Stuart FL Thanksgiving time

We arrived Stuart Florida on Nov 16th, 2018, planning to stay here thru Thanksgiving and then move south in prep for sailing back to the Caribbean Sea to resume out Caribbean adventures.  Sunset Bay Marina is our most favorite place to stay between Maine and Key West. Stuart is a dream town, the Marina is run with the best team, and the owners go far out of their way to make customer care #1.  We have never been anywhere where we feel more welcome. Add to this wonderful marina our good friends at Mack Sails and Mack Yacht Services, makes it a perfect place for us. We call it HOME!

Our typical sunsets as seen from HOME!

What we like about Sunset Bay Marina

We count this location as “HOME” and there are many reasons for this. First of all, the owners of this marina, Pam and Jay. go so far over the top, doing everything they can to make their customers feel at home. They provide a fully catered dinner for Thanksgiving, they set up a large screen and projector for movie night twice a month complete with lots of pizza. They host cocktail parties.  They added a beautiful coffee bar complete with wine and local craft beers! They fully support their management staff and make sure they have all they need. Next is the terrific marina staff. Everyone is so kind and so focused on customer service and on maintaining the property.  Sam manages his outstanding team so well, and everyone works together:  Matt, Nichole, Jason, Edward, and Dennis each do an amazing job.

Another reason we like it here is because of our host Terri who lives on an IP38 SAILBATICAL. Terri makes everyone feel at home here and we all lean on for local help and support.  The final reason we like Stuart is because of Mack Sails and Mack Yacht Services, Colin and Travis. These brothers and their parents have built a great business here and they have helped us refit our IP for Caribbean adventures and then they rebuilt our boat after hurricane damages. We really like working with Travis and Colin. This is our third year at Sunset Bay and we really feel it is the best run, best-built marina on the entire East Coast.

Sunset Set bay Marina at Sunset. Beautiful

Good Times at Sunset Bay with Friends

Delighted to share the good news that our host, Terri, has joined the Whiteaker Yacht Sales team. Terri holds a USCG 100-ton captain’s license and is an ASA sailing instructor, plus she is an English teacher at a public middle school.  Here we are with our “Welcome to the team, Terri!” photo with Ed and Debbie Whiteaker.

Our Stuart Fl team of Whiteaker Yacht Sales Brokers

Thanksgiving Day Reflection

Every day we take a walk around town via the Stuart boardwalk. Here is the Happy Thanksgiving Day photo we sent to Dr. Kevin Fox at the University of PA. Radeen and I owe her life to his breast cancer research. Dr. Fox cured Radeen of Stage 2B triple negative breast cancer in 2001.  It was during this very difficut time that we bought Island Spirit and set our sights on the dream of crusing. This is why we appreciate every single day to the fullest. Thank you, Dr. Kevin Fox!

Thanksgiving morning on our walk around the Stuart waterfront.

Thanksgiving at Sunset Bay

The owners, Pam and Jay, host a catered Thanksgiving Day meal for the marina guests. Black linen table cloths, hundreds of chairs and an endless buffet line had the staff working very hard to prepare for us.  What a joy to attend an event like this with our boat buddies at such a beautiful facility. I did not get many photos but here are two of the setup.


The guests bring all the side dishes and homemade desserts.[/caption

Island Packet 380 PLAN SEA transfer to new OWNERS!

While here at Sunset Bay Marina, we were fortunate that buyers discovered our listing of IP380 PLAN SEA. After promoting PLAN SEA for 18 months, a couple walked into the WYS office and almost immediately bought this MINT yacht without ever seeing one ad, one email, my photo album or even knowing much about Island Packet Yachts. Preston, the broker in the office that day, created the offer and we quickly negotiated the sale. We attended sea trial and survey in Palmetto, FL with the new owners, Kim and Charlene, and welcomed them to the Island Packet Yacht Owner’s community. Here are the happy photos of this day. It is never easy selling a yacht you love. We are happy as now everyone can move onto their next adventures. Jim and Loretta now have PLAN D, and have hit the roads for some southwest exploration and spring skiing in Utah. Congrats!

380 Plan Sea’s new owners, Kim and Charlene

Dear Friends in Florida

While at Stuart and while driving back and forth across the state of Florida for many reasons, we really enjoyed catching up with boating friends in each of the areas. We are so lucky to know so many diverse people and we treasure each and every friendship. Thank you all for making time to visit as we flew by…

We found dear friend WENDY to celebrate her birthday with Paul

Bob and Cast of IP370 SEA LION heading to the Caribbean

Super Star TINSLEY of YouTube fame IP27 Salty Abandon

At home with Tom and Lesa of IP35 PANACEA,

Yacht Broker Car

And finally, we had to rent cars during Nov and Dec as we drove back and forth to Whiteaker Yacht Sales looking at boats and working with customers. So, we rented this beautiful car which made driving much more fun.

That is a wrap

Our time here always flies by! Between yacht services, yacht sales, helping others and visiting with friends, we had lots to do and much to be thankful for as we live aboard in Stuart FL.

Beaufort SC to Stuart FL

Leaving Charleston Maritime Center, we usually run inside on the ICW to Beaufort SC. This takes two days and we will anchor our somewhere in the Stono Rover area and then make Beaufort SC the next day.  The tides in this area are 7 feet +/- 2 feet and you really have to watch the markers. Lucky for us, this was a calm peaceful run.

Welcome to Beaufort, South Carolina, another must stop town on the ICW.

Beaufort, SC

The main reason we stopped in this cute town was to visit with my cousin Randi who retired here since the last time we were here. We also wanted to catch up and see good friends Jeff and Marjorie, formerly of IP45 Far Niente. Like so many people say, cruising is all about the people you meet. We have kept in touch with many friends and family by stopping along our routes as we cruise. What a fun thing to do. (Apologies to those we missed by going offshore.)

Good friends Jeff and Marjorie connected with us for a fun night at the FISH CAMP

Look who we found? Randi and Chris, my cousin and his wife, who retired to Beaufort, SC to hunt and fish and golf 24/7. LOOK out deer, fish, and turf, Randi will clean UP!

It was really fun to show Randi and Chris our Island Packet 35 sailboat. Here is a selfie on the boat.

Beaufort SC Sunsets/Sunrises

When we are in Beaufort, SC,  I always see the most amazing sunrises lighting up this harbor. I take the best sunrise photos here every year. Take a look at these beautiful morning photos! WOW.

Beaufort SC sunrise on Island Spirit

Sunrise at Beaufort, SC

Sunrise on Island Spirit, Beaufort, SC

Beautiful Sunrise over Lady’s Island, SC as seen from Beaufort SC.

Offshore to Florida

Departing Beaufort SC we always run offshore. This requires running the Ebb current south 22 nm out Port Royal Sound to the sea buoy. Then turning south, we skip all of the Georgia ICW. At the GA/FL line we run in the St. Mary’s inlet and anchor off Fernandina. We were lucky to make this leg with great boat buddies. Laurie and Jim of IP350 KISMET….

