6/7/24

 It feels like we must have clicked our heels because we're back in NY!

From Oriental to Norfolk to the Hudson.  We've been doing the trek for so many years now the miles go by uneventfully for the most part. Which is good.  When you're out sailing on the ocean uneventful is good.

We did have some excitement on the Chesapeake as we left Norfolk, rounded Thimble Shoals, and crossed the shipping channel, heading for the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and the ocean.  A submarine!  We've encountered submarines in the past.  They've always announced on the VHF and warn to stay far away. They also have escorts with guns onboard to make sure marine traffic won't get too close.  But as we cross the channel here's what we look behind us and see.

No announcements, no escorts, just full steam ahead and we race to get out of the way.

We're always in awe when we come through New York Harbor.  City sights, ships, tugs and barges, so much going on.

The Vendee Globe is a single-handed, round-the-world sailboat race.  This year they were starting the race just off NY.  We were lucky enough to see one of the sailboats going out to practice.

Here's our view of the Hudson as we motor north.

Kingston - Mast is down!

Once the mast was down we anchored out on the Hudson.  With Jerry's insistence and my desire to get home to see what I could do to help out my parents, I boarded an Amtrak.  Imagine arriving at a train station by dinghy!  The Rhinecliff Amtrak station is on the east side of the Hudson across the river from Kingston.

Here I am at the station with the lighthouse at the entrance to Kingston in the distance on the right and Persephone in the distance on the left.

While I waited for the train, Jerry dinghied back to Persephone, put the outboard on deck and hauled the anchor.  It had been many years since he single-handed through the Erie.  An odd sensation watching Persephone head up the river without me.

I was able to take a video when the train caught up to the sailboat.  Didn't take long to whiz by!

While I was taking a video of Jerry on Persephone, he was taking a video of me.

Jerry kept me updated on his progress through the Canal to Brian and Deb's in Pennellville.

Lock 6 - one of the few locks where there were other boats in the lock with Persephone.

Tied up at Lock 10 for the night.

Jerry waits one of the mornings for the fog to burn off to continue west.

Persephone docked in front of Brian and Deb's in Pennellville for the summer.

5/1/24

 The sail from Manjack, Abacos to West Palm...plenty of wind and a comfortable ride.  After crossing the banks we turned to the south and pointed as high as we could.  Although West Palm is about the same latitude from our Bahamas exit point, we had to sail south before getting into the Gulf Stream.  The Gulf Stream current flows north so to compensate, we have to sail south of where we intend to land.

From the Abacos to West Palm

Another beautiful Hallberg Rassy, "Tenacious" a 53',  leaving the Abacos.

While in the Gulf Stream and while I was napping Jerry caught a mahi!  I didn't hear a thing.  I woke up and he was in the cockpit filleting the fish!  Perfect - we had fresh fish sandwiches to make for Jerry's brother Dan and nephew Nick when they visit in West Palm!

mahi!

Clearing in to the US from The Bahamas is a snap.  There is an app, the ROAM App, that I set up ahead of time with all of our boat and passport information.  After anchoring in West Palm and choosing to Report Entry on the App we were cleared in within minutes.  I remember the days of going to Beaufort, NC to clear in and having to go to the town dock to have a customs officer come and inspect.  We usually made sure all root vegetables were eaten by then.  One year we gave the officer some cookies and he confiscated our box of UHT milk...hmmmm...

Upon return to US grocery stores we were overwhelmed with the choices, the freshness, and the low prices compared to The Bahamas.  

We walked 3 miles to the Aldis in West Palm and got an Uber for the ride back to the boat.

We had a great visit with Jerry's brother, Dan and Dan's son Nick at West Palm.

After our visit we headed up the coast to Blount Island on the St. John's River.  It was a slow sail with some to little wind.

Sunrise approaching St. John's River Inlet - time to start the motor!

We could have kept going on the lite southerly winds but promised Chris Jones we would stop.  We didn't have time to see him on the way south in the fall.  Jerry prepared mahi sandwiches and his special oven-baked French fries for lunch!  Chris and Jerry spent some treasured time together talking and working on cars at Chris' house.  We also were able to stock up on fruits and veggies when Chris took Jerry to the grocery store a couple of times.  Thanks for taking time for the visits Chris!

More mahi sandwiches and fries with Chris.

Next leg, a short one, a day hop up to St Mary's Inlet/Fernandina Beach.....

Next leg, 2 1/2 days from Fernandina to Beaufort, NC.

This leg started with plenty of wind and heeled over bouncing into large seas.  By the next day the wind died down and then not enough wind to keep going without the motor.  As we approached Beaufort the wind picked up on the stern and we had 10-15 knots for the rest of the trip.  With the wind blowing on our backs it felt pretty chilly out at sea!

So here we are anchored in Beaufort, NC.  We finished our chores the first morning here: I did a couple of loads of laundry (At the laundromat!  We put our laundry buckets back in the locker!) while Jerry walked 3 miles to the grocery store.  After a visit today to the Mattie King Davis Art Gallery and the Beaufort Maritime Museum we're ready to keep plugging our way up the creek to Oriental tomorrow.

