WERE HAVE I BEEN?

There are lot's of ways to go cruising. Even those who live on board full time do get off from time to time and head off traveling on land and/or visiting relatives etc.... I have come to terms with pulling BIANKA out of the water for the winter and not taking her south to warmer waters. I think this is good for a couple of reasons it allows one to really look forward to the upcoming sailing season. That's the absence makes the heart grow fonder reason. Another reason is my semi-landlubber companion likes to go on mid winter sailing vacations on crewed Catamarans. We've been doing this for a number of years and have spent part of the winter sailing various parts of the world. So my wanderlust to visit these places like the Carribbean  is satiated and no longer have the strong desire to make the journey to these areas with BIANKA. This year was no exception. But, it was not just a quick Jet ride down to the Caribbean. It was a trip halfway across the world and out to the Indian Ocean to spend twelve days cruising in the Maldive Atolls. It's a special place with gorgeous reefs and also a place I'd never be able to bring BIANKA easily. Nor would I want to since the numerous reefs and sand banks are better navigated with someone with local knowledge. We spent most of January in the area and I will try and post some of the highlights of the cruise here in the next few weeks. Upon returning from this trip I got some more good news. In the mail yesterday came the paperwork from the Town for renewing the mooring permit. A sign that the sailing season is just around the corner.

A LOOK AT THE XS SCUBA GOPRO MASK

I have a GoPro camera that I use on board BIANKA and when chartering on other boats. Though my homemade floating handle requires I use one hand to hold it when taking videos or stills. While I was looking around for a new dive mask this summer I came upon the XS SCUBA GoPro MASK . This mask has a metal bracket where one mounts the underwater housing of a GoPro camera when snorkeling or diving.
Seemed like a good item to have on board. Though my local waters are rather nutrient rich and visibilty is limited. I do get to spend a lot of time in waters of the Caribbean and elsewhere around the world where visibility is much clearer and the mask would be more useful. So I bought it and here is a quick look and test on how it works:


I'm pleased with the mask and will get to try it out in clearer warmer waters soon. If you know someone who has a GoPro or similar camera like the Swann Freestyle Waterproof Video Camera  it would make a great gift too!

CAPT. MIKE IN THE EXUMAS DAY ELEVEN: NORMAN CAY

It's our last day or I should say morning in the Exumas. We have a chartered plane that will fly us back to Nassau at 12 noon from Norman Cay. So we will have to pack a few things in this morning starting with an early morning on the reef we discovered yesterday afternoon.
Even better is that when we dove on the reef this morning there was absolutely no current. Always nice when you can explore a reef while snorkeling at your leisure. As I was snorkeling close to the rock cay I discovered the keel of a shipwreck:

Seemed to be about 50 feet long and still had the engine and prop attached. I wondered how it ended up here? Was it put adrift during some hurricane? Or did it run aground onto the cay in the middle of the night in the hey day of drug running in the area? A mystery but, still neat to snorkel around:


After our early morning snorkel on the reef we found it was back in the dingy to head to the other side of Norman's Cay. There another wreck awaited us. In he late 1970's and early 1980's Norman's Cay was used by drug trafficker Carlos Lehder to ship illegal drugs to the U.S. from South America. He bought the island lengthened it's air strip and improved it's docks to facilitate the illegal activities. A brand new plane he had ordered was carrying a load of grass. Real grass as in sod to simulate a plane loaded with drugs and doing touch and go landings on the island's air strip. Something went wrong and the plane crashed onto the flats near the island. It is this plane wreck we are heading to for our final snorkel in the Exumas:


Two large Puffer Fish came out of hiding to greet me:


The plane is slowly disappearing but, it is still a neat snorkel when cruising through the Exumas:


Two great snorkels is how we ended our trip in the Exumas after which it was back to the Surprise pick up our bags and fly back to Nassau. It was a wonderful trip but, I was also eager to head back home because I wanted to get BIANKA ready for the upcoming sailing season. The fifth season since I installed electric propulsion  on board. So after eleven days in the Bahamas I was kind of singing this song:

CAPT. MIKE IN THE EXUMAS DAY TEN: HAMMERHEAD GULCH

I awoke early and enjoyed listening to the twittering of Tropic Birds as they flew by. After breakfast we took the dingy over to place called Hammerhead Gulch. We jumped in for a snorkel and happily saw no hammer-headed Sharks. But, did encounter an somewhat aggressive large Remora:





I guess he had been waiting for a while in the area for one of the Hammerheads or any other shark to give him a free ride. But, it looks like we were the only game in town that day. Hammerhead Gulch was a little bit of a disappointment. Because it was so deep I think it would make a better dive than the snorkel we did. In fact a lot of the Exumas were a little disappointing for snorkeling during our trip. One would think there would be a whole lot more pristine coral reefs to dive and snorkel on but, we found that was not the case. Since this was our last full day in the Exumas I was ready to pack it in. But, we decided to do some scouting at a nearby cay. Happily we found a real nice snorkeling spot that saved the day. More on that in the next post.

