Woke up at 0430 and couldn't go back to sleep. Laid in bed for a while, and I got to see the sunrise. The fuel dock was up and going at 0630. So, I fueled up and picked up some ice. I have 3 fuel tanks that collectively hold 11 gallons. My total fuel purchased at the dock was 10.7 gallons. I'm so glad that I bought that third tank! I motor sailed more than I wanted, but the motor did help push the little boat through the chop at a higher tracking angle than I could have without it.
This morning my plan is to go anchor south of Grand Cay and search the western horizon for Bill and John. In addition to "waiting for my ship to come in", I'd just rather be out on The Bank than couped up in the marina - too many people asking questions and the breeze is better out in the open.
Since I'm not underway at the moment, I have time for a "sophisticated" lunch!
Went for a swim to cool off.
About 1330, I saw a trimaran on the horizon and got excited thinking it was Bill to the rescue. I tried hailing, but received no response. As it got closer, I could tell it was not Bill. However, I still wanted to chat with them, but I guess they didn't have their radio on. They passed only a couple of hundred yards in front of me - close enough that I could hear them talking. I was waiting to see if they would go into Grand Cay, but they tacked onto port and headed east towards Double Breasted Cay. (note - I later found out that these guys had noticed me, and told Bill that they had saw me when he ran into them).
It was such a nice afternoon, I decided to sail downwind (Hallelujah!) back to Walker Key to see if some boats I saw headed that way earlier might be Bill. I just pulled out the screacher, and it was a pleasant but slow sail back to the West - very relaxing after all of the hard sailing the previous three days (see video below). A little "sailing treat" for myself! Along the way, a monohull passed me headed to Grand Cay. That was probably the boat I saw headed to Walker Cay earlier.
I was back to Walker Cay at 1600, a nice downwind sail, and I told the Swiss couple I met yesterday to tell Bill I went to Marsh Harbor if he shows up.
I was back to Grand Cay at 1800 and struggling to decide what to do next. Should I wait longer or press on? I sent some texts home, and as the sun faded, I decided to dock up in Grand Cay for the night.
Since I hadn't had any warm food in days, I decided it was time to hit the local bar/restaurant. As I entered, the place was filled with locals gathered around the big screen at the bar watching the NBA Finals Game 6, pre-game show. "Great," I thought, "I'll have dinner and watch the game!" I ordered up some fried grouper, salad, and beans & rice for $10 along with a cold beer. It was clear that this was a Golden State crowd.
At some point in the evening, three sport fishing buddies came in and pulled up stools next to me. We were chatting it up about fishing, and eventually they figured out that I was the crazy guy who sailed the little, yellow sailboat across The Stream and The Bank to get here. These sport fishing guys are so cushy spoiled. One of them asked me if I had an air conditioned cabin. I responded by saying that I had an open cockpit that the breeze kept quite cool.
His buddy then said, "You must get a lot of chafe."
"What do you mean?", I said.
"Well I figured your balls are so big that you get a lot of chafe just walking around," he said.
We all laughed heartily, but it was intended as a BIG compliment by some guys who had spent a lot of time on the water and clearly understood what it meant to get here on a tiny boat. All of them agreed that they would never even consider doing such a trip, and complimented me for my efforts. It felt good to be acknowledged after what I had gone through the last several days.
As the evening wore on, one of the locals, TJ, started buying me beers. I asked him why, but he said, "Don't worry about it, mon." As I probed some more, I never got a straight answer, but I suspected by the way he and his friends were acting that this was their sign of respect for what I had done to get here and spend the evening with them. As the other Americans slowly wondered off from the bar, I was the only one that remained to see how the game played out. In the end, Golden State won The Finals, and it was time to get some rest. It was midnight, and I went to bed wondering what I was going to do tomorrow.
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