"Ship Shape" in the Abacos

Is a relative term.
When in the islands you do with what you have, not what you want.
Been working on that wing engine problem and did put a patch on a hose and it's holding... cross fingers... Tried to find one in the states and it must be made of Unicorn Horn or something, no one can seem to find it. James Knight at Yachtech has been patiently working with me and I sent pictures and specs, but it seems to be a mystery hose. Oh well, let's just bet that patch holds.
I called the folks at Marsh Harbour Boat Yard and they seemed concerned, but never showed or called me back. It's de ilands Mon!
So after the patch job, I go down with salt remover and spray down the whole engine room. Sounds like a good idea, Huh? Well a few minutes later Mel alerts me the wing engine Oil and Volt alarms are going off in the Pilot House. I look around and see a wiring harness with sparks coming out of it. Yikes!! So again, I call James at Yachtech and he suggests I kill the battery to the engine. That stops the sparks, but now I can't use the generator. I need to stop the harness from arcing. Luckily I found some contact cleaner, separate the harness, and clean off the corrosion. It works!! Yay!!
So now we're a complete boat again. Ship Shape Island Style.

Now back to why we're here. Relaxation.

First took the dogs to the beach to let them run off some energy.

It was a little breezy and neither dog wanted to play in the waves.

But they enjoyed running around and getting dirty anyway.

So after such a hard day there's only one way to wind it down. Happy Hour!

A video I shared with my Mobli friends from all over the world. They seem to enjoy these little glimpses of our travels.

We're excited to be having company coming over. Our friends from Sunset Bay, Bob and Mary are bringing a boat over and staying for a week. This wasn't planned, but it worked out nicely. Bob drove down to Palm Beach and picked up some spare parts I need from James Knight. This will help out tremendously.
On the 10th our friend Peter from Baltimore is coming over to stay till we head back, then help us crew Istaboa back to Stuart.

The Abacos has been fun. The place hasn't changed too much, though they do have a great grocery store now. Maxwell's is like walking into a Publix or Kroger and the prices are not bad at all.

So the next week will be a social one.

For now...

Happy 4th of July, America.

Adios,

Istaboa

Snappa's Marsh Harbour

Cool little Restaurant on the Harbour

The run to Abaco...

Was a delightful one. The seas were flat and the whole trip went by without a splash over the rails. Our kinda day!
It started by threading our way though Nassau Harbor at first light. We had to work our way around these guy, but luckily the pilots gave us plenty of room to work with.

These gigantic cruise ships must run on a similar schedule as they all seem to arrive at the same time.

The Disney Dream waiting her turn 

After clearing the harbor there was nothing but wonderfully flat seas for hours. Uneventful cruising.

The next thing we see is the southern point of Abaco. Hole is the Wall is the name of this point and the Abaco light house stands proudly.

I found the pic below on the net. Pretty shore line cliffs.

We've been running across seas that were 13,000+ feet deep and all of a sudden the depth sounder wakes up to show 1100' and within a quarter of a mile we see 50' only to see the depth sounder blink off when we go back to a very deep 4000+' of water. All of this happens in about a half a mile.

Bet there's good fishing here.

Then our radios crackles and we hear our friends on Dusty Seas calling. Bart's wondering where we are. I look at my radar and see a blip about 5 miles behind us and figure that's him. Marpa tells me he's running 25 knots and we're running 9 so we expect to see him shortly. I call Bart on the radio and tell them to come by us closely and we'll get some pics. 

We walk out to the bridge with camera in hand waiting for Bart to come screaming by. (I can't believe I just told a Sportfish to run by closely. We usually curse those guys for waking us.) As we're waiting for Bart, I look off to starboard and I see what I think are Dolphin, but the closer they get I can tell they're too big to be Dolphin. Because we've seen them before, my next guess is that it's a small pod of Pilot Whales or Risso Whales. I call Bart to tell him they are right in front of him, but he's running so fast he can't tell what they are. He said they were the biggest dolphin he had ever seen.

I manage to snap a few pictures of whatever they were before they submerge to escape Bart.

This morning I googled Pilot Whales and Risso Whales and the dorsal fins don't match. They look like Killer Whales. Especially in one shot that shows the head and a white spot on the side.

 These aren't Dolphin, are they?

It's a blurry pic because I've zoomed in so close, but it does look like a white spot on the side of the head.

