Stella Maris Long Island

This is Stella Maris Marina.  We will be here for a week or so working on an engine.  Water is getting in the sail drive, so before it causes problems we wanted to get it taken care of.

                                                   
                                                        Typical Bahamian Grocery store.

 Very expensive and rare Bahamian house.  You can't tell but the house is painted a lime green.

                                                   
                                                   The drive on the left side of the road.

                                                                       
                                                                           Gas station.

    
 What they lack of in big expensive houses and stores, they make up with beautiful scenery!

Partying Bahamian Style

A few of the cruisers decided to get together one night, while we were waiting for a cold front to pass.  We all brought an appetizer and the local Bahamians made us conch salad and conch fritters.  A bit chewy, but good.  A young couple that had been staying there in the bay area for quite some time, found an abandoned broke down house, cleaned it up and called it Club Iguana.  We laughed and listened to some music and learned how to do the Bahamian hop (instead of hip hop).

 This is Tall Boy.  He owns a restaurant in Nassau.  He was out conching while his wife ran the restaurant.  All the Bahamians are very friendly and laid back.

Farmers Cay, Exumas

Last stop before heading East to Long Island.  We are half way to our destination.  I believe we have gone 300 NM and have about that much more to go before we get to Turks and Caicos.  Although this island is beautiful, I almost gave up here and went back home.  When we tried to anchor here for the night, the current was so strong the boat was going in a circle.  I brought the anchor back up and tried again, but instead of the boat tugging back off the anchor, the boat would go forward and the anchor line went under the boat again.  It took awhile to figure out that we were in a strong current, stronger than the wind.  I gave up and we took a mooring buoy for the night!

                        
                          It is hard to catch the beauty of the sunsets, but they are beautiful!

Allens Cay in the Exumas

 Ok, I am going to get serious with this whole blogging thing and start posting as much as I can. 

We left Marathon Florida on April 5, 2014 to begin our new life on the water.  We decided that we wanted to spend hurricane season in Puerto Rico.  They have a hurricane hole in Dominican Republic which is only a few days sail from Puerto Rico.  Hurricane season starts in June but the worst months are August and September.  Thats only two months away!  Because of this, we decided to bypass Bahamas this year and the $300 customs fee.  We left at 5 PM on a Friday, crossed the Gulf stream, over to Nassau and SE through the Exumas.  The pictures here are of Allens Cay in the Exumas.  The beaches were crawling with Bahama Iguanas, which are endangered and protected here.  Our boat is in the background.

They don't look like it, but they are pretty large and they come pretty close to you expecting food.

 In these pictures, you can see the amazing blue colors in the water.  The water in this little bay area is only 10 feet or less.  It is crystal clear and you can see straight to the bottom.  The starfish are reddish seem like someone placed them every 100 feet or so.  You think you can just reach down and pick them up.

                                                
                                                     The beaches have a pink tint to them.