Underway again # 9  Fort Lauderdale to Nassau

Goodbye Florida

We listened to the weather reports and determined that there would be a brief window on Monday and early Tuesday so we decided to make a run for it even though we had not found a buddy boat  this time.  We went to bed at 7:00 on Sunday and got up at midnight and by 1:00 we were on the ocean.  This time the seas were much smoother as the wind was under 10 knots and the waves about 3 feet with the wave intervals at 9 seconds. 

 

I had secured everything and it was a good thing that I did as just as were about halfway through the Gulf Stream, we saw a dark patch of clouds on the horizon and very quickly the winds picked up to over 30 kn and the rain fell in large drops that sounded like pellets hitting our bimini. Although the squall lasted only about 20 minutes, it felt like much much longer. Roman had plotted all our waypoints allowing for the northerly flow of the Gulf Stream at a steady 2.5 knots and we stayed on course. Except for a few hours, we motored across just before 11:00 saw the first signs of land.
This was North Rock just north of the Biminis.  We soon left the Biminis far behind as we continued onward across the Bahamas Banks to Mackie Shoal, planning to anchor south of Russell Beacon but when we had listened to Chris Parker in the morning, he had predicted that the winds would increase steadily on Tuesday and would really pick up by the afternoon.  We thus resolved to continue non stop to Nassau. 

 

We do not have an autopilot system or should I say we do have one but it is non functioning.  The motor Roman planned to use with the new system he bought in Cocoa did not work when he tried to hook it up in Middle River and he decided to replace it with a hydraulic motor which he needed to order as well as hydraulic lines etc. so we are doing this crossing without an autopilot which I swore would never do again!  I guess the saying "Never say never" is sooo true. When it was my turn to steer I would pick an oddly shaped cloud on my course and follow it until it changed, always checking to determine that I was not going off course.  I followed a line of ducks, a pair of dinosaurs, a gorilla which changed into a swan, a human profile, a dancing bear etc. etc.  Often we would pass a freighter or should I say, a freighter passed us.

 

We took turns sleeping for 3-4 hours and when it was my turn to steer, I looked up and I was just blown away by the beauty of the sky.  Hardly a cloud to be seen but the stars, oh the stars, twinkled and sparkled and just filled the sky.  Now I used the stars to steer by.  Soon I saw a lighter patch on the horizon which was directly on my course and as I steered towards it, it grew larger and became a small streak of light and then it expanded into a larger band of light and then larger until it glowed on the horizon like a beacon.  It was no surprise then when we approached closer and realized that these were the lights of Nassau.


We could see the lights of the big cruise ships as they entered the harbour. 

 

We requested permission to enter but we told to wait for over an hour as the last of the cruise ships (Carnival Cruises) entered.

One of the first things we saw was a small home just inside the harbour. It looked as if it had been built on stilts.

Just as we were coming into the harbour a mail boat came in quickly behind us and blasted us with a loud horn and we both jumped with our hearts up in our throats.Then it passed within two feet of us again scaring the heck out of us.

 

 

Our first glimpse of Paradise Island

 We docked at Nassau Harbour Club about 9:30 where we met with polite immigration and custom officials who came to the boat.  $300 later we had a 90 cruising permit and fishing licences  The first day we were tired as we had been up for two days and went to bed by 7:00. 

I exercised and swam lengths in the pool as well as relaxing on the boat.  There was no WiFi but Roman did go to the Starbucks down the street and send a message that we had made it across and that we were all fine. 

 

We did not do much walking because of my leg but we did take the bus around the island to the downtown area where we went to the parliament buildings for a brief tour and chat with the guard. 

Everywhere we went the were signs Vote Yes; even people were wearing T-shirts with that logo.  On Jan. 28 there was to be a vote to legalize gambling in the Bahamas.  Right now it is illegal to gamble if you are a Bahamian.  Tourists can gamble at the casino on the Paradise Island but you will be arrested if you are a Bahamian.  This is a highly debated issue and we heard about it on the bus, on the streets and even at the straw market which is now housed in a new building as the old one was destroyed in the hurricane.

It was fun to go through and talk to the vendors.  Although I said I was not going to buy anything, I could not resist buying a few small gifts for my grandchildren. 

 

 

 

One of the gifts was made to order.
 

 

All the children and young people wear uniforms to school

After we took a bus to near the bridge to Paradise Island and had jerk chicken and pork in a small local restaurant where only the locals came in. Even the chef who came out to talk to us discussed the coming vote.