We left Georgetown on a beautiful sunny day, March 13th, traveling on the Sound through lumpy beam seas. I was glad to be moving so I didn’t really mind the rocking that much for the first few hours. We had heard news reports of Covid-19 (Coronavirus) disrupting the US as well as other countries and death reports from Italy were all over the internet when we were able to get cell service a few miles into the trip. At this point, we still had not grasped the severity of the situation being as removed as we were. Life in the Bahamas seemed to be moving along as normal.
After fueling up at Emerald Bay, we were on the move again now running only on the Port engine as Starboard had developed a transmission leak. Approaching the Rudder Cay Cut, I could see through the binoculars standing waves at the entrance and knew the battle across the threshold was not going to be fun. The unsettled water looked like it could swallow us whole as we powered through the turbulence created as the tide and current opposed each other. It was the longest 5 minutes as we felt like we were standing still trapped in the swirling waters dropping the bottom out from under us with every approach. Finally breaking free, we made it clear of the cut and anchored safely away from the nasty current off Rudder Cay. The oil in the transmission looked like strawberry milk from water seeping inside so the Captain was not pleased. He was even more dejected when the vacu-flush pump on the toilet ceased up and he had to take the unit apart to replace the clogged valves. It was literally a shitty job I wanted no part of so I jumped in the water to scrub off some boat scum and make myself look busy.
The next day we moved on arriving back to visit Black Point Settlement. Port had to step up its game and, after idling twice so the Captain could adjust the shaft which was overheating, we had a relatively calm ride through the crystal blue topaz waters dotted with starfish and stingrays darting about. Heading to Lorraine’s for the weekly BBQ that evening, we made sure to stop by Momma’s house for some bread to be able to consume on our travels. There were other cruisers at Lorraine’s discussing the possible pandemic and the news, turned on low in the bar, was reporting school closures, the shutdown of Broadway in Manhattan, bars and restaurants locking their doors, the St. Patrick’s Day Parade being called off and that the NBA basketball season was postponed. We couldn’t believe what we were hearing.
Before we pulled anchor and continued forward, we had a carefree afternoon as I sat in my favorite spot overlooking the water and did some laundry, Duane collected sea glass along the shore and we had a farewell drink from the gazebo at Emerald Grill watching the brilliant colors of the sun sink below the horizon.
Staniel Cay was a little more than 7 miles away. We planned to only stop for two days as Duane had a job in Maine and I was flying back to NY on April 5th to have a much anticipated visit. We wanted to get back to Florida to put the boat somewhere safe at the end of the month before we had to leave her and travel North.
That was 45 days ago! 😳 And, needless to say, our plans have drastically changed. Today is April 29th and we are still anchored in Staniel Cay sheltering in place as the world is being held hostage by Covid-19. Now, let me backtrack a little….
Life on the island of Staniel Cay was relatively normal when we arrived. The first day we went snorkeling into Thunderball Grotto which we missed the opportunity to explore on our first trip. It was a marvel to experience as the sun beamed through the rocks lighting up the cavern and the fish sucked on our masks and fingers as we fed them crackers. Mega yachts and charters were docked at the marina and tour boats were still arriving even though the cruise ships were starting to be turned away from Nassau. Stopping at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club, we sat at the bar, ordered fish tacos and some drinks and were perfectly situated to watch the fishermen feeding a pack of nurse sharks as they cleaned their catch causing a huge frenzy in the water. We had not been able to come ashore when we visited on the way South, and we were pleasantly surprised as we made our way through the streets on the small island. The little laundromat also doubled as the liquor store, the grounds of the marina and restaurant were clean and well manicured and the Yacht Club offered fuel and water. There were three grocery stores- Pink Pearl, Burke’s Blue Store and Isle General— which, though expensive, sold all the necessities. The cottages and homes were painted in various pastel colors lining the waterfront and there was even a mural in honor of the pigs on the beach we parked Baby Belle on.
