Wednesday, May 9, 2007
The day has come!! We decided to begin our return back to the states. Deciding which route to take was difficult. Do we take the one we came down on which took several days or another route with only a couple long days? Weather reports state a lot of unsettled weather and atmospheric conditions. Not to mention the sub-tropical storm Andrea which was only a little more than 100 miles from Nassau. Being within 50 miles from Nassau we decided to return the way we came …back up the Eleuthera coast.
Our last night in Exumas was spent in the Emerald Rock anchorage in the Land and Sea Park in Warderick Wells. With an absolutely calm evening, the water being clearer than a swimming pool and the most perfect sunset we savored the moment. (trip - 19.2 nm)
Thursday, May 10, 2007 Exuma Sound Crossing
Up before sunrise to prepare for the day’s voyage across Exuma Sound. After listening to Chris Parker’s weather forecast and for the location of Andrea, it looks good to go. We passed through Warderick Cut with the tide flowing in our favor at 7:50 am. Within 45 minutes….BOOM!! ….a clap of thunder was heard in the distance. Babette called a local weather forecaster and inquired about the thunderstorm conditions on her radar. The radar showed was only scattered storms…..no squall line….no problems.
We watched the distant dark sky for 4 hours trying to decipher it’s direction. Having difficulty figuring out which way it was traveling, it began growing darker and darker. When the rainfall on the water became apparent….that’s when we knew we were doomed. The storm had been chasing us for 30 miles and had now caught up.
The wind changed directions from SE to NW (not exceeding 20 knots - thank god!!) and the torrential downpour created whiteout conditions. We were 1.5 nm from the shoreline and flying along at 7.5 knots. We wanted out of the lightning and the shallow waters ahead of us so we reversed our course and headed backwards. Within 45 minutes the skies had become sunny and we were back on course. We have experienced many thunderstorms but this was the 1st one in over 14,000 feet of water.
We arrived in Rock Sound, Eleuthera at 3:45 pm ready for a cold beer. We made great time crossing the Exuma Sound and now we’ll wait for the atmosphere to become more settled before cruising up the coast. (trip - 51.7 nm)
Lesson learned: When you can’t tell what way the clouds are moving, it’s probably because they are coming toward you.
The day has come!! We decided to begin our return back to the states. Deciding which route to take was difficult. Do we take the one we came down on which took several days or another route with only a couple long days? Weather reports state a lot of unsettled weather and atmospheric conditions. Not to mention the sub-tropical storm Andrea which was only a little more than 100 miles from Nassau. Being within 50 miles from Nassau we decided to return the way we came …back up the Eleuthera coast.
Our last night in Exumas was spent in the Emerald Rock anchorage in the Land and Sea Park in Warderick Wells. With an absolutely calm evening, the water being clearer than a swimming pool and the most perfect sunset we savored the moment. (trip - 19.2 nm)
Thursday, May 10, 2007 Exuma Sound Crossing
Up before sunrise to prepare for the day’s voyage across Exuma Sound. After listening to Chris Parker’s weather forecast and for the location of Andrea, it looks good to go. We passed through Warderick Cut with the tide flowing in our favor at 7:50 am. Within 45 minutes….BOOM!! ….a clap of thunder was heard in the distance. Babette called a local weather forecaster and inquired about the thunderstorm conditions on her radar. The radar showed was only scattered storms…..no squall line….no problems.
We watched the distant dark sky for 4 hours trying to decipher it’s direction. Having difficulty figuring out which way it was traveling, it began growing darker and darker. When the rainfall on the water became apparent….that’s when we knew we were doomed. The storm had been chasing us for 30 miles and had now caught up.
The wind changed directions from SE to NW (not exceeding 20 knots - thank god!!) and the torrential downpour created whiteout conditions. We were 1.5 nm from the shoreline and flying along at 7.5 knots. We wanted out of the lightning and the shallow waters ahead of us so we reversed our course and headed backwards. Within 45 minutes the skies had become sunny and we were back on course. We have experienced many thunderstorms but this was the 1st one in over 14,000 feet of water.
We arrived in Rock Sound, Eleuthera at 3:45 pm ready for a cold beer. We made great time crossing the Exuma Sound and now we’ll wait for the atmosphere to become more settled before cruising up the coast. (trip - 51.7 nm)
Lesson learned: When you can’t tell what way the clouds are moving, it’s probably because they are coming toward you.
posted by Escape to Paradise at
9:33 AM
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