Old Bahamas Bay Abaco's Bahamas

So much has happened since I last wrote, we woke up Christmas morning, watched an amazing sunrise, checked the wind and decided it would be a perfect sail along the Florida Coast to Ponce de Leon, and it was. That night we enjoyed a restful sleep at anchor, and that day we traveled the intracoastal waterway to Cocoa Beach. When we awoke the next morning, we checked the weather, then listened to our weather guru, the opportunity for a crossing to the Bahamas was imminent so we were off and we never looked back. The trick was for us to get as far south in Florida as possible so that we could sail safely to West End Bahamas before the following night fall. We headed to Fort Pearce, slipped out into the Atlantic, sailed the coast to St Lucie River Inlet Florida, at 01:00 am we changed course for West End Grand Bahamas. At 16:00 On the advice of Cloud Nine, we slipped into Old Bahama Bay resort cleared customs, enjoyed docking for a dollar a foot, met old and new friends, and had a fantastic New Years. 

Staying in the resort was cheaper because the facilities were not 100 percent in the wake of hurricane Matthew. Not having dockside electricity and hot water in the shower house was not a major inconvenience, water was free and abundant, usually a scarce commodity in the Bahamas, the docks perfect, the resort beautiful. 

The Cement Post Were The Footings, Used After the Last Hurricane.  The 10' to 12' Surge Moved The House 30' to 40' Feet

I had so many reservations about returning after the hurricane, thinking of going back to Mexico but as beau told me “No, no, no we need tourism, we need to rebuild, take pictures, visit, drink some rum.  

The Front Was Totally Ripped Off The Bakery 

So, though we enjoyed the comfort of the resort, it was sad to see the devastation left in the wake of Hurricane Matthew. Grand Bahama Island, and specifically the West End, was hit particularly hard as the storm passed directly over the region.  The local community suffered complete destruction and countless homes were lost due to the high winds and extensive flooding.  Thankfully, there were no deaths reported. An extensive clean-up is underway and the relief efforts are expected to take many months.