Matthew Town & Man O' War Bay, Great Inagua - The Bahamas

We left the Dominican Republic just after sunrise, which was at about 7:00. The first quarter of the trip was very bumpy with three metre swells and winds coming from behind, so it wasn't very pleasant to begin with. 

During the night, the seas calmed down a bit, but it was still blowing between 15 and 22 knots with the wind coming directly from behind, which made the boat corkscrew quite a lot in the waves. As we surfed down the waves, we sped up to about 10 knots boat speed. 

We had been lulled into a false sense of security in the marina. and we had no idea what the conditions were really like out there. I usually prepare food for a passage before we leave, but for some reason this time I didn’t. I had boiled some eggs while making our morning tea, but I didn’t even think about supper. What a mistake! By the time I was due to go down below and make supper we were rocking and rolling with the huge waves. I knew the crew were hungry, so I went to the galley and did my best. I managed to put together a sausage pasta which filled the tummy but wasn’t my best meal ever. Note to self: always prepare the passage meal before leaving regardless of what the conditions are.

180 nm trip to Matthew Town

We got into Matthew Town at around 11:30 on our clocks but it was actually 10:30. We had a time zone change! We are now 7 hours behind South Africa. Matthew was very happy to hear there was a town named after him! It will be known as "Me Town" from now on!

 

Something that is very different to the volcanic islands in Grenada and The Grenadines, even the islands further north, is that these islands are very flat. Quite far out, you can only see little bumps above the waves. 

As we came into the anchorage, three dolphins came and swam next to the boat. I felt like they were welcoming us to the bay. One got so close I thought the anchor would drop on him! As I dropped the anchor into the clearest, bluest water I have ever seen. I could see it hit the sand and hooked. 

Laura looking for dolphins

Beautiful blue water

Andrew went ashore to check in. The customs was at the dock so he didn't have to go far. 

We had heard about the sunken boat at the dock. Andrew had communicated with the owner when we were asking questions about Matthew Town on Facebook. It sank during the bad weather that we had had a few days prior to our arrival.

Only a little rolly

We spent the rest of the day on the boat, enjoying the blue water and bright white sand, swimming in the clear blue water. It was wonderful! The dolphins are clearly residents of the bay as we saw them several times during the day.

Ben had left immediately to go to Man o' War Bay which wasn't far away. He sent us a message to say that it was calm and beautiful over there. 

After an excellent night’s sleep we went ashore and walked to the light house. I am not good with heights, but made it all the way to the top! The view was worth the walk up the stairs that went around and around.

                         

Don't look down!

  

We made it!

On the way back to the boat, we found a small supermarket that was well stocked with fresh produce, but as we had stocked up before leaving the DR we didn’t buy anything. Well, we bought eggs and tea, which is a vital necessity on board Calypso!

It was strange to see pine trees on the island. The ground was very dry and sandy and didn't look fertile at all.

The place looked deserted with the odd car passing us. They are very friendly and hooted or waved as they went past. 

  

Supermarket

Playground

On the way back to the boat we met two other cruising couples. Amazing how you can just stop and have a ten-minute conversation with a complete stranger about where you have been and where you are going. This cruising life is beautiful.

 

Altimate – a German couple, Sabine and Norbert

Lady Seagull – a Canadian couple Joe and Cathy

Ben had asked us to buy him a SIM card so we went looking for the shop. As we were walking down the road a lady stopped and asked if we wanted a lift. We took it gladly. We had heard that people are very friendly here and offer you lifts. She dropped us at the cell phone store, but we soon realized it was the wrong one. The cheapest plan was $39 for 15 gigs. This was not what Ben had mentioned so we asked where the other store was. Well, it wasn’t a store, it was someone’s home. We found it and waited at the window while she sorted out the card.

Place to buy Aliv SIM card

"Window" shopping 

Huge satellite dish, derelict house

Once we were back on the boat, we upped anchor and sailed around to Man O’ War Bay. It only took a few hours, and we were there well before sunset to see the coral bommies that we had to avoid. Ben hailed us on the radio and guided us towards the best route. 

 

According to the Collins English Dictionary a Coral bommie is an outcrop of coral reef, often resembling a column, that is higher than the surrounding platform of reef and which may be partially exposed at low tide.

Small coral bommie
We definitely didn’t want to be anywhere near them.

Ship loading salt

We spent a few days swimming and walking. We went looking for the flamingos which we never found but did have a wonderful walk along the deserted dust roads. 

Spraying bug spray

The no-see-ums were horrendous. The wind dropped and we got eaten alive overnight. So when we went ashore we went prepared! No-see-ums are tiny little midges that slice a hole in your skin to suck blood. They get to every inch of your skin leaving you itching like crazy!

A rare selfie

Our next stop was Crooked Island which was about 110 nm away. We left at around 9am, expecting to do 5 knots, which should make our arrival at daybreak. As usual, it was not to be. Read about our passage in the next blog.