Out to sea at Port Royal Sound and offshore to St. Mary’s inlet, FL.

Buddy boat IP350 KISMET sails out to sea at Port Royal with Island Spirit

This offshore run is always one of our favorites. It is a simple one-nighter where you make it to the sea buoy at late afternoon and then you arrive at the inlet in the morning. Beautiful sunsets and sunrises add to our enjoyment. Here is the sunset that night off Hilton Head, SC as we sailed south.

Offshore sailing sunsets are beautiful

ICW Fernandia to St. Augustine FL

We spent one quick day in Fernandina and then it was southbound on the ICW to Fort George National Park. Jim and Laurie told us about this really cool park, so we diverted up this side creek and anchored right off the park with them. What a fantastic place to take an audio tour and discover the fascinating history of The Kinglsley Plantation.

The Kingsley Plantation and Island Spirit as seen from our DJI Mavic Pro Drone

From Fort George, we next made St. Augustine, Florida, another wonderful city to stop and explore.  Heny Flagler made this one of his railroad stops and built a luxurious resort here in 1888. Now it is  Flagler College, a beautiful building to tour. There is more original Tiffany glass in this building than any where else in the world.

The Flagler College, St. Augustine

The Flagler College entrance, St. Augustine

The entrance foyer of the Flagler College, St. Augustine

St. Augustine Fun with Friends

While here in St. Augustine we had some amazing visits with dear friends. First off, one of my favorite students from my 34-year teaching career back on PA lives here and he wanted us to meet his son. What a joy this was! Thank you, Aaron, for making this happen!

We connected with Tina and Dr. Jon for a wonderful meal out on the town. Tina is the sister of our very dear friend back home, Anita.  They always make us feel so welcome when we visit.  Thank you, Tina and Jon!

Boat buddy Ceal linked up with at a local pub and we had time to catch up on all her happenings as she restores another yacht while living aboard. Ceal is an amazing sailor and we always enjoy our time with her. ( Sorry we missed mutual friends Bob and Jane of IP40 Voyaguer by only a few days.)

Our last day in St. Augustine we connected with our world traveling buddies on NEVERLAND, Cynthia and Jim. Here they are helping us with our scheme for a canal boat in Amsterdam and run it all thru Europe this upcoming summer. Look out, it may very well happen. We really admire these cruisers, they really know how to travel.

We also found our good friends on IP40 SAILIN SHOES, Tommy and Tracy as they arrived into town on their new to them IP 40. We helped Tommy and Tracy find their dream yacht and plan their retirement cruising dreams. What a joy now, after a year of work to be out here sailing and cruising with them. This is the best part of being a yacht broker with Whiteaker Yacht Sales. Radeen and I can help others buy their yacht and learn how to go off cruising. Tommy and Tracy are doing exactly that. Here we are together,  touring the National Park Castillo de San Marcos.

Vero Beach Buddies

After leaving St. Augustine, we made a required stop in Vero Beach where we toured the new home of Greg and Sharon. They are remodeling a really cool home in Vero Beach just a block off the beach. Sharon and Greg have the most creative and classiest taste when decorating. Their Island Packet 40 is the #1 most beautiful IP I have ever been on and their new home is turning out exactly the same way. Here is a picture of our pretty Ladies….

Sharon and Radeen out to dinner together is always fun with this team.

Our cruising mentor, Carey first took us south in 2011 and taught us how to enjoy Biscayne Bay and Coconut Grove. Then he taught us how to sail into the Bahamas and we all enjoyed the Abacos for several months. We caught up with Carie and Julie for a fun night out.

This is our mentor for cruising, Carey and Julie meet up in Vero

Off to Cocoa Village

Overall the years we have cruises south, our #1 best IP Friend and land support team has been Robert Wiley.  Every year we pass thru heading south or north, Bob is always there for us and he helps us with anything we need from moving cars north and south to picking up a new Samsung Tablet to sharing ice cream in the village.  Thank you Bob, we really appreciate your friendship and support:

Robert Wiley and Radeen and Hayden enjoy the ice cream parlor in Cocoa Village

The Final Push to Stuart FL

We departed Cocoa Village with our final push for STUART FLORIDA, our dream home away from home. This was another 4 day push down the ICW motoring in calm seas on the easy ICW. Here we are arriving OUR HAPPY PLACE…..STUART FLORIDA and Sunset Bay Marina.

Happy Hayden arriving his happy place Stuart, FL

Sunset Bay Marina at Sunset. So beautiful

Sunset Bay Marina, our Happy Place

This is our stopping point for Thanksgiving and Christmas, Sunset Bay Marina, Stuart Florida. WE LOVE THIS PLACE and we feel at home here. The marina is run so well. The facilities are perfect. The town is a dream, and our good friends of Mack Sails and Mack Yacht Services are here. Colin and Travis make us feel home here as well.

This blog post is a catch-up post as we are currently in Turks and Caicos and waiting for the weather to move onto USVI. We have been using Facebook as our live updates and you can follow us there at: https://www.facebook.com/svIslandSpirit/

The Map of this Leg: Beaufort SC to Stuart FL

Departed Beaufort, SC Nov 3, 2018 and arrived Stuart, FL Nov 16, 2018

Annapolis to Charleston SC

NOTE: We are working on blog updates as we try to document our cruising adventures for the 2018-2019 season. Our most current postings are always on our Facebook PUBLIC page. You do not have to be on Facebook to look at a public web page, all you need to do is click here: https://www.facebook.com/svIslandSpirit/

We departed Annapolis MD in October, as we always do, on the Monday of the boat show. After a very fun time with our Island Packet Yacht Owners Association daily lunches at the Fleet Reserve, we sailed away. We enjoyed promoting the new Island Packet 349 as we shot hundreds of photos and published them to the internet for all to view. Turns out,  we helped to sell the first one and we are very proud of that fact. Congrats to Steve, we are very happy for you!

Our run down the Chesapeake Bay was fantastic with code zero sailing and making our normal harbors along the way. First, we stopped in Solomons to have a technician verify our latest radar problem. The result was that a new dome will be waiting for us in Hampton. This stop was made much more fun when Ron and MaryAnn of IP380 CAVU met us on the docks to help us and take us out to breakfast!

Next up was Virginina, with an anchorage in Deltaville and then Hampton City Docks. Unfortunately, we were running directly into Hurricane Michael. Lucky for us, we prepared for it in the water with the shelter of a 6 story parking garage upwind. While in Hampton, we were invited to attend  Rick and Jean’s wedding on the bow of their Island Packet Yacht, IP38 SPINDRIFT. This beautiful event was one of the highlights of the season. Notice the beautiful post-hurricane weather. Sooooo much fun and such a privilege to meet their families and to share in their joy!

