Man I can’t believe how the time has flown. We’ve been on a topsy-turvey adventure for the last few weeks. If you can’t remember, we were last in Nassau to get some boat work done and wait out bad weather. It was a very enjoyable stay, but we were ready to get a move on.

We left Nassau on the afternoon of January 24. Our plan was to sail through the night to Staniel Cay, a 75-mile jaunt. Our weather window was short. We had 2 days of more mild wind and smaller waves until the next big forecasted blow. So, naturally, we took advantage.

One thing we learned before heading out was that we were venturing into a VPR zone. VPR or Visual Piloting Rules, means there should be good sunlight, weather and basically clear conditions to see the water below. There is a huge coral field called the Yellow Bank that spans a wide area just south of Nassau. Our planned route had us a bit further south than the bulk of it. So we weren’t overly concerned, but still wanted to give ourselves plenty of daylight.

At 3PM, we backed Bosco out of her slip (with the help of our boat-neighbor John on s/v Sargo). Once clear of the marina, we were out in open water again. It was SO pretty and almost flat calm. The colors were an outrageous smattering of blues. It made for easy “VPR” getting out of the shallow channel.

Once clear of the channel, the conditions picked up quite a bit. There was still residual wind and waves from the last blow that came through. We motor-sailed for the next 10 miles through the south end of the Yellow Bank. Jake sat at the bow and signaled any incoming coral heads. We only had to dodge a couple (and even those were probably deep enough). Better safe than sorry!

After we were completely clear, we tried to sail for a bit. But with the setting sun, the wind seemed to die off and the waves seemed to pick up. It was freezing too, around 50 degrees – that’s cold for us. We actually had to don our foul-weather gear; coats, hats, gloves, you name it. Our course had us on a run. Normally this would be fine, but the waves were hitting us broadside (they hadn’t yet caught up to the wind direction) making the sail almost unbearable. We were making no progress and rocking around like mad. So we turned on the motor again and kept on going.

By the time 9PM rolled around, we were exhausted. I could barely keep my eyes open. We definitely weren’t excited that we had another 10 hours of night sailing (or motoring) ahead of us. At least the moon came out to light our way, which made it more bearable. But we were so tired, cold and just not feeling all that great. I suggested that we find a place to drop anchor for the night, if only for a few hours of rest. So we found a great place, Elbow Cay, where we could drop the hook in the dark. It was still a few hours away but now we were motivated to get there!

We pulled in at 12:45AM. The anchorage was very calm minus the small swell rolling through. There was only 1 other boat here. I didn’t even bother to take off my foul weather gear before crashing on the couch as soon as we dropped the hook. Jake rigged the swell bridle before he came below. It definitely helped for a few hours. The swell shifted around 3AM and I went up to adjust it. That made a HUGE difference (from rolling around to completely dead-flat). Then I really did fall into a coma.

Jake woke me up at 7:45am. It was slow going – and I was still in a complete haze for the next hour before we got underway again. It was cold too – only about 60 degrees this morning.

Today was a picture-perfect Bahamas day. The weather was completely calm and sunny, the water crystal clear and pretty flat. I can’t believe we actually get one of these – in all the months we’ve been cruising. Finally a perfect sailing day. It was so pleasant and relaxing for a change. There were lots of beautiful sights too. We passed Johnny Depp’s private island and mega-mega-mega mansion. We also tried our hand at fishing again, and caught a 2-foot Cero!

We pulled into our anchorage (Big Majors) just after 4PM. There were about 10 other boats – some mega yachts and other modest ones. But we had plenty of room to anchor comfortably. We could feel the wind and waves pick up, but it was pretty sheltered here. And we enjoyed a spectacular sunset and fresh fish for dinner. We also noticed a couple of fish, or rather, baby sharks. They were so cool (and cute!). They probably really enjoyed the fishy leftovers.

Little Piggies

The next morning (Jan 26), we awoke to strong winds – again. Something new and different for us. 😉 At least we can see pigs on the beach! We decided to move Bosco closer to shore and re-anchor instead of risking a long and wet dinghy ride.