Hell! I think we spotted our first Killer Whales. 

In the Abacos?

Again, I google 'Killer Whales in the Abacos' and find an article that says Orca whales are often seen around the Abacos in late spring and early summer.  Article here. Abaco Whales

So what do you think?  Killer Whales? Risso or Pilot Whales? Mermaids or Unicorns?

Anyway... Then we got some great pics of Bart and Nat as they pass.

We made it to Little Harbor and around to Boat Harbor Marina to tie up and decide what to do next. After getting in and tied up, we realize we've got a problem with our wing engine and water is spraying all over the engine room. Not a show stopper, but a problem we need to address. So that's our project for today. We hope just for today.

So this morning, like every other morning we've spent in the Abacos, I listen to the Cruiser's Net on VHF channel 68... right on time at 8:15... Somethings, they never change. It feels like coming home again. This is where our dream started many years ago.

The weather is looking great for the near future. Should be a fun 4th.

Adios,

Istaboa

Moving on...

To fill in the blanks left by my last post done on an iPhone at Highborne Cay, we've decided some cruising would be fun. We quickly said goodbye to Tuck and Jamal, untied the lines, and made way. Jamal was stunned and saddened as we expected. We're not kidding about being family with these folks.

Leaving this is tough.

Highborne is always pretty and well kept. It's a very Americanized resort type of marina that can be described as upscale casual. In other words... you dress for drinks and dinner. They do a good job at what they do.

We ran across the bank today and are tied up at Nassau Yacht Haven. We decided Atlantis was just too much culture shock and we're not ready for that. 

We had lunch at the infamous Poop Deck Restaurant and the burger was as good as ever. Truly the best burger I've had in the Bahamas.

The plan for tomorrow is to run 80 miles to Little Harbor in the Abacos then see what we find upon arrival. The seas are predicted to be relatively smooth with light and variable winds. Hope those predictions turn out to be true. The pups hate rough days at sea.

With all this said, Mel and I are still carrying some strange feelings about leaving Compass. Maybe it's because we left so suddenly, could be we feel like we've left our friends behind, but it's probably because we know that no matter where we go, we won't find anywhere that life is as comfortable and beautiful as the island and our relationship with it's inhabitants. 

Now I'm feeling bad again.

Hell, we may just go back.

Adios,

Istaboa

Happy Birthday, Silas Rui Taylor

We left.. With heavy hearts

But, we left... More later.
Dinner tonight was culture shock.
Highborne Cay is not Compass!

A Lot of Nothing

And we've been busy at it.
That's what happens here at Compass Cay, you get caught up in the islandness of the place and you don't do anything in particular, but a lot of things in general. In general we've been enjoying our island paradise and it's inhabitants.
It's always good hanging out with Tucker and his boys. We've become family over the years and they treat as such. Our boys, Radar and Mud, really love it here, they are treated as humans by everyone on the island. Everybody knows their names and watches after them. They have their favorite peeps and they tend to hang with them from time to time. Tucker has become enamored with Muddy and I've never seen him pay any attention to a dog. So Mud, the name Tuck calls him, sits at his feet when Tucker takes his afternoon siesta when a nice breeze is blowing.

Our friends from last year's stay were here when we arrived. Bart and Natalia were our dock neighbors for 2 months last summer. Nice folks on "Dusty Seas" a Viking Sport Fish.
They are leaving today, heading to the Abacos before heading home to Jupiter, FL. They're trying to talk us into doing the same and I must admit it does sound fun, We haven't been to the Abacos in a few years and we've been missing our friends there.
So we're torn... Home versus our former favorite place in the world. Hmmmm....

Tuck and I took the Kabota around the island to his Rental Houses. He's really fixed them up nicely and wanted me to do some promo shots for brochures.

 The Beach House

 The Beach House View of Crescent Beach

Mango House that overlooks Bonefish Creek

These are just proofs, I will process them later for the brochures when I have fast internet.

Speaking of internet... Word got out that I was the provider of internet service here on Compass so someone was always knocking on the boat with questions. It's not bad, I like to help out when I can.

