Always Trust your Gut

Monday morning at first light we wiggled our way out of Angle Fish Creek, through the reef and into the magenta blue Gulf Stream. There was a flotilla of four boats; Salt Wife, Inked Mermaid, Escape and yours truly. We were very excited as this would be a big step for us into uncharted territory. Bimini was a mere 70 miles to the north east but the forecast wasn’t the greatest.

Sunny but the winds were a bit high. The wave prediction was 2’ landing on our forward starboard quarter. When we exited the reef we were met with 2-3’. Now there are two things that will put cruisers into peril. Schedules and excitement for the next port. We were guilty of the second not to mention we used the faulty notion that once we entered the Gulf Stream the current would flatten the seas a bit. Wrong! 3-4’ seas. Sue gave the green light to proceed but keep the color green in your mind. About two hours into the trip Sue came up from below clammy and sweating. Why I never got sick only God knows. Well nothing else to do on the cruise so I threw a line in the water and don’t you know we landed a 30” Baracuda. Nasty set of teeth on those fellows but he put up a great fight. 

Things finally calmed down a bit and we safely made it to Bimini. Now when I say blue water I’m talking blue like somebody touched the picture up too much. Think, “somebody must have plugged the water into an electrical socket. Once settled into our slip I walked down to clear Customs and Immigration. That was a snap.

We gave the boat a brief wash and we were off to explore. We found our way to a local beach bar to watch sunset and snack on some Bahamian conch fritters and sweet plantains. We washed them down with a couple of ice cold local Kalik beers. The winds were not looking favorable on Tuesday so we stayed an extra day in port.

We managed to get beach walk and a swim that afternoon along with a bike ride in Alice Town. Happy hour was at Stuarts Conch Stand where they have $2.50 Sands Light beer. A real deal in the Bahamas. The conch salad was spectacular. He picked the conch out of the water, cleaned them and prepared the salad. We ended up talking with four guys who were there on a 68’ Bobby Davis sport fish boat. They were from New Jersey and mostly retired. Well one thing led to another and we ended the evening on their boat. It was a beautiful boat. 

The next morning we left for the Great Bahama Banks with another boat, Liming. We met them back in Michigan this past summer. We made a 75 mile run in perfect conditions. Light wind and less than 1’ waves. We were within about 25 miles of Bimini but it was 4:30 so we pulled onto the bank to drop a hook for the night. Sleeping on the bank is something special. It is so vast.

The stars filled the sky from horizon to horizon. Unfortunately I got a first hand look at them. When Liming came in to set anchor I had a gut feeling just a bit close but I have been challenged judging distance on the bridge. Sometime in the middle of the night Sue shook me and said;” Mike the boat just hit something.” I said; “it can’t there is nothing to hit out here.

Well she persisted and I dutifully went topside in my skivies and don’t you know our stern was tapping the bow sprit of Liming. We anchored first so it turns out Liming had way too short of scope. When we swung we just touched. Fortunately is was very calm so no damage done. We started the engines, pulled anchor and reset a good distance away. I went right back to sleep. Not so sure about my first mate. But heck somebody has to be on watch!