N34 58 25 W76 48 73, Minnesott Beach, NC

It's been a year since our last report. I believe we were in Charleston when the last report was posted so I will go back to there and try to catch up.

We were finally able to leave Charleston and headed up the ICW to catch the 0900 opening of the Ben Sawyer bridge. Saw our first alligator on the way. We made it to George Town, SC around 1900. From there we stayed at the Lightkeepers Marina in North Myrtle Beach, SC then to St. Johns Marina the next day. The timing going up the Cape Fear River was totally off. We spent hours bucking the current and making about 1 knot headway. After fighting our way up to Wrightsville Beach we anchored in the harbor for the next good weather to cross to Beaufort, NC.

05/16/07 was the morning to leave and with strong southerly winds it made for a fast trip. Cindy got us a free mooring ball right in the downtown harbor. We stayed for a few days then headed for Oriental and Wayfarers Cove marina. On the way we stayed at Whittaker Pointe Marina where our friends Ashley and Carol got a job running the marina. After a couple of days we headed off to Wayfarers Cove marina. Little did we know at the time this would be our home for almost a year. This picture of Wayfarers was taken from our mast looking out at the entrance channel and the Neuse River beyond.

Cindy and I really didn't have much of a plan when we left so, we were sitting in our boat with Jessie and Marty going "what now?" We bought a car, actually two cars but the first one was junk, and started to explore.

Shortly after we arrived our beloved Jessie dog passed on. She was 16 years old but still ready for anything up to the very end. We had her creamated and brought her ashes back Minnesota to the family animal cemetary on the farm under the lilac bushes to be with her furry friends.

We really liked this area as it is filled with our type of people: boaters and x-boaters. The focus of our search was first what area do we like and secondly, are there any jobs. Our travels took us to Oriental, Washington (Little Washington), New Bern and Morehead City. After a long day of touring we would come back to our boat at Wayfarers Cove and say "this is the life". So we ignored the second search criteria and started to look at houses in the Minnesott area. Same old story, if we liked it we couldn't afford it and if we could afford it we didn't like it. So we decided that we should build a house. I think all the time spent living on the boat mildewed our minds. We tried ear candles on Cindy but that didn't seem to work either. We found a piece of property we really liked and according to the map (not chart) this must be the place. Looks like we may have to clear out some trees, can we see the Neuse from here, hard to tell with all the foliage. So we bring in the brush hogs to take out all the stuff less that 4" diameter to see what is going on.

Cindy chains herself to a tree to stop all the destruction. We took out over 40 good sized trees, sorry Mr. Gore, but we left as much as we could. After the dust settled we couldn't be happier, we have a view of the river! So we toast to our new building site. After not working for over a year and no jobs, why not build a house?? Must the Gumbay Smashes we had in the Bahamas that pickled our brains. We still needed Marty's sign-off on the house plans. I want a private bathroom with a bigger box and make sure it doesn't rock!

So we start the clearing and building design process. In the mean time Cindy gets a job at a hospital across the river. So she gets to start and end her day with a glorious boat cruise on the free ferry. She is so lucky. I get kind of a job with the local wireless Internet company in Pamlico County. I'm an independent contractor with a non-profit doing installs and service calls and as a bonus they pay me now and then. We also start to clear the building site to get the foundation in and help our good friends Charlie and Kerri who live in Little Washington open up a canvas shop. We first met them on Lake Erie and spent the summer cruising the Erie Canal with them.

We were still living on the boat and as 2007 comes to an end we celebrate Christmas on Johesa. Here she is all decked our for the holidays with our new crab pot Christmas trees on the dock.

The house is a modular which means it is built in a factory near by and shipped to the site on semi trucks and set in place by a crane. Work on the lot continues. Once it's cleared we still need to get the foundation built, no basement just a crawl space, and get a driveway and septic installed before the house arrives. Around mid-January we get the call that all is ready and they will deliver the house in two 16' X 56' boxes. What a Christmas present.