One fellow who was Captain on a 102' Ocean Alexander, "Julia", sought me out when his boss couldn't get online. So I walked over and helped him tap into the net via his Ship Router. His boss was now happy. His mate, Carlos, was desperately trying to get online so he could Skype home. Seems he has a 2 month old child that he hasn't seen in a month. He doesn't speak English very well and I don't speak much Spanish, but we managed to get his iPod to hook up and he had Video Skype. He was so happy to see his baby. It was touching even to an old asshole such as me. Glad I could help.

That's how it is over here in the land of little. Everyone has something they bring to the island that's valuable. Mine is the internet. 

A day after I helped out the Captain and Mate of Julia the A/C on my boat died. I worked all morning trying to clean out the waterlines, but came up short. Only had one A/C that would work which was the stateroom A/C so we would be able to sleep anyway. 

I needed a circulating pump and some descaler to clean the lines. A friend suggested I ask one of the big boat guys. So I asked Joe, the Captain of Julia. He said he did have all that stuff and when he got back from taking his boss to another island he would come over and give me a hand.

A few hours later there he was with a pump, hoses, and Barnicle Buster. He and Carlos moved me out of the way and they went to work. 2 hours later all 4 units were flushed and working better than before. They wouldn't take money and said it was payback for my help getting his boss off his back about the internet. So, out of gratitude, I spent the next day making them some extra fine Memphis Style Ribs. They were ecstatic.

Julia on her way out of Compass. Hope to see them again.

I'm On A Boat

Never Say Never

We met these folks last year. Very nice people from Miami. Those who've read this blog for a while will remember the post I did last year. This is the boat that was used on a Saturday Night Live skit with Andy Samberg. If not you can see it here http://youtu.be/R7yfISlGLNU

The Owner/Captain gave Mel and me T-Shirts with the boat drawing on the back and on the front was a line from the rap song. Mel's said "With my swim trunks... and my flippie floppies. Mine said, Ridin on the backs of Dolphin doin jumps and shit." We will wear them with pride.

A new critter on Compass

Never had chickens before, but now there are several. Tuck doesn't like them, says they poop everywhere. Not sure if they're for eggs or eating... or like the goats, just there.

I know, I know... I've been remiss with the blog thing, but doing a lot of nothing is time consuming.

Not sure about the near future yet. May do the Abaco thing, but I hate to tell Tuck and the boys we're leaving so abruptly, I'm afraid it may hurt their feelings.

We'll see.

Adios,

Istaboa

Jours Pluvieux dans le Paradis

Wow... not bad for an old man from Arkansas.
Rainy Days in Paradise is what we've been having. Can't complain though and if I did no one would listen,

It's kinda nice anyway... Good excuse to watch a movie or two and not feel guilty about not getting out to enjoy all this blueness.
Yesterday a huge squall popped up and stopped several boats from leaving the marina's harbor. The winds were blowing 35 knots and the rain was blinding.

These three boats are from Louisiana and always travel together, we met them last year.
It was kinda comical, from our standpoint, watching them trying to drop anchors, not run into each other, and not run aground. Glad we were tied up and not in the middle of all that.

So in between squalls we walk the dogs as quickly as we can in anticipation of another thunderstorm.
I did a couple of videos with my iPhone for my Mobli friends. Folks from all over the world are watching these Exumas videos I post on Mobli and really getting a charge out of them.






Today, the rains have relented a bit and we're taking Tuck's boat over to Staniel Cay to pick up some grocerys. I hope we don't get caught in a squall on the way, but if we do... It's fresh water and won't kill us.
The pups really like it when we let them run around free range in the rain. This is a very dog friendly marina. As long as your dogs are cool, they can wander around leashless. If they're not... you'll know.

So, that's it.  Jours Pluvieux dans le Paradis... Rainy days in Paradise.

Adios,

Istaboa

Finally broke out the real camera...

...and found some really nice pics.

The first couple are from Atlantis and even though it does feel like Disney World, it's still pretty spectacular.

The next morning we moved on to Highborne Cay. They were booked totally so we dropped a hook out front, dinked in, and took the pups in for a walk.

That night, as stated in the previous post, was a stunning sunset, but around midnight a storm moved over the top of us and just stayed there for couple of hours. Winds puffed to 40k, but mainly around 25K and the anchor held fine.

Got some nice shots before the sun went down.

I really like the last one. So blue! That's the way it came out of the Nikon... no juice.

Adios,

Istaboa

First night n the Zoomas

A beautiful sunset followed by huge storm.
Have a real camera pic of this shot that I haven't downloaded.