April 24 – 25.
I wake on Friday the 25th to the sound of a train. Not the high clickety-clack of an Atlanta MARTA run, or the low slow chunkety-chunk of a close by freight, but still the steady, rhythmic procession of a train. This is a sound that will probably never be heard in the Bahamas.
We are anchored in Lake Worth, a large body of water adjacent to the best cut from Southern Florida to the Atlantic. We left Brown’s Marina in Bimini before 3AM yesterday. It wasn’t a picture-perfect departure, but we didn’t wake any of our neighbors. We raised the mainsail just in case the forecast was wrong. But no, it was calm most of our trip.
It’s unusual not to have a tail wind for this trip. The trades normally blow from the east, interrupted by weekly fronts. We waited for favorable winds for six days. Now we have a two-day window with no wind at all. There is no prediction of easterlies for another week. So we just motor across a nice calm Gulf Stream.
After 12 hours we get enough breeze to boost our motoring speed a couple of knots. We are about six miles from the Lake Worth cut by now, though. We go through the wide smooth cut, and turn left into the big lake where we see hundreds of boats.
On Wednesday our new buddies left the marina ahead of us and anchored out, hoping for an easier Thursday morning getaway. We chatted on the radio before sunup, but we haven’t seen them all day. Now, in Lake Worth, we pass Miss Grace and stop in an open spot near Adamant. We talk with Wade and find that Adamant had windless troubles overnight. Not much sleep for the crew and an extra early start manually raising the anchor. Both boats were underway before our alarm sounded.
Now, this morning’s train sound reminds me we are back in the real world, and need to report in. When I call, the Customs/Immigration/Homeland Security officer wants the address of where I’m staying. I explain that I’m in the middle of a big lake. I’m not sure what he entered to appease the tracking system, but he cleared us in.
Now we head north on the IntraCoastal Waterway (ICW). We have good luck with the drawbridges. Our longest wait is less than 15 minutes, and most of them open right away. By 5PM we are tied to one of Sunset Bay Marina’s Mooring balls. Enjoy these scenes from the ICW.
Are you going to make it back for the prom?
Great you made it across ok. I crossed from Great Sale Cay May 1 and was able to sail most of the way. Coming into Ft. Pierce was very rough with the ebb tide, but I’m back in Jax now with family. Boat will be hauled in Green Cove Springs and I’m off to Japan for the summer. I’ll send you next article when it comes out.