We made a small batch of pig-food (shredded potato, carrot and crackers) and headed to the beach. There were 2 other dinghies already there, so the pigs were distracted. But as soon as we came to shore, they were upon us. Jake barely had time to secure the dinghy before the 2 big ones were all ears – or snouts attacking him. They weren’t mean just aggressive, and eager for food. One of them got a little too excited and nipped Jake when he was feeding them. After that he didn’t care for the pigs too much. The adolescents and babies were so cute and sweet.

We hung out on the beach for a good hour as people came and went. Some would freak out when the pigs came close. Others welcomed it. We took hundreds of pictures and lots of video of these guys. As we motored away from the beach, a huge trawler pulled in, and happened to attract the whole pig-family, including the litter of piglets. They were OH SO CUTE, I made Jake take me back to shore just to get a closer look. The smallest little guy (pink with black spots) came by to say Hi before heading over to the crowd. That just made my day!

Thunderball Grotto

After pig-beach-goodness, we moved Bosco a few miles around the island to anchor near Thunderball Grotto, which boasts some very cool corals, fishes and of course, cavey-goodness! It took awhile to find a decent spot (we dropped once but realized it was too shallow and unprotected and opted to move). Eventually we chose the deepest spot in the bay (~22 feet). At least we had tons of room around us, so we let out a good amount of scope. It was so protected, we could barely feel the wind or waves.

We took the dinghy around the entire bay before heading into the grotto. With snorkel gear in-tote and a bag of fish food (aka leftover cous cous) we jumped in. The water was FREEZING! What happened to this warm Bahamas water I’ve heard so much about? 😉 No matter, we got used to it quickly enough.

We had to swim under some rock features to actually get through the cave entrance. At low tide they are pretty much exposed so you don’t have to dive down (though we dove down because it was so much more fun!). I felt like a wilderness explorer on animal planet haha. Inside the cave was a magical world – the water had this really bright luminescence and the cave features were all in sharp contrast to the underwater world below.

There were hundreds of fish of all colors, shapes and sizes. I began to recognize some; angelfish of all varieties (one especially gigantic brown angel), spanish hog, fairy basslets (and my favorite!), creole/yellow/blue wrasse, spotted scorpionfish, pencil fish, sergeant major fish (the striped ones), tangs, squirrel fish, grouper, parrotfish and hundreds of tiny baby “guppy” fish! We even saw a Lion Fish! Holy Moly. Once Jake unzipped the bag of “fish food,” it was game-on! I tried to get photos of the mania, but my camera was too slow. I was hopeful that Jake got the footage on video.

After 45 minutes, we were both cold to bone. We took warm showers back at the boat to warm up. Then it was time to look at all of our animal footage for the day. As I went to upload the videos, I noticed that the water-tight door was not closed. And sure enough, the entire inside was soaking wet. GREAT! Someone (ahem Jake) didn’t close the door before bringing the camera to the cave. Thankfully the memory card retained all of the footage from pig beach, but nothing of the grotto. Dang…I was so bummed. Especially when I realized that the camera was now broken. BOO!!!! (Jake is fired).

We opted to stay here for 2 days. Bosco was good and sheltered from the next bout of bad weather PLUS I really wanted to go snorkeling in the cave again. Only this time with our scuba suits to keep us warm. The second time we also attempted to get some video footage with our temporary video camera replacement (my under water camera has a video feature). Its not as good but better than nothing. Visibility was not as good as the day before, but it was fun to go back.

By our second afternoon the anchorage was filling up. There were around 15 boats here – some of which way too close for comfort. One boat almost crashed into our stern with their bow before moving down the way a bit.

On the plus side, the 2 baby sharks from the last anchorage followed us here because they were back. This time I got video of them and I’m certain they’re the same 2 as the last anchorage (which really isn’t that far if you look on a map its probably less than a quarter of a mile in a straight line). How funny – sharks adopted us!

Our visit to Staniel Cay was really enjoyable. I can see why its such a hot-spot in the Exumas. I’m so glad we stopped here for a short visit. But, we’re on a mission and couldn’t delay too much. Our next stop: 35 miles south to Adderly Cay.