​Current Location:  Ocean World Marina, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Showers early morning, mostly sunny later, windy, high-70s
Highlights: We've been invited to a pig roast on the beach today, hosted by Alf and Kelly from Pia Mia (another boat here in the marina).  They're expecting about 100 folks from both the marina and also the local residents to attend.  Alf and Kelly are very generously providing all of the food, plus gifts for the kids, and Kelly, who by trade is a caterer, is right in her element with all the food prep and organization.  Terry spent the morning helping to carry pans of chicken, salad, sides, and all the necessities for the feast from the marina down to the beach area, which is about half a mile away.  Meanwhile, Amy stayed back at the boat baking deserts (brownies and coconut bars).  Got everything set up around 11, fired up the grills for the pig roasts and the chicken, and by 2PM, had a feast laid out that everyone fully appreciated.  Wine and beer were flowing, music was playing, and we met and chatted with dozens of interesting and lovely folks.  Hung around the party until late afternoon, then went back to the boat, straightened up a bit, then got some R&R.  Updated the blog, caught up with some of the family, and watched some NetFlix before settling in for the night.

​Current Location:  Ocean World Marina, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Showers early, mostly sunny later, windy, mid-70s
Highlights: Walked into town after breakfast this morning, checking out the resorts and beach area.  We're in the middle of a huge complex of all-inclusive resorts and hotels, including a water park with dolphins and seals, so will be fun to explore over the next week as we wait for the winds and seas to die down.  Met a few fellow cruisers here in the marina, and got invited to a Christmas Eve party on one of the boats (Steve and John's 44' power cat).  Went over around 5:30, and had a great time snacking, drinking, telling stories, and playing xmas tunes until late in the evening.  Staggered back to the boat around 11PM, turned in, and were sound asleep long before Santa and his reindeer flew over our mast.

​Current Location:  Ocean World Marina, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Miles Traveled:  60
Weather:  Mostly cloudy, afternoon rain, windy (15-25 knots), mid-70s
Highlights: Full moon and easterly winds continued most of the night, but just before dawn, the wind backed to SE and we had to motor-sail the last few hours to the Ocean World Marina just west of Puerto Plata.  Original plan was to head for Luperon, but after reading some of the reviews, and knowing we might be waiting a week or more for our next weather window, we decided to spend the extra funds for the safety, comfort, and cleanliness of OWM rather than dealing with Luperon issues.  Pulled into the marina at 11AM, just before the heavy rains and winds arrived. Marina staff checked us in, then we napped for a few hours before getting a quick and easy visit from customs to clear in.  Afterwards, we took a quick orientation walk around the marina, then had a snack at the cafe before coming back to the boat.  Watched some Netflix, then turned in early to catch up on some badly needed sleep.

​Current Location:  Atlantic Ocean, 50 miles northwest of Luperon, DR
Miles Traveled:  110
Weather:  Partly cloudy, windy (10-15 knots from East), high-70s, full moon.
Highlights: Cast off the dock lines at first light, then motor-sailed due south for about 16NM past French Cay and off the Caicos Banks.  Turned southeast directly into steady winds and moderate chop, motored for about 2 hours outside the bank, then turned back in and motor-sailed ESE in slightly calmer waters to the SE corner of the bank.  Had dinner while underway, then watched the full moon rise as we left the calmer waters and turned SSE across the straits towards the Dominican Republic.  Had good winds from the east for most of the trip, and made about 6 knots under full sail most of the night.  Waves were choppy and sloppy at times (3-4 feet), but nothing we haven't experienced before, and the sailing was actually much better than what we had heard from others about this stretch of water.

​Current Location:  Southside Marina, Providenciales, Turks & Caicos
Miles Traveled:  6
Weather:  Mostly sunny, windy, mid-80s
Highlights: Up early for shopping excursion into town.  Beached the dinghy, flagged down a jitney (cheap Lyft), and went over to Grace Bay resort area.  Walked a bit on the beach, then had a very nice brunch at one of the beach-side cafes before heading over to the shops.  Found a few gifts and provisions for the boat, then grabbed another jitney back to the beach.  Cleared out with customs around 3PM, then moved the boat over to the Southside Marina to top up the diesel tanks.  Small world - boat docked next to us was owned by Peter from the Leopard Catamaran sales group in Fort Lauderdale. We had met him a few times as we were closing on our boat back in 2017.  Terry helped Peter and his friend George replace a broken halyard, then we joined them for a very nice lobster and ribs dinner at the marina restaraunt.  Back to the boat around 9PM, ready for an early start to our overnight run down to Luperon in the DR.

