Zen and the art of waiting for wind

 

Little Farmers Cay--One of the friendliest and most
charming settlements we have visited.

Although you wouldn't know it from listening to us at certain times (like when we yell at the boys for quiet when they're going crazy right around the time we're doing something critical like anchoring or maneuvering in tight spaces), Matt and I are becoming more patient.

Shroud Cay has beautiful mangrove-lined rivers but there's
no fishing allowed, which doesn't agree with Matt

We decided somewhere along the way that we should sail more and motor less. It may have been around the time that diesel  prices went up quite a bit. It hurts to pay $700 to fill the tanks and generally we have lots of time with no set schedule. It's not that we used to motor all that much but if winds were light, we would turn on the engines rather than go 4 knots an hour or slower. For reference, you can probably stroll faster than that while sporting a slight limp. Nowadays, we will endure 3 or 4 knots or, preferably, will simply wait for better winds if we can.

That's what we're doing at Norman's Cay now--waiting for good wind and for storms to pass through. We sailed up here from George Town on one slow day and a couple of fast days. On the slow day, it took us over 6 hours to sail 20 miles. In contrast, the next day gave us 45 miles in less than 6 hours. We didn't catch any fish the first day because we were too slow or on the second day because we were too fast. Just call us Goldilocks.

 On our way up, Matt shot some of the Nassau groupers that were taunting him the last time we were at Leaf Cay because it was a few days shy of the start of their season. Matt also got a bunch of other fish and a lobster, most without a spear tip, which somehow fell off after the first fish.

The fishing at Norman's Cay has been pretty sparse. Matt got a decent sized lionfish. He would have shot another one except that a large bull shark showed up. Other than that, there is plentiful conch and Matt traded a beer for a lobster from a thirsty fisherman.

 

While we wait, Matt is fixing various things. Since we filled up with fuel in George Town, the galley had been smelling like diesel and we feared that there was a leak somewhere, which could mean ripping apart the guts of the boat. Fortunately, Matt discovered that there were several bolts missing from an attachment point for the tank gauge. If you looked carefully through one of the screw holes, you could see down into the tank and see diesel sloshing around. We think maybe the holes used to be blocked with the crud that falls from the galley (thereby allowing us to not notice it was actually a hole) and became unblocked when we fueled up, allowing fumes to waft up. While digging through the big box of random screws and bolts, Matt found a package with 3 bolts that fit perfectly and matched the 2 bolts that were installed.  Why these bolts were apparently purchased but never put in is but another mystery. After bolting it all up properly, the smell disappeared.

Conrad fishing with his bamboo pole spear, just like Dad

Safety measures

We finally used the new asymmetrical spinnaker we bought over 6 months ago. The spinnaker was just one of a number of purchases we have made that were somewhat "unplanned." From my perspective, that meant that I wasn't considering them in the costs of the boat and was surprised and unhappy to find out that we had to spend the money.

I think Matt, on the other hand, has all along harbored a secret mental list from which he reveals new projects just slowly enough to prevent a nervous breakdown on my part. Because mental healthcare is expensive. We always need  a fill-in-the-blank item "for safety" because that's the easiest way to convince me to spend money on boat things in the face of mounting costs. My philosophy generally is to keep it simple and to get by without if we can.

Safety is why we bought radar (to see approaching storms so we can avoid them), the new spinnaker (to sail fast enough to avoid bad weather), deck lights (to be able to adequately see the deck at night while underway), a satellite phone and myriad other smaller purchases that are more obviously safety-related (motion detection lights/alarms, pepper spray). Now that the purchases are made and the pain of spending the money is a distant memory, I can appreciate the safety aspects of our purchases. There just better not be too many more.

As we were leaving Long Island to head back to George Town, the wind dropped to under 10 knots and our heavy boat slowed from a tolerable 5 knots to 4, then 3, then 2-something. Another boat was steadily gaining on us and I said (a few times), "Maybe we should put the new spinnaker up" (easy for me to say as Matt would be doing the heavy lifting, literally and figuratively). Finally, Matt reluctantly gave in and put up the spinnaker. As soon as the sail filled with air, our speed went from under 3 knots to over 6. We pulled away from the 2 boats that were about to pass us and they never got close again. We were flying and it was exhilarating.

