The weather became unsettled just as we were leaving Marsh Harbour.  Just a little rain at first, then as we made the turn into the open bay we could no longer see any boats or landmarks around us. Marion suggested the radar. It had not been used in months, so I was not sure it would help. I fiddled with the controls and soon I could see the shore line, the boats around us, and even the size and shape of the rainstorms. In 20 minutes the storm passed on by, so we did not get the full benefit of radar as we entered the narrow channel into Man-O-War harbour.

We tied up to a mooring at Man-O-War and went ashore to explore the quaint town. It is truly a shipbuilding (small boats) town. It has two yards and several projects under construction when we passed by. There seems to be about four family names which account for most of the population on the island. The Albury's are the most prominent. They own the shipyard, that builds the ferry boats for the Albury ferry service, which buys its fuel at their Marina. The Albury Grocery store will deliver to your boat and the Albury Bakery will keep you in Buns. There is no liquor or tobacco available for purchase on the island and their consumption is not allowed in the restaurants.  All businesses, even the restaurants, close on Wednesday afternoon for Church services.

That sinking feeling:

When we got back to the boat, Marion started the Genset while I was securing the dinghy. As I came aboard Marion called to me, "Ed, Ed, there is water running into the boat."

I dove into the engine room to find the source. "Marion, It's hot water," I called out to her, "Shut off the fresh water system pump."

I tasted the water. It was fresh. It didn't stop running immediately. A search found that the hot water hose to washing machine came loose.

The vibration from the genset starting was just the final straw that shook it loose. There was no real damage and we probably lost only 4 or 5 gallons of water. The worst that could have happened would be to loose the water in the 100 gallon tank. I believe the hose came loose due to vibration from the spin cycle of the washer.

Our marine plumber warned us this kind of thing can happen when attached to shore water. That would really be bad.  I doubt if the three bilge pumps would be able to keep up, trying to empty the boat. We would probably sink. His counsel was to shut off shore water when you leave the boat. Since this episode we have shut off the shore water when we leave.

Swapping Moorings

After the flooding excitement, I noticed that the exhaust from our genset was pointed directly at the open front hatch of a sailboat moored behind us.  I called out to the sailboat owner and offered to swap mooring balls. He was most receptive to the idea so we planned a quick swap. (The harbor was full, and there were boats looking for open moorings.)

He would release first, and clear the way for me to fall back. Then Remedy would release and pick up his freed mooring. The sailboat would move forward and take the mooring we left.  That was the plan.

It all worked smoothly until Marion hooked the mooring lanyard. It was so short there was no way she could loop it onto our cleat. It was chaos for a moment or two. Fortunately a mariner in a passing dinghy noted our difficulty, and volunteered to help. Marion passed him a dock line which he tied to the mooring lanyard.

Mooring is always difficult for our boat because the bow is seven feet off the water.  Most moorings seem to accommodate boats with bows five feet or less off the water (most sailboats and smaller powerboats).
 

"Let's go sailing," I suggested. "Great Idea," she agreed, "Get the boat down, I'll shoot some pictures, then come pick me up." We sailed down to the south harbour and back.  The wind was highly variable due to shore line effects. It became more challenging than fun; we quit after 45 min.

The next morning we rose at 4:45 AM to view the night time launch of the Shuttle. The Cape is about 120 miles away but we could see the solid rockets for the final few seconds before they burned out and separated from the Shuttle. If you didn't know where to look, you might not even notice the event. The Main engines burn with a blue flame and no fiery exhaust. They were not visible from this distance.
 

We rented a golf cart and drove to North Beach on The Queen's Highway.  We brought a light lunch and the snorkeling gear. There were lot's of Little fish. Here are three that we had never seen before.

This is an unusual angel fish. It has black fin and tail markings. There are none like this in my reef fish book. If you can identify it, give me the right name.

Two Doctor Fish                                           Squirrel Fish

July 14-15 Great Guana Key

We arrived at Great Guana key in a thunderstorm and once again needed help from a nearby mariner to capture a short mooring line. Cruisers are a generous and helpful group of people.  Give a helping hand and you will be repaid in like kind.
 

We took the dinghy to the settlement grocery, and splurged on a Miami Herald. This thunderstorm had an identity crisis. Notice the rainbow and a hint of sunset. Next the winds piped up and in the middle of the night I had to double up lines to the mooring lanyard to stop the chafing. Boy did it rain...

Sunday we went to Nippers in the driving rain. That's Roast Pig Buffet day. The food and drink was very good, but even more expensive. Rating *** $$$$ We huddled under an umbrella after lunch and took pictures of the angry surf. Some braved the rain to go swimming in the Ocean. We went down for a knee deep wade.

I collected enough rainwater to have a luxurious bath on the fore deck.

The next morning we checked in to the Cruisers Network to listen for weather reports.

Cruisers Network operates daily on VHF channel 68 and is a very valuable service provided voluntarily by Penny and Barometer Bob. They welcome new arrivals, say farewell to those leaving, celebrate birthdays and provide contacts to travelers willing to take mail to the US for posting. There is news of local events and advertisements from local merchants and restaurants.  It's a wonderful service.

Here is a great URL for Cruising in the Abacos

Postscript:

I got an Email from "Ed from Alabama" the day I posted this report.

Hi Ed,
    Did you happen to be anchored in the Man-of -War harbour on the 12th of
July?
     We came in that day to visit the island in our rental boat and noticed
your boat if it was you. Do you have the little x on the tail of the R in
your boat name as in RX?
Are you a pharmacist? I am and regret we didn't stop and say hi and find out
then, but it was our first trip to Abaco and our first trip to another island
besides Elbow, so we were still a little shy!
   Just curious!
      Ed from Alabama

I remember someone passing close to our boat, studying the transom, and pressing on...
Perhaps that was you.

These things happen....