They show up and luckily no rain forecast. The Get-R-Done crane truck shows up and the first module is close behind. Slight problem, the Get-R-Done crane breaks down and we have to wait for the new crane to arrive. After crane setup, we start the next morning. What an amazing process. They pick up the modules and drop them on the foundation and they fit perfectly. Once the modules are in place they raise up the roof that is hinged to the top and set the dormers in place. In less than a day the main house was up and the roof in place. Now they start the porches and garage which will still take a couple of months.

During this time we get some sad news. Cindy's father Irv passed away. He was 91 years old and lived a good life. We flew back to Minnesota at the end of January to be with family and for the funeral. It was a great service that honored Irv's life in Iowa and Minnesota. Here's to you Irv. We will miss the infamous no-low bid at the 500 games.

While in Minnesota we were treated to wind chills of -30 deg. Our blood has gotten thin but even the locals said it was cold.
So we rented a Penski truck and with the help of friends in MN we loaded all our belongings into the truck and headed cross country for NC. We make it to Cincinnati the first day and stayed with our friends Harlan and Shelly for the night. Up bright and early the next day for the final leg to Arapahoe, NC. We got everything unloaded and the truck back the next day ahead of schedule. Thanks to Andy and Cindy for the help!

All the while we continued to work, Cindy still at the hospital and me with PineLink and a local sail/canvas shop. We get the OK to move in and again with a lot of help from friends, (boy do we owe a lot of people) we move our stuff in. So here is the somewhat finished product. We still have some painting to do and the grounds need a little help. Although we don't plan to do a lawn we still need to clean things up some. These images are coming in the front door, looking left, looking right.

Well that pretty much brings us up to date. We plan to re-group here in NC, try to build up some funds and start planning the next adventure.

CLODS (Cruisers Living On Dirt)
B&C

N32 47 35 W79 55 45, Charleston, SC

It was 153 NM from Grand Island, Bahamas to Cape Canaveral, FL and the trip was a bit lumpy. We were able to sail about half of the way then motor-sail the last half. The winds were stronger than predicted and more NE than E and 25-30K of wind. Seas were 4-6 until we hit the Gulf Stream when they built to 6-8 foot with a 10 footer thrown in every once in a while. We gave Jessie a doggy downer to calm her as she is not a big fan of rough weather. It looks like the captain may have helped himself to one of her meds also.

We got into Cape Canaveral about 11:00 AM on Tuesday. Spent the day clearing customs, refueling, cleaning the boat, getting propane, doing laundry and shopping for food. We were sad to leave the Bahamas but it's nice to be back in the land of the free and home of cell phones, Internet and being able to buy anything you like, not just what they have. After getting our chores done we went out to a local joint for Taco Tuesday and beers with our friends on Treasure Island, Rusty Rudder and Oasis. We were all pretty beat and all agreed that we would not be leaving the next day for Fernandina Florida, another 168 mile trip. It's amazing what a good nights sleep will do. The weather was good and we took off the next day at 10:00 AM for another overnight trip!

We arrived in Fernandina, FL at 1:00 PM and stayed for a couple of days. Then moved about 5 miles north to Cumberland Island, GA to anchor out for a few days and veg. This is a picture of the trails that are on the island that take you over to the beach on the Atlantic side. Jessie was very happy to be running free on the beach until the park ranger thought she should be on the leash. Then the winds switched and the smoke from the wildfire in southern GA descended on us. We woke up to ash all over the deck and could hardly breath. So we decided to leave for Charleston. SC, another 162 mile trip. So off we went with the smoke so thick we had to us our radar to see all the shrimp boats fishing on the Atlantic. After a few hours we were clear of the smoke and had a very enjoyable cruise to Charleston Harbor. No one had to be sedated and we arrived at the Charleston Maritime Center at 10:00 AM on May 1.