Departing Hampton, we moved south to one of our favorite places, the South Ferry DockPortsmouthmouth, where we linked up with longtime buddy boat IP350 KISMET, Laurie and Jim. We went to the Commodore Dinner Theater and saw the movie A STAR IS BORN. What a great stop this was.

Next up was the world famous DISMAL SWAMP. This is one of our favorite sections on the ICW. It is a photographer’s dream. Here are a few of my favs.

That is Hayden standing by the anchors, with the tannin-colored water cresting in a little wave under our bow.

From the Dismal Swamp. we pushed hard for Oriental, NC, where we were invited to spend a few days at an IP owners dock. This was a great rest. Thank you so much John and Cyndi of IP380 CHARDONNAY.

We enjoyed a great surprise running into Dave and Kim of IP320 ANDIME while meeting Dave and Suzy of IP 37 CAY PARAISO. IPs are everywhere!

Now, it was time to hit the ocean at Cape Look Out and sail offshore for Charleston, SC. This is a 2-day passage and the winds were perfect and the moon was out, but WOW was it cold! We bundled up and set sail for sea. Here are a few photos pushing for Charleston, SC.

Those are red lights in headlamps for our night vision.

Safety harnesses are mandatory offshore.

Now we can take a break, as we ALWAYS spend a week in Charleston, SC. WHY? Because it is a dream city to sail into, especially if you dock at the Charleston Maritime Center. This places you nearly on East Bay Street in the heart of the action. We love staying in the Maritime Center. Charleston is a great American city. Here are a few photos:

The view of the Ravenel Bridge on the Cooper River never disappoints.

 

Fun with Dave and Kathi of IP40 Knee Deep.

 

Glad to meet Gerry and Nancy, our Italy trip friends, and their longtime pals.

 

So proud of my cousin Diane and Tim’s son, Chris, who is a Google security expert.

 

After a ghost tour at the Old City Jail, we went in search of beer with the crews of KISMET and KNEE DEEP.

 

Laughs and a great meal with Blaine and Janet, formerly of IP40 CHARBONNEAU.

 

Stylin’ on the waterfront in downtown Charleston, SC.

This concludes our update blog from Annapolis MD Oct 8th, 2018 to Charleston, SC Oct 30, 2018. Remember, we are posting live updates to our Facebook Page:  please use the link above to follow us.

We have been blogging for over ten years and this is a great way for us to archive what we have done have and where we sailed. It is also a way to share photos of our friends and our great sailing adventures. Thank you for sailing along! 

Hayden and Radeen in Turks and Caicos, waiting for the next weather window to move onto Puerto Rico.

Season 2018-19 Begins

Our summer at Saltbox 13 flew by and it is always a comfortable retreat and change of pace and activity from the cruising lifestyle.  We find the contrast of life on land vs life on a boat to be so interesting. On the boat, we live off solar power, wind power and a 100 amp alternator and a little diesel fuel. We make fresh water out of salt water, we walk for all groceries. At home, we live in a passive solar home but have endless water (38 gal/minute well) endless power 120 volt, 24/7 internet, cable TV, cars, bikes, and a large Weber grill. Life on land is soooo easy, life on a boat is soooo simple. The contrast is interesting and we enjoy both equally.

Required selfie as we start off in Annapolis MD 2018

Our first two weeks aboard find us in Annapolis Maryland as we stow and store all the items we moved onboard. We are adjusting to living without a car for the next 8 months. We are working thru the yacht systems, some need repairs, some need adjusting. Solar and wind are working great, and we have found once again, our new B&G 4G radar is not working AGAIN. So we are focused on that major system which allows us to sail offshore safely at night. We need to fix it as we are heading offshore 5 days after the boat show!

Living on the mooring ball for a week off the Annapolis Yacht Club

We spent one rainy week on mooring ball 50 in Annapolis and then a fun 3 days at the Seven Seas Sailing Association SSCA gathering at the Maryland Yacht Club in Rock Creek, near Baltimore. Now we have moved back to Annapolis where we are attending the sailboat show, as we have done for over 25 years. We really enjoy seeing so many cruising friends and Island Packet Yacht Owners. We created and host lunches at the Fleet Reserve at the 2nd-floor roof tent every day from noon til about 2 pm. It is a great way to meet up with buddies. We also look at all the new gear and rigging ideas, most of which we either have or don’t need. We go to seminars and learn new ideas and hear about other sailors’ adventures. It really is a great way to spend a long weekend. We can’t imagine missing the Annapolis Boat Show.

We along with Whiteaker Yacht Sales host our IPYOA.com Noon Lunches

So, we will return to blogging and we will share our photos and adventures once again. Our destination this year is the Caribbean Sea once again, but this time we will push onward past Puerto Rico and make it to Grenada by May 15, 2019. There we will haul out and store the boat from June 1 to Nov 1 for hurricane season. Between now and then, we will have much to share and many photos to capture. Thanks for sailing along.

This is the way we made it to the Caribbean last year, here we go again

This time, we WILL push onward and make it to Grenada for storage. 

Our New 2018-19 cruising map is active here. It will be updated as our boat moves. We use the Garmin InReach tracker and the Spotwalla service to archive our trips. This way you can always see where we are. It is interesting to see the creeks and rivers we run and the ocean passages we will make.

https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=1b7bf5bb462b62d758&hoursPast=0&showAll=yes

Hayden and Radeen.…docked at the Boat Show, let the FUN BEGIN again!

Radeen and Hayden, Oct 3, 2018, at dock, Annapolis Boat Show time

Stuart FL to Rock Hall MD

It is very difficult to blog and post while moving the boat 10-14 hours a day, every day, 1,000 nm.  Twelve days after departing FL, we finally are getting a chance to catch up on photos and blog postings. We have had a fantastic run from Stuart, going offshore direct 525 nm in 3 days to Cape Lookout, NC. There we entered the ICW, Intracoastal Waterway, and worked our way north to the Chesapeake Bay. Once in the Bay, we blasted north in 2 days. We never did that before, running the bay in 2 days. We count home waters as Annapolis to Rock Hall, Maryland, with the Bay Bridge as our defining landmark signifying we are home.

This 2017-18 cruising season has been an unusual one, starting in Puerto Rico with a damaged mast from hurricane Maria. We shipped the boat to Florida and had it repaired by Mack Sails. We tested the rebuild out by sailing a loop around the Abacos and the Berrys. With it being so late in the season, we decided to sail for home where we could use our boat for the summer and wait out the next hurricane season. We will sail back to the Caribbean next season and resume our adventures there. For now, we will enjoy the boat here on the Bay for the summer of 2018.

Here is a graphic of our season.

