Home Away From Home

My favorite view from Green Turtle

Wowza! We made it! What an awesome crossing we had. Don't get me wrong....there were moments when I was not happy. For the first time, I made notes throughout the day....

"0400--alarm. 0435--start engine. 0450--anchor up. It's so dark. 4 boats are on their way out the inlet. The windlass jammed twice while pulling anchor....yikes! It's so dark. 0530-- we're out the inlet & it's sooooo rolley. The boat is pitching side to side so dramatically. Everything on the inside of the boat is now on the floor (unless bolted down). Jib is having a nervous break down. He is drooling incessantly...I can see his muscles shaking. Now I'm crying. I feel bad for Jib, plus...I can't imagine spending another 10-12 hours doing this. 0630--the sun is rising. We're still like a cork in a washing machine but we put the main sail up...OMG! Major improvement. Still rolling side to side but not near as bad. We can see the flotilla that left before us on the horizon.

Jib is finally calming down...with a little cuddle help from his buddy

Things are calm enough that Scott put his fishing poles out...

1230----the sea is now like glass....it's crazy!!! We've had no hits on the fishing rods. Scott changes all the gear...

1300-- Fish On!!

1302-- fish off. He got away. 1350-- we reached the banks of the Bahamas.

Moments after entering the banks, dolphins started swimming off our bow. It was glorious....what a welcome!!

1630-- we caught up with the flotilla that left an hour ahead of us....way to go Malaika!

2200---land ho. We made it to Great Sale Cay in 17 hours. Our fastest time yet. Only 8-10 hours to go the next day to get to Green Turtle Cay.....our favorite island in Abaco, Bahamas. Whew. I'm tired."

Our first sunset in Green Turtle

What a journey. Obviously, this is a small passage compared to most BUT, for us, it's still a big deal & I'm glad we're done with it until Spring or whenever...

We're gonna be here awhile.

Love--Michelle, Scott & Jib

 

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We Made It!!!

 

Woo Hoo!! We're in the Bahamas!!! What a journey! New blog tomorrow!! Just wanted to post that after 2 days at sea with a small break in the middle....we are tucked in safely at one of our most favorite islands...Green Turtle Cay.....I'll do a whole big blog tomorrow..... ;)

Mq

 

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We'll See Ya Tomorrow Bahamas!

Dreaming of the islands

So...after listening to Chris Parker (weather guru for all boaters) this morning, we decided to make the crossing tomorrow. It's supposed to be a nice day to cross. Light & variable winds so....maybe more motoring than sailing but that's ok with me....I prefer a more sedate crossing. As usual, the crossing just kinda sneaks up on ya. All of a sudden we're itching to leave & as soon as the weather allows....it's go time!! So, we pulled anchor in Stuart at 8:30 & cruised down the ICW today...through 7 bridges...

One bridge after another today!!

and are now anchored at the mouth of the inlet in Lake Worth. Tomorrow at first light we will head out the inlet into the Atlantic & cruise on over to the Bahamas.

I have to make this short as we have many chores to do, meals to cook, & phone calls to make to family so.....it is with sweet sorrow I bid farewell to high speed internet that is ALWAYS available...back to island time...We probably won't have internet until Thursday(maybe Wednesday evening) Love & miss you all. Pray for our safe passage. Enjoy some of the latest pics....

My new orchid....

 

Jib totally glued to the tv watching the annual dog show

 

Scott scrunched up in a cabinet fixing the latest leak...

 

Our ol' pal Dan helping Scott fix our alternator earlier this week...It's ALWAYS something!!!

 

Beautiful lighthouse on the ICW today

 

South Florida....one mansion after another...it's crazy

 

AND one mega yacht after another.....

Love ya!! The next blog will be from our beloved Green Turtle Cay, BAHAMAS!!!!!!!

Michelle, Scott, & Jib

 

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Happy Thanksgiving!!

It's hard to believe it's our 3rd Thanksgiving on Malaika. This year we find ourselves in Stuart, Florida. We've been here since last Saturday. It's a great place to hang out while we wait for a weather window to cross the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas. We actually leave from Lake Worth, Florida which is 20+ miles south but Lake Worth sucks if you have to be there for awhile. It is not a cruiser friendly place. There is nowhere to get to shore. That matters because sometimes the "weather window" can take awhile. Our 1st year, we waited for 2 weeks there. Anywho....Stuart is awesome! We've been livin' large hanging out in a mooring ball.

