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Friday, July 23, 2010 Day 1 Getting There Marsh Harbour, Great Abaco, Bahamas
Well I can't believe after 2 years of waiting we are finally on our way. Not thrilled with the 3:30AM wake up time though. We all met at Logan Express so we could catch the 5AM bus to the air port. Jerry drove us over and Ben actually got up to say goodbye.
Uneventful ride to the airport. Check in was a bit more interesting. We were all wearing our Sea Base tee shirts so were recognized as a group. One of the airport employees had us all come to the front of the line to do the self check in. I think part of the reason was we needed the time to go through security and get to our gate in time. We had a 7AM flight on American Airlines. For some reason Mike and I both weren't in the system so we were checked in by a person and got a real ticket as opposed to a e-ticket. There might ave been another kid or 2 who had to be checked in manually but I have no idea who it was.
We proceeded to security and everyone got the new body scan. Mike wore his sneakers which I knew was going to be a problem but since the instructions in the Sea Base paperwork said to wear sneakers he wanted to comply. Next time he'll wear sandals.
We got to our gate with no problem and a few people went off in search of caffeine. Mike and I had already eaten at home. Finally we were called to board the plane, a 757. The seats are arranged 3x3 and we took up 2 full rows, #21 & 22. We were seated over the wings so the view out the window wasn't that great. We took off a couple minutes early and were scheduled to arrive at 10:31 in Miami.
Interesting info keeps coming up on the TV screens overhead. Our cruising altitude is 38,000 feet and our ground speed is 550 mph. The outside temperature at this altitude is -56 degrees F! Had no clue it was that cold up here. Another interesting thing is that Framingham is on about the same longitudinal line at the Abaco islands we are headed for. Who knew?
When we got over Florida we were put in a circular holding pattern over Vero Beach due to the bad weather and the back up at the Miami airport. Hurricane Bonnie was causing a few problems in Florida. We were supposed to circle for 30 minutes and were due to land at 10:55AM. We got clearance to approach a few minutes early so we didn't circle for the full 30 minutes. There was some turbulence and our landing was a bit bumpy but not too bad. I've been in worse.
As it turned out our connecting flight is delayed due to the storm. Our plane is stuck in Key West. At least we didn't miss our connection. We ate our sandwiches that we brought from home for lunch. Weird thing is that a Scout troop from Sudbury was sitting in the terminal waiting to go to Sea Base too. They were on our flight to Marsh Harbour on Great Abaco, Bahamas.
We were called to board the shuttle bus that would take us out to our plane. We were leaving earlier than predicted because they got us a different plane rather than wait for the one stuck in Key West. This was an American Eagle flight on a small plane with propellers. It's an AT7 and has about 30 or so rows arranged 2x2. (I found a photo of a similar plane to post) We had to sit on the bus while they loaded the luggage and confirmed this was our plane. Things were confirmed and they had us board the plane which meant climbing some stairs at the rear just in front of the tail section. Mike's bag didn't fit in the overhead storage bin so the flight attendant took it and put it in a seat at the rear where no one was sitting. Our seats were all scattered about so we weren't all sitting together as a group. We finally left Florida at 12:50 and had an hour flight to the Bahamas. This was a bumpy ride for the most part but not bad.
As we get closer we can begin to see islands and beautiful colors of the water. It's so pretty! All the blues and aquas. Just like the promotional pictures in the brochures!
We landed around 2 and went through "customs". Not to bad. The adults that had all the paperwork verified all the permission slips and what not. Then we just all took our turns getting our passports stamped and handed in our immigration forms. We are here!!!
The Sea Base rep. was there waiting for us and the Sudbury scouts. There were 4 minivan taxis waiting for all of us. the Sudbury scouts left first and then we all crammed in our cabs and we were off. They drive on the wrong side of the road there so that was kind of weird. the ride was only about 10 minutes or so and then we unloaded our gear from the cab and the boys were escorted to the boat. The adults were taken to the Sea Base "office" to process paper work.