We departed Stuart on Monday, noon, May 21

Heading out the inlet in a near squall that caught up with us about 3 miles offshore, we were out and heading north. There was a nice 3 to 4-day weather window with forecasted southeast winds of 15-20 knots and no threat of thunderstorms. We liked the forecast so, even with the squall, we left. It was a bit exciting, but we kept telling ourselves the forecast was great. Let’s keep going. Well, we took a beating for about 4-5 hours out of the inlet and we actually thought about turning around, but we pushed offshore to the Gulfstream.

The calm after the squall

Our passage was great

We had it all, broad reaching full sails, all three, we reefed 4 times, had 3 squalls, lightning and rain, and even 4 hours of code zero offshore. The sailing was really wonderful for days. We both commented many times how amazing the sailing was. Endless sailing. This trip was the longest offshore trip we have made. 60 hours 525 nm. We had two days of 200 nm which was due to the 3-4 knots of the Gulfstream. Making a 200nm day is a great day on any sailboat, let alone a little 35 footer. We were pleased with our speed and the push of the Stream.

On our second  day, we were 400 nm from St. Lucie Inlet, near Stuart

Here we are 24 hrs from our last 24 hr point, it was 200.1 nm

The days rolled on and we enjoyed the passage. Radeen and I are not always thrilled about ocean passages, but we do them when we can to cover longer distances. For us, we would rather anchor and rest at night, but sometimes you just have to go to sea and do shifts and keep running 24/7. This was a great time to go offshore, to go north, and we are very glad we did it. Here are the photos from offshore…

Code Zero sailing for about 4 hours

Radeen keeps our logbook up to date

This is the coolest sail, so easy to use. We use it when winds are under 15 knots.

Sunset on the port side, heading north

Full mainsail, we reefed down 4 times.

Sunset at sea, Day 2

Radeen keeping the sun off her face

Calm seas 100 nm offshore

Hayden hooked in and on watch

Arriving Cape Lookout at 0400

We arrived Cape Lookout before daybreak in a thunderstorm. Our new radar went out the afternoon of the second day so we were running blind all night, a very uncomfortable situation. After making the Cape straightaway, we decided to not go into the harbour until daybreak because it was so dark. With no moonlight, no radar and one lighted buoy missing, it was best to wait. We simply put away the jib and, with a reefed main, we sailed along the shore until 0530 when it was light enough to go in and drop the anchor. We slept until 0800 and then headed out using our code zero for the Beaufort Inlet and into the ICW in beautiful conditions.

Arriving at 0400, we waited until 0530 to go in and anchor

Up the ICW, Cape Lookout to the Chesapeake Bay

This is always an easy and interesting section of the ICW. We have run this 10+ times and know the route well. We also know the stops and the anchorages. We have stopped before at Oriental, River Dunes, Manteo,  Edenton, Elizabeth City, Dismal Swamp, Norfolk, etc. but this time we were on a delivery running for home. So, we followed our dear friend Reuben’s route into Coinjock. There we made reservations for a prime rib dinner and a dock. What a treat that was after days at sea and on the hook. Coinjock was a welcome relief and we may always go this way from now on. It also saves one day of travel so that was another reason we went this way. Very fun stop. Thank you, Reuben.

The Coinjock Restaurant

Date night since we did not kill each other offshore 🙂

The next stop PORTSMOUTH, VA

We never ever miss this stop at the Portsmouth, VA ferry basins. We dock  along the waterfront and walk into town on High Street, taking in the Bier Garten, the Commodore Movie Theater, and the local coffee shop. What a great stop to see the new Star Wars movie, “Solo.” So much fun for sure.

South Ferry Basin, Portsmouth VA, our 11th stop here!

Thank you to the US NAVY and all who serve!

Photos of the ICW…

Shrimp boat, NC

The clear brown waters of the Pungo River-Alligator River Canal

22 nm long canal, the Pungo River-Alligator River Canal

Water stained tea colored from the cypress trees

Biting flies are numerous and massively large  in NC

Beautiful trees in the swamps

One lone tree as we turn into the canal

We reach the Chesapeake Bay….HOME waters

These are our home waters! When we reach the Bay, we feel at ease and safe. Starting our sailing here in 1986, we have anchored in nearly every creek and cove. First stop, Annapolis, the state capital of Maryland. and one of our favorites. It was an unexpected pleasure to have dinner with Mary Ann and Ron of IP380 CAVU and Sharon and Greg of IP40 Dreamcatcher, but we have no photo of the fun to share.

We love to sail past Thomas Point Lighthouse

HOME, Thomas Point Lighthouse

Annapolis Maryland

Our HAPPY PLACE, St. Mary’s cove under the Spa Creek Bridge

Our favorite alley in Annapolis where we always take a photo with the Maryland State House

Chesapeake Bay Bridge, NOW we are HOME

We have not been north of the Bay Bridge by boat since 2015. We stored our boat in Stuart FL two years ago to prep for sailing to the Caribbean Sea. Then last season, we stored in Puerto Rico. Now we have returned and it was a fun run to cross under the Bay Bridge again. We always cut the corner and that presents these great photo shots looking back into the center span of the bridge with the perspective vanishing point. Very cool photo.

Looking east into the center spans from in between the bridges

Rock Hall, MD tower

From the center span of the Bay Bridge, we ran for the Rock Hall tower which is a range marker pointed to the main ship channel. Once we reached this, we were home. We motored into Swan Creek and around the creek to Spring Cove Marina. We have been at this marina since 1991. It is the special place where we built all our sailing and cruising dreams. We spent many summers planning and dreaming of going off cruising. For now, we will base here and enjoy our boat.

The Rock Hall tower and the way into our creek

Docked at Spring Cove Marina, sun setting over our bow

CHEERS, it is a great life cruising on a sailboat

A little tired after all these miles, but we were happy to pop the bubbly…CHEERS

We celebrated our arrival at The Harbour Shack with great friends, Sharon and Jeff of IP35 Lucille and Ray of IP 27 Wye’s Guy. Again, no photo of the fun.

Thank you all for following along. Your comments arrive in our email box and we love to hear from you.


OUR MAP. Where we have been and where we are now. If our boat moves, this map updates. How fun.

https://share.garmin.com/IslandSpirit

Stuart FL Yacht Brokers

..We sailed back from the Bahamas on April 28, 2018, and returned to this dream marina and wonderful town of Stuart, Florida in Martin County. This place more than any other place we have travelled has our attention. We even rank this location above Annapolis Maryland and you all know how much Radeen and I like Annapolis. Why do we like Stuart, Florida? First, Sunset Bay Marina and the way it is managed. The staff focuses 100% on customer service and take great pride in the facilities, from the coffee bar, wine bar, varnished teak furniture, gas grills, patio furniture, captains’ lounge with sofas and TV, air-conditioned laundry and bathhouse and the many special events they plan. Add to this a boardwalk around the water’s edge to the old town of Stuart and we have a dream boating location. Mooring balls are $175/week or $400/month. Where can you live for $400/month and have all this? Sunset Bay is our #1 USA marina location.

