Thunderball

We were very happy to find that the autopilot works fine.  We used it to sail from Black Point on Guana Cay around Harvey Cay to Staniel Cay.  We topped off our fuel and water tanks at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club.  Water is 40 cents a gallon.  The Bahamas would be virtually uninhabitable without RO water.  Reverse Osmosis water is seawater that has been squeezed through a membrane at high pressure.  The membrane allows only water molecules to pass through.  Salt molecules are too big to pass through the membrane.  RO water is very pure but expensive to make.



We sailed through a very narrow passage between two rocky islands to an area on the chart that said: "Good holding."  I hope so because as I write this the wind is howling again through the rigging as a squall passes over us.  I'm seeing a pretty consistent 25 knots, the rain is pounding us, and we are pitching up and down a bit.  Chris Parker says expect 36 hours of this.  We hope to go back to Thunderball Grotto tomorrow but if it gets too rough we will pull up anchor, thread our way back to the channel, and head over to Big Majors Spot, home of the swimming wild pigs.

Entrance to Thunderball Grotto

Today was our absolute best snorkeling experience.  We are anchored not far from Thunderball Grotto (of James Bond fame).  Both Maryanne and I were able to swim into the Grotto and out.  The grotto was impressive with sunlight streaming through a hole in the roof.  Near the entrance it felt like we were swimming in an aquarium with all kinds of fish swimming with us.  We saw beautiful blue fan coral and fish of every hue and color!  The fish hang out at the entrance to the cave because people feed them there.

After our swim we celebrated with supper from the bar menu at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club.  The Yacht Club was a great people watching spot.  Tommy Lee Jones and his brother were spotted there the day after our last visit.  No celebrities were in evidence today but it was fun people watching anyway.