Crew list:

Don Boyd (your correspondent)

Joni Crosby (she who is to be obeyed)

Mik the dog (the world famous cruising Pug)

Miles travelled - 73 (nautical miles as measured straight line GPS)

(estimate 120 miles travelled)

* Engine hours -22.0 (includes charging)
* Sailing hours - 13

• Money spent:

F- Food / beer / ice / snacks on board / provisioning- $33.00

C- cruising permits / licences / communication - $22.00

D- Charts / guides / boat parts / Chain- $ 2.00

T- Eating out / drinking out / touring - $94.00

Aprox. total this leg - $151.00

FAVORITE PRICE SAMPLES (all at Staniel Cay):

one liter bottle of Bacardi rum $ 15.00 a bottle / Case of 24 Kalik Beer $ 50.00. / One gallon drinking water $ 1.25 / dozen large eggs $ 2.50 / Medium Iceberg letuce $ 2.50 / Loaf of locally baked bread $ 2.50 / litre of engine oil $ 3.95 /

One Kalik Beer at Happy People Bar $ 2.50 / Theaziel's famous Hamburger and fries $ 6.00 / game of pool .25 / Cost to send a fax to anywhere in Canada $ 4.85 / Cost to call anywhere in the USA $ 1.00 per minute / Cost to call within the Exumas, $ .35

• High temperature this period 33.0 Celsius
• Lowest temperature this period 20.0 Celsius

Straight line distance from PCYC Montreal • 1277 (nautical miles)

Ports visited:

• West of Potters Cay, Nassau (anchor) • Highborne Cay (anchor) • The "Pond", Normans Cay (anchor) • Shroud Cay, (anchor) • Compass Cay, NW corner(anchor) • Staniel Cay, between the Club and Happy People Marina (anchor) • Staniel Cay, off the SE side of Big Major's Spot (anchor) • Staniel Cay, between Little and Big Major's Spots (anchor)

How'd you like to spend Christmas
On a sunny Island
How'd you like the holiday
Away across the sea

How'd you like to spend Christmas
On a sunny Island
How'd like to hang a stocking
On a great big coconut tree

How'd you like to stay up late
Like the Islanders do
Wait for Santa to sail in
With your presents in a canoe

If you ever spend Christmas
On Christmas Island
You'll never stray for single day
So your Christmas dreams come true

Jimmy Buffett

As regular readers of this site probably have noticed, we are spending a lot (all) of our time in harbours on the hook. There are three reasons for this.

a) We are too cheap to pay for a Marina

b) We don't mind diving on our anchors to ensure that they are set, and don't mind moving anchorages to suit the weather (ie: At Staniel Cay, we switched anchorages twice to hide from a couple of 35 knot Norther's)

c) We are too cheap to pay for a Marina

We got through the nasty weather in Nassau and left at the first break in the weather, sailing South East across the Yellow Bank to Highborne Cay in the Exuma's.

For those of you how have never sailed these crystal waters, I can only describe it as it's as if your boat has landed into a crystal clear swimming pool, 10 to 40 feet deep, that's been stocked with countless fish and coral heads. The sight of all this stuff sliding past your keel is almost unsettling at first, but the feeling is indescribable and the coral is easy to duck. By the way, the fish here have been trained by the Bahamian Government to avoid capture by foreigners.

The Exuma's are the reward for suffering all the way through the ICW, not enjoying regular employment. They are the reason we suffered through mile after mile of sailing and partying. The Exuma's are simply some of the best sailing in the western hemisphere if not the world.

A gorgeous 90 mile long chain of Islands, from rolling hills to coral atolls. A totally protected sailing highway on a protected bank on the west, or mile deep water on the sound side. Mangroves, caves, reefs, deserted beaches and warm breezes.

We felt our way into a salt water pond to anchor a few nights at Normans Cay, swam into Thunderball grotto cave and hand fed fish, explored the mangrove back waters of Shroud Cay and visited "Camp Driftwood", so named because visitors must carry a piece of beach flotsam to the top to ensure good luck, on a hill overlooking both the Sound and the Banks.

There are few things weirder and more enjoyable than spending Christmas anchored in crystal clear blue water, 100 yards off a perfect white sand beach, under the clear Bahamas sun.

We spent Christmas Eve at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club's annual Christmas dinner with dozens of other yachties. It was very nice to sing Carol's by the Christmas tree and eat turkey dinner, then hop into the dinghy to put-putt back to Destiny Calls and star gaze at the billions of lights piercing through an inky black sky, un marred by any city lights.

Christmas was a little warm at 88 f, so we went spear fishing (caught nothing... fish smart / Hoosier fisherman not smart), played a little pool at the Happy People Bar and Grill, and later watched the stars from a perfect perch upon a beach rock.

Gee we wish we were shovelling snow.... NOT!!!

Mik has been really enjoying life down here, but at his age he has gone rather deaf. He doesn't respond to anything verbal anymore, and doesn't cock his head back and forth like he used to when you spoke to him as if he was hanging on every word. Other than very loud sounds, he doesn't seem to hear very much.

The other day Mik was sitting in the cockpit beside the external speaker for the VHF radio when somebody called for us. The speaker was on fairly loud and Mik stared at it cocking his head back and forth! He could hear the speaker. So I got on the hand held, switched to a little used channel, and called Mik and he went nuts.

We now have a radio controlled dog. If we need him we use the VHF and he seems to hear it. Don't ask me why he can hear the speaker and not us, but is a great party trick when we have guests over for drinks (not to mention the smiles when Joni brings out the noise clicker and I head for the toilet).

Imagine the possibilities! Us on the VHF, some where off the Puerto Rican shores, "US Coast Guard, US Coast Guard, US Coast Guard.... sailing vessel Destiny Call's on 16"."

"This is US Coast Guard, state the nature of your emergency"

"Yes sir, please call our dog on channel 22 and tell him to get his nose out of the garbage"

"No problem Destiny Calls, he's been bad these last few days hasn't he? This is US Coast Guard switching to 22 alpha to verbally berate a dog in the trash. Out"

Till the next instalment!