We haven't used the spinnaker for safety yet but did put it up, nothing broke or ripped, and it worked better than expected.

After a few days in George Town enjoying volleyball and the company of friends, we are headed north towards Nassau to meet our good friends from Michigan. We're looking forward to seeing them and they're probably looking forward to some warm weather.

Long Island, Exumas

One of the caves near Thompson Bay

Although we weren't planning on it, we ended up leaving for Long Island on the same day as the rally of 70 or so boats from George Town. The winds were excellent and the seas would have been fine if we had gone downwind towards Thompson Bay with everyone else. Instead, we decided to sail northeast to the northern part of Long Island so that we could troll along the deep water line.

Lots of bats.

It was an uncomfortable sail and we had to keep reducing sail to slow ourselves down so that the mahi might actually bite. We struck out on the fish and worse, when we got to the anchorage, it was too wavy and shallow for us. So without even dropping anchor we turned around and headed south, almost to Thompson Bay (where everyone else had been kicking back for hours while we got knocked around). We anchored near a nice spot by Chez Pierre and then headed for Thompson Bay the next day.

While at Thompson Bay, we attended some of the events that were set up for rally participants and other cruisers. We attended an interesting talk by Ashley and Ren Chapman on free diving. They live on a boat called Nila girl with their infant daughter, teach free diving at the blue hole, and Ashley breaks world records when she finds the time. The cruiser's potluck at Long Island Breeze was a good chance to spend some time with fellow boaters.

The beach on the Atlantic side was stunning despite the considerable plastic debris that had washed ashore. The next day, we walked to two different cave systems that housed tons of bats and other creatures. One of the caves had two separate levels. These were much different from the Hatchet Bay caves but just as fascinating. And we didn't have to walk 3 miles each way to get to them (although you would have thought we had from Conrad's complaints). We ended the day with delicious ice cream at the Long Island Breeze.

Sugar cane. Like chewing sweet, juicy wood. Because it is.

As a bonus, we bought some very reasonably priced groceries at Harding's, got hose clamps at Seafarer Marine, and were able to donate some clothing and other items that we had been storing to the local youth flea market scheduled for next week.

We really wanted to get to the Jumentos but the wind and weather didn't cooperate and we would have had to turn around right away to head back north.

Homeschooling update

Yes, he's reading a comic book. It's high brow stuff.

One of the most common questions we get is how the homeschooling is going. Honestly, we won't know how the boys compare to traditionally schooled kids unless they get formally tested because we're not following a regimented program that has its own testing. Instead, we wanted to let the boys focus on subjects that interest them, while trying to make sure they learn the core skills they will need.

Conrad, who would be in second grade, still loves reading and learning about marine life. He gets to see it in real life while snorkeling, fishing, and playing at the beach. He recently picked up the Red Cross First Aid book and is fascinated by it. His American Boys Handy book also gets lots of use.

 

Mark's reading recently took off and he is becoming just as voracious a reader as Conrad. He would be in Kindergarten this year. He has become obsessed with chess and recently legitimately beat me, which admittedly is not saying much because my distracted Mom-brain sometimes makes a lot of mistakes, but it was the first time since he learned to play (I wasn't sure whether to let him win a few when we first started but decided not to).

 

There are days when school is a struggle, even though it is usually only a few hours a day. That's because they are kids and sometimes they don't feel like doing school. Even though much of their learning is self-directed (they get to choose what they read and write for example), I can't quite commit to the full unschooling philosophy, especially when it comes to math. And it's hard to make math fun for most kids. I'm happy to see that as they get better at it, they seem to enjoy it more and are starting to see the importance of math skills in buying and selling, as well as cooking and baking.

 

Here is a list of some of our favorite homeschooling paraphernalia:

Books - We have gone through the first 2 volumes of Story of the World, which they love. We read aloud a lot. We have a few science books with experiments that we have tried. There is a huge variety and number of books crammed into a relatively small space, including many eBooks. We have dabbled in Spanish but it hasn't been a big focus.

