Isle aux Morts, Newfoundland

Nomad sailed from Baddeck Nova Scotia on August 25 after careful calculations to ensure that the passage through   Bras D'Or Narrows happened near slack water.  Even at slack water, there were swirling tidal currents near the shoals  approaching the bridge.  After passing through the Narrows, I hoisted full sail in anticipation of a nice sail across Cabot Strait but as the land fell astern, the became light and Nomad motorsailed through the night to arrive at Ilse aux Morts the next afternoon. After a quick look at Mickle's tickle I decided that the lagoon inside of would be better for the forecast weather.It is a small, deep, and very well protected anchorage. I anchored in the middle, off the rock ledge in the entrance. It was the only place I could comfortably anchor without shorelines due to the depth.although I did run out one shoreline for added security when the wind forecast increased up to 45 knots NE. The anchorage is so well protected that there was no radio reception inside the lagoon. Climbing to the highest point on the island, there was excellent reception for weather forecasts via the handheld VHF and  a strong cell signal to get internet. While hiking around checking for radio reception, I noticed the island had numerous blueberries growing all over, so I returned with an empty container to harvest some  and did that nearly every day that I was here. I remained at anchor here for five days waiting for the weather to settle before sailing to Bay Le Moine. Hiked all over the uninhabited island and explored the lagoon and nearby Mickle's Tickles  with the dinghy. 

Bras dOr Lakes, Nova Scotia

Locking through to the Bras d'Or

The canal at St Peter's

 After a pleasant downwind overnight sail from Halifax, I  made my usual late night arrival and anchored about a mile from the entrance to the lock at St Peter's.  Picked up the anchor late the next afternoon and traversed the lock. With "unofficial" permission I tied to the approach wall for the night to check out the town of St Peters.

The harbor at Baddeck

 Early the next morning I made my way through scattered showers to Johnstown Harbor with only the last few miles exposed the the brisk North winds blowing across the open waters of the Lake. Laid at anchor there for several days and explored the area by dinghy as the undergrowth ashore was to thick for any hiking. With an approaching weather forecast favorable for making the trip across Cabot strait approaching, I gave up on waiting for a southerly wind and motored to Baddeck so there would be time for a bit of touring there before sailing to Newfoundland. I spent the better part of sunday visiting the Bell Museum. Alexander Bell was quite a fascinating person! Although known primarily as the inventor of the telephone, he was also involved in many other projects ranging from aviation, hydrofoils, communications for deaf people and much more.  After careful calculations to arrive at the Narrows at slack water, I set sail Monday morning for Newfoundland.
Notes: There is a tide station at Johnstown, I used it to time my arrival at the Barra Strait bridge. Arrived 1 hour past high tide and found minimal current. Wifi available at Tim Hortons in St Peter and at the yacht club in Baddeck. Being a small town, nearly everything was closed on Sunday in Baddeck, including the grocery store and gas station. Fuel is available at the marina; .30 a liter cheaper at the Esso station behind the yacht club. The inner harbor is full of moorings, but there is good anchorage out towards the lighthouse. This area has numerous remote anchorages and great sailing; one could easily spent a month sailing about in the lakes, but due to the lateness of the season I must keep moving so there is some time for Newfoundland.

Leaving the Bras d Or,Newfoundland bound

Halifax Nova Scotia

Roving fog banks in the NW Arm Anchorage

The trip from Lunenburg started off promising, clearing the harbor under full sail, the wind soon vanished. After sailing to a standstill, the motor was turned on and remained in motorsail mode all the way into Halifax, putting the anchor down at 0230. Halifax has all the attractions of any big city, the first I have been in since Florida. It is a bike friendly town with almost all shopping within walking distance of the anchorage in the Northwest arm. Nearby is a yacht chandler, Walmart, two other grocery stores, a shopping mall and a Canadian tire store. Àlso a dive shop at the rotary that will fill scuba tanks for$7.There is bus service throughout town with bike racks on the bus. I was taken in as guest of a member of the Armdale yacht club that I talked to while on their fuel dock,allowing me use of their facilities.  Their help has been invaluable in locating what I needed in town and using their address to receive mail.

