Smokey

Smokey
Smokey's favorite spot

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Cat's Eye keeps movin'

Is it time to leave already? The time we spent in Maine flew by!
We had a lot to keep us busy! Dave got to spend time with his kids and I got a chance to go back down to NYC and spend some great time with my family.
While we where in Maine Dave and I made some big decisions. We decided to buy a house in Florida. We decided that America is not all that bad. BUT we are all so planning on spending 1/2 the years cruising the Caribbean (we are not ready to be landlubbers just yet). The house is also 500' from the ICW on a dredged out canal. Nice.

Yup my new house will be on sticks on the water!


This added to the list of things for us to do while in Maine. Trying to buy a house when you are not there can be done but would be much easier if we where not floating about. So we made an offer (on a house I have never seen) and now are just going through the motions. If all goes well we will be Florida home owners on the 15th of September. Keep your fingers crossed!!

We had to show Cat's Eye some love too, all this talk about a house we did not want her to get mad - we had Scarborough Signs (thank you Joe) redo the Cat's Eye lettering on the boat. We had the name across the transom but when the dinghy was pulled up (which is every time we are under way) it covered the name of the boat. We had Joe relocate the letters to the sides of the boat. So now everyone can see her name!! And I think it looks much better too!



This is great that we are buying a house BUT we are still very north of Florida. We started our journey back down south today. We are anxious to get back to Florida but not just yet. It is still hurricane season. And we also have some important stops along the east coast to make. This trip is not over yet!! We have a long way to go!!

Portsmouth Harbor Light


We left Portland harbor this morning wrapped up in hoodies, long pants, slippers and Dave went and got his facemask (the one he used for work - Yes he looked scary!) We where cold. Summer is just about over in Maine. We sailed down to Portsmouth, NH - day started out choppy and lumpy but evened out as we sailed on. A hot meal and a good nights sleep and we will be off again tomorrow headed for Gloucester, MA

So big changes on Cat's Eye but we are really excited about it. It is a great feeling to be back up in the states and soo close to family. I NEVER thought I would want to comeback here to live but after being here for more then a "visit" I can not believe I have stayed away so long! Having a home on Cat's Eye and a home on land seems to bring some great balance for us right now!

Have to end the blog with a picture of Charlie!!

Friday, August 12, 2011

Can't get there from here!




Well, I guess I am LONG overdue for an update!

So much to tell!!

Once we hit the Jersey area we starting seeing the Family! First stop was Cape May to see Sissy!! Dave's sister and brother-in-law. We also checked out the USCG base where Dave's son will go in October for boot camp! YEA!!
A couple of nights in Cape May and we kept heading North (Now we are getting into MY neck of the Hood -Opps I meant woods!) We grabbed a mooring at Atlantic Yacht Harbor (Sandy Hook). After a few nights here and a couple of hangovers later we moved on.

Next stop THE BRONX!! Finally Cat's Eye made it to her home port!

Lady Liberty!!



As I was growing up in The Bronx, I never was on the water. Sailing was not a part of my life at all. I did not stare longingly at the open ocean thinking - I will return here someday on my very own sailboat. Soo the fact that I was in the The Bronx with my family was a little bizarre! The big highlight was getting my family out on my boat for a little harbor cruise. Both my sisters and 2 nephews, my father and my mother (those of you that know MY mother right now are asking if we drugged and hit my mother over the head to get her on a boat! NO we did not!! She actually had a good time!!)
After a week of hanging out in the Boogie Down it was time to move on. We have a goal! We need to get to MAINE!!
Never thought I would sail under these bridges, way better then being stuck in traffic driving over them!


We sailed through the Long Island sound for the next couple of days. We also spent a couple of days relaxing watching movies due to the fog. We spent a night at Block Island and had a great time but we moved on fast. It was starting to get chilly at night. I pulled out the comforter and long sleepy time pants. Dave got out his fuzzy slippers. We knew we where getting close to Maine now!

We finally arrived in Maine around July 16th! WoooHoooo!! We did it!!

So now it is time to give Cat's Eye some love. Dave replaced the floor in the galley. We are having the name on her hull redone. Cat's Eye also decided that she wanted Dave to replace all of her head hose - real shitty job! :0) Cat's Eye also decided that the refrigerator need to take a break. Hopefully it will feel like working soon! She also decided that her starting batteries where just tired of starting! Glad she waited till we got to Maine.

We had Uncle Sam ship our Jeep here from the Virgin Islands - thanks Uncle Sam! So food shopping is no longer a huge task! Yea!
The Jeep will live in Florida!

Where to from here..I don't know.
I do know that being around family is amazing. I know that I would do this trip again in a heartbeat. I know that you never have enough money in the cruising kiddy. I know it is F**king cold in Maine.I know it is hard to keep that great looking caribbean tan when you are wearing hooded sweetshirts and long jeans!!  I know Dave and I will start heading south on Aug 31st. I know that we will figure things out as we go. I never thought that this trip was about "finding something" or to do "soul searching" But it has made me rethink what is important. And as crazy as this might sound I am still not tired of being around Dave! You would think that we would be ready to kill eachother by now. So far so good!! (This is just my opinion Dave might feel different!)

