May 5, 2018 – Georgetown, Exumas & Lee Stocking Island

May 5, 2018
Georgetown, Exumas via Lee Stocking Island

LEE STOCKING ISLAND
We departed Little Farmers Cay heading south towards Georgetown on an overcast morning to an anchorage at Lee Stocking Island. We only had a sail of about 20 miles to get there. This leg would get us about half of the remaining distance to Georgetown. There was a nice 15-20 knot breeze with a good point of sail so we figured on a 4 hour trip, anchor up to anchor down.

It was a little more sporty than we anticipated as we exited the cut to Exuma Sound. We had a single reef in the mainsail and let out about 2/3 of the genoa once Eileen was on course. We turned on our trusty new autopilot (which we affectionately call “Number 3”, since he is essentially the 3rd member of our crew; he is a hard worker, doesn’t eat much, and rarely complains…we get along well) and we were on our way once again.

Lee Stocking Island was on my list of places I knew I wanted to stop before we came to the Exumas. Lee Stocking was once home to the Caribbean Marine Research Center. CMRC was managed and partly funded by NOAA (in partnership with universities and other entities), for whom I was a contract worker for almost 10 years. I’d heard what an amazing facility it was and had hoped to visit while it was still an active marine lab. Unfortunately, it closed before I got the chance.

The large property is located in the heart of the Exumas and boasts over 30 buildings, 2 large docks, a boat ramp, moorings, a nearby airstrip, and access to diverse and pristine coral reef ecosystem habitats nearby. CMRC housed a full service laboratory for resident and visiting scientists, conducting research on aquaculture, geology, climate science, and many other subjects. They even had a two man submarine!

CMRC lost their funding sometime around 2013, and the place has been more or less abandoned ever since. I’d heard you could just wander around the property and poke around. Despite some obligatory “No Trespassing” signs, I believe this was true until fairly recently. We were a little disappointed to find out that there seemed to be some new activity at the property. There was a work crew cutting back and cleaning up some of the overgrown landscaping that had accumulated over the last several years. One building also contained new windows and doors and seemed to have been made habitable again. I don’t know if it is in preparation of some private development (unfortunately seems to be the way of things). I have not yet tracked down or researched the current ownership or status of the property. Although we poked around the outskirts a little bit, we didn’t really get to explore the actual labs and buildings. Bummer!

Before moving on, I should note that Celia and I had quite the adventure entering the cut to Lee Stocking! Marked at its entrance with a large, slightly phallic stone pillar, Adderly Cut is a deep but narrow cut, one of many that bring you from the open water of Exuma Sound through the islands and west onto the Bahama Bank. Some are too shallow for a sailboat to go all the way through but often offer access to protected anchorages in the protection of the islands. Adderly Cut is one of the latter. When the prevailing east wind is against an outgoing tide from Bahama Bank, these narrow cuts can build up steep, confused waves with the current in your face at up to 3 knots or more in some cases! Most prudent sailors make sure they navigate these cuts with either calm winds, an incoming or slack tide, or both. While we do consider ourselves in that category, mistakes do occasionally happen…

Somehow, when planning this leg of our journey, we had written in our notes that the tide at 3:30pm that day was a high or incoming tide and would be in our favor for entering the cut. Instead, when we arrived, it was an outgoing tide with fresh winds in the opposite direction! The cut had large, steep, and confused breaking waves. The waves crashed menacingly on the rocky shore to either side. To top it off, one side of the narrow cut has partially submerged rocks which also looked threatening. The waves were breaking and foaming all around them. Since it was late in the day, we didn’t really have time to get to another safe anchorage in daylight. We looked at the cut and its waves through the binoculars and decided it was going to be challenging, but we could more or less safely give it a go.

After making sure everything was secure, we took a deep breath and increased the throttle to give us more control and speed as we fought the waves and current for a half a mile or so. Let’s just say it was one of the most “exhilarating” experiences I have had aboard Eileen since we have owned her. It was basically a washing machine of 3-5 ft. breaking waves with a 2 knot current against us. It took every bit of focus and attention to make sure we stayed straight and in good water. Eileen was responsive and well behaved as she surfed down a couple large waves and smashed into others. Just as I gained a little white knuckle confidence that this was tricky but doable, I heard Celia yell “wave!”. I was focused on what was happening in front of us and never saw the huge wave that came from broadside. It literally hit the back end of the boat from the side like a big roundhouse punch to the back of your head! The unexpected feeling of something pounding into the boat almost made me pee my pants as Eileen shuddered just enough to make me scared for a split second.

In reality, Eileen is a well built boat and it was nothing you would not experience on an open ocean crossing dozens of times. However, in the moment, I thought we had made our first big mistake in attempting the cut. Eileen powered through the last few hundred yards with some active steering by me, and Celia and I just looked at each other and shared a nervous smile for a couple minutes before we said much. These are the moments you learn from and savor later when you tell the tale. As long as we were on our game (and the engine didn’t die at the wrong moment), it wasn’t too awful in hindsight…but it will make me more careful next time!

