Month: January 2026

Waking to a sunny day and getting ready for the 9 NM trip to Harbour View Marina in Marsh Harbour. After checking out I worried about backing this 42′ boat out of its slip and twist to leave with only 25 to 30 feet from my stern to the 75′ Horizon moored on the sea wall directly astern, especially with a fresh wind and strong current pushing me into the large yacht. Others wondered also; the Horizon’s captain brought out a fender and crew to fend BenjOllie off, if necessary. My fellow boaters all came out to talk over options, but Robert the Dock Master had the right plan. He and 3 helpers walked down the pier and Robert directed the crew and volunteers as they grabbed all lines and we safely and quickly pushed the boat out of the slip and carefully twisted her parallel to the Horizon aimed out of the fairway, as the engines rested at idle. While Carey quickly hauled in all lines after the boat was positioned, she got a heartly shout out from the Horizon crew, as they said, “we’re from Virginia, too!” Fun experience, overall.

Safely underway we talked about the white-haired lady on a catamaran moored at our pier. Neither of us got her name but had learned that as a newly widowed at 80, she sold her home in Massachusetts, bought this 30ish foot boat to live on, and she does just that on a mooring ball in Hope Town. Using her dinghy for trips to town, she manages quite well, per the locals, and is now 96. Robert the Dock Master had her move into a slip at the Hope Town Inn and Marina for a few days as this weekend will see some mighty strong winds. Absolutely amazing.

We made the Marsh Harbour trip in just over an hour, backed into our slip and secured the boat for the expected front this weekend. While not the best picture, the aerial shot below gives a feel for the layout of this town in the Sea of Abaco. We’re staying at Harbour View Marina and the entrance to the Bay is at top left as you enter from the north. There are two other marinas in this bay. In addition, Abaco Resort and Boat Harbour Marina is on the south side of the island. The last picture is a sample of one of the homes in the town.

Five days in Hope Town catching up from our last visit in 2017 shows us there’s lots of building going on as we do a golf cart tour — both reconstruction after the hurricane and a major boom in new housing construction beyond the village center. While the town folks are pleased with the investments in the community, they are committed the settlement maintain its historic background and distinctive charm. Many of our old haunts are still here though. Vernon’s, an institutional market is still run by 7th generation islander Vernon Malone, now in his 90’s and a direct descendent of Wyannie Malone, the notable original settler. His current main concern is Trump’s policies that prevent his getting a Visa to visit his children and grandchildren that are living in the US. We found that others in the community have the same problem!

As elsewhere in the Abacos, there are fewer boaters than in the past, but we still find that most are as friendly as ever. A group of 4 guys (one from Radford, VA) we met at FireFly, a local restaurant, just brought a 28′ boat over from Florida that they and their families will use over the coming summer. Plus, Carey met a former Manassas resident now staying here. As a weather update, it’s still in the 70’s with plenty of sunshine.

Finally, the winds have died down, and we woke to less than 10 knots, a perfect day to travel to Hope Town on the Sea of Abaco, even though we’ll likely see 3-foot seas as they lay down from past strong winds. Hope Town is a perfect island getaway located on Elbow Cay. It’s steeped in history and dotted with quaint New England style houses and cottages. It’s home to the last kerosene-lit lighthouse in the world. Getting there was accompanied by heavy rains most of the day. Luckily, it’s only an 8 mile trip and we were tied up by 12:30. We’re staying at the Hope Town Inn and Marina and enjoying this top-of-the-line facility. Probably be here for a week checking out the changes resulting from the 2019 hurricane. We ‘ve been updated by many fellow boaters on the changes … all commiserating that the cay is becoming more commercialized. The draw for transient boaters has jointly been the simple charm of the historic settlements, as well as the natural beauty throughout Abaco. Cruise ships don’t enter the Sea of Abaco and the settings are not developed or staged. Or, they weren’t until Disney purchased a cay at the bottom of the Abacos, outside of the Bahamanian Bank. Haven’t yet heard the status of that.

We didn’t leave on the 20th as planned because the winds were a very brisk 25 mph from the North and the Sea of Abaco had 3 1/2 footers to travel through to Hope Town. We are safely moored at Guana and decided to stay put until the weather improved. That appears to be Thursday. Hopefully we’ll be underway for Hope Town tomorrow. We are enjoying the time on board doing a few chores and some reading. Too much wind for much walking around.

Paid our bill on the 18th and were underway by 9 AM for our 16 NM passage to Orchid Bay Yacht Club on Great Guana Cay. But, before we left Green Turtle, I filled the water tank. Boaters have to pay for water by the gallon in the Bahamas at a cost of $0.35/gallon in most places and it is all R/O. Needless to say, we monitor our usage over the 2+ months we’re here. And, before we left, Carey insisted we get a photo of an anchored sailboat with an attached menagerie of inflated ducks trailing off their stern. Note in the following photo the larger leading duck is festooned with a real set of headphones. They’re Canadians (our favs!). Then, heading out we quickly found fresh 12-15 knot winds as we made our passage to and around Whale Cay in the Atlantic Ocean. Surprise … the trip was pleasant — two-foot ocean swells with a 6 second period made for an easy ride, even with the moderate south winds. The Whale passage can be hazardous under certain conditions, but we safely ducked back into the Sea of Abaco from the 5 NM Atlantic Ocean travel and proceeded to Orchid Bay. Arriving by noon, we rented a golf cart and quickly toured the island, had lunch at Nipper’s and drinks afterward at Grabbers Restaurant on the beach, both 2 of our favorites. (DON’T FORGET — LARGER PICTURES WHEN USING WEBSITE BY HOVERING OVER PIC AND TAPPING “CTRL” TWICE. USE TWO FINGER EXTENSION ON PHONE OR TABLET).

We woke to strong moderate winds the next day (15-20 knots from the north) and a forecast indicating we may have a week of these and possibly stronger winds. So, we decided to leave tomorrow for Hope Town where there’s lots to keep us happy and busy for a week in case the weather doesn’t improve. Meantime, today, a Nippers lunch and off on the golf cart checking out any changes on the island since our last trip here. Some pictures below.