Prepping for the Bahamas

On Sunday, after Alex took off from FLL, we met with Pam Wall, cruising consultant extraordinaire.  We spent three hours discussing everything from our route, to best anchorages, to off-the-beaten-path treasures, to provisioning items we hadn't thought of........the list goes on.  It was a serious -- and sometimes hilarious -- discussion, and we are more excited than ever to get over to the Abacos and experience it all!  We cannot recommend Pam highly enough.  With decades of knowledge and a sailboat that also carries a 6.5' draft, she provided some really key advice, especially when entering shallow harbors.  She knows the Abacos like the back of her hand and we took notes as fast as we could.  Thank you, Pam, it was a pure pleasure meeting you.  We will certainly stay in touch!

So, there's been lots of activity on our To Do list:

• got the life raft inspected and re-certified (good for 3 years)
• registered with the Department of Homeland Security/Small Vessel Reporting System
• received Virginia Dare's new decal
• provisioned for an extended trip away from American "conveniences" (2 trolley loads of groceries and beverages....we'll make one more trip just prior to departure)
• fixed SSB issue (thank you, Paul!!)
• got the Bimini repaired and binnacle cover altered (Andrea at Caribbean Canvas was great)
• ordered and received two folding bicycles (must assemble)
• got a Bahamian courtesy flag
• bought a fuel filter
• and, drum roll, please........bought a new RIB and 15 hp Yamaha engine for it!  Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Birthdays, and Happy Anniversary to us!  It'll arrive on Tuesday. Woo hoo!

Accessing the SSB tuner at the foot of our bed and trying a new control cable

Soldering

Behind the control panel

Paul, the SSB wizard :)  Without him, our SSB would still be non-functional.

Gotta love Amazon Prime -- speedy delivery!

We're legit

I think my next task will be to assemble our new Tern folding bicycles (white for me)

Black for David

My cousin lent us a DeLorme inReach Explorer to try.  It has more capabilities than our SPOT.  Thank you, Bebo!  We'll keep you posted.