​Current Location:  Sapadilla Bay anchorage, Providenciales, Turks & Caicos
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, windy, mid-80s
Highlights: Slept in this morning, then Amy did a couple of loads of laundry whle Terry started up the water maker and did some spot-cleaning on the boat.  Water maker started to clog up and slow down right near the end of the process - hopefully the filters aren't going bad.  Will need to watch it closely next time, and maybe not wait until the tanks are almost empty before re-filling.  Reading, napping, and catching up on news and blogs before a light dinner of southwestern chicken cobb salad, beer-bread (new recipe Amy is trying out).  Dominoes, reading, and organizing the iTunes library (XMas music) before turning in for the night.

​Current Location:  Sapadilla Bay anchorage, Providenciales, Turks & Caicos
Miles Traveled:  44
Weather:  Partly cloudy, windy (10-20 knots), low-80s
Highlights: Raised anchor at midnight and had a very relaxing 7-hour night sail south from Mayaguana to Provo.  We had steady 10-12 knot winds out of the NE and east all night, so were under full sail with no engines until we hit the Sandbore Channel and turned due east into the wind.  We dropped the sails and motored for the final 2 hours.  Moon set around 4AM, and stars were as bright as we've ever seen.  Dropped anchor in Sapadilla Bay just after 8AM (Atlantic Time, yes, we lost an hour), got the boat squared away, then took the dinghy into the beach and walked down the road to Customs and Immigration to clear in.  Filled out a few forms, handed over $50 (cheap compared to the $300 for the Bahamas), and were back to the boat before noon for lunch and nap time.  Amy fixed a nice birthday dinner of pan-seared mahi-mahi, rice, salad, and chocolate-chip cheese cake for desert, then we wrapped up the evening with a game of revenge dominoes (loser from last time wins this time) before turning in for the night.

​Current Location:  Mayaguana Island anchorage, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  88
Weather:  Mostly cloudy, breezy (6-8 knots), high-70s
Highlights: We had light winds mostly from the NE this morning, so continued motor-sailing until we reached the SW corner of Mayaguana.  We then turned due east directly into the wind, so the sails came down, and we motored the 22 mile length of the island.  Dropped anchor at 4PM in 25 feet of water at the SE point of the island. After getting everything squared away, we both jumped into the warm, crystal-clear water to check out the coral heads near the boat.  Saw a good variety of fish and coral, but no lobsters or grouper for dinner.  Only down-side was that it was late afternoon, and the light was fading, so visibility wasn't as good as it would have been earlier in the day.  Back to the boat for a spaghetti dinner, then we both grabbed a few hours of sleep before our planned midnight departure for the run down to Providenciales (Provo) in the Turks and Caicos.  We have good winds and seas forecast for only the next 24 hours, then a front moves in, so we need to take advantage of the weather window available to us, and sometimes that means we travel at night.  We're starting to get used to this - it will be our 5th overnight sail since we moved onto the boat.

​Current Location:  Conception Island Anchorage, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  78
Weather:  Showers early, mostly cloudy later, high-70s, breezy
Highlights: Planned to do some snorkelling and resting up today, but had heavy rains early, then the front originally forecast for late tonight arrived.  Terry cleaned the boat while Amy baked some rolls, but around noon, we decided that our best course of action was to set sail today rather than wait an extra day and lose the favorable winds completely.  Raised anchor just afternoon, and had a great sail down past Rum Cay and SE towards Mayaguana, our last stop in the Bahamas.  Averaged 6-7 knots under full sail for most of the day and into the evening.  Winds died down around 8PM, so we motor-sailed the rest of the night, averaging between 5 and 6 knots through morning.  Both of us got sleep in 2-3 hour stretches during the fairly smooth and uneventful night, and dawn found us with about 50 miles left on this stage of our journey.

