18 - 25 April 2009

18 April 2009

Smith Bay Harbor is very protected and it was a quiet, still night.  Mark and I walked a mile south to Ferndandez Bay Resort to check for WiFi.  Fernandez Bay Resort seems to be a family run affair.  Things were clean and well-arranged.  The overall air was one of very respectable hospitality.  Definitely not created by locals.  However, even though the had WiFi, they would not let non-guests use it.  Seems that people in the past had abused their limited bandwidth.  One of the teenagers did tell us that Sammy T’s Resort about 15 miles north had WiFi.  A phone call to Sammy T’s confirmed it.  Tomorrow we are sailing north to Sammy T’s. 

19 April 2009

Left Smith Bay Harbor at 7:20 am.  Anchored north of Bennett’s Harbor, right in front of Sammy T’s Resort at 1150WT 2434 7539.  Went ashore right off and were quite impressed with the landscaping of the resort.  They used native plants and really created a work of art.  However, their WiFi system was terribly slow.  Connecting was the first struggle.  Then, every page that finally loaded seemed to take forever.  In the entire afternoon, I read two emails and sent one.  Is there any useable WiFi on this island?

20 April 2009

Last night, Mark, Rachelle, and I decided to sail south to Hawks Nest Point today.  A resort there may have WiFi, and it also puts us closer to Georgetown.  I need to be in Georgetown the first part of May to meet Jim Boernge.  Then the boats Markelle and Pequod will sail together through the southern Bahamas to the Turks and Caicos Islands, and then on to the Dominican Republic to hide out from hurricanes.  Pulled up the anchor at 09:20 am.  Positions enroute:  1204WT 2421 7543, 1535WT 2418 7535.  Anchored at 2146WT 2411 7529.  Most of the trip was spent tacking directly into the wind.  Very slow trip.  Trailed a fishing line, but only caught some sea grass. 

21 April 2009

Mark took his two folding bicycles ashore.  We rode three miles down a dirt road to Hawks Nest Point Resort.  A real nice place with brightly painted cottages, paved streets, a private airport, and a clean marina stocked with high-dollar sport fishing boats.  We peddled right through the front entrance and settled down in the deserted marina clubhouse.  Their WiFi worked great.  What a surreal experience to finally find high-quality, open WiFi in a deserted building.  Nobody seemed to mind as we peddled home later in the afternoon. 

22 April 2009

An approaching weather system convinced us to head further south, back to Thompson Bay, Long Island.  That will put us closer to Georgetown.  This week in Georgetown is the Family Island Regatta.  The biggest event there all year.  It is a Bahamas national-level sailing championship, so anchorages, docks, and stores will be crowded with people in town for the regatta and the parties.  Pulled up the anchor at 07:30 am.  Positions enroute:  0900WT 2410 7533, 1207WT 2358 7530.  Anchored ate 2200WT 2321 7508 in Thompson Bay.

 23 April 2009

Pulled up the anchor and moved a little closer to shore, and closer to a good dinghy landing.  Without an outboard motor for the dinghy, I like to be close to shore.  In the afternoon Mark, Rachelle, and I hitchhiked eleven miles south to Max’s Conch Bar to use their WiFi.  The second car along the road gave us a ride to Max’s.  We spent a couple of hours relaxing in the shade and using their internet.  Mark and Rachelle were able to use their free, internet-based telephone service called Skype.  The trick is to find enough bandwidth.  Many of the internet connections in the Bahamas cannot support Skype.  Getting home took two rides.  The first was from a local policeman, since he was only going halfway he arranged our second ride with a friend.  Who needs a car?

 24 April 2009

Wired up a remote speaker to my VHF radio.  The engine, when it is running, makes too much noise to hear the radio.  Now, the remote speaker can be held next to my ear when I am steering the boat.  In the afternoon, walked over to the ocean side of the island, then a mile south along the beach.  There were many shallow reefs just offshore that broke up the ocean swells.  Along the shore were several small coves with sandy beaches.

 25 April 2009

Helped Mark repair a 12-volt power cord for his laptop computer.  Then we spent the afternoon snorkeling the reefs on the ocean side.  Saw lots of fish.  Several large parrotfish were hiding under the coral ledges.  A couple of large groupers caught our eye.  One fish was huge, but not sure what kind it was.  Mark came close to a nurse shark and I spotted a couple of young barracuda.  Finally, with the rising tide bringing more waves in, it was time to quit and head home.