CAPT MIKE IN THE EXUMAS DAY ELEVEN CLICK HERE

SOUVENIRS

Memories, they can't be boughten.

They can't be won at carnivals for free.

Well it took me years to get those souvenirs

                                                                          -John Prine

 

 

When I travel I'm always on the lookout for souvenirs of the trip. I might buy something on occasion but, only if I know I will be able to use in my day to day living.   I don't need something that is just going to sit around on a shelf  and become part of ones "stuff" taking up room and serving no useful purpose in my life. But, if I know I can really use something I might buy it. For example a number of years ago I bought a bag of salt from one of the then local residents of Salt Island in the British Virgin Islands while on a cruise in the area. I still have some left and use it when cooking along with memories of that trip.

Though my favorite type of souvenir is something I find myself either snorkeling or walking along a beach . Best of all they are free and free is good! I have a small stainless steel sugar spoon that I found snorkeling near Norman Island in the British Virgin Islands years ago. It's on board BIANKA being used. Though I wonder how it came to be on the sandy bottom where I found it. What kind of boat did it fall off? Who dropped it? It will always be a mystery but, will also trigger a memory for me of the day I found it. My most recent trip to Culebra was no exception. While swimming around one morning I spied this souvenir laying on the bottom:

I know it's just a cheap plastic clamp. But, I found it near the boat on the bottom of the harbor in Culebra. It still works and I'll use it on board for something. When I do, it will bring back memories of the trip to the Windward Islands. At the very least it's better to have it on board BIANKA than to have it remain just a piece of plastic on the harbor bottom in Culebra. It's just my kind of souvenir.

CAPT. MIKE IN THE LEEWARD ISLANDS PART FOUR: CULEBRA

"I mixed a drink and went out on the balcony to sit down. The town still looked deserted. Far out on the horizon I could see the neighboring island of Culebra, and from somewhere in that direction came the shuddering thump of explosions. I recalled Sanderson telling me that Culebra was an aerial

bombing range for the U.S. Navy. Once it had been a magic place, but no longer."

-Hunter S. Thompson, THE RUM DIARY 

Hard to believe that this peaceful little island was used for target practice by the U.S. military but, it was for many years. I had heard about the demonstrations against the practice on nearby Vieques but, had never heard about Culebra. The practice started in 1939 in preparation for World War II. It seems the topography of the island and it's beaches were excellent training grounds for the invasion of the Pacific Islands by U.S. forces. By 1971 the people of Culebra had had enough and started protesting. In 1975 operations were switched to Vieques.

Culebra to my mind has once again become a magical place and one that I hope to get back to soon hopefully with BIANKA. The magic on our second morning started for me as I awoke a little before dawn and witnessed a real nice sunrise to start the day:

Capt. Billy and Pat went into town looking to provision up with some ingredients for salads. Being an arid island most produce comes in by ferry from the Puerto Rico mainland. Though there was some mechanical problem with the ferry and it did not operate the previous day. Things were a little up in the air and the island suffered an economic hit because the Puerto Ricans from the mainland were not able to get the Culebra for the weekend as they usually did.  So the island was pretty quiet even though it was a holiday weekend.  We decided to take a  two hour tour around the island with one of the local taxi drivers. He took us up into the hills where we enjoyed some real nice vistas:

and traveled down to the other side of the island to visit some of the lovely beaches including Flamingo Beach. Which is just as pretty from the air:

as it is from the shore:

The next morning the magic continued as just before breakfast a beautiful rainbow seemed to emanate from the middle of the harbor:

Since this harbor was a known hangout for pirate ships it was very easy to assume that some pots of gold plunder might be located on the bottom of the harbor at the end of the rainbow.

