We left MN on Nov 2, flying to Florida to board Veda L after she had her mechanical face lift , thinking we would go cruising; well, the Gods had other plans. We attempted a crossing from Dinner Key Marina in Coconut Grove/Miami to Bimini on 12/24 only to have our radar go out, and when returning to Dinner Key we had transmission problems. We left Veda L in the capable hands of our friend (and delivery Capt when we got Veda L) Dan Himes, so that the transmission/radar would be taken care of while we went home and took our annual Aruba trip. Linda enjoyed Aruba for Carnaval and Bob enjoyed a month of fabulous windsurfing. Returning to MN I enjoyed my total immersion into my Grandchildrens lives again (God how I miss them) we left again for Coconut Grove/Dinner Key on March 22. YAY, we actually got to Bimini to clear customs, then on to Chub Cay where we discovered that our bow thrusters were not working. So, onto Nassau where we got "the best" electrician to work on them, the day after having them "fixed" the wiring caught fire due to an improper wiring. Bob smelled smoke as he came out of the shower and I thought I had burned a batch of cookies....he lifted the hatch to access the batteries for the bow thrusters (under our bed) and saw flames. Jeez Us, if the fire would have happened when we were not on board we would have lost our boat and our cat (love child) Buddy! We were very, very lucky! So, we then flew in a mechanic who had previously worked on Veda L from FL, he brought the proper parts and after two days, we were once again ready to try this cruising thing!
(These two photos were taken while on Cat Island a couple years ago, and we really want to get back there next week!)
From Nassau we cruised to Compass Cay, had a wonderful couple of days there seeing old friends, but wanted to get to Emerald Bay which is on Great Exuma, to ready ourselves for a lengthy cruise. Halfway to Emerald Bay our generator quit working. (Honestly...we really couldn't even believe it!) Once we got to Emerald Bay we spoke to a marina employee who is very well certified in marine mechanics, and he assured us that he could get us running and on our way again, so more parts have been ordered, they flew in yesterday, and as I type John James (our Hero) is down below with Bob and it sounds good...... We have been in Emerald Bay now since Thursday 4/5, and eight days is just long enough to overstay our welcome here! Great friends at the marina that are probably getting tired of us; but I am completing my continuing ed credits needed to retain my real estate license, a better view however than any classroom I have been in!
As John James was leaving this evening, he invited us to attend church with his family tomorrow evening, a Pentecostal Church, where he will be playing his steel drum during the service. Another interesting night ahead!
We plan on leaving Wednesday, and with any luck at all we will stay on Cat Island for at least a couple of weeks and really explore the land and sea that comprise this little piece of paradise!
The chart shows our voyage so far, from Coconut Grove to Cat Cay across the Gulf Stream, then from Cat to Chub across some beautiful shallow waters, then across what they call "The Tongue of The Ocean" a slight 5 hr trip to Nassau where we now sit and wait for calm seas...but being "stuck" in Nassau is a lot like being "stuck" in Coconut Grove....not bad places to be "stuck" A great running trail goes east from our marina passing Fort Montagu, built to guard the east harbor from pirates and such, check out the "Where in the World are Bob & Linda" link to the right>>>> then use the satellite imagery and zoom in on our locations, you can actually see the pool at our marina where I took a cool post-run dip to cool off! We plan on heading to Compass Cay by Saturday, we hope to see the winds change to give us a smoooth ride!
First stop yesterday...a hike up to McKenzies Conch Shack which is located under the high bridge leading to Paradise Island, a little area called Potters Cay is a line of food vendors in little shacks (very nice little shacks for the most part), we are dedicated to McKenzies as we tried them all. Locals seem to prefer it as well as the line there is longer... Sip a Kalik while you watch your conch salad being put together! Last ingredient to go in...RISKY BUSINESS HOT SAUCE!
Our happy Chef, talking it up to Bob as he chops our salads fresh in front of us, Bob is learning technique!
His hands were a blur as they chopped our onion, (and I didn't notice many scars on his fingers either) tomato, peppers and other "secret" ingredients, the conch is ready to be chopped in the background.
