Backtracking: Bahamas Bound

We knew when we moved on board last January that our transition into a cruising lifestyle would be temporary. The cruising kitty we built up after selling our house in Denver would eventually run dry and we would need to find employment again. I think that knowing this adventure is finite has helped us overlook the negatives (there are a couple) and really appreciate every incredible moment of this journey. It hasn’t always been easy, but it’s always been an adventure and that is exactly what we set out to find when we left the dock last February.

But the time has come for us to make our way back north. For now, we plan to retrace our steps back to Mayaguana, Bahamas. From there we are looking forward to exploring the secluded and rarely visited Out Islands: Acklins Island, Crooked Island, and the Ragged Islands. Last year, we flew through the Bahamas, only stopping to really explore the Exumas. We can’t wait to return to the white sandy beaches, the turquoise clear water, and of course the excellent fishing and lobstering. The Bahamas is truly a cruising paradise.

Before we can feast on mahi mahi and lobsters on secluded beaches again, we must first tackle the nearly 1000 miles from St. Anne, Martinique to Mayaguana, Bahamas. Backtracking has been a slightly different experience. We now look forward to revisiting our favorite places instead of sailing with the anticipation of visiting someplace new. And while I think I will always prefer the excitement of the unknown to the comfort of familiarity, I will say that it’s been pretty nice knowing the ins and outs of anchorages before we arrive. It’s made route planning a breeze.

Even though we aren’t visiting new islands, we are still finding new experiences and making new memories. In St. Martin we met Brian and Rebecca on s/v Summertime Rolls and visited new places in the Simpson Bay Lagoon. In St. John, we reunited with Bo and Allison (s/v Selah) and finally connected with Brian and Lauren (s/v Nightingale Tune) in Hansen Bay, where I had my first paddle board experience and we visited the infamous floating bar. In Culebra, we met up with our dear friend and third Musketeer, Sergio. We rented a golf cart and explored all of Culebra’s gorgeous beaches, many for the first time. The anchorages that we are revisiting are in many ways the same, but are also a little different.

When we visited the luxurious Puerto Bahia Marina in Samana, Dominican Republic last April, the resort was very quiet. Besides the buddy boats that arrived with us, there were few others there. The resort didn’t even bother turning on the hot water for the showers. This year we happened to arrive the same weekend as a Regatta. During our three night stay, we spent our time attending promotional events and watching the races by the glorious infinity pool. We stayed up late listening to live music, drinking free beer, and socializing with local sailors and transient cruisers. We met a group of 7 young cruisers heading south on three different boats. They quizzed us on down island anchorages and sailing conditions. We happily offered up as much information as we could, realizing that we were in their shoes just a year ago. Though the Puerto Bahia Marina looked exactly the same as it did a year ago, we had a totally different experience this visit.

Right now, we are back in one of our favorite places, Luperon, Dominican Republic. In most ways it’s the same. The chicken shack still serves the best value lunch and cruisers still gather at Wendy’s. A large Presidente still only sets us back 125 pesos and our favorite Luperon dogs still roam the streets. We even found evidence of our previous visit, when we first walked into Wendy’s to find that our Polaroid pictures are still tacked to the wall. But there is one thing that is different, and I’m finding it to be the hardest part of backtracking. When we say goodbye, it’ll be for good this time. As we were heading south, we had the luxury of knowing we could return to our favorites spots once we started heading north. Now we don’t know when or if we will ever return. And because of that, my heart twinges a little each time we sail away.

So, what’s next for us after we explore the Bahama Out Islands and return to Florida? Well, we don’t know. For the first time since I can remember, I don’t have a plan. I’ve always known what’s next: graduate high school, go to college, get a job, buy a house, get married, etc. Even making the decision to leave the rat race and start cruising was well planned. Now, I don’t know if we’ll return to Denver or decide to live some place new. I don’t know if we’ll return to engineering jobs (though I think it’s likely for me) or explore different careers. I don’t even know if we will keep or sell our boat.

When we made the decision to turn around, the fear of uncertainty hit me like a freight train. We are sailing back to the States, but I have no idea what we are returning to. I guess I expected at some point during this journey, we would have an epiphany and figure out exactly what we want to do next. While this adventure has given us so much, it hasn’t given us that epiphany. We still don’t know exactly what we want to do for the rest of our lives. While I was having heart palpitations and fretting about our future, our wise friends Deb and Pete (s/v Delancey) pointed something out that eased my stress immediately. Whatever we decide to do next, it doesn’t have to be forever.

Very few decisions are actually permanent. There’s no need to pressure ourselves into picking the perfect plan. If we try something new and find we don’t enjoy it, we have the ability to do something else. We’ve proven that we aren’t scared of change. So, if ever our circumstances aren’t making us happy, then we have the power to find something that does. With that state of mind, I’m going to focus on enjoying our final cruising months and enjoy the excitement of not really knowing what’s next.