Culebra has just about everything a cruising sailor might need especially those who don't need the nightlife of a San Juan or St. Thomas or some of the British Virgin Islands. There is a grocery store and a farmers market with a fellow who comes over by ferry one day a week. There will soon be two places where one can get fuel. But, a lot depends on whether the ferries are running. So one needs to be aware that schedules and supplies do not always coincide.  But, there are a few bars where one can go to mingle with other cruisers. Including one appropriately named The Dingy Dock:

A restaurant and bar with a great waterfront view. You can easily tell when it's happy hour by all the dingies tied up to the dock:

There is a convenient cut across the island with a lift bridge that is opened once a year to make sure it is working. It's height and water pipe prevent most cruising boats from using the cut.

It is however convenient to take a dingy to the other side of the island to visit some of the very beautiful snorkeling and dive sites around Culebra. Which is why we came here in the first place. Here are some videos I took with my GoPro camera snorkeling some of the reefs off of Culebra:

Though the videos do not really do justice to how nice most of the reefs around the island really are. Our original plans called for us to stop at Culebra and then head off to Vieques and finally sail the the Puerto Rico mainland and getting off the boat at Farado. But, once we got to Culebra the feel of the place and beauty of the reefs made us decide to just stay here for the rest of the charter. Culebra is certainly a place I will want to come back to.

CAPT. MIKE IN THE LEEWARD ISLANDS PART TWO: ST. JOHNS...

After getting settled on board we were soon off heading toward St. Johns, motoring into to the trade winds.

We passed this discolored rock shoreline:

It is said this site was used for the Hollywood movie Guns of Navarone filmed in the early 1960's. They supposedly blew it up for the explosive climatic scene. Though I could not find any official confirmation that this was true.

Continuing on past St. Thomas we first stopped at Christmas Cove on Great St. James Island:

We jumped in for a snorkel around Fish Island and saw a ray, spotted eel and two turtles among the other fish on the reef around Fish Island. Not a bad way to start. Then it was off to Mingo Cay for lunch and another snorkel. Then another stop at a small cove between Lovongo Cay and Congo Cay where Captain Billy said we were lucky as the conditions here often made this stop impossible.

 But, the winds were cooperating and we took advantage of another wonderful snorkel. We then headed out past Carval Rock:

We motored on heading for the nights anchorage.  Occasionally reminded by the ruins on shore of the history of the area:

Like this sugar cane processing building on the former Annaberg Plantation:

Which was a good reminder that since we were in the islands of rum that some sun downer drinks are soon to be had after we anchored for the day. The nights anchorage was just off Waterlemon Cay in Leinster Bay.

All the moorings were taken so we dropped the hook and were enjoying some boat drinks. When we heard someone call out to Capt. Billy "Why you salty dog!" Turns out it was musician and sailor Michael Beans:


Billy asked what he was doing here? Beans said he got kicked out of the British Virgin Islands. You know there has to be a good story there. Unfortunately, we were not able to get the details in the time he sailed by.

The next morning we hoisted anchor around 9:30 am and motored past Beans anchored boat. Beans being a true musician was still not awake so we sailed on.

Our next stop was Cinnamon Bay.

Time for another snorkel.


This was not a great spot for snorkeling compared to some of the others we saw. So I played around with Capt. Mikes homemade GoPro camera snorkeling handle rig to get some other shots like this:


My snorkeling camera handle worked out real well with my Go Pro camera on this trip. I'll post about how I made it in a future post.

Back on board we noticed something was drifting toward the boat. As it got closer we were able to identify it:

Obviously a very "board" woman. Just another example of some of the things you can see from a boat. There was a discussion about how far we should let her drift out into the Windward Passage before we we would need to rescue her. Happily, she woke up not to long afterward and paddled her self back into the beach. After lunch and an obligatory afternoon nap we headed for Little St. James island and snorkeled some ledges there. Afterwards we headed back to Charlotte Amalie harbor for the night. In the morning we head toward the Spanish Virgin Islands.

CAPT. MIKE IN THE LEEWARDS PART THREE Click here!

CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES: DAY 11

After a very beautiful sunrise we had two nice snorkels to start the day.

  The snorkels we've made have been great. From my experience some of the best I've ever seen. I would expect the diving to be exceptional too. We we are both open water certified divers. Unfortunately, my girlfriends back issues do not make strapping on a 60 pound tank very comfortable and worth the pain. Another reason we are not diving is that it requires special schedules to meet up with dive guides. This would limit our wandering around the atolls and also take more time out of each day to do just the dives. So snorkels seemed the way to go for this trip. After the snorkels we headed for our lunch anchorage at 04 24.787N, 073 35.466E:

After lunch we headed over to some islands that were Maldivian military bases and snorkeled off one that Ibrahim called a "carbon neutral" island. As the power for the islands electric needs were made from renewable resources as you can see from the two wind generator towers:

Lucky for us the light was just right making the channels very easy to see:

You can see how traveling when the light is right is important when navigating these waters.