Halifax harbor from museum ship Acadia

There are numerous independent coffeehouses, bars etc nearby on the Halifax waterfront. There is much to see , but two museums stand out: the Maritime museum and the museum of Natural history.
Halifax info: I anchored in the far end of the Northwest Arm in 20'. The whole arm is very crowded with moorings, but there is room to anchor carefully. Bottom is reputed tobe soft mud but I have not dragged yet in winds up to twenty knots ona 5:1 scope.  There is also space to anchor by the Dingle. Dinghy access is either at the yacht club or at the small floating dock at the park. Tidal range is about two meters. There is a bus stop near the yacht club and at the park.
The next stop will be the Bras d'or lakes, a little over a hundred miles from Halifax. Sailing out on a clear day, i enjoyed seeing all that I missed during my middle of the night arrival. Took a good look at the other yacht club, the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron on the way. Although much closer to the ocean than Armdale, it has two shortcomings:  without a Bicycle or car, no shopping is nearby and all the boats there were rolling in the swell working its way in.

Lunenburg Nova Scotia

Historic Lunenburg harbor

Classic sail 

Lunenburg is a bit of a tourist town, but that is survival. It is a thriving waterfront town when a lot of other Canadian fishing towns declined with the fishing industry. Despite being a bit tourist oriented it is  a fascinating place to visit for anyone with an interest in schooners and other classic sailing craft. It is also homeport to the famous Bluenose II, perhaps the most famous schooner of all. The original Bluenose ended her days hauling cargo in the Caribbean and was wrecked on a reef near Ile a Vache Haiti. Number 2 was launched in 1963 when the Canadian s realized they had lost a national treasure.  It is currently finishing up a 2 year refit in Lunenburg. The Atlantic Fisheries Museum is well with a day to visit, including a visit to an old trawler and a schooner docked there and seeing firsthand the evolution of the fishing industry.
Lunenburg foundry is still in business and repaired my windlass even though it they have not made windlasses in 15 years. Also still turning out wooden blocks and other traditional rigging gear is A Dauphinee  and sons, who rebuilt all the blocks for the Bluenose refit.
Everything a sailboat may need after a passage is available here and all within walking distance. However there is no fuel available on the docks, it has to be carried from the service station in jugs. The anchorage is not as crowded as it looks, there is plenty of space outside of the moored boats. The bottom is very soft mud, so a lot of chain on the bottom is required to keep from dragging.
Next stop is Halifax for resupply and mail call.

Ile a Vache Haiti to Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

Mid -Atlantic sunrise

Battery Point, entrance to Lunenburg harbor

 2017 miles in 24 days was a little slower and longer than planned, but that happens when voyaging under sail.  Nomad enjoyed a fast sail to Cape Tiburon with the trades blowing from astern. Once the turn north was made in the Windward Passage the wind became light in the lee of Haiti and it took nearly two days of motorsailing to get back in the wind north of the island. An interesting feature of the weather here is a steady stream of thunderstorms all night moving west off of the island.  Once clear of the traffic lanes off the east end of Cuba, the course was made for Mayaguana Passage, passing just to the west of Great Inagua. From there I sailed straight north for two days, slowly as the wind diminished rapidly north of the Bahamas, the plan being to motorsail northwest and pick up the Gulfstream....but it did not happen according to plan. The evening weather fax showed a low off of Florida tagged with the words "tropical cyclone development likely". It did develop into an early season hurricane they named Arthur.Not knowing where it was going to track, I held my north bound heading for two more days until the weather fax showed its predicted path. It followed roughly my intended route and I was nearly at the same latitude as it was. Time for plan B!  Course was set for 090 degrees, motored for twelve hours and sailed for two more days to get some sea room in case the storm turned my way unexpectedly. This put me much closer to the Azores high, an area of light and no wind known as the horse latitudes. Turned northeast at 69W  and sailed at 1-3 knots, carefully monitoring the hurricane's track to ensure that I stayed south of it. This went on for some time,lazy sailing, baking bread, reading etc. About the time Bermuda was 75 miles due east, the storm had moves east of Newfoundland and the wind began to return. After that it was smooth sailing except for a cold front that hit just after I got north of the Gulf Stream. Talked with a ship the next morning, they said it was gusting 60 knots in the squalls. There were numerous squalls embedded in that front, and each one would turn the boat up into the wind and then back south as it passed leaving an area with no wind behind it. After this happened several times, I had enough sail handling for one night and hove to and let her ride until the weather settled. The next morning was much more agreeable and sailing with the wind off the port quarter resumed, headed directly for Lunenburg. There was a major change in weather as I crossed the continental shelf; the water and air temperature dropped into the 50'sF and dense fog formed. It remained so until I turned the corner into Lunenburg harbor, the fog lifting as I approached Battery Point lighthouse.

