Rob recently pointed out that for a sailing blog, I write very little about actually sailing. This is a fair point, but it is true what they say—sailing is boredom punctuated by terror. Most of the time we are just staring off at the vast seas and occasionally trimming the sails. But it doesn’t take much–a rogue wave, a squall, an engine pitch change, a pod of dolphins, a fish on the line—and things get exciting fast.
Category: Passagemaking
Tis’ The Season for Christmas Winds
We had heard that strong northerly winds in December wreak havoc on otherwise calm anchorages, but we had never experienced this first hand. Last season we didn’t leave our safe harbor until February and saw normal trade-winds most our way south. We saw that these ‘Christmas winds’ were in the forecast, so the first chance we got, we booked it from Nevis to Deshaies, Guadeloupe. We planned to ride out the strong winds in a well-protected anchorage while munching on baguettes and sipping espresso.
Four Engineers on a Boat and Our First Taste of France
At 10:00am on Nov 19th, the Simpson Bay bridge opened and we entered the Lagoon in St Martin. We had just sailed the Anegada Passage without any issues. We were exhausted, but excited to welcome aboard our first overnight guests, Michelle and Steve. Checking in was a breeze and customs didn’t even ask about the pups. We had finally made it! Now it was time to meet up with our friends and start exploring this new island.
The Anegada Passage
Only about 2 hours into our 16 hour passage to St. Martin, our cooling water high temperature alarm started shining bright red. We were heading directly into the wind, so we only had our main sail up and we were running our engine at full cruising speed. Our autopilot was on and we were admiring the super moon when it happened. I jumped behind the wheel and quickly throttled down, while Rob rushed downstairs to inspect the engine. I glanced at our transom and saw that we had plenty of water flow coming out of our exhaust. Perhaps the sensor had just failed and there wasn’t really an issue. However, when Rob opened the engine compartment door our galley transformed into a steam room. It was clear that we had a severe leak in our cooling system, so I immediately fell off from the wind and shut the engine down.
Returning to the Cruising Lifestyle
We had a great time living in San Juan, PR over hurricane season, but we were itching to get back on the boat and continue our journey south. Last season, we quickly learned that cruising can be like a roller coaster ride with amazing highs and frustrating lows. And this season has started off the exact same way.
Passagemaking: The Northern Coast of the Dominican Republic and the Mona Passage
In order to travel from Luperon to Puerto Rico, we had to cross 300 miles of some of the most grueling and unforgiving seas. It’s the thorniest part of The Thorny Path to Windward. Bruce Van Sant provides excellent instructions on how to sail these waters under prevailing conditions. However, we decided to wait for weather windows with light winds and motor sail across as quickly as we could. We broke the journey up into two long overnight passages.
Passage to the Dominican Republic
Rob is 30! Finally! He would often remind me of our age difference, but now his jokes won’t have the same effect since we are both in our early 30’s. We pulled away from Providenciales in the early hours of Captain Rob’s birthday (April 14th). The wind was nonexistent and the water was very calm; almost like glass. We always want to sail, but without wind, we had to motor across the Caicos Banks. The calm conditions and blue still water reminded us of our trip across the Great Bahama Banks.
Where There is Yin, There is Also Yang: Conception Island and Clarence Town
Where there is Yin, there is Yang. Where there is good, there is bad. Chinese philosophy believes that these contrary forces are actually complementary and interconnected; that they give rise to each other. This is probably true for most things in life, but it is especially true for sailing. For each wonderful day we get to lounge on a pristine white sandy beach, we also have days of frustrating boat maintenance that make us want to throw in the towel. Our first two legs after Georgetown are a perfect example of the boat life Yin and Yang.
Crossing the Gulf Stream
Well the good news is…WE ARE IN THE BAHAMAS! The bad news is…wait, there is no bad news! We are in The Bahamas and nothing broke. I’m so used to taking the good with the bad while cruising, that even as we were tightening our dock lines at the marina, I was sure the engine would crap out. Or the dinghy would fly off the davits. Or our bilge pump would break. But none of these things happened. The weather turned out to be just as nice or even milder than predicted. We made great time despite fighting the easterly winds and found ourselves in Bimini in just 9.5 hours. All in all, it was a rather boring day. When it comes to sailing, I’m 100% in favor of boring.
Cruising is a Roller Coaster Ride: Our Trip to Marathon
Rob is at the helm and the pups are taking naps in the cockpit. I’m sunning myself on the bow of the boat when I hear a big splash. I peered over the edge and I see two dolphins playing and jumping right in front of us. They swim with us for a while and I’m smiling ear to ear with excitement. I think to myself, “we have found paradise”.
Cruising Down the ICW
We left the Regatta Pointe Marina on Thursday, Feb 11th at noon. We said goodbye to our C Dock friends whose warmth and helpfulness made the beginning of our journey so enjoyable. Well, as enjoyable as 2 months of boat work can be. It was a perfect day–light winds, 70°F, and sunny.