(Crooked Island, Bahamas)
Wanna meet the newest and biggest fan of night sailing???
That would be…ME!!!!!!!!!!!
That is, if it’s anything like the passage we had from Pittstown, Crooked Island to Atwood Habour, Acklins Island. It was A-W-E-S-O-M-E!
Okay, truth be told, we might have only motor-sailed the whole way because we were beating into the wind, but regardless the night sail was still perfect in my book.
The waves were small-ish.
The temperature was cool-ish.
The sky was crystal clear.
The moon was high and bright.
It was perfect really.
We once again followed Bruce Van Sant’s advice from his book >>Passages South<< and opted for a night sail on this leg of our trip. (PS – if you’re a first-time cruiser sailing the Caribbean, you definitely might want to check out this book!)
We weighed anchor around 2AM and motored out of the anchorage in Pittstown (Crooked Island) and headed back into open water as we sailed up and around the island and eastward towards Acklins Island. We were able to sail right along the coast of both islands since they are such close neighbors and practically make for one large island.
I thought for sure as soon as we weighed anchor and headed out, I’d want to fall right back asleep in my cozy cockpit chair while Jer took the first shift, but it was SO magical out there, I couldn’t sleep a wink!
The clear night sky was filled with millions and millions of shining stars. Really the brightest and best star gazing I’ve ever seen! I could’ve stared up at the sky all night long.
There was >>bioluminescence<< sparkling in the ocean that grabbed my attention too! With each wave we sailed through, hundreds of tiny fluorescent blue organisms would light up in our wake. It was like we were throwing handfuls of blue glitter into the ocean with each passing wave. It was awesome and I really wish I had been able to get a photo!
I literally sat up on my knees on the cockpit locker taking turns looking down at the sparkling waves and back up into the beautiful star-filled sky. I could’ve done that for hours. But eventually my exhaustion got the best of me and I dozed off only to be awoken by Jer at 6AM for my turn at the helm.
While ^^Jer quickly dozed off^^ I was greeted by a beautiful sunrise on the water. I ran down below deck to grab my camera for a few photos. I mean, it was golden hour after all so far be it for me to miss out on a photo opp. ;))
^^what a sunrise over the open water!^^
We arrived at Atwood Harbour, Acklins Island around 9AM with plenty of light to see the large reef that lines the entrance to the anchorage. We had no problem navigating into the secluded anchorage, and dropped anchor around 9:30AM.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed for many more perfect night sails just like this.
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing, as we cruise the Bahamas + Caribbean. …Learn more about us and our sailing + cruising adventures.
Posted in Bahamas, Sailing Blog, Sailing LoveTags: Acklins Island, Bahamas, Caribbean, Crooked Island, Cruising, LahoWind, night passage, night sail, Sailing Blog, sunrise on the ocean
(Crooked Island, Bahamas)
Okay, how many is too many when it comes to photos of an afternoon dinghy excursion to see a lighthouse?
431???
Because that’s how many I took. Yeah, I know. Crazytown.
BUT…it was our very first lighthouse visit so far on this sailing journey. So, I suppose that’s my excuse. ;)) And the good news is…I only grabbed 10 to edit for this post. You’re welcome.
A week or so ago, we pulled into Pittstown, Crooked Island…one of the southern most out islands of the Bahamas. Basically, just about as off the grid as you can get down here.
Not only did we NOT make it into town while anchored outside Pittstown, I’m fairly certain we didn’t even pass the seaweed line on shore. Pathetic. ;))
BUT…we DID enjoy a fun little dinghy excursion to see the awesome lighthouse just offshore.
The Bird Rock Lighthouse is located just off of Pittstown Point, the northwestern point of Crooked Island. It’s separated from the mainland by a narrow waterway.
From what I’ve read, the lighthouse was originally built to guard the Crooked Island Passage, but has long since simply become a popular nesting spot for Ospreys.
Don’t let the Explorer Charts fool you — they say the lighthouse has been refurbished and is working. Hah! That’s hilarious. Construction of the lighthouse started in 1866; it became operational in 1876, but has been totally out of commission since the early 2000’s. It is definitely NOT in working condition. Nonetheless, it is still super interesting to see.
I’m pretty certain our little lighthouse excursion should have been one helluva wet and wild 1-mile dinghy ride from the anchorage outside Pittstown. But luckily for us, there was a major “calm before the storm” type effect at the same moment we decided to get off our butts and go check out the lighthouse. Love when that happens!
We walked in and around the lighthouse and surrounding buildings. This must have been some fancy operation back when it was functioning. It was quite the maze of various rooms, all interconnected with several out buildings too. I swear, most of the worn down finishes on the walls and windows could’ve sold for big bucks at Pottery Barn. Lol.