St Patrick’s Day had arrived and, before we went to have our share of green beer, we took the opportunity to snorkel in the Grotto again as we were now anchored right outside. Although someone had forgotten the green food coloring for the beer, the bar was festive and we met a lovely German couple who were renting one of the cottages. After conversing with them, we came to the realization that not only did the marina include three meals a day with the cottage rental, they were given use of a 17 foot Boston Whaler which traveled at 25mph to explore the outlying islands for the length of their stay. Florian was not so experienced with the boat, so Duane offered to be a tour guide of sorts and we gave them our location and an invitation to stop by the next day. Bright and early the next morning we heard a jolly Hello from outside and walked out of the V-berth to see Florian and his wife all ready for a day on the water. After we snorkeled the Grotto yet again, we took them on a trip over to Rachel’s Bubble Bath as they had never been and weren’t sure how to get there. Today our timing was perfect…high tide and some wind. To our delight, the waves crashed continuously over the rocks as we were engulfed by the bubbles again and again. Heading back toward Staniel, we made a pit stop to the sandbar off Sampson Cay to walk the white sandy stretch and marvel at the beauty we were so privileged to be surrounded by. Duane and Florian were both equally obsessed with drones so the Captain was happy our new German friend brought his along to capture our afternoon adventures.
Bidding them both farewell that evening after a fabulous fun-filled day, we wished them well on their continued travels through Florida after departing the Bahamas and to getting home to Germany safely as we had heard the States were beginning to shutdown more and more with each passing hour.
After grocery shopping the next day, we moved the boat over to Big Majors off Pig Beach as the swells near the Grotto were rocking us around more than we were comfortable with once the wind shifted. We took the dinghy over to Cruisers’ Beach and met two couples from the Chesapeake Bay Area who were heading home with uncertainty due to the Coronavirus and pleads from their family.
That evening everything changed…the Foreign Ministry of the Bahamas announced schools will be closing and a 9pm curfew (extended to a 24 hour curfew three days later) was being imposed to prevent the spread of the virus keeping in step with guidelines from how the United States was reacting. As of this date, March 20th, there were 4 cases on New Providence Island. The Staniel Cay Yacht Club was now only open for take out, beaches were closed and we could basically only come on shore for necessities and 90 minutes of exercise. This was just the beginning of the lockdown. Our plans to travel home for a visit had been dashed, Duane’s job cancelled until further notice and we were in relative limbo in paradise.
We were still able to dinghy to watch the shark feeding, but not go ashore. We were still able to go feed the pigs, but not land on the beach. We were still permitted to dinghy to town for groceries and to throw garbage, but we must wear a mask, stand 6 feet apart from others and not linger. To break up the daily monotony, we began to hop in the dinghy and have sunset happy hour practicing social distancing and waving at other boaters as we pass by…sometimes idling by to chat at an acceptable distance away. We began a James Bond movie marathon to pass the time some nights or we played Monopoly cards (which the Captain has become very competitive at). And don’t forget Atari which I packed as a surprise when we left home last August. Frogger has never been so entertaining and I’ve all but mastered Asteroids. Duane and Rex the Rooster are at odds most mornings as the Captain is convinced he is either blind or can not tell time when he begins his racket at 4am. Bill (the bird) has gone from being a nuisance for pooping on the dinghy constantly to an expected lunch guest on a sunny afternoon.
One afternoon Duane had the desire to film the pigs with the drone. I was therefore enlisted to drive the dinghy to go attract the pigs into the water so he could get the best footage. As the drone propellers whirled overhead, the situation soon became overwhelming as the pigs attacked Baby Belle, I tried to throw food and keep her straight, and then the birds started to dive bomb around me. I made the decision to abort the mission and raised the throttle to escape just as a pig happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and was “slightly” run over. No matter what Duane’s rendition of the events are, the poor pig was traumatized but relatively unharmed and made his way quickly to shore. Apart from this excitement, life for us has slowed down significantly and, though it was not a voluntary choice, we are grateful to be safe, healthy and locked down with a spectacular view. Though it is a tease at times since we can no longer experience the splendor to its fullest.
Not to be cliche, but it seems to truly be the end of the world as we know it. Our days stretching into weeks in Staniel Cay have become reminiscent of Groundhog Day meets Survivor. Granted we have been able to get some projects completed as Duane sewed the new dinette cushions, installed his outdoor sunshade, and ordered and since replaced the transmission cooler which was leaking on the Starboard engine. I cleaned the boat inside and out and took inventory of our supplies over a few afternoons. I’ve resorted to washing clothes in a bucket or using my manual washing machine when I am able to boil water. Showering in the salt water and rinsing with fresh water to conserve what we have in the tank has been a necessary compromise. Shaving my legs off the swim platform soon became a normal occurrence. Once I stopped complaining about eating Spam and drinking Pabst’s (PBR), Duane knew this all had to come to a head sooner than later as he was questioning my sanity. Once the transmission cooler was installed, our highlight some days was pulling anchor and moving the boat around to different parts of Staniel Cay depending on the way the wind was blowing.
