3/31/23

 One last chore to do before leaving Hog Cay - find the Sapodilla Tree the local Maxine kept telling us about on Hog Cay!  We found ruins of the animal pens and buildings that were on Hog Cay but not the elusive "Dilly" Tree.  A sapodilla is fruit that looks a little like a kiwi but is very sweet, almost like a sweet potato.

Just past the palm trees and up the beach hidden in the trees is the remains of 

a stone building.

And a piece of granite!!  There's no granite here in the Bahamas!

This is Maxine's Daddy's initials he left when putting down some concrete for a foundation.  The building is long gone but the concrete slab remains.

This was a water trough for cattle, pigs, sheep, goats at one time.  The pipe leads to a cistern.

This is inside the cistern that would collect and hold water years ago.

Finally, Kennedy, who lives in Duncantown on Ragged Island took us to find the dilly tree.  It had been a number of years since he had walked to it.  He almost gave up but we kept bushwhacking until we found the 2 elusive dilly trees.  Complete with dillys.

Kennedy is dressed for bushwhacking and for finding dinner.  He had his gun and was looking for a billy goat.

Hurricanes Irma and Maria had broken some branches off the trees which were overgrown.

Nevertheless, the tree had many dilly fruits up on the branches.  They were not ripe yet and fairly small - we haven't had rain here most of the winter.

Jerry blazed a trail to the dilly trees and the next day Jerry Luh and I helped finish the Dilly Tree Boulevard for easy access.  We even brought a rake from the Hog Cay Yacht Hut and raked the path.

Jerry thought of the slaves that built these walls here in The Bahamas in the blazing sun when he dismantled a section of the wall for form the path to the dilly trees.

The 2 larger trees along this path are the dilly trees.

After saying our goodbyes, we sadly started sailing north.  First to Long Island and then to Georgetown.

Here's a video of our light wind day using the spinnaker as we sailed from Long Island to Georgetown.  Another sailboat crossed our path, took our picture, called us on the vhf and took our info. to send us the picture.

Thanks to Ted from "Full Circle" for this picture!

In Georgetown we restocked and filled up our water tanks.  We also had a chance to visit with friends Lee and Sherry on Alesto from Ithaca who hosted a dinner for us and Kris and Gosia from "Solaris".  We also went to a dinghy concert and visited with Nicholas and Dee from Meshugga.  Our last visit with them as they'll be headed west through the Panama Canal after Georgetown.

This is a dinghy concert!  Everyone arrived in their dinghies behind the trimaran "The Sailing Piano" where we enjoyed listening to the professional musician playing his electric keyboard for us.

Next stop - Lee Stocking Cay in the Exuma chain where we snorkeled and hiked.

On Lee Stocking looking south.

On Lee Stocking looking north.

It was mesmerizing watching the sea swell roll in and collide with the ricochet from the swell before it!

And here it is in slow motion......

Our anchorage on the west side of Lee Stocking Cay.

We stopped in Black Point to visit our friends Doug and Jean who spend their winters in their Sandcastle they built.

The Sandcastle!  PS - After enjoying Bahama winters for 20 years they are sadly selling their Sandcastle.  Maybe you'd like to be the next owners of a Sandcastle in paradise?

Here I am with Doug and Jean

Then...more sailing north....

Norman's Cay to Meeks Patch/Spanish Wells

At Spanish Wells we met up with Brandon and Dustyn on "Ada".

Here's my shot as we both sailed over the Royal Island.

And here's their video of us sailing by them and Jerry asking for some Grey Poupon.

Persephone and Ada sailed together from Royal Island near Spanish Wells to Little Harbor in the Abacos where we met up with more friends, Sam and Cindy on Booke End, we'd spent time with at Hog Cay.  Then on to Marsh Harbor to pick up my sister!!! 

Wine, crackers and cheese time with my sister aboard Persephone in Marsh Harbor.

From Marsh Harbor to Man-O-War Cay.....

25 knot winds for a sporty sail to Man-O-War

We were at a bit of a heel on the way.

Volunteers who helped rebuild Man-O-War in the aftermath of hurricane placed signs from their hometowns.

Amazing palm trees that were knocked over during Hurricane Dorian! 

Susan, who has been doing ocean immersion in Maine, is enjoying the warm waters in The Bahamas!

The local sail shop, Albury Sails, sells bags.  Susan proudly shows off her new bag.  It's nice to support the local economy who are working hard to survive.

The Queens Highway heading north on Man-O-War.

Later in the day, we moved a little farther north to where our friends Brandon and Dustyn were anchored.  It so happened that Ted and his crew Jack, from "Full Circle" who took our spinnaker picture had walked to the beach.  Brandon organized a happy hour.

Brandon - the perfect happy hour host

Susan takes a picture of our happy hour.  We're on sound side.   The gazebo has views of the sound side and the ocean side.

Another view of the beach looking at the happy hour gazebo.

3/1/23

 Every day we wake up and look at our surroundings and know we are so lucky to be here in The Bahamas, in the Ragged Islands.  Every day is a blessing.

