Southern Cuba

We had a great sail over to the Bahamas, anchored the night in a shallow spot and rolled all night before enjoying a gentle sail the next day to Manjack Island where friends were celebrating New Years Eve around a fire on the beach.....been a long time since we have done that! Bill and Leslie have an idyllic lifestyle there, growing their own food and living in a stunning home they built. They are now in the process of building a smaller house for their old age which is a big project in such a spot.
While we were there we joined all the other cruisers on a trip over to Green Turtle to see in the New Year. The parade was only small due to the loss of costumes in the hurricane but it was still fun. The destruction is major but the community seems in good spirit and everyone is pitching in to get back to normal.

After 5 days we were able to sail south towards Cuba, doing a mix of overnighters and day sails. Leaving the southern island of Great Inagua after a rolly night, we had a 164 mile sail to the southern coast of Cuba. Sailing past Guantanamo in the middle of the night, over 2 miles off shore, with the sails wing and wing in a confused sea, we were suddenly in the spotlight, sirens going and being told to change course immediately which of course we couldn't do. With our own escort we continued on as best we could until they realised we were not a threat and left us in peace. The place is a lot bigger than I imagined and had an evil feel about it, knowing what goes on there. That was the only "hostile territory" we found in Cuba.

It was a magnificent entrance at dawn with the fort guarding Santiaga de Cuba. We went alongside a pretty rough dock at the marina to clear in. Officials were very friendly and it all went smoothly. The south coast is a lot more relaxed for cruisers and was a good mix of towns, villages and deserted islands. Cruising the northern coast means going from marina to marina. If there was a marina we had to use it and could only go ashore there but otherwise we were free to anchor. Santiago was a good first stop. We had an exciting bus ride into the city where the driver seemed a little crazy but at a few cents each it was a cheap thrill. It seemed a lot poorer than we expected but the people were friendly and colourful, the streets were fun to explore and the local restaurants were good. Shops were pretty empty with rice, oil and flour the only things in abundance. It was a shock to have our credit cards denied. Mine disappeared into the machine and it was a long drawn out process getting it back, involving many hours in queues, mostly standing outside. Four people allowed in as four came out, and that was the case in most shops. Luckily we had some American dollars to tide us over.

After 5 days exploring the area we headed west to the next small town Chivirico, 33 miles away.
The entrance wasn't as bad as the guide book made out but not one to be attempted on a rough day.

We had to check in with the local Guarda Fronterre at each spot and it was always fun. They were super friendly and spoke very little English so that made it interesting. A few questions, then they would take away our paperwork and return it with its stamps as we left. I was Captain for the stay as Phil would not have been patient enough!!!! We were cruising in company with a great English couple we met at Santiago de Cuba and got together every night to enjoy the stunning sunsets along with a rum or two. As well, we had friends on board so it was a pretty social time.

Cabo Cruz was a colourful stop with friendly officials who had a long row out to our boat in a pretty strong wind. It was a very shallow anchorage behind a reef.

After Cabo Cruz we explored the "Queens Gardens", a string of islands which we found out later we should have sailed on past. A warden had stopped by the boat to say hello because his name was Nelson which is our home port but all he did was remind us not to fish there. Apparently some rich fellow has bought the whole group and isn't keen to share them.

Here's Steve off "Miles" getting ashore in what looked like sand.

There was the fishing boat called "Plastico" and another called "Ferrocementico". Trading a little cash and an old wetsuit got us a decent feed of lobsters.

 This is an amazing country to explore by boat. We definitely get to see more than the touristy spots and the occasional person who speaks English gives us an idea of how life is for the locals, wages being low and choices very limited.

Short update

We had a wonderful time exploring the southern coast of Cuba and are now in the Cayman Islands for a week. Over a month with no internet which has been quite enjoyable but I know a few friends have been wondering where we got to. Our AIS position hasn't shown up since Florida. Used. To be nobody heard from us for months at a time which has its good and bad points. Will do a proper blog when I can. We have amazing photos of Cuba and its friendly people!!!! Next will be Providencia and then Panama.

Chasing the sun

After a great overnight sail we entered at Jacksonville and made our way to St Augustine, one of our favorite spots on the ICW. With its Spanish history, the town has a lot of character and we enjoyed 2 nights there on a mooring, catching up with friends and walking the streets.