Art Supplies - A seemingly endless supply of paper and media fuels their very active imaginations. They have spent hours making rubber band bracelets on their rainbow looms.

Globe

Microscope

Games - Their favorites are chess, checkers, cards (War and Spit), Rush Hour, and Pirate Flux. We also let them play chess and math games on the iPad and one of their favorite apps is a Stop Motion animation program. We also let them play electronic games one day of the week. By choice, they spend time during the rest of the week writing out plans and strategies for Minecraft and Battle Dragons.

Toys - They use their big box of Lego every day. Snap Circuits teaches electronics. Their bunks are half-filled with stuffed animals that they play act with every morning when they wake up. They also put on puppet shows with the animals. Their favorite outdoor toys are nets they can use to collect sea life and lizards. Sometimes a piece of rope or a bucket and shovel at the beach is all they need.

Music - Conrad has been learning how to play the piano. They both love listening to music and making up dances. They have put on several parades where they have fashioned costumes and musical instruments.

Most important, they are with us throughout the day learning about cooking, navigation, systems, sailing, nature, and whatever other topic sparks their interest. They get lots of field trips and are exposed to different cultures, people, and environments.

George Town

 
 

One of the big reasons that we decided to come back to the Bahamas (for the third time in a year) is that we never made it to George Town. It was invariably described as a Mecca for kids to hang out with other boat kids, but we didn't reach it because of our mechanical woes. Worse, due to our boat work delays, we were always a bit behind the migration of boat children. So we didn't really see many other kid boats most of the summer. So we really, really wanted to go to George Town, which reportedly attracts kid boats in swarms.

 

When we finally arrived in George Town a couple of weeks ago at the tail end of the cruiser's regatta week, the number of boats in Elizabeth Harbour (over 300) was a shock to our systems. A small city of cruising boats dotted the large harbor. VHF radio chatter was constant. At night, the anchor lights resembled a starry sky. My initial reflex was to turn around and leave because there were so many boats. Too many boats. In talking to other boaters, many have the same reaction. It's like camping out in the woods for a couple months and then arriving in Times Square.

I'm glad we didn't leave right away because I got used to the (relative) crowds and we have been having a great time. We have met old and new friends. Although a lot of the kid boats are already heading out, Mark and Conrad have met more new kid friends here than during the whole rest of our journey. With all the activities, it's like summer camp for the kids and the adults: volleyball, yoga, bocce, poker, Trivial Pursuit, parties, a scavenger hunt, softball, duathalons, beaches, snorkeling, tame stingrays you can feed and pet. George Town also has just about everything a cruising boat could ask for (except for a deck fill cap--the one for our port water tank seized up and prevented us from adding anymore water until Matt drilled it out and replaced the gasket on the old one).

Even though George Town is nice, we still want to see some of the other nearby islands. So we are planning to head east towards Long Island and then maybe south to the Jumentos as soon as the winds cooperate. We'll be back to George Town, though.

Stone Soup engines

We have been having fun hanging out with Shambala.

The other day, we were telling Mark and Conrad the story of Stone Soup. Basically, a stranger wrangles food out of recalcitrant townspeople on the premise that a boiled stone is good, but if you just add a few things it's even better (I guess it's really about working t ogether for the good of everyone). Matt has decided that the diesel engines on Perry are our Stone Soup.

When we were looking for a boat, one of the top "must have" items was newer engines. Perry had relatively new engines (with fewer than 500 engine hours, which are the boat equivalent of miles on a car) and we moved aboard with a long to do list that we were sure did not include engine work.

Fast forward to a year and some months later and the engines are fine so far (the 'stone' that got us to buy the boat--getting tired of this metaphor yet?). However, we have repaired or replaced a lot of the stuff that the engines need: alternator, transmission, exhaust elbow, transmission cables, raw water pump, fuel pump (multiple times), reconfiguring poor fuel pump placement, and various bolts loosening and falling out (including the propeller shaft decoupling from the transmission).
That's not even counting things like the new cutlass bearings or the new shaft that got rid of our port engine shimmy.

