The next morning, I went over the side early during slack tide to check the keel and rudder as the holes were now 3 days old... surprisingly, there was very little growth on our bottom... even where the paint had been scraped away. We can only assume it was in part due to the fact that we were anchored in a 2.5 knot current and the water was clean ocean water. The keelboot had opened up a good bit on the rear and starboard side, allowing water intrusion into the boot... not a big deal really, but I knew it was gonna be a pain to fix it when we got home.

Checking the keel and rudder...

As one of the other sailboats left, guess what happened?? Uh-huh... they went aground in the current, in nearly the same spot as our well-marked rock. It was ironic that I was in the dinghy patrol this time because that guy helped me during our grounding... The tide was in his favor as we quickly freed his boat and he got underway, headed for the Abacos.

creepy corner lays claim to another...

I know, I know... its extreme overkill to do this, but what can I say?? She Who Must Be Obeyed has spoken and ordered a simpler way to lift the top, so I HAD to design this. Actually, it DOES work fabulously when lifting the top. It did take a bit of experimenting to get the correct angles and throw with the lifting shocks. The Bahamas trip was the inaugural run and cruising test for them.

pneumatic lift...

Just in case the gas struts failed, we put Whisper up there to ensure the top couldnt fall and we wouldnt get bonked in the head as it came down... it can be said that we are all about safety!

Whisper the safety cat

...I sure wish I could sleep as late as she does! I had to get used to eating breakfast kinda late...

Steph finally wakes up...

I am going to give you all a quick review of a few items that we use onboard that we have found to be critical gear... The first of which is solar/wind gear. This stuff is SO important... (especially since I have to keep her happy) ...there is no way we could cruise in a small boat without it. The mounting system we use is very trick as it is the only triple-axis mounting system available. Space is such an issue, and the fact that we can literally aim the panels at the sun from dawn to dusk allows us to use smaller panels than would normally be required to replace the amount of energy we (SHE) use. We average 13 amps/hr. with the solar system on Empty Pocket. This keeps the fridge running, lights on at night, and the watermaker going 6 hours per day as well as the TV (for movies),electronics (recharging those camera batteries!), radios, stereo... etc.

Things that work...

...here is another turly great find, the OFF! lantern. This little lantern really does what they say it is supposed to. Burning one candle for 5-6 hours, we didnt have any bugs from dusk to well after midnight when the candle ran out!

...not to mention the ambiance it provided us while lit.

Great item to have onboard

Insect repellant...

This was a recent purchase... ok, actually, like the week before we left! But WHAT a FIND!! I absolutely fell in love with this little Dewalt wet-vac. It is 18volt, recharges with a 12v charger, and stores easily after being used to clean up behind the crew!

cordless vacuum!

...catnip is good for those days where you need a little pick-me-up!

Having a bad day? As Whisper is effectively demonstrating in the picture, all of your worries will just melt away while experiencing the euphoria from catnip!

last but not least...

...It was time for us to go splorin!

Empty Pocket at Double Breasted Cay...

...fishing! Its always a little intimidating to go fishing in an inflatable...

...er, I mean, uh,

...we found this little beach on the northern face of Grand Cay... just beautiful!

Grand Cay north face

...we stumbled onto an area where the fishermen clean their catch... The last time I saw a mass of conch shells of this magnitude was in a FL Keys shell shop! The conch are literally everywhere in the Bahamas... when the tide retreats, you can find hundreds of them on the sandbars... Steph made it her mission to return with a conch shell, and I would say that the prospects for finding one were pretty good!

...and this was the SMALL pile!

...the anchorage was empty at noon, but that was about to change...

exploring a bar...

...Darn, Steph gets foiled again! This little guy got a good look at Steph up close as she was looking for an uninhabited unit.

...DO YOU MIND???

...I had to show you this picture of Pocket Lint as she was on the bar because of what would happen that night. Remember the fishing pole and pole-spear... Ill come back to it in a bit!

Pocket Lint...