For now we are just really enjoying the family..
Dave and Jeremy @ Maine Indoor Karting - Jeremy works here - for now. He just sold his soul to the USCG!! Yea!


The plan after here...?? We will let you know as it all unfolds on our trip back down south!

Friday, June 24, 2011

East Coast Update

I have been slacking on my blog updates!
sorry no picturs, internet is slow and will not let me upload :(
As we have been  heading up North along the ICW we have been stopping and enjoying places that we either just heard or learned about and some places are places we where returning to see good friends.

We hit Charleston, SC - we spent a couple of days enjoying the southern charm of the city.
we spent the next week or so stopping at night to rest and moving forward the next day. This deadline to make it to Maine during the summer is slowly (really fast!!) creeping up on us! We stopped in Myrtle Beach, SC to enjoy my birthday but then we kept moving. We still have tons of stops to make before we hit Maine and the further North we get the more friends we have to stop and see!
North Carolina just had 4 stops . We spent one night at each place. The one place that stands out the most to me was Belhaven Marina, It was just another case of southern kindness from a stranger. The owner of the marina asked if we needed anything, I said yes I need a taxi so I can go food shopping, Brenda (the owner) took me to the local Food Lion and waited for me as I restocked Cat's Eye fridge and freezer. That was just nice!
Next state on the list was Virginia, at this point we are also entering the Chesapeake Bay. Finally some open water!! We might even be able to sail again!!! But not really. We did the unthinkable to most boaters. We crossed the Chesapeake in 2 days. We did not stop to site see, we did not enjoy the lil rivers and cool boating areas that the Chesapeake has to offer (Maine summer is slowing disappearing and we are not there!!!) I also had a mission to get the Annapolis, MD!! I have been lucky enough to work the Annapolis Boat show the past few years. Over the years I have made friends that live there and I have also fallen totally in love with this lil boaters paradise of a town. I wanted to spend a couple of days there so Dave could also hopefully love it too!!
The time was spent in Annapolis visiting friends walking around and enjoying town, Dave has not said to much but I think he is looking forward to spending a month there in September/October (boat show time). I did stop in a real Estate office to see what they have around for sale. There where plenty of condos/townhouses for sale right on the water too. We are playing the lotto, that would be the only way we could make that work!

SO now here we are. We waved goodbye the Annapolis and headed to Chesapeake City, DE for the night. Here we meet up with friends for an afternoon of fun! Thank you again Ed & Lesa for dinner!!

As we speak we are heading in to the Delaware River. Now this is a whole new chapter in the cruise for us. We are in our old stomping grounds!! Finally the hailing port on the back of Cat's Eye will not make people call us Yankee's (or sometimes Damm Yankee's!). People will look at Bronx, NY at the back of the boat and we will just look like locals!
Cape May will be the fist NJ stop. Then we will spend 2 days with Dave's sister (can not wait to see you Sisssy!) in Beach Haven - Then a stop in Perth Amboy to see some of my NJ family and then... City Island!! Woohooo Cat's Eye finally meets the Bronx!! Having the hailing port Bronx, NY we get asked a lot if that's where the boat came from and Dave always says "No, she has never even seen the Bronx." Well not anymore!! (I am the one that set up the hailing port, if Dave did it the boat would have been documented in the USVI, probably St.Croix but that's not where I am from!! It is the Bronx!!) I think us New Yorkers can get a little over the top with New York pride but really how could you not!!
This next leg of the trip should be fun, but we are not in Maine yet!! Hopefully by July 15th or so we should finally get there, but hey who is complaining I can think of worse ways to spend my days!!

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Banjos?

Jekyll Island is beautiful! The marina was nice and the restaurant had good food. We decided to make one more stop in Georgia before heading to South Carolina. We stopped at Kilkenny Marina.



 Now I have been in Florida (I was born in Florida!!) and I have lived in the Caribbean (very south!) BUT my only real exposure to the south has been meeting people from there. Some of my greatest friends are from the back woods of some southern state. I have not really spent any length of time in the south. I have to admit I did think that some of the redneck stuff was a little over exaggerated. Well I got a taste of a very strange lil marina. The nicest people (I really mean that!) I just had never really seen anything like it. Funny living in the Virgin Islands so long and travelling so far and seeing sooo many new places I am a little shocked that being in Georgia was a culture shock to me!!
Since the point of the trip is to sail and see new places and meet new people Dave and I deiced to do what any good red blooded American would do - We got out some whiskey - beer and Gator Jerky!!
We did have an early start the next morning so we did not get crazy with the Scotch. We headed up to South Carolina and stopped in Hilton Head.
Cat's Eye resting at Hilton Head Harbor!

 We took a short lil taxi ride to a fun marina bar called Skull Creek Boathouse

 - we had some yummy oysters and some sushi - a few drinks and we headed back to Cat's Eye.


We are now underway - on our way to Bohicket, South Carolina - We are still travelling to ICW. We have been seeing dolphins everyday - almost all day long. Smokey can spot them before anyone else can! The dogs have been wonderful on this whole trip.

We will hit Charleston, South Carolina tomorrow. I think we will take a few days to explore this city.

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Doing the Ditch!

