Wednesday, Great Sale, January 16, 2013.

3am comes around very quickly. I don’t think I slept much at all, but Ken was the first one awake. We ready the boat, hail ‘Astar’, and pull out into the channel a little before 4am. I see ‘Carolina’ readying their boat as we go past them, and they quickly overtake us when we’re out in the Gulf Stream.

Lights are deceiving at night. We see a long line of lights and debate what they are. Another boat breaks in and says it’s a tug with a 1000’ towline pulling a barge heading to Andros. We give it wide berth only to get closer and have it turn into a cruise ship! Dawn slowly approaches in the east. The wind is SE, nearly on our nose since we need to bear SE to make up for the north current from the Gulf Stream. About half way across we pick up ‘Carolina’ on the VHF talking to another sailboat close to Memory Rock, one of the crossing points on to the Bahamas banks. ‘Carolina’ has changed their plans and opts to go directly to Great Sale due to deteriorating weather. I hail ‘Astar’. They’d heard that transmission also (everyone listens to everyone else on the VHF) and we change our plans midstream, so to speak, and head for Memory Rock and Great Sale, giving us a much better angle to the wind and picking up our speed. We cross over onto the banks around 1pm and the wind dies down. We’re motoring with no help with the sails and pull in the jib and later drop the m’sail so we don’t have to drop it in the dark (which we did last time….see, we do learn). The wind is still SE and to pick up and go more southwards, according to NOAA, which we could still pick up on the VHF. I hail ‘Astar’ and suggest the north anchorage at Great Sale and they agree, knowing either anchorage will not be easy in the dark, although we would have a little moonlight. Close to Great Sale we see the lights of the boats anchored in the south anchorage. ‘Astar’ leads us into the north anchorage and we drop the hook and settle down for the night. A long, but satisfying day, and we’re 1 day ahead of schedule.