Current Location:  Conception Island Anchorage, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  40
Weather:  Mostly sunny, breezy (8-10 knots), low-80s
Highlights: Forecast called for winds to die down before noon today, and we had a 40-mile sail ahead of us, so we were up before dawn, raised main sail and anchor before 6AM, and cleared the Elizabeth Harbor channel just as the sun was peeking above the horizon.  Had a great sail with 10-knot SE winds just off our beam most of the way.  Wind died after we rounded the north end of Long Island, and we motor-sailed the last 2 hours, dropping anchor just after 1PM, averaging just under 6 knots for the trip.  Conception Island is part of the national park system, so everything here is protected.  The island has great snorkellng on the north end, and a mangrove creek that winds through the center of the island.  Had lunch (lobster salad sandwiches - yummy!), then took the dinghy about 2 miles south to the mangrove creek entrance.  Idled a couple of miles back into the island, seeing lots of turtles, birds, a few sting rays, and one nurse shark in the crystal clear water.  Back to the boat around 4 for naps and reading before dinner (pork chops with green beans and apple sauce).  No internet or phone service here, so we dug out a DVD movie (Oceans 8) to watch after dinner.

​Current Location:  Moriah Harbor anchorage, George Town, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  6
Weather:  Mostly sunny, breezy, low-80s
Highlights: Spent the morning getting the boat ready for our trip across the sound, then raised anchor and motored about 6 miles down Elizabeth Harbor to Moriah Harbor.  This makes our trip tomorrow a bit shorter, which is especially important because it looks like we'll have good winds only until about noon, before they die down.  We dropped anchor around 1PM, then took the dinghy over to a reef we passed on the way in to check for lobsters.  Found only one, but it was huge (about 5 pounds), with enough meat in the tail for both of us, plus enough left over for making lobster salad for sandwiches.  Took a short walk on the beach before dinner, then had a very peaceful evening after our lobster dinner updating the blog and catching up on emails and family calls.  Early bed tonight - will need to get an early start tomorrow.

​Current Location:  George Town anchorage, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, breezy, low-80s
Highlights: Terry took the dinghy into town for diesel, produce, ice this morning while Amy stayed on the boat and worked on the front door screen some more.  Fixed some lunch, then read, swam, and napped during the afternoon.  Dinner tonight of pork chops with mushrooms, green beans, and applesauce, then Neal and Elizabeth came over with brownies for dessert.  Played another round of bridge before saying our good-byes - will be a month or two before our paths cross again in the Virgin Islands.

​Current Location:  George Town anchorage, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Sunny, windy (18-22 knots), low-80s
Highlights: Chores day today.  We did a couple of loads of laundry, baked a batch of rolls, defrosted the freezer, worked on the front door screen, and also made some progress on the back porthole screens.  Tried getting the mildew cleaned off the grout seam on the front porch roof, but not much luck yet.  Need to find the right cleaning agent for that job, or just cut out the old caulking and re-caulk.  Grilled chicken with pasta salad for dinner tonight, then Amy gave Terry a dominos lesson before we retired to watch some NetFlix before bed.

​Current Location:  George Town anchorage, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Sunny, windy (15-20 knots), low-80s
Highlights: Took the dinghy into town after breakfast today, and picked up a few groceries plus some ice.  Took the diesel jugs also, but the only gas station selling diesel was out, so guess we'll have to try tomorrow.  Had a dolphin swimming around the boat when we came back.  He stuck around for about 20 minutes, then went on his merry way.  We grabbed some lunch, went swimming for a bit, then took the dinghy over to Starfish beach and had a nice walk before sunset.  Went over to TwoCan for bridge tonight, then watched some of the meteor shower before turning in for the night..

Current Location:  George Town anchorage, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  26
Weather:  Rainy, windy (15-20 knots), mid-70s
Highlights: Raised anchor before 7 and cleared the cut by 7:30 to begin our final leg down to George Town.  Had good winds from the north most of the morning, but rain moved in around 9, and we had a wet and soggy final couple of hours before dropping anchor around noon in a nice secluded bay just south of Stocking Island.  Terry took a hot shower to warm up, then we both napped and read rest of the afternoon.  Watched some NetFlix before dinner, then fired up the grill to cook steaks with mushrooms, spinach, and biscuits for dinner tonight.  Watched some more NetFlix before turning in for the night.  Looks like we'll be here for a few days at least - forecast is calling for strong winds from the north through Friday. 