Our boat is tied to that ball in the water which is anchored to the bottom

We rarely splurge on things like mooring balls, marinas, etc...but sometimes....we indulge. The great thing about a mooring ball is, it doesn't matter how much the wind blows...the boat is secure. AND so is every boat around you, so nobody drags anchor. The bad thing about a mooring ball is they cost money. $20 per day here in Stuart.

Rain Rain...Go Away!

We're not the only ones waiting for a weather window.....

The weather has been awful for almost a week. Windy & rainy, so it's been nice to just go to sleep at night & not have to worry about our boat, other boats, etc. We'll be doing that for the next 6 months so we're chillaxin' now. Buying the mooring ball also allows us to use all of the Marina facilities. Showers, laundry, bikes, free bus to Walmart & all other stores in the area....

Cruiser Bus!

The Marina is hosting a Thanksgiving dinner today. They provide all the turkey & ham & only ask cruisers to bring a veggie or dessert dish. Over 100 people signed up so it should be quite a feast!! Very excited. I opted to bring a dessert cuz' I LOVE using my new oven.

Sometimes the galley seems so small when baking.....you land lubbers better appreciate all your counter space today!

Whalla!! Pumpkin cream cheese bread & cupcakes!

So on this Thanksgiving Day I just want to say I am soooo thankful for all the blessings God has given our family. We have a very blessed life & are so lucky to have the family & friends that we have. You all enrich our lives & make us feel so lucky. Thinking of you, missing you, and always....loving you.

Michelle, Scott & Jib

P.S. Happy Happy Birthday to Alan tomorrow!! Hope you have a wonderful day Dad!! We love you so much & are so thankful for everything you've done for us. You're an awesome Dad & the best father inlaw a girl could hope for! ;)

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Rafted Up, Rained In, & Running Dog Wild!

Here comes Jib! 1st day off the boat in 4+ days....Does it show?

Whew! It's been a crazy 36 hours. We started out yesterday with great weather & a beautiful sunrise (motor) sail down the ICW.

Things were awesome for about 4 hours....and then the latest cold front/weather system rolled on in.

Finally tucked in at Vero Beach mooring field.

Rain, rain, & more rain. As I write this blog, it has been raining now for 28 hours with brief intermissions here & there. It's really not that cold--70's with 100% humidity---just wet. We've never been to Vero Beach but have heard many great things about it. In fact, people call it "Velcro beach" because cruisers often end up staying longer they ever expected. While the Marina/mooring field are awesome...I don't really see the attraction. Grocery stores, boat stores, etc. are only accessible by bus, which does stop at the Marina every hour so, that is a convenience. And I must stress that the Marina & it's staff are great. There are awesome showers, huge dinghy dock, trash dumpsters, & laundry. I guess, for Malaika, it's much easier to be able to walk to stuff...then we can take Jib too. I can see why people like it here but for us....no velcro.

Did I say massive?

As I write "no Velcro" I have another bonus at Vero to tell you about. There is a MASSIVE dog park within walking distance of the Marina. There was a break in the rain this morning so we jumped at the chance to get jib off the boat....literally

Jib jumpin' into the dinghy

Woo Hoo! So excited!

Jib with his new buddy

We me a few dogs at the dog park & Jib ran & ran & ran. He was happy, happy, happy!!!

Hey!?! How'd this coconut get here?

So, we also met a pit bull today. We always do at dog parks. She was sweet & played with the other dogs briefly. I looked over & her owner was strapping a weird harness on her so I went to take a look.

I talked the owner about it...apparently "weight pulling" is a competitive sport with pit bulls. So, this 1yr old pup was training today. She did have a lot of muscles.

I think that's weird. Again, she was well behaved & seemed sweet but....why weight pulling? She didn't look like she was having any fun. Unlike the 2 Golden Retrievers in the park. We'll stick with ball chasing & coconut eating.

