Rock Sound, Eleuthera, Bahamas

 Another quiet day….rainy and windy. 

A tanker docked over near the airport….that was the total of boat activity for the day. 

The only productive thing I did was bake a batch of macadamia nut cookies. Yum. 

Rock Sound, Eleuthera, Bahamas

 Not a lot of excitement for the next day or so…just hanging out in the windy anchorage.

We did get a nice visit with Darcey and Michelle from New Ambition.  It’s been a couple of years since we’ve seen these Canadians and it was nice to catch up. We’ll be seeing them a good bit this winter as they will be heading to the Raggeds after a Christmas visit with relatives in Georgetown.

Rock Sound, Elethera, Bahamas

 Hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving Day (or just a regular day if you're not from the US!!)

We motored in almost flat seas and little wind about 6 hours south to Rock Sound.  There are some strong winds forecast for the next few days and Rock Sound provides excellent holding and good wind protection from most wind angles.  No other boat traffic and a familiar shoreline.

 

Anchored mid-day.  By the end of the day, there was a total of 4 boats anchored in the huge bay.  I got busy immediately after arrival making a Thanksgiving meal for Duane and I.  

 

 The meal was yummy!  Plenty of leftovers.....

Alabaster Bay, Eleuthera, Bahamas

 Time for a nice long walk...nearby is an abandoned US Navy installation.  We've been here before but it's a fun stroll around the deteriorating base.  Here's what AI says about it:

Abandoned U.S. Navy base on Eleuthera, located near Alabaster Bay and Receiver's Landing. Established in 1950, the base was used for sonar activities and closed in 1982 after the U.S. and Bahamian governments could not agree on new lease terms. The site, also referred to as an experimental U.S. Navy facility and Auxiliary Air Force Base, is now abandoned, though parts are submerged and used as a habitat for marine life. 

    Function: The base's primary function was to house an experimental U.S. Navy "Sound Surveillance System" (SOSUS) station. It also operated as an Auxiliary Air Force Base.
    Closure: It originated in November 1950 and closed in 1982. The closure was due to disagreements over lease terms between the U.S. Navy and the Bahamian government.

 Almost 50 years later, it's getting pretty overgrown....

Warning signs....no one seems to mind if we wander though.

This was the chapel - it's huge.  The faded white sign painted on the side of the building advertises the different times for the different religious denomination's worship schedule.

This is all the same building -there must have been a lot of religious servicemen and women!!

Walking in the hot sun over to the beautiful ocean side.  Taking a break on the rubble.

It's hard to see it, but this is a paved water collection basin.  There were two of these on the property.  Apparently, during rainstorms, they pumped the fresh water up to large holding tanks.

Most of the roadways that are no longer in use look like this.

 

We spent a couple of hours wandering around....sad that no one made use of all the structures.....but I'm sure there were lots of politics at play....

Back to the boat....

Strangely, our dinghy had a lot of water in it when we returned.....we investigated a little but could find no leak.....hmmmm.  Will investigate further once we get to Rock Sound.

There are lots of beautiful places in the Bahamas and this is on the top part of that list!

X

Alabaster Bay, Eleuthera, Bahamas

 We were up early to lift anchor and go thru Current Cut on our way south.  Timing is important as there is a large tidal current thru the cut.  The cut is hard to see until you're close, but it's up there!

 

 

Thru the cut with about 2 knots current in the "right" direction.

Looking back thru the cut.  The winds were on our nose so we chose to run one motor.  We made a turn towards the shoreline where the waves were much kinder.

 

Pretty little settlements along the way.  

Passing Hatchet Bay closely as we hugged the shoreline.  We had originally planned to haul out there for bottom paint but that didn't work out.

Arrived at Alabaster Bay mid-day.  Beautiful here and we have it all to ourselves.  We'll do some boat chores that we were not able to do the 4 days we were hauled out.

I made some "Marry Me Tofu" for supper.  Toasted the tofu.

I added some chickpeas, carrots and onions to the recipe since it just seemed like the thing to do.

 

 

Served over rice, it was good.  I think I used every pot in the house though, so plenty of cleanup afterwards!

Meeks Patch, Eleuthera, Bahamas

Last day on the lift. We wanted to splash in the evening, so we gave the workers to go ahead to sand and wax the outer hulls.  That’s all they really have time for. They are hard workers!

It looks quite a bit better, as the fiberglass was chalky and dull. Not perfect, but we’re very pleased.

While they worked on the boat, we walked to the Eagles Landing restaurant for some lunch.  After a nice sandwich and fries, we went to the grocery store to just pick up some fresh stuff.  

Right at 5pm they finished their polishing, bill settled and they lowered us back into the water within minutes.  A great experience at a boat yard!

We motored about a half hour over to Meeks Patch for the evening, anchoring just at sunset. A sidenote, Duane‘s repair of the windless motor is holding for now.  We’ll meet up with Kris and Dean for a replacement in the next few weeks if weather allows.

We had a nice evening, glad to be back in the water with all of the hatches is open and no bugs!

Sunrise!

 The sun is just peeking out, lifting anchor to go through current cut for points South this morning.

Spanish Wells, Eleuthera, Bahamas

 Now that the bottom paint is done, Duane got busy replacing a sail drive seal.  He checked the oil when we were in Cocoa Beach and had noticed that the oil was a little "milky".  Not an emergency, but had to be addressed.

With all the tape removed, looks nice.  But the white hull needs some attention! 

Prop primed and painted with non-copper bottom paint.

There is a swing out on the beach.....so we had to do that....

To get our photo taken, I just flagged down a couple that was walking by....they ended up being from Denton, NC!! They were there with their extended family enjoying the warm climate.....had a nice chat with them.

We wandered the beach for about an hour before taking the golf cart back.  They  are scheduled to wax the boat in the morning and we should be splashed after that.

Reading my Kindle in the cockpit in the evening before the "No-See-Em's" come out....the fast ferry rumbled by.

Spanish Wells, Eleuthera, Bahamas

 The boat is looking nice!  

 

The workers seem to be meticulous.  Weird watching someone else do this to our boat since we've always done it ourselves!

While the workers were busy at the boat, we just did some more island touring on the golf cart.  I just love the "island houses".

After lunch at Buddha's, we were back to the boat for some afternoon relaxation.  Temps are warm but not uncomfortable.

We've never been on the island at night before - always back to the boat in the anchorage by nightfall.  So we took this opportunity to do a little island tour in the dark.  They really go all out for Christmas decorations.  I'm sure it will get even more intense over the next few weeks. 

But the main reason for the evening venture was to finally visit Papa's Scoops ice cream!  They're only open for a few hours every night.  Only two flavors offered and posted the morning before.  Choices tonight were coconut and butterscotch.  When we arrived, there was a line of golf carts and a kid on a bike in front of us.  

The line quickly moved though....

My large serving of coconut ice cream.....really yummy!

With ice cream in hand, we drove around to look at more of the Christmas lights. 

We were a little shocked to see that the bridge between Spanish Wells and Russell Island was decked out as well!

 

Fun to drive thru the "tunnel" with the golf cart.

Fun day!