It is now May 8th and we are still at Charleston. All the boats are pinned down by high winds that are predicted to last until Thursday. The bridges won't even open until the winds go below 25 knots for a sustained period of time. This has given us an opportunity to explore Charleston and tour the battle ships (aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, submarine Clamagore, destroyer Laffey and coast guard cutter Ingham), Fort Sumter (first shots of the Civil War), the aquarium and much more.

So we will hang here and wait until the winds die, then head up north on the ICW to the next destination.

Until then, B&C

N26 46 67 W77 20 27, Green Turtle, Abacos

I have added some photos of Tom and Nancy as well as Cindy sidling up to the Barefoot Man. We got into Green Turtle Cay today as there is a big front moving through. The same one that is causing all the problems on the East coast. We ran aground coming into the harbor on a falling tide so we got to spend the day talking to the cruisers who came out to provide moral support. We got off about 1400 with the help of a few dinghies and tide. No damage was reported to the boat or crew.

Then in the beginning of April the Ista clan all flew over to Treasure Cay in the Abacos. Here is a photo of the crew on Johesa sporting the new official uniform. On Easter Sunday we all piled onto Rusty Rudder (our friends Dick and Debbie's 47 ft. MacIntosh)for a trip over to Nippers and their Easter celebration. A good time was had by all. After the family left we stayed an extra day at Treasure Cay to let a big storm blow through. Then Johesa, Treasure Island (Jack & Bettyann, 42ft IP) and Rusty Rudder headed out for the Northern Abacos and started looking for a good weather window to head back to Florida. The islands on this side, with the exception of Green Turtle Cay are much less populated. The reefs were the best we saw in the Bahamas and lots of sea life. Johesa picked up an eel over here and he has been with us ever since. He just hangs on the bottom of the boat and tries to hide if I snorkel under the boat.

Cindy celebrated her birthday at the local restaurant at Grand Island with lobster and sporting her birthday tiara while the boys played happy birthday on their conch horns.

So a good weather window is predicted and we will sail overnight for Cape Canaveral, Florida with about six other boats. So we bid a fond farewell to the Bahamas as we sail off into the sunset for Cape Canaveral. We really enjoyed our time in the islands and will definitely make a return trip some day when we can spend more time the the Exumas and explore the islands further South.

We will update you again when we are back in civilization.

Bill & Cindy

The Abacos, Continued! N 26 39 95 W 77 07 21

It seems we have REALLY been flagrant in updating the site. You have probably all given up on us!! Well, we are back and STILL in the Abacos. Internet is sketchy as one company has a monopoly on wireless and most people are having problems with them plus it is very expensive ($20.00 a day), so we try to find free places when we can. So, since Feb 17 we have been cruising around the islands in the Abacos. Treasure Cay, Marsh Harbor, Lynyard Cay, Tiloo Cay, Marsh Harbor, and finally Great Guana Cay where we are anchored in Fishers Bay. We are still experiencing high winds pretty much 20-30 knots out of the NE going on 2.5 weeks now and we as well as our fellow cruisers are getting tired of it. Hopefully a break is in sight for the end of this week and for next week. Many cruisers are preparing to head back to the states then. The weather windows for a decent crossing are far and few between.
We were fortunate enough to receive a visit from our very dear friends Nancy and Tom Hemmah. They flew in to Marsh Harbor and stayed at the Abaco Beach Resort. The first day they were here we took a ferry to Great Guana and attended a pig roast at Nippers on the Atlantic side. Famous for the "Frozen Nipper". No pictures to protect the innocent. The very next day we had set up a deep sea fishing charter. It looked to be a nice day so all 4 of us went. Once out of the Sea of Abaco and into the Atlantic it got pretty rolly. 3-5 foot seas. One fish was caught--a 50 lb wahoo! The freezer is back in business and we are still enjoying 30 lbs of fish. The night we had Nancy and Tom on board for a overnight to Treasure Cay proved a bit deflating. We used a blow up double sized air mattress in the main salon since our spare cabin has been turned into a garage. During the middle of the night we heard Tom exclaim "off of me cat!" Turns out Marty wanted a closer look at the guests. In the process his claws went into Tom and the air mattress thus causing it to be flat by morning! Good thing they had other arrangements! We regret the weather did not cooperate for good snorkeling but we did have a great time.
Each island has a unique energy about it. Currently we are in Guana Cay. It has the most layed back feel of the Abacos so far. The highlight was yesterdays Bare Foot Man concert! The Bare Foot Man is the Abacos version of Jimmy Buffet. It is a very big deal when he does a concert. Nippers was the venue and you have never seen so many over 50 year olds partying it up! A Twins baseball cap was spotted by Bill so we introduced ourselves and met some folks from Minnetonka on vacation! We do have pics and may have to post a few on our next blog update. Everyone is moving rather slow today.
Wind, sun, sand, and beautiful seas. Yes, it is amazing. My view as I write this includes all of that plus coconut trees gently blowing, and a hammock or two. It is interesting because I see many of my fellow cruisers hanging around the beach bar, some sitting in the pool and on the chaise lounge chairs. It is a small world!