Bye Bye land! We are back on the boat and sailing!!!! YEA!!! Oh wait - we are in "The Ditch" also known as the Intercostal waterway (ICW) OK so we are not sailing, we are kinda motoring along. We are on flat, FLAT calm water just kinda going. Very different from all the open beautiful blue water we have be used to.


 I really thought that after our long the sail up from the USVI that I would want the calmness that ICW offers, I am thinking I was wrong. Instead of sailing in open water - we are motoring through brown murkie water. Instead of nothing around us to hit for miles we are in a constant look out for all types of things to hit - other boats - oh and lets not forget about LAND. It is also shallow. With the hard grounding we had in the Bahamas still fresh in our heads we are a little up tight when we are in only about 5' of water. BUT on a positive side we are still having a blast!!
After we left New Smyrna Beach (Bye Bye Mom & Dad!!) we headed to St.Augustine Florida. What a fantastic lil old town!! We meet up with a old friend did some shopping and had some lunch.

We may not be in open crystal clear beautiful blue tropical water anymore but we are still on the boat and still loving it!!

We left St.Augustine on Saturday June, 04 2011. we are now in Jekyll Harbor, Georgia. This is my first time in GA. Dave has fond memories (o.k. just memories) of being here 25 years ago when he was just starting out his career with Uncle Sam. He did his training here for 3 months. Funny the place it all started for him - his career that gave him a a nice retirement is the place where we sit today - the biggest decision of the afternoon is if we are going to go in the hot tub or the pool in the marina..Who would have know Dave would come back here 25 years later on his catamaran that he just sailed up from the Caribbean - I thank you Uncle Sam!!

We will be here for a couple of days. We are looking at weather. We both feel we might want to sail on the outside for a few miles! Maybe even get a good over night sail in.

Here are somethings that Dave did while on land!! Hehehe

Dave up on the roof!


Dave looks more comfortable up on the mast!!
Next stop is South Carolina (maybe)!!!

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

New Smyrna Beach, Florida - that's where we are. Dave's parents live here. The boat has been put in a marina for a month to get some love! The boats get love, the parents get love, the dogs get a yard to run in and I get to take a shower till my fingers wrinkle!! Everyone is happy!! ( I am VERY happy to also spend the month with my in-laws! It is like a second set of parents! I am lucky!!)


I left the boat in Melbourne and swapped places with my father in-law. He sail the 2 days up the ICW with Dave and Charlie and I got some R & R back at the house with mom.
Cat's Eye took good care of the boys and they safely sailed up to New Smyrna Beach.


Dad at the helm of Cat's Eye!!

3 weeks has passed since we landed here.

We are now getting ready to start moving again! Palm Coast is the next stop. We are headed to the NY/NJ area to visit more family (mainly mine!!)
Staying on land has been nice but I miss my floating home! And as much as the dogs love to run in the yard - I know they do not love the fleas and ticks that are found on land.

So the sailing blog will be continue again!

Thursday, April 28, 2011

A Lot of First!

We made it!! Cat's Eye for the first time is in the states! This is the first time Smokey our island mutt has ever been stateside too! First time I have seen water this brown. First time Cat's Eye has gone under a fixed bridge. First time Cat's Eye has gone through a bridge that opens! I can say that I stop traffic today!! I always knew I could!
Brightling Star going throught the bridge right before us.

We crossed  the Gulf Stream yesterday (April, 28th 2011) The ride was choppy in the beginning but evened out as the day went along. The crossing was only 70 nautical miles. At this point in the trip if we are doing less then 80nm in a day I think of it as a piece of cake! And we where lucky again yesterday. The only twist in the trip was the Gulf Stream. Just like crossing the Mona Passage there are a lot of stories about what will happen when your boat crosses over the water... I was expecting some big traffic sign or billboard that said "Hold on you are in the Gulf Stream!"Since I did not fine the sign I had to rely on Dave, and his "Yea! Cat's Eye is doing 11 knots!" (at one point we did 12 knots) We normally can do 8 knots on a really good day but more like 6 or 7. I mentally pictured my own "Welcome" sign - Cat's Eye was heading to AMERICA!
We travelled across from the Bahamas with another boat named Brightling star. After dropping the anchor in about 4' of muddy water (brought back some bad images!!) in St.Lucie, Florida we all headed into to shore for some good old American food!! I was thinking Maine Lobster was in order for me!!
A Little R & R. New friends on Brightling Star!
The Millers!! Kirsten & Jim! Cat's Eye has a great cockpit for a party!!

At this point in the trip we have come about 1400 nm. We have a long way to go to reach the goal of Maine. But everything changes from here. No more nude sailing, no more wondering what we will find when we go ashore, wondering what the locals will be like. We know what we will find - Target/Walmart/Old Navy/Olive Garden - traffic - lots of rules. Good thing? bad thing? Not really sure. Another thing that is a first, is sailing these waters for Dave and I too. We might not be looking to learn about local way of island life anymore but I am sure we can learn something from this half of the trip. I know there are still plenty of nice cruiser/boaters to meet. We will also be around family for a while and that is a nice thought. The land is not new or the people but it is always and adventure on Cat's Eye!!

Vero beach is the second stop. Dave and I are going to go explore - see if we can find a Burger King or Taco bell - amazing the things you miss when you do not live in America!

