Lagniappe: Far Bahamas and Turks and Caicos

Far Bahamas and Turks and Caicos

3/7/2015 We got tired of Georgetown and headed to Cat Island to see something new while waiting for our weather window. Had a great sail for several hours then had to motor sail for a few hours before the wind picked back up and we sailed again, altogether a 10 hour trip. We did manage to catch a tuna on our way and enjoyed that for dinner several nights. We love the people of Cat Island. They stop and offer you rides and even wait for you in the grocery and take you back to the dinghy dock! They are the friendliest people we have met in the Bahamas.
Our friends, Frank and Diane (S/V Utopia) were anchored here and we got to visit with them on Sunday, our second day here.We went to Mass together, had lunch at the beach area and enjoyed an impromptu rake and scrape band. Across from the little "fish fry" area the local regatta boats were on the hard, being repaired. Their wood construction and use of the local trees was interesting. After lunch, we walked up to the highest point in the Bahamas at the top of Mount Alvernia. The former home of Blessed Fr. Jerome. He built the house,the way of the cross and the original church himself.
The deacon who said Mass planned a clean-up at the old church that Fr. Jerome had built for Saturday so we were still here waiting for weather so we went and helped. That was some HOT work. But the growth around the old church and chapel is much reduced and the inside swept out. They have a lot of work to do to get it back in usable shape.
Several other boats in the group from Georgetown (Jump, Ally Cat, and Glass Slipper) waiting to go south are also at Cat Island and we have been meeting to discuss our weather and route options.

Regatta boat being repaired

New boat under construction

Rake and scrape band

Mount Alvernia

Entrance to the grounds of Alvernia

Way of the Cross station

View of the harbor from the top of Alvernia

The last station of the cross and Fr. Jerome's house

The St. Francis of Assissi Church that Fr. Jerome built

The chapel at St. Francis

Clean-up at church

Inside the chapel

Outside the church after clean-up

Maintenance on the winch

3/15/2015 We have a weather window and decided to head straight through to Mayaguez. Jump left earlier and is going to Conception for the night. We left at 6:00p.m. to time our arrival at Abraham Bay in Mayaguez for the morning so we have good light to navigate through the reef. We had to motor the first 3 hours then sailed, occasionally turning on the engine for 30 to 60 minutes when the wind would die. We arrived tired but safely in Mayaguez (the far southeast Bahamas) 40 hours later. we met up with lots of friends who had left from Georgetown instead of Cat Island: Greig and Caroline on S/V Lequesteau, Paul and Sherry on Tehani, Mark and Kathy on Nancy Lu, and Dave and Sherry on Mythago. We found out we didn't actually have to clear out of the Bahamas to clear into Turks and Caicos so we just anchored in Mayaguez one day and left the next morning for Provodenciales (Provo) in Turks and Caicos. There was no wind, forcing us to motor all the way. There was a stiff chop in the morning which turned to a 5 foot swell in the afternoon. By the time we got into the Sandbore channel, it was flat calm. We arrived in Sapodilla Bay and anchored. We spent several days in Sapodilla Bay and did a bit of provisioning at the local grocery. The people here are not nearly as friendly as on Cat Island, asking for gas money even when they stop and offer you a ride. We walked around a bit but honestly did not see much of Provo. We never did go snorkelling. We did hike to the top of Sapodilla Hill where sailors from years past had etched their visits in the rocks.

Salty winches on the way to Provo, Turks and Caicos

Sandbore Channel

Lovely gardens on Provo, T&C

View of the bay behind resort on Provo

3/22/2015 We have a 3 day weather window to head to the Dominican Republic (DR)! We headed to Big Ambergris Cay. This is one of the thorny parts of the route not because of the winds, but because of the coral reefs. Some of our group went over to South Caicos on a more northern route. We sailed and motorsailed to Big Ambergris, constantly changing course to avoid coral heads. We saw a squall ahead and couldn't change course to avoid it because of the coral so we just anchored and waited for it to pass. We couldn't keep going because the squall blocked the sunlight and we couldn't read the water to make sure we were on a safe course. The squall passed in front of us and didn't even rain on us and we continued on our way. We got to Big Ambergris and found a spot to anchor and spent a pleasant evening at anchor. Next day we motored trhough the coral fields out into the Turks Passage and headed to Big Sand Cay. The wind was on the nose and when we tried to fall off, we could only make 2 knots so it was another motoring day. As we approached Big Sand Cay, in about 30 feet of water, we had a whale partially surface about 20 feet off the starboard bow! Couldn't get to the camera fast enough to get a picture, sadly. We anchored at Big Sand which is beautiful. There is a terrific surge at the beach which made getting the dinghy close to shore without swamping it a challenge. We went beachcombing the next morning and then left for the DR around 1:00 p.m.