The Bahamas
Rock Sound, Eleuthera: 5 nights, 3 anchorages
Ever since we left Long Island and have been heading north, we have been sailing downwind. This is a condition we could get used to; it's very gentlemanly. We sailed into Rock Sound and, because the winds were from the south, settled in to the south anchorage. We got out the spy goggles and noticed about 15 boats in the east anchorage, exposed to the fetch. Do they know something we don't? Are they getting free Netflix there or something? Is the holding here crap? Maybe there's a chucacabra that eats people where we are? A Kraken that lives in the blue hole 100 feet behind our boat? I don't know, but we were quite happy for one night in the south anchorage.
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| Sand bar west of Eleuthera |
During day 2, 3 boats joined us (we're leaders!), but we left them at sunset to go to the west anchorage for west winds and squalls in the night. Yep, we arrived to the west anchorage alone, leaving 3 boats in the south anchorage and still about 15 boats in the east anchorage. By 7AM, 6 boats had joined us. Leaders again! We stayed 2 nights in the west anchorage and were then abandoned as the wind shifted to the east. We're really lazy and didn't feel like moving, but we eventually upped anchor and made the long 1.5 mile trek to the east anchorage, where all the cool people were. This anchorage was awesome in east winds. It was notable for it's silence and it's noise. No water sounds - no swell, no chop, no wind howling in the rigging, which allowed us to hear the sweet sounds of land - dogs barking, confused roosters crowing at all hours, deranged limpkins screeching through the night.
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| Dusk over Rock Sound East |
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| Beautiful sunset! |
We were in Rock Sound for two reasons: it's one of the few anchorages where, if you feel like it, you can get protection from clocking winds, and to get an extension from immigration. We dinghyed to the airport dock, walked through the mud to the airport, tracked down the immigration official (there aren't helpful signs on the doors, or greeters, or metal detectors, or anything like that!) and were granted the extension. Praise be! On a side note, the officer was overjoyed to be going on vacation next week, away from the drudgery of the Bahamas. Destination? Miami!
Rock Sound is a very exciting place. It has groceries and propane. Oh be still my beating heart! We also did laundry (in the bucket), climbed the mast to check the rigging (still there!) and manufactured bug screens for the salon (it deters cocker spaniels, but the other creatures just giggle and they push on through)
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| Matt's rigging check |
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| I've avoided the mast until now, but decided I might as well get it over with. |
It's not all storms, moving, and chores though! We left the dinghy in the bushes and walked about 10 minutes to the Caves. There is a boiling hole by the caves; a inland pond that is connected to the ocean....fish and turtles can swim back and forth. Cool, huh?
Sadly, Hastings couldn't get down the 10 foot ladder so we took turns exploring the caves alone. Thankfully, they were filled with light streaming through the roof, with trees growing straight up. We love the Bahamas. In the US, someone would have yelled at us for leaving our dinghy in the bushes, there would be a parking lot, a ticket taker, signs, waivers, roped off areas, but here it's just: there are caves. If you find them, good luck!
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| Dinghy landing |
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| Caves |
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| I loved the light and trees streaming through the roof |
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| Go Batty! |
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| Crawling through the tendrils |
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| Rock Sound and all the cool sand bars |
Have you ever moved to see different vistas in the same city?
4 comments
I hate when you know you should move anchorages because the weather has changed but you really wish you didn't have to because you're already settled in. Rock Sound sounds like paradise :-)
ReplyDeleteRe-anchoring is terrible. By the second move, we just wanted to stay put - but the chop was getting worse and worse and we were very lonely by ourselves!
DeleteA tree that looks like a stalagmite? Very cool. The bat . . . not so much. I'm pretty sure it would have me running up the ladder to sit with Hastings.
ReplyDeleteStephanie @ SV CAMBRIA
The bat was well hidden, I never saw him- but Matt managed to track him down. Interestingly enough, we had a bat family at our Florida Marina and we were bug free, whereas everywhere else was mosquito central.
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