Know to tackle drive on the right side of the road!! oh boy!!

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Haven't Been Around Till You've Been A-Ground !!!

Dave and I had a great time in Nassau. We hit Hard Rock Cafe - then enjoyed dominos on the boat at the marina with neighbors. The next day we were off to the Berry Islands. At this point the Bahama part to this adventure is coming to an end. We have 3 stops left before we hit Florida. We sail about 50 nm to Little Stirupp Cay. we knew the beach there was a stop for cruise ships to bring in their passengers. And I can see why. The beach is beautiful and made to look like a Caribbean wonderland with big side and water toys everywhere. We had no intention of leaving the boat here on this island, we just stopped to rest. We planned on heading out first thing the next morning (noticed I am using words like "we did not plan!") I cooked us a nice dinner - we watched a movie and went to bed - we really enjoyed playing dominos the night before so we where keeping it mellow. As we are getting ready to go to bed Dave says " I am going to put on the anchor alarm - when the tide goes out it gets shallow." I say "OK"  To bed we go!
We have clocked around 1100nm miles since leaving St.Thomas in February. We have also except in Nassau never went to a marina. Every night we dropped the hook - and every night I (and I am sure Dave too) wonders if everything will be Ok. Most of the time it is just a passing thought. I trust my anchor - most nights!!
Around 11:00pm I hear a beep beep beep beep - What is that I ask my sleepy self - then it all clicks - "Dave the anchor alarm!!!!"
Yup we are dragging around the harbor like Neptune himself grabbed our anchor and was swinging us around his head like a lasso. It is also very very dark. Dave starts the engines and the chart plotter to see if we can figure out where exactly we are heading. We also try resetting the anchor. Then as the wonderful brand new chartplotter/radar springs to life we see something that just really sucks. As the tide came in and the current changed and the wind decided to switch directions our anchor could not take all the new things happening and decided to just quit instead of holding Cat's Eye down. We headed for a part of the harbor that our chartplotter says "dries at low tide" - this means there is NO WATER when the tide is out and our chartplotter has a picture of a little boat that resents Cat's Eye sitting right in the middle of this area. When tide is high it can be anywhere from 2' to almost 4'. This is not alot of water. To get the tide to 4' it has to be a Full Moon. It will only happen once then you would have to wait for the tides to cycle through again. So if you did not figure it out it was the one time the tide was high, after tonight it was going to get lower and lower every high tide - and lets not forget that at low tide there is no water. Cat's Eye has a 3.5' draft. We slide right on to that little sand patch of land with no problem - all of the right elements added up - the moon the wind water! (REALLY!!!!)
Dave and I realize pretty fast that this is not good. We where a little unsure of the tides so at this point we thought we still had a chance of pulling off. But apparently as soon as tide gets to its high it starts quickly going down.
Now we are JUST in sand. There is no damage done to the boat. I want to say this now - and I can say this know beacause it is all over - but this is what happened to us when the tide went out.......

Cat's Eye High and Dry.
Ok so this looks as bad as it is. We wait all night not really sure what the morning low low tide will bring - and as you can tell it did not bring good news. But knowing that this could not be the the way Cat's Eye was going to be forever (or was it!) I just kept saying at high tide we will simply pull back out. We learned another lesson at high tide, which was around noon the next day. Not all high tides are the same, just because it was deep enough for the boat to get to the middle of this lovely lil sandy spot it did not mean at the next high tide it would be the same level . Dave at this point had  gone into the amazing beach resort looking for help. Like they did not notice a catamaran a few hunderd feet from their fun bouncy water slides and toys. (we where really right off the beach). We got lucky. The friendly (wonderful, sweet, amazing) people that worked and lived on the island offered any kind help they could! We thought that the next high tide (noon that day - 12 hours stuck so far) We could just slide back. The water would rise and pick us back up and we could just back out the way we came. Not so. The keels were stuck TWO feet into the sand & mudd. Michelle sent out a team of wave runners to hook up to us and pull, tug and push - Cat's Eye was not moving. The tide was coming up short about 5". When did you ever think 5" could be that BIG of a deal!! After the tide  left us high and dry I started to panic. The next time tide was going to be as high as it was when we slid in was 12 days. I wanted to throw up. Dave was ready to set up camp at Cat's Eye new dry home for 12 days. I was NOT willing to give up for anything. I made a call to someone I knew could read tides and would guide me in the right direction (Thank you again John) I was told the next highest tide would be at 1:06am that night but would still be coming up short. This was starting to look really bad.
Then I swear a mircle happened. Out (walking) to the boat is a wonderful and smart man named Stephen. He is a captain for the lil island. He thinks by stacking floating docks on top of eachother and putting them under the boat it will give us the extra inches we need (INCHES again really who thought only a few inches could make or break your whole day!!). We had nothing to loose. Out came the floating docks. Dave and Stephen and Alex (another amazing kind person from the island) stacked and secured the docks under the boat. I felt like I was stuck in a bad dream with really nice people.
Yup - all our eggs in one basket.
Does not look like much but the thought was when tide comes in the docks will push up under the boat and give us the stupid 5 extra inches!! Now all we had to do was wait for midnight to come and bring the tide with it. If this did not work I was going to go (walk) into the happy lil resort and ask for a job because we where going to be stuck for a while. We had all day to let the shock of one minute - be floating happy around the bahamas to now being totally no funcational. It was a long day. But the rest happens really fast. We sit and wait. Tide comes up. Dave gets in the dinghy and starts pushing Cat's Eye around. I had the job of pulling on the long anchor lines Dave set out as a guide to get out. Since it is the middle of the night again!! Do bad things always have to happen when you can not see anything!?
Dave walking out the anchors.
Tide comes in - Docks go up - Cat's Eye gets at least 5 more inches!! (at least!)!! Wheee!! Yea!!! We are floating!!

