It's almost noon. We departed Cape Eleuthera this morning about 9am after saying so long to our friends and shipmates Mary and Dewey.  The wind went from W at about 20 yesterday evening to zero this morning.  We are motoring up the west coast of Eleuthera to Governor's Harbor to pick up Ollie.  He got in last night and stayed over somewhere in town.  We plan to pick him up at Government dock at about 1:30 and then take off for Hatchet Bay which is another 20 miles north.  Hatchet Bay is VERY sheltered and a better anchorage than Governor's Harbor.  It will also get us a little closer to the cut at the west end of Eleuthera that will get us to Freeport in two days.   Both harbors are supposed to be beautiful so will try and get some good photos.  After an hour of motoring, Captain Phil did his first laundry since Providenciales in the T&C.  I expect pulling into Government Dock to be a little embarrassing (with all the laundry hanging out to dry - see photos - but Captain Phil assures me that he won't be the least bit bothered).  Captain Phil ended up removing his laundry and donning a shirt for the Ollie pick up that we timed almost perfectly.  We sailed on a very nice close reach from Governor's Harbor to Hatchet Bay.  Hatchet bay has about the most unusual entrance I've ever seen (see photos).

Today was a really great sailing day. We left our anchorage behind Compass Cove at 8am and sailed 35 miles on a single (port) tack to the western tip of southern Eleuthera.  The wind was out of the west all day blowing between 10 and 25 (mostly around 20).  We got into the marina at Powell Point at 2pm.  Did laundry in a bucket and made several calls on Google talk/voice.  This is the first internet connection in 3 days.  Tomorrow, Mary and Dewey will be flying out and Captain Phil and I will take the boat north about 30 miles to pick up Ollie, who is flying into an airport at the north end of the Island. 

Happy Valentine's Day Joan!  Happy Valentine's Day Dad and Quinn and Jaylen, Mike and Jody and Jeannine and to all my other loved ones. 

We came into a beautiful anchorage just inside the north tip of Compass Island.  We motor sailed most of the way.  We got an early (8am) start into a 10 knot NE wind.  We headed out East for an hour and then tacked over to a starboard tack.  The wind picked up to about a little over 15 kt. from about noon till two then died off to zero as we came into the cut north of the island.  I told Captain Phil I was proud of him for anchoring in our shallowest depth yet.  He is so used never anchoring in anything less than 10 or 15' that depths showing 1 meter on the chart makes him very nervous.  So, here we are, anchored in 1 meter with (on the chart).  Within 2 minutes of dropping the anchor, Phil was the first in and I was the second.  It is the clearest water we have seen yet.  From 10' in front of the boat, we could easily see the rudder over 50' away.  Tomorrow it will be up early to be off for Eleuthera where Mary and Dewey will depart for Nassau and then Denver.

This morning was decision making time.  Mary and Dewey are scheduled to fly to Nassua from Eleuthra on Saturday.  With the progress we have been making and the bad weather forecasted, we had to decide whether to forge on and reschedule their flights and return home or to fly out of Georgetown on Great Exuma.  We decided to forge on.  They made some calls and got it worked out.  We were late leaving - after provisioning twice and taking on water and fuel - left about 10:30am.  Our plan was to make if about 45 miles to Farmers Cays.  After the first 2 hours of a really nice westerly beam reach, the wind picked up to around 25.  We dropped the mizzen and reefed the main.  The wind was forecasted to clock around to the NW so we decided to stop short.  We went through Adderly Cut (at about 4:30pm) and into an anchorage with about 8 other boats, in the lee of Norman's Pond Cay.  Dewey swam a quarter mile to shore, I sun showered.  Had coctails and them Captain Phil fixed burgers on his George Foreman burger grill.  They were great.  Had a huge thunderstorm at 10pm that lasted about 30 minutes with lots of rain and winds that sounded like 50 to 60 kts.  Happily, our single anchor (delta) held.

Sailed about 25 miles from Long Island to Georgetown on Grand Exuma Island.  Now THIS is the Bahamas.  Beautiful aqua blue water, lots of little cays with beautiful beaches and many great anchorages.  Got into Georgetown around 2pm after a 5 mile motor through coral heads and reefs.  Captain Phil's nerves are being tested but he knows there is much more of the same to come since the central and upper Bahamas are mostly islands on "banks" that are mile after mile of water just a little deeper than the Pintita's keel.  The banks are surrounded by waters that drop off to over a mile in just a few hundred yards.  As I type, we are running the "Silver Bullet" - the boats AC diesel powered generator.  Everyone has their cell phones, kindles, and other devices plugged in for charging.  We are staying at a marina that is redoing all their shore power and right now, we have none.  Looking out over the harbor (it's 9pm) is like star gazing. There must be over 100 boats in site at anchor - all displaying their anchor lights.  It's really a cool sight.  We are expecting the first (for the Pintita) in over 2 months. Fronts from the US typically don't make it below where we are - the East Trade winds keep  them from pushing south.  From this point north, we will be getting a lot of influence from the US weather.  We have read about all the winter storms marching across the country (brrrrr!).   Tomorrow morning, we will do some light provisioning and take on fuel and be on our way up the Exuma chain.   Will probably not be in contact till we reach Eleuthera in 2 or 3 days.

Started out at about 8:30am from Flying Fish Marina in Clarence Town this morning with fairly good (15 kt) ESE winds.  Wind dropped to about 10 knots so we motor sailed the 70 miles from there up to the northern tip of Long Island.  Motored around Santa Maria point and about 3 miles down the west side of Long Island to Calabash Bay.  This is a very remote area - like much of what we have seen for the last 3 days. Tomorrow, we will head to Georgetown on Great Exuma.  The plan is to get fuel there and anchor out, waiting for a cold front to pass through.  The west side of Long Island is the eastern side of the Grand Bahama Bank, where, for a hundred miles, the water is only a few feet deep.  We are anchored in a completely white sand bottom area and the almost full moon is shining off the bottom making the water glow.  It's amazing.   The downside of this anchorage is that it is a bit rocky from the surge.  The water is very smooth but big swells come around the top of the island and find their way into the anchorage. 

Tomorrow, it's up early and on to the northern tip of Long Island and around to the West side where we will anchor and then proceed onto the Exuma chain.  Should be two days in the Exumas and then on to Eluthra where Dewey and Mary will disembark and Ollie will arrive.  Will likely be out of touch for several days.  Had cracked Conch at "Rowdy Boys Restaurant tonight.  Everyone else is in bed and I'm heading there now.