Cruising With The Texas Crew

Wednesday awoke with warm sunshine and a brisk cooling breeze. The day began mid-morning as we jumped aboard SYL (literally jumped as they pulled up right next to Kaleo) for a day sail to Black Point Settlement, about 5 miles away. Shane and Matt helped Rusty hoist and set the sails as he trimmed them for optimal speeds toward our nearby destination. Soon enough the engines were shut down and SYL picked up speed for a beautiful 7 knot run. Only the whoosh of the wind and the gurgle of the water foaming past the hulls touched our ears.

Gliding in, we tied up at the town dock for a short walk into the settlement. As we moseyed down the single-lane paved road it was evident that Black Point is a true out-island “non-touristy” Bahamian community. Brightly colored buildings lined the street with an occasional small car or golf cart parked at their fronts while women weave native straw work along the streets in front of their homes.

Our destination was Lorraine’s Cafe where an order of fresh baked coconut bread awaited us. Baked by Lorraine’s mother and holding legendary status among cruisers who sail through, the bread is handmade daily and orders have to be placed every morning for your choice of coconut, white, wheat, and cinnamon raisin. We split a loaf of coconut with Storyville (it’s preservative-free so it has to be eaten within a few days) and each had a slice from the still warm loaf right then. The coconuty-carb treat lived up to its reputation and beyond. In fact we already fear the day when we long for Lorraine’s bread when we’re back in the states.

The other attraction to Lorraine’s is complimentary WiFi (a small donation is encouraged) while dining on a choice of traditional Bahamian dishes (cracked conch) and classic American choices (cheeseburger). We ordered conch fritters with a side of Internet, giving us time to update the blog, check emails, and other miscellaneous web tasks. Matt spent part of the time trying to fix her second wireless router but without any success. After lunch we stopped by the market to check out the selection but after looking it over, decided to wait for the mailboat to come into Staniel the next day for fresh produce.

Then it was back aboard SYL for the return sail to the Staniel Cay anchorage where we’d greet Steve upon his return “home”. A big thank you to our friend aboard Anchor Management for picking us up some state-side luxuries during his quick trip to visit a friend in Ft. Lauderdale.

Thursday began with helping Anchor Management transition out of the Yacht Club dock where it had been tied while Steve was away out to the anchorage to join the rest of the gang. Matt and Troy jumped on to help him squeeze between a large sport fishing boat and a skinny fairway. They got away from the docks and soon enough Anchor Management was at anchor with the rest of us. Then it was back on board SYL, which has become the gathering place of late, to sail over to Big Majors.

One fun part of going on SYL is Rusty’s dedication to sailing. While most people would have just turned on the motor for the 3-mile hop, we hoisted sails to make a few short tacks out and then back toward the beach. But this wasn’t your average Bahamian beach. It’s home to pigs. And not just any pigs, but SWIMMING pigs. Upon seeing a boat or dinghy coming to the beach they eagerly run into the water and start pig-paddling their way toward you. They’re looking for food and expect to be fed as they circle your boat (or you, if you’re in the water) with mouths open grunting in delight with every morsel you toss them. Shane jumped in the water to get a few pictures while we distracted the pigs with Saltine Crackers.

After the pigs had their fill, SYL backed away from the beach and we returned to the anchorage just in time for a high tide tuck into Thunderball Grotto. Steve hadn’t seen it yet so we all headed over to snorkel around. The current was fairly swift making the entrance a bit tricky as you had to guide your head in between two rocks about 15 inches apart. Ducking under a last rock, we swam into the grotto cave and were swirled around through the eddies created by the current. There wasn’t nearly as many fish and it was hard work swimming to keep away from the cave walls so we bailed out after about 10 minutes.

We returned to the boats in Staniel Cay and everyone retired early with plans for an mid-morning move down to Black Point Settlement. That evening Shane delivered freshly baked chocolate chip cookies to each boat in the Navy and as we had just baked a home made pizza, we invited him on board for dinner. That worked out well because we got to have cookies before and after dinner.

Being low on water and close by a marina, we decided to dock at the yacht club to fill up Friday morning. Shane volunteered to lend a hand while docking so we picked him up on the way out of the anchorage. A strong current made pulling in a little tense but everything went smoothly and soon tanks were topped off and we were making our way out of Staniel Cay toward Black Point.

We motor-sailed as far as possible before turning into the wind for the last 3 miles (of 7) toward the Black Point Anchorage. We picked a spot near the Rockside Laundromat dinghy dock to make for a convenient trip into what is said to be the best laundromat along the Exuma chain of islands. Upon walking in, rumor was confirmed as there were plenty off brand new machines in a clean and well organized building. The cost is $3.50 per wash and another $3.50 per dryer and well worth it for five loads of fresh, clean clothes, sheets and towels.

The group all ended up at Lorraine’s (right next to the laundromat) for lunch and more Internet time. After folding what was dry and stringing some line-dry items over every available spot in the cabin of Kaleo, we headed over to SYL for sundowners, Linda’s 15-bean soup, a few rounds of “Catch Phrase” and the movie “Kate and Leopold.” We had another fun and relaxing evening and while dinghying back, we’re greeted with the sounds of “This is how we do it” drifting over the water from the nearby Bahamian bar. The water was glass (the calm before tomorrow’s storm) and we could see the waves in the sand on the sea floor lit by the moonlight.