Hayden and Radeen at Sunset Bay Marina

What are we Doing?

The other question we are hearing is, “What are we doing” waiting in Stuart? Everyone thought we were sailing home. We usually do sail north the first week of May. One year, we waited until June to sail north and that put us in crazy thunderstorms and severe weather and we said never again. This year, we came back to Stuart because while we were in the Berrys we were working on yacht sales. We had three active deals we were working on. So, we came back, rented a Chevy Impala and drove north to Brunswick, GA for a survey on one boat, then back to Stuart. Then we turned around and drove to Palmetto Florida, on the west coast to show our listing there. Next we drove back to Florida East coast. In all, we drove 1,150 miles in 6 days! During this same time, we were working a yacht closing in Nanny Cay, the British Virgin Islands. These deals were difficult to secure from the remote Berrys and we knew they would be impossible to continue to service. So, we sailed back to Stuart for our yacht broker work. We work as “buyer’s brokers” and only focus on Island Packet Yachts. We fit best with anyone looking to buy an Island Packet Yacht. We will help buyers decide on a model that best meets their cruising goals and then we will shop and evaluate the market helping to find the best yacht. We will write offers and counter-offers, attend sea trial and survey, and we will help our customers buy their dream Island Packet. This is why we are back in Stuart and this is what we have been working on for the past 3 weeks.

Our Hertz fun ride, Chevy Impala, yacht broker car

Hayden and Radeen, yacht broker team at survey for our customer

We work with Ed and Debbie Whiteaker our of their office in Palmetto, Fl www.WhiteakerYachtSales.com

Having some Fun

While working on these three yacht broker deals, we also have been working with Mack Sails on our new Code Zero sail. This new sail was fitted last week and we have sailed it in the creek here around Stuart. Last Saturday, Colin Mack and his photo and video man, Ed of Starboard Films wanted to get photos and video of our boat at sea with the new code zero flying. Out to sea we went. The winds were 12-15 knots true and Colin and Ed came out on their chase boat with cameras and a drone. As we sailed, they shot photos and video. Ed will be using this for marketing of the Mack Sails company. How exciting, Team Island Spirit is a new advertising yacht. This will be great when the post-production work is all finished. Here are some photos of the sail.

Dolphins arrive every time we hoist this sail, they love it

Sailing the code zero in 12 knots on the beam doing 6.5 knots

We are told this will be our most used sail

Crazy Weather in Florida

While we have been sailing the new code zero and working on these yacht sales, emailing and supporting our buyers, we have been dealing with crazy weather. There is a low pressure developing in the Gulf of Mexico off Tampa area. This low has been spinning counterclockwise, as lows do in the northern hemisphere, and with that spin, it has been pulling in tons of moisture from the south and driving it to north. We actually thought about sailing north on this great SE 20-knot wind, but the unstable weather brings with it thunderstorms, waterspouts and high winds nearly every day. Small craft advisories offshore are calling for seas 6-9 feet and 5-6 seconds! If you know the ocean, that is ugly boating. So, we are simply waiting here til we rent a car and drive back up to Brunswick GA, 5 hours to survey a boat with our buyer. We thought we could sail there, but with this crazy weather, no way, we will drive I-95. Look at these WX photos.

Waiting out weather in Stuart, FL

Trying to sail to Brunswick for survey and sea trial

Sun Halo over Island Spirit

If there is a good sign, this has to be one of them. While out daysailing with new Island Packet buyers on board and sharing the cruising life with them, this sun halo appeared over our yacht while under sail. How cool is that? This happens when ice crystals form in the atmosphere and the sun refracts thru the ice. Very interesting image.

Sun Halo over Island Spirit

Our Plans to Sail Home

We are still planning on sailing back to the Chesapeake Bay so we can enjoy our boat this summer and sail friends aboard. We hope to make the run as direct as we can, departing this area Mon, Tue or Wed and sailing for Cape Lookout, NC, nonstop if possible. Then if weather allows, we will sail around Cape Hatteras and up into the Chesapeake Bay. One option sail would be to divert offshore to Cape May NJ to see friends there, and to go fishing, but, first, we need to start heading north. For now, we are enjoying helping others with finding their dream yachts and taking in the sunsets here at Sunset Bay. Look at these two photos…..:-)

Island Spirit in calm waters with the sun setting behind us

Hayden and Radeen strike a pose at sunset, too cool!

Remember, LIVE tracking when yacht moves

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Thank you for sailing along…..

Code Zero sail added

We added a new sail to our rig, a CODE ZERO. After repairing and rebuilding our new mast and rigging, we finally got the boat back to where it was when we stored her in Puerto Rico. Then Hurricane Maria damaged us and we came back to Stuart Florida for repairs by Mack Sails. Once finished we really had nothing to show for all this work and money, so, we bought Island Spirit a cool new CODE ZERO furling spinnaker. These sails are good with a wind angle of 40 degrees down to 140 degrees but the best angle is 50 to 110 and apparent winds up to 20 knots.  The true beauty is that the sail simply unfurls and out it comes. Then when you are finished with it, you simply furl it up and it stays in place forward of the jib. To accomplish this we added a masthead crane extension and a new halyard. We welded a new attachment point between the anchor rollers and we added a new self-tailing winch to the mast. Here is a photo of the first day we hoisted the sail:

Sailing 2 knots in 4 knots of wind, Code ZERO only!

Welding the Bow

We needed to add an attachment point on the bow, so we hired the best welder in Stuart, Florida, Mike Davis of Native Welding. We moved the boat to the docks and placed the bow over the dock and Mike was able to modify our bow rollers and we added a new arch welded between the two rollers. This places the Code Zero attachment point dead center and well forward of the forestay. On the newer IPs, with the larger bow rollers, they can simply shackle to the existing roller structure. This mod, we are now pulling up on both anchor rollers which are thru bolted with larger bolts than our forestay uses, so we have no worries about strength here. Take a look at the welding process photos. Very nice work.

We docked and then lowered the anchors, then moved the bow over the dock

Mike Davis is an artist and a talented welder. We added a new arch between the rollers

This is stainless steel welding which needs argon gas and 100 amps of power

Mike’s helmet is a digital welders helmet with fans, exhaust and it records the hours welding

Mike Davis welding stainless steel on Island Spirit

The added bow between the rollers

The two outer bows are simply bolted on, we wanted something stronger so we welded the center bow.

