We're over at West End safe

We're across the Bahama Bank after stopping for an overnight anchorage at Great Sale. All is well. We are wishing we ignored the forecast for Tuesday so we could have been in Florida today but that's the way it goes. If we had taken the chance we might very well have been pounded by the severe thunderstorms that hit Green Turtle and Guana Tuesday night. Since Sale is north of the big islands and the storms track over them as we learned later, we would have been ok (we think).
In any event coming around the North side of Abaco on Wednesday the water was calm and we had a very smooth ride. As we approached Sale Cay we were able to get a relatively close look at the blue hole just South of the Cay since we took the Southern route around Sale this time. It didn't seem all that large but there was quite a bit of color associated with it since the water was decidedly royal blue and it was surrounded by what appeared to be shallow water with rocks and coral. A good reason to stay clear of it.
When we anchored we threw out a Bahamian moor since we knew the wind was going to clock around. During the process of dropping the anchors I had the added treat of the windlass relay seizing on retrieve. When the breaker was turned on it started to haul the anchor in. Fortunately this was quickly resolved by opening the relay cover and separating the parts that tack welded themselves together.
We turned on the transom lights at night and we were able to attract a decent sized school of shoal/bait fish but nothing exceptional. All of the hot dog pieces I threw into the water did nothing to attract anything of size.
When the sun went down we could see all of the storms forming over Grand Bahama and Abaco again. All night long we heard the booms south of us and knew that they were getting the much needed rain. There was talk about the cisterns running dry on Green Turtle.
In the morning hauling up the second anchor was no sweat since we wound up with that anchor just off the port side. It all came up quite conveniently no windlass required. So we ate breakfast and then hauled up the second anchor with the repaired windlass and off we went. Today we had about 2 feet on the beam that subsided as the day went on.
Pulling in to Old Bahama Bay we were pleasantly surprised to fill up Freedom at 2.80 a gallon, be welcomed by 2 for 1 happy hour and complimentary conch fritters.
However, when coming back from happy hour we saw soot on the stbd side of the transom. Something is not happy but there are no other indications. We were loafing it at 9 knots both days so getting back to the states is going to be handy for the sake of engine work should we need it.
The weather looks like it is going down hill for a crossing. At this point if we are lucky we are thinking Sunday. But that is a large maybe.