We couldn't believed it worked!  Those lil docks did the trick!!
Steven, the man with the plan!!! 
We do not know how we would have gotten off of this sand bank if it was not for the nicest people on Coco Cay. We would have been making camp till the next new moon almost 2 weeks later. We spen the day getting the boat back together. I then asked Dave if he was up for a night sail to The Grand Bahama Island. This would be the last stop in the Bahamas. We both felt that we did not want to push our luck with one more night in the same harbor.  So we took off. We are now sitting in a nice marina on Easter Day. We arrived this moring around 7:30am. We tied securuly to a dock. the marina has a nice pool and beach bar. Dave and I are thinking dominos by poolside with an adult beverage are in order and well deserved!

 I can look at this whole bad bad situation a little lighter now that it is over. It is easy to say it is not our fault. Is it? maybe. Sometimes things happen. On the postive side we had increased our friend list. Coco Cay will ALWAYS be a stop on our Bahama list so we can say hello the new friends!  I learned that the floating docks can float anything! Dave is very patient when I want things down NOW!! John Jacob still proves to be one of the most reliable welth of information! The dogs know when to stay quiet and behave. Cat's Eye is an amazing vessel that is stronger then I ever gave her credit for. I feel safe on her. And 5'' is A LOT!!

Now it is off to the states!! Florida here we come!!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter!!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Catching up!

George Town was a fun little community of people and we enjoyed the time we where there. George Town is know for its abilitly so suck boats in! Lots of cruisers go there with hopes of sailing further south and never leave (why it is also called Chicken Town!). We also found lots of cruisers who do not want to leave. They have made a nice little community there and they like it! They have scheduled volleyball everyday at 2:00pm, yoga and arts and crafts in the mornings. Since Dave or I had no desire to play volleyball or do yoga we had no trouble leaving after 2 nights at anchor there!
Some beach time in George Town!
We left George Town and headed to Fisherman Cay. Nothing exciting here. We just stopped for the night to rest. The next day we hit Norman Cay. Now this was a big stop on Dave's list. The man who used to own this island -  Carlos Lehder was very well know drug Lord. Dave had a chance to be involved with his trial back in the early 90's and wanted to see the island that ran the Drug world back then!
Just a long forgotten dirt road on Norman Cay. Lots evidence that this used to be one busy place! Lehder's old house and several trailers for his employees and that famous runway that had the entry covered by tree limbs to make a tunnel for the planes to land through.
In the Norman Cay bay there is a sunken airplane. Dave went down and snorkeled around the plane. I have the very import job of making sure the dinghy did not drift away! As Dave snorkeled he grabbed five conch for dinner and I had a Lemodka (Crystal Light Lemonade and Vodka - Yummy!) and layed on the soft pontoon of our dinghy - I took my job very seriously!!




De Plane
We left Norman Cay and headed for Nassau. The big city!! The capitol of The Bahamas! This Islands houses 60% of the population. All the supplies that the smaller islands receive come from here. Even the Bohemin babies come from here! When a woman on a small island that offers no medical care gets pregnant they fly over to Nassau to give birth. (wow really!) We arrived here yesterday April 19th. We put Cat's Eye in a marina for the first time since we took off from Frenchtown Marina (where I worked and we called home in St.Thomas - Miss you guys!! xoxo). Cat's Eye is getting a well deserved bath and Dave is STILL scrubbing the mud off the anchor chain from Luperon, DR. We are going to go check out the Hard Rock Cafe and Starbucks soon. We are taking off first thing in the morning. We have 3 more stops then we will arrive in AMERICA!! Wheeee!! Target here I come!! When you have been forced to only shop in a K-Mart for 8 or 9 years you would understand my excitment! The first stop is West Palm Beach Florida! The second half to our cruising adventure!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Rum Cay to Georgetown Bahamas

We left Long Island and headed for Rum Cay. All the books, charts and message boards all talk about this lil island bar called Kaye's Bar. Since Dave and I are not known to pass up a good bar (this one had great reviews!) after we set the anchor we headed in to explore. We found Kaye's Bar with no problem (the loud island music bamming from the lil sandy bar was a dead give away) We settled in with a couple of Kaliks (local beer) and meet some of the locals. The owner of the sand floor bar is a sweet generous lady named Deloris. We spent the afternoon with 7 out of the 62 people that live on the island drinking beer and listening to music. After telling the locals about Dave's really bad fishing skills the local fisherman Dee Dee (this is a nickname that my family has called my sister since she was a baby - it made me giggle to think the very white city girl and this very black rasta island man shared the same name!) offered to take Dave out fishing the following morning and teach him some fishing skills - I also think he felt bad for Dave that he could not provide food for the boat! Not that we did not have food but we definitely did not have ANY fresh fish! The next morning first thing (11:00am) Dee Dee came out to the boat and picked up Dave. They went off in a lil dinghy fishing for grouper.