Persephone anchored at Beaufort (right side of the picture behind the catamaran)

A close up of the 160' sailing yacht "Kaizen" tied to the dock.

4/7/24

 I'm typing this as we sail west through the banks (the shallow waters) of the Abacos.  Our destination is West Palm.  It's sad to be leaving the beautiful turquoise blue waters of The Bahamas!

When I last wrote we were preparing to sail back to Georgetown for my sister Susan's flight back to Maine.

Susan blowing her new conch horn Jerry made at Hog Cay.

While in Georgetown Jerry and I got in the water and scraped the barnacles and growth off the bottom.  It's a real drag to have the growth slow our speed when sailing!  

Suited up with scraper in hand to clean the bottom.

After Susan left, Persephone headed east and then south once again, her 8th trip back and forth between Georgetown and the Raggeds!

More hunting!  Conch, hogfish and lobster.

We returned to Hog Cay in time to help with preparations and to attend Maxine's (the local woman from Duncantown) annual Valentines Day Party.  We celebrated in March this year!

Hog Cay - Valentines Day Party

It was nice to spend some time with Donna and Jerry aboard Bluejacket.  We haven't spent much time with them this season.  We also enjoyed hanging out in the hut.

I brought wine, cheese and crackers to the hut along with some of my seagrass jewelry projects.

From the Raggeds we had planned to meet up with our friends Brandon and Dustyn aboard "Ada".  The destination was the Berry Islands of The Bahamas.  That changed as we were sailing in the Exumas and they called to say they were headed to the Abacos instead.  We immediately changed course sailing across the Exuma Sound, out to the Atlantic Ocean between Eleuthera and Little San Salvador and then up along the east coast of Eleuthera.  Just before arriving at the cut at the south end of the Abacos Jerry caught a mahi.

Enough mahi for a week!

We spent the next couple weeks dodging cold fronts and spending time with Brandon and Dustyn and their friends aboard "Fika" from Michigan: Chris, Alison and kids Ewan and Gwynnie.

The whole gang checks out the library on Man O War Cay.

Brandon, Dustyn, and Jerry walking back from town toward the gazebo - we're anchored just off the gazebo to the left.  To the left is the Sea of Abaco.  To the right is the ocean.  While we were here at Man O War there was a huge north swell.  We watched and took pictures of the waves crashing into this low spot on Man O War.  It connects the north to the south end of the Cay and is well-traveled by the locals in golf carts.

The low spot at Man O War

Full moon over Man O War Cay.

Here's a video of the gazebo.  We were having a grilling party and picnic at the gazebo.  Luckily, we were pretty much finished when the waves started breaking into the gazebo and over the "low spot" washing away the beach on the Sea of Abaco side where our dinghys were moored.

Also, while at Man O War we saw a space shuttle launch from Cape Canaveral!

  

Chris aboard Fika took a picture of Persephone sailing to Man O War anchorage.

I took a picture of Fika sailing on the Sea of Abaco

Our next stop at Manjack Cay included dinghying and kayaking up some mangrove creeks to see turtles.

Another cold front came through with a couple of days of southwest and west winds while at Manjack.  There's no protection when anchored at Manjack harbor.

We were anchored in the harbor between Manjack Cay and Crab Cay at first.  We did the turtle viewing, walked the trails on Manjack, and went snorkeling out on the coral reefs to the east of Manjack Cay.  When the winds changed we moved to the other side along Abaco where the pencil is pointing.  When the winds clocked to the Northwest we were able to move back to the harbor.

The area where we anchored along Abaco during the west winds  had a sandy beach section where we could dinghy to shore.  All sorts of trash littered the beach along with trees that had been uprooted by hurricane Dorian in 2019.  We went treasure hunting and found trash to make a "yacht club".  Perfect place to bring some seafood ashore for another grill party!

Brandon, Dustyn and Jerry on Abaco beach.

Dinner is ready!  Ada, Fika and Persephone are anchored in the distance.

We had to say goodbye to our friends on Ada and Fika last night as we have to make our way toward Florida.  Jerry's brother is meeting us for a visit in West Palm!

One of our many get togethers!  Music night!

Chef Ewan invited everyone over for pancakes aboard Fika!  He cooked and served for 8 people!  He and Gwynnie are wonderful kids lucky enough to be living aboard their boat.  They are from Michigan, started the "Great Loop" in Annapolis, up the east coast, onto the Hudson River and Erie Canal.  All the way through the Great Lakes and then down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, the Keys and then The Bahamas!  To read more about it go to: https://www.looplifeacademy.com/

Leaving the Abacos...check our Spot tracker.....we're on our way!

2/21/24

Boat Life:  Exercise is important!  Especially living on a boat in a confined space.  Swimming, snorkeling, kayaking are great but we really like hiking.  There are many trails us cruisers have created on Hog Cay and we have the scars to prove it!  The trails require serious maintenance when we all return in the winter.  Jerry and I spend hours (I got a new saw that's in the first photo - thanks Mom) cutting, trimming, pulling out roots, moving rocks.   Work parties were organized.  We're hot, sweaty, aching, dirty and scratched up when finished....

One of work parties working on one of the trails.

