Back in the USA

We wanted to stay in the Bahamas much longer, but electrical and battery problems were too pressing to ignore any longer. White Pepper slipped the mooring at Green Turtle Cay on Thursday 6-5-08 and headed NW. There was a brisk SE breeze that backed due E by afternoon. We were making such good time that we bypassed the planned anchorage of Hawksbille Cay and pressed on to Great Sale Cay in the very middle of the Little Bahama Bank. The Little Bank is slightly deeper than the Great Bahama Bank that we covered last December, but it does have shallow spots. We passed over a 7 feet depth about 3 miles offshore. Along the way we passed a rock with the wonderful name of Center of the World Rock. (see picture) I guess if you run into it while on autopilot the rock quickly becomes the center of your world.

Great Sale is well located and well protected from the easterly winds and seas. We got in just at sunset quite tired. We explored and rested all day Friday waiting for the winds to calm down and allow a better Gulf Stream crossing. There is not much there except a long strip of rock and scrub.

We socialized with our two neighbors--Alan on Artful Dodger and Jack and Lillie on Be Attitude. Lillie is the skipper and Jack competent crew. They had lost an anchor the night before and were light on ground tackle. I sold them my 20 kg Claw knowing I could easily replace it at West Marine. They would probably have to have had one shipped in on the mail boat.

Saturday dawned lovely and gentle. We raised the anchor by 6:30 am and sailed away at 280T at 6 knots. Fort Pierce was 115 n. mi. away. White Pepper crossed off the Little Bank using a wide deep cut at 27 degrees and 8 minutes north latitude at 4:45 pm. Soon we were in the Gulf Stream, but the wind and waves gradually subsided. By altering course to 270T we were making 6+ knots at 330M. I must have done the trigonometry correctly because we popped out of the west wall of the Gulf Stream due east of Fort Pierce 17 n. miles away. I was asleep when Jan raised the red flashers of the Fort Pierce inlet at 5 am. When the sun came up at 6:30 I lower the Bahamian courtesy flag and raised the quarantine flag (see pic). Thus ended White Pepper's 6 month voyage to the Bahamas.

Two hours later we were tied up at the Harbortown Marina and preparing to haggle with Homeland Security. By 3 pm we were certified as cleared. I had a 20 digit number to prove it. This number must be retained in the log book for at least one year. Back at the marina Jan and I had two beers each and slept till 7 pm.