N 26 32 88, W 77 03 49 Marsh Harbor, Great Abaco

Greetings Everyone!

since our last entry we sailed to Rock Sound about 15 mi. north. We anchored here for about 4 nights. During this time Marty began showing signs of what we diagnosed as a urinary tract infection. Rock Sound is a very remote settlement without a vet. However we knew one did come to the area once a month. We miraculously located the woman who is responsible for arranging for the vet. She happens to have 14 cats and is a pseudo vet herself. She was wonderful! Phyllis Kemp gave us IV fluids, syringes, medicine and even special food. I gave Marty SQ fluids 4x in 24 hrs, plus the antibiotics and special food. He turned around and had a complete recovery in 7 days! We were so grateful!

After Rock Sound we headed to Alabaster Bay, still on the island of Eleuthera. We were anchored here by ourselves for 4 nights, just beautiful! The only thing around was a very nice resort called Cocodimamas. Owned by a couple of Italian's. We hiked through an old U.S. Navel base that was active in the 1970's for missile tracking (VERY nice location, right on the Atlantic) to the Atlantic ocean, had the whole beach to ourselves. From there we sailed to Spanish Wells, a predominately white Bahamian city. The native white people are called "conchy joes"! It is a dry city!! We got re provisioned, propane, and laundry done then left for Royal Island where we staged to do a crossing to Great Abaco Island. This crossing is 56 miles across the Northeast Providence Channel, wide open to the Atlantic. The weather prediction was as follows: E winds 15-20K switching S, chance of showers/squalls containing 30-40 knots. Since we were headed north we thought we would take it as it would be another week before we had another window to go. We pulled the hook at 0700 and headed out into swells of 3-4 feet, E winds at 15. By noon we were in 8-10 ft seas and the wind began backing to the NE! Bummer! We had full main and jib out and were making about 5.7 knots until about 1400 when we had to triple reef the main, pull in the jib and start the engine as Johesa just could not hold her course. Another hour and a squall hit. The winds went to 28K but back to 20 shortly after. It pretty much rained the entire rest of the trip. We got through the Little Harbor Cut using our chart plotter as we could not see much between the rain and clouds. Reefs on each side and 8-10 footers pushing us through, it was very exciting. We anchored just inside the reef. The next order of business was to get the dinghy down and Jess to shore. Quite a feat for Bill and Jess but they got her done and everyone back on board safely. We spent the night rocking and rolling until morning. Poor Marty was sick all night. By morning things calmed down. We headed the 21 miles to Marsh Harbor and this is where we remain. Another big blow is expected tomorrow, 30-40 knots out of the NW. We and about 30 other boats are anchored and will be hunkered down for that. This is hopefully the end of the major squalls for this area.

So as nighttime falls and Marty comes down from the solar panels looking for food we will sign off for now. Hope all is well with everyone and you people in MN try to stay warm, spring is right around the corner.

