Our Travels

With our friends on Finish Grade behind us, we left Fort Pierce at 0400 Tuesday, transiting the inlet channel in the early morning darkness.

A few hours later, since we were traveling east, we were treated to a sunrise show on the ocean.

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In the daylight, you can see you’re not alone on the deep blue sea.

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As we approached the Little Bahama Bank and started the transition from 3000+ feet deep water to the 25 ft or so water, Captain Todd optimistically decided to try his luck on catching a possible celebratory mahi dinner. So, out goes the line.

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So, all’s going great, right? We’ve wrapped up the roughest part of the crossing, and the Gulf Stream is behind us. We’re now in the Bahamas, all smiles, hoisting the Q-flags, marveling on the radio about the color of the gorgeous tropical water, etc. And then we receive a VHF call from Finish Grade, “SaltyMare, we’ve lost our main engine.” WHAT?? No way! Serious engine trouble is just not that common. Those of you who followed us last year know we lost our engine during a crossing IN the Bahamas, not TO. So, not at all a good deja vu feeling here. The crews of both boats are absolutely stunned, and on Finish Grade, Lynn has taken the helm and Terry’s gone to the engine room to diagnose the problem.

Given Terry’s experience with diesels, the suspicion was bad fuel. Over the next several hours, Terry changed filters, polished fuel, changed filters again, etc. Several times she got running and then would shut down. Frustrating was the word. Switch over to the “emergency engine” which runs off their generator, which strangely didn’t mind the fuel.

It is difficult to describe how helpless we felt, wanting desperately to assist in some way. We don’t have Starlink yet (you betcha we’ll be handling that as soon as we return stateside), so we couldn’t make any phone calls or do online research. Nothing. All we could do was stay close. After hours of stops and starts, Susie slipped down to the cockpit and took this situation straight to the Top. Time for a bit of quiet, focused prayer for our friends. As soon as she returned to the flybridge, a tern flew into view right beside the enclosure window, less than 10 feet away, and looked at us. He flew there for a couple of minutes, then moved up to circle above us, then circled over Finish Grade. It was amazing, as if God was assuring us He was watching over us.

With Mangrove Cay still two hours away, the decision was made to anchor where we were on the Little Bahama Bank in approximately 20 feet, so Terry could again polish the fuel, and the crews could get some much-needed rest. We’d try it all again in the light of a new day.

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It was certainly not an ideal place to anchor, too far from any land for coverage, leading to a bumpy night. But everyone tried to rest. In the morning, the main engine still wasn’t starting. The new plan was to use the wing engine to slowly backtrack to the outer edge of the Little Bahama Bank where they would meet a tow boat for a trip to Old Bahama Bay Marina on West End. When it was time to raise anchor and get started, lo and behold, guess who was there.

Then he settled onto their bowrail, where he rode along for several hours. He was joined by a few other terns AND a loon on the hardtop!

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At a whopping 2.9 knots, it took some time to get to where the tow boat was supposed to show up. We did, however, early in fact, and dropped anchors again to wait for the planned 1530 arrival of the cavalry. At 1515, Lynn got a call that the tow boat had engine trouble and wouldn’t be able to make it in time to tow them to safety before dark. At this point, they insisted we hustle to the marina to get docked before sunset. They planned to backtrack a bit and anchor near Sandy Cay where another tow company would pick them up at first light. Words cannot describe how difficult it was to watch their boat get smaller and smaller as we went in separate directions, them at their 2.9 knots, us as fast as the ‘Mare could because we had to reach the marina before sunset.

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In the morning, the Master of the Vessel (that’s the title per the Bahamian forms), aka Todd (who I think likes the “promotion” [LOL]), headed to Customs & Immigration with our passports and paperwork.

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With the SaltyMare all legally flagged, we stepped out to explore the Old Bahama Bay Marina & Resort, have a bite of lunch, and…

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But wait a minute. What about Terry & Lynn on Finish Grade??

Trust me. We remained in contact with them in the evening and the next morning. Once anchored, they sent their coordinates. When the tow arrived, they sent pictures, and that’s when we went to get a bite of lunch. AFTER breathing a huge sigh of relief.

Before our rinsed off feet could dry, Todd spied them in the distance – Finish Grade being towed in! Finally! We changed to actual shoes and made our way to the rocky wall of the jetty to wait for them.

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Weary, yes, but after sitting down in the fresh air (out of the engine room) for only a brief minute, the Master of Finish Grade, aka Terry, headed over to Customs to get them checked in.

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Breaking bread and thanking God for His protection.

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As a PS to all this, the engine mechanic did indeed return (today), the issue that began with bad fuel was resolved, and both captains learned valuable lessons on some of the nuances of our engines and fuel delivery. We’ll head to Freeport in a few days for replacement filters and then be on our way. The competent crew of Finish Grade – who remained calm, cool and collected through everything – will continue their adventure in the Bahamas! Hopefully with a bit less MIS-adventure…