Sail La Vie is ready for dry storage at Marsh Harbor Boatyard

Her sails have been removed and she has been striped down to the basic design.  She has been cleaned top  to bottom to help prevent mildew, which is the enemy of boats.  It is kind of a sad day today, knowing we are leaving soon to go home. I have missed my home and family since we have been in the Bahamas.  But it has certainly been an adventure from start to finish.  Putting the boat on the land seems harder than leaving her in her slip like last year.  And a lot more work I might say. Our suitcases are packed and ready to go.  Our hearts are not sure, it is like leaving your kid in a far away place and hoping it will be safe.

Boating in the Bahamas has had it's up's and down's, we have learned a lot about what it takes to live the cruising lifestyle.  It is not all fun and games, there is a lot of monitoring going on while you are living aboard.  The batteries have to be managed at all times. Energy is king and as such demands constant attention. Water is another precious commodity and must be taken care of as such.  Yes, you can rest on your laurels at times, but not for long.  When you are at anchor you must watch for anchor dragging, which means that your boat may move and hit another boat, this is especially important in a storm situation as mentioned in the blog post "Bump in the night".  When you are on a mooring, you
had better check the lines to make sure there is no fraying going on and then also check the mooring itself to make sure it is attached to something large enough to hold your boat, both can be potential problems if not identified right away.  Docking is another challenge or should I say banging on the
docks once you are attached. Not to mention the noise from the wind swinging the boat back and
forth on the dock.  Or was it the halyard that I heard on the boat next to us?  Speaking of the other boats, that is one thing you have no control over.  You can have your boat situated just right in an anchorage and then some bloke comes along and drags his anchor, like the ferry boat did in Miami, now that was quite a surprise.  Provisioning is another challenge living on a boat.  Everything cost about twice as much here in the Bahamas.  Food as you know is very important and if you did not bring it with you then maybe you won't have it here, unless you are willing to pay double for it.

Another challenge with living on the boat is the lack of good support systems.  For instance, if you need work done on your boat, you may find one guy with some knowledge about what you are working on, if your lucky.  If you are not lucky then you will be doing the work yourself, so get ready to get down and dirty and sweaty.  Doing boat repairs in paradise is the truth of the situation.  Sail La Vie has had it's set of problems; one right after the other in fact.  Let me see if I can remember some of them: Generator, Batteries, BalMar System, Refrig, freezer, propane, etc.  And you thought we were just sitting here lounging in the sun.  Well actually we were, when we were not doing boat chores, boat repairs or riding out a storm.  And man can they have storms here: 35+ knot winds were not unfamiliar here.  What we did learn was to listen to the local knowledge when they said a storm was coming, get ready!

Well we did lounge a bit don't get me wrong, it was not all work, but it was quite a bit.  Now that I am done telling you about the challenges on the boat, let me tell you about some of the good times:
Swimming in clear blue gorgeous water at 70 degree was fabulous!  Hopetown was just so adorable, those of you that experienced it know what I am talking about. Bahamian cottages and the red and white Lighthouse was just to cute.  Nipper's Nipper's & Nipper's was a fun place to hang out.  Watching Brad Kiteboard in Gillium Bay or in front of Nipper's was great. Stand-up paddleboarding in Man O War, with turtles and rays swimming under your board was unreal.  Shelling in the Bahamas was great, we collected so many great shells, Queen Conch!!  I am planning to make jewlery from them when we get home.  The Bahamas overall was very clean, safe and friendly.  The dollar is equal to the Bahamian dollars which made transaction easy to do.  Oh and how can we forget Brendle's dive; what fun was that all about!!  The boys loved Brendle's and the rum punch was fantastic as well. "Stand up for your rights"  was our theme song for when the boys visited. Then there was riding our bikes to the Abaco Inn and the beautiful views of the seashore.  Snorkelling at Fowl Cay and Mermaids was fabulous, so many fish everywhere and so friendly, even too friendly at times.  Except maybe the Baracuda's that kept guard of every reef.  We will definately miss the beautiful water here in the Bahamas.

We have accomplished Season II goal of coming to the Bahamas and living here for 3 of the 4 months we have been liveaboards.  If God willing & we are up for another adventure, we will be back for Season III on Sail La Vie.  Next year it will be the Exumas and possibly th Turks & Caicos.
We are now signing off for Sail La Vie for Season 2016 "The Bahamas".  See ya next year! C'est La Vie