The Furling Rig

Code Zero sails use a continuous line furling rig. This rig is the Profurl NEX 2.5 which has a working load of 2.5 tons, or 5,000 lbs. The idea is that these sails can be rolled out and deployed easily and they can be furled back up just like a jib. The furling line is continuous and comes off the drum back to the cockpit where it returns to the drum via a ratchet block. This helps with furling by allowing the sail to roll out easily.  To see, watch this YouTube Video here by Profurl: https://youtu.be/rcgc5CnJbl4 

 

The Profurl NEX 2.5 Flying Sail Furler

The Code Zero forward of the Jib

The Code Zero stays furled up and forward of the jib. This becomes one of the most used sails on the boat because it has such a wide range of uses. Unlike a spinnaker, which you have to get out, hoist with the sock on it, rig up the tack to the bow, set up the sheets and pull up the halyard. Then set up the boat on the course, pull up the sock and then set the sail. With this, you get on course, roll out the Code Zero and sail. When finished, roll it back up and leave it right there. For the spinnaker, you go up on deck as the wind builds (oh great) then pull down the sock, now this big tube of sail is hanging there, now lower it to deck or down a hatch and good luck finding a place to store it. Code Zero, furl it, forget it. DONE.

Here is the Code Zero in its place, ready to go. ready to sail

Sailing Photos, Fun Fun Fun

Our second day we sailed 3 times up and down the river and sailed from 40 degrees down to 140 degrees. This sail loves 50-110 degrees. We have a whisker pole and a topping lift so we can rig this for dead downwind as well. Enjoy these sailing photos.

Reaching

Close reaching

no main sail, just the code zero

Our sailmaker is www.MackSails.com We really like this family run USA Stuart Florida company

so much fun

Looking aft, this is about a 165% 170%

Fun Fun Fun

Captain Photo Required

Hayden with his new code zero, way more to follow, just wait til we get to sea with this sail

Hayden with our new Code Zero Sail

Tomorrow we hit the OCEAN

.Tomorrow we will take Island Spirit out to the ocean and test this sail out in 10-15 knots with the full mainsail up. This will be very exciting. We will have a drone flying and our friend Ed taking video from a chase boat. We are working with Mack Sails on a video, this should really be fun.

We really like Mack Sails Company. Thank you, Colin and Travis www.MackSails.com

Lucaya to Lake Worth Inlet

This sailing motoring passage of 79 nm from Grand Bahama to Florida gave us everything from flat calm seas, to beam reach sailing to marine warnings over the VHF to thunderstorms, lightning, rain and reduced visibility. Overall, with 8 crossings of the Gulf Stream, this one was by far one of the calmest and smoothest sea states we have seen.

First, we exited Port Lucaya on Grand Bahamas where we ran out a very narrow rock-lined channel. There is zero chance to turn around and no opportunity to pass another yacht in this channel. Any SOUTH winds blowing into this narrow channel would create a serious problem.  We departed at 7 am with the 10 knots of crosswinds. It looked like this.

Departing Ocean Reef Yacht Club, the narrow channel

The rocks are half a boat length off your beam!

If a sea is running into this or across this channel, it could be a no go!

Here we go

Radeen and I keep out boat moving at full speed whenever we are on a passage. We are not out here for a day sail. We want to make the passage as short as we can make it, so we do whatever it takes to keep the boat moving at or near hull speed which is 7.2 knots. With the motor in flat calm water, we can motor about 6.2 knots, add some sail and we can motor sail at 6.5 knots. Give us 10 knots of breeze and we can motor sail at 7 knots. That is what we do. We find that in the ocean, Island Packet Yachts need 15 knots to push the sea state due to their beam and weight. If the winds are 15-20 knots then these boats sail at hull speed. We can always sail faster than we can motor, but we need 15-20 knots of wind in the ocean. Here we are with a reefed main and a staysail because the winds were only 5-8 knots that morning, so all we wanted to do was stabilize the boat in the seaway.

Motor sailing with reefed main and staysail doing 6.5 knots

Then the Winds Die

AS forecasted, the winds died. This weather situation is what is called “diurnal” which means that the winds are based on the thermals off the land. So, while we were near Freeport Bahamas, we had the land pulling in the wind from the sea. Then once we got out to sea, no more thermals, so no winds. Flat calm sea. This was the situation until we reached the south winds blowing along the Florida coast. Look at the ocean, this is amazing, it is never this calm!

Gulf Stream Crossing dream, calm calm calm

Gulf Stream 3 knots

When crossing the stream, we need to plan for the 3 knot current that is flowing north. With a 36 mile wide stream and our boat speed at 6 knots and a 3 knot flow northward, that means we would be in the stream for 6 hours (36/6) Six hours drifitng 3 knots northward will move your boat 18 nm northward. So, that means when you come out of the stream you will be 18 to 20 miles north of where you were heading, Planning for this common set and drift navigation challenge, you need to point your boat 15-20 degrees south of your actual rum line.  In this example, we were pointed 270 but we were going course over ground of 300. This ran us right to our destination. In the next photo you can see the effects of the Gulf Stream flowing northward at 3 knots. Look at the compass and then look for COG on the B&G screen.

Heading 270, COG 303, speed 7.4, Gulf Stream crossing to Florida

We were under full sail with motor doing 7 knots, beam winds at 8-10

Blue Blue Blue ocean, but the fish beat us today, zero

OH NO, Thunderstorm ahead

As forecasted, the late afternoon thunderstorms would develop over South Florida, and sure enough, there they were. The VHF radio was going off with NOAA weather alerts and severe weather warnings. We were 20 miles offshore when they said…”BOATERS SHOULD SEEK SAFE HARBOR”….great, we are 3-4 hours out at sea and there is no safe harbor. The next thing you know, the temperature dropped rapidly and the winds shifted. We moved into a full out Chinese fire drill, reefing the jib and dropping the full mainsail. The winds picked up rapidly to 25 knots. They were forecast to be 40-60 knots with hail. The most we had was 27 knots, thank goodness.

Trying to make time, we have full sails up while watching the front approach

Radar shows the front and the rain, we knew this was coming

Winds were on the beam, we could have easily sailed this, but we dropped sails expecting 40-60 knots

Hooked on, no one is going overboard

Happy Radeen, the rain and storm have passed

With constant storm warnings on the VHF, with lightning all around, we powered on with no sails

LAKE WORTH INLET, a CLASS A….ahhhhh

We really like CLASS A inlets, they are deep, they are wide and they are straight in and easier than non-class A inlets. In this area we have Lake Worth and Fort Pierce as class A inlets with St. Lucie in between. We chose to come into Lake Worth in case we could not make it in daylight, then we knew we could enter this inlet at dark and via radar. Lucky for us, we arrived at 7 pm and sunset was at 7:50 pm so we had daylight to enter. Just inside the inlet and to the south we dropped anchor and enjoyed watching this old cruise ship heading out. It was nice we did not meet it in the inlet. Welcome HOME, we are back in the USA.

A cruise ship heading out the Lake Worth inlet as seen from our anchor

Welcome to West Palm Beach, Check in with CBP

Since 2011, we have been checking back into the USA from the Bahamas using the LBO, Local Boater Option. We also use the SVRS, Small Vessel Reporting System. Both of these systems have all our biometrics, passports, photos and all info about our vessel. While in the Bahamas, we filed and processed an SVRS/LBO float plan and activated this plan when we’re ready to depart which then gives us a Float Plan number. This float plan number is all that Customs and Border Patrol needs. When you call, they enter your float plan number and you are checked back into the USA.