Just to make sure we hadn't become too complacent in the last couple of weeks, our starboard engine sputtered and died as we were pulling into Black Point. It wasn't an issue because we still had our port engine (although I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop as we motored through the crowded anchorage). After we stopped, Matt saw that the exhaust elbow had broken off and was spewing exhaust and water everywhere. He spent the next day fixing that issue (fortunately we had spares onboard as we had the same issue on the port side and knew it was just a matter of time for the starboard engine) with much swearing, borrowing of tools, and a re-injury to Matt's already bruised coccyx. He wasn't sure how the exhaust issue caused the engine to die, but we convinced ourselves that the issue was fixed.

I love this shot. The kids reacting to the blow hole.

After spending a few fun days in Black Point, we started pulling up our anchor to start heading south. Shambala was just ahead of us and heading out of the anchorage. Just as the anchor was about to come up, the starboard engine died. Damn! Clearly it wasn't the exhaust elbow and, after checking things out, Matt determined that it wasn't air in the lines. The engine wasn't getting diesel. There was a blockage in the fuel line...somewhere. After extensive troubleshooting (basically taking apart the fuel lines piece by piece)  and becoming coated in diesel, Matt isolated the blockage and was eventually able to blow it clear it using the dinghy pump. We are up and running again, for the time being. And we're hoping there aren't too many more pieces that can break.

Assuming all goes well, we will head south towards George Town in a day or two. Unfortunately the winds are not cooperating so it looks like we will have to motor. At least we are heading towards a place with supplies if (when?) something else breaks.

Waste management for crazy people

Matt makes fun of me for being a big obsessed with garbage. Don't get me wrong, he's all for recycling and composting (in Chicago, he once yelled at a gangbanger-looking young adult that dropped a plastic bottle on the ground) but I have a tendency to take things to another level (you might say another planet).

A fishing net found on a beach helps keep our produce fresh.

When we still lived on land, for awhile I would bring my banana peels and apple cores home to throw in the compost pile. Most of the people I worked with would throw paper in the garbage instead of walking it to the recycling bin 20 feet away and I would take the paper out of the garbage for proper disposal. Yeah, so I can be a bit obsessive. Being on a boat has not helped the situation.

A boa made with 'yarn' made from old T-shirts.

Spending so much time on beaches, especially remote ones, and island communities makes it impossible to ignore the garbage problem. Many beaches in the Bahamas are strewn with mostly non-biodegradable plastic debris that has washed ashore.  And although many settlements make an effort to keep themselves clean, there are many that are strewn with garbage. Even when it is collected, it seems that much of the garbage is often dumped in a big pile at the edge of town. Other garbage is burned, even plastic. Recycling is very rare. And yet, every grocery store provides plastic bags and carry-out containers are all Styrofoam and plastic. We try to bring our own reusable bags and buy unpackaged produce, but plastic bags keep making their way on board. Any bread, tortillas and much of the produce available comes sheathed in plastic.

My level of craziness can't be contained for long, so I have been trying to find ways to reduce the amount of garbage we add to the places we visit. The jellyfish and fish pictured were crocheted out of plarn, which is "yarn" made of plastic bags. I'm also working on a tote bag to hold our onions. It uses miscellaneous plastic bags that come onto the boat. Since we (okay, mostly it's me) try not to accept plastic bags, it could be years before it's done. Until then, it's my form of basket-weaving therapy. No loud noises or sudden movements please.

My, what a lovely bunch of coconuts

Coconuts are abundant in most places in the Bahamas. Matt has reduced opening the stubborn buggers down to a near science, although we have broken a couple knives because it's sort of like opening soft rocks. We like eating it raw, toasted, and in granola. Matt makes an amazing coconut cream pie and it's fruit so it's good for you, I'm pretty sure. Recently, I got the bug to make our own coconut milk. It's easy enough to do with a blender but we didn't want to use that much power so I found a no blend method online.

 

 

 

The results make a passable coconut milk for people with more time than money (or electricity). An added benefit is building arm muscles. You start with finely shredded coconut, add boiling water, and let it sit for half an hour. Then mash it up with potato masher until you can't stand it anymore. Strain the whole thing through cheesecloth and squeeze out all the oils and water. The coconut milk made a decent curry and we used the dry pulp in macaroons.

Thai curry with homemade coconut milk.