This is Johesa clear, standing by on 16 & 68

N24 50 12 W76 20 56, Cape Eleuthera Marina

What, Cape Eleuthera MARINA? Johesa in a marina and not at anchor? No, we are not turning into marina people but there is a new front coming today and we needed to get into a place to get some west protection. That is the good and bad about the Bahamas, the winds are east 90% of the time but when fronts pass through and the winds clock around to S, SW, W and NW there are very few places to hide. We spent one day and night in an exposed anchorage at Cat Island and got rocked and rolled all day and night. I'm getting ahead of myself though, let me start at the beginning.
We left Georgetown, (picture to the right is our anchorage at George Town and below that is the Internet cafe) made it Cat Island with a nice motor sail. The first night there was beautiful. The only boat at anchor with good protection from the winds and free Internet to boot. The next day we moved to a place called New Bight and went into town for some fuel and re-provisioning. Nice anchorage with good holding but exposed to the SW & W. The first night was great but the next day it went down hill fast. We were getting pitched all day with SW winds, it was so bad we couldn't even get Jessie to shore. Then in the night the winds switched to the W so we started rolling for the rest of the night. So with much regret we left Cat Island with a Dolphin escort and sailed to Little San Salvador, Half Moon Bay for the night. This is leased by Holland/American Cruise Lines so when there is a ship in the harbor we have to anchor way on the end so we don't disturb the paying customers. About 2 hours after we got anchored the cruise ship left and we had the place to ourselves. We met the locals who work on the island and they gave us the grand tour of the place. It is a beautiful place but we were amazed at how the cruise ship thing works. When the ship drops anchor they send their people to shore with everything, food, gifts, services and such. Then went it is time to leave they pack up everything and move onto the next location. There is a new ship almost every day so the local crew ferry's people back and forth to the ship and cleans up after they leave. We spent only one night there as the weather was predicted to go bad and there is no protection from S, SW or W at this anchorage.

We are now at the Cape Eleuthera Marina for the next frontal passage. The marina is under construction so not all of the services are available yet but the people here are great. They have really gone out of their way to make sure we get everything we need and took us out for pizza, tours and shopping in town. The laundry facilities still need some work as Cindy demonstrates the fine art of plunger washing. We have been here three nights and will move out tomorrow for the town of Rock Sound. We will spend a few weeks at Eleuthera before we head north to the Abacos.

So ends another day in paradise as the captain blows the conch horn and gives thanks for another beautiful day.



Bill & Cindy standing by.

N23 30 75 W75 44 69, Georgetown

Left Nassau and finally arrived in the Exumas. This was where we anchored at Hawksbill Cay. We spend New Years here with two other cruisers we met along the way. For the most part we we the only people anchored in these spots. From here we continued south to numerous cays and stopped in Waderick Wells Park for a break. Not really a break as we were working at the park to get free mooring. Cindy was clearing brush and I got to dig ditches. It felt good to do some real work for a change. The snorkeling was great but all the sea life is protected and we could not take any of the fish or lobsters.
Then to Staniel Cay where we started to find many other boats. Some of the cruisers stay here all year, we had enough after about a week. We did snorkel in the Thunderball Grotto, James Bond movie, and had the best conch burgers in the Exumas. Got our laundry done at Black Point then anchored in a remote anchorage for a few days to try some lobstering and fishing. My new plan is to hang around people that are getting fish and get invited for dinner. Left the Exuma Bank at Farmers Cay. Nice little town that we spent the day in, and then out the cut to Exuma Sound the next day. Here we are at one of the many beach parties that boaters put on. They even bought and roasted a pig for one. Hopefully it wasn't one of the beach pigs that swim out for food. They did seem a little agitated though. So now we are in Georgetown and will be leaving as soon as possible. It is kind of interesting but this is a place where the cruisers come and stay all year. They have their activities and are very clicky. They don't really care to welcome newcomers to join in the reindeer games. It's to bad it has come to this but people are the same all over. We are going to Cat Island to get away from the crowds for a while again.
Bill & Cindy signing off.