so we've had a bit of an odyssey. We left grand Bahama day before yesterday with a decent
forecast for a crossing. We had previously broken our
alternator mount which I had jury rigged back together until I could get somewhere we could have the part shipped. About 11am a mile from the edge of the bank our jury rigged mount recracked. I decided to be prudent and
head for west end. It was about this time we stared hearing NOAA forecasts for t storms with damaging winds. Sure enough the
wind dropped completely as we sat like ducks as a huge front rolled through. I've never seen anything like this front. Sustained winds of 40 knots, the air was cycling between 50 degrees and 80 degrees within seconds, sideways rain, hail, and very large seas that built quickly. We lay a
hull but I quickly found we were doing 5 knots under bare poles we blew passed the memory rock pass and couldn't get sea room. we were drifting down on Indians rock shoals. I was able to kind of semi-heave the
boat to, quartering the waves on the stern and bring the
boat speed down to 2 knots. I grew up in
New England where a t storm comes and goes but we were in this thing for two hrs and We were both quite scared. Finally the storm passed leaving us in 25 knots sustained winds and choppy seas I put out a scrap of gennie and made for west end through the torturous
India cay pass. Not something I wanted to do but we had no choice. Couldn't really get up
wind.
We made it through and are now stuck in west end with no end in sight. This place is obscenely expensive. The wind is supposed to shift to the east 15-20 with 6-8 foot seas on Monday. But I don't really feel all that comfortable making the crossing in that not knowing what lies across the stream in the
Florida bar entrances. Ugh. Looking for an anchorage.
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