As we left Schooner Bay, right after Chris Parker's SSB weather broadcast, we confirmed that two of the channel marker buoys were, as we thought while coming in, definitely missing. We later spotted one of them three miles south of where it should be and called it in to the Schooner Bay staff. By then, we were sailing a fast broad reach, at near hull speed in 20 knot winds, over the sea bed that was two miles below us. By 2:00 we were racing through the cut back onto the banks at Little Egg, completing the 43 mile passage in a little over 6 hours.

I approached the once delightful harbor at unihabited Royal Island with some trepidation. The last time I was there, six or seven years ago, work had already begun on a big mansion/golf complex. Outside the harbor we passed what appeared to be some sort of beach lodge with tiki huts, actually quite attractive but looking deserted. Inside the harbor, nothing had changed! There were a few abandoned pieces of earth moving equipment and construction shacks but no activity. That night, the only visible lights were from the few anchored boats. Apparently, the development project went bust. I'm sure that's only a temporary stay of execution but it's still the same old Royal Island for now.

We spent much of the next day in nearby Spanish Wells, a town dominated by its impressive and lucrative fishing fleet. I faxed a copy of my cruising permit to a customs broker further south, in Rock Sound, so I could have some spare parts shipped to me there. We're going through zincs for our expensive Max-Prop propeller much faster than I would like. When we were done in town, we moved over to the little cay called Meek's Patch for the night.

Continuing south, we sailed down wind to Current Cut, caught the last of the flood through the narrow, deep opening, then beat our way back toward The Bogues and Glass Window in 15-20 knot easterlies. There's a nice little beach just below Glass Window, marked by two rocks known as the Twin Sisters, where we anchored for the night. Should I make anything of the fact that the names of rocks, when they have a gender, and nearly always feminine?

Today we sailed around the point to Gregory Town which once was dominated by large pineapple farms. That's mostly gone, we couldn't even buy a pineapple in town. The tiny harbor is still picturesque, barely room enough for one anchored boat, with the old stone church next to the dock.

We didn't stay long but headed further down the coast, a beat all the way, to Hatchet Bay. The government provides free moorings in the nearly enclosed harbor. At least one even had a pennant attached - a polypropylene hawser nicely knotted up and sitting on top of the ball. We got it sorted out and rowed into town. Alicetown is bigger and neater than I remember it. It must be 40 years since I was last here, when there was a charter company that had a Morgan 38 I took out for a couple of weeks. The charter outfit is long gone but there are some nice new restaurants. We're at one of them now, The Front Porch overlooking the harbor, for happy hour and Internet access.

It looks like we'll be in Rock Sound in southern Eleuthera for Christmas. That's when the big Junkanoo celebration is held, starting Christmas night and going well into Boxing Day. It's a great party.