We then headed for the night's anchorage 04 15.720N 073 30.270E:

While waiting for the sunset I spent my time watching the colorful fishing boats heading back to the ports in the evening. The next day Friday would be the holy day in this Islamic country:

Once again we had very a beautiful sunset for our next to last night night in the Maldives:

It was worth the wait...

CLICK HERE FOR THE CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES POST: DAY 10

CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES: DAY 10

Another morning with several snorkels:

Some turtles and a white tipped shark swam by us and off course lot's and lot's of reef fish. Some that have their own cunning plans to avoid detection. Can you spot them in the video below:

After the morning snorkels it was time to anchor for lunch at 04 37.189N, 073 25.016E inside a nice cozy reef:

After lunch and of course a nap it was an afternoon of sailing across the atoll and moving along quite nicely:

We anchored for the night off another one of the resort islands (04 27.790N, 073 39.541E)

We  finally got a perfect sunset after ten days of watching for one:

Unfortunately, though it looked promising there was no "green flash":

So it goes...

CLICK HERE FOR CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES POST: DAY 8

CLICK HERE FOR CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES POST: DAY 9

CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES: DAY NINE

Today was turtle day. The morning snorkel had a black tipped reef shark cruise on by us and a turtle. Which pleased my girlfriend. We headed for another sandbank for our lunch anchorage (04 27.315N, 073 24.317E) in about fifty feet of water.

We finished the last of the tuna for lunch. That's not all. The storage area that was so full of some of the fresh provisions when we started:

Was starting to look a little bare. We also finished the last of the Pineapple and the delicious local Mangoes. Two of the few things that are grown in the Maldives. But, the good news is the bunch of bananas that looked very green when we first came on board:

Are now starting to ripen up very nicely.

We still had apples to so I introduced Ibrahim and Issac to a drink I often have on BIANKA for breakfast or a late afternoon treat: I know it as a liquida but, it might also be called a smoothie:

1 banana (required)

1 cup of milk (required)

1 apple coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon of peanut butter

Place all ingredients in a container and use a handheld mixer or use a blender. Puree all the ingredients pour into a glass and enjoy. You can also skip the peanut butter and use other fruits besides apple too. The important thing is to always use a banana and a cup of milk for each serving. 

On the afternoon snorkel we saw three turtles. One of which came up to the surface and hung out with us for a few minutes not more than ten feet away. A real magic moment that made it the highlight of the day and anchored for the night at (04 34.929N, 073 23.917E)

CLICK HERE FOR CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES POST: DAY 8

CLICK HERE FOR CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES POST: DAY 10

CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES: DAY FIVE

Had a nice morning snorkel off of the Rannahi Resort and then motor sailed to small island called Vaagali (03 56.959N, 073 21.439E).

Vaagli according to Ibrahim is what is known as a "Picnic Island" it is a place where the Safari Boats and day trippers from Male would come to have a picnic enjoying the remoteness of the location but, still having enough facilities to make it enjoyable. On this day the only person we could see was the caretaker and the only reason we could see him is because he came out to the dock to to check his fishing line.

We stayed here for lunch lunch and the all important afternoon nap. After which we snorkeled along the reef. Because of it's location on the outer edge of the atoll there was a bit of a current so we just drifted along the reef until we waved for a pick up.  Since it was getting late we had our afternoon snacks while under way:

A some Maldivian fish croquettes and  some more of the Tuna that was caught yesterday in sandwiches too. Mmmm.

We anchored for the night at Vaaredhah Falhu (04 02.636N, 073 22.910E)

As you can see from the above there are quite a few reefs in the area. You really need good light in order to be able to see them. During mid day it's not so bad but, in the late afternoon it does become a problem  to make them out in these waters.

Surprisingly, it's day five and we've yet to see a perfect sunrise or sunset. Despite usually having clear views to the horizon.  That's not to say the sunsets have not been dramatic:

But, so far none of them have been that perfect sunset where the red sun dips below the horizon unobscured by clouds. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.

CLICK HERE TO SEE CAPT. MIKE IN THE MALDIVES: DAY FOUR POST