Several of our Barbados 50 cruising friends are heading to the Americas Cup (Bermuda), Europe, the US or somewhere in between. This meant that the Bahamas was the perfect place to catch-up with good friends. We were excited about exploring the Bahamas as we’d been told many stories about the crystal blue water, the white sandy beaches and the quiet anchorages. Our friends on Kerpa and Tourterelle were nearby in the BVI’s and Puerto Rico, respectively. As per usual our departure was dependant on a suitable weather window which also coincided with our friend’s departure. We had a loose plan to meet in a few days at the Bahamas island of Mayaguana. The passage started with speed, calm seas and a fresh breeze. This changed and we did have to motor for a 24 hour period. The remaining two days was text book downwind sailing with a south easterly wind. We found it an effort to reduce our speed so that we arrived at the entrance of Mayaguana with a high tide and the sun high overhead. Apart from the good sailing conditions, the passage was about the fishing, on the second day we landed a good size mahi-mahi and as we approached our destination we landed a small tuna. Just as Kim was putting out the line, she felt a strike… another good size mahi.

A few days into the passage, we were able to communicate with Kerpa on the radio. Tourterelle arrived a few hours ahead of us and kindly waited for us just inside the lagoon. We had 5nm of shallow water, reef and bombies to navigate to reach the town anchorage so we could clear customs. Tourterelle is equipped with forward looking sonar plus they have a lifting daggerboard keel that gives them a catamaran type draft. Tourterelle kindly led the way, making a zigzag course around the underwater dangers and calling depth changes on the radio. An hour later we all safely anchored in sand and the turquoise water. Paul kindly took Ian and I to the very small settlement of Mayaguana, it was a good nautical mile from our anchorage.

We hadn’t seen Kerpa since Martinique and they hadn’t seen Tourterelle since Barbados so we had plenty of catching up to do. As we had caught the beautiful mahi-mahi that morning, we hosted the rum punch and sashimi sundowner followed by pan fried mahi-mahi. The next day a few of us felt a little dusty, maybe that was due to some sleep deprivation during the passage? The following day we went to shore to stretch our legs and walk along the jagged rocks that lined the beach. Not one of the prettier beaches we have explored. Our stop over and catch up was brief as we had Monique and kids (Eamon & Ainsley) joining us in Georgetown. The next morning we lifted anchor at 7am and followed our GPS breadcrumb tracks that we made as we entered the lagoon. Not the easiest of tasks…there is a reason why it’s suggested to navigate these waters when the sun is high. Fortunately we made it out without incidents although there were a few calls that we made where I held my breath.

Arriving in George Town after an overnight passage, we were greeted by black clouds, lightning and thunder. This storm seemed to have magically appeared. Storms like this give us reason to be concerned. We altered course by 45 degrees hoping we could skirt around the edge. The seas were calm and there was little wind in this cell, it is the possibility of being struck by lightning that is our greatest concern as we have a very tall lightning conductor. Fortunately we only received a fresh wash down, cleaning the salt spray from our decks. We navigated our way through the pass into Elizabeth Harbour and we soon set our anchor across from George Town.

Monique, Ainsley and Eamon were joining us the following evening for a few days so the next day was all about provisioning and getting Aura in ship shape condition. We had not had guests since early January. It was great to catch up with Monique, she is first repeat visiting crew member. We had a blast during her visit in Ibiza Spain. Our time in George Town was lots of fun as we enjoyed a few margaritas, visited several beautiful deserted beaches, swam in the crystal clear water and collected all sorts of coral and shells that had been washed up. One day we went to Chat and Chill for lunch. It’s a very basic beach bar but with plenty of activities for the kids including coconut painting, volley ball and the friendly string rays. We even had the lilo’s out. At one point the kids on lilos drifted off a fair distance, they were no longer attached to Aura….somebody untied the safety line. Thankfully before they floated to the next island we were able to rescue them with the faithful Helios.

Their time with us went way to fast and before we knew it, we were waving them goodbye. Ok so maybe not as they were picked up by the water taxi at 5.30am. We are looking forward to their next visit (not so far if you live in Florida).

Kerpaand Tourterelle caught up with us in George Town and we started making plans for exploring the Exumas…Jiyu and Balanec were also in town, stay tuned for our next update “Beyond Barbados 50, The Bahamas”.