Now that we have been in the Bahamas for a little over two weeks, we are getting adjusted to the differences in our lifestyle.  Our friends Gavin and Alice have the following quote on their cruising website: “The art of sailing is a series of mistakes you hope not to repeat.” We completely agree.  After a little over two weeks in the Bahamas, we are already making a list of things to do differently next time. Another good quote from our friend JoAnne is, “Everything on a boat is broken.  You just don’t know it yet.”   In addition, we are adjusting to a different lifestyle where there are often no grocery stores or any other stores nearby, decisions you make are often totally dependent on the weather, and communication by phone or e-mail is sometimes impossible.

Thankfully, the watermaker has been working great and we have an unlimited amount of water.  Surprisingly, we are able to run it without having the generator on and using fuel. Therefore, it usually costs us nothing to make water.   While we have “unlimited” water, we still conserve it, taking quick showers and using minimal amounts to wash dishes. Along with this, we have gone from using one towel per shower to using one towel per week. Washing clothes probably takes the most amount of water, but in this RV size washer/dryer, we can only wash a very small load at a time.  We’ve been hanging the wash on deck with some lines Mark ran between the shrouds.  We avoid this in populated areas when we are near homes, but in anchorages or mooring fields where there are just other boats around, almost everyone has clothes hanging out from time to time.

We have already started our wish list for our next cruise.  High on that is wetsuits.  While the weather is in the 80’s most days with sun and some clouds, the water is still too chilly to snorkel without wetsuits.  Major mistake on our parts not to come with wetsuits.  Also, we were negligent in not having some type of weather reporting available other than the Internet.  Internet access is spotty at best and it looks like also an added cost, rather than using free wifi.  So far, we have been able to listen to local weather reports on our VHF radio, and back that up with friends who have SSB.  Chris Parker is the guru of weather reporting and most cruisers seem to have access to his reports on their SSB radios. We are finding that like all “weathermen” he isn’t always right.  Luckily, most of our passages from island to island are just a few hours away. In addition, now that we are here, we have no schedule to follow and don’t mind staying in one place or another, especially if we can anchor and it doesn’t cost anything. 

When we were following the blogs of cruiser friends last winter, we noticed that many boats travel together as “boat buddies.”  We are fairly independent people and didn’t quite understand what the advantage to that would be.  We have learned quickly that it’s a good thing to travel with friends.  While all cruisers are friendly and helpful, having friends nearby means having someone right there to help when a problem develops, to share information, and to have fun together.  JoAnne and Bill from Ultra and Joanne and Mark from Avalon are great traveling companions.  Ultra is the trimaran and Avalon is the trawler. 

We neglected to bring along food items which make good snacks.  That will be added to our next shopping list.  Staniel Cay will be our next stop where there is a grocery store and we’re looking forward to fresh fruit and vegetables.