Saturday, February 09, 2013

Bimini, Baby

We made it.  After over a year's break from cruising and living aboard, we are back at it again.  Can you believe it?  What's funny is the fact that it felt like only yesterday we made our first Bahamas crossing.  Scott and I fell right back into step as if no time had passed at all, everything felt so natural and normal.  Turns out, cruising is like riding a bike.  You get on the boat, assume your roles and you go.  Simple as that.

We weighed anchor at 4am and miraculously Isla slept through the entire ruckus, despite her bed being in the vee berth right below the windlass and right near where the chain falls into the locker which makes quite a noise.  By 5am we were making our way out to sea with nothing but the stars and a sliver of a crescent moon to light our way.  We unfurled our sails and we were off.  Few things are more exciting than the sound of your boat underway; the rush of the water against the hull, the feel of the wind on your face, waves crashing over the bow...

The wind conditions were as expected, but the seas were a little lumpier than we had thought and I was concerned about Isla sleeping up in the vee-berth, the bounciest part of the boat.  I went down to peek on her and there she was, butt up in the air, sleeping soundly and totally oblivious to the fact that her 'room' was at a 45 degree angle and going up and down ten feet every few seconds.  I'm telling you, this child is a natural sailor.  I don't know if it has anything to do with that one fateful passage from Grenada to Trinidad, but she is not phased by any of it.  By 7am she was awake and the three of us enjoyed a beautiful sunrise at sea as we pointed our bow east, towards the islands.

We arrived in Bimini just after 1pm, docked at the Bimini Big Game Club Marina, cleared in to customs, and celebrated with some cold Kaliks and home-made guacamole.  Despite being anxious to keep moving south, we're probably going to be here for a few days as we wait for weather to pass through.  We plan to be on the move towards the Exumas in the next week, but in the meantime we're going to enjoy lovely Bimini.  We'll keep you posted.
Good morning, sunshine
Daddy, showing Isla the sunrise 
Breakfast time

Happy girl 
We discovered she's cutting another tooth - her seventh! 
This child has balance and sea legs I tell you! 
Chilling with daddy
Playing on the low side.  We keep her in a West Marine infant tether clipped onto the steering pedestal in the cockpit 
She loves to walk around the cockpit - she's not walking unassisted yet, but is VERY close!
The Bumbo chair is great underway.
Lowering our Quarantine flag and getting ready to raise our old Bahamian flag!

12 comments:

Brett A. said...

Congrats!! And those are great pics of Isla, she is such a happy baby.

JD said...

Awesome! CONGRATULATIONS!! Super glad you guys are back at it!

boatbaby said...

I love nursing underway shots! Yay! And that photo of Daddy and Isla watching the sunrise is lovely! Excited for you guys, fair winds!

Corey said...

Congrats and thanks for including us on your journey. Seeing this helps me survive winter

Carolyn Shearlock - The Boat Galley said...

I LOVE Isla's ankle bracelet -- a true island girl!

Karen Reilly-Masterplan said...

Thanks for the pictures, it's great to see you guys off again. Fair winds. What are the plans?

David and Rosellen said...

I love reading your accounts. Thanks for taking the time to let all of sail with you! I wish you fair winds and smooth sailing to your next destination.

Neophyte Cruiser said...

Good on you guys! Nice seeing such sunshine and smiling faces. Good sailing to you.

SailFarLiveFree said...

Awesome! Isla's first passage is a success. You're an inspiration to all of us who want to transition from "dreaming our lives" to "living our dreams".

Anonymous said...

Cheers Mon...
Great pics & safe first landfall, congrats!
Could ya share some of the sailing tips, why leave at 4am?
Course heading, current offset, sea state, ect...
Stoked about following this new adventure, while freezing my toes off...
Danville in NC

Jake DiMare said...

Congratulations! Isla looks like she's going to be one hell of a sailor.

Laura and Hans said...

What incredible memories you're going to have, just starting from this crossing. A few short years from now (like 20 or so) you'll look at these pictures and be amazed at how young you were. And how smart you were to choose this life.

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