Surprise! NOT anymore.

You are supposed to use the CBP ROAM app on your smartphone. When you go to download and to use this app, it tells you straight up that it is in BETA form and is experimental to use. I downloaded it but was unable to log-in. So, I called in with my float plan number and the officer refused to take it, he said I must use ROAM. I called back in 3 more times getting a different CBP officer each time. I explained my problem and kept trying to use my float plan number. Finally, on the 4th call, the officer believed my difficulties and asked me for all my data, never using my float plan number. He then cleared us in.

CONCLUSION: You need to use CBP ROAM app, enter all your personal data, your yacht data, your passport, home address, LBO numbers, etc, then you can check in via your cell phone on a conference call with the CBP officer. Other friends have used it successfully. I just wish our government would perfect the APP and get it out of BETA because I never use beta software. I do not trust it at this point in time. The float plan filing website should be discontinued since the Float Plan numbers are no longer used. Filling it out was a waste of time.

Sunset as I call and deal with CBP and LBO and ROAM

That is a WRAP

Year # 7 to the Bahamas is now a wrap. Yes, we were supposed to be in the Caribbean, but the Bahamas are a dream as well. So, it was down with the flag, and store it till next year, when we will once again be on our way to the Caribbean Sea!

Radeen drops our well worn Bahamas Flag

PS: We crossed Island Spirit’s Shipping Track

If you look at this live tracking map, you will see that on this trip, Florida to Abaco to Berrys to Lucaya to Florida, we crossed the shipping track that Island Spirit traveled inboard from St. Thomas in January. How interesting to study that. We really enjoy using this Inreach device by Garmin.
https://share.garmin.com/IslandSpirit

Sailing Stirrup to Lucaya

Our 75 nm run from Great Stirrup Cay in the Berrys to Lucaya on Grand Bahama Island was a mix of sailing and motor sailing and then sailing again.  We had planned to depart Stirrup Cay at sunset, which we did, and we planned to sail all night.  One last look at radar showed storms coming. So, we smartly turned around and returned to safe anchorage and waited for them to pass. At 10:30. we were ready to sail again.  but Radeen was looking at the Weather Bug radar app and it showed severe storms and thunderstorms tracking directly across our projected path, just beyond our 36 mile radar. Well, these storms came all night long just inches north of us right up until the last storm passed us at 7:30 am. Needless to say, we did not get much sleep that night! So, as the last storm was passing, we hoised a reefed main sail and sailed out behind the storm with the lightning just past us to the east. Here is a map of our passage.

Scones Required

What would a sail be without scones? So, I baked 16 scones and gave 4 away and packed up the rest for the next few days of sailing and travel. These are very easy to make from scratch, we simply use the basic recipe from King Arthur Flour. It is fun to bake on the boat.

Cruise Ships Lease these Islands

Royal Caribbean leases Little Stirrup Cay (aka Coco Cay) and Norwegian Cruise line leases Great Stirrup Cay. The ships anchor off their private islands and then ferry passengers, 5,000 of them, back and forth. WOW, it is crazy how packed the islands are. We sailed past these ships the day before as we moved into Great Stirrup Cay to stage up for the sailing northwest. A cruise is a great option for being here because you really need to get to the Bahamas to see the beautiful blue, blue ocean waters and the powder sand beaches.

Sailing past Anthem of the Seas, a Royal Caribbean Ship

Anthem of the Seas, the hull is light blue and beautiful

Harness on and Hook in, it is off to sea

Radeen and I like to take these selfies as we head out to sea, it is something we do and cherish as we look back and remember the sailing trips we have taken. We wear harnesses and tethers which we hook onto the boat. The idea is to make sure no one falls off the boat, and if you do fall off, then you will not be lost. We have these on at sea all the time. Happy selfie as we head out after a sleepless stormy night on anchor.

 

Hayden and Radeen

Set Sails and Sail

After the storms passed, we had a perfect beam reaching wind for about 4 hours. We started with a reefed mainsail and then shook out the reef to a full main and even added the little staysail. Now under full sail, we were making 6 to 6.5 knots directly towards our destination. PERFECT. Here are some sailing shots.

Reefed main and full 110% jib

Beautiful beam reaching, perfect

Our B&G screen showing the SOG as 6.8. We had a port beam current

SHAKE out THAT Reef

With our new mast and our new “Strong Track” and with my new simple single line reefing system (I removed the boom shuttle cars), our mainsail is really easy to reef and also easy to shake out the reef. Here I am after a simple shake out and under full sail with the staysail out as well. This is one happy bluewater sailing captain.

Happy Hayden sailing under full sail…a selfie….Radeen is off watch sleeping

ERRRR, the Winds move FORWARD

WHY, WHY, WHY does the wind change direction? WHY? Especially when we are all set up, we have been sailing along for about 4 hours, all is perfect. We have a long way to go, and then, POOF, the wind moves from 180 degrees to 280-300 degrees and our course is 315. So, furl in the big jib, sheet in the staysail, lower the main back down to a reef and fire up the motor. We now set up for motor sailing with the wind 20-30 degrees off our port bow. We could sail this wind, we just would not get to our destination. When we are on passage, we keep the boat moving and we make sure it is moving towards our destination. Sailing is great, but we are not going to sail in the wrong direction just to sail. So, we motor sailed and hoped the wind would move back towards the south. Now it is waves and salt spray all over the deck and the windshield. One salty boat in a matter of minutes!

This is 6.5 knots, look at the water

These waves are relatively calm, 2 foot with no whitecaps, but still, we were bashing into them

Look out, SHIP! Radar has it

While on passage, we set up our digital radar to have a Guard Zone set to 2-3 miles ahead of us, 1 mile wide and arching about 140 degrees. If anything solid enters this zone, an alarm starts to beep and alerts us to the position. The radar will cast a line in the direction of the target and we begin our visual search for the target. At 2 miles out, that is 20 minutes away, and 10 minutes if it is coming at you the same speed, so we like to find the targets quickly. Here is what our radar guard zone looks like. Also see the pointer named ALLEGRO, that is a ship sending out its AIS info.

B&G Radar Guard Zone and a ship 6 nm away

Can you see the ship? Here is the view from the helm looking towards that ship. Do you see it?

Can you see the ship ALLEGRO?

Here, let me zoom in and NOW, you can see the ship. This is a calm day, and a ship is easy to spot, BUT, radar is still #1. it is your eyes at sea. We like AIS, but it is not #1 because many ships turn them off and some do not have AIS. So, radar is it. It is the only thing we count on to identify solid objects that we could hit and that could sink our boat. Look what radar found long before I saw it. Now that I know it is out there, 6 miles, I can watch it. Also, with AIS, I will be warned if there is any danger of a collision.