​Current Location:  Lee Stocking Island, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  34
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, low-80s
Highlights: Raised anchor around 7 and motor-sailed in very light winds down the west side of Great Guana Cay, then ran Farmers Cut out to Exuma Sound and down to Lee Stocking Island.  Dropped anchor around 1PM, with TwoCan following close behind.  Turned the generator on and got the water maker running, then while Amy stayed on board to monitor the water maker, Terry, Neal, and Elizabeth took the dinghy down to the north east end of Norman's Pond Cay for some very nice snorkelling.  Found a good patch of healthy coral with lots of fish, 1 large sand ray, a spotted moray eel, one turtle, and lots of groupler and other reef fish.  Didn't see any sign of lobster, but did stop at the Leaf Cay beach to say hello to about 30 large iquanas.  Neal and Elizabeth came over at 5 for sundowners, then stayed until almost 10PM playing a round of bridge.  Good time had by all, but early start tomorrow - need to get to George Town before the northerly front moves in.

​Current Location:  Black Point Settlement, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, breezy, low-80s, late evening showers
Highlights: Started the day with a load of laundry, then Terry, Amy, and Elizabeth took the dinghy into town and went beach combing.  Back to the boat around 1PM, then read and relaxed before heading back into town with Neal and Elizabeth for dinner at the new restaurant that opened up this past summer.  We were the only customers in the place, so service was pretty good, as was the food, so we all enjoyed the experience.  We were back to the boats around 9PM, and turned in shortly after.  Will get an early start tomorrow - heading down to Lee Stocking Island anchorage.

​Current Location:  Black Point Settlement, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  46
Weather:  Mostly cloudy, windy (20-25 knots), low-70s, afternoon showers
Highlights: Got an early start today, raising anchor before 7AM and heading SE down the Exumas to Black Point Settlement.  Seas were pretty sloppy most of the day, and wind was gusting mid-20s, so we sailed with a single reef in both genoa and main, and still averaged almost 8 knots most of the trip.  Wind turned east and we were headed into it, so motor-sailed the last hour of the trip, but very nice sail otherwise, and we dropped anchor just before 2PM.  Grabbed a late lunch, straightened up the boat, then relaxed for a bith.  We had an invitation to join TwoCan (Neil and Elizabeth's Leopard 39) for introductions and sundowners, but it was raining pretty good just before we were going to head over, so we got a rain check and instead had a light dinner on board and watched some NetFlix before turning in..

​Current Location:  Highbourne Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  31
Weather:  Partly sunny, windy (18-22 knots), low-70s
Highlights: Checked out and left the marina just after 9:30 this morning, and had a nice brisk sail in 2-3 foot seas down to Highbourne Cay anchorage.  Wind was steady from the NE at around 20 knots, and just enough angle for a close reach under full sail.  Averaged almost 8 knots most of the trip, and dropped anchor just after 2PM.  Got a late lunch, then read and napped rest of the afternoon.  Dinner tonight of chicken and broccoli over rice, with a brownie for desert.  Watched a Robert Redford/Jane Fonda movie after dinner, then off to bed - will need to get an early start tomorrow.

​Current Location:  Palm Cay Marina, New Providence, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, windy, mid-70s
Highlights: Had a list of chores and projects to attend to, so started early with laundry, baking rolls, fixing the stern nav light (burnt-out bulb), then Amy hoisted Terry up the mast to replace our old anchor light with a new LED version.  Went up twice - once to pull off the old one, then back up after making sure holes lined up and wire connections were ready to connect the new one.  The climbing harness worked like a charm, except for cutting off the circulation in the legs if you're up for too long.  Fixed the port-side A/C unit (air bubble in the water cooling line), then Terry took the marina courtesy car up to the hardware store in Nassau to get a replacement bulb.  Wrapped everything up just in time for dinner (pan-seared mahi-mahi with corn & avocado salad, carrots, and rolls) while we watched the latest episodes of House of Cards.  Altogether a pretty productive day for both of us!

