Sailing The Sea of Abaco

On the 17th we filled with diesel fuel (4 gal) and checked out of the marina. The weather looked great with SE winds. We headed back out into the straits and headed north so we could enter Indian Cay Channel safely. I had programmed the waypoints for the channel into the chart plotter so we had no problem finding the entrance. As we entered the channel (there are no markers on this channel) we noticed our depth meter started to read 8’ , then 7’, then 9’, then 7’ and we began thinking we should have taken the longer deep water route. Once beyond our 3rd waypoint the depth went to 10’ and stayed there the rest of the day. After the 3rd waypoint we raised our sails and began a beautiful cruise as we headed for Mangrove Cay (uninhabited) where we made a course change to head for Great Sale Cay (uninhabited). We anchored in 10’ of water on the west side of Great Sale Cay along with 8 or 9 other boats. The low brush like trees of Great Sale Cay gave us some comfort but the reality was that there was nothing on the horizon in any direction except for this tiny island. Brock had bought some lobsters from a local fisherman at West End so we feasted on boiled lobster and boiled potatoes for supper (yum!)
On the 18th we raised our anchor at 7 AM and motored south to avoid Great Sale Reef, then turned east toward Little Abaco Island. A low front that was predicted for Sunday was arriving early and we were looking at strong winds out of the S and since both anchorages near Great Sale Cay are exposed to any south wind we felt better off getting in the lee of Little Abaco Island. The winds picked up and we proceeded under sail. We made our waypoint to turn SE and were able to keep out sails up (close hauled) but decided to stop at Spanish Cay rather than try to make Green Turtle Cay in the dark. Spanish Cay is a very nice marina and we met up with our buddy boats again. Spanish Cay is a private island and there is no town on the island but the marina welcomes transient boats. The harbor master, Dan, helped us into a slip and his wife, Sue, checked us in. It turned out that Dan and Sue run the whole thing, that is, they run the marina, then run the bar, and then run the restaurant. The beer was cold and the food was excellent! All the boaters ended up at the bar telling stories and just having a good time.
The 19th was a whole different deal. All the sailors were checking the weather at 7 AM and it looked “iffy” at best. The front was making the sea rough and some sailors were maybe’s to leave and others were staying put. We fell into the maybe, maybe not group. The problem was that it was blowing 20 nts from the NW and would shift to the NE next. A NE wind would make a Whale Cay passage impossible and you must do that passage, which includes exiting the Sea of Abaco and sailing on the Atlantic Ocean for a few miles, to get to Marsh Harbor. We knew that we would have fairly large breaking waves on the ocean but with a NW wind we would not face a “Rage” in the passage itself. A “Rage” is a phenomena that is the result of opposing wind and currents that cause breaking seas that even large ships must avoid. If the wind switched to NE we would most likely be spending Christmas in Spanish Cay. We decided to go and follow the sailboat “Private Island” which is a 40+ ft cruising ketch. We figured that if they got in trouble we could turn around and they agreed to radio back conditions for us.
We headed SE and the wind pushed us at 6.5 nts with no sails and the motor barely working. We passed our last “safe harbor” which was Green Turtle Cay at about 11:30 AM. We were committed. We watched as SV Private Island (75,000 lbs of boat) bounced in the breaking waves ahead of us. Well, all I can say is that it was a rough passage but Summer Snow got us through again. We were weather beaten and tired when we finally got back into the Sea of Abaco but knew then we were “home free” and going to make Marsh Harbor for the holidays! We arrived in Marsh Harbor and headed for Harbor View Marina. As we approached the fuel dock as directed by the harbor master, I went into docking mode which includes putting Summer Snow in reverse to slow her down. NO REVERSE!!! I abort the docking and circle while trying to figure out what’s the matter. Can’t see anything wrong but still the transmission will not shift into reverse. Well we have to dock so the harbor master points to an empty slip and we go for it. Brock readies the spring line which should stop us. A dock attendant catches the spring line which is suppose to stop us and when he secures it to the dock , POP. What in the hell was that??? It was the spring line cleat breaking off from Summer Snow and we are still moving toward the end of the slip!! Brock has his stuff together as he jumps ship with bow line in hand and secures it stopping the boat. Lesson learned – every docking you walk away from is a good docking!