Notice both dogs tongues are hanging out....they want that ball so bad they can taste it!

After the dog park we walked over a mile to the beach only to find out..No Dogs Allowed!! Grrrr.....Florida beaches are not dog friendly. It sucks. So we trekked home just in time to beat the next down pour. And I do mean down pour. Within a couple of hours our dinghy was FULL of water.

Notice the floating flip flops

Scott had to get in and bail out like 30 gallons of water. It was unbelievable how much water dumped on us in a few hours. So, even though I said no Velcro for us...we're staying another day as the weather looks crappy tomorrow too. Hmmm....maybe there is something to this Vero vortex.

Malaika rafted up with our buddies Dan & Laurie on s/v Glory Days

So, maybe one more day here, then headed south again to Stuart, Florida. Another new place for us and all the cruiser's say it's an awesome place to hang out while waiting for a weather window to take off for the Bahamas. Plus.....several good friends are already there... Yay!!
Love & Miss everybody mucho!!
Michelle, Scott & Jib

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And...We're off!!!

Beautiful day heading south on the ICW

So we finally made it off the dock!! Yay!! We had planned on leaving Friday....then Saturday....then Sunday. Things always pop up right before you're ready to go. Thursday night we realized we just had too many little things to do to leave Friday. Saturday morning our refrigerator started acting up & Scott ended up working on that for half the day. He had to replace the pump. Sunday morning the toilet wasn't working properly. Grrrrr!!! Scott worked on that before we went to church & we decided we're going no matter what. And we did. Since we stayed till Sunday we decided to go to Mass one more time at the beautiful Basilica, which also allowed us one last stroll through beautiful St. Augustine.

 

We got home from church & started the engine. Time. To. Go!!! First stop...fuel dock. And our first encounter of the season with a mega yacht.

 

Leave a light on for us St Augustine...I'm sure we'll be back sometime

We just took a short trip (3 hours) to Ft. Matanzas. We started this tradition of going a short distance on our first day out last year & really enjoyed it. It gets pretty stressful the last few days before you untie the lines so keeping the first sail short & sweet works of us. Just felt great to finally be on the move. Distance was not a goal yesterday.

First night on anchor at Ft. Matanzas

Today we had a lovely day strolling along the ICW. The weather was nice, we made good time. We went about 50 miles in 7 hours. Lots of boats heading south...as usual we were passed by many power boats. (All very polite today! :)

Besides just being on the move...the other excitement of the day was that we were BOARDED by the Sheriff's department in Daytona. They zoomed up beside us & were on our boat within 30 seconds. They wanted to do a "MSD" inspection. (Marine Sanitation Device).

In other words, they wanted to inspect our toilet. I've explained before that our toilet is connected to a holding tank. When we're at least 3 miles out to sea we can dump our tanks directly into the water. When we're inland it is federal law that it all goes in the tank. We even have to have a lock on the valve that opens to the outside. That's what the police are looking for....That you have that valve locked with a padlock or a zip tie. No cheating! And if you do, it's a pretty hefty fine. We were locked of course & the police were on & off our boat in like 3 minutes. It was still a little weird when they appeared. We were like "whoa! Where did you come from?" " whoa! You just hopped on my boat! " Jib growled at them when they pulled up next to us. He never growls so that was strange to hear. The poo cops gotta do their job too & they were very nice.

Jib seems to be enjoying moving on the boat again. However...we are struggling getting him to go to the bathroom on deck. He wouldn't go last night or this morning. Once we got anchored this afternoon we all went out on deck. It was a "potty" stand off. We weren't going to stop till he went. Over the course of 2+ hours we must have said "good boy Jib..go potty" a thousand times. We're trying to train him to go on the side deck instead of on the top deck. He really didn't want to do either after spending the summer ashore. After 29 hours total....We surrendered and he went on the top deck.

Malaika's crew

So 2 days in things are going ok. Looking forward to trekking south. We're expecting crappy weather the next 2 days. :( Big winds & a cold front. Never a dull moment!

Congrats to Marci & Jim on s/v Island Jim who reached the Bahamas today! Have fun guys!! Glad you had a safe passage.

Love & Miss everybody

Michelle, Scott, & Jib

 

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