Dee Dee's fishing boat!
 So off the they go! And for the first time in awhile I had the whole boat to myself!! 3 wonderful hours!! And then the men returned - and with fish!! They spearfish there - so Dave and Dee Dee drifted in the water and when they spotted a fish dove down and spear it. They scored 4 nice size grouper and about 15 conch. I was beaming with pride!! ( ok maybe not but I was happy that we know had fresh fish and conch!) We kept one grouper and about 5 conch. I was also trilled they Dee Dee filet and cleaned everything before it came on board Cat's Eye! It was a good day all around. Next stop was going to be Georgetown, it was a hard decision to make but we decided to move on from Rum Cay - knowing that there will be more nice, friendly people to meet. We sailed the Georgetown April 13th.
Here are some pictures of the dolphin that played with us when we sailed to Rum Cay! They where soo cute and beautiful!

So cool. Seeing dolphins never gets old!

Happy Dave after a successful day of fishing!

smoket taking a nap while we sailed to Georgetown - so glad we got those bean bag chairs!

We will hang in Georgetown till Sunday. Then off the explore the other bahama islands. We should be in florida by early May.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Some Pictures!

I can finally load some pictures!!

Sailing to Turks and Caicos from Luperon, flat calm seas.

Turks and Caicos - French Cay. This was the first stop after we left the DR. We where only here over night. This little island is a bird sanctuary.

Charlie & Bandit resting after a long day of sailing!

This is Keif - he took us to his family's bar and drove us to a great food stores - the same one he would shop in, prices were not that bad!! Thank you Keif for fun times!!
We leave for Rum Cay tomorrow! Another couple of weeks and we should be in the states!

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Same old post!

I am starting to feel like all my post are the same. We left Mayaguana on Thursday April 5th. We headed for another tiny little island call West Plana. We did a little stop and took off to Clarence Town, Long Island in the Bahamas. We got anchored and  looked up and we both decided Yeah, we liked it here! We came into Flying Fish Marina for an adult beverage. We have been on the boat for days so getting into land was a good idea!
We meet a very friendly local named Keif. we sat and drank and hear all about the Bahama islands. We then proceeded to a lil local bar that his brother owned to play dominos ( I had to learn to play). So yes some of you might be reading this saying Really?? You went to a lil local bar with a complete stranger in the middle of a forgien country.. Yes we did!! And we had a great time! Keif offered to drive us to a grocery store in the morning. We agreed to meet around noon the next day (give us some time to recop for the night before). He showed right on time and we took off in his work van for the store. We where able to get some cheese, bread and frozen PIZZA!! (this made me happy!! only so much goat you can eat!) . Now we are back from shopping and having some drinks back at the little marina bar. Next stop is Rum Cay. We are having a blast so far.

Some things we have learned.. We can not fish. Almost 1000 miles and we have not had a bite. Cat's Eye is a fantastic boat and we trust and love her. The dogs have more nautical miles then most boaters we know. You can never buy too much red wine. Kindle is the best thing since sliced white bread. And Dave does not look that bad in a speedo! Also we miss home.. this is a tricky one..Home for us has been different places. our home is where our boat is. BUT we miss ALL the people we are not with. People in the states, people in St.Thomas and St.Croix.

Pictures soon come!! Sorry internet is too slow for them!

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Bahama Mama

We made it!! Not really sure what I mean by that but it has been a long time that Dave and I have planned this cruising trip and once we landed in the Bahamas we finally feel like we are cruising!
We took off from the DR march 31st around 08:00 and headed to French Cay in the Turks and Caiocs. This is a tiny little island with nothing but birds on it. This sounded like a perfect stop for us. We sailed all day and through the night and got there about 08:00. We had the whole Island to ourselves - we us and the birds. So we did what anyone would have done! Laundry!! We were in the clearest water we have ever seen so we made water and caught up on laundry (yes we did some nuddie swimming and sunbathing, how could you not!) After a good rest and dinner made from all local stuff we bought in the DR we got a good nights sleep and took off around 05:00. we landed in the Bahamas around 15:30 on April 2nd. we are still in Mayaguana. We could not check in until yesterday due to the weekend customs was closed. We are now waiting for a good weather window so we can start exploring the other islands. Internet seems to be a challenge so I will keep everyone posted as often as I can!
Here are some pictures for the DR!
They really know how to make you feel right at home!

Smokey Dog!


Friends on a boats that we have been sailing along with!

He he I don't really need to comment on this one!
 To say the lest we are having a wonderful time. It has been great to sail It has also been great spending some much time with each other. ( I hope Dave agrees!)

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Hangin

Luperon is a friendly place that Dave and I have been enjoying greatly - But it is time to start moving on! Our next stop will be in Turks & Caicos. We will probably only be there a few days before heading to the Bahamas.

Today we are hanging out in a bar called Steve's - you can do laundry, buy meat, pineapples, play pool, take a (cold) shower, swim in the pool, eat and of course drink! it is like the Walmart of the states - one stop shopping for boaters!! Here are some of the pictures I promised yesterday!