Our captain was actually 2 captains, a husband and wife team, named Simon & Elizabeth. I wonder if we got this boat because there were 2 women (me and Carolyn Limeri) in our party. They were originally from England, about 60 miles north of York. They live on this boat with their 2 kids, a boy and a girls ages 19 and 17 who will be going to college in the fall in England. Their kids aren't on the boat during Sea Base which is 9 or 10 weeks long in the summer plus a few other weeks during the year. They will sail to England to take their kids to school. How cool is that?!
The name of our boat was Serenity. It's a 50 sail boat. Funny thing is the Sudbury scouts were in the next boat in the slip next to us. Their boat, according to our captain is 6 feet longer but has less room.
After we adults were checked in we went to the boat and got introduced to the captains and then oriented to the boat. They showed us how to use the flairs and flair guns and where they were stored. We learned how the toilet flushed. Interesting procedure involving turning handles, flipping leavers and pumping waste and water. Also, grossly enough, no paper could be flushed. It had to be disposed of in a separate bag...Yuck! The captain said the rule was "If you didn't eat it or drink it, it doesn't get flushed."
We finally "set sail" at 5PM motoring to the spot where we would anchor for the night. It was about 30 minutes away. We divided into 2 teams, A & B. Each team would take turns doing the cooking and cleaning while the other team did the sailing and crew duties. Mike and I were on team B. Team B was on kitchen duty and would make supper later.
Around 5:30 team A hoisted the sail. The captains said it wold smooth out our ride as the water was a bit choppy from Bonnie's effects. Simon instructs the kids while Elizabeth pilots the boat. They are very nice and personable. Very patient with the kids and us adults too.
Once we got to the spot we dropped anchor. We were anchored off of Mattlow Cay, a private island that has signs posted to keep off the beach. The captains said it's the only one in the area with signs to keep off. Two scouts had to snorkel over to the anchor spot to check and make sure the anchor was set properly and wouldn't come loose.
We all had to take the swim test now which meant swimming around the boat once. If we made it we passed. We had to put on the snorkel vests for safety reasons in case anyone got into trouble they could inflate it. Plus it is bright yellow so it makes you very visible in the water. the choppy water made it a bit awkward but not too terrible. Mike was kind of nervous but once he got going he felt more comfortable. He just needed to realize how well he floats in salt water.
Team A decided to keep snorkeling while team B climbed aboard to dry off and make dinner. We had Angel Hair spaghetti with Prego sauce and we cooked up ground beef to put in the sauce. I helped with the cooking a bit but since we ate so late and it was getting dark the captains said we'd have to do the dinned dishes in the morning. We would not be doing the dishes in the galley sink but in a plastic tub on the back of the boat. That was fine with me. We were all pretty tired from our early start and long day.
Most of us would be sleeping on deck since it was so hot down below. Some of the kids thought they'd risk it and sleep below. the dining table converts into approx. a queen bed so 3 boys claimed that spot. Mike claimed a padded seat in the cockpit that was a bit short but still cushioned. 2 other people claimed the other 2 cushioned spots in the cockpit. I ended up partly in the starboard walkway and partly on the stern. It worked out pretty good because I had extra room from my chest up so I could stretch my arm out if I wanted to or stretch the other one out under the netting over the water.
The moon was out and the wind was blowing and since the boat always faced itself into the wind, the wind blew right down the walkway cooling me off. We all slept in our clothes but that just made things easier. Our gear was stowed below in the bedroom. One of the adults elected to sleep in there even though it was hotter. He did have the hatch open and also had 3 windows open so he got a bit of air. That was also where the bathroom was located so the trade off for a bed was that in the morning you had 11 other people coming in to use the facilities. He said it was worth it.
Sleeping on deck was great. The wind blowing on me was nice and the moon and stars were awesome. And if I was laying on my right side all I had to do was open my eyes and there in front of me was the Sea of Abaco. It made me smile every time.
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