Ile a Vache, again

Main street, Caille Coq

 After deciding to exit the Caribbean via the Windward Passage a short visit to Haiti was easily worked into the voyage plan. Topped of fuel, oil, and rum supplies and  had lobster dinner at Jean Jean's. The second time around was much easier as the local people recognized the boat when I came in to anchor. I found my crew from last time and recruited them to get supplies from Les Cayes for me and a couple more pieces of bamboo to pole out the jib for down wind sailing. Had Corby and friends clean the bottom  and I  de-barnacled the propeller and transducers for the long upcoming passage. It was an all too brief four day visit, but with hurricane season inexorably progressing, it was time to head north for the season.

Cooking lessons, how to make fried breadfruit

The table is set for dinner at Jean Jean's for dinner

Dominican Republic

Anchorage behind Hotel Salinas

Anchorage at Club Nautico el Manati, Barahona

Las Calderas (Salinas).

Barahona was my port of entry into the Domincan Republic. I found the people to be friendly and patient with my very limited grasp of the Spanish language.  The town center with all its attractions is a short walk from the yacht club. There are numerous hardware stores and supermarkets to shop at. No "big box" stores here, they are all different. If they don't have what you are looking for you will be sent to another store that may have it. And then there is the Market, an incredible shopping area with an amazing selection of  produce, beans, spices and everything else from clothes to shoe repairs and music.

I stayed here nearly a month working on the boat and enjoying the local culture before sailing 30 miles to Salinas for a change of pace. It was only a short distance, but a huge change from the city life to a small town at the end of the road. Barahona is at the base of lush green mountains and the anchorage is behind a wall of buggy mangroves, Salinas is in a large basin with desert mountains and cactus. The katabatic winds blow off the mountains daily at 20-30 knots keeping the boat cool and bug-free. The water is clear enough to see you anchor on the bottom.  There are several nice cafes in Salinas and some limited groceries available but for restocking the boat it is best to go into Bani, a large city about an hour away by bus.

Dominican details:

Clearing in at Barahona the cost was immigration$10 USD for a 30 day visa and renewed once for the same cost, boat $43USD and $25USD for the despacho. and of course a small tip for all those who cleared me in. There was no charge for the despacho to sail either way between Barahona and Salinas and no charge upon re entering Barahona. To clear for a foreign port, it is $20 for the despacho and $10 for exit stamp from immigration.  Docking at the yacht club in Barahona is about $20 USD a day or $175USD a month. Dock space at Hotel Salinas is by the foot 20 peso$0.47USD a day, no monthly rate given. Propane is about $11USD to fill a twenty pound can and diesel is around $5.00 USD per gallon. Motorcycle rides around town to the marina are 50 pesos and double that hauling propane and diesel jugs  to be filled. The water in Salinas  is clear and there are no bugs at anchor. In the harbor at Barahona, the water will foul you bottom and anchor chain quickly and screens are a necessity to keep the flies out. Mosquitoes can be a problem ashore at sunrise and sunset but few make it out to the boat at anchor- stay out away from the mangroves for a better breeze too. In Barahona there is a coal ship that comes in about once a month to resupply the powerplant and all boats anchored in the turning basin have to move outside the channel until the ship is docked and then can return to the basin as it takes a week to unload the coal.  The anchorage near the park is  great place to watch the ship make the dock but it is only calm in the morning, when the picks up in the afternoon it can get a bit uncomfortable with the tradewinds blowing straight in and the chop breaking on the beach a couple hundred feet behind you.

Ile A Vache, Haiti

The inner bay , below the Port Morgan resort

Loading up to head home from the market

Market day at Madame Bernard

On the beach at Caille Coq

 Ile a Vache Haiti is like no other place in the Caribbean. Or Haiti for that matter, as the local population  is trying to keep their island from being overdeveloped with resorts which do little for the local population even though their clientele pay European rates to stay here.

There is no easing into the local scene here.When you are sighted sailing into the bay, everybody who can get on something that floats- dugout canoes, pieces of surfboards, old patched up dinghies,etc- race out to meet you. And it is a race, it is the local custom that you hire the first one to get to the boat as your local guide/helper. I had about 12 people hanging on the boat before the anchor was dropped. The first one out was a young man of about 15 years named Corby.  I thought he may be a bit  young so with his agreement I split the work between him and an older man named Mckendy. Their help was invaluable in shopping at the market, procuring fuel, cleaning the bottom and replacing all the bamboo in my sails.

