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Bringing the boat home
  • Dave Knapp
May – Jun 2025

Bringing the boat home

A 30-day adventure by Dave Read more
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  • Trip start
    May 3, 2025
    Dave KnappBringing the boat homeTraveler

    Emerald Bay Marina

    May 4 on the Bahamas ⋅ 🌙 25 °C

    Tyler and I arrived at the boat yesterday at 2pm and found it in great condition. We checked off our maintenance and repair tasks one by one and the boat was ready to go by noon today.

    Today's first obstacle....the opening to the creek where we kept the boat for the last 14 months is now barricaded by a shallow sand bar. So we carefully measured our boat's depth and figured out that if we waited until high tide (3pm today) the water would still not be quite high enough for the boat to get out .

    We decided to "phone a friend" and "Big D" graciously offered to use his boat to pull ours over the narrow spit of sand. He came out just as the tide was highest and he dragged us over the sand and into deeper water, we were thrilled!

    So thrilled in fact, that we got distracted and that led to today's second obstacle.....we caught the dinghy's painter (rope) in the propeller. This caused the motor to stall, and the dinghy to get dragged underwater so forcefully that it cracked the fiberglass bottom and the painter had to be cut away from the prop with a dive knife.

    We loaded the dinghy on board and made fast for Emerald Bay marina, which had closed by the time we arrived, where we will spend the night. We had supplies on board to repair the fiberglass crack and Tyler and I were able to get that finished just after dark today. The only picture I got was the boat that pulled in right after us and is now our new neighbor, so enjoy.

    We leave for our next island tomorrow.... Eleuthera!    Read more

  • Dave KnappBringing the boat homeTraveler
    Can you find the moon in this picture?
    Entrance to Davis HarborVery calm conditionsFirst sunset after we left Exuma

    Eleuthera!

    May 5 on the Bahamas ⋅ 🌙 25 °C

    Today was our first real travel day on the boat, we left Great Exuma and traveled 80 miles due North to Davis Harbor in Eleuthera. Most of the trip was in water 5000-6000 feet deep, not much to see along the route, but we saw flying fish!

    A long delay this morning (and afternoon) because we were waiting for a package, so we didn't get underway until after 2pm. We anchored at about 7:30 and watched the sun set, and cooked some dinner Tomorrow we'll have to get an early start so we can enjoy more of the day.    Read more

  • Dave KnappBringing the boat homeTraveler
    I know that feeling!Wrecker'sThe narrow cut

    Spanish Wells, Eleuthera

    May 6 on the Bahamas ⋅ 🌙 25 °C

    Our second day of travel started with a delicious oatmeal breakfast prepared by Tyler. He's been making breakfast every day with the meager supplies we have on board. We then filled up with gas for the next leg of our journey (thankfully I asked before filling the boat if he could take a credit card, because he said "yes" but we would have to wait there 4 hours until the restaurant opened because they have the CC machine! So we depleted most of our cash on just enough gas to get us safely to Spanish Wells)

    We did 78 miles today and it was a beautiful trip, shallow turquoise waters and beautiful beaches. We had to pass through a narrow cut that looked treacherous on the map but turned out to be quite safe and easy.

    Spanish Wells is a cute little town with a few restaurants and golf car rental places. We had a nice lunch (Mahi fish tacos) at Wrecker's which allows you to dock for free while you eat. Afterwards, we walked the marina admiring the other boats before gassing up again and anchoring in a cute little bay with surprisingly good snorkeling where we will spend the night tonight.    Read more

  • Dave KnappBringing the boat homeTraveler
    Abaco island is currently on fire, literally!

    Marsh Harbour, Abaco

    May 7 on the Bahamas ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    We made a brief stop to snorkel this morning at the northern tip of Eleuthera in an area of shallow reefs known as the "Devil's Backbone." We saw many colorful fish and coral varieties and even a large lobster. A stingray swam right under Tyler. We were warned of strong currents in the area, so we tethered ourselves to the dinghy with rope and drifted with the current. That allowed us to hop back in and get back to the boat without having to swim against the current, that would have been a grueling swim.

    Then, 240 miles after leaving Exuma, we finally made it to the Abacos, the northernmost islands of the Bahamas, and what a beautiful place this is! We ate lunch in a cute little town called Little Harbour where bronze sculptures line the narrow little street and small island charm is abundant. After lunch we went snorkeling at Sandy Cay, which boasts an excellent reef with many fish and a stunning variety of coral. Tyler spotted a sea turtle who let us swim with him(or her) for about 100 yards. We wish we had an underwater camera!

    From Sandy Cay, we could see a large wildfire burning on the main island, sounds like it has been burning for about a week and crews from the US and Bahamas are working to get it under control. It is close to the airport so we hope it doesn't interfere with flights in and out because Tyler, Jessica, and Kevin are all flying though that airport this week.

    We decided to spend the night in Hopetown harbour on Elbow Cay, and watched the sunset beside the famous Hopetown lighthouse. Now we're getting the boat ready for her next guest, Jessica! She flies into March Harbour tomorrow and we will be picking her up around lunchtime, very excited!    Read more

  • Dave KnappBringing the boat homeTraveler
    Marsh Harbour
    Little HarbourWe did a short hike in Little HarboirA blowhole called the "Dragon"The old lighthouse ruinsThe crewHopetown Harbor

    End of the road...

    May 10 on the Bahamas ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    It is with a heavy heart that we have decided to end the trip early. When Jessica and I parted with Tyler in Marsh Harbour yesterday, we went just 10 short miles over to Hopetown to spend the night. Just as we entered the harbor, the starboard engine sounded a high temperature alarm. I killed the engine immediately and limped to a mooring ball on the other engine. A quick assessment of the problem revealed coolant in the oil pan....almost certainly a cracked engine block. This is a repair that might take a couple weeks in the US, but more likely 2 months in the Bahamas.

    So we decided to sell the boat "as is" here in the Abacos, and hope we find a buyer who will bring her back to her former glory.

    Jessica and I will fly back to CT with as much of her cargo as we can pack in our bags and mourn our loss, finally answering the question, "what could go wrong?"    Read more

    Trip end
    June 1, 2025
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