+ knot winds.

Oh, wait. What about lightning during the squalls? Well, yeah. Lightning is a serious thing. A boat struck by lightning is immediately disabled. Everything electrical gets fried. All electronics, the engine, the lights, everything. Yeah, its bad. So obviously those of us who cruise full-time have strategies to avoid lightning, right? Umm, no. Not only can we do little to avoid being in an area that might have lightning but we can’t do anything to avoid actually being struck. Especially us sailboats with a big old lightning rod attached to our boats (aka the mast). People talk about lightning avoidance gear but it has two significant disadvantages. First, most of the gear available is expensive. Second, it doesn’t work.

So, the working equation goes like this…masted sailboat + electrical storm = sitting duck. Yikes!

The storm this past weekend was predicted to start overnight on Friday and continue through to Sunday morning, with the worst of the storm activity occurring overnight on Saturday. On the Friday morning, Wild Horses and Caretta (our buddy boat) went into Georgetown, a 10-minute dinghy ride across the Sound from our anchorage in front of Honeymoon beach. Barry from Caretta had a physio appointment in the morning and we had booked a rental car to get him and Andrea to the appointment, and me and Mike to an amazing wholesale food store near his appointment. 

The next day, Saturday, the wind stayed strong with gusts to about 25 knots, with the expectation that conditions would deteriorate throughout the evening and overnight. Forecasters were wildly in disagreement over wind strength (anywhere from 20 knots to 55 knots) and the amount of rainfall (from 5mm to 70mm). The possibility of lightning was also in the mix by a few forecasters. It is never good when there is such wide variability in the forecasts. We just have no confidence in what lies before us. It was, however, the forecasted strong west wind that had us on high alert, as it meant that we would be pushed towards our lee shore. Not ideal, but we chose to not re-locate our boat to an eastern shore in Georgetown where many boats were anchored. We were confident in our anchor set and we didn’t want to be in amongst a whole bunch of other boats that could drag into us. With over 300 boats in the Georgetown anchorages, we were happy to be in one that contained only 3 boats.

The winds started to pick up just before dusk. Then the growl of thunder in the distance. The sky began to darken and flashes of lightening could be seen in the distance. Within 20 minutes, the worst of the storm was raging all around us. The wind was strong (but never over 35 knots). Sheet lightning and ground strikes were abundant. Heavy rain blinded us from seeing more than 20 feet from our boat. And, then, as strong as the wind was from the southwest, we had a 180-degree wind shift to the northeast. Our anchor dislodged as our boat and all its chain sailed over top of it. Thankfully the anchor reset itself after dragging about 20 feet. Our neighbouring boats reported the same anchor dislodgment/resetting event.

Then all the weather stopped. No more rain, no more lightning, no more wind. It was dead calm for 5 hours. When the wind did pick up again, in the overnight hours, it was short lived and it came without any drama. No rain, no lightning.
The next morning, we listened intently to the regular Georgetown cruising community network on the VHF. Six boats in the surrounding anchorages had been struck by lightning. Offers of gear, mechanical and electrical expertise, and just “get your hands dirty” help poured in from the cruising community. Within a few days, all six disabled boats had some power brought back to their boats, thanks to the help of their fellow boaters.

​We were happy that Wild Horses and Caretta had fared well through the storm. Getting through strong weather events is never fun and coming out the other side safely and with no boat issues is always the goal. One more storm in our sailing portfolio. We gain confidence and knowledge with each one of them. And when all else fails, we know that the sailing community will be there to assist in any way they can. Thank goodness.

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On Monday March 4th, Wild Horses and Caretta left our cozy spots in the south Raggeds after two glorious weeks. We had to time our exit from the anchorage with high tide as the channel leading out of the anchorage can drop below 1 metre in depth. Our keel has a depth of 1.7 metres so working with a flooding tide is critical. In fact, even with high tide, our keel momentarily touched the sandy bottom. No damage was done but it did make our hearts skip a beat!
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Our first two stops up the Ragged island chain were anchorages just a few hours from each other. The first was Double Breasted Cay (I have no idea who names these anchorages!!) and the second was Buena Vista Cay. Both anchorages were quite beautiful with lots of little sandbars, islands and reefs ready for exploring. We have made notes to make sure to stop at both of these anchorages when we return next winter and have lots of time to explore all their beauty.

