Grand Bahama is one of the northernmost of the islands of the Bahamas, and the closest major island to the United States, lying just 55 mi (90 km) off the state of Florida. Grand Bahama is the fourth largest island in the Bahamas island chain of approximately 700 islands and cays. Richard and I began our trek across the gulf stream at 12:30 am. We left Lake Worth, where we anchored the day before, departing from West Palm Beach, and made our way to the headwaters. The river and the ocean colliding made for a choppy beginning.
We motored and used two of the sails, the main sail, and the Genoa sail, our greatest speed fell around 8nm. We sailed all through the night. The stars were amazing, even though the full moon lit our path. Richard took the first shift, and then it was my turn. After going to the bathroom and having my urine experience ‘g-force’ I made it back up to the cockpit, feeling a bit queasy. It is recommended to stay on the main deck, aka, not go below, and I did. Oops! Well after a short puke fest, I felt better. Some sateen crackers helped me stay awake while sailing the ship form 3am-6am. Basically I had to stay on the lookout for other boats and make sure we had a full sails. It was then Richard’s turn to sail, and mine to go back to sleep. I t was hard falling back to sleep because the boat was rocking so much, but thanks to my iPod it wasn’t that hard. 9am, my shift, and it was light out! Exciting! The water was SO blue, I mean bright blue. Eventually we came to see land, which was Grand Bahamas. We entered into the inlet and docked at a marina. For the past two days we have been here, at the marina. Fixing some things that broke, washing down the boat, and obviously enjoying some cocktails, I mean HAPPY HOUR!!!!! Life is good!
A little history:
The Spanish gave the island the name Gran Bajamar, meaning "Great Shallows", and what the eventual name of the Bahamas islands as a whole is derived from. Grand Bahama's existence for almost two centuries was largely governed by the nature of these "great shallows" - the coral reefs surrounding the island were treacherous, and repelled its Spanish owners (who largely left it alone apart from for infrequent en-route stops by ships for provisions) while attracting pirates, who would lure ships onto the reefs where they would run aground and be plundered. The Spaniards took little interest in the island after enslaving the native Lucayan inhabitants. The islands were claimed by Great Britain in 1670. Piracy continued to thrive for at least half a century after the British takeover, though the problem was eventually brought under control.
Grand Bahama was to remain relatively quiet until the mid-nineteenth century, with only around 200-400 regular inhabitants in the capital, West End. In 1834, the towns of Pinder’s Point, Russell Town and Williams Town were established by former Bahamian slaves after the abolition of slavery in the British empire. The island was still little developed until a brief boom in economic activity during the American Civil War, when it was a center for blockade runners smuggling goods (mostly weaponry, sugar and cotton) to the Confederacy. A second brief smuggling boom occurred during the years of prohibition in the USA.
some pics of the boat... the deck, the kitchen/hall/bathroom...
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