Sadly, we did not try to climb the stairs all the way to the tippy top. We are losers who haven’t worn flip-flops (much less actual shoes) in over a week or two, and forgot to bring any foot protection with us when we dinghied over. The dark stairway to the top was littered with rusty nails and broken glass so we opted to keep it safe on the bottom floor where we could see what the heck we were stepping on.
If you’re ever in the area, it’s definitely worth checking out!
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing, as we cruise the Bahamas + Caribbean. …Learn more about us and our sailing + cruising adventures.
Posted in Sailing Blog, Sailing Love, TravelTags: Bahamas, Bird Rock Lighthouse, Caribbean, Crooked Island, Cruising, LahoWind, Pittstown, Sailboat, Sailing Blog
(Clarence Town, Long Island, Bahamas)
I’m convinced we were temporarily adopted by dolphins during our stay in Clarence Town, Long Island. That, OR we anchored right on top of their home turf.
Either way, we had an adorable mama + baby dolphin pair that would not leave our boat. For anything.
I’m telling you, their stay lasted at least 48 hours, if not more! And that’s only after we first noticed the two circling our boat one morning while leaving to take Oliver to shore for his usual potty break.
Turns out, I’m NOT all that familiar with dolphin swimming *below* the surface. The water back in Naples isn’t nearly as crystal clear (to say the most), so you really only see dolphin after they surface…when they do their typical porpoise rolls. So when a huge black shark-looking figure is swimming underwater towards the dinghy, and Jereme is already in the dinghy, you kinda freak out. A teensy bit. ;))
I quickly realized we weren’t in the presence of big sharks, but rather two adorable dolphin that eventually surfaced right next to the dink! We paused and enjoyed the show for a few minutes thinking that by the time we returned from dog duty, the pair would be long gone.
Back in George Town a few weeks ago, we experienced a similar encounter from one lone dolphin who circled our boat for about an hour. We think he must’ve been feeding since he appeared shortly after Jereme had finished bottom cleaning our boat…that tends to attract lots of fish and hence the dolphin.
But ^^this^^ dolphin encounter in Long Island was totally different! The twosome definitely did not wave goodbye and head off into the sunset after merely an hour. They stuck around for TWO entire days!!!
At first, the pair just casually circled the boat for a few hours. And even stuck it out through a heavy thunderstorm and downpour (all while we showered on deck and collected rain water).
Oliver got quite the workout that day, seeing as he lapped the boat about 500 times while trying to keep tabs on the dolphins’ whereabouts. After a few hours of listening to Oliver’s incessant whimper/bark/cry and worrying that he might fall overboard, we were forced to keep him below deck so he wouldn’t be able to see the dolphins surface. He’s no dummy though. He knew full well that his friends were still out there frolicking without him. He tried his hardest (and succeeded on several occasions) to sneak back up to check on the pair.
From what we’ve heard (and it could all be a load of you-know-what), dolphins can in fact “adopt” a boat as part of their group. It typically happens when they are lost or separated from their pod. We’ve also heard tales of dolphin mommas “dropping off their dolphin kiddos” at a safe location while they go and do other things (for lack of a better description). Kinda like our boat is “babysitting” the little ones. I know that sounds strange, but we heard it from the actual guy who helped rescue Winter, the real life dolphin from the movie “Dolphin Tale.” We met him in Blackpoint (Exumas) and then again in George Town where he gave us the lowdown on all sorts of dolphin behavior.
In this case however, momma and baby were constantly together and did not part from one another the entire time. They swam within 20 feet or so of one another, usually much closer. And stayed no further than 100 feet from the boat at any given time.
The second day, the dolphins seemed to become a bit more social. They jumped high out of the water for us while playfully flipping their tails in the air. Such show-offs! ;)) The pair swam upside down under and around the dinghy. …Probably wondering why we weren’t jumping in and going for a swim. Perhaps we should have! But we’ve heard mixed opinions on swimming with wild dolphin and I just wouldn’t want to risk the momma becoming aggressive with her baby nearby.
^^You can see their white bellies under the water as they swam right by the dink!^^
I thought for sure we would see the pair when we awoke on day 3. I mean, they had become part of the crew at that point. ;)) But I guess they had their fill of us and moved on to bigger and better things. …Hopefully back to their little dolphin family.
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing, as we cruise the Bahamas + Caribbean. …Learn more about us and our sailing + cruising adventures.
(Clarence Town, Long Island, Bahamas)
If I had to pick a favorite island in all of the Bahamas, it would be Long Island.
Definitely.
^^i love this place!^^
>>Our first trip to Long Island<< (over my birthday week) ended with us staying at an awesome resort on one of the prettiest white sand beaches I’ve ever seen AND Jereme and I getting engaged! So obviously, Long Island already holds a very very special place in my heart.