Another day...another trail

Cindy from Booke End shows her battery powered mini chain saw.

Karen and Duane from "Sojourn"

The beginning of Bernie's trail ready for hikers

Two short videos taken from the eastern end of Bernie's trail just before reaching the beach on the east/ocean side of Hog Cay.  The second video shows the east side, turning north, across Hog Cay to the west side where the boats are anchored.

The head of "Creepy Doll Trail"

After the trail work on Hog, we waited patiently for the mailboat to arrive at Ragged Island with a grocery order we had put in.  Here Jerry helps tie up the mailboat, we waited for an hour, they unloaded our box and off we went overnight to Georgetown before the north winds started to blow to be there for Susan's arrival!

Captain C arrives from Nassau with our grocery order onboard.

At Georgetown we anchored near town which has a dinghy dock and easy taxi drop off.  Winds were forecast to be the strongest we'd seen all season on the day Susan flew in.  Our entertainment was the rock barge unloading huge rocks to create some kind of break wall near Kidd Cove in Georgetown.  (This is the same company that dropped an excavator overboard last month...oops!)

This barge was full of rocks when it arrived.

Look at all of the boats anchored in Georgetown!

This is only one area looking across the harbor at all of the anchor lights.

With the wind howling, we were one of the two boats that left Georgetown after Susan's arrival.  The waves coming in at our exit point out of the harbor provided some excitement with one wave breaking over the boat.

An overnight stop at Long Island to see if they might have bananas at the market.  Yes!  We bought 56 bananas, some oranges and sweet potatoes along with all the produce we picked up in Georgetown.  Enough stuff to last for a couple of weeks in the Jumentos/Ragged Islands.

Anchored again at Hog Cay!

At Hog Cay we enjoyed the trails, some kayaking and getting together at sunset with other cruisers to celebrate.  The tradition is to blow conch horns at sunset.  Susan found a conch and now has her very own conch horn.

Jerry uses a grinder, hammer and screwdriver and a Dremel to cut off the tip of the conch shell in just the right spot to make it into a horn.

And now some practice.....

And then we are ready to play at sunset on the beach with Cori.

One of our 5-6 mile hikes on Hog Cay.  Thanks to Ross for sharing his excellent photos!

Karen, Jerry, Gosia, Susan, Jerry, Phyllis

What to do with all the empty bottles cruisers collect onboard?  Make sea glass!

Cori is in the center with a welding hammer breaking the bottles off the edge of the rock into the ocean.

Mike from "Mintaka" entertaining us at the Hog Cay "yacht club" back in January.

Grating coconut found on Hog Cay.

We moved back and forth a few times between Hog Cay, Johnson Cay, and Raccoon Cay (Man-O-War Bay) when the cold fronts blew through with westerly winds.  No protection at Hog from any west component wind!  Johnson Cay has protection from the south and southwest.  Man-O-War Bay (Raccoon Cay) from the west, northwest and north.

Susan and I decided to take our lunch to the beach at Johnson Cay.  We ended up sharing with a couple of curly-tailed lizards that were living in the log we sat on.

No need to bring your shoes to the beach at Johnson.  Here's a collection of mismatched shoes that have washed up on the beach on the ocean facing side of the island.  People have picked shoes up from the ocean side and carried them back to the trail head on the bay side for anyone to use.  Every ocean side beach on any island down here is full of "lost soles".

We had some opportunities to go snorkeling.  Susan and I enjoyed the sights.  Jerry enjoyed finding something to make for dinner.

Lobster and Rock Hind

Never before have so many boats been here in the Raggeds at one time!  Finding a good place to shelter from westerly winds when there's a cold front becomes more of a challenge. 

18 boats anchored here at Man-O-War!!  That's a record number we've seen here.

Every day we go to the beach and walk in the sand along the ocean.  Or make our way through the brush and trees to see if we can find any treasures.

Jerry and Karen on the beach at Raccoon Cay.  Our friends Ralph and Leslie on "Now n' Zen" are in the background sailing north.

Susan walks the south beach on Raccoon.  I'm using a scaffolding that was erected a couple of years ago by Mr. Beast.  A Youtuber who filmed a crazy video from here.  You can see the masts of the sailboats anchored in Man-O-War Bay in the background.

Susan back in the trees looking for an elusive and highly-sought after glass fishing float.

On her third trip to the Bahamas Susan finds a glass float!!  Some people spend years looking and never  find one.  

It's in amazing shape considering who knows where it came from, how it came to be 100 yards inshore of the rocks to land within the rocks and trees!  It was just sitting there - no digging needed.  These fishing floats are blown glass.  There's a book about floats and a Facebook page where I've posted the pictures of this one.  Maybe someone can tell us where it was manufactured.  I can't find any markings on this one.

I will sign off here.  We will be leaving soon when the winds allow to be able to get back to Georgetown for Susan's flight back to Maine on the 27th.  We plan on sailing back to Hog Cay after Susan flies out.  I'll be taking a better picture of this Mahogany tree seed pod I added to our Persephone sign in the Hog Cay Yacht Club....

Wishing you health and happiness!

Karen, Jerry and Susan

SV Persephone