We arrived at West End the afternoon of Friday, November 24th. We dropped anchor and started a lookout for our friends on catamaran Unfettered. They arrived about an hour after we got there, after a 10-hour passage from Lake Worth, Florida. We got in our dinghy to come alongside them as they pulled into the anchorage, welcoming them to The Bahamas. They were cheering, smiling widely, and giddy to see such clear, green waters and to have finally made it to their destination. We showed them where to anchor and invited them to enjoy a Thanksgiving leftover feast on our boat after they got settled.
Rick and Jenn purchased the boat earlier this year and have really just begun their sailing life. They, like us, sold their home and are now living full time on their catamaran. This is their first time to The Bahamas, and we were happy to welcome them and hopefully be of assistance as they learn the ropes of the cruising life. So far, they have mostly motored in the ICW (Intercostal Waterway), so ocean passages, routing, navigating, finding protection in storms, and being in the wide open seas are new to them. Kory and I still have much to learn, but it’s nice to impart whatever knowledge we’ve learned, hoping they’ll pass it on as well. Jenn and Rick brought their son, Dylan, his girlfriend, Alexus, and their daughter, Ani! We look forward to getting to know them and be a blessing to them as well!
After dinner with our new friends, we all got a good night’s sleep and decided to stay at the anchorage in West End on Saturday, Nov. 25th, so everyone could get some rest after the passage and explore the area the next day. Plus, Sunday, Nov. 26th was looking to be a great day to sail with projected winds of 15 knot on a close reach and beam angle. Hopefully that will pan out as projected, as it would be nice to have a full sailing day.
On Saturday, Maryalice and I took a walk with Gracie and Harley on the beach. The dogs had a blast and we got some good exercise and photo opportunities! Maryalice has proven to be a great friend and we enjoy our walks together!
On our walk, we saw our three catamarans off in the distance: Hope, SeaBreeze, and Unfettered. It was hard to see them over the horizon, so I stood on a fire hydrant to try to take a picture. Maryalice caught a picture of me doing this. We’re a great pair!
Later that afternoon, several people went a little ways into the Atlantic to fish from their dinghies. They brought the handheld VHF radio so we could stay in touch with them. Kory and Rick didn’t catch anything because their lures were rigged for big fish like Tuna or Wahoo. However, the Fett’s caught quite a few small fish near the entrance of the channel using squid as a bait. They had a fish fry for dinner while we enjoyed carne asada tacos.
We all got our boats ready for an early morning departure to Great Sale Cay. We raised the dinghy and secured it, fastened the lifelines, plotted our course, uploaded it to the chart plotter, prepared lunch for the eight-hour passage, and went to bed early so we’d be energized for the morning, thankful for another day!