With the faint strumming of guitar and voices raised
in song coming from a neighboring boat, we spent our first evening in the Abacos
sitting in the cockpit, sated from a good dinner, and a satisfying, though
long, day of sailing.
We left Hoffman Cay in the Berry Islands yesterday
at first daylight; we motored for a good part of the day because the wind took
her time to fill in. It never filled in
quite as full as Gary would have liked, but we kept an average of 6 knots,
which kept us on the timetable to make the mooring field before dark.
We discovered another aspect of the power of music
yesterday; in thinking of ways to prepare me for the long (possibly 7-day) haul
from the Abacos to Norfolk, VA in May, Gary said that we could play all the
songs he's got on his phone bank. We
played some selections yesterday and it did make the day seem shorter. We played boisterious Ride of the Valkyrie
and the 1812 Overture and then, when it was nap time, we played softer music
like Loreena McKennitt. Last night, we
hit the disco a bit and then Gipsy Kings.
I never thought I'd say that I appreciate his music
collection; I used to get so frustrated with the time Gary would spend
arranging his music collection. To sort
it by artist? Or song? Or genre?
I just don't have that attention span thing going.
So it was a good addition to the day yesterday which
also involved crossword puzzles, knitting, the aforementioned napping, eating,
drinking, singing along to the songs, a little cockpit dancing; I think you've
got the drift.
We seem to have made a tactical error; not getting
enough cash out for this part of the trip.
Not many places in the less populated and less touristy islands take
credit cards. This isn't a huge tourist
destination, but we hope they take cards here.
Otherwise, we'll have to send one of those notes to all our
friends: "Dear Friends: We are stranded in the Bahamas without any
money. Can you wire me some funds to the
account below? Many thanks." Oh, you've heard that one before, too, eh?
As soon as we latched onto the mooring last night,
we hear, "Hey Elliott! Hi
Elliott" Three boats of his friends
from the Great Harbour Key Marina are also moored here. I hope he gets some time to visit, but I
think they're heading out this morning.
He told me that one of the boat's crews has been cruising for 30
years. I can't even imagine it. What a commitment!
We'll be going ashore in a little while to sign in
with Pete's Pub, which is the establishment that handles the mooring
field. Pete's family has been on the
island for many years, starting the first foundry.
Pete and his son are continuing the tradition of fine spirits and fine
arts by producing some, from what I hear, amazing works of art. Can't wait to see them. I've never been to a place that bills itself
as a pub AND an art gallery. Now that's
a good thing.
We know there's another blue hole around here
somewhere and we noticed several caves in the cliffs on the far side of the
harbor that beg for exploring. We just
hope they're not private property. We'll
take a walk about town after checking in, see if we can get some fresh fruit or
veggies (supposedly there is organic produce available, which would be
awesome). I'm not in any danger of
getting scurvy, but I love fresh veg and fruit, so I hope it will be a good day
for that. We're also almost out of bread
and even though I've got some bread mixes, good Bahamian bread is fantastic. Kind of like Hawaiian bread; a little sweeter
than plain bread and oh so good.
Our plans are to stay for a few days here and then
take short jaunts around the Abaco Sound to visit parks and other natural
sites.
So, our trip ashore was good; the beach on the other
side of the island is craggy and not a swimming beach at all. Gorgeous nonetheless, with waves crashing to
shore and high in the sky. The color of
the waves as they go back out after smashing into coral is beautiful.
The art gallery is quite nice; I read that the
original foundry equipment was blown away by a hurricane and they have had to
rebuild almost everything. I can't
imagine the disappointment.
But they're
going strong again and I believe a part of the family is in Massachusetts
somewhere with another gallery/store that they're running.
Our lunch at Pete's Pub was delicious; they only
serve sandwiches, but the food seemed so fresh.
Elliott had triggerfish, Gary had mahi-mahi, and I had chicken. Each sandwich is served with a peas-and-rice
Bahamian dish and a cole slaw with walnuts and pineapples. Gary and I also celebrated with Goombay Smashes. Before we left, we played some of the ring
game, most of us failing miserably, but Elliott figured it out and got three
hooks! Not in a row, but still,
impressive.
Pete's Pub has a signature drink, which we may go
back for tonight, which has 7 rums and 3 fruit juices in it. We'll need a DDD--designated dinghy driver.
The guys just left to explore a blue hole with a
geocache attached. They are accompanied
by new English friends; it may be tricky to get to because the tide is low and
it is very shallow there already, so I hope they have good luck.
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