And, turns out, we ended up making an unplanned return trip to the island after leaving >>Rum Cay.<< Wherever the wind takes you...isn’t that what they say?! ;))
We had intended on sailing all the way to Crooked Island after leaving Rum Cay, but the seas and winds were so NOT in our favor. I swear, the weather forecasts never seem to be accurate for us. When they call for three to five foot waves, it ends up being wave more like eight to 10.
After miserably beating into 8-foot waves for a few hours one morning, we made the executive decision to detour our little boat and instead sail a much easier and more comfortable route…sailing on a broad reach…to the west side of Long Island.
We ended up pulling into Harbour Point outside of Clarence Town during a torrential downpour…which is always loads of fun. ;(( Luckily, the weather cleared up that evening and stayed rather pleasant the rest of the time.
We spent the next few days exploring Clarence Town, dinghying to find sea turtles, and soaking up the free wifi and tasty food at Rowdy Boys Bar + Grill. Oh, and of course filling up our tanks (water + diesel) at the Flying Fish Marina.
^^walking into town after landing our dinghy at the marina.^^
^^trying to take more photos of us…even if they’re selfies.^^
The first day we walked to town to check out their grocery store situation.
I never really know what to expect from town to town. Most of the more remote islands have had slim pickings when it comes to food. In this case, I was specifically on the hunt for cheese. Figures. ;)) …Let me just tell ya, we make lots of quesadillas on this ship.
^^looks just like Publix, doesn’t it?^^
Turns out, the mailboat had yet to arrive that week with a new supply of block cheddar (think government cheese) for the grocery store, so we were out of luck.
But later in the week, we headed back to the grocer and this time he had cheese in stock! Yippee!
^^yay for cheese, soda, + cookies!^^
We threw a 6-pack of Fanta and Diet Coke in the mix, along with some more of those delicious custard cream cookies, and a bottle of ketchup, and called it a day.
While we were exploring town, we stumbled upon a herd of wild sheep that apparently likes to hang around Clarence Town!
^^hello cute little sheep family!^^
^^definitely wild from the looks of it.^^
They didn’t really seem to mind us walking by their little pack; however, we did witness a mini standoff between the grocery store guard dog and the herd as it tried to pass. They quickly worked out their differences (i.e. the dog just sat there and didn’t move a muscle) and the sheep mosey’d on by.
^^stand-off time.^^
We also walked to see the gorgeous Catholic Church that sits atop the highest hill in town. It was really quite pretty with a great view of the island and harbour.
^^the Catholic Church with a view^^
^^taking a breather from our little walk.^^
The next day, we decided to go on a little sea turtle dinghy adventure. We could see on our Explorer Chartbooksthat there was a really shallow mangrove area just to the south of the harbour, next to Clem Cay…turtle habitat for sure we thought! And luckily, it was high tide so we could dinghy our way in.
^^more selfies!^^
We spent a few hours exploring Clem Cay and Salt Pond Cay, where there appeared to be some major sea turtle research happening in this area.
We saw TONS of green turtles, all of which were tagged with small blue plastic looking tags. After a quick google search, it looks like this might be part of a University of Florida research program studying sea turtle populations throughout the Bahamas.
^^turtles love the mangroves.^^
And holy moly are those turtles fast! Sheesh! I could hardly get a photo of one. We finally managed to sneak up on one little turtle by turning off our dinghy engine and floating downstream towards the unsuspecting little guy. Thankfully, I was able to snap one or two halfway decent shots on my little Canon G12.
We might have stuck around a little too long in the shallows because we ended up having to walk ourselves out part of the way. Typical.
^^official dinghy-walker-outer^^
^^this guy loves dinghy adventures!^^
We had a great few days in Clarence Town, but it was time to move on. We’re trying our hardest to get our little boat to Puerto Rico by the dirty part of hurricane season.
Posted in Bahamas, Boat Life, Sailing Blog, TravelTags: Bahamas, Caribbean, Clarence Town, Cruising, Green Turtle, LahoWind, Long Island, Sailing Blog, Sea Turtles, Young Couple
Let me tell you a little secret.
Jereme has been hounding me to make fish + chips ever since we started catching fish on this sailing trip! …Which would be, um, close to 3 months ago. ;)) I’m not sure why it took me THAT long to cook up some fish + chips because beer batter is one of my favorite ways to prepare fish.
Even though it’s fried, it’s really a fairly light coating. And honestly, if you put a light and fluffy fried coating on just about anything, I’m a happy camper.
We’ve been cooking fish just about every other way, so it was about freaking time for me to fry some up!
And since we have a few potatoes on board, why not fry those up too! :))
^^Yum! Fresh fried French fries! Say that three times fast.^^ This is really two recipes combined into one delicious post. What kind of person would I be if I didn’t put the two together? I mean, it’s fish AND chips for crying out loud! You can’t have one without the other.
