Back on Sheet Music; Marsh Harbour, Hope Town

Monday, March 29: After two turbulent flights back, I made it safely to Marsh Harbour on Monday around 5:45 p.m.  The second leg was delayed getting off the ground because the plane was late getting in to Nassau because of a tornado. The plane was supposed to stop in Treasure Cay on the way to Marsh Harbour, but they changed the route and dropped us off at Marsh Harbour before heading to Treasure Cay, so we were only about a half hour late.

On the way to Orlando airport, Penny and I went to West Marine and I bought another VHF hand-held radio to be sure I could hail Sheet Music when I landed. Now we can each have one when I'm at shore and Chuck is somewhere in the dinghy or around town.

I bought Chuck two jelly donuts in the airport from Dunkin Donuts (his favorite). I also brought him back a new microphone for the radio in the cockpit because the other one stopped working about six weeks ago. I picked him up a watch since his broke a while back.

It started raining as I was getting off the plane. I took a taxi to the main dinghy dock in Marsh Harbour and hailed Sheet Music. Chuck was listening to a report on the tornado and didn't hear my call, so Wayne tracked him down. Chuck picked me up in the dinghy. It was a wet dinghy ride in the rain. I was so happy to be back on Sheet Music.

Patti cooked dinner, which was terrific, especially after a long day of traveling. Chuck gave her some food from our freezer and she cooked on my nights while I was away. Thanks, Patti!

Tuesday, March 30:  Patti and I went to Price Rite Grocery and provisioned the boat. I stocked on meats, since our freezer was almost empty! I also bought some fruits and vegetables. I went back and put everything away. Then we hauled three loads of dirty laundry to the laundromat. Washers were $2 per load and dryers were a quarter for two minutes. Luckily, clothes dried in about 20 minutes.

Chuck turned the generator on and I gave Jazzy a much-needed haircut and a bath. She's a pretty girl now and white again. She fell off the dinghy when Chuck was taking her to shore last week. She got excited when she saw two dogs on the beach and fell off the pontoon. She loves the new squeaky toy that grandmom sent her.

I cooked dinner: sirloin steak, baked potatoes and peas with fresh strawberries and cool whip for dessert. I was exhausted at the end of the day!

Chuck showed me the video he took of Hope Town. Since it was only about 8 miles away and the cruising guide says you haven't been to Abaco if you haven't climbed the lighthouse, we opted to leave Bum's Rest and head back to Hope Town. Chuck didn't get a chance to tour the lighthouse when he was there and I missed it.

Wednesday, March 31:  Bum's Rest was heading for Man-O-War this morning and we were heading to Hope Town. Temp was mid-70s. The sun was very bright. We pulled anchor about  9 a.m. Seas were less than a foot. Winds were 8 knots and SOG was 5.7 at 2800 rpms.

We arrived at Hope Town (Elbow Cay) around 10:30 a.m. and took a mooring ball. We should have taken a dock for another $12. Oh, well. Didn't realize it at the time.

Chuck and I left Jazzy on the boat and went exploring. I don't like to take her when we're exploring. We've run into too many stray or loose dogs on these islands. What a quaint little island! There's a wide pathway, like a double sidewalk, all through town for golf carts, bicycles and walkers. We spent a few hours walking around, then toured the Wyannie Malone Historical Museum (1785). It had exhibits of early life on Elbow Cay.

We've seen so many clever boat names.There's a boat here called C:\[esc].  That's one of my favorites!

Then we went to lunch at Harbours Edge and sat on the water. I had a cracked conch platter. Chuck had a chicken sandwich and a salad. We walked up to the fresh fish store and I bought two large lobsters tails.

Bill and Margee from Tortuga stopped by in their dinghy with their two dogs to chat.

I steamed the lobster tails for dinner and made a Caesar salad. Yum. We're sitting on the boat in the harbor listening to a reggae band as I'm typing this.

Tomorrow we'll meet up with Bum's Rest in Great Guana Cay.

The Abaco Internet connection leaves a lot to be desired, so no photos for now. We expect to be back in the States within two weeks, weather permitting, so I'll upload a bunch of photos then!