After sleeping like babies for almost 11 hours, yesterday we headed into town to tackle the non-connectivity of the phone/data plan that we’d arranged before leaving the U.S. which wasn’t working at all. This would never do. We are a bit too old and responsible for that kind of shenanigans. It’s one thing to go cruising off to exotic ports of call but quite another to do so with no way to keep in touch with family and friends, not to mention researching weather, route planning, etc. We have charts, but heck, can somebody toss us an island/town map? Just amazing how the world is so reliant on the net. So, armed with smiles hidden behind masks (luckily Susie has great eyes), we did it the old fashioned way. By talking to folks in person. Long story, but it took more than 24 hours, the kind assistance of several very friendly Bahamians, in addition to many calls (on their phones) to the agency based in Washington, DC and, yes, access to free WIFI at the Green Turtle Club to finally get our phone connected…. today. Fortunately, just in time to wish everyone a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Oh, remember that promise about the blue water? Well, we’ve cruised through bright blue water, followed by the most gorgeous turquoise water, and we are sitting in 14′ of water clear enough to see the bottom. This morning we took the dinghy out to locate our anchor, and there it was, clear as day, securely dug into the grassy sand. Then as we were zinging along, I kept my eyes trained on the bottom and saw a BIG starfish. Amazing!

After fueling up at Vero Beach City Marina, we headed out around 3:22pm. Oops, let’s make that 1522 hours for the sailors and military folk paying attention here. My request to the captain was that we hit the inlet in daylight in order to see it and take photos. Man, did he accommodate – our departure was perfectly timed to look back and capture the sunset over Florida.

During the past year of outfitting the boat, if things got stressful, I’d playfully point out, “You promised me blue water.” And suddenly, there we were on the ocean blue. Then, it was dark, and darker, and darker. The stars were beautiful when not hidden behind cloud cover, above was clear and filled with the heavens, but to the east (our basic direction) there were clouds moving around all night. So it became difficult to distinguish the horizon in the inky blackness. To the west, the lights of South Florida made it clear we were headed on an adventure. We kept a watch on instruments, course headings, GPS, looking for lights of other vessels so we could identify them and their distance on radar and/or AIS, etc. Did I mention it was very, very dark? We could look down as our wake disturbed the water, and it absolutely sparkled with bioluminescence – beautiful blinking points of light on the water’s surface. Cool! We took turns on watch, but truthfully, we were both almost too excited to sleep, so the naps were brief, more like power naps. We spent most of the time together on the flybridge.

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As the sun rose enough for us to see once again, we raised the yellow Quarantine flag required to be flown until check-in with Customs & Immigration. We were now strangers in a foreign land.

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We dropped the hook near Green Turtle Cay around 1500 hours, set the anchor alarm, and quickly lowered the dinghy so the “Master of the Vessel” (it’s a Bahamian thing), Todd, could go check us in. We were fortunate enough that the customs agent had just arrived at the Green Turtle Club. Great timing on this end, as well. Off he went with our passports and folder full of information. As a matter of Covid-19 protocol, only the master is allowed to leave the vessel until you’re cleared. Upon his return with our stamped passports and Travel Visa, we removed the Q-flag and raised the Bahamas courtesy flag for our stay, grabbed a cocktail, and headed to the bow in time to catch our first Bahamian sunset. NOW we can sleep. Aaaaah.

Thanks to all for the prayers for our safe passage. Covid-safe, long distance hugs!

With the boat ship shape and ready to cruise, all we needed was the right weather window to cross to the islands. Yesterday, we took the dinghy to catch the bus, walked from the bus stop to the rental car agency, drove the rental car to Miami to pick up new thruster joystick controllers for the lower helm station, then reversed the whole process to return to Vero Beach. (Todd took his required-for-travel Covid-19 test before we left. I took mine as we flew down the Florida Turnpike.) A final stop at the grocery store, then back on the boat. As darkness settled, we loaded the dinghy on the flybridge and moved from the mooring ball to a slip so we could plug in for the night. Our electric guru calls this a “spa day” for the boat – gets everything totally charged without running the generator.

Today we will return the rental car, take the bus back to the marina, wash the decks, finish our navigational planning processes, fuel up, and head out mid-afternoon for the crossing. 24-30 hours or so later, the master of the vessel, Todd, will meet with Customs and Immigration officials at Green Turtle Cay Club, to check us in. After more than a year of outfitting and months of planning and provisioning, let the fun in the sun, and some serious down time, begin!!!

Todd has been working really hard going through the systems to ensure we have a safe trip.