The next stop on our tour de Abacos was Elbow Cay and the charming settlement of Hopetown but we almost turned back. The stormy weather had cleared somewhat but the wind remained and we had a very fast sail to the Island. Our approach was dead down wind and with two reefs in the Main and Head Sails we were still doing over 10 knots. Once again we were faced with a relatively narrow passage into the very protected bay of Hope Town and after dropping all sails we found we  were still travelling at at over 5 knots with the wind just pushing on the mast, rigging and hull. With a good size following sea our ability to escape the entrance should things get dicy was vastly diminished as we’d have to turn back into the wind with very little forward speed. Almost as we entered the channel a large barge came around the corner, throwing up huge plumes of spray as it fought the oncoming waves. There wasn’t enough room for two boats of our combined width so we had to quickly abort our attempt. Eventually we made it in and gratefully picked up a mooring in the back of the bay.

Hometown is another Loyalist Settlement and is famous for its lighthouse which is one of only three remaining lighthouses in the world that still use a kerosene lantern. The light is turned mechanically by a slowly falling weight which turns a bunch of cogs much like a clock. The counterweight has to be winched up manually every few hours so the lighthouse is fully manned every night. There is free access to the lighthouse during the day but a few days before writing this we read that some American teenagers who were part of a powerboat regatta vandalised the lighthouse, throwing away some critical components. The components have been returned but it sounds like access is now closed forever as the lens and other parts are irreplaceable should they ever be damaged.

The town itself is really pretty and we spent a few days just relaxing and socialising with other sailors.

On leaving Hope Town we were once again being stalked by a weather system and this one seemed to have everyone’s attention. With a few days before the weather turned again we moved further Southwards through dozens of Cays and shifting sand banks to some great diving grounds but the wind and waves were making it hard to realise the full potential of this area.

As the weather worsened we ran for the nearest safe anchorage, Little harbour which is famed for having not much else than a beach bar called Pete’s Pub and an Art Gallery! With an entrance channel depth of only 1.5m this is quite a restricted place for keel boats and even for us the first time in was nerve wracking, especially as you need to stay very close to some cliffs to stay in the deeper water. We were later to do this entrance again at night with huge rollers crashing into the cliffs but the first time is always the scariest!

Little Harbour has an amazing amount of turtles around and it seemed that every time we looked over the water there was one surfacing. Meanwhile the low pressure system above us deepened and then became the first named storm of the season, Tropical Storm Anna. Apart from dramatic clouds, wind and lots of rain it wasn’t much of an event for us but but I know some other boats weren’t in such a cozy place as us and got hammered.

Little Harbour was to be our last stop in the Abacos, from here we would sail on the Island group of the Eleuthera’s. As the trade winds are often right on the nose for this stretch we hoped for a suitable weather window when the wind swung off the back of Tropical Storm Anna. The window was short and would only last overnight so at sunset we set off for an overnight passage. Negotiating the narrow cut in the outer reef, we were hit by some of the biggest waves we’ve experienced so far. The storm may have passed but the remaining North Atlantic swell was very uncomfortable and after an hour everyone was feeling pretty off. We decided that an all night passage in those conditions would probably be quite miserable so back we went, surfing waves through the outer reef and negotiating the channel back into Little harbour by GPS track alone. The next morning things had calmed off quite a bit and although we no longer had any wind to sail by the trip would be so much nicer.

And so we leave the Abacos and head to the  Eleuthera’s.