The Visitors

Getting this vessel to the right place at the right time takes a lot of advanced planning. We move at about the pace of a slow jog so it takes a couple weeks to get to the grocery store and laundromat. But in spite of the uncooperative weather we pulled it off and managed to get to Barraterre to rent a car and run our errands in Georgetown. We had a great time giving Roland, Catherine, Sophia and Tim a taste of our lifestyle. They were really looking forward to escaping from the freezing cold and the daily grind. They didn't get the warmest week but they were troupers and put up with the chill, the limited menu and unlimited lack of showering.    

This is the car rental agency in Barraterre. This is also the straw market. If you need a car or a straw bag, call Juletta. 

Juletta called ahead to the "Same Ole Place" to ask if they had any food that night. They had chicken and lobster so we ordered the chicken and lobster. It was very good! Drew lost a tooth and Red hung out. 

Andy's favorite store in Georgetown, Top to Bottom. The name says it all. It could also be called "You Have to Shop Here Because You Have No Other Choice"

How does the lemon shark taste, Drew? Lemony. Seriously? 

A better place from which to view the hundreds of boats anchored in Georgetown. We tend to avoid the crowds so we drive rather than sail to Georgetown. 

Back at one of our favorite spots, Lee Stocking Island, while we wait for everyone to arrive. Piper was still where we left them and we were all very happy to see each other again. 

The boys immediately went fishing so we could stockpile and share.

When Andy cleaned the 13 fish, he put the carcasses in the water. At precisely shark thirty (4:30pm) this scary mofo showed up to get a snack. That's a tiger shark, also known as the garbage can of the ocean. 

Enjoying the breeze

A day or two earlier, the white sloop, Tara, radioed from the ocean asking for advice about getting through the cuts in the area. They had lost engine power on their way north and needed to sail through a cut to anchor to figure out what was going on. Another boat in our anchorage, Different Drummer, responded with advice and offered to meet them in their dinghy to offer help if needed. Andy and Tripp went out in our dinghy to do the same. The dinghies set up a tow and kedge and Tara made it safely through the cut and to anchor.  Still without a working engine, Tara needed to continue north to meet family. Different Drummer, who was also heading north, towed them back out through the cut and escorted them to their destination. Andy and Drew were standing by ready to help just in case. Cruisers are generally very helpful and we know if we need help, all we have to do is ask and we jump in whenever we can. 

We motored back to Barraterre to meet the weary travelers for a late evening arrival. It was a long day of travel and they had to carry a massive bag of crap for us. But they settled in and had a good night's sleep. The next day, Tim cracked open one of the conch given to us by Our Time, another boat anchored in Barraterre. 

Soft lighting sets the mood for brotherly love. 

Awwww!

Sophia, Tim and Roland all got in on the killing action. 

Get ready for the hot oil treatment, fishies!

A visit to the abandoned research center is always a highlight of any visit to Lee Stocking Island

Someone hilarious hung this Bugs Bunny up right inside a closed door. It's actually quite startling the first time you see it! 

There are bats living (and dying) in some of the buildings. 

What's in there?

The wind was howling!

Why does rum consumption always lead to a Madonna dance party???

The boat designers probably had this exact scenario in mind when they drew that pole.

Touched for the very first time. Twerk it, Roland! 

Lunch buffet. Everybody's hungry after fishing and exploring.

Uno, FunDominoes, Poker, Battleship. It's all good when the weather is too cold for swimming and there's no texting. Or tweeting or instagramming or whatever the kids do these days.

Conch fritters with Bahamian dipping sauce. Also known as ketchup and mayo mixed together.

How do we even begin to explain this? Is that Santa on his winter hiatus giving rides on his vacation sleigh? Did this family win a vacation on Pig in a Poke? or...... did Red fail to pick them up in his really nice boat and send his super mean cousin instead in his tiny boston whaler to blast our cold, weary, unshowered guests through major chop whipped up by 25 knot winds? Yeah, that's what happened. We gave them garbage bags to keep their luggage dry. We should have wrapped them in plastic, too. This crew was never happier to see a hotel! Bye guys, it was fun! 

Dodging weather

In early February we continued our southward movement through the Exumas trying to visit some more sights and make our way south in time to meet guests. Unfortunately we were frustrated by more cold fronts passing through and we relocated more for weather than for fun. We vowed not to complain to friends and family up north who were getting absolutely pummeled by snow and freezing temps. But we bitched relentlessly to each other! You can tell from our lack of photos that we were sitting on board a lot. Thank goodness for friends, fishing and minecraft. And a comfy boat!

We stopped in Black Point for a couple days. This sign makes it look like there's a lot going on. There's not.

We did go for a long walk to stretch our legs and found these cuties. We distracted the big mean billy goat so Evelyn could feed the little ones. 

Many settlements have a straw market where the locals sell handmade baskets and bags. We were lucky to see how it all begins. 

This grocery store is run by Marie Antoinette. 

Take them all! Take them all far, far away!  

Evelyn and Mackie did a great job sailing around the harbor!

After a very late rum and red wine infused night aboard Tangent, we pulled it together enough to visit with No Rehearsal.

This is the "before" photo. Don't we all look like nice people? Well, it turns out we're not nice at all. Annie introduced us to a game called Mexican Train. If you ever want to bring out the ugly, bring on the wine and the mexican train. Toot toot!

Chill time on the bow.

Right before a front came through, Drew came through with this large lionfish which became an integral part of fish tacos that night. This guy was so heavy that Drew could barely hold his spear out of the water as he swam back to the dinghy. But when he handed it over the fish slid rapidly down the spear toward my hand, still alive, full of venomous spines, and flopping around violently. There's always a lot of yelling in fishing.  

Fresh baked bread. Boredom = carbohydrates

When we get to deep water we start trolling for offshore fish. The second we hear the line buzz, we all run to our panic stations. Andy gets the gaff, Drew grabs the rod, Heidi takes the helm and Evelyn is on camera duty. There was a ton of shouting when this big girl was being reeled in. The seas were terribly lumpy and this was the biggest fish Drew has reeled in. If you ever want to catch a big fish, don't wear pants. Pants are bad luck. You have to fish in your undies. It's the law. 

This girl was a real acrobat. As she fought and leaped out of the water we could see her gorgeous blue, green and yellow coloring. After a shot of vodka in the gills for the official dispatching, her color drained out. 

Heavy!

Again with the underpants. Andy filets right on the transom as we go. .  

Andy does a great job fileting. We were excited to have fresh mahi to share with our coming guests! 

Sicko

This is what it would look like if you were drowned by Andy in the Bahamas