By Kevin

When we had our chain plates replaced last summer the bow chain plate was welded to the bow roller. So, the whole assembly had to be replaced. The crew that did the work fabricated a strong and functional new bow roller. See the attached pictures.

You’ll notice that it has two stainless steel pins that that be inserted to keep the chain or rode from “jumping” out of the roller channels. They have a nice swivel device at the end, which make it a quick job to slide them into place in bouncing water.

The only improvement I would make to this bow roller is to flare out the forward edges where the chain goes onto the wheels. This would widen the angle from which we could haul in chain.

Madeline and Zach watching over Parker in Emerald Bay

By Jennifer

On a whim while in Emerald Bay, another boat in the marina employed Madeline and Zach in dog-sitting their highly separation anxiety-prone dog while their family of five went out to dinner (the first time they were able to in a month because of the dog). Of course, the kids complied and spent two hours sitting on the boat watching canine “Parker” rest peacefully in the cockpit. They pocketed $20 for their efforts. Dog-sitting seems quite lucrative!

By Jennifer

During our extended stay at Emerald Bay Marina, we explored one of the historic sites located in Steventon, Great Exuma. The site commemorates a 32-year-old slave named Pompey who orchestrated a slave rebellion from his wealthy British landowner in 1829. Pictured in the slideshow are the remains of the jail where Pompey was incarcerated and a monument honoring Pompey.

Here’s the story as posted on Bahamianstudies.org.

A.J. Lees, acting as Lord Rolle’s agent, attempted to transfer seventy-seven of Rolle’s slaves from Exuma to Cat Island. Led by a 32 year old slave named Pompey, a number of the slaves hid in the bush for several weeks and then stole a boat and sailed to Nassau to petition the Governor. When Governor Smyth finally heard their case, he found that Lees had lied to obtain the transfer permit and ordered that the slaves be allowed to remain in Exuma.

• “Eventually, the governor learned of the proposed illegal transaction and returned the slaves to the Rolle Plantation on Exuma where their peers celebrated their return and refused to work. The military was again called in, and searched the slave houses for arms, recovering 25 muskets. Pompey took a short cut through the woods and warned people in the second slave village on the plantation, who subsequently hid themselves and their weapons in the bush.”
• “Learning they would be leaving in three days to be hired out to another planter illegally, most of these slaves followed Pompey, a 32 year old slave, into the bush to hide for five weeks. When their provisions ran out, they stole Lord Rolle’s boat and sailed to Nassau in the hope of presenting their situation to the governor, who held antislavery viewpoints.”
• “In retrospect at least, Pompey’s miniature rebellion was the first substantial victory for Bahamian slave resisters.

By Jennifer

We took a break from our trip and flew back home for a week on March 4 through 11. We absolutely enjoyed coming home and seeing friends and family. We arrived at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport about six hours before the biggest snowstorm in two years dumped about 8 inches of snow on the area. Before we left to return to the Bahamas, the kids declared they weren’t going back to the boat. I reminded them they had a defenseless hermit crab, Joey, anxiously awaiting their return.

(Note from Kevin: While waiting at the George Town airport for our flight, we spent a few hours at Kermit’s Airport Lounge. We were the only customers there except for a local Bahamian man watching “Ask Steve” on the television. We had never seen the show before and by the time it was over, we wished we still hadn’t. Let’s just say that Zach got quite an education from that episode–it is hard to believe the content they allow on daytime television shows–no wonder people send their kids off to school during the day.)

By Jennifer

Meet S/V Bendecida. Here are Zach and Madeline with Kathryn and John. They are a family from Orlando on an open-ended sailing trip heading south to the Caribbean. The girls had a lot in common and hung out quite a bit during our stay in George Town.

Volleyball Beach is the epicenter of activity in George Town. By 2 p.m., the beach is filled with boaters playing volleyball, dominoes and meeting new people. This is what Jimmy Buffett sings about…

By Jennifer

Here we are arriving in the much anticipated George Town — the cruising mecca of the Bahamas. Hundreds of boats converge in Elizabeth Harbor and anchor at one of the three popular beaches on Stocking Island — Monument Beach (pictured above with the monument atop the hill), Volley Ball Beach and Sand Dollar Beach.

This is mostly a destination for snowbirds. Many sail here and stay for three months. Because it is highly populated, the long-term residents organize a vast amount of daily activities including volleyball leagues, yoga classes, ham radio licenses, water walking, basket weaving, historical lectures, and dinghy maintenance seminars — all on a mostly undeveloped island in the Bahamas.

This is where we finally met up with some kids, so we stayed and played for nine days.

We also spent a lot of time in downtown George Town. Here, we stopped for a bite at Bikini Bottoms, a fun takeout eatery.