In between Holidays with good weather

 So the initial holidays are past and for the most part everyone can look forward to the New Year having had all of the family together for celebrations. While we are located remotely we still manage to have a good time during the holiday season with many folks down here. We also have folks back in the States working with us to make things happen thus enabling our comfort and continued success.

 For example, Vic's DC http://www.vicsdc.com/ worked with me over a scratchy internet telephone and email connection when our starboard engine's alternator failed. In spite of the remote location and difficult connections we were able to diagnose a balky alternator on the starboard engine and facilitate repairs with a minimum of replacement parts. An alternator may sound like a simple item to swap out but when they are gear driven and almost 30 years old parts are difficult to come by and easy to damage when maintaining them.    

 Today I installed a new voltage regulator on to that alternator and it sprang back to life. This was a wonderful Christmas present as it means we can move the boat around with more confidence now since we don't have to worry about draining the battery on the starboard engine. While the load on this battery is light, the notion of not having a fall back alternator when running off shore in another country is intimidating. 

 As well, Village Marine converted our water maker to a higher powered 220 VAC unit free of charge (excepting my labor) and with new membranes installed it is producing water at a decent rate and good quality.

 So some of the mechanical issues that have plagued us have been resolved and the outlook for heading South to the Exumas in the Spring of 2011 is improving. Given some say oil will hit new highs again in 2012, it would seem our decision to retire at our earliest opportunity was a good decision. If it gets as high as it did in 2008 the boating industry is going to take yet another serious hit to its bottom line since no one will want to pay to play. Regardless of our ability to pay the notion of scarce oil will put a damper on anyone's travel plans and that scarcity has taken a toll over here already. There are a number of facilities that have not had fuel available for traveling boats let alone golf carts on their islands. People like to knock the development of electric cars, but if they can make them better I am sure sunny environments like the Bahamas will benefit from their efforts. 

  

 ANYWAY,

 Today we found ourselves here on a very pleasant day with light winds and calm water within the Seas of Abaco. A great day to get out in the dink. Having explored quite a bit of the area we decided that since the dink was running so well we should take a shot at Man O War Cay. The information I have indicates this Cay (pronounced key) has been named after the Man-O-War bird or Frigate. If you have more detail feel free to comment. Looking at this Cay along the main road at "The Narrows" we can clearly see the Atlantic side which is inside the reef, and the Sea of Abaco on the left. If you click on the right hand photo you will readily see the difference in sea state. Certainly we were not up for a ride on the Atlantic which has been stirred up quite a bit lately. In support of this we encounterred 1-2 foot swells and chop when traveling over the bars in between Elbow Cay and Man-O-War Cays. Even though these areas are inside the barrier reef, plenty of water was coming in beyond them to upset the ride. Otherwise we were able to maintain about 13 knots of speed in both directions. I should have brought the dive suit with me since we were traveling over prime conch grounds but having two in the freezer already is plenty and there is no need to waste it. 

 But I am ahead of myself.

 Last night we were down at the Sea Spray resort and Marina where a rather impromptu fund raiser occured. In what seems like a couple of weeks, a pleasant young woman named Lauren Chu organised The New Entry Band and Dan Baily with the Living Rhythm band along with Chad Smith from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to put on a great show that had what must have been 500 people hopping. While the Chili's are not my favorite band, without question Chad is a fantastic drummer who fills any void the other musicians might leave open. Watching him play one could easily see his head moving at least 5 to 6 times as fast as the beat of the music thus defining the tempo. 

 The fund raiser was for Every Child Counts here in the Abacos http://www.everychildcountsabaco.org/ and without question the bands did a fantastic job of bringing in the crowd AND entertaining it.  All of this was for a good cause and contributed towards making this one of the best concerts I have attended in recent memory. It took me back to some of the block parties I was lucky enough to attend in NYC. It was that kind of environment. Everyone was up close with the band and dancing within 10 feet of them. It seemed as though the band and the crowd all fed off of each other making for a lively experience.

 Very cool.

 It was fun to listen to the drum exchanges between the African bongo played by Dan and the minimal drum set that Chad was working to extremes.

 It was enough to keep me up past 10:30 last night. Wow. Good training for New Years Eve I suppose. No dis, it was indeed a great evening. 

  

 The GPS tracks of the trip in the dink have been updated, and I've uploaded some photos into the photobucket at the link provided in the blog body.