On Wednesday we were ready to make the longer jump to the island of Water Cay, at the top of the island chain. The day started well, with Wild Horses as lead boat and Caretta falling just slightly behind us, both motor sailing along in light winds. It was an easy day. That is, until it wasn’t.
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About 10 nautical miles from the anchorage, Caretta hailed us on the VHF. Their engine had stopped. Yikes! They knew it was likely a clogged engine filter but they wouldn’t be able to fix it underway. The wind was too light to sail so they dropped their dinghy and used it to push their boat along at 3 knots. They got to the Water Cay anchorage just as the sun was setting. We had arrived over an hour earlier and scoped out a spot for them to anchor. Once their anchor was well set in the sand, we chatted and both boats decided to stay an extra day at Water Cay so we could fix Barry’s engine. What we didn’t realize at the time was that we would also need the extra day to fix a problem of our own.

During our passage to Water Cay, we kept catching a whiff of an electrical burning smell in one of our aft cabins. We checked the engine wiring, solar wiring, regulator wiring, anything and everything. Then the smell went away later that evening. Hmmm, weird. The next day, the sun was shining bright and the smell was back. Mike removed everything from our back cabin and there it was. Our three solar fuses were in full-on fondue mode. One quick visit with Barry (our solar and electrical mastermind) and fifteen minutes later we had the fuses bypassed. It isn’t a permanent solution but it will get us to Florida with all our solar energy intact. Yes!

With boat issues fixed, we got to enjoy the rugged, wild beauty of Water Cay.

​The next day, we weighed anchor and headed away from the Ragged islands. We had decided to take a short cut to Georgetown via the Comer Channel. When arriving in the Raggeds, the only route we ever considered was the “long way”, via the Eastern shore of Long Island, which takes four long daytime jumps or a day and a half of constant around-the-clock travelling. It also exposes you to lots of ocean swell. But a few fellow sailors recommended that we take the shortcut route (the Comer Channel) which shaves two days off the journey but goes over some pretty shallow spots (below 2 metres) that we were a little nervous about. And, our timing for the tides wasn’t ideal. We would be going through the Comer Channel at dead low tide, which on this particular day was 0.1 metres below mean low water. Most of the channel was about 2 metres depth but a few spots were 1.9 metres so at dead low tide we would see 1.8 metres. That is very tight for our 1.7 metre clearance but water under the keel is water under the keel. We went for it.

The result? A few “hold-the-breath” moments but we didn’t touch bottom. Not once. What we did get was delightful. A wonderful pod of four dolphins playing at our bow. In just two metres of water, the display was spectacular. I think those dolphins could feel our vibe and were there to tell us all would be okay and to chill out!

​We spent that evening and the whole of the next day on the western side of Long Island, at an anchorage called Thompson Bay. Here we had access to a great grocery store, a liquor store and a marine store, as well as several restaurants. As luck would have it, we were there on a Saturday and the local Farmers Market was open. Lots of fresh veggies!

​The next day, we headed for Georgetown. We were excited to be returning. It has been just over a year since we left this bustling anchorage, headed for Grenada. That day, so long ago, was full of emotion for us. We were saying goodbye to our buddy boats Sensai and Lola, and heading off into the crazy unknown-to-us ocean with our new buddy boats Kemana and Kesh. We were leaving safe, easy sailing waters and headed for bigger waters, challenges and new experiences. And we have returned as different sailors. We are more knowledgeable, confident, chill and happy. It has been a fabulous year and we are excited to keep doing this sailing gig and seeing where life and the wind takes us. These are pretty special days indeed.

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