We've had many days of brisk easterly winds.  Most days we hike someplace on the island which involves dinghying to shore, walking on the trails up and down the hills from the sound side on the west to the ocean side on the east. The goats we disturb along the way baaaa to let us know they're not happy about having to give up their shady spots when we're too close.  There are more trails here at Hog Cay than ever before.  On the ocean side we look for sea glass and whatever else may have floated up on the beach.

Karen walking on the ocean side.

Trail markers come from the ocean side beaches.

Markers from the "Creepy Doll Trail"

Minnie Mouse has an almost matching pair of baby shoes from the beach.

Walking along the trails on Hog Cay is good exercise and entertaining.

I'm grating one of the coconuts from Hog Cay with the special coconut grater Jerry made years ago.

 I come back from the "yacht club" hut on the beach with my basket making materials.  There are many silver thatch palms and a number of basket makers here at Hog Cay.

One of the extremely rare items that can be found on the islands down here are vintage glass fish floats.  I've found a couple of them over the years.  One morning, on our walk to the beach, I was saying to Jerry that I wished I had one of the floats I'd found onboard now.  I don't need a fish float nor do I have a house to display what I've found.  I could have put a float in the Valentines Day Party auction.  There are many cruisers who have never found one that would love to have a chance to buy one.  Since I didn't have one onboard maybe I could find one though there are people here seriously searching each day.  We got to the end of the trail at the ocean side, I walked off into the bushes and within minutes came out with a glass float!!  I found a glass float to donate for the auction!

The glass float I found at Hog Cay.

According the the European Glass Floats book - Peser is a company in France that made glass floats.

I find it amazing that floats like these have survived thousands of miles in the ocean to be tossed up on the beaches here on Hog Cay.  Much of the coastline here is harsh rock and it takes some serious wind and waves to toss them up as far up as where they are found.

We're used to seeing US Coast Guard helicopters sporadically surveying the islands.  Maybe looking for refugees trying to sail from Haiti to the US?  Maybe looking for drug runners?  Maybe just recording our boat names and locations?  It was unusual to see a Coast Guard plane.  And it was flying low!  I waved as it looked like it skimmed just above the tallest masts in the anchorage.

A US Coast Guard plane checks us out.

Flying low!

Our friends, Dustyn and Brandon with their dog Rita arrived aboard "Ada" at Double Breasted Cay just north of Hog Cay so we took a sail up to meet them.  Here's the video of our arrival (we only sail - haven't started the engine in a month).

We ended up moving around a bit with Ada when a cold front came through.  There's no one good anchorage for a cold front where the winds clock from the south to the west to the north.  Persephone and Ada both sailed back to Hog Cay.  We tried trolling while sailing on the ocean side from Raccoon Cay to Ragged Island with no luck.  Here we are coming in at the cut between Hog Cay and Ragged Island.

The big event here at Hog Cay is the annual Valentines Day Party hosted by Maxine from Duncantown on Ragged Island  She and others from Duncantown (population about 30) cooked up a feast of peas and rice, Mac & cheese, grouper, stewed goat, coleslaw and more to bring by boat a couple of miles to Hog Cay.  It was the biggest gathering yet with almost 50 boats in the anchorage!  Locals from Duncantown attended as well.  Cruisers donated to pay for the food and donated items from their boats for an auction.  All proceeds from the auction went to the school at Duncantown.  (Many of you may remember that hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated Duncantown.  A new community center is almost finished which includes a new school and government offices.)

Here's Maxine serving up 2 kinds rice.

It was a huge gathering of dinghies for the Valentines Day Party.

The auction after lunch to benefit the school in Duncantown.

Valentines Day Party 2023 at Hog Cay

After the Valentines Day Party we sailed back north to Raccoon Cay with Ada.  Our last chance to visit with them before they headed west to Staniel Cay to pick up company.  

Persephone and Ada anchored at Raccoon Cay.

Dustyn, Brandon, Jerry and Rita at Raccoon Cay.

Dustyn, Brandon, Jerry and I went snorkeling at Raccoon Cay and brought home dinners.  We helped add to Brandon and Dustyn's "strategic lobster reserve".  They have company coming!

Brandon and Dustyn made pizzas for our last dinner together before they sailed off.  Lobster pizza with lots of fancy toppings!

After our goodbyes we sailed back to Hog Cay.  Sailing into the anchorage at Hog Cay always gets some attention....

Back at Hog Cay Jerry made a new sign for Persephone.  The one we had made previously was gone.  We found a rudder along the ocean side beach and dragged it home.  With some paint and a lot of planning, Jerry came up with a new sign.  All I had to do was paint in the lines.

Persephone sign at the Hog Cay "yacht club"

Jerry spears a 10 lb grouper on opening day of Nassau Grouper season.

Time flies down here....it will soon be time to start heading back to the states and my sister Susan has booked a flight to join us in the Abacos.  That's a long way from Hog Cay in the Ragged Islands.  We'll be heading back towards Georgetown in a week or so and then on up the Exumas to make our way north.  You should be able to see where we are by clicking on the SPOT link in the upper right had corner of the screen.  Zoom in and out and change the date range on the SPOT page to get a different view.  If you have a chance, we love to hear from you!  

Karen & Jerry

SV Persephone