http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog life aboard a 38-foot sailboat Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:55:33 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en We sailed around the Abacos for about three more weeks after writing the last installment of this blog. Cruising is very easy there, with many great harbors and well-protected anchorages all within a short distance of each other. We hit some familiar spots multiple times and tried out some new ones. ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/06/21/back-in-the-good-ol-usofa/ We moved north from Black Point on Sunday, March 13, and headed to Bitter Guana Cay which is only a few miles up the Exuma chain. There are quite a few cays in the Bahamas with "Guana" in their name. We've heard that it's local slang for iguana. Anyway, Bitter ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/04/16/bitter-iguanas/ Floating around the Bahamas is proving to be a rather pleasant exercise indeed. Who needs the Caribbean? We met a British couple in Cat Island who just came from the Caribbean, and they said the Bahamian waters are much clearer and more beautiful. That isn't to say we've given up ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/03/12/cat-island-and-black-point/ Well, it is now the end of February and rather than being further south, we are actually further north. The day before we were planning to depart Clarence Town, Long Island for Turks and Caicos, Captain Kenny declared a halt to the voyage due to a persistent pain in his ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/02/28/change-of-plans-3/ For those who may not know the etiquette, boats visiting foreign countries are expected to fly the flag of the host country in a prominent position on their boat. This is referred to as a courtesy flag. On sailboats, it's supposed to be flown on a flag halyard on the ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/02/19/consumer-report-on-flags/ The intrepid crew of the Mary T has slowly worked its way to a latitude of 23 degrees 06 minutes North and longitude 74 degrees 58 minutes West, which puts us just a hair below the Tropic of Cancer. It is the farthest south we have ever sailed, though we ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/02/14/clarance-town-long-island-waiting-on-weather-again/ Having thoroughly enjoyed the luxury of the Marina at Emerald Bay yet anxious to move along, we headed to George Town, Great Exuma. George Town has long been a mecca for cruisers due to its well protected harbor and recreational opportunities. Many boaters go there and stay the entire winter. ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/02/01/thompson-bay-long-island/ After several days in the Exuma Land and Sea Park, we headed to Little Farmers Cay -- a day sail's away. We had just enough wind to move along at about 3 knots and thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of the Bahamian waters. As we dinghyed to shore, we met a ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/01/23/test/ The crossing of the Gulf Stream from Miami to the Great Bahama Bank (A shallow shelf in the sea, not a place to keep money) was not quite as easy as we'd imagined. We thought with a west wind of 20 - 25 knots we'd fly across to our first ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2011/01/18/bahamas-at-last/ After visiting nearly every doctor in the Palm Beach vicinity over a period of five weeks, Kenny and I finally pressed on and are now in Fort Lauderdale. Although just 4o nautical miles south of our previous location it is refreshing to be moored in new waters. Though still somewhat stiff ... http://cruisingonthemaryt.com/blog/2010/12/30/fort-lauderdale-at-last/