Goodbye and Hello

Having had a great time at the regatta and all our adventures in the Exumas it was coming to that dreaded time of any visit from friends, the time to say goodbye. Originally we were going to take Bob and Sharon back to Nassau to fly home but due to some weather up North and everyone wanting to see new things, we worked our way down to Great Exuma where they could grab a flight back to Nassau and then home to Vancouver. I'm not sure who this is harder on, us losing our great crew or them having to leave the sunshine of the Bahamas for the unpredictable weather of Vancouver in February. After the goodbyes were done Sharon was with us for two weeks and Bob was on board for five weeks. A huge thanks to Bob for hanging with us all that time and assisting with our first-ever passage and month of sailing our new home. So nice to start with such an experienced sailor on board.  

The journey from Farmers Cay to Great Exuma was around 7 hours, we got an early start so we could arrive at the dock before it was dark. We had reserved a spot at Exuma Yacht Club (EYC). We found out once we arrived and docked that all, except for a few slips, were destroyed by a storm. We arrived on a Saturday and there was no staff working, we ended up docking at the fuel dock, which was closed for the weekend. Another crazy docking feat, with our depth sounder saying zero we had to parallel park between a huge crazy party barge and a huge yacht with winds on the beam and current trying to push us out. Stressful but once completed makes you feel like you earned your sundowner! 

Side note; we need to fix our depth sounder so that we are not hitting zero and not knowing how much room we have. We found out that whoever set the depth on our boat set it two feet below our actual draft of five feet. As a result, anytime we hit two feet our depth sounder is saying we are grounded. Plus it does not show negative so we do not know if we have one foot or two or 6 inches before we are actually hitting the ground. This causes additional stress in an already stressful situation. In the Bahamas, everything is shallow and in a lot of places, you will only have 1-2 feet under your keel. 

We took a walk around town and then had dinner at the EYC restaurant, which was open even though nobody was at the EYC docks. The next day we hiked up Monument Hill with Bob and Sharon, There is a short hike up the hill and you are rewarded with beautiful views in almost every direction, as long as you can get through the first 10 minutes where you are attacked by mosquitos! and then added our boat name in rocks on the beach below with all the other cruisers before it was time for boat cleaning and packing for Bob and Sharon as they were leaving the next day.

Monday, February 6th, 2023 Nikki and I are alone on our boat for the first time since we left the US, kind of terrifying! Luckily we were just heading across the bay to one of the most famous cruiser hangouts in the Bahamas, Chat and Chill on Stocking Island. A great couple on a sister Leopard 42 named AndiamoNudo who was already at Chat and Chill and promised to show us the ropes. It was so good to see them again and to get a quick tour of this cruiser hang out as well as meet another Leopard 42 Grey Ghost. 

Nikki and I anchored at Monument Beach, where there was quick shore access and a huge beach for Zorro to swim, roam, fetch, dig, and roll in the sand. There is a very narrow channel for the ships to come into the harbour and after a day being anchored where we were we realized that us, and most of the boats around us, were making life for the mail barge quite challenging so we decided to move over an anchorage. It also made for a shorter dinghy ride to Chat and Chill Beach.

One of the great things about Stocking Island is it has several good hiking trails that we could take Zorro on. It was the first place that we had access to this many dog-friendly trails. Zorro loved it but he was still adjusting to the heat and each day was getting warmer.

We could see why some people just spend their entire time right here at Chat and Chill. You are a short dinghy ride to Great Exuma which has shops, groceries, and restaurants. The Cruiser network arranges yoga, hiking, paddle boarding, volleyball, domino games, kid events, live music, and much more all around a little bar that sells food and drinks. It really can suck you in and before you know it a month or two has passed. This was a big reason for us to say goodbye. It was coming up to two weeks since Bob and Sharon left so we knew we needed to get moving to see more of the Bahamas.  

So we said goodbye to Grey Ghost and AndiamoNudo fellow Leopard 42 owners and friends that made it hard to leave. But our journey needed to continue and we want to try and make it further South in the Bahamas. Long Island and meeting up with our Australian friends on Lumeah their beautiful Xquisite 50.