Thinning out

I need a haircut and have made an appointment with Monica for Jo and I.  But that's not what I meant by the title.

We are in the season when the winter boaters head home to the warming climates of the north to be replaced by sport-fishing boats from everywhere.  As you can see from the following pictures there are plenty of free slips and mooring cans:

Jo and I were having an evening wine on the aft deck of Dream Weaver when a lady dropped by to say she recognised our boat from Ed Huck's Scenic Dock in Rockport.  Turns out she and her husband have a very large property on the St Lawrence there.  Their boat is the Pershing in the last photo above and the one below and her name was Lisa Karson, wife of the Carp Road Karson companies owner.  Their boat is here for a couple of weeks.

This beautiful sport fish came in the other day.  Love the lines.

My anchor system is now fully repaired and the Albury ferry company has generously given us five free round trip tickets on their ferries for our trouble.  Very responsive.

Today is Friday which means groceries.  The barge came in from Marsh Harbour yesterday so there will be fresh fruit and veg on the shelves today.  This also means lunch at Captain jack's next door!  Well, you wouldn't trek across the harbour without stopping at Jack's would you?

The repair men cometh...

 Today the guys arrived to repair the damage done by the Albury Ferry to my anchor. 

There are eight bolts which had been damaged, sheared or simply ripped out of the deck.  To repair it the damaged area has to be ground away until fresh, undamaged fibreglass is showing.  This creates a lot of dust which is not pleasant and has to be contained. They created a tent using a tarp to contain and redirect the dust.

Throughout the process Spooky kept a close eye on everything.

Here's the result of the lay-up.  The furry stuff is chopped-strand mat wetted with resin into the holes ground down previously.  Today they will grind this down to level of the surrounding surface and finish with gelcoat.

Departures - 2

Seems like everyone is leaving recently.  Bob and Annie on Spindrift departed with Annie still sick from an unknown ailment.

In fact quite a few long term folks we have got to know quite well have left and been replaced by others who are shorter term clients.  It's all very social.

Our new friends Jerome and Janice on twin boat Sweet Escape had a family visit.  Their daughter and friend were here until the boat left this morning.

Sad to see them go so soon.

I learned that the damage to Dream Weaver following the ferry accident will be repaired next week.

Departures

Keith and Bobby departed early this morning on Kim Jo IV.

As Jon and Janice waited for the 8am ferry for Marsh Harbour airport, a thunderstorm brewed to the East.

Crystal from Exit Strategy came over to say goodbye.

She then performed a strange ritual with Janice.  

I haven't seen this in the wild before but if I see it again I'll let you know.

Exit Strategy is this 105 feet Hargrave:

And then the ferry came and took them away!

Bon voyage and come again soon!

Rolling in the Deep

Yesterday was a bust for snorkeling with our new camera - too cold and windy.  We tried again today.  First, Katie served us some refreshments.

Then Jon and I dove in.  The water was a bit murky from the tide change but here's a couple of pictures:

The camera is great!  Thanks Jon, Catherine and Elizabeth.  Very cool present, much appreciated by us both.

Poor Spooky has been a bit abandoned while Jon and Janice are here.  Add to that, Jerome and Janice arriving on a boat identical to ours and, well, here's what happened.  

I took Spooky for a harnessed walk and she got totally confused when we walked down our old finger (remember we just moved over?) and found the same make and model of boat with different people on board.  

That pretty much blew her mind.

Shortly after I brought Spooky back shaking her head, Jo left the door open and Spooky took the opportunity and headed over on her own to investigate this clear case of parallel universes.

The poor girl went aboard Sweet Escape and just couldn't wrap her mind around what she was seeing.  Jo retrieved Spooky so she could come home and rest her aching head.

Poor thing.  By the way, Sweet Escape, you need a better Canadian flag!

A Newsworthy Day

I like to get up early and enjoy the sunrise.  You've seen the pictures.  The Marsh Harbour ferry was an early visitor to us at Hope Town Marina this morning.  I only realised he was here when I heard him maneuvering in front of our boat.  He was getting closer and closer so I went outside to take a closer look.  Jon and Janice were still in bed in the forward cabin.  And that's when the ferry captain decided he had enough room to power out of the fairway.  Mistakenly.  His stern took my anchor and anchor roller and ripped it out of the bow a bit!

So now I have a repair to arrange for!

But later, I had occasion to feel proud.  Jon rose to Gary's 5 cocktail challenge.

And, regrettably our friends from our twin boat joined us to watch...

You have to have one of each of the Hope Town Lodge's five signature cocktails to obtain the certificate of accomplishment.  Jon was up to it.

Not only did he achieve this landmark but he made his own photo op too!

Just makes a father proud eh?

And today the weather was the worst we have seen in months.  Cloudy, cool and rainy.
It was still a fun day.

Multiple arrivals

Jon and Janice arrived bearing gifts (I was expecting spare parts etc).  Janice and Jerome arrived on Sweet Escape.

Look what my amazing kids bought us when they realized I had no underwater camera:

En route with goodies

That's my replacement hat after the last one went AWOL after the Barefoot Man concert.

Their aircraft landed 5 minutes ago in Marsh Harbour.  This was Palm Beach.

Now the liquor store and the ferry...

Quiet times

Not too much happening at Hope Town.  Strong winds, overnight heavy rain.  No fresh veggies in the stores until Friday.  Cooler temperatures for a few days seems to be an indicator that guests are about to arrive.  And they are.  Jon and Janice arrive tomorrow afternoon.

I will post some more interesting content when they get here.

Snorkeling at the Lodge

Steve and Barbara cruised out at noon.  We decided to have lunch at the boat (!) and then to go over in the dinghy to the Lodge, have a beer and wine and go snorkeling as it was such a nice day.  Well, one of us got as far as the wine and Gary's quick wit and repartee.

So I went snorkeling!  Then Jo took a walk along the beach looking for sea glass.

Perfect day, weather-wise.  About 80F and moderate humidity.  The sea was warm and the pool, to wash the salt off,  was warmer for a change.

Jo cooked two great steaks - a perfect end to the day.

Debbie leaves and L L Sea arrives

On Debby's last day we ran over to the Lodge for lunch.  From the restaurant you can see the coral reef just off the beach.

We enjoyed supper at Harbour's Edge.

Jo was feeling little pain as we departed back to the boat.

And, once more, the sun set on another great day in the Bahamas.

Debby left the next morning and arrived safely back in Ottawa.

"L L Sea" arrived in Hope Town Marina.  We had met them in Thunderbolt and saw their boat but not them in River Forest Marina.  They are only here for a few days and leave today.  But we had some great times with them here.  Steve and Barbara are a fun couple and Steve's ability to tell hilarious stories kept us at the bar for quite a while last night.

Bon Voyage guys!  Hope we catch up with you again.

This week a number of boats left the marina to head back to the US and Canada.  Some taking their boats with them and some leaving them in storage locally.  We particularly enjoyed Ben and Margaret's company and their gracious hospitality when we arrived.  They are great ambassadors for the Marsh Harbour Yacht Club of which we are all members.

The clientele here changes over the next few weeks to folks coming in from the US to sport fish off the coast.  All to make life interesting as we enjoy the quiet retirement life until Jon and Janice arrive in a week or so.