​Current Location:  Palm Cay Marina, New Providence, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  24
Weather:  Partly cloudy, breezy (8-12 knots SW), showers late afternoon, mid-80s
Highlights: Raised anchor around 8AM and had a nice, leisurely 4-hour motor-sail around the south shore of New Providence to Palm Cay marina.  Customs ladies came to the boat around 1PM to help us complete forms and pay the fees for clearing into the country, then we borrowed the marina courtesy car and drove up to the Solomons grocery store to re-activate the ALIV data plan.  Got that squared away, then back to the boat to connect devices, relax, and read before dinner.  Sausage, peppers, and onions over pasta for dinner tonight - yummy!  Took advantage of our unlimited data plan and watched some of final season of House of Cards on NetFlix before bedtime.

​Current Location:  Clifton Bay, New Providence, Bahamas
Miles Traveled:  65
Weather:  Sunny, calm (5-10 knots S), mid-80s
Highlights: Woke up around 6AM this morning, raised anchor, and continued our motor-sail across the Bahama Banks and down to New Providence Island (Nassau).  Weather continued to be perfect except the wind direction was still too much on the nose for sails alone.  We averaged about 6 knots most of the day, and pulled into West Bay around 4:30.  After dropping anchor, we decided the water was too perfect not to jump in, so we had a very refreshing swim before putting steaks and veggies on the grill.  At dinner around 6, and then turned in early - both of us were pretty tired after 2 long days at sea!

​Current Location:  Bahama Banks, 30 miles east of Bimini
Miles Traveled:  88
Weather:  Sunny, breezy (10-15 knots S), mid-80s
Highlights: Raised anchor just after 6AM and motored past the Miami skyline and out Government Cut.  Cleared the cut just before 7, and had calm seas and light winds (8-12 knots) out of the south.  Wind wasn't quite westerly enough that we could run under sail alone, so we ran with one motor most of the way, pointing into the wind at about 50 degrees.  Broke out the fishing gear when we hit the gulf stream, and had a mahi-mahi strike the lure within an hour.  Reeled him in (measured over 3 feet), put him in the cooler for cleaning later, then put the gear away and relaxed the rest of the way.  We reached North Cat Cay around 2:30, and decided that since the conditions were so perfect, and a front would be coming in on Wednesday, we would keep going all the way to Nassau.  Had a lovely sail across the Bahama Bank as the afternoon sun set behind us and a million stars came out.  Terry cleaned the mahi, then Amy deep fried a couple of the filets and we had a very tasty dinner.  Finally dropped anchor at 10PM with no land in sight, and slept very peacefully the rest of the night.

​Current Location:  Stadium Anchorage, Biscayne Bay, Miami, Florida
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Sunny, breezy (10-15 knots S), low-80s
Highlights: Slept in this morning, watched the morning talk shows, then finished up some projects we had been working on.  Amy put up the screening for the front door while Terry cut a new wood frame piece for the back window screen (we forgot 2 of these when we left Mom's house last week - go figure!).  Football, golf, reading, and napping were on the agenda for the afternoon, then we got the boat ready for tomorrow's crossing to Bimini.  Weather window looks perfect - light winds from the south and calm seas.  Bahamas, here we come!

​Current Location:  Stadium Anchorage, Biscayne Bay, Miami, Florida
Miles Traveled:  21
Weather:  Sunny, breezy (15-20 knots SE), mid-80s
Highlights: Last minute chores to wrap up this morning before final departure from the marina.  Amy walked up to the grocery store for some final provisions while Terry washed the dust and grime off the boat, checked the engines, filled the water tanks, and stowed provisions.  Left the dock around 12:30, then motored over to the fuel dock to top off the tanks.  Took awhile for the dock to clear, then after fueling up, we grabbed some burgers with fixings for lunch at the free luncheon at the marina before heading out.  Cleared the inlet around 2PM (about 1 hour later than planned), and motored south directly into 20-knot winds and 4-5 foot seas.  Seas abated slightly after about 2 hours, but we didn't get to the Government Cut until sundown (5:30), and it was after dark before we dropped anchor in Biscayne Bay.  Beautiful view of the Miami skyline from our anchorage as we dined on rotisserie chicken from Publix and watched the 2nd half of the Alabama-Georgia game.  Updated the log and read for a bit before turning in for the night.  After looking at the weather forecast, we'll plan to stay here through tomorrow, then head for the Bahamas on Monday.