Day 134: Farewell Flotilla Fam

Manjack Cay to Spanish Cay, Abacos, Bahamas (docked)

May 29, 2022

The weather thing in the Yucàtan is becoming more organized although it’s still a long way out. Each of us has our own level of comfort but we on Lailia have decided that we would like to make the Gulf Stream crossing before the yuck. We are going to move a bit faster than the rest of our flotilla fam.

Lailia’s fuel tanks hold 80 gallons of diesel (40 in each tank) but we have never ascertained how air is getting into the lines on our port tank, so while we (meaning John) could rig a system to get fuel from the port tank to the starboard tank, it’s better to have a full starboard tank.

We made the decision to head to the marina in Spanish Cay so we could fuel up. The other members of our flotilla fam decided to do some shorter jumps. They would rather be someplace they like in bad weather than stuck somewhere not as interesting.

Everyone knows that good journeys start with a good breakfast, though, so we got together one last time for pancakes on SV Wild.

We had craft time, too. Nicki decorated a tequila bottle (that stuff was smooth) for Frank’s Flotilla Family – that bottle will be our contribution to the art walk. The guys practiced splicing with dyneema (really strong rope that doesn’t stretch) by making soft shackles that can be used to attach lines.

We left Manjack on a really cloudy late morning. The weather devolved: we were headed directly into some large bands of rain. We could hear thunder rumbling and occasionally see distant lightning.

I worry about a lightning strike because aside from the concern about our physical wellbeing, it could take out our electronic instrumentation. We are not sure exactly how effective our lightning preparation is but we put all handheld electrical devices in the oven in hopes it will protect them from an electromagnetic frequency burst. I pull everything out of our electrical outlets. I gave John gloves to wear and a wooden-handled spatula he could use on our metal helm, to keep him from getting shocked.

While it did rain, there was no nearby lightning, which was wonderful. The water was also very calm so I could stay below without getting seasick.

The rain stopped just as we finished fueling at Spanish Cay.

Spanish Cay Resort and Marina is on a private island. Guests can walk the island and enjoy the restaurant, too.

Lailia was the only sailboat docked there with many sport fishing boats. The fisherfolk clean their fish at the docks which attracts all kinds of smaller fish as well as sharks and tarpon. Sometimes the fisherpeople will hang a fish carcass over the edge of the dock – it’s a cool show to see the predatory fish take giant bites.

Although there aren’t many structures on Spanish Cay, the destruction wrought by Dorian is very visible from docks that are destroyed in a section of the marina to dwellings that are just broken.

There are more hardwoods and brushy undergrowth on Spanish Cay than we have seen on most of the islands. The folks who own this cay have done some landscaping, too, so there are areas that are mowed. The red-legged thrushes remind me of robins (if robins had RED eyes). They root around in leaf litter and grass looking for bugs and worms.

I also caught my very first Bahamian fish off the docks. I have been dropping lines in the water all over and finally, finally caught a fish. This was a catch and release situation.

We met our dock neighbors at Hope Town and again at Manjack. They were gifted a tuna by some fishing folks and shared it with us. We can’t wait to grill up the filets.

We’ll be leaving here in the morning and heading to Great Sale Cay, which is a remote island that will be about halfway between Spanish Cay and Grand Bahama Island. We’re working our way closer to making a Gulf Stream crossing, which is really bittersweet.