^^can’t go wrong with fish + chips…on a boat…in the beautiful Bahamas!^^ Although the recipe involves multiple frying steps and messy battering, it’s really quite simple. Just make sure you leave enough prep time to let the potatoes soak in water before you fry them up! It really does make a difference.
Oh and make sure you have at least one beer on hand! (Although I highly suggest more than one on hand bc it sure is nice to enjoy a cold beer alongside this finished recipe.) The beer for the batter mix doesn’t need to be a top shelf selection or anything, any old can or bottle will do. :))
Happy cooking! And eating! (recipe below.)
^^we prefer our fries on the thinner side! but you can cut them as thick or thin as you want!^^
^^make sure to soak those taters for at least 30 minutes.^^
^^after soaking, dry on a paper toweled lined baking sheet.^^
^^any beer will do for the batter mix. We had a random one floating around our fridge.^^
Batter mixed and taters cut, soaked, and dried…you’re ready to start frying!!!^^
Beer Battered Fish
Ingredients:
- 2 (8-ounce) fish filets cut into thick strips (we used mahi mahi)
- 1.5 cups all purpose flour (set aside 1/2 cup)
- 1 (12-ounce) beer
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- Vegetable oil (enough to fill your skillet about an inch deep)
- Tartar sauce (for dipping) *we have Trader Joe’s brand on board…it’s awesome!
Directions:
- In a large bowl, whisk together 1 cup flour, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Add the entire bottle or can of beer and continue mixing until a smooth batter forms. Set batter aside until ready to use. It’s actually better if it sits for about 15 minutes or so. (I usually move on to frying the french fries at this point.)
- Pat dry the fish filets and cut into thick strips. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Dip each piece of fish into the batter and coat it completely. Then drop the fish into the additional 1/2 cup of flour and dust each battered piece.
- Heat large skillet (I prefer cast iron) over medium heat and add enough oil so that there is about an inch-deep worth in the skillet. Once hot, add the coated pieces of fish and cook until golden brown and crispy, about 3-4 minutes per side. Remove and let drain on a paper towel and repeat in batches as needed.
Double-Fried French Fries
Ingredients:
- 2 large russet potatoes
- Vegetable oil (enough to fill your skillet about an inch to an inch and a half deep)
- Salt
Directions:
- Cut potatoes into skinny fry slices. The skinnier the better in my opinion.
- Fill a large bowl with water and soak potatoes, submerged for at least 30 minutes (up to 24 hours). This helps remove the excess starch.
- Heat a large skillet over medium and add enough oil so that there is about an inch-deep worth in the skillet.
- Remove potatoes from the water and pat dry on a paper towel to remove excess water. Add two handfuls of potatoes to the hot oil. Do not overcrowd the skillet or they will not have enough room to cook properly. I find they stick to the bottom when there are too many in the pan. Par cook the potatoes until they are soft, about 5 to 7 minutes per batch. Remove potatoes from oil and set on paper towel lined baking sheet to drain. Repeat until all of the potatoes are par cooked.
- Raise skillet oil heat to medium-high. Add more oil if necessary. Cook potatoes again (in batches) until golden brown and crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes per batch. Remove from oil and set on paper towel lined baking sheet and sprinkle hot fries with salt. Repeat until all potatoes are fried. I keep fries warm in a preheated oven while I move on to cooking the fish.
Serve beer battered fish and french fries with favorite dipping sauces. In our case, we love tartar sauce with the fried fish and ketchup with the fries.
Enjoy!
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing, as we cruise the Bahamas + Caribbean. …Learn more about us and our sailing + cruising adventures.
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Sounds perfect!
Night sailing is the best! It’s even cooler when you are out away from the sight of land in any direction and a thunderstorm rolls past in the distance lighting up the sky. Once on a trip across the Gulf of Mexico, I watched a full moon come up over the horizon bright red. Then the red practically dripped off of it as it rose and turned orange and then white. I love sailing at night!
I can’t wait to do our first night sail! Although ours will be on Lake Michigan so I don’t think we’ll have the bioluminescence 🙁 So glad you guys had a great experience! ~Jackie
I think some of my most special moments are alone on deck in the middle of the night. On a recent passage down the coast of the South Island of New Zealand, I was on watch, the sky was so clear that I could even see satellites tracking across the sky, and there were dolphins swimming alongside in the bio-luminescence – it was almost surreal!
Gorgeous photos!
I always take the shift where I get to watch the sunrise. It’s my favorite part! So magical.
[…] oceany/islandy/sailing centric. Weird. We downloaded the whole record on iTunes before our first >>overnight passage<< and I’m pretty sure we’ve listened to it in its entirety about 45,000 times since. […]