Caille Coq from the anchorage in the outer part of Baie de Feret

The inner bay was very protected and calm, but it was a bit small for my comfort level with other boats anchored in it. The outer part of the bay offers much more anchoring space and less bugs.
The weekly market at Madame Bernard is an experience not to be missed. This is where the assistance of your guide is essential. Corby led me on a nearly 2 hour cross country hike over the island and through some spectacular beach villages. There were two shops there where dollars can be exchanged  for gourdes. From make shift shops to just piled on the ground the selection of produce was impressive. It was a chaotic place with a random layout, people leading donkeys around with loads of goods, women walking around with large loads balanced on their head, animals being butchered on the ground, piles of produce and other goods everywhere. After stuffing my backpack with a weeks worth of produce  and a few more items in hand Corby suggested that we take a boat back to Caille Coq instead of walking. He set that up for me and then we retired to the shade of a small shop to enjoy a cold soda while awaiting departure.  After many bags of charcoal were loaded on the boat it was time for the people with all their food for the week to wade out and climb aboard. There were 15 of us sitting wherever we could. The boat was slightly overloaded and had to be bailed every time a wave lapped over the side, but with very careful boat handling we all made it home without getting too wet. Haiti is not an expensive place to visit. That entire shopping trip for a weeks worth of produce including the guide and the boat ride cost about $20 USD.
 As for the Port Morgan resort , I never went in there having been told it was very expensive. The best place to eat out is Jean Jean's cafe where he lives with his family. It is a few hundred feet down the beach from the internet cafe run by Mckendy's brother. A huge plate of fresh lobsters with beans,  plantains and rice for $12. Order the day before so dinner can be caught.
It takes more than a few days to learn your way around here and meet the people and for them to get used to you. After the first week, the constant visits by people in dugout canoes selling everything and looking for handouts slows down to a more manageable handful per day.
 If you are planning to visit here, bring items to trade or donate. Rope, sails, computers, vhf radios, lights and more are all needed here. There is no electric or  piped water supply. It is all handled on an individual basis with generators and solar panels being very common

Off to a rough start

First voyage of the year: Houston to Panama City, FL. Winter in the Gulf  of Mexico can be  a bit tedious. Due to the vagaries of the weather, the entire 11 day trip was spent close hauled, tacking with every wind shift.  There were a few light air days, but the wind was predominately 15-30kts out of the NE  even in between cold fronts.  Decided to motor the last 130 miles in very light wind to avoid bashing through a third cold front approaching from the west. The photo shows the usual sail plan for this trip: jib and three panels up on the main and fore.
Panama City FL notes:
Rented a slip at Sun Harbor Marina, near the Hathaway bridge for a few weeks. Cost was $330 per month and credit given for part of month not used, electric included. Docking is a little tight for a long boat, but manageable during calm conditions. Friendly, helpful staff here and reportedly the best fuel price on the bay-$3.90/ gallon last week.  There is not much protection from wakes or waves in the marina, so particular attention is needed when adjusting dock lines. After checking out of the marina, I anchored out front and the marina is allowing me to land the dinghy on their beach and use the laundry, etc. Also can land on beach behind the No Name Bar. No food there but good rum and nice bartenders.  Not much accessible without a long walk, but with a bike there is shopping for anything you may need within 3-5 miles on either side of the bay.
Seeking a more peaceful anchorage, I moved about 6 miles up the bay towards Lynn Haven to work on the boat for a week. Quiet up by the powerplant, but no shore access. Tall boats beware! The overhead cables crossing from the powerplant have an authorized clearance of 45'.
Enjoyed a brisk downwind sail in 25kts returning to the anchorage in front of Sun Harbor Marina to get mail and prepare for the next voyage.

Last construction post for awhile

November 2013, the galley gets a much needed improvement. Meganite countertops installed throughout and in the head. Construction will be ongoing, but the blog is supposed to be Nomad's travels, not Nomad's construction. It is time for some sailing, no major projects planned for the summer. There are parts onboard for a multitude of small projects and insulation for the engine room and aft cabin. The insulation will get done before heading north and anything else will be as time permits to make some small progress on "the Project"