4/13/2004 Georgetown, Exumas to Provo, Turks & Caicos
Well,
we didn't get out of Georgetown as quickly as planned! After we
had loaded the dinghy on board and prepped the boat for an
offshore passage, the generator AND regulator decided to go on
the fritz and we had visions of spending weeks in Georgetown
waiting for parts and repairs. Fortunately, we ran into an
amiable Texan named Ken at Georgetown Marina who ordered parts
and got them quickly and had us back up and running in just a
few days. I learned how to diagnose and install a regulator and
he handled the generator. There are no docks at the Georgetown
Marina...just a travel-lift slip that has about 4 feet of water
at low tide...remember, we draw 6 feet! Because we had no
electricity while waiting for repairs, we anchored out and then
backed up to the edge of the lift slip where we tied off and ran
an electric cord onto the boat. For 3 days, we floated 12 hours,
were softly 6 hours and assumed a 20 degree list the rest of the
time which made us FEEL like we were going somewhere! We thank
and highly recommend Ken to other cruisers!!
We knew Dolcefina
awaited us in Provo and decided to make the 250 mile run in a
single passage given a light wind forecast for a few days. We
sailed a little and motored a lot for 50 hours, sharing the
night watches 3 hours at a time till we raised our Turks and
Caicos landfall. We were a tired and scraggly crew on arrival
but happy that all had gone well and it was sure good to see
Paul and Peggy waving to us from the marina dock. We enjoyed a
nice Easter together and now await a good forecast for the
passage to the Dominican Republic. The Turks and Caicos are MUCH
more civilized than the Bahamas, with large jets landing daily,
big hotels and condo complexes and great provisioning and
restaurants. Lots of divers come here from all over the world
for the fabulous wall diving and snorkeling. We like it here but
need to keep heading south! And now a few words from the first
mate! / GB.....
From
Georgetown...
First mate checking in!
Whenever I have been asked, “ what is your favorite
color?" I always reply “ aqua blue.” Since I can
remember, turquoise and aqua appealed to me. My wedding
trousseau was that color as was Noelle’s nursery. Now I know
that I was meant to see the waters of Eluthera and the Exumas.
These waters are sheer-simply sheer and they take your breath
away when you first see them! Our boat seems to be suspended in
air. Camaraderie is floating in a glass of water-no wait-she is
floating in a glass of water that’s floating in a bottle of
gin-no wait- she’s floating in a glass of water that’s
floating in a bottle of gin, that’s floating in a swimming
pool- yep- that’s the ticket…
While in the Exumas, we
dinghied over to where they filmed the James Bond movie,
Thunderball. We went snorkeling in the Thunderball Grotto where
I just missed Sean Connery - by about 40 years. The water was
perfectly transparent-gin clear- (or in 007’s case, martini
clear) and of course with the gentle tide we were shaken- not
stirred! Thousands of fish come right up to you and you can feel
them against your arms- one gigantic aquarium!
These waters are such a pale
blue-they look as if milk had been poured in. The sky reflects
the water and they all become one-where you can’t
differentiate the horizon from anything. ( This is a “ pinch
me”, Moseby!). Everyone should experience being surrounded by
these colors for as far as you can see! ^The web pictures
won’t do it justice- neither will my words. As I write this we
are anchored in Georgetown getting ready for an ocean passage to
the Turks and Caicos. There is a full moon and I can see down to
the bottom-including the occasional shark or ray that swims by.
Okay, so Sean wasn’t here this time……but I am. //JB
