I am about to go back to Georgetown Exumas. It has been already two and a half months since Natalia and I were there during Thanksgiving. It was a short, relaxing, and uneventful trip other than for the loss of the Antares' swimming ladder and, almost, a boat hook and the inflatable. While in Spanish … Continue reading Going Back to Georgetown for Maintenance Work
It has taken me a long time to post the blog below. It is about the last part of our sailing vacation over the summer. As it turns out, Natalia and I came back for Thanksgiving and we are now anchored in the North West end of Stocking Island. I'll write more about it, but … Continue reading From Spanish Wells to George Town Exumas. Last Part
Both Chris Parker and Predict Wind forecasts indicated we would have winds from the South-East at 15Kt, gusting to 20. We were expecting a relatively easy, and short, passage to Conch Cut with the wind on the beam. Sailing in Exumas Sound, though, is more akin to open water sailing; this small portion of the … Continue reading From Spanish Wells to Georgetown Exumas. Part 3: the crossing from Eleuthera and the first cays
One year ago I was at home in Washington DC writing about our failed Labor Day weekend sailing trip, in the Chesapeake Bay; Antare's engine would not start. This year I am again writing from home. We didn't go sailing either but for a different, this time good, reason. Antares is not around; she is waiting … Continue reading From Spanish Wells to Georgetown Exumas – Part I: preparations
I m writing from Antares' navigation table while at anchor at Meeks Patch. It is, indeed, a small patch at the north west end of Eleuthera, our final destination. We have prevailing winds blowing from the east so we dropped the hook on the west side, right off the beach. We won't be able to … Continue reading From Marsh Harbor to Eleuthera
We spent two nights anchored at Crab Cay; the last two nights at anchor. In the other cays we were always docked in a marina. This was for convenience. My son Juan David and his GF joined us at Green Turtle Cay and they were renting rooms, not sleeping in the boat. Below are … Continue reading Cruising the Bahamas over Christmas and New Years Part III (Crab Cay, Spanish Cay, Green Turtle Cay, Treasury Cay, and March Harbor)
We had a memorable Christmas Eve anchored at Great Salt Cay. In the morning, after breakfast, my father and I put the dinghy on the water and installed the outboard. We took turns going ashore to explore the cay and collect shells (an activity mainly practiced by my mother and the girls). While in … Continue reading Saling Northern Bahamas Over Christmas and New Year (Part II)
Carla, Richard, and I stayed a couple of days at the West End after our arrival, resting but also cleaning the boat and storing gear. I was alarmed by the discovery of these nasty, minuscule, monsters: the nats. You can barely see them yet they sting you with fury and soon your body is covered … Continue reading Sailing Antares from West End to Marsh Harbor over Christmas and the New Year (Part I)
It is difficult to explain how I got into that situation. A combination of things: my overconfidence on GRIB files, not reading properly the text forecast, and not having told the organizers of the Salty Dawg that I was not receiving Chris Parkers' weather forecasts; he was sending them to my gmail address instead of … Continue reading From Hampton VA to Bahamas (Third Part)
Sailing to the Pacific 