Since my last post, we stayed in Green Turtle Cay for a few more days than expected due to a strong wind from the NE. Not great for the 4-5 hr. sail to Hope Town. So we kept meandering around this cute quaint authentic Bahamian little town. We found this interesting Fan Palm in the front yard of a home in New Plymouth.
We took a walk on the Beach (Atlantic side) and made our way to Guillam Bay. The sand had been recently groomed!
The many Roosters and chickens are everywhere.
The night before we decided to go around The Whale, we anchored out in front of the New Plymouth settlement. We needed high tide to exit Black Sound on Green Turtle Cay due to our 6 ft draft. We also needed high tide to enter Hope Town Harbour so we couldn't just exit one and go to the other. It would mean entering Hope Town in the dark and so we left one high tide and waited for the next day's high tide to enter Hope Town Harbour.
West winds were light and variable, and the sunset spectacular. Later at about midnight, the wind piped up again to 16-18 kts making for a very bumpy, rolly sleepless night. There is little protection from the West!
Whale Cay Passage
One of the major parts of going past Green Turtle Cay and into the Southern Abacos is through the Whale Cut Passage. This can be a bit daunting as it is where the mighty Atlantic Ocean meets the Sea of Abaco. If the wind is kicked up from the North or East, you can expect the break to cause a treacherous ride across the 1.5 nautical mile trek. Although it doesn’t seem long, problems can arise at any time.
The passage around the Whale was easy and uneventful. We motor sailed for the next 4 hours in light winds to arrive at our destination a few hours before high tide.
Every evening at exactly 6PM the local church in the town plays bells and Christmas chime bells for about 3 minutes. From the harbour, you hear the bells and can watch the lighting of the last hand lite kerosene lighthouse left in the world. Hard to believe but they have all been replaced with mechanized electric versions. The Hope Town Light is lit by a lighthouse keeper. The huge glass lenses rotate on a pool of mercury...Hand-cranked to lift the huge weight that turns the lenses. Much like a grandfather clock assembly. Local volunteers string long strands of lights for Christmas from the top to the ground. They took a lot of wind stress these last few days!
We arrived in Hope Town late afternoon. Miss Ellie was tied to a mooring ball, we lowered our dingy, and went to the Hope Town Inn where there was an open house for the holidays. Free treats and wine were served. There, we met up with friends and happily participated in different conversations. Then, we went to the 4th annual Christmas Village set up at the main park in town. A magical place that seems to appear overnight. It seemed like a whirlwind after the last calm two weeks in Green Turtle.
The next day, a strong weather front was coming our way. This pic is the night before The sky was spectacular.
The wind blew for two days....(we are where the small green dot is on this pic from our GPS fix on Wind Finder's mapping.) Guy had made sure we were well secured on our mooring ball and we battened down the hatches.
The night after the mighty storm. All good....
We are happy to see the sun shining again and resume our visiting, walking the beach, happy hours etc.
We wish our family and friends a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year! xoxoxox
