After a few blissful days at Morgan’s Bluff it was time to move on. The day began with lovely wind blowing from the east, and we wanted to go south, so that’s perfect, so we set sail early. Before we turned the corner to go south and around the treacherous Morgan’s Bluff, the engine started sputtering and Andre immediately shut her down and we had to use the sails only to stay off the nearby rocks. As usual, the wind wants to blow you directly onto the rocks, but we managed to get about a half a mile away when Andre went down below to fix the fuel intake problem. I could easily manage to keep us sailing away from the rocks and in the right direction.
The problem was soon solved and we sailed uneventfully for the rest of the way. Around 4pm we arrived at Fresh Creek and anchored outside the harbor inlet between the reef and the land. The swell was perpendicular to the wind, which meant that it would be a very rolly night. A short dinghy ride took us right into the centre of town, which basically consists of a bar, a restaurant, customs and immigrations office, a grocery store and a Laundromat.
The harbor master met us as we tied up the dinghy. Andre asked about tying up to the government dock and he said there was no one there and we are welcome to tie up at any time, but warned us of the very strong current when we do come in. He suggested that we wait until slack tide before we attempt to tie up to the dock.
The town isn’t very big, so locating the Laundromat and the grocery store wasn’t too difficult. The grocery store was surprisingly well stocked and also reasonably priced and the Laundromat had at least 10 washers and 5 driers, so we knew that laundry wasn’t going to be an issue. Within a few minutes after getting into the dinghy we were back on Mama-Wana. The tide charts that were available on the internet, showed that it would be slack low tide in about 30 minutes, so it seemed a good time to leave immediately to benefit from the slack tide.
As we motored into the creek where the dock was, the current coming in was extremely strong.
The harbormaster and another person came to the dock to help us tie up. A few yards behind the dock was a fixed bridge that wasn’t nearly high enough for us to go underneath and the current was strongly pushing us in the direction of the bridge. Andre brought the boat close to the dock and I threw the dock line to the harbor master, but it came short and landed in the water.
While the boat drifted very quickly towards the bridge, the anchor gave me an immense fright when it dropped into the water right next to me. I didn’t have time to do anything about it except to tie the remaining chain around a cleat to stop the whole 100 feet of chain rolling out. Andre revved the engine and we approached the dock once more. This time the line reached the harbor master and I ran to the stern of the boat and threw the aft dock line to the other person on the dock. They safely tied us down and then, after talking to the harbor master, realized that the internet hasn’t taken daylight savings time into consideration and slack tide was only in two hour’s time.
I was very happy when we were safely tied up to the concrete wall, but that night realized that we were next to the town’s generator system that works 24/7 and is quite noisy. Also, the bridge that was about 20 yards away had a metal grid portion right by our stern and every vehicle that crosses the bridge, makes you almost jump to attention. The next night was much better because we then knew what the noise was and wasn’t as alarmed.
The town has it’s fair share of ruins, from a huge hotel that is totally overtaken by nature, to lovely beach homes that was abandoned many years ago and were just left to fall into ruins – always makes me wonder what the stories behind these sad sites are.
Across the bridge is a factory where handmade batik items are dyed and sewn for many years. On our previous visit some years back, I bought a dress from the store, and after many years the colors have not faded at all. This year, we only got to the shop after 3pm on a Saturday and they were closed for the rest of the weekend.
The Laundromat is well equipped, but before the drier completed the cycle, the gas ran out and we had to wait for the gas truck to deliver gas. It didn’t take too long and Andre met a new friend, so all was good.
The next day we took a dinghy ride on the ocean side and was impressed with the amount of new and modern homes overlooking the ocean. On the reef that runs parallel to the island, which happens to be the third largest barrier reef in the world, is a small island which marks the “South Andros Marine Park”
Later that day, we went up the Fresh Creek to see if it went through to the Gulf Stream, but never got far enough to establish whether the creek actually cuts through the island. There were some lovely houses that looks like small resorts on the banks of the river, and also a huge barge that was left many years ago to just rust away in the salt water. I assume that it created a habitat for some marine life, but we didn’t have our snorkel gear to investigate.
It was quite unnerving to have this huge mail boat come into the harbor and dock right in front of us. The normal hustle and bustle of the community that comes together whenever a mail boat arrives, is always very interesting to watch. It reminds of a big carnival that came to town. There also seems to be some order in the chaos that ensues for the next 2 days.
It was a pleasant stay, but the friendly locals who feel they can come by for a quick chat whenever you stick your head out into the cockpit was getting a bit much and we felt it was time to move on.