...starting around 2:30PM, powerboat after powerboat began to infiltrate the anchorage... obviously, most had local knowledge, and since it was getting close to Memorial Day weekend, many power boats were arriving for the 4 day mini-vacaton. (Ok, maybe there IS something to be said for being able to sprint in a powerboat over to the Bahamas for a long weekend... Ill never know!) The spa began to fill up around 4:30PM, and with the music was blaring, the gas-powered blenders whining, and the generators moaning, the peaceful anchorage was transformed into a party...

...we headed for the Spa to join in.

the spa

Steph makes a cocktail for us to take with us...

B.Y.O.B.

...we literally just pulled up in our dink when there was four blasts of a horn in the anchorage. (4 blasts means trouble!) Everybody jumped up and headed for their tenders, flying back into the anchorage... it turns out there was a very large powerboat that had broken free from its anchor and was drifting freely through the crowded anchorage. It had backed over another vessels anchor line and gotten the rode tangled in the prop. The owner quickly got to his vessel and got the motor started, but could not put it in gear until some dinghys had pushed him forward and divers had freed the props from the line... It turns out that this big powerboat had only one anchor, and it was WAY too small for the boat... I am not sure how it all ended, but I think that he was told to leave by others in the anchorage as his boat was a hazard in that strong current.

...partys over!

...we decided to head back to the boat and leave behind the social scene. Showers were on our minds. There would be no nekid showers on the swim platform tonight as the anchorage was relatively full. Here Steph tries to protect her modesty as the onlookers on the rear catch the show.

Having had enough excitement for one day...

...ahhhh, the refreshing feel of a shower at the end of the day!

Invigorating!!

...freshly showered and relaxed, we were anticipating a decent sunset.

easing into the evening...

...this would be an indication of things to come this night.

... the clouds were building,

...I mean, uh, Admiral, dear!

The Galley Wench

...After an absolutley wonderful meal, I cleaned up and we went to bed. At around midnight I awoke to the sound of thunder... as I climbed out from the rear berth, Whisper greeted me in the companionway... I climbed out into the cockpit and watched in amazement and fear as cloud to ground lightning was all around us... striking at extremely close proximity! The wind was starting to crank up and E.P began to buck a bit as the waves started to roll through. I went forward and checked the anchor. The scariest part of being in a crowded anchorage was right then... I was terrified after seeing this large powerboat earlier in the day break free and go roaming. One never knows what to expect, so I stayed on deck to monitor the situation as the storm grew. The rain started and Whisper retreated to the rear berth with Steph. I had a flashlight, and knife at the ready. I checked Pocket Lint at the stern, and except for slapping the waves as they rolled under her, it was fine.

Well, the storm continued for about an hour and after feeling confident that all was going to be ok, I fell asleep in the cockpit...

What I didnt realize was that as I was going to sleep, the tide was changing and began to flow counter to the wind... this was bad news for the dink as it swung around to the starboard side of E.P. and bounced against the hull. The leash-line, tied to the rear starboard cleat, reached forward toward P.L. and hopped up onto the aluminum toe-rail... and there it began to chafe... all as I lay sleeping less that 2 feet away...

Whisper by candlelight...

I awoke around 7AM and thought to myself what a beautiful morning... I began to go through my morning routine, making coffee, checking the anchor... all the while something was nagging me. It literally took me 30 minutes to realize that our dinghy...

...was gone!

I cannot describe the sinking feeling that came over me. My stomach felt sick...

I jumped to the foredeck, looking in every direction... frantic at this point...


It was no where to be seen...

What is missing here??

...needing immediate comfort, I called for Steph. I was devastated as we looked all around.

Allow me to give you the complete picture: This particular anchorage was completely surrounded by EXTREMELY sharp coral protuberances jutting up out of the water... to think that an inflatable boat could somehow survive an encounter with these menaces is beyond comprehension.

I knew immediately that recovery chances were practically none if it had even so much as grazed the coral... Then there was the possibility that P.L. could have threaded the needle and been taken out to open ocean... once again with NO hope of recovery.

I was devastated, and spent nearly 20 minutes with the binoculars scanning for a glimpse of Pocket Lint... to no avail.

We were giving up hope and trying to mentally regroup...

I sat down and began to rearrange the rest of the trip in my mind...

...how in the world were we going to be able to finish the trip with no dink?? I thought to myself...


...to be continued in part six!

Looking for a sign...