Debi and Chris on Believe had arrived soon after the curfew was imposed, but since we had been traveling with them and, there were no reported cases on the Family Islands, we social distanced together for the few days and nights they were in Staniel Cay. It was a nice reprieve to the monotony we had endured as of late and we took the opportunity while we could to hit the highlights of the neighboring islands with them even though it was our fourth or fifth time in some of the areas. In the evenings, we enjoyed dinner and cocktails together and stirred up some friendly competition over Mexican Train. They were a great couple and needed to return to the States for medical reasons so were heading back to Florida regardless of the “shelter in place” orders. We had originally hoped to travel with them on the mainland, but were very skeptical of that possibility now.
The next day Timbuctoo arrived and we were overjoyed to see Chuck and Maggie again. We had moved the boat over to Between the Majors where they had anchored and stopped by for some drinks. They, like Believe, have a water maker on their boat and generously extended the offer for us to take hot showers and fill our water jugs. We have now spent the last month together and they have been our savior. Not just supplying us with much needed water and showers, they afforded us an outlet for social interaction as we regularly have drinks together to blow off steam and just appreciate the life we have before us no matter how much lack of control we seem to have at the moment. And, of course, to partake in impromptu dance parties.
The month of April is a complete blur…the sun rises and sets around us as we wait for some normalcy. Duane has named the shark who sleeps by the boat at night Saul and has regular conversations with him to obtain a different perspective when I’m not on board with a bright idea he has. He thinks Saul is his friend, but I think he is just waiting for the food scraps we discard in the water. The Bahamas started to impose a complete shutdown of the islands from 9pm Friday until 5am Monday which has now been extended throughout the whole month of May. Chuck and Maggie are no longer able to move South to Grenada as borders are still closed, so they plan to head back to Florida with us. We also spoke with Chris and Catherine and they too gave up plans to take their dream trip to Grenada and are on the way back to Canada. Having Zoom calls with friends has raised my spirits and we are in constant contact with family back home assured that everyone is doing well during these unprecedented times.
People debate if trashing the whole economy is worth letting the virus run its course. Why can’t individuals be more self conscious about social distancing and hygiene practices while still able to conduct a relatively normal daily life? Others debate that quarantine and complete shutdowns isolating everyone by mandatory means is the only way to curb the invisible killer lurking amongst us. In the end, we will never know what would have happened and can only pray the powers that be took the more prudent course…there is no turning back now and the virus is still running rampant.
And what about the beer! Millions of kegs are going stale in venues when doors were shuttered right before St Patrick’s Day and March Madness. Not to make light of all the suffering, this is just an example of the economic devastation which is bubbling up and will envelop every aspect of our country.
As we sit here and ponder our own existence going forward, we have no choice but to do just that and move forward. We pray for those sick, dying and those who fought valiantly but ultimately succumbed to the killer. We pray for their family and friends who were unable to comfort them when they needed it most. We pray for all those on the front lines who act as doctor, nurse, caregiver and counselor since their patients are cut off from everyone else. We continually pray that they stay safe and healthy as they put themselves and the families they go home to after an excruciating day at risk. We also pray that our family and friends stay safe and healthy during all this madness.
We have come to terms that the rest of our trip will not materialize as planned. We move on with trepidation as to what awaits us as we make plans to move up the East coast to complete our Loop journey.
Once we made our decision to leave, the final few days in Staniel Cay we squeezed in all of our “lasts” and filed our plan with the government requesting permission to travel through the Bahamian waters making only the necessary stops to sleep and as the weather permits. All these preparations to head back to the United States were made as the Bahamas announces a reported 81 cases in the country which have resulted in 11 deaths and the whole world is on the brink of disaster.
We will pull anchor tomorrow, go through the cut around Fowl Cay for the seventh time, and this time not just move around the bend for a change of scenery, but head for home.
Did you name the pig? 🙂
They all had names already…Oliver was my favorite 😃