The ICW is not always that interesting and often involves days of motoring down long straight stretches, but at least it is getting warmer. There is a mix of wilderness and housing, a lot of it extravagant trophy houses, all built on very low land and now that we are in Florida, it is also subject to hurricanes.

This always surprised us....a small power boat with four huge outboards on the stern...a bit over the top!

The birdlife has been amazing which is great to see....a huge variety...

We spent Christmas anchored off a friends house in Cocoa along with Dave and Helen on "Grace of Longstone" After almost 4 years stashed away in the forward cabin, our 3hp outboard replaced the oars as the 1/2 mile row ashore, often in windy conditions, with 4 onboard, was a bit much even for Phil to attempt every day. 5 days later it was retired again and now we are back to rowing. Mark and Carol joined us here and are with us for the next few months, and we waved off Warren and Deb from NZ as they continued on their road trip. Parts ordered online were picked up and yet more food was stashed onboard for the months ahead.

 

We are anchored at Lake Worth tonight and plan to set off at dawn tomorrow for the Bahamas. There are a lot of boats here planning to do the same as it has been a while since the weather has been suitable for the short hop over. The boat is sitting low in the water, laden with fuel, water and food, which is always a sign that we are about to set off on another adventure. This one sees us heading to the Panama Canal via the Bahamas, Cuba and maybe the Caymans and Providencia.....and then we will be back in our ocean again after 4 exciting years in the Atlantic.

Mast repairs in beautiful Bluffton, SC

We had a couple of great stops along the way, at Oriental where we tied up at a public dock and could have stayed because everyone was so friendly, and then Beaufort NC where we caught up with Dave and Helen on Grace of Longstone, an English couple we have met before and hope to hang out with a bit on the journey back to NZ.

Together we sailed to Bluffton, South Carolina, a trip of 290 miles, arriving at the entrance at dawn and then wandering for hours up to George and Lillian's dock. We had met them in Nova Scotia and were keen to re-connect.

 

 It's been a non-stop social whirl here. Potlucks and sitting around a fire late into the evenings, lots of shopping to stock our boats for the next few months, good walks and visits to other towns. Once again we are blown away by the friendly locals.

PHIL TURNED 60 ON THE FIRST OF DECEMBER and kiwi friends Warren and Deb were there to help celebrate the big day.

Bluffton's Christmas parade was a 2 hour event with the streets lined with spectators. We lasted an hour or so before we headed for home.
                                                                                                
 Amongst the playing there was a lot of work done while we were here. The mast was rotten at the base and had dropped an inch over the last year or so and finally we had found a good place to repair it. Roger introduced Phil to a local fisherman who was okay with him putting Windora alongside and using the outrigger to lift the mast out. Unfortunately the engine wasn't going on the fishing boat but our windlass was strong enough to do the lifting. Dave climbed up the outrigger and attached a strop and 2 blocks, so one line came down to the windlass and one to the fishing boat.

 

After some line adjustments and much advice being voiced by all the willing helpers, the mast made it's way down and was loaded onto a skiff to be taken to shore where it was put on two trolleys and pushed half a mile or so back to George's place without disrupting too much traffic.

                           Great work team!

Phil ended up cutting 18" off the bottom of the mast and a further 10" up the sides to remove all of the soft timber. This acted as a key for the new piece of timber. Here's Roger routing out the sides.

We bought a 12 foot long piece of 8" by 1.5" Douglas Fir and had it dressed, then machined the rebates to repair the butt of the mast.

The base was painted with red lead paint and it was ready to go back in. Bad weather was coming so the pressure was on to get it done quickly.

Putting the mast back in place was a lot easier as everyone knew what to do this time. We used 2 skiffs to move the mast and with Windora back alongside again, the mast was lifted with the butt resting on planks in the second skiff and then left dangling while Phil turned Windora around to position the boat under the mast.

Time for a beer and chocolate cake once the mast was in place. Thanks Roger, George, Dave, Helen, Warren, Deb, Adam, Steve, Andy, Doran, Larry. Then followed hours getting the rigging back on and the sails on. Feels good to know that job is done and that Windora is in fine shape for the Pacific crossing in a few months time.
Tomrrow we take another leap south to Titusville to meet up with more friends and wait for fair weather to cross the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas. This is the longest we have stayed anywhere for a while now and it's been great. Feels time to move on though.....NZ is calling...