There it is on the horizon, the ship ALLEGRO, 6 miles away

At night, this ship would be lit and we would have seen it much more readily. We also would think it is much closer at night, because the sea is so dark and a light, any light, will seem like it is running you down. With radar and AIS these situations are far easier. We really like our B&G Zeus3 and our B&G 4G radar.

Powering on, we enjoy the BLUE WATER

AS we powered onward, (yes, fishing, but catching ZIP) we took in the beauty of the blue water all around us. It is amazing how the sea color changes with the sky color and clouds and sun angle. These photos are around 1400 hours and the sun was bright. Look how blue the ocean really is….

Looking into the sun, one color of blue

Looking down sun, aft, another shade of blue

Looking over the side, down into the ocean, bright blue

Looking at the contrast of the white spray and the blue water

This is mesmerizing and so beautiful

SALT SPRAY EVERYWHERE

On a trip like this, the salt spray is over the bimini roof. Everything is covered in saltwater. The decks are soaked, the lifelines, the bow pulpit, the mast and boom and the windshield, all covered in salt spray. Then it dries and it leaves behind all the salt crystals. When you get into port or when you drop anchor, your entire boat is covered in dried salt. If you don’t wash it off, it gets in your shoes, you track it below decks, you sit in it and your clothing becomes salty and damp. Your hands and feet get salty. It is a pet peeve of ours, so we wash it all off after every sail. It takes about 5-7 gallons of water and about an hour for both of to hand wash all the salt off the boat. The ocean seems 10 times saltier than the bays and rivers and creeks. So she was one salty boat today.

Looking thru the salt crusted windshield

BUT THEN THE WIND SHIFTS SOUTH

Near the end of this trip, the winds returned to the south and we were able to turn the motor off and set full sails once again. This was late in the day and the sun presented these great angles thru the rig as we sailed on.

Full sails once again with the sun getting low

Sun peaking thru the rig, full sails and a great end of the trip.

We arrived OCEAN REEF YACHT CLUB

At 1900, about 30 minutes before sunset, we arrived at the Ocean Reef Yacht Club and docked for the night. Job #1, hook up a hose and wash off this SALT.

Island Spirit docked and all washed off….a great 75 nm day

Thank you for sailing along

We will depart Ocean Reef Yacht Club in the morning for a direct run across the Gulfstream to the Lake Worth Inlet. Our next blog will share the beautiful yacht club here in Lucaya, Grand Bahama…

The Berrys Blue Blue Water

We have passed the Berry Islands 6 years now and this year we said we had to go and take a tour around the Berrys. WOW, this water is crystal clear and the beaches are empty and white powdery sand. We had our own beach for a day with our boat anchored off the shallows. Did I say shallows? YES, it is very shallow in every cut you enter and then you can’t go too far into the cuts because there will be a massive sand bore or sand flat fanning out from the ocean cut. So, you go in and find an anchorage right around the entrance and drop the hook. All are not like this, but the ones we were in were. We were in Alders, Bonds, Cabbage, Lizard, Hoffmans and Great Harbour Cay. We started at the south and work our way north around the top and then to the west side where we docked at Great Harbour Cay Marina. While there, we were invited to a lobster dinner at a friends house. Boat buddies of boat buddies are buddies of ours was our saying. Thanks to Bill and Trish who connected us with Mark and Jan who brought us to Kurt and Sharon’s home. What a fun fun night and a delicious meal. Our first lobsters of this year. Thank you so much, Sharon and Kurt and Marc and Jan. Check out these great pics…

A great time at Kurt and Sharon’s with Mark and Jan in Great Harbour on the beach!

Six beautiful lobster tails for the grill. Great job Mark!

We departed Hope Town under full Sail

Sailing south off Hope Town

First let me back up to Hope Town, where we spent a week with buddies and really enjoyed our time there. We set full sail out of Hope Town and sailed all the way to our anchorage off Linyard Cay. There we stagged up for the 12 hour motor sail out Little Harbor Cut and onward to the Berrys. We decided since it was so calm to just make a direct run and get into ALders Cay by dark and drop the hook. Then in the AM, look at the water we saw…

Our view out the porthole. WOW, look at that!

Standing on deck in the AM light our shadow on the sand in 7 foot deep water

You keep looking at the water and you can not believe this

We Move Around the Corner

The next day, after sleeping in, we picked up anchor and moved about 2 miles around the sandbar to Lizard Island off Cabbage Cay. Here we found even more beautiful blue water and white sand beaches and we made it a day of swimming and beach time. Simply setting up an umbrella on a remote white sand beach with no one else around is a very special experience.  Lizard Cay could be one of our all-time favorite spots we have anchored off of to date, but it is difficult to select, so we will make it a top 10 spot for now.

Our view from our umbrella

Umbrella cam

Our spot on the beach with another boat that just sailed in

Now for the BLUEST water ever

The next day we decided to head north and to motor into and out of each cut to see the areas and the other beaches. When we reached the northeast side of the Berrys off Hoffman’s Cay we set sails and sailed right into the BLUEST water we both have ever seen. Of course it was noon and the sun was bright and the sky blue and the water was 30 feet deep with a sandy bottom making it all perfect for reflections. But even so, this will remain the brightest blue water we have ever sailed into, and we both were overwhelmed by it all. All my photos are simple cell phone photos from my Samsung S7, I do very little to the photos other than resize them and add our name to the bottom right. Take a look at these photos and we are sure you too will agree, this could be the bluest water ever.

Sailing at noon around Little Stirrup Cay

Sailing at noon around Little Stirrup Cay

Sailing at noon around Little Stirrup Cay

The bluest water ever

Bullocks Harbor and Great Harbour Cay Marina

From the top of Little Stirrup Cay, we rounded the NE side of the Berrys and then sailed down the West side to drop the hook off Bullocks Harbor. We were concerned about the building East winds and we did not want to get stuck behind any east-facing cut with little protection. So, we booked a dock for 2 days and treated ourselves to our first dock since Jan 20th!

Entering the rock-cut channel

Docked and washing off the salt with the sunshade up

A local manatee swam by and I waved

So Much to See, so Little Time

Hayden and Radeen

We only had a week here and we only saw a few spots. There are so many places to discover and to explore here in the Berrys, that we can see ourselves stopping back when we pass by again next year en route to the Caribbean. We still need to decide if the Berrys are as special and as beautiful as The Bahamas National Trust islands of Warderick Wells and Cambridge and Shroud Cay, but we will leave that up to you all to decide. You simply have to make plans to sail into here and to explore the Berrys and the Exumas and then you can decide for yourself. What a joy it is cruising and discovering new areas as well as returning to favorites we have learned. Grateful we are.

Cheers

LIVE TRACKING MAP

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