The other highlight of our couple days hanging around Lee Stocking was a hike to the top of Perry’s Peak. At a whopping 39 meters of elevation, Perry’s Peak is purported to be the highest point in all of the Exumas island chain! After a quick ride down the shore to the trailhead, we beached the dinghy and headed up. 30 minutes later, we were rewarded with likely the most stunning 360 degree views we have seen so far in the Bahamas! So many variations of the color blue! Absolutely a must-do hike if you’re ever here.

GEORGETOWN, EXUMAS
(aka Chicken Harbor, aka Cruiser Day Camp, aka The Budget Buster)

Georgetown, Exumas lies at the southern end of Great Exuma Island at the bottom of the Exuma chain. This area is a Mecca for cruisers. There is a huge area of relatively protected water called Elizabeth Harbor contained by Great Exuma to the west and Stocking Island (not the same as the aforementioned “Lee Stocking” Island) to the east. Within the harbor, there is room for several hundred boats to anchor with protection from most weather conditions.

The town of Georgetown sits roughly in the middle on the Great Exuma side and is easily accessed by dinghy. One of the local grocery stores maintains a dinghy dock for all the cruisers to get into town and even has free water at the dock! Downtown Georgetown is layed out in a circle situated around Lake Victoria. You can only access the lake on a dinghy or small outboard due to a very low bridge. This is the last major town/provisioning stop in the Bahamas for vessels heading south to the Caribbean or east to the Bahamian Out Islands.

For hundreds of cruisers, Georgetown is the last stop of a journey for those who cruise seasonally and head back to the States for the summer (us included, it seems…more on that later). Over the years it has become its own boating community, and often the boats that come here spend the entire winter without going anywhere else! Once we settled in, it was easy to see why! The place is like adult summer camp; every day starts with the “cruisers net” on the VHF radio where boaters share community events, ask for help, buy or sell items, ask questions, and organize group activities. Every single day offers opportunities to hike, play beach volleyball, snorkel, participate in art projects, go to potlucks and parties, attend music lessons and jam sessions, play Texas Hold’em Poker, attend concerts and special events, go to beautiful nearby beaches, and oh yeah….drink.

The world famous “Chat and Chill” beach bar is the hub of hanging out for the cruising crowd. They have food, beer, and drinks in a casual setting for a reasonable price. This is also where the free and open community beach volleyball courts are located. There are dozens of picnic tables spread around under the shade of Casurina trees where people are welcome to “chat and chill” even if you are not patronizing the bar. There are rope swings and places for kids to run around and play while the adults socialize. Forget stopping by for one beer…before you know it, you are 4 beers in and on your 4th game of dominoes or sweaty and covered in sand out on the volleyball court. This establishment lived up to its name as we spent many days “chatting and chilling” here.

Although I am not very good, I very much enjoy playing beach volleyball and had planned on that becoming my daily exercise regimen. There were daily pickup games that started around 2pm. After about three days of playing, I was shaking off the rust and getting better. We had a good group playing every afternoon. However, under the several inches of sand on the courts lies a layer of hard limestone cap rock. It was probably about our fourth day when I tried to make a play on the ball; my foot went through the sand and I stubbed my big toe on the rock below. I knew as soon as I felt it that it wasn’t good. When I rinsed it off to inspect, I found that i had a dime-sized flap of skin off the front of the toe and the toenail was no longer attached! My first injury of the trip ended my brief volleyball career. It also meant I was unable to swim or play volleyball for over 10 days while I let it heal. Bummer!

Just days after our arrival was a visit from our friends Beth and Cal to celebrate Beth’s 40th birthday. Luckily for all of us, their arrival coincided with Georgetown’s biggest event of the year; The Family Islands Sail Regatta. Three classes of classic Bahamian Cat boats race for three days around the harbor. Teams from every island in the Bahamas compete in what is known as the “World Series” of Bahamian sailing. The harbor and town filled up with both locals and tourists alike to watch this historic regatta. Once comprised of actual working sailboats, the event has evolved to feature boats made and designed for competition. A committee is now charged with raising money for prizes and organizing the event. The rules for Bahamian sloop racing are clear; the boats must be built, owned, skippered, and mostly crewed by Bahamians. The sails must be canvas, the hull made of wood, and contain a single wooden mast with no spreaders, winches, or any kind of wind instrument (including tell-tales). This is sailing in its purest form!

Each race is 3 laps around a triangular course from a standing start. Once the gun goes off, the crew scrambles to raise both anchor and sail at the same time. This may have been the best part of the race! The crews are yelling at each other as the boats crash into each other and everyone tries to gain their position. Once the boats catch the wind and heel over, the crew shifts the ballast by climbing out on wooden planks called “prys” that extend out from the windward side of the boat about 4 or 5 feet. The crew (sometimes up to 6 people) climb out and sit on the prys to balance the boat and constantly adjust position based on the skipper’s orders. We had some windy days and even saw a few crew members actually fall in! Apparently, boats that don’t stop for their man overboard are disqualified!

What made the event so exciting is that spectators are allowed to get close and follow the boats around the course in their dinghies and outboards! I even got yelled at by a committee boat for being in the race course and had to bob and weave to get out of their way. One of the race boats even hit an anchored cruising boat with its long boom. It was so windy the second day of races that several boats actually capsized and sank! It was truly an amazing experience. To top it off, one of the visiting cruisers had a background in sail racing and called the race on the VHF like an ESPN announcer…he was great and made the race even more dramatic than it already was.

During race week, Georgetown itself transforms the government dock into a makeshift shanty town of bars and eateries, while the nearby park hosts live music on a big stage. The atmosphere is lively and those who are not afraid to party late night were treated to a Junkanoo march; a true island and Bahamian tradition! One of the shanty town bars even billed itself as the “Billion Dollar Bar”. My Key West friends will appreciate that all I could do was think how Don’s Place just got one-upped!

While our friends were here, we took full advantage of all the area had to offer. We hung out on the dinghy watching 3 days of traditional sailboat racing, we made lots of new friends among the other cruisers (…and our livers will vouch for how much fun we had hanging out with all the great people here). We learned new dice games, Cal almost got kicked out of the Texas Hold’em tournament, we hiked up Monument Hill to see the stone monument (apparently a monument to “nothing” according to the locals), sampled the local food (lots of conch!), checked out more watering holes, visited other boats, had bonfires on the beach, snorkeled, swam, and “chatted and chilled”.

All of this makes me think of how amazing and generous the boat cruising community is. Strangers came to my boat to help me figure out electrical issues or offered spare parts when we had solar charging issues. We loaned a hard drive of movies to a neighbor boat and they brought it back with a gift certificate for lunch at a local restaurant. If anyone asked for help or a spare part or a engine hose or a ride to town on the morning VHF net, they had what they needed before noon. Two boats that were struck by lightning had new chartplotters and VHF radios and charge controllers by the day after they got here (for free) from fellow cruisers. It’s really a microcosm of how a community should function! Everyone looks out for one another…if someone has something another boater needs, they will share or give it to them…if someone asks for help, someone will step up to help them. It is beautiful to feel and see, and something I will cherish about this experience.

So…suddenly it was three weeks later and there we were…still anchored up in Elizabeth Harbor across from Georgetown. Prior to this, we had not spent more than three days in any one spot! Our monthly budget was shot from too many bars and restaurants…my toe was still banged up and Celia sprained her shoulder while exercising (doing a “leg” workout no less!)…I was starting to grab beers at 10am…we were starting to have social obligations every night because we met so many fun and nice people…the anchor chain was growing seaweed. It was obviously past time to go! In our defense, we had not planned on being there so long. There was a weird stalled weather system over much of the Bahamas which caused it to rain for 6 days straight! Everyone in the harbor was going stir-crazy. I felt especially sorry for the families with 3+ kids they had to entertain on a 40 foot boat! Celia and I were ready for some sunshine and quiet anchorages.

Finally on the 6th day of rain, we couldn’t take it anymore and motored up 12 miles to Emerald Bay Marina where we would be able to stretch our legs and hang out on land a bit. That is a tale for another day though…

As we write this, it is with mixed emotions that we have turned the boat north from Georgetown. Anyone who reads the cruising books will know that Elizabeth Harbor at Georgetown has the nick-name “Chicken Harbor”. It gets this name from the fact that many boaters who thought they would continue on to the Caribbean often only make it as far as Georgetown before they realize the route gets tougher from there with longer passages and contrary winds, especially the later it gets in the season. Many realize they or their boats are not really up to the task. Many more make excuses why they must go back to the States and promise they will head south “next year.” For us, it was a combination of many factors, but I don’t think it was because we were “chicken” (insert Marty McFly reference). We got started very late in the cruising season (i.e. pre-hurricane season). The boat revealed a few semi-serious maintenance issues which cannot be ignored or put off and would be ridiculous expensive to get done in the islands. Our house batteries need to be replaced (this is how we power our fridge, lights, fans, radio, charge phones, etc.); we have a leaky rudder post, our folding prop needs to be rebuilt and is causing vibration (which could also be related to the old motor mounts); some engine hoses need to be replaced; our forward water tank leaks under our bed…blah blah blah. None of them are sinking the boat, but it will be a lot easier and cheaper to deal with them stateside. This was the boat’s first real and extended use in many years and her first long range trip since we set about prepping her for cruising. She has revealed her weaknesses (not many) and the areas we neglected. We have dialed in what we do and don’t need to have and have functioning out here. We will take some time this summer to make a little money and finish dialing in our beloved Eileen. We will likely be back sometime in late June…location TBD. Until then, we will continue to explore the beautiful Bahamas. We might check out Eleuthera or the Abacos, and will certainly hit some more of the Berry Islands before heading back across the Stream. And we WILL be heading south again next year!

Keep an eye out for my next post as we stay at giant marina developments, crash exclusive resorts, get invaded by mosquitoes, find a mermaid, explore more caves, and dodge thunderstorms. I hope you enjoy these ramblings.

With much love, Toddo and Celia
Currently anchored off of Rudder Cut Cay, Exumas

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