Bahamas Crazy

     Twenty six hours and thirty minutes.  Non-stop.  That's how long it took us to exit the Bahamas and back to Florida. Forget about the previous 10 days while the transmission was being repaired.  Our departure was Saturday at 7a.m.  This time we left Nassau with a buddy boat, M/V Esperanza.  Just in case.  The buddy boat scenario was beneficial for both boats, Big Run had the transmissions issues, the other boat also had mechanical issues while in the Bahamas.  They had their repairs done in Highbourne Cay and traveled to Nassau before getting held up waiting for a weather window.  By Saturday mid-afternoon, both boats had crossed the Tongue of the Ocean to the waypoint, NW Channel.  Here, we parted company as the other boat went onto Bimini.  We on the other hand made our way to Mackie Shoal, also on the Great Bahama Bank.  By 11:30p.m. we were at our last waypoint in the Bahamas, Hens and Chickens.  From there, we made the final push across the Straits of Florida to Palm Beach on Lake Worth.  Twenty six hours and thirty minutes.  At times the seas were calm, and there were times the sea reminded us she was in charge.  There were two occasions the sea was a "little" bumpy, first, they were a beamy sea for awhile when we left Nassau, and the second time was around 3 a.m. as we crossed the straits and it continued to be bumpy until we entered Lake Worth Inlet on Sunday at 9 a.m..  The slow moving cold front that was to make its slow trek across Florida on Sunday afternoon arrived Sunday morning bring stout winds over the seas from the SW.  So much for weather predictions.  Twenty six hours and thirty minutes.  All the time we were making the crossing, one million different things ran through my mind.  The transmission.  The engine.  The transmission.  The navigation computer.  The transmission.  Prior to our departure, I had gone over most of the systems.  I replaced the raw water impeller for the engine because it was missing 2 vanes.  I load tested the transmission one more time for fifteen minutes while we were in the slip.  I replaced a fuel filter for the fuel polishing system because it seemed like a good idea.  Many things were checked and double checked.  Twenty six hours and thirty minutes.  And now we're counting the hours and minutes until we return.  Yes, we're Bahamas crazy!

The Event at Mackie Shoal