Traffic gets tuff in town! This is the view from the resturant we had lunch at (we ordered chicken BUT got goat)


Big beer for $1.30
 Looks like I was lucky to get these 2 pictures up!! the internet is on island time here!
Weather is looking good for us leaving Thursday - we will sail another 24 hours and start our turn towards the North! we are getting closer to the states!! Ok well not yet. We are only about 45 miles from Hati! But closer then we have ever been to the states in the last 8 years!

Monday, March 28, 2011

I (heart) Luperon

Sunday around 07:30 we dropped anchor in this awsome harbor called Luperon. We left Samana at 07:30 on Saturday. It was not a great sail over. The night was rainy and the wind was right at our stern and not blowing very hard and the seas where choppy but it got us here! We heard the "Luperon Net" around 08:00 and heard that there was a marine swap meet at the lil (tiny) marina in Puerto Blanco (just a different part of the same harbor) We where tired but wanted to go in and explore things. We both got a great feeling about being here. We have always heard stories about cruisers coming here and never leaving. I can see why now! The other boaters are very friendly and filled with lots of local knowlage. The harbor is VERY different then Samana. I am glad to this was the case. Samana was a bit sketchy. After the swapmeet we got in the dinghy and headed across the harbor into town. Life here is sooo different. 3 world country. But the locals are friendly here. Amimals freely roam the streets. Lots of dogs chickens and goats. (I have pictures but the internet connection will not let me upload them!) The town is all dirt rocky narrow roads. There are little houses and stores. We had lunch at a newly open place call JRs. The food is cheap around 100 pesos for a sandwhich - comes out to be about $2.70. The beer to drink here is Bohemia Especial. It comes in a 20oz bottle and cost around  $1.30 - 60 pesos (we are having one right now!)
We will be here for a few days. Today we went back into town to use the internet and explore a little more. Tuesday is when people come into town to sell thier fresh produce. We could really use some fresh veggies and frruit. The freezer is full but the fresh local stuff is always better! I will keep you posted! I will also try to get some pictures up!!

Sunday, March 27, 2011

0700 I weigh the anchor and Kirsten took Cat’s Eye out of the Bay of Boqueron. Our weather window was now or wait till next week. Now it was. One reef in the mainsail should do it to start our longest leg to date, 147 miles should take us roughly 24 or 25 hours. As we entered the Mona Passage it was quite tranquil. That didn’t last long. For the next several hours until we made the turn to the southwest of the Island of Desecheo the seas were either breaking on the deck or Cat’s Eye was  burying her bow into the 12 foot plus north swell. The wind direction was a perfect  15 to 17 knots with  occasional gusts of 27. Kind of makes you feel more alive when you’re watching the knots climb. Well, we made the turn and the tip of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic was only 49 miles away. Although the seas still up, were now hitting Cat’s Eye at a much more acceptable angle.  All of a sudden about  Smokey came alive barking and charging the netting on the lifelines. There they were, dolphin after dolphin coming to the starboard side and riding along side. Then they went to the bow and seem to lead Cat’s Eye. (took a couple of pictures).

We’ve seen lots of dolphins in the Caribbean but these were larger than I’ve ever seen before. There were at least seven  that stayed with us for a good five minutes.  As they departed, two of them turned swimming sideways and looked right up into my eyes. I hope it was more than they  can’t believe the crazy humans are out in the middle of the ocean in a little fiberglass tub. It always  a great feeling  when those beautiful graceful creatures bless me with their contact. It’s 1640 and no land insight when Kirsten says, “what’s that floating, a refrigerator?’’ it was white and about 50 yards off the starboard aft.  All of a sudden, the blowhole exhaled and the whale turned right side. The whale was a small humpback. We watched it play for a couple minutes and the humpback bid us farewell with a slap of its tail as it sounded.  Two hours later off the starboard another blowhole. What a day. We were finally able to see land as the sun set over the Dominican Republic. Night was falling and we still had another 13 or 14 hours of sailing before we anchored in Samana. A most beautiful star filled cruising night was on us. Of course the sunrise was another spectacular beginning of the day. After anchoring in Samana we needed to clear in, so I raised the “Q” flag and lowered the dinghy. My attempt to clear in became very clear to me that they do not want you to find their offices. After a brief runaround I returned to Cat’s Eye and waited for our friends we met in Boqueron to arrive. Before they were able to lower their dinghy, they were approached by four men  in a very small dinghy. One was in military garb. Then the dinghy came over to us. They requested  to come aboard. Denied. Then they advised that they were the Department of Navy, Port Authority and National Drug Agency. They did have proper ID and said that I could either have my boat search now or after I cleared in. They were welcomed onboard but only after they removed their shoes.  (I’m still the Captain). They sat in the cockpit taking down information until they seemed to be satisfied. I excused myself and returned with three bottles of Cruzan Rum. I thanked them for their hospitable welcome into their country. They were very thankful and told me that they didn’t think they would find anything even if they did search the boat.  We all went into the town and did have a great afternoon. After being up 39 hours, one more scotch was all I needed to tuck myself in for an early evening sleep.  After checking the weather we will leave here Saturday morning for Luperon. Only a mere 130 mile sail. Kirsten will return to the blog after this long winded session of mine.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Lazy Day!

So yesterday (March 21st 2011) was one of the first days since Dave's retirement (and mine) that we had no place to sail to - no place to HAVE to be - and it was a totally new place! We had lots of down time in St.Croix but there was always something happening - since we had lived here in the past it also did not feel like we were starting a new chapter in our lives (yet). It felt like we had just stopped in to see some great old friends! Yesterday was the first day of a new place with nothing to do! So what did we do!?......Laundry!! Wheeeee!!
We did decide to walk around town now that most of the people where gone from Sunday. It was much quieter today. A lot of the shops and restaurants were closed. My new favorite little pizza place was locked up tight! We returned to the restaurant we had dinner in the night before and decided to have a late lunch. Dave ordered the conch with salad and it was amazing - there was so much conch that he did not even try to stab my hand with his fork when I went searching for a piece off his plate! (if you know Dave, then you know he has a problem with sharing food - especially when it is on his plate and you just reach over with your fork and start stabbing at it!)
The day was quiet and easy. A nice thing. Can I do this every day? You bettcha! Although the quiet ends tomorrow. We had a little change of plans - We are crossing the Mona Passage tomorrow. We originally were going to go straight across into the Dominican Republic , about 77 miles. This would have taken us about 10 - 12 hours. We would still have to the next day sail around to Samana and check into customs, which is another 70 or so miles. So we decided to just sail straight there. We are going to leave here tomorrow around 07:00. This should put us arriving in Samana around 07:00 Thursday morning. Once in the DR the internet connections will only happen when I load up my dry bag with the computer – dinghy to shore and search for a WiFi connection! So do not be alarmed if you are not getting daily posting from me – I know you all will wait and keep checking to see if something new has been posted!! I promise as soon as I can - I will get a new post up! Let you all know how the 24 hour sail went!!

Monday, March 21, 2011

Boqueron Puerto Rico

We leave Ponce Round 06:00 March 20th 2011. The moon is sooo bright. It it beautiful.


Moon at 06:00 in Ponce
So we sailed on! The seas were up a little but stil was not a bad ride! Now this being a party town -often compared to Key West and it is spring break time - we did what anybody else would have done - we party! We started with a lil local place for pizza (my favorite food) and a drink. Then out to the streets - now on Sundays they close off this lil town and street vendors come out and put up tables seeling everything - food, beer, clothes etc etc. oh and the Puerto Rican music is loud and thumping! So Dave wanted oysters. 5 buck got us a dozen oysters. After oysters we went to a local bar had some drinks and conch for dinner. Then back to the boat for us! Today will we do some exploring around town. I can see why spring breakers would choose this place - the beach is white sand and the water is calm and beautiful. Not a bad place to be stuck in to wait for the right weather!


Yummy!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Full Moon in Ponce Puerto Rico

We left Salinas Puerto Rico at around 08:15. The sail today was a short one so we did wake up at the crack of dawn to leave (or at least I did not - Dave is always up) It was like boating on a lake! 3knts of wind - soo not great sailing weather but at least it was calm enough to be VERY comfortable! Also made great conditions for reading ( I am burning through books!) The Jib did go up for a while but I think it was just so Dave could say we were sailing!
Ponce was uneventful. Dave cleared us "out" of the US at customs and that was it. I stayed on the boat never getting off. It you can believe it we did join in with the loud, very loud Puerto Rican festivities. Ponce has a boardwalk with lots of lil bars and it got loud and fast. Sounds like fun was had be all on shore and on Cat's Eye. It was nice to relax one night - knowing that again in early morning hours I would hear Dave say "Kirsten, it is 05:30, time to get up" ugghh those words want to make me throw a pillow over my head and say "five more minutes PLEASE!" But I knew once we left Ponce the next stop would Boqueron Puerto Rico - this place is like the spring break central of PR - I also knew we will spend a few days there waiting for the "right weather window" to cross the Mona Passage over to the DR. So it is worth getting up at 0'dog thirty!

Salinas Puerto Rico

We go an early start leaving Vieques heading towards Salinas - this was going to be one of the first stop of a place we have never been! Living in the Caribbean for the past 8 years gave us lot of opportunities to explore the islands. We would have to return after a week or 10 days for work but we enjoyed every chance we got to get out and experience different places! Now we where onto new places!! Wheeee!!
The sail over was very calm and relaxing - I love my Kindle!! I have been plowing through books. The seas and winds have been so calm that (thankfully) there is not a whole lot to do once we get underway - but relax and read. Even the furry crew members are relaxin!

Lil' Charlie on his Thrown!
 We pulled into Salinas around 14:00. You can tell this was a boatie community. Lots of live aboards. Dave and I set out to explore the lil harbor filled with boats and the marina (which we kinda knew would have a place to get a beverage). It did not take long to meet friendly boaters and find a bar with a great happy hour. $1.25 Medallas! Dave was in beer heaven! after we swapped out some DVD's with a local we headed back to Cat's Eye to get some rest. Tomorrow we are heading to Ponce, Puerto Rico. This is where we will clear out of the U.S! Yea!